Arundel Diesel & Performance, Inc., Severn, Md: At first glance, this looks like a diesel truck shop -- and it is. But these folks don't mind rebuilding an injector or a pump or offering advice on a marine diesel. They do it twice as fast and for half the cost of a marine shop. Highly recommended.
Baby wipes: Especially if you have no water-maker (we don't) and need to conserve, these come in very handy. By the fourth day without a shower in a tropical climate, you and your crewmates will be glad you brought them!
Baby wipes: Especially if you have no water-maker (we don't) and need to conserve, these come in very handy. By the fourth day without a shower in a tropical climate, you and your crewmates will be glad you brought them!
Bacon Sails, Annapolis, Md.: All-around best place and best prices in Maryland for new and used sails and hardware.
Bamboo skewers: $1 a package in just about any grocery store. They come in very handy for clearing solidified sealant from a tube, cleaning a fuel injector or a hundred other things.
Black Point, Exumas: This settlement on Great Guana Cay is one that really gets the cruising thing. Ida, who owns the Rockside Laundry also offers free wifi, a small marine store and showers in the same facility. Nearby Lorraine's cafe, DeShamon's cafe and Scorpion's (bar) all offer free wifi. There's free water at a tap and garbage disposal ($1/bag recommended donation). On top of all the conveniences, it's a lovely and large anchorage. Perfect place to recharge the batteries (literally and figuratively) before hitting George Town.
Black Point, Exumas: This settlement on Great Guana Cay is one that really gets the cruising thing. Ida, who owns the Rockside Laundry also offers free wifi, a small marine store and showers in the same facility. Nearby Lorraine's cafe, DeShamon's cafe and Scorpion's (bar) all offer free wifi. There's free water at a tap and garbage disposal ($1/bag recommended donation). On top of all the conveniences, it's a lovely and large anchorage. Perfect place to recharge the batteries (literally and figuratively) before hitting George Town.
Charleston, SC: Great city with some wonderful seafood and BBQ. For seafood, Hyman's is wonderful, and for BBQ, Nick's and Swig & Swine are our favorites.
Dominica: Everything about it! The people, the incredibly lush flora. The best harbor by far is Portsmouth.
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| Dominica |
Fiddlehead Boatworks, LLC., Annapolis, Md. Rigger Winston Kinard was a pleasure to work with when we re-rigged prior to our trip. Fair prices and and professional service.
Gluezilla (Mas two-part tube epoxy): Having epoxy aboard is a must, in my opinion. I have used West System in the past, but the propensity for the resin and harder to leak out of any container known to man is frustrating, to say the least. Both WS and Mas have developed two-part tube epoxies. I'm sure West System's is just as good, but the Mas brand was slightly less expensive, and I decided to give it a try. It's wonderfully convenient for small projects. With a little finesse, the tube never gets a hard plug like silicones and other tube adhesives. Since there's a limited number of mixing tips, I usually just use the caulking gun to mix it directly in a cup. I save the tips for special projects. Besides not hardening, the way the tube is designed, there's almost no mess. The only drawback (other than the price!) is that the epoxy is pre-thickened, so if you want the runny stuff, you're out of luck. I should have bought a couple of extra tubes for this trip!
Grand Bahama Yacht Club, Lucaya, Bahamas: Wonderful staff and well-maintained facilities. This is one of our favorite marinas.
Grenadian Optical, St. George's, Grenada: After Scott's eyeglasses broke, we got an eye exam and a new pair here for a third less than we would have paid in the States. And, the turnaround time is lightening fast. Got the glasses by the next business day!
Haiti: Specifically Ile a Vache. We had lots of stereotypes about the place, and many of them were met. But it's a special place with some special people. One of our more memorable stops for sure!
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| Symbiosis at anchor in Ile a Vache. |
Lazyjacks: Yes, they have caused us a few problems, but once we got the hang of them, lazyjacks have made sail-handling much easier. If we could do it again, we'd combine them with a stack pack.
Los Haitises National Park, Samana, Dominican Republic: Gorgeous anchorage at Bahia de San Lorenzo.
Luperon, Dominican Republic: An excellent harbor and hurricane hole, with Puerto Blanco Marina as the topper. One of our favorite anchorages!
Magothy Marina, Severna Park, Fl.: Yes, we're biased. But this is a well-maintained and friendly stop on the upper Chesapeake. It was our home for more than 8 years and we miss the place and everyone there.
Marineland Marina, Marineland, Fl.: Tons to see and do? Nope. But if you are looking for an inexpensive stop off between St. Augustine and Daytona, the staff here is friendly and the price is right. There is a dolphin research center/tourist attraction directly across the street and there's a very nice kayak nature tour available at the marina.
Metal Craft Eng., Inc., Annapolis, Md.: For all your custom stainless steel fabrication needs.
Midnite brand MPPT solar charge controller: I had a problem with the first unit I purchased. It might have been my fault, or it might have been a faulty unit. The company tried diligently to resolve the issue, but when that became impossible, they sent a new unit out to me and asked me to return the old one "when you get around to it." Great customer service, and the new unit has been working perfectly.
NPR One app: Allows us to get NPR news from anywhere (and yes, as a former NPR reporter, I am biased on this!).
Playalinda Brewing Co., Titusville, Fl.: There's not a whole lot to do in Titusville unless you want to spend an absolute fortune to tour the space center (tempting, but we are on a budget!). This microbrewery is THE place to hang out. The barkeeps are big, burly biker types with a great sense of humor. The beer? Spectacular!
Port Antonio, Jamaica. Ya mon! Relaxing little town and plenty of services, if you know where to look.
Rescue Tape: I bought my first roll of this stuff several years ago at the Annapolis Boat Show for $35. Now you can find it for less than $10 in many hardware stores. Works miracles on hose leaks and a bunch of other stuff.
Metal Craft Eng., Inc., Annapolis, Md.: For all your custom stainless steel fabrication needs.
Midnite brand MPPT solar charge controller: I had a problem with the first unit I purchased. It might have been my fault, or it might have been a faulty unit. The company tried diligently to resolve the issue, but when that became impossible, they sent a new unit out to me and asked me to return the old one "when you get around to it." Great customer service, and the new unit has been working perfectly.
NPR One app: Allows us to get NPR news from anywhere (and yes, as a former NPR reporter, I am biased on this!).
Playalinda Brewing Co., Titusville, Fl.: There's not a whole lot to do in Titusville unless you want to spend an absolute fortune to tour the space center (tempting, but we are on a budget!). This microbrewery is THE place to hang out. The barkeeps are big, burly biker types with a great sense of humor. The beer? Spectacular!
Port Antonio, Jamaica. Ya mon! Relaxing little town and plenty of services, if you know where to look.
Rescue Tape: I bought my first roll of this stuff several years ago at the Annapolis Boat Show for $35. Now you can find it for less than $10 in many hardware stores. Works miracles on hose leaks and a bunch of other stuff.
River Forest Shipyard, Belhaven, NC: Can't say much for the amenities, but for a bare-bones place to do your own boat work, Axson Smith and his crew are cheery and helpful and the dockage rate ($1/day) can't be beat!
Rule bilge pumps: The parent company is called Xylem. I have had generally very good luck with Rule pumps in the past, but where I recently discovered that the company "rules," so to speak, is in customer service. I emailed Xylem looking for a fix to a sticky float switch. With no prompting whatsoever, the customer service rep offered to send me a new, improved model that solves the problem -- free of charge. You don't get customer service like that anymore!
S.F. Travis Hardware, Cocoa Beach, Fl.: You've never before seen a hardware store like this one and probably never will again! Several buildings with everything (and we do mean everything) you could possibly want. After a series of mostly rinky-dink chain hardware stores along the ICW, this one makes up for it.
St. Anne, Martinique: What a wonderful little anchorage on the south side of Martinique. We stayed here twice -- once on the way up and once on the way down. Has the advantage of not being so crowded as adjacent Le Marin. You can clear-in at Snack Bou Bou, where a very friendly couple makes some of the best sandwiches (with homemade bread!) we've ever had.
Warderick Wells (Exuma Land & Sea Park): In our view, this is the one stop in the Exumas that cannot be missed. Pick up a mooring for $20/day and stay as long as you like. The scenery is stunning. Unforgettable.
West Indies Beer Co., Grenada: A cool little microbrewery complete with pub and restaurant. A selection of great beers, ranging from IPAs to blonds, with a few stouts and lagers thrown in for good measure. Ask the owners to give you a tour of the production facilities behind the bar!
Windvane self-steering: It took us a long time to finally get ours hooked up, but we have quickly learned to love our old-school Aries. With no electric autopilot, the Aries is our best helmsperson. Here's an excellent video explaining how it all works -- a different manufacturer from our windvane, but exactly the same principle.
Rule bilge pumps: The parent company is called Xylem. I have had generally very good luck with Rule pumps in the past, but where I recently discovered that the company "rules," so to speak, is in customer service. I emailed Xylem looking for a fix to a sticky float switch. With no prompting whatsoever, the customer service rep offered to send me a new, improved model that solves the problem -- free of charge. You don't get customer service like that anymore!
S.F. Travis Hardware, Cocoa Beach, Fl.: You've never before seen a hardware store like this one and probably never will again! Several buildings with everything (and we do mean everything) you could possibly want. After a series of mostly rinky-dink chain hardware stores along the ICW, this one makes up for it.
St. Anne, Martinique: What a wonderful little anchorage on the south side of Martinique. We stayed here twice -- once on the way up and once on the way down. Has the advantage of not being so crowded as adjacent Le Marin. You can clear-in at Snack Bou Bou, where a very friendly couple makes some of the best sandwiches (with homemade bread!) we've ever had.
St. Augustine, Fl.: One of our two favorite towns on the ICW (along with Charleston, SC). Historic city that should not be missed. Don't forget to have a leisurely breakfast at Mary's Harbor View Cafe.
Salinas, Puerto Rico: Splendid anchorage surrounded by mangroves.
Shrink wrap: The green, thin plastic that's used to seal up packages. We brought a roll of it and use it to wrap bottles and cans that we think could leak. As we've discovered, stuff breaks open and leaks on a boat. Varnish and paint cans, containers of fuel additive, etc., get a solid shrink wrap and are good to go. It's also good for wrapping spare parts that could be subject to salt-water corrosion; the shrink wrap keeps them dry.
Salinas, Puerto Rico: Splendid anchorage surrounded by mangroves.
Shrink wrap: The green, thin plastic that's used to seal up packages. We brought a roll of it and use it to wrap bottles and cans that we think could leak. As we've discovered, stuff breaks open and leaks on a boat. Varnish and paint cans, containers of fuel additive, etc., get a solid shrink wrap and are good to go. It's also good for wrapping spare parts that could be subject to salt-water corrosion; the shrink wrap keeps them dry.
Warderick Wells (Exuma Land & Sea Park): In our view, this is the one stop in the Exumas that cannot be missed. Pick up a mooring for $20/day and stay as long as you like. The scenery is stunning. Unforgettable.
West Indies Beer Co., Grenada: A cool little microbrewery complete with pub and restaurant. A selection of great beers, ranging from IPAs to blonds, with a few stouts and lagers thrown in for good measure. Ask the owners to give you a tour of the production facilities behind the bar!
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| West Indies Beer Co. |
Just found your site, fantastic. I have a Tayana 37 1988 PH in Sarasota fl, My daughter 19 y/o Is half Thai,,, so KUN SOI MAK MAK to your wife,
ReplyDeleteI hope that means very pretty, my Thai is rusty.
Hope to be crusing in the near future, great site love the boat of course, hope you guys are well.
P.S. I love to take pictures, my daughter and i lived in Cambodia a while back and started a dive boat charter boat biz, one of the first back then, I miss it and love SEA.
Again hope your well,
Cheers Brice n Bay Lee
Thanks for the kind words. I really wanted the PH version, but there are so few out there, I would have had to wait a long time to acquire one!
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