JACKIE B III Going Loopy

  We were up at the crack of dawn, on our way to Cape May. You get some extra special blessings when you get up this early. Out on Delaware Bay there is a nuclear power plant. Mike, being a Nuclear engineer, had to get a picture. We saw navigational lights and BIG ships again. Since we were waiting for a weather window you can see all the other “Loopers” are also underway today. Cape May Ferry First Docktails Our Journey His compassion is new every morning. Great is His faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23).

Today our mood matches the weather. Mike is trying to track down a generator mechanic AND a generator.  The first mechanic he spoke with was not interested in such a big project at their time of the year when there is so much work available just getting boats back into the water for the summer.  He also told us that there are major supply issues just getting a generator. Luckily before we reached Chesapeake City Mike located a mechanic in Cape May and the mechanic was able to locate a generator.  Looks like we will be waiting in Cape May for the elusive generator and the installation.  We stayed on the north side of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal (C&D) Chesapeake City is on the other side. On this side of the canal there is a Bike path all the way to Delaware City. We were able to get a bike ride in which improved our moods immensely! In the morning we took a dingy ride across the canal to the historic town of Chesapeake City.  We met some “Loopers” and came back in the evening

   We left Baltimore to get a part for our windlass so that we could finally finish the repairs of the windlass and spend our first night at anchor. Alas that was not to be. After setting the anchor we found our our generator was on the fritz.  Actually, sadly its a goner. We ended up tying off to the gas dock, after calling the emergency number at Bowleys Marina resort.  This was a lovely place with very kind people that took very good care of us. Unfortunately we were pretty bummed out and don’t have any photos of the marina or the attempted anchorage. Our Journey “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” ‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭29:11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

What a special trip this was. We flew to Colorado for Mike’s best man, Ralph,  daughter’ wedding. You can see here the groom Luther, sweet Gail, Ralph and the bride Emily. When we arrived in Colorado the weather was beautiful in the seventies. This was the view from our VRBO we shared with Mike’s long time high school friends Scott and Pam. Hiking Day 1 Overnight that changed. Beautiful, but what about the outdoor wedding?!? Emily was not deterred and the ceremony was beautiful.  Wedding in a snow globe was a once in a lifetime event. As my children, former REI employees; told me there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing.  Here we are all dressed up for the wedding. Besides the snow made the hot tub that much more enjoyable. Walking sticks and knee braces enabled me to hang with everyone when we went out hiking in the Rocky Mountain National Park. The views were amazing ….and we saw lots of Rocky Mountain critters. This was an amazing shot.  We saw many cars pulled over

  We left Gibson Island on a sunny morning and made our way up to Baltimore. The city is a major shipping port and the ships and cranes were everywhere we looked. We passed Fort McHenry on our way into the harbor. This is where Francis Scott Key was inspired to write the Star Spangled Banner during the Battle of Baltimore in 1814. There is a lot of rich maritime history here. We took advantage of being in a big city.  Barbara saw a dentist, Mike went shopping and we caught a flight out of BWI to Denver to attend long time friend’s daughters wedding. Our Journey “There the ships go to and fro, and Leviathan, which you formed to frolic there.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭104:26‬ ‭NIV‬‬

  Gibson Island  is a private Island club that has been around for generations.  Our friends Michael and Phyllis have sponsored us so that we can stay here for a few days.  They even loaned us their car so that we can run to Annapolis for a few things. The marina is located on an isthmus that connects the island to the mainland. You can look up the Bay to the Bay bridge from the isthmus. View of Gibson Island from the boat Besides loaning us their car, their friends let us use one of their golf carts to tour the island.  Here's a video above of our drive around the island just before we headed for Baltimore. A beautiful sunset chased by a moonrise. Our Journey “He made the moon to mark the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭104:19‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Today we woke to more fog. It was supposed to lift by 8:00. It didn’t. Barbara kept watch out on the bow as we moved out very slowly, confident the fog would lift. It did not.  Barbara moved her watch inside as it was really cold and wet out there and we had very few crab pot sightings. But then we saw this pop out of the fog at about 18 knots. Very thankful for all the electronics we have on the boat.  Very spooky thinking about how the early settlers did this. As you can see it was still really foggy as we approached the Bay Bridge.              From a New Perspective Our Journey “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭30:21‬ ‭NIV‬‬