Mantra Has Sailed--Finally!

On Saturday morning (May 21), Peter and I got up early and worked flat out until after 2 p.m. getting Mantra ready to accomodate guests and to sail. Our friends Lori, Germán and Elizabeth arrived just in time for all of us to attend Safe Harbor's barbecue by the clubhouse. No one had had lunch yet (and Peter and I had only had small containers of yogurt for breakfast), so everyone was famished. We enjoyed sitting on the deck, admiring the view and enjoying the breeze on that hot and humid afternoon.

After lunch, we got their gear on board and got ready to sail. What a delight! After we motored down the Tred Avon River, we were able to kill the engine in the Choptank River and sail properly in a 10-12 knot breeze, achieving 5-6 knots of speed. It is so, so pleasant when the engine is off and it is possible to hear the wind in the sails and the boat skimming through the water. We were out for 3 hours, returning in time to have dinner at Doc's Sunset Grille. We each had a different meal and all the food was delicious. Unfortunately, the best of the sunset was over when we arrived, but we still enjoyed dining right by the water. (Aside: I have to wonder why beverages were served in plastic glasses and the flatwear was also plastic. This makes no sense environmentally.)

Sherri and Germán in the cockpit

Lori and Elizabeth in the pilot house

Germán and Lori

Peter at the wheel

Lori, Germán and I played a game of Farkle (Lori won!) before going to bed. Peter and I slept in the pilothouse; the temperature was in the low 70's. It was quite pleasant except for a car alarm going off somewhere nearby for about half an hour right after we lay down and the fire department siren blaring around 2 p.m. Who knows what that was all about!

The next morning, after breakfast of scrabbled eggs, toast and fruit, we set off on a bicycle ride through town and out into the country where the corn is about 8 inches high in the fields by the road. Where there was not corn, there were marshes or small woods. Interspersed among these were large country homes surrounded by several acres of land each. The woods provide an inkling of what the vegetation looked like in this area before vast tracks of trees were felled to clear land for agriculture. Peter and I were on fat-tired bikes that we borrowed from the marina, while the others were on their road bikes. Although the scenery was pleasant it was not spectacular, and Peter and I decided to turn back after just three miles, and Elizabeth accompanied us because the pollen in the air was aggravating her allergies. When we return to the boat, Elizabeth set off in the kayak to explore. Lori and Germán returned just as she was setting off, arriving back earlier than expected because the main road was more and more of the same and the side roads had no shoulder for bicyclists to use. Lori was up for kayaking with Elizabeth but she seemed content to be off on her own. The four of us lazed around on deck enjoying the breeze on that hot day. After a while, Lori and I roused ourselves to make lunch; I reheated black bean soup I had made earlier in the week and Lori quickly put together an appealing and flavorful salad with produce she had prepared in advance. The meal was as good, we felt, as any that you could get in a gourmet restaurant. 

Elizabeth kayaking

We saved room for dessert. After they packed up their bikes and the car, we walked the short distance to Scottish Highlands Creamery, where we pondered over the wide selection of ice creams and toppings and finally ordered sundaes. Sitting in the shade, we took our time appreciating the textures and vibrant flavors of our treats. 

Germán, Elizabeth, Lori, Sherri and Peter at Scottish Highlands Creamery

After Lori, Germán and Elizabeth left to return to Washington, Peter and I rested for a while. I read while he took a well-deserved nap. He has worked almost continuously for over a month now on Mantra. Finally, I decided I needed to accomplish something, so I gathered up our laundry with all the sheets and towels and went to the clubhouse. After I put the first two loads in the washing machines, I nipped over to the swimming pool and immersed myself in the cool water. The temperature by that time of day was around 90 degrees F and the humidity was hovering around 70%, so the pool was a quite welcome relief. 

Peter joined me after a while. Gradually the temperature started to drop and the sky darkened from the west as a thunderstorm approached. We still had a couple of hours before it would hit us. Four loads of washing were done and about half of the clothes and linens were dry when it became apparent that time was quickly running out before a downpour would begin. I stuffed damp laundry in our large bag and Peter came jogging over to help push the dock cart more quickly. At a fast pace, we covered the distance (probably an eighth to a quarter of a mile) and arrived at Mantra just as the rain was beginning. We got the laundry down below and then sat in the pilot house and observed the storm as it intensified. Thunder roared ominously and a loud bang accompanied a lightning strike out over the water. (We hope that the large sailing vessel moored out there did not get electrical damage.) Right after that, the wind dramatically strengthened, and we hustled to get all the cushions down below. The gusts were blowing rain down the companionway. Rain was even entering the hatch on the inside of the pilot house leading to the aft cabin. We had to batten down everything. We are not sure of the strength of the gusts because we did not want to turn on the electronics in the storm, but the weather websites indicated gusts as high as 60 knots. The dock lines were straining and at times it felt as if we were in heavy seas. 

The storm played out after about two hours. It had greatly reduced the humidity, which was a great relief. We had a light dinner of quesadillas and enjoyed the stillness.

Today dawned clear and cool by comparison to the weekend; the temperature is in the low 70's and there is a pleasant, cool light breeze. I took some of the damp laundry to the dryer in the facility here in the boatyard (which is not as clean and nice as the one in the clubhouse at the main marina) and hung the other half of it on the lifelines to dry in the sun and wind. 

Lifelines as clothes lines

Peter is back to being busy. He has been down in the engine room working on the generator and electrical stuff. I climbed down earlier to help him monitor the current or voltage or amps or something like that for the battery combiner. Electricity and I have a strange relationship. At least some of the time I seem to be electrically neutral and magnetically charged. As I held the sensor on one of the screws at the end of a wire, I could feel a strong magnetic pull between the sensor and the screw, even though I was holding the plastic casing. It didn't happen with Peter. This is not the first time we have noticed that I am a strange phenomenon. Years ago when Matthew was young, we visited a science museum and there was a demonstration about electrical circuits. Members of the audience were invited onto the stage to form a chain by holding hands in order to conduct electricity from one end of the stage to the other, where a light bulb was supposed to light up. It did not. Everyone, including the museum demonstrator, was baffled. I don't remember why I sensed I was the problem, but when I got out of the line, the experiment worked. Bizarre!

Peter and I are both hungry, so I need to make lunch now. Later this afternoon, he will get in the bosun's chair and ascent the mast to install new sheaves, with me controlling the halyard to raise and lower him. We also need to determine why the depth sounder was not working when we sailed on Saturday. Luckily, we were in well-marked channels in an area where we have sailed before, but both of us still felt nervous without the depth display working.