Trips Archives

April 17, 2022April 17, 2022

Celebrating on Jost Van Dyke BVI

Jost Van Dyke is known for two bars, the Soggy Dollar at White Bay and Foxy’s at Great Harbour. Last week we moored at Cane Garden Bay and after visiting the Callwood Distillery, we got ready to leave for Jost Van Dyke. It was literally just across the bay, so it only took us about 35 minutes to get there.

The place to anchor and grab a mooring ball is Great Harbour. Scott had hook duty and we grabbed the mooring on the first try. We did have a little trouble reading numbers on the balls, but luckily ours was legible . Once again, Ben had gotten up at 7am and reserved the ball and it was one of the last ones available.

From Great Harbour you can either take your dinghy to White Bay, take a water taxi or take a land taxi. While you will see boats anchored below, they were simply there for the day. The bay is not protected at all.

Off to The Soggy Dollar

Our crew took the dinghy to White Bay and we did get a little wet on the ride. The trip only takes about 10 minutes, so it’s not a bad ride at all. When you pull up to the beach, you’ll be amazed by how white the beach is!

You do want to make sure to pull up your dinghy as far as you can on the beach and then use your anchor to secure it. We saw a few dinghies trying to float away. There is a lot of activity at White Bay. There are tables and umbrellas for lunch, there’s the shop, the bar and other restaurants too.

Buy a drink at The Soggy Dollar Bar

Did you know you can order someone a drink as a gift at the Soggy Dollar ahead of time? Ben and Maria bought Scott a drink before we left on the trip. When he arrived, he had to find his name on the sheet and bring the sheet to the bartender. How fun is that?!

We only spent about two hours at the Soggy Dollar after grabbed lunch and had a few pain killers. It was time to go back to the boat and enjoy the water as it was nice and calm.

None of us had been on a paddle board before and Ben decided to give it a try. After he fell off a number of times, he suddenly was a pro. He cruised all of over the harbour!

A few things to note about the Leopard 433 PC. As I mentioned earlier, this cat was set up as an owner’s version. This means the starboard side is a full suite and the port side has two cabins that share a head. The head is very narrow, so if you think you can easily put four adults on that side, think again. The boat comes with towels, but it does not come with any amenities, like soap, etc. So we grabbed some from showers at The Moorings base. Imagine showering under these conditions? it was so beautiful!

Dinner at Foxy’s

We headed to Foxy’s around dusk and there was plenty of room at the dinghy dock.

Foxy’s has a great shop and an outdoor bar. We had arrived early for our dinner reservations, so we enjoyed a cocktail and put up a couple of Boating Journey stickers. While Maria and I shopped, Ben and Scott explored. Scott did not put on bug spray and he got eaten alive – you need bug spray here!

They have a great menu with some classic Caribbean dishes. While we were enjoying dinner, Foxy himself stopped by to say hi!

A few nights ago, we had noticed a bunch of tarpon swimming under the boat at night. So we decided to bring them some left overs and they went to town on them!

Birthday breakfast for Scott

The following morning, was Scott’s birthday, so we made him stay in bed, while we made an attempt to decorate the boat. While we were decorating, a local stopped by selling homemade empanadas for $5. His mom makes them fresh every morning for the cruisers.

Ben’s birthday was in a couple of weeks, so we had them both open their gifts together.

Before we headed back to shore to look for breakfast, the guys needed to figure out why one fresh water tank was still full. The Moorings do provide an operations manual for each vessel and low behold we found our answer (I don’t remember what it was, but I want to say, the switch needed to be moved over to share).

Foxy’s during the day

The night before, we had brought our old license plate from The Wine Alley to hang, but we didn’t have any nails. So we brought it back the next day to hang with zip ties. As we were tying off the dinghy, Foxy came out to greet us again. What a fun birthday surprise for Scott!

We found a great spot to hang the license plate and then headed off to find breakfast. Be sure to look for it the next time you’re at Foxy’s.

At the main dock, there is a custom’s shack and a welcome board for those arriving by boat.

It was difficult to find breakfast, as there is really only one place to eat – Christine’s Bakery! She makes great empanadas and you can order egg sandwiches. However, she would have to cook those and she didn’t seem thrilled with the idea. LOL

Walking back from the bakery, you could still see much of the hurricane destruction.

While we were only on Jost Van Dyke less than 24 hours, it was all that we needed. This is a party destination, so unless that’s all you want to do, we recommend heading to your next destination. It was pretty cool that we got to meet Foxy in person too!

Next week, we head to Norman Island and the infamous Willie T’s, so be sure to tune in! As always, thank you for following our journey! We have so much planned over the next few months now that we are living in Florida, so we are very excited to share that with you. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel (link below) and follow us on social @BoatingJourney #BoatingJourney.

Cheers, Scott and Ally

April 7, 2022April 9, 2022

Heading to Saba Rock BVI

Finally it was departure day! Our crew enjoyed hot showers at the Moorings marina and grabbed some breakfast early on Sunday before heading to Saba Rock for our first night at anchor. Ben got up each day at 7am and reserved our mooring ball with the BoatyBall app and for this visit, he got the very last ball available. This will not the be first time this happens.

While moored in the marina, the Moorings keep the dinghies tied off to the front of the boats. When you leave the port, the dinghy floats underneath the catamaran towards the stern so you can put it on the davit. That seemed like a pain, so Scott and Ben managed to bring it around while we were in the slip and get it up on the davit.

The trek to Saba Rock was easy and pleasant the entire way. We had 20 knot winds from the south east and the Moorings 433 Powercat did great. Our journey took us just about an hour and a half going 14 knots at 2800 RPM (which seemed high to me). Having never grabbed a mooring ball before, the four of us were a little nervous.

Ben had hook duty and then Maria & I were on line duty for each side. Before we left the port, we got our mooring lines ready on the boat. While there are cleats on the bow of the boat, you never use those for a mooring ball; instead use your cleats at the forward position on the port and starboard side of the boat. We caught the hook right away, but lost it quickly as the wind moved us forward. Scott threw it in reverse and we tried again, this time nailing it. We were officially moored at Saba Rock.

Exploring The Baths

The four of us hopped in dinghy leaving Saba Rock and headed to Leverick Bay just a short dinghy ride away. From there we parked the dinghy at what appeared to be the dinghy dock, walked a few steps and found Cyril who owns Cyril’s Taxi Service.

He gave us a quick tour of eastside of the island which included a stop at the very top.

Once we arrived at The Baths, we decided to grab a quick bite at the Mad Dog sandwich shop. The BLTs were fantastic! Also at the top, you will find shops and a restaurant that offers a pool. We had drinks after exploring The Baths and they were much needed.

When molten volcanic rock cooled just off the coast, it formed the gigantic granite boulders now known as The Baths. It is easy to buy your ticket when you arrive. We didn’t know that our National Parks Permit would get us in, so we didn’t bring it. But at $3.50 per person, we were happy to contribute. Our crew followed the main trail down to the beach, where we came upon more shopping. There are signs directing you where to go and folks were tell us to go right and start the trail clock-wise. Instead our crew went left, thru the Caves first and then onto Devil’s Bay.

There’s an infamous shot of The Baths and somehow, Scott and I failed to capture it. It was pretty crowded when we were there, so it was probably because of the people. These photos don’t do The Baths justice. They were so big and impressive. Be sure to watch our YouTube video below for the full tour.

We found the trail back up the hill to be much easier from this direction, than if we would have taken the stairs we used when we arrived. The entire exploration took us about an hour and a half.

Saba Rock & Bitter End Yacht Club

Ben made us dinner reservations at the Bitter End Yacht Club the day before (highly recommend you plan ahead). We tried getting into Saba Rock for dinner, but they were full. Instead, we took the dinghy over for drinks to explore this famous rock, before heading to the Bitter End. Be aware, that the dinghy dock is jam packed! It may look like there’s no room, but they will squeeze you in!

Saba Rock was packed with people and it was difficult to get service. We were lucky to get a round of drinks. They do have a very nice gift shop and all four of us bought a shirt.

After exploring all day in the hot sun, our crew was hungry and ready for dinner. The Bitter End Yacht Club is a 5 minute dinghy ride across the channel from Saba Rock. They just reopened after Hurricane Irma destroyed it years ago. The food and service was amazing and we’re so glad we swapped Saba Rock for the Bitter End Yacht Club for our first evening.

We can’t wait to come back and spend more time here. Just being at anchor in this paradise was heaven!

We were almost killed on our first night

As I mentioned above, the BEYC is about a 5 minute dinghy ride across the channel. Here’s what it looks like:

During the day you will find all kinds of traffic, including ferries.

Our crew learned a brutal lesson on our first night of the charter. We left BEYC around 9:30pm and hopped in the dinghy with our goodies. Because we never travel at night at home, it didn’t occur to us to grab a flashlight or turn on our phone lights so others could see us. As we were traveling across the channel in the pitch dark, we suddenly saw a 30′ yacht tender coming straight at us! He was going about 15 mph from Saba Rock (too fast!) and we started screaming “Hey! Hey!”, but they couldn’t hear us. At the very last second, we diverted and they saw us, coming within 3 inches of slicing our boat in half. The wake their boat created when that happened completed soaked us and we were all very shaken up. Thank God, no one was hurt – it was truly a miracle!

Here’s the yacht tender the next day.

Needless to say, we always had a light if we traveled at night. Our first night saved and we were anxious to start our next leg of the journey. Tune into our next blog, as we head to Cane Bay and explore Monkey Point.

As always, thank you for following our journey. As I type this, I (Ally) am actually living in Florida full-time, so subscribe to the blog and vlog (link below) for an update on that journey. You can follow us on social @BoatingJourney #BoatingJourney

Cheers, Scott and Ally

March 27, 2022May 30, 2022

Arriving into the British Virgin Islands

On February 25, 2022, Scott and I finally arrived in the British Virgin Islands after a week of testing and waiting. We took a red eye flight from Seattle to St. Thomas, via Miami. The total travel time was about 12 hours. Our flight had been changed a few times, arriving into St. Thomas later than we had expected. As a result, we chose not to take the last ferry to Tortola as we might miss customs. Instead, we booked a hotel at the Windward Passage hotel, which The Moorings recommended. It’s located directly across the street from the Charlotte Amalie Ferry Terminal.

I will say the location was great, but the rooms were not very clean. Good enough for one night though. After checking in, we were hot and hungry, so we headed down the main boulevard to find dinner. Lucky for us, we stumbled upon the Green House. We grabbed a view table and made ourselves right at home. The food and service was fantastic and a restaurant we would recommend in the Virgin Islands.

Heading to the British Virgin Islands

The following morning, we had a reservation at 9am to head to Tortola. We checked our bags and then grabbed breakfast next door to the ferry terminal at the Petite Pump Room. Just like last year, the service is a bit slow, so plan accordingly. There are three ferries that work out of this terminal and we had reservations on the Road Town Fast Ferry.

Just like last year, this ferry had an upper deck. The weather was great, so we were happy to grab a seat up above and enjoy the view.

The ride takes just under an hour. When you to the Tortola Ferry Terminal, you can either scan their QRcode to get tested for covid at the terminal, or show your negative test results at the check-in desk before customs. Scott and I got thru customs and immigration within 20 minutes. Maria and Ben had arranged for a taxi to pick us up and they were waiting for us when we arrived.

The Moorings British Virgin Islands Base

The base is about 10 minutes from the ferry terminal, so it’s a quick trip.

The front desk is located in an open air lobby and they have a few shops around the base.

Check-in for the boat was not until 4pm at the earliest, so we stowed our luggage in the large room next to the lobby.

From there, we went to the bar on the base and grabbed a drink and a quick bite to eat.

Provisioning in the Virgin Islands

When our crew put our provisioning list together, there were a few items we knew we had to get locally. Luckily the Rite Way grocery store was a short walk away.

As we mentioned in our video, we chose to have The Moorings deliver the heavy stuff like bottled water, wine, beer, vodka (mostly our beverages).

I had noticed that many provisions had been sitting in the sun while we were walking around the base waiting, so I was anxious to see how ours would be. We ended up “hanging out” at the base all day and in hindsight, I wish we would have explored Tortola during the day.

We checked with the desk right at 4pm asking if our boat was ready and she said “no, in fact, you may not get your captain’s review tonight”. That made me raise my eyebrows, as we were paying almost $1100 for a sleep over so we could take off first thing in the am. Instead of being nasty, I pleaded with them and finally at 5:30pm our boat and captain were ready! Yea.

As soon as we got on board, I started to put the food away. Sure enough some of the lunch meat was warm and not edible. Bummer.

On Board “Cool Change”

Our Leopard 433 PC was named “Cool Change” and was a 2020, so we were surprised we got a newer boat when we were scheduled to get a 3-5 year old boat. I will say the boat was in fantastic shape, but the heads did stink. We’re thinking the heads must have used salt water and that’s why they stunk. During the review, we found a few things, so a technician came down to fix them right away. Just like last year, I recorded his review, so we could easily go back and see what he said. We highly recommend this, especially when it comes to the generator and how to empty the holding tanks.

Quick Tour of the Leopard 433 PC

This Leopard 433 PC from Moorings is what they call an “owner’s version”. There are two types of catamaran builds: charter or owner. In a charter version, you have four staterooms, two on each side with a shared head. On an owner’s version, the starboard side is all for the owner, so it has much more space. We gave Ben and Maria the owner’s version and then used the extra stateroom for our luggage. It was tight, no doubt still.

The salon / galley offered lots of space for everyone!

We picked the aft stateroom on the port side, which was actually slightly bigger than the forward one.

The forward cabin also has another “berth” in the far forward V (see the pillow?). No thanks! I think most sailors use that for storage.

After putting everything away and unpacking, we were ready for dinner. The Moorings base has two restaurants, including one wood fired pizza restaurant. So the four of us grabbed a quick bite and came home with left overs for the next few days!

Needless to say, we were anxious to wake up and leave the next morning. However, we were still missing our inverter and we needed to go back to Rite Way and grab a few provisions, that they missed.

Stay tuned and see how our first day of cruising went in the BVI!

As always, thank you for following our journey! Please subscribe to our blog and our channel (link below) and follow us on social @BoatingJourney #BoatingJourney. Lots of exciting things are happening right now, so stay tuned!

Cheers, Scott and Ally

March 19, 2022March 20, 2022

We’ve Moved to Fort Lauderdale!

If you have been following our social media accounts, you may have noticed that Scott and I are on a new adventure. Well, it’s much more than a new journey – we actually have moved to Fort Lauderdale, FL. I accepted a position in the marine industry in Florida about a month ago and so we began packing our condo before we left for the BVI.

Moving to Fort Lauderdale

Scott and I visited Fort Lauderdale last July, but other than that trip, we haven’t spent any time here. I booked my temporary housing through VRBO and then picked an apartment via the internet only. So how did we decided where to live? Downtown Fort Lauderdale has a district called “Los Olas” along the riverfront and it is packed with restaurants and shopping all within walking distance.

Sonder at Society in Fort Lauderdale

I am staying at a Sonder property, called Society along the riverfront. It is a furnished apartment and offers all of the necessities I need to live. Scott flew down with me and stayed for the first week. If you know anything about us, you know we have never checked bags on an airplane. Needing to live for about five weeks on my own, we checked a number of bags and a box!

After traveling for almost eight hours, we finally arrived on Sunday night to the Society. The photos actually make it look a bit fancier than it really is. It has some odd features, including no towel racks, no toilet paper, no liquid dish soap or sponge. The complex is also packed with college kids visiting on spring break. Awesome!

The view from the balcony is awesome and very entertaining!

Enjoying Fort Lauderdale’s Riverfront

As a I mentioned, Los Olas is lined with great restaurants and it also has a grocery store within a few blocks. You can walk along the riverfront and get your steps in. After your walk, stop by a local bar and enjoy the scenery!

Be sure to stay tuned on this adventure and our upcoming British Virgin Island charter. There’s lots going on and soon I’ll be moving into our new apartment. As always, thank you for following our journey. Be sure to subscribe to our blog, vlog (link below) and follow us on social @BoatingJourney #boatingjourney.

Cheers, Scott and Ally

March 12, 2022March 12, 2022

Finally Heading to the British Virgin Islands

After three years of planning, Scott and I finally are heading to the British Virgin Islands. Thanks to the pandemic, our bareboat charter was postponed three times since 2020. We could have taken the trip in 2021, but the entry & quarantine requirements were too restrictive. Finally, a few months ago, the BVI government changed the requirements and removed the quarantine.

What Charter Company Did We Choose?

When we decided to do a bareboat charter, we wanted only a powerboat. That left us two options in the BVI, Marine Max and The Moorings. I reached out to both companies with inquiries and ironically I never heard back from Marine Max after a few attempts. So we chose The Moorings. Since our crew was only two couples, we picked the Leopard 433 PC.

I reserved everything online and spoke to our vacation specialist, primarily via email. When our original charter was postponed, The Moorings gave us a credit instead of refunding our money. In fact, a refund was never an option. However, they did lock in our pricing, which was great because the prices did go up significantly.

Let’s Talk Costs

A lot of people have asked us about the costs, so let’s break down the trip. I should mention that once you book an inquiry, The Moorings will send you a full quote before you pay. Our invoice looked like this:

5 Nights $6839 (reg $8000)
Sleep Aboard $1087
VSIR Contribution $8
Damage Insurance $345
Fuel $325 (we chose the fuel package so we wouldn’t have to fuel upon return)
Wi-Fi $125 (necessary to take the proctored covid tests)
BVI National Park Permit $25
Paddle Board Rental $140
Inverter $30
Winter Cruising Tax $120

Obviously you can see that things add up quickly. We had originally booked the Mariner Inn at the base for $300/night, but then our flight was scheduled to arrive later in the day on Friday and we wouldn’t be able to catch the ferry in time. As a result, we ended up reserving a room at The Windward Passage hotel in Charlotte Amalie, that The Moorings recommended.

Provisions & Extras

You have a few options for ordering provisions. You can order directly from The Moorings, you can use an outside source (click here for a list) or you can provision yourself at Rite Way.

Not knowing when our provisions would arrive to the boat and not having a way to store our perishables, we chose to have Moorings do our provisioning. They have a great portal and the prices were similar to what you would expect (and some were cheaper). They do offer a “starter kit” for $110, but after looking at the list, it included items we would never use like ketchup, mustard, etc. Our group chose to purchase what we wanted a la carte.

The boat did come with snorkel fins, but if you wanted snorkel masks or anything else, you had to order those as an extra. We ordered a paddle board from The Moorings and then some water toys from BVI Water Toys. Again, we were able to order everything online.

Testing & Portals

Just like last year , we had to take a covid test and upload to a portal. This year, was a bit more complicated. For starters, Scott and I flew to St. Thomas before arriving to the British Virgin Islands. We took a covid home proctored test five days before we arrived. The proctored process was super easy and convenient. After 30 minutes we uploaded our results to the USVI Travel Portal and waited for our approval. Another thing to note, is my first test was not usable. The adhesive was missing and they would not allow me to use it. Luckily, we had ordered lots of extras, so it was not a big deal.

If you use the Emed tests, you will get your test results via a pdf. That pdf will be password protected. It’s very important that you print a copy as a pdf (not save as) and rename it, before you upload it to the portal. My first submission to the USVI travel portal was denied because my test was not accessible. Once approved, we received a green QRCode allowing us entry into the territory.

On top of that, the British Virgin Islands required a negative covid test 48 hours prior to arrival and we were told they would not accept a home test. We found a local lab in Seattle that gave us our results in 15 minutes. There is no portal for the BVI, you simply need to bring your negative test results with you when you go through customs. The British Virgin Islands also had testing available at the airport and ferry terminals for $65/pp.

It’s Time to Leave for the British Virgin Islands

Tune in next week to see how our arrival process was for both the British Virgin Islands and The Moorings. Our goal for our blog and vlog, is to help other travelers using the lessons we learned during our first bareboat charter experience. As we have also mentioned, we have big changes coming in our personal lives, so be sure to subscribe and follow us on social media.

As always, thank you for following our journey. You can subscribe to our YouTube Channel (link below) and follow us on social @BoatingJourney. Cheers, Scott and Ally

January 30, 2022February 2, 2022

2022 Portland Boat Show

Last weekend, Scott and I attended the 2022 Portland Boat Show for the first time. This was really the first large in-person indoor show we’ve attended since the pandemic began two years ago. Not knowing what to expect, we stayed open minded. Thanks to Trey, with O’Loughlin Trade Shows, for providing us with media passes to the show. We wanted to make a weekend out of it, so we decided to take the Amtrak Train down to Portland.

We reserved coach tickets and we were surprised by how roomy the seats were. There is a “club car” that offers snacks, sandwiches, beverages and cocktails. If you sit on the side of the train looking west, you’ll get a nice water view for most of the trip. We didn’t know that and ended up looking east on the way down.

I love that train stations are so grand and full of history. You certainly won’t find an airport that looks like this!

My advice to anyone attending a show at the Portland Expo, is that you don’t need to stay near the Expo. The train station is downtown Portland and we took an Uber to the Courtyard near Hayden Island. There’s nothing near that area that is walking distance, so in hindsight, we wished we would have stayed near restaurants because we had to Uber to the Expo anyway.

The Portland Boat Show

Unlike the Seattle Boat Show, the Portland Boat Show is only indoors featuring boats under 35′. If you are looking for a runabout, a towboat, a fishing boat or personal watercraft, this show hasyou covered!

One of our favorite features of the show was the classic boat section. They had about twenty classic runabouts, dating back to the 1940’s including Chris Craft and Tollycraft models.

Check out this cool tourist boat! Maybe we check this out next summer?

There were not as many vendors as we expected, but we did run into a few that had some pretty cool things.

The first one was ewinch 2 and they were demoing an electric winch wrench. This wrench is lighter than a hand drill and really easy to use! Be sure to tune into our YouTube episode and see how easy it was for me to handle.

Crabbing and Clamming Made Easy

Scott and I don’t normally stop at too many of the vendor booths, but we stopped at CrabHawk and they were selling two cool things. First was the crab cracker tool called “Crack-n-crab”. Now, if you recall in one our Camano Island blogs, we discussed the two different ways to kill and cook crab. One way, is to boil them immediately before gutting them. Others like to kill them first, gut them and then boil them. The crab cracker tool is used for the latter method. Again, check out our YouTube episode for the demo (link at the bottom of this blog).

They were also selling the “Clam Gun”. Apparently, this “gun” works like a straw and when you shove the gun into the sand, with your thumb over the suction hole, it keeps all of sand and clams in the gun. Then you shoot it out and grab your clam. Who knew?

We arrived to the show at 10am and we were done by 11:30am, so you can do the show pretty quick. Scott and I toured two brand new cruisers from Jeaneau and Cutwater during the show. These were really well laid out and we’ll take you on a tour of both of them next week.

Exploring Portland, OR

Since we had time to kill on Saturday, we headed into Downtown Portland for lunch and to explore a bit. I used to live in Portland in the late 1980’s and hadn’t returned in years. We headed first to Huber’s for lunch, which is the oldest restaurant in Portland. Founded in 1879, Huber’s is a Portland tradition that has been serving up its famous specialty drink, Spanish Coffee, from its second location for 108 years. Huber’s Cafe was first founded as the Bureau Saloon in 1879 at SW 1st Avenue and Morrison Street. It moved to its present location – 411 S.W. Third Ave – in 1910.

After lunch, we decided to visit the Oregon Maritime Museum, which is located on an old river boat on the Willamette River. Scott and I were disappointed to discover it was closed. So we spent the rest of the afternoon, walking along the boardwalk and enjoying the fresh air.

In front of the steamship, was a pile of loose logs. As we looked closer at the garbage field, we started to find all kinds of things, including a boat, a dock, a cooler and then we decided to make game of it. What do you spot?

The boardwalk along the Willamette River is a working dock when they have festivals. In fact, Navy Ships will tie up to the board walk during the Rose Festival. Check out these cleats! To give you some perspective, these are about two and half feet tall!

Well, it was nice to get out and attend an in-person boat show even if it was for a short visit. The Seattle Boat Show starts this Friday and I’ll be working the show every day. If you are in the Union Marine booth, look for me (Ally).

As always, thank you for following our journey. Be sure to subscribe to our blog and channel for future updates on our search for our liveaboard boat. We’ve got some exciting things in the works for 2022, including our BVI bareboat charter in less than four weeks! Be sure to follow us on social too @BoatingJourney #BoatingJourney.

Cheers,

Ally and Scott

January 1, 2022January 1, 2022

What an amazing year 2021 was!

Though Scott and I didn’t buy a boat this year, we still had an amazing year in 2021. We figured out how to stay on the water and create some fantastic memories even without a boat of our own. The year started with the virtual Seattle Boat Show and luckily I’m in the boat business, so we still got to tour a few yachts.

In March, we took a ferry up to San Juan Island and stayed at Snug Harbor for a whale watching trip. While we didn’t see any whales, we saw lots of other wild life and cruising the San Juan Islands is always so beautiful.

The following month, we took another ferry ride to Whidbey Island to meet our God Dog, Soleil. We shared our story last April about how boats and dogs brought us together.

Cool & Unusual Boats

Throughout the year, we got up close and personal with some pretty cool boats. We started the year with a tour of the 1909 MV Lotus Edwardian Yacht, which is a historical yacht moored on Lake Union.

Scott and I rode on an electric Nautique GS22E tow boat on Lake Tapps and it was wild as you can’t hear the engine.

Every year, Seattle hosts the classic yacht show and now we are looking forward to next year’s event! So many cool old boats.

How do go boating when you don’t own a boat

As we got into summer, we got pretty creative on how we would stay boating. First we went sailing on Seattle’s Tall Ship on Elliott Bay, where Scott was able to get hands on.

Thanks to my job (Ally), we experienced the PNW debut of Sea Ray’s first 37′ Outboard cruiser on Lake Washington. This is such a cool boat and it has so many fun features!

Then we rented an electric Duffy boat on Lake Union! It was so much fun and affordable!

Maybe for 2022 we’ll rent a hot tub boat? Let us know what you think!

Our BVI Bareboat Charter Trip

In 2019, we booked our first bareboat charter to the British Virgin Islands which was set for March 27, 2020. Unfortunately, our group was the first one to be cancelled due to the pandemic. Originally, we moved the trip to October 2020, but the pandemic was far from over. So we moved it again to February 2021, only to learn that in order to arrive into the BVIs you would need four tests and quarantine for over eight days. This time we moved it to February 2022 and we are still on schedule for this trip! As a result, the four of us decided to keep our flights and visit the USVIs in April 2021 instead.

Scott and I visited all three territories: St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix. It was truly an epic trip! We took a catamaran to Buck Island, we rented a dinghy on St John and explored all of the islands.

What’s it like to live on a boat?

Scott and I need the experience of living on a boat, before we buy one. Though we owned a larger yacht, it wasn’t set up well for a liveaboard. Solutions? First, we interviewed a great couple, Scott and Laurie who live full-time on their 50′ Vista on Bainbridge Island. They shared some great info with us! Be sure to check out that video here!

Next we rented a tiny home for four days. That was a great trip and a learning experience. On a boat, you have separate “rooms”, but not in a tiny house. We actually survived and had a great time!

Then a couple of weeks ago, we rented a 50′ Ponderosa for the weekend. Another great experience living aboard. The weather was cold and wet, yet we had an awesome time!

Our New Year’s Resolution

Our resolution this year is to buy a boat! With inventory levels at an all time low, it may be another full year before we can find a boat, but we hope that’s not the case. We may have to buy another boat and keep our condo. We’ll see. Otherwise, we’ll continue our boat tours and figure out cool ways to go boating. If you think about it, we spent a lot of time on the water this year even without a boat.

In the first quarter of 2022, we’re attending the Portland Boat Show and the Seattle Boat Show. After that, we’re finally heading to the British Virgin Island and St. John. Stay tuned for that epic trip! There’s a lot we have to do in order to get into the country, so we will fill you in.

As always, thank you for following our journey! Be sure to subscribe to our channel (click on the video below) and follow us on social @BoatingJourney #boatingjourney.

Happy New Year Everyone!

Cheers,

Ally and Scott

December 25, 2021December 25, 2021

Gig Harbor Christmas Boat Parade

Every year, Gig Harbor has a Christmas Boat Parade in the harbor. Wanting to be a part of the parade, but we didn’t have a boat. Solution? We rented one instead. You can see the tour of the 1985 Ponderosa 42‘ MY in our last blog, which is located at the Gig Harbor Marina. Scott and I have been to Gig Harbor a number of times, both by boat and by land and we love this little town. If you haven’t been yet, put it on your list!

Our Ponderosa yacht was very cozy and had plenty of room for us to roam and entertain.

Our friends Ben and Maria (our BVI crew members) joined us on the boat so we could talk about provisioning for our upcoming charter in February. Since we checked in late around 4pm, our crew was hungry after we unloaded everything. There are lots of great restaurants in Gig Harbor, but most close up by 8pm (even on the weekends). For our first night, we picked the Brimstone PNW Smokehouse and it was amazing!

Each couple actually shared a combo plate (more food than you know what to do with) and I should have snapped a photo of their amazing barbecue platters. Instead, I got some great shots of dessert, which included a donut and a peppermint lava cake! The donut was the hit.

After dinner, we returned to the boat to relax and get caught up. Maria decided to bring a game and it was a riot! She took twenty lottery tickets and wrapped them in layers with plastic wrap. Then each player had 30 seconds to try and remove one using an oven mit. It was hysterical and Scott came out the big winner!

Staying on the Boat

The boat was very comfortable. It had been windy during the night, but we didn’t feel too much of it. Ben and Maria did experience the bumper hitting the bow a few times throughout the night. My only complaint was it was too hot in our room! LOL I didn’t think to turn off the heater before bed and the heaters work like a charm.

In the morning, we made a simple continental breakfast so we wouldn’t have to use any of the pots and pans. Since the boat is so close to the dumpster, we made a garbage run each time we left the boat, so it wouldn’t pile up.

Exploring Gig Harbor before the Christmas Boat Parade

The four of us headed into the heart of the town to do some exploring after breakfast. Our first stop is one of our favorite stores “For the Love of Spice“. You can read more about it in our previous blogs. They have a fantastic selection of spices, vinegars and oils. In addition, they have some awesome gifts!

One thing I love about Gig Harbor, is everything seems to be a nautical theme, including the kids rides.

Gig Harbor does not lack cute shops. Maria loves to shop and this was right up her alley. We found so many unique and original gifts.

Gig Harbor Christmas Boat Parade

Our boat was docked in the first slip and we were able to walk to the end of the dock and look out over the harbor. So it was perfect that the Gig Harbor Christmas Boat Parade would go right by our dock!

After spending the day in town, we headed back to the boat to relax and enjoy some appetizers before the Christmas Boat Parade. Seems this guy had the same idea!

Unfortunately, we are not professional photographers and we don’t have the proper camera to take photos at night of boats in a distance. So these were the best we could capture (the rest were blurry). They had about 20 or so boats in the parade and they made a loop in the harbor.

Our other boating friends, Cory and Stacy came in to join us for dinner at El Pueblito Mexican Restaurant, which was fantastic! As a bonus, they stay open after 8pm!

Anytime you are away, on a boat and with friends, you are going to have a great time! This was another one of those weekends and Gig Harbor never disappoints. The four of us can’t wait for our bare boat charter trip coming up in the BVIs this February!

As always, thank you for following our journey! We hope to find a boat in 2022, so if you know any slips coming available, please message us. Be sure to follow our YouTube channel and subscribe for updates (see below). Find us on social @BoatingJourney #BoatingJourney.

Happy Holidays! Scott and Ally

November 21, 2021November 21, 2021

Exploring Olympia

In our last blog we rented a tiny house and spent the next few days exploring Olympia. Scott and I had no idea there was so much to do in Olympia! The tiny house is located on Henderson Inlet. Here the tides can change up to four to six feet, so you do need to watch the tide schedule.

The “tiny house community” has a club house (per se), where you can use kayaks, paddle boards and a paddle boat. There is a cement ramp, but you want to make sure you use the equipment during high tide or you’ll be stuck in mud. We were able to spend about an hour out on the kayaks.

The water was so calm and we had a harbor seal visitor too. Having this all to ourselves was so relaxing and nice.

Woodward Bay Conservation Area

Just north of the tiny house, is a large state park, Woodward Bay Conservation area. There are two parks in this area and one requires a Washington State Discovery Pass (which we do not have). So we checked out the other park, the Chehalis Western Trail. This trail is a paved trail that follows an old railroad route and is 21 miles long.

After about three miles of flat pavement walking, Scott and I got a little bit bored and turned around. We knew there was another trailhead in the parking lot, so we decided to check that one out. Who knew there was so much exploring to do in Olympia?

The Overlook Trail was an actual gravel trail and deep into the forest. There were lots of birds and plenty of sounds!

The trail itself is only about three miles and ends at an overlook at Henderson Inlet.

Exploring Swantown Marina

The following morning we decided to head back into Olympia for some lunch and for a walk along a trail through Swantown Marina. We had reservations for Swantown last year, but cancelled them due to the pandemic. This is an awesome marina!

The guest dock is a long linear dock (and there may be another next door) and they had great facilities throughout the grounds.

I love that they have recycling and garbage stations set up, along with a recycle drop off for motor oil.

The marina has beautiful grounds with descriptions of the plants throughout.

Exploring More in Olympia

After lunch, we did a little more research and found Priest Point Park just across the water from the marina. This park is over 314 acres offering four miles of trails.

There are two “sides” to Priest Point Park. We started on the west side and followed the one way road. Turns out this park allows overnight camping and this was a regular campground with shelters. The hike was pretty short and took us to a lookout on the point. Wanting to experience more of a hike, Scott and I crossed the bridge and headed to the east side of the park.

More of Priest Point Park

With a map in hand, we entered the trailhead to continuing exploring Olympia. The trail was dry and easy to follow. The scenery was fantastic and it was really so cool to be in a such a beautiful place just a few miles from the Capital.

Ellis Cove Trail

Be sure to check out our video episode below for a full tour. The photos don’t do it justice! Exploring this cool park in Olympia for about an hour, we wanted more! After completing the loop, we crossed the road again and this time entered the Ellis Cove Trailhead.

This particular trail is fairly steep with lots of steps, so be prepared! Looking at the aerial shot below, you will see the trails we took in order. Ironically, both the first and the third trail will bring you out to the cove and the sand bar.

The scenery is beautiful as you walk along the water, but be sure to keep an eye out for poison ivy!

I was impressed by all of the signage the park installed along the trail. This really made it interactive and educational.

Scott and I only walked to Priest Point and then turned back around. By this time, we had been hiking for three hours and we had experienced enough. We also found a short cut to the road, that didn’t require us to take 100 steps back to the trailhead. But the trail, does continue far beyond Priest Point.

After a long day of exploring Olympia and its parks, it was time to head back to the tiny house. Originally, we had planned on taking an Uber into town for dinner. But then when we realized we were so far off of the road, they would never find us. So we hunkered down, enjoyed our seafood fest from Olympia Seafood Co and had a wonderful night. It was truly a beautiful weekend.

This is a trip I would certainly do again and recommend to others. It offered relaxation, exploration and an opportunity to simply unplug and unwind. Next week is Thanksgiving, so we are taking the weekend off. We hope you and your families have a fantastic holiday.

As always, thank you for following our journey! Please subscribe to our blog and vlog (link below) for future stories. You can also follow us on social media @BoatingJourney #boatingjourney

Cheers, Scott and Ally

November 14, 2021November 17, 2021

Tiny House Living

Moving aboard a boat is similar to tiny house living, so Scott and I decided to rent a tiny house for four days to test our survival. We found the tiny house on AirBnB, which is located on Henderson Inlet down by Olympia, WA.

Exploring Olympia

Scott and I arrived a few hours before check-in, so we spent part of the day exploring Olympia, including the Capital and the Port of Olympia.

From the capital, we headed over to Percival Landing to check out a seafood shop and the restaurants along the pier. The Olympia Seafood Co reminded us of Wild Salmon Seafood at Fisherman’s Terminal and they have a wonderful selection of fresh seafood!

Tiny House

The tiny house is just off of Slater-Keeney Road and you follow a long gravel driveway down to the property. The place was very serene and peaceful, which we desperately needed. In addition, this tiny house comes with a large hot tub! We estimate this tiny house was about 150sq feet!

It also came with three cats and Scott is allergic to cats. They belonged to the neighbor, but they were at our door the entire weekend.

The host has appointed this tiny home with everything you might need, from spices, pots and pans to robes and slippers! We even received a welcome basket with a bottle of bubbly.

Everything in the tiny house didn’t seem tiny. The bathroom was full size, along with the refrigerator and oven.

The living area was cozy with a comfy couch and an electric fireplace. For the best tour, be sure to check out the video below.

Best Part of the Tiny House

Above the bathroom, there is a loft that you access with a ladder. Thank God, that is not where you sleep. Instead, the bedroom is located at the end of the tiny house on the main floor.

The bedroom also had a very large closet, which is where we stored our suitcase.

Enjoying the evening

We put all of our food away and relaxed on the deck with a bottle of bubbly. The view is amazing and birds flock to the inlet. It was a very relaxing and peaceful afternoon.

Just around the corner from the tiny house is another airbnb in the form of a trailer!

That evening, we cooked up my homemade spaghetti sauce and enjoyed dinner with a great bottle of wine.

Tune in next week, as we kayak on Henderson Inlet, explore local trails and check out Swantown Marina. As always, thank you for following our journey! Please subscribe to our blog and vlog to stay updated with our search for a liveaboard boat. You can also follow us on social @BoatingJourney #BoatingJourney. Until next time!

Cheers, Ally & Scott