Trips Archives

June 2, 2020June 3, 2020

Ally learns how to fly our drone

Scott bought me a new drone for Christmas last year and believe it or not, I’ve never flown it. Time to learn! To be honest, I wasn’t nearly as nervous about flying the drone as I was learning to dock our boat.

We picked a small park at our marina to practice the basic maneuvers, then I flew it slightly over the water and marina. Though it can fly out of range a mile, I would never do that. One hundred yards is far enough for me. LOL!

What kind of drone to we have?

This isn’t our first drone, in fact eight years ago I bought Scott a drone which I thought was high quality and expensive at $500! But drones and cameras have come a long ways in the past eight years. Knowing we needed to have better quality videos, Scott decided it was time to invest in a good drone (plus our DJI Action and Pocket cameras). He spent hours researching and talking to other YouTubers and he decided on the DJI Mavic Air Fly More Combo. It came with tons of accessories and I’m still learning what they all are. (This page does include affiliate links).

The hardest part of learning to fly the drone, was that the screen is hard to see in the sunlight. If anyone knows of screen guards, etc that we should be using, please let us know. The controls were pretty easy – forward, backward, side to side, up and down, turn left, turn right. There’s a small dial on the front and that controls the angle of the camera. Our camera has a setting that won’t allow it to crash into anything.

When we took the drone out to film me docking, Scott couldn’t land the drone back into the boat, because we had the wrong setting on and it refused to land on a moving object. As a result, he had to land it on the dock and go fetch it. Over all, I think I did great – be sure to watch our YouTube channel / video (link below) and see how I did.

Family visit on Camano Island & a sad goodbye

The next weekend, we headed up to Camano Island to my family’s place at Tyee Beach since we hadn’t seen them in person since Thanksgiving! We stayed outside on the beach and practiced our 6′ apart distancing.

It was a somber day, as we finally decided to finally spread some of Mac’s ashes in Port Susan, where he loved to swim. Scott could throw the stick for hours and he would be in heaven. The funny thing is, he wasn’t a very good swimmer.

Since my family didn’t have the boat out on the water yet, we decided to spread his ashes at the shore line. It’s been three years since we said goodbye and it was still gut wrenching. Everyone raised their Corona beer (how ironic) as we toasted to our fur baby and shed a few tears.

Birds eye view of the beach – LITERALLY!

They have a family of bald eagles that live up in the trees behind the house. They are always looking for fish or crabs on the beach. Imagine our surprise when we were all hanging out talking about Mac, when an Eagle swooped down and grabbed (something?!). It was pretty cool and for the full footage, be sure to check out our YouTube video at the end.

I then flew the drone over the beach to practice my skills and check things out. It’s really beautiful up at Camano and especially on a calm sunny day! I only took video, so the images below are snippets from the footage. I’m still learning how to go back and forth from photo to video on the camera while flying.

Hoping for good times ahead this summer

These past few months have been so surreal and we’re all still trying to figure things out. We’re in the process of re-booking our bare-boat charter to the BVI’s this week and we’re also looking at other boating adventures. That’s why this blog and channel have always been about. To share our love for being on the water with all of you. As marinas slowly open up, along with popular destinations, we’ll see where the water takes us. Until then, stay tuned.

As always, thank you for following us! Be sure to follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram @BoatingJourney, so you can see our stories and get current updates on our progress. Also, check out our YouTube channel at @BoatingJourney and subscribe for future episodes. Cheers, Scott & Ally

April 21, 2020May 2, 2020

Boat life during self quarantine

April has been one of the driest Springs in many years and unfortunately, due to the self quarantine orders we haven’t been able to enjoy the weather. Scott and I have a list of projects we need to tackle on the boat, but with me being unemployed right now, we’re not spending any money.

Last week, we decided to stay on the boat for a few days to regain our sanity. We have no neighbors right now at the marina, so it was not only safe but actually a bit lonely. That’s been one of the hardest things about the quarantine, is the lack of socializing. Boaters are pretty social people and we love to mingle on the docks and share cocktails. Not these days.

But first, check the water pressure pump

Once we started staying on the boat a few months ago, we would be awaken in the night by the sound of the water pressure pump. Scott and I didn’t think anything about it, until a couple of other boaters we follow @MVWhyKnot and @Seabits_Steve both mentioned that they found leaks from this sound. UH OH.

So, we tore apart our bed to check and see if everything was dry. Sure enough it was.

Next, we checked the water heater – all was dry there too. After talking to a few people, the culprit is most likely the check valve on the actual water pressure pump and so we’ll probably need to replace that soon.

Day trip to Des Moines for diesel!

We found out earlier in the week, that Des Moines M arina was selling diesel for $1.74/gallon! That was worth the trip and so we headed out Thursday late afternoon. At 10 knots, it took us about 1.5 hours and it was a very comfortable and gorgeous trip.

By the time we arrived, the winds had kicked up a bit and there was a slight wait for the fuel dock. On top of that, it’s was not easy to navigate around the marina as we had to turn around at the end of the fairway. Luckily, we got in right after that.

This photo doesn’t do it justice, as there are no boats around. Imagine, a boat on all three docks plus more waiting near the breakwater and lots of wind.

As we headed back home, I texted one of our friends who lives in Burien and told her to look out for us. She then texted us a couple photos back! That’s one way to practice social distancing.

By the time we got back, it was time to relax and watch the sunset. It was a gorgeous night to be on the boat.

Scavenger hunt on your boat

I suppose you could arrange a scavenger hunt during the quarantine on your boat, but that’s not really what we did. Instead, I decided to go through all of the storage spaces and see what the previous owner left us. Wait until the video comes out and you’ll see everything we found!

I was amazed by everything we found including a macerator, impeller, anodes, filters, etc. It pays to go through the storage areas when you first buy a boat or even a year later.

While I worked on the inside, Scott gave the boat a much needed bath. Soon it was time to relax and enjoy our cocktails during high tide. With pollution being down, we were able to see the topography of Bainbridge Island.

Saturday evening on the boat

Scott and I hosted happy hour on the boat Saturday night, in true self quarantine fashion with three friends who you probably recognize from some of our trips (Randy, Matt and AJ).

Trying to support our local restaurants at the marina, we ordered dinner from Palisade Restaurant Saturday evening. Known as the place to go for special events, it’s surreal that they are now only serving curbside during the quarantine.

Celebrating my 50th birthday a few years ago 😉

While we continue to support both Maggie Bluffs and Palisade, we are disappointed that the last three times our orders have been wrong, missing or not very good. We understand it’s difficult to work under these conditions, but this is also a great time to wow people who have never patronized their establishments before.

Both restaurants are offering a limited menu and last weekend we ordered the Crab Louie and Stuffed Prawns, which would be fairly easy to carry back and eat on the boat.

This is a tough week for us, as we were supposed to be flying out for our bareboat charter trip to the BVI’s. Hopefully, we can reschedule that trip, sooner than later.

Cheers, Ally & Scott

March 27, 2020March 29, 2020

Our Catamaran Charter to the BVIs is Cancelled

In our last blog, we were somewhat confident that our bareboat charter trip to the BVIs next month would still happen. Who knew then, how drastically things would change over the next seven days as we dealt with the COVID-19 virus. While it has been the topic of the world, Seattle was not shut down yet. In fact, my office was still open and working as normal.

Then we got the notice from The Moorings, that the trip was officially cancelled. The four of us were definitely sad and disappointed, but it is the only solution to keep the islands safe. Being down and out about the cancelled trip, Scott and I decided to spend it on the boat and enjoy the sunny weekend.

Once again the sunset was amazing. Watching it and enjoying our cocktails, our worries seem to disappear, if only for a moment. We called Ben and Maria to talk about the cancelled trip and figure out what’s next. That’s when we decided that the four of us should head out of town on the boat for Saturday night to get away from it all.

Scott and I made a nice dinner on the boat and relaxed the rest of the evening (again, who knew then that there will be plenty of relaxing coming up?!)

Off to Port Orchard

I called Port Orchard and they had plenty of space. We left Seattle about 11am and I navigated us the entire way (until it came time to make the narrow entrance into the marina).

When we approached the narrow opening, another boat was leaving!

It was a perfect trip through Rich Passage and as we arrived, the fog lifted, blue skies appeared and sun came out to greet us! The marina wasn’t kidding about dock space – it was just us and two other boats.

We’re here, now what do we do?

The four of us headed into town and decided to get some take out at The Brickhouse to support them. This is normally a bustling restaurant and bar with live music. It was a bit surreal to have no one in there. I love this sign that hangs outside the bathroom door – it’s perfect for what’s going on right now.

We headed to the north end of town and walked along the shoreline. There we discovered a memorial dedicated to the US Navy and an actual torpedo!

The walking pathway runs along the main shoreline of Port Orchard, offering plenty to see along the way. We lucked out enjoying warm sunny weather.

All alone in Port Orchard

We pretty much had the marina all to ourselves.

The boat in front of us, appeared to be vacant and had an eviction notice on it. We weren’t sure what it was? Half sail, half power. Part metal, part wood. Strange.

The tall ship was beautiful and the crew were all busy working on the mast. Be sure to watch our upcoming video for the up close drone footage.

While it was only a short getaway, it was nice to be away from it all. Just a week later, the state issued a 14 day shelter order. Here in Washington, many of our boating friends and followers, actually headed out of town during the order. The question now remains, is that considered a quarantine? Can they go to the marinas? Cruisers around the world are also in limbo or stuck and can’t get into countries they’ve traveled to. No one knows the answer or what the future holds; all we can do is take this day by day.

I am now temporarily laid off and working on projects around the house, while Scott is working from home. Let’s just pray that this will end soon and life can go back to normal. The four of us hope to reschedule our cancelled trip before the end of this year. We have a lot of things going on with us, but with the current pandemic nothing is happening yet. Until then, stay tuned.

As always, thank you for following us! Be sure to follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram @BoatingJourney, so you can see our stories and get current updates on our progress. Also, check out our YouTube channel at @BoatingJourney and subscribe for future episodes. Cheers, Ally & Scott

March 11, 2020March 11, 2020

Finally boating after two months at dock!

Scott and I spent last weekend on the boat, so we could go boating after being landlocked for two months at the dock. Seattle has been experiencing some crazy, wild weather and Friday was one of those days. Not in the mood to deal with another wind storm, we opted to wait until Saturday to head to the boat. We had plans to go out and practice anchoring with our friends (who we’re chartering a bareboat with in BVIs) Ben and Maria on Sunday.

The weather was nice and dry at the marina when we arrived. But if you look closely at the photo above, you see a huge squall right in front of Scott. Wanting to catch the sunset, we quickly unloaded our gear and made a sunset cocktail. We were not sure if we would be able to see anything, because of the high tide, but we lucked out!

Crazy wild weather in Seattle

As we watched the amazing sunset, we couldn’t help but notice the darkness that was coming over West Seattle into DT Seattle.

Yet, it remained perfectly dry at the marina the entire time.

They had so much hail in West Seattle, it was still there the next day. My co-worker sent me this photo while we were watching the sunset!

Keto on a boat?

Since Scott and I both need to lose weight, we decided to try the Keto diet and we’ve been on it for a whopping week. Surprisingly, we’ve done pretty good eliminating carbs (with the exception of wine…LOL). I wanted to make something easy to cook on the boat, but also Keto friendly and I came up with Zucchini Lasagna. I used jarred marinara (look for one with low carbs and sugar) and then it just had a few ingredients. Slicing the zucchini was easy – be sure to follow my recipe and try to dry out the zucchini before you bake it.

We’ve only used the oven twice before and every time it FREAKS me out. The fact that you have to turn on the gas on the propane tank, then turn on the LPG in two places, then light a burner to bleed gas into the solenoid to the oven so that you can then use a lighter to light the oven, IS CRAZY. Obviously, I didn’t do it. LOL! This is a dumb question for cruisers – but do you actually use your oven when you are out crossing the ocean?

The lasagna tasted great. The only issue I had was it was a bit watery. Zucchini is mostly water, so you really have to be patient to release any moisture before cooking.

Good morning Elliott Bay Marina!

The weather forecast for Sunday was perfect. Winds were SSW 5mph, sunny and dry. We planned on leaving the marina around 11am and head to Port Madison to practice anchoring. While waiting for Ben and Maria to arrive, we decided to check on our anodes using our waterproof OSMO Action camera. We’ll have to go back and try again to get better footage, as we weren’t sure where we were under the boat. But by the quick check, all looks good.

Props still look shiny thanks to Prop Speed

While we were down there, we also got some close ups of the kelp crab hanging out on the piling.

After we played around with the OSMO Action camera, we then decided to fly the drone over the marina. The first flight didn’t record, so we sent it back up again. This was only our 2nd time flying it, so I think we did pretty good. Scott said, he was getting some disturbance from either airlines or another drone and was having some difficulty controlling the direction. At one point, it spins too fast in circles. LOL We’ll include the footage in our next YouTube episode, or you can check it out on our Facebook page.

Heading out to anchor on our own!

Since we have never anchored overnight and only anchored once last Fall, we needed to head out to practice anchoring with Ben and Maria. We’ll be completely on the hook in the BVI’s, but we haven’t ever moored or anchor, so we need all the practice we can get. In some ways, anchoring in the PNW can be harder (I think), because we can’t see to the bottom of the sea bed, it is muddy and full of kelp. At least in the BVI’s we can dive down and check the anchor if we have to.

Scott and I were trying to decided where to go and he suggested Blake Island so we can practice mooring and anchoring.

Then I reminded Scott that we don’t have a mooring line, nor do we have any idea how to catch a mooring ball. Better brush up on that on YouTube. So we headed off to Port Madison again for lunch.

The weather was perfect and we cruised over in about 40 minutes going about 9.8 knots. When we arrived, we headed north of the barge buoy which had about fifteen sea lions on it. The last thing we needed was for them to come over for lunch!

We anchored in about 30′ of water, which was actually tricky where we were. There’s a slight shelf off of Port Madison and as you approach the shore, it gets very shallow, then suddenly deep again. So you have to find the right spot to anchor. We noticed right away that the winds were blowing us towards shore and into deeper waters.

Ben and I were on the bow and using the foot windlass I started to lower the anchor, giving Scott arm signals as to the direction of the chain. Once it caught, we could tell right away, because the chain went taught. We then let out about a total of 120′ – we were the only ones in the bay, so we didn’t need to let out our full 5 to 1 or 7 to 1. Another successful anchor!

Time for lunch!

Once we knew the anchor was holding and secure, we headed down to the salon for lunch. You would have thought we had another party joining us with all of the food we brought!

The entire time we were eating, I kept looking behind us to the transom to see if one of the sea lions had jumped aboard. A guy in Olympia had his small sail boat destroyed by them!

The hardest thing I think I will need to get used to, is the swinging and swaying. I’m constantly looking around the entire time. Perhaps when we’re surrounded by crystal blue turquoise waters and not a bunch of noisy sea lions, I’ll be okay with it!

After a nice lunch, we headed back. We could see the weather was starting to turn over Seattle and we didn’t want to get stuck in it. So we kicked the engines into full (almost) throttle and headed back at over 18 knots!

The four of us still have a few things left to tackle for our trip to the BVIs including provisioning on-line with The Moorings. Hard to believe we only have 51 days until we leave! This has been a year in the making and we couldn’t be more lucky to being doing this epic trip with such great friends. We’re hoping to get together for one more review before we leave – stay tuned!

Be sure to follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram @BoatingJourney, so you can see our stories and get current updates on our progress. Also, check out our YouTube channel at @BoatingJourney and subscribe for future episodes.

As always, thank you for following us! We have some exciting things planned for this summer, so stay tuned! Cheers, Scott and Ally (Watch our full episode on YouTube – see below)

#BoatingJourney #BoatingLife

February 27, 2020February 27, 2020

Why we only vacation in the Caribbean every year

Here on the West Coast, most people travel to Mexico or Hawaii for their tropical vacations, but Scott and I only vacation in the Caribbean each year (except for one time we went to Mexico). It does take us a full day to get to our destination, but it’s worth it in the end.

Caribbean cruise — Jackie O’s love beach in Antigua

It all began when we honeymooned in Antigua in 2003. The tropical warm breezes mixed with the smell of rum, sounds of steel drum bands and the mesmerizing turquoise waters got us hooked. On top of all of that, it was also the people from the islands that drew us in. There are definitely parts of the islands that are poverty stricken and many of the workers you encounter at your hotel, restaurant or taxi come from these neighborhoods. Yet, they are eternally happy around everyone and that’s what makes visiting the islands so memorable.

What Caribbean Islands have we visited?

Scott and I have been to Antigua four times, always staying at Sandals Resorts. Sandals is an all-inclusive resort chain with great resorts to vacation at in the Caribbean. Antigua’s capital, Saint John’s is a great city for shopping – be sure to check out their huge Farmer’s Market!

When we owned The Wine Alley, we always closed the first week of January to take our vacation. One word of caution – if you visit The Bahamas in the winter, remember that Nassau is pretty far north and it can be chilly in January! The islands are beautiful and visiting the pigs in the Exumas is on my bucket list.

Jamaica has been another favorite island for us and we’ve stayed all over the island. I think we have been there five times with White House being our favorite.

White House is on the west side, near a 500 acre wildlife refuge park (watch out for bugs on the uninhabited beach), Negril is great for beach activities and food, Ocho Rios is famous for Dunns River Falls and Sandals at Montego Bay is literally across the street from the airport!

Keep in mind when visiting anywhere in Jamaica (except Montego Bay), that it can take a couple of hours to get to the hotel. But in true Jamaican fashion, the drivers always take care of their passengers along the way.

Our most unique island visits

A few years ago, we decided to pick a brand new island to visit and we selected the Dominican Republic (not to be confused with Dominica). The Dominican Republic shares the island with Haiti. We stayed at a five star all-inclusive resort, which was beautiful. The waters of Dominican Republic are so insanely blue, they are blinding. There’s great history on the island, starting with Christopher Columbus. However, their sanitation system (lack of) and the tip expectations from everyone we encountered were a big bummer for us. I’m sure it has changed since then.

Then last year, we took an epic sailing cruise aboard the Star Flyer, which is part of the Star Clipper fleet. This journey started in Sint Maarten and headed south to Nevis/St. Kitts, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Isles des Saintes, Antigua, St. Barths and back to Sint Maarten. Be sure to watch our three part series on YouTube for the full footage!

Caribbean sailing ship — On board Star Flyer, outside of Nevis

US Virgin & British Virgin Islands

With all of our Caribbean vacations, it’s hard to believe that Scott and I have never traveled to the Virgin Islands. To say we’re excited about our upcoming bareboat charter with The Moorings in the BVI’s is an understatement. Over the past few weeks, we’ve been researching where to anchor, where to visit and eat. The charter is only for six days and then we will spend two nights on St. Thomas. This will give us a chance to explore the island over a day and a half. Both islands are still recovering from Hurricane Irma and after seeing what Sint Maarten looked like, we’re prepared.

We’ve mentioned in a few blog posts and YouTube episodes, that if you have chartered in the BVIs before, please share with us any advise you have. This includes provisioning, places to visit, what to wear, etc. We know we have to have a flexible schedule & itinerary based on the weather forecast, so we want to have our options lined up.

Time to practice anchoring

This weekend the forecast is decent and the four of us (Scott, Maria, Ben and I) are planning on heading out to practice anchoring. We had hoped to stay over night on anchor, but since we’ve only anchored once, it’s best we do a day anchor for lunch first. The weather can turn ugly in the PNW and the last thing we need to do is drag anchor and run around.

As always, thank you for following us! We have some exciting things planned for this summer, so stay tuned! Cheers, Scott and Ally

#BoatingJourney #BoatingLife

December 31, 2019January 2, 2020

Our Boating Resolutions for 2020

Everyone sets resolutions for the new year and this time, Scott and I decided to set “boating resolutions” for 2020. Of course, losing weight will always be on the list, but our boating resolutions might be easier to achieve.

We also want to give a shout out to Northwest Yachting Magazine who included us in their boating resolutions article. That is going to help us be accountable and stick to our plan! As the year begins, we’ll share with you our progress on this blog and our YouTube channel. Here’s our list for 2020:

Save Money

Most of us have saving money on our list of resolutions and so far, we’ve done an “okay” job at it. Just our living situation is saving us money – we sold our big house and downsized to an apartment, cutting our living expenses by almost $2300! But Scott and I still have a long ways to go. We watch other cruisers and they are able to live on $15/day! That’s surely not possible here in the city – but we’re going to make a go of it and share it. Groceries alone in Seattle cost a fortune and we don’t shop at the fancy stores! Follow us and see how we do!

Some of the things we’ll do better at are:

Dine at home more often on the weekends (this is a big one)
Drink less wine (save calories!)
Make simple dishes – using less costly ingredients
Watch our personal spending for clothing, toiletries, etc – we’re not big spenders here, but every bit helps
Do boat maintenance ourselves instead of hiring out

What’s interesting about looking at our list is that we’re aren’t big spenders – yet we do like to go out to dinner and have drinks on the weekend – that adds up! Time to hunker down and watch movies at home.

Anchor Overnight

Scott and I have never anchored overnight or stayed on a mooring ball. With all of the great anchorages around Puget Sound, we are committed to anchoring at least a few times next year – especially before our trip to the BVI’s. We have to confess. We love the luxury of power and the ability to walk down the dock to go site seeing. Yes, we have a generator, but interestingly enough it is a portable Honda generator. That means it’s pretty loud and not the way we want to relax on the boat.

Visit British Columbia

Victoria B.C. is about 70 nautical miles from Elliott Bay Marina. At 10 knots, we think we could get there in about 8 – 8 1/2 hours. We’re certainly not going to run up there for a weekend, but our plan for next summer is to go up north for about 9-10 days. We’d visit Roche Harbor, then probably Sucia Island and then B.C. We’ve never ventured past Deer Harbor, so that’s why one of our boating resolutions is to venture out farther.

marina san juan islands — Roche Harbor Marina

Travel to at least three new ports

Every summer, Scott and I go back and visit the same ports we visited the year before. Probably because we’re familiar with them and the fear factor of the unknown is missing. At the same time, boating is all about visiting new places – especially ones that you can only get to by boat.

These ports will have to be somewhat close to Seattle, so we can get there over a weekend. Some places on our list (which would also fulfill our other boating resolutions) are:

Olympia
Port Townsend
Everett / Camano Island (where my family lives)
Edmonds
Port Ludlow

If you have a favorite spot we should visit over a weekend (near Seattle), please share your comments below.

Find a liveaboard slip

This boating resolution should be at the very top of our list, but we’re feeling a bit defeated here. It’s been four years since we decided to downsize to move onto a boat and we accomplished a lot! We got rid of our stuff, sold our home, sold our first boat and moved into an apartment. I was more worried about if I could actually live on a boat, not that I couldn’t because we can’t find a slip.

Scott and I love Elliott Bay Marina, but they have very strict rules against liveaboards. The only exception to that rule is the condo dock at EBM, but we don’t know anyone to contact. We’ve come to a road block there. We’ve put our name on the waiting list at Shilshole,, but that could take years. There are a few openings in Tacoma and possibly north, but we both work in downtown Seattle and making a two hour commute each way every day would make me miserable.

Our only hope is perhaps we find a private slip or find an available slip at EBM on the condo dock. If you hear of anything, please keep us in mind.

Remodeling Projects

One of our major boating resolutions is do tackle a few remodeling projects. In trying to save money, we certainly have no plans to invest a ton of money on remodeling the boat. But there are a few key items that we hope to address in 2020:

Get a bid for new carpet – our carpet is 17 years old and gross. Perhaps this is something we can do ourselves? But we don’t think so. Here’s photo of another Bayliner 4087 after their remodel – compared to us. They put hardwood floors under the dinette, added new carpet and some other finishing touches.

Replace the kitchen faucet. This is happening soon! Our faucet is way too big for our tiny kitchen sink. In fact, we can barely fit a skillet, let alone a pot under it.

Replace the double sink with a single bowl sink. Easier said than done! Our sink is 22″ x 14″ x 6″ and we cannot find an under-mount single bowl sink with these dimensions. If you know where we can find one, please let us know!

Replace the Bimini canvas top. While we would love to replace the entire canvas, our Isinglass is actually in pretty good shape. There are a few snaps that need to be repaired, which we can do ourselves. Our main issue is the bimini top leaks and after next summer we have no choice but to replace it. Here’s why! We have tubs all over up on the bridge collecting rain water.

One last resolution

Finally, our last boating resolution is to produce better quality & informative videos, along with improving our blog. In order to do that, we had to invest in better equipment (beyond my Android phone), which included the following. Santa was good to me this year! Now we just have to learn how to use everything!

Here’s to a great year in 2020!

After watching our last video of 2019, we know we have to up our game! Not only in video production, but in boating. Time to venture out and explore. As the saying goes, “You cannot discover new oceans, unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore. ” That’s our plan for 2020!

As always, thank you for following our blog and journey! You can also find us on YouTube, Facebook , Twitter and Instagram @BoatingJourney.

Happy New Year to you and your family! Cheers, Scott and Ally

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December 22, 2019December 27, 2019

What a year we had on our boat in 2019!

Scott and I started 2019 without a boat and with no big plans to get another one. But just one month later, things changed drastically! In February we made the announcement on a very snowy day, that we had made an offer on “Our Happy Day” and were going to sea trials . I don’t think it really sunk in that the boat was ours until we picked up the keys after our trip to the Caribbean.

Before we got the keys to the boat, we went on an epic trip with our friends Ben & Maria cruising the Leeward Islands on the Star Clipper. That trip was so much fun, that the four of us have chartered a power catamaran next April in the BVI’s.

Scott and I were excited to get home, take possession and get to know the boat. There was so much to learn, as everything was completely different than our first boat.

Ports of call

Looking back at this year, we accomplished a lot on the boat. We visited Dock Street in Tacoma, Port of Kingston, Port Orchard and Port of Bremerton.

While didn’t do as many overnight trips as we had hoped, we did spend almost every weekend boating around Elliott Bay with friends and family.

opening day of boating season — Tracey & Cal

The never ending project list

With the boat being 17 years old, it had some work that needed to be done. The project list grew pretty fast. First on the list, was getting new cockpit carpet and it turned out great!

The canvas needs to be replaced, but in the meantime, we repaired what we could.

Of course we spent a few months trying to tackle the “smell” and at one point thought our holding tanks were leaking. We ended up cleaning the bilges and they are still dry. Turns out we did have in-line filters for our holding tank vents that needed to be replaced. Hopefully, that does the trick!

Lessons learned

First on the list of lessons was for me to learn how to dock the boat. I’ve only practiced once on the yacht dock, but I hope to practice in our slip this Spring.

We also learned how to anchor! First we had to find out how much chain we had and then we headed over to Port Madison to have lunch on the hook! We plan on anchoring over night next year before we leave on our trip in April to the BVI’s.

Just getting to know the boat was a lesson in itself. This included how to cook using propane, changing out our water filters and engine maintenance. That is a never ending list. I would say most full-time boaters say it takes a year to really get to know the ins and outs of your boat.

We certainly learned a lot after we hauled out this past Fall. Scott and I had hoped to have done the work ourselves so we could learn more, but it ended up being too big of a project for us.

What a year it was

Overall, we can say we had a great year on “Our Happy Day”. Scott and I learned a lot and we created lasting memories with great friends and family. We are truly blessed that we have this opportunity – years ago we never thought we would be here.

Thank you for following us on this journey! Next year will be full of exciting things and we can’t wait to share them with you. Until then, Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to you and your families.

Cheers, Scott & Ally

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube (@BoatingJourney). Not only do we want to share our story & experience with you, we also want to hear from you too. We’re learning everyday.

Check out our Patreon page too! With your support to produce better quality and informational videos, we in turn want to take you out boating. Join Here.

November 19, 2019November 19, 2019

British Virgin Islands – Here we come!

Back in July we told you we were looking to charter a boat in the Caribbean and now it’s official. We selected The Moorings, in the British Virgins Islands (BVI’s), and have chartered a 43′ power cat by Aquila with our friends Ben & Maria. The four of us had such a great time on the Star Clipper cruise this year that we couldn’t wait to get back down to the islands.

Scott and I toured this exact boat at the Annapolis Power Boat Show a few years ago. I immediately fell in love with the outdoor bar and galley.

Getting to the BVIs

Let’s start with getting there! We fly from Seattle to Fort Lauderdale, then take Uber down to Miami. Scott and I are staying the night in Miami and fly out the next day to St. Thomas. There are about five ferry service companies that run ferries from Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas to Tortola. The key is finding one that leaves close to when we land, but not too close. I’ve reached out to Road Town Fast Ferry for a few questions.

We want to buy our tickets ahead of time, in case it’s sold out. We land at 11am and the next ferry is at 12pm. Will that be enough time?
If we buy that ticket and miss the ferry, can we use it for the 4:15pm ferry?

The four of us are staying the first night at the Mariner Inn which is at the marina. It’s not cheap, but it’s way cheaper than sleeping on the boat the night before, which was quoted at $880! We plan on grabbing some provisions at the local grocery store the morning we leave. Normally, boaters can stop at most islands and grab provisions as needed. However, the BVIs were hit by Hurricane Irma two years ago and businesses are still rebuilding, so it’s possible that supplies might be limited on certain islands. If you have feedback on your experience here, please share. We don’t plan on preparing too many meals on the boat, but instead dine out and visit the island spots.

Our first charter

Planning your very first charter is a bit nerve wracking. Mainly because we don’t know the area (while we’ve been to the Caribbean over 10 times, we’ve never been to the BVI’s) and we’ll be on a boat that we’re not familiar with. The Moorings will give us a quick instruction before heading out and some suggested itineraries. We’ve received some advice from others who have chartered with Moorings, so that has been helpful.

One bit of advice I got this week, was to check all the electronics with The Moorings and make sure you know how to turn everything on before leaving the dock. Once we cast off, it’s time to find our mooring balls/anchorage spots. Questions we have are:

How easy is it to find an available mooring ball? Do you have to leave at dawn to beat the crowds?
We did find Boatyball.com, which will allow you to reserve a mooring ball the day of. Has anyone used this?
How do you pump out? Do we dare ask that question? I know some countries will allow you to discharge waste if you are at least two miles from shore, but I can’t imagine this is allowed in the Caribbean?
Are there plenty of stores and fuel stations along the routes?

Scott and I have never anchored overnight before and know we will be anchoring as well. Our plan is to anchor a few times here in the PNW before we leave, so we get familiar with staying on the hook overnight.

Where do we go in 5 days?

Most cruises are seven days, but we decided to only cruise for five and then spend a few nights on land. With that said, we have been given a list of must sees:

Virgin Gorda, The Baths
Anegada
Jost Van Dyke
Peter Island
Norman Island
Trellis Bay

Anegada, The Baths, Jost Van Dyke are all musts. This itinerary will require us to travel the farthest. If anyone has suggestions or experiences of their own, please share with us.

And if you have any “heads up” advise let us know as well. I just read that we can’t actually boat to The Baths – no boats or dinghies allowed. So you either swim to shore (true??) or approach by land (dock at a nearby resort and take a cab or rent car). Between Ben and I, we’ll have researched our entire trip. Thanks to YouTube, there’s plenty of info out there.

In the end, we’ll be on a boat, with great friends, enjoying turquoise waters and drinking rum cocktails. What’s not to like?!

So many questions

That’s the fun part about planning a trip like this – it’s all new and exciting. Imagine those cruisers who head out permanently? So much to learn and mother nature isn’t always nice. Since we are newbies, we’re looking for all of the advice other cruisers have to offer.

As always, thanks for following us on our journey! Please subscribe to our social channels too, on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube (@BoatingJourney). Not only do we want to share our story & experience with you, we also want to hear from you too. We’re learning everyday.

Check out our Patreon page too! With your support to produce better quality and informational videos, we in turn want to take you out boating. Join Here.

Cheers, Scott and Ally
#BoatingJourney

September 21, 2019October 1, 2019

Afternoon Cruise around Blake Island

Scott and I took his sister & her family out for an afternoon cruise and we decided to go around Blake Island to check it out.

Now that we have practiced anchoring, we wanted to see what the bays look like around the island. Blake Island is just six nautical miles southwest of Seattle, so it’s a quick trip from Elliott Bay Marina. It took us about 30 minutes going 9 knots.

Blake Island is managed by the Washington State Parks & Recreation Commission and is accessible only by boat. When Scott and I bought our previous boat, we took a quick trip to Blake Island to check it out. Turns out it was a horrible day and we struggled to get into the marina! The marina has either 30 minute slips or overnight slips. They don’t take reservations, so it’s first come first serve. You do need a Discover Pass to visit. There’s plenty to do on Blake Island, including visiting Tilicum Village, hiking and beach combing.

Where do they anchor at Blake Island?

There are four mooring fields with anchorages and one dock. Though we didn’t see anyone moored outside the marina.

On The anchorages are actually pretty shallow. Our charts were showing as shallow as 2′. Scott reminded me over and over, that I would have to get used to entering shallow waters. (LOL). Remember, I have freaked out a few times entering Port Madison!

We cruised around the island, counter clockwise, heading to the west side first. What I am curious about, is what the weather (specifically winds) are like on the west and south side? Our old house had a southwest exposure, we we got beat up by the weather all the time.

Quaint mooring fields

As soon as we saw the boats, I actually got excited. How fun this would be, to come out for even just one night. You can take the dinghy to the beach and then go explore the island!

We counted about seven balls on the west side. The question for us newbies is, how do you know what the ball is rated for in weight? Are they all the same?

On the south end, there were only two mooring balls, with one available. I’m guessing the south end is not very comfortable based on the winds that come from the south. Then as we rounded back to the east side of the island, there were more boats anchored. There might be mooring balls, but we didn’t get close enough to check.

The Blake Island marina is located at the north east corner of the island. There’s plenty of beach right next to the marina, which is just a few steps away from Tillicum Village. Since we’re new to anchoring, I don’t think we’ll try that yet this Fall, but we are hoping to make a trip over and stay at the marina this Fall. By then, there should be more slips available and less tourists.

salmon bake indian reservation — Blake Island

One thing to note, is do not overstay your 30 minute visit. The park ranger will come out and ask you to leave. Before we start staying overnight at anchor or anywhere else, we have to figure out if our holding tanks are leaking. Stay tuned for that blog post. Next week, we’ll share with you some of the remodel ideas we came upon at the Boats Afloat Show.

As always, thank you for following our boating blog! Scott and I have a lot of things coming up, including our big haul out in a few weeks. Please be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. #boatingjourney

September 7, 2019December 8, 2019

Visiting Bremerton

A few weeks ago, we joined the Union Marine getaway in Bremerton and we brought along my college friend Jen. The Bremerton Marina is just across the bay from Port Orchard, where we were earlier in the month, so it was nice to know where we were going. The three of us left Friday around 3pm, so that I could get a dock party set up for our event. Going at 10 knots, it would take us about 90 minutes to get there.

The weather was a bit grey, but the water was almost calm the entire way! We even saw a few porpoises, but I never got a chance to get their photo.

Entering the Bremerton Marina!

Most of our crew & guests were already at the marina, so I called our broker Steve and said we were coming in. He warned me that the current was swift and to be ready. We entered the Bremerton Marina on the west end, as we were on the guest dock in the center. That all was very smooth, as the water was so calm. But once we turned down our fairway, Scott said the current was fast!

The fairways and slips are very wide (thank God!) and we were grateful for that, as we were sharing a slip with one of our customers who has a beautiful 48′ Sea Ray yacht. As we started to back in, the current over took us and we had to try again. This time we went to the end of our fairway, turned around and backed in again. Let’s just say, we were grateful for all of the extra hands on the dock!

The docks are nice and wide and well appointed. The marina doesn’t have a breakwater wall, but instead an outside dock.

Happy Hour on the Dock

Union Marine was hosting the wine & beer hour on the dock. Each boat then brought an appetizer and there were some amazing bites that everyone made (being so busy, I brought store bought chips & salsa – boo!) One boat brought Caesar salad in a cup! Genius idea!

One of the best things about this getaway, was hanging out with the three fur babies! I mean, we had a Corgi, Bernese AND a Golden! Heaven!

After our happy hour, Jen, Scott and I decided to explore DT Bremerton and find a bite to eat. The Port is very nice and has a lot of culture built in. The US Navy is based out of Bremerton, so much of the Port is dedicated to our service men and women.

Our First Night in Bremerton

The three of us headed into Bremerton and stumbled upon the South Pacific Sports Bar, which is walking distance from the marina (just past the bus terminal). The food was fantastic and they had plenty of seating! I highly recommend a stop here during your next visit.

It wouldn’t be a boating getaway, if there wasn’t a night cap party on the dock. Luckily the weather never got bad and it was a really great night to sit and mingle with good friends on the dock.

Touring the USS Turner Joy

I wanted to check out the USS Turner Joy Navy ship, for a possible future event. The ship is located at the Port, right next to the marina. They gave us a quick tour of the upper deck, where parties would be held. This is a very cool venue! You can even stay the night on it as a group!

USS Turner Joy was one of 18 Forrest Sherman-class destroyers of the United States Navy. It was named for Admiral Charles Turner Joy USN. Commissioned in 1959, it spent its entire career in the Pacific. It launched in 1958 and was decommissioned in 1982.

Apparently this is the party deck! Better hold on tight!

A Quick Trip to Port Orchard

Say, weren’t we just in Port Orchard two weeks ago? Yep, but there is so much to see there, that we wanted to show Jen the cute town and farmer’s market. Port Orchard is located directly across Sinclair Inlet from Bremerton – yes, we could take our dingy there, but that would be too much work. Instead, we hopped on a vintage ferry boat – the Carlisle II.

Carlisle II is the oldest of only two operational Mosquito Fleet vessels in Puget Sound. (The other is the 1922 Steamship Virginia V. which is located on Lake Union) They were once part of a large fleet of small passenger and freight carrying ships that linked the islands and ports of Puget Sound in Washington State in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The ferry runs every 30 minutes and it’s best to have your ORCA card. Otherwise you’ll need cash (I think $2) for each way.

We talked to the Captain and found out that the ferry will be decommissioned in a few months and replaced with an hybrid catamaran foot ferry.

There was a tall ship “festival” in Port Orchard, but we only saw one ship at the marina. Jen, Scott and I decided to walk around town a bit and check out a few things we didn’t see before. Including the must have belly rub on a sweet golden.

One of the funniest things we encountered was at the Candy Shoppe in downtown. They not only sold these cute “turtles”, but they also sold “turdles”. LOL!!

After a quick one hour tour, we headed back to Bremerton on the ferry for the Union Marine Party at Anthony’s.

Union Marine Getaway Party at Anthony’s in Bremerton

Union Marine hosted the Bremerton Getaway cocktail party at Anthony’s Homeport, located right at the marina. We rented a private room and it was perfect for our group. The staff did a fantastic job and the food was amazing! Thank you to everyone who made this a great event.

Prism Graphics sponsored the event and talked with them for quite awhile. Scott and I would love to change the name of our boat, as it’s not one we would pick (“Our Happy Day”). To do that properly, you need to have a proper ceremony to avoid bad luck. Turns out that Prism offers that too!

Walking around the Bremerton Marina and the Port

Our group told us to go check out the fountains, just walking distance from Anthony’s. I was skeptical, wondering what the big deal was. Well, were we in for a surprise! These things were so cool and the photos don’t do them justice. We think they are meant to simulate a submarine.

With everyone content with good food and cocktails, we returned to the dock to relax. Somehow, that’s where all the stories are told (or begin for the next time). This is a great group of boating friends and I’m glad I’m part of their family.

A Beautiful Trip Home from Bremerton

We couldn’t have asked for a better travel day. The weather was calm and warm. In fact, I wish we could have stayed out on the water a bit longer.

Since we had a lot of chores to do, we decided to kick it into gear and let the boat burn off some carbon across Puget Sound. We made it home in 45 minutes!

Scott and I are thrilled about how well our Bayliner 4087 has done this summer. We’ve taken her out to Kingston, Tacoma, Port Orchard, Port Madison and now Bremerton. For our first year, we couldn’t be happier. We’re looking forward to the next getaway, wherever that may lead us.

As always, thank you for following and subscribing to our blog! Stay tuned for our YouTube episode and tour of Bremerton. If you want to get notifications of our next episode, be sure to subscribe to our channel – click here!

Be sure to follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter too at @BoatingJourney #boatingjourney.

Cheers, Scott and Ally