Fortunately, we survived Hurricane Matthew. There was no damage to Tug LeeLoo, just a few drops of water came in through the forward hatch. Then there was the inconvenience of having to reinstall the things we dismantled in preparation of the approaching hurricane, principally the weather cloths that surround the upper deck! Oh, and we had to reinstall the dinghy engine.
Because the hurricane turned out to sea south of Portsmouth, VA there was little damage to the Inter-coastal Waterway this far north. So it was an easy trip back to New Bern, NC where we winterized Tug LeeLoo. New Bern is far enough south such that snow and hard freezes are rare, plus this far up the Neuse River the water is largely fresh. So we left her in the water while we did a road trip back to the Chicago area to see son Paul, Kristina and our grandchildren. Next we stopped at Hawk Valley Retreat in Galena, IL to spend Thanksgiving with our good friends and traveling companions Hal and Wendy Gilpin and their family. And then it was on to Las Vegas to spend time with our other son Brian, Paula and more grandchildren!
The road trip out west was awesome - never having done this and not being in a hurry allowed visits to national parks and other areas of interest. Some of the highlights included visits to Guadalupe Mountain National Park, Carlsbad Caverns (much better than Mammoth Cave), Roswell, NM (could not miss the International UFO Museum), White Sands National Monument, Chiricahua National Monument, Tombstone, AZ, Death Valley National Park, and Valley of Fire State Park. We took the southern route in order to avoid winter further north. And it worked out perfectly. The scenery was beautiful and we enjoyed seeing sights that we had only seen by pictures before!
Our visit in Las Vegas was very enjoyable. We were fortunate to spend time with Brian and Paula and our grandchildren. Las Vegas is a beautiful area surrounded by mountains. Of course, what's a visit to Las Vegas without a few trips to the Las Vegas Strip! We even made time to go a Donnie and Marie (Osmond) concert! (I know, who are Donnie and Marie?) While in Las Vegas, we also joined the local park district pool and we swam almost every day! Las Vegas in the winter is not really warm, but we were glad to not be in the snow in the Midwest!
As if being retired isn't enough, in January we flew to Ft. Lauderdale and met up with our good friends Hal and Wendy Gilpin to board a Royal Caribbean cruise ship for an 11 night cruise in the Southern Caribbean. The weather was perfect and we enjoyed the flavor of the islands! Yes, back on the water for us!
We returned to the Chicago area in mid-February and arrived back in New Bern, NC in early March. What we did not expect was how cold it was to be in New Bern! It wasn't until April that the warm spring weather finally settled in. It was a delight to return to Tug LeeLoo. It truly felt like we had returned home! All of Tug LeeLoo's systems have been commissioned and we have completed a couple of shake-down cruises. The first shake-down cruise was not successful as the engine over-heated and we had to get towed back to the marina. Who knew that the engine's raw-water impeller (important because it moves the cooling water through the engine) was in need of replacing. We learned our lesson - one more thing to monitor and replace regularly!
The AGLCA (American Great Loop Cruisers Association) Rendezvous was held in New Bern last week and we attended it. There were 250 attendees in three categories. Those planning to do the Loop, those currently doing the Loop and those who have completed the Loop. The seminars highlighted the areas we will be cruising through as we head north to Canada. It was fun to have the opportunity to meet everyone. We are now ready to get underway again and continue our Loop. If the weather holds, we plan to leave on Tuesday, May 2. Our blog will now be updated regularly as we travel north.
