The Christmas Trees of Prague
As we noted in our earlier posts, we’ve spent the day walking around Prague and in that journey we have come across many beautiful Christmas Trees. They deserve their own post.
In search of the Christmas Spirit
After a brief respite at the hotel we went back out in search of Christmas Spirit. We strolled back across the river and found the old town square bustling with light and life. Locals and tourists, young and old, couples and families were out happily enjoying the brisk night air, the food stands of hot […]
A Walk Around Prague
‘This morning we left our hotel in Lesser Town Prague for an early morning private walking tour of Old Prague. We explored the city with the the help of our awesome local guide who showed us around the various “must see” sites of the area. The 3 of us spent about 4 hours traversing the […]
The European Christmas Market Search Finally Begins
The day has arrived! After many months of planning, waiting, cancelations, re-bookings, changes, COVID testing and more changes, we are finally off to Europe in search of the elusive 2021 Christmas Markets! This morning we made the drive to San Francisco Airport were we boarded the upper deck of a Lufthansa 747-8 for the to […]
COVID-19 Changes our 2021 European Christmas Market Itinerary
We were not surprised tonight when we received an email from Viking informing us of changes to our 12/19/21 Danube Waltz 7 day river cruise from Passau, Germany to Budapest, Hungary on board the Viking Kadlin This cruise is part of our 2 week, 2021 Christmas Market Adventure, You can read about the original trip […]
You can call me Captain!
As of December 8, 2021 you can call me Captain! It began back in August of 2021 when I came across an ad in our marina’s monthly newsletter. A local maritime training school was offering “in-person” US Coast Guard Captains License training (OUPV/6 Pack) during the pandemic. I have always toyed with the idea of […]
Thursday Afternoon Paddle Around the Delta
One of the (many) benefits of being retired, living on the waterfront, and having a wonderfully supportive, understanding, loving & working wife is that I can go paddling anytime the mood strikes me. Today was such a day. I had a wonderful 4 mile paddle around the delta with my camera mounted on the kayak. […]
3 Mile Paddle Exploring the New Wetlands
We posted earlier about the Tidal Wetlands Restoration that is happening around our home in the delta and how it is opening up new areas and habitats, well we decided to take advantage of this perfect November day to explore some of the newly created waterways. As we are unsure of the depth of the […]
Out with the Old, In with the New
Phase 1 of Narnia’s electronics refit is well underway. Info on the refit is here and here. This week we removed the old Simrad CR34 Chart Plotter, IS12 Wind Gauge and the IS12 Depth Gauge. We are keeping the Auto-Pilot so had to retain the AP-16 control head . We also removed the associated NavPods. […]
Planning for Iditarod 2022 Dog Handler Volunteer Begins
Friday night happenings at land base house: Full planning mode for volunteering to be dog handlers again for 2022 50th anniversary of the Iditarod for ceremonial start in Anchorage and official race restart in Willow. This will be followed by a few nights of down time In Bettles (35 miles north of the Artic circle) […]
Tidal Wetlands Restoration Project and Cruise On the Delta
The crew of Narnia are very fortunate to live on the Delta in Northern California. Some of the reasons we purchased here was because it was adjacent to a large wildlife preserve and the miles of waterways offered great kayaking, power boating, and a “no low bridge” route from our home to San Francisco Bay […]
Christmas Comes Early for Narnia
Christmas came early at the land based house. Narnia’s new electronics have arrived!! This should keep the crew busy in planning/design mode until her haul-out and minor re-fit in Q1 2022. You can read more about that plan here. In the meantime, we have lots to read and learn as the crew gets Narnia prepared […]
Post Sailboat Show Spending for Winter Projects
We made if home from the Sailboat Show in Annapolis without buying anything for Narnia other then a couple of nautical dish towels and hats, but the trap had been set. For some time we knew that we would need to update Narnia’s circa 2005 electronics suite. Although it is all still basically functional, and […]
Throwback Thursday
Since we are attending the Annapolis Sailboat Show today, I thought it would be fun to include a post from one of our 1st sails on Narnia. 3 years ago today. From 10/14/2018 Post: Great day sailing. We hove-to for lunch outside of Angel Island. First time with all three full sails up in San […]
Monday in Annapolis Maryland
While Sue was busy at the hotel running conference calls/earning $ to support my retirement life/boating addiction, I took a 6 mile walk along the beautiful trails of Quiet Waters Park in Annapolis. It was a warm muggy day and the park was fairly deserted. I hope Sue will join me soon. Boat show starts […]
Sunday in Annapolis Maryland
Sunday, October 10th 2021: First full day of our visit to Maryland found us playing tourist and visiting some lighthouses along the Chesapeake Bay. We drove South from Annapolis to the Solomon Islands area to walk around downtown and visit the Drum Point Lighthouse. We then continued South, passing through the town of California to […]
Clean Boat, Sunny Day, High Tide, Good Breeze.. What to do? What to do?
Since Narnia’s crew has been away exploring the Galapagos, she has sat idle for a few weeks and was in need of a bath to clear away the accumulated soot and scum deposited by the smoke of the recent Northern California wildfires. The completion of the washdown just happen to coincide with local high tide, […]
Goodbye Galapagos.. It’s Been Amazing!
9/26/2021: Today we said goodbye to the amazing Galapagos Islands and boarded our plane back to mainland Ecuador where we will spend a day in Quito before heading home to the US flying through Miami then on to San Francisco. This trip was truly unforgettable and worthy of a top spot on the bucket list!
The Giant Tortoises of the Galapagos
Saturday 9/25/2021 Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos: Today is our last full day in the Galapagos. This morning we embarked on an early morning zodiac ride to Santa Cruz Island where we boarded a bus for the Charles Darwin Research and Tortoise Breeding Centers. As this is one of the 1st populated areas we have visited […]
Kicker Rock and San Cristóbal island
Friday 9/24/2021 San Cristobal Island, Galapagos: The morning was spent cruising around the iconic Kicker Rock. This is supposed to be the best dive/snorkel spot in the Galapagos, but alas we were only cruising by on our way to the beach at Punta Pitt on San Cristóbal island. We had a wet landing on the […]