May 9th, Wednesday - Day 12
No visit to Annapolis would be complete without a trip to a boating supply store, so today’s challenge was to find the best way to get to the local boating store which was about 4 miles away. We checked out the city bus schedule and discovered that the city bus went from our dock right by the West Marine. As we hurried off the boat (parked at the city marina) to catch the next bus, we were greeted by a couple of really nice ex-loopers, Jimmy & Jerry, who had seen our burgee on the bow. Very generously, they insisted on giving us a ride in Jerry’s car across town to the West Marine and another chandlery (aka boat store) and to Home Depot to pick up a few supplies. It was a wonderful experience and much appreciated, especially with the added benefit of a brief overview of Annapolis & Eastport (a neighboring town), and to hear their tales & suggestions from their loop experiences.
Since Wednesday is the day for the weekly sailing club races, we opted to move from the town dock to a mooring ball out in the harbor, which put us right in the path of the sailboats as they approached the finish line. As luck would have it, the wind was coming down the race course from the finish line which made the racers have to sail the final leg on very tight tacks (sailing close to the wind) on the final leg toward the finish line. So, watching from a neighbor’s boat (Stanley & Susie Marshall) here we sat, in the middle of at least a hundred hard-sailing racing sailboats, passing us within literally 2-3 feet under very strong wind conditions, heeled waayyyy over, criss-crossing among the moored boats and mooring balls in the harbor. It was a thrill to experience.
May 10th, Thursday – Day 13
Today’s primary activity was to take a tour of the United States Naval Academy, which we really wanted to do before leaving Annapolis. Thanks to Bill Doherty (Belinda’s friend) who attended the academy many years ago, and gave us suggestions on what parts of it were “must see” sights. Unfortunately, we were too late in the school year to see the noon meal formation, where the entire brigade of all 5000 midshipmen gather prior to their lunchtime meal, and parade into the lunch hall, since the school year had just ended.
No visit to Annapolis would be complete without a trip to a boating supply store, so today’s challenge was to find the best way to get to the local boating store which was about 4 miles away. We checked out the city bus schedule and discovered that the city bus went from our dock right by the West Marine. As we hurried off the boat (parked at the city marina) to catch the next bus, we were greeted by a couple of really nice ex-loopers, Jimmy & Jerry, who had seen our burgee on the bow. Very generously, they insisted on giving us a ride in Jerry’s car across town to the West Marine and another chandlery (aka boat store) and to Home Depot to pick up a few supplies. It was a wonderful experience and much appreciated, especially with the added benefit of a brief overview of Annapolis & Eastport (a neighboring town), and to hear their tales & suggestions from their loop experiences.
Since Wednesday is the day for the weekly sailing club races, we opted to move from the town dock to a mooring ball out in the harbor, which put us right in the path of the sailboats as they approached the finish line. As luck would have it, the wind was coming down the race course from the finish line which made the racers have to sail the final leg on very tight tacks (sailing close to the wind) on the final leg toward the finish line. So, watching from a neighbor’s boat (Stanley & Susie Marshall) here we sat, in the middle of at least a hundred hard-sailing racing sailboats, passing us within literally 2-3 feet under very strong wind conditions, heeled waayyyy over, criss-crossing among the moored boats and mooring balls in the harbor. It was a thrill to experience.
May 10th, Thursday – Day 13
Today’s primary activity was to take a tour of the United States Naval Academy, which we really wanted to do before leaving Annapolis. Thanks to Bill Doherty (Belinda’s friend) who attended the academy many years ago, and gave us suggestions on what parts of it were “must see” sights. Unfortunately, we were too late in the school year to see the noon meal formation, where the entire brigade of all 5000 midshipmen gather prior to their lunchtime meal, and parade into the lunch hall, since the school year had just ended.
 Hard to believe there were no collisions!!  Being in the middle of the race course near the finish line was quite a treat.  Just inside Bancroft Hall - this is the dormitory for the midshipmen (students). |  A bit gusty towards the finish line. Notice the gray skies.  The dome of the Chapel at the Naval Academy.  Belinda and Jim at the top of the stairs in Bancroft Hall. |  This boat actually scraped the mooring ball that THE PEARL was tied to.  RICKSHAW on a mooring ball just off the Naval Academy campus.  This sailboat just completed a circumnavigation of the Americas. From Annapolis, thru the northwest passage, down the west coast, around the tip of South America then back to Annapolis. He did it SOLO, NON STOP in 300 days! |
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