6 Oct 14
We woke to a bright, clear morning, with light, variable winds. After a quick breakfast, we got ready to go and dropped the mooring just after 09:00. The little wind there was out in the bay was, of course, right on the nose, so we motored all the way to Boston. The easterly swell was still running (2 - 4 ft, 7 - 10 sec), but the wind waves were more or less nonexistent, so it was a good trip. We transited the Boston North Channel and President Roads and entered Boston Harbor proper, and were tied up at Constitution Marina at 13:10. Boston is a beautiful city to sail into and all the tall buildings and wharves of old Boston are right on the river alongside the route into town. The marina is about 300 m from the USS Constitution (Old Ironsides). Mail was waiting for us upon arrival (including the replacement macerator pump). We picked up the rental car shortly after arrival and immediately went for a grocery run at the local Whole Foods. After cocktails, we walked up to the Warren Tavern (frequented by Paul Revere, and even visited by George Washington, back in the day) for dinner. 42-22.213’N, 071-03.588’W.
7 Oct 14
It is not raining yet, but the forecast for later today and tomorrow is a bit grim. After breakfast, we made a run to West Marine, followed by another grocery shop at Market Basket. Then, it was back to the boat to knock it into shape for our guests and very good friends, John & Laurie from Vancouver, who will be with us for the next two weeks. Terri cooked and laundered and made beds and moved all of our “stuff” out of the stern cabin. I installed the bloody macerator pump (it was about 3 times as hard to install as to remove, but I got ‘er done, with only a few skinned knuckles and a bit of swearing and some very sore, swollen knees) and cleaned the topsides. We showered and had a light dinner aboard. We will pick up John & Laurie at Logan International at 11:00 tomorrow. We will probably be too busy for the next two weeks to update the blog. See ya later.
8 Oct 14
It rained a little bit in the early morning, but by 07:30 it was clear and cool. After a light breakfast, we made the final preps for the arrival of John & Laurie, and collected them at the airport before 11:00. Since we had the rental car, we decided to drive up to Gloucester, where we had lunch and then onto Marblehead, where we had coffee and a nice stroll around the old town. Then, it was back to the airport to collect Laurie’s bag (which had missed their last leg from Toronto), and finally back to the boat to get our guests settled in. After they had freshened up, we walked up into Charlestown for dinner at Tangierino, a very nice little Moroccan place. Back on the boat, we swapped gifts: I got John some granite rocks shaped like ice cubes, to keep drinks cool without melting and diluting the drink. After much ceremony, John presented me with …. soapstone rocks shaped like ice cubes, to keep drinks cool without melting and diluting the drink. We had a good laugh over having bought each other essentially identical gifts. Then we tried them out with a good whisky. He also gave me a beautifully detailed, re-sealable paint brush cleaning pot.
9 Oct 14
We slept in until 08:00, then goofed around the boat for 3 or 4 hours taking care of administrative details (i.e., ordering PolarTecs and reserving mooring balls at Woods Hole, etc.). We hit the tourist trail and walked over the Charles River steel bridge into old North Boston. After a quick lunch from an excellent Italian sandwich shop, we walked along the Freedom Trail, viewing the Meeting Hall (site of the Boston Massacre), Fanneuil Hall, South Church, Boston Common, the Boston Public Library, back along the Rose Kennedy Parkway (which is actually the top of the Big Dig), to pizza at the world-famous Regina Pizza. We finally made it back to the boat about 20:30, totally exhausted. Just enough strength left for a medicinal whisky (or two), and to bed.
10 Oct 14
Nobody woke up before 08:30, but we finally mustered enough energy and coordination to head off by 10:30. We walked along the north shore of the Charles River, through the MIT campus, stopped for a light lunch at the Miracle of Science Pub, and then on for a quick tour of Harvard. We took the MTA back to town and had cocktails on the boat, then walked up to Figs in Charlestown for dinner. Afterward, we strolled up to the Bunker Hill Monument and finally back to the boat by 22:00. Just time for a quick medicinal whisky and “early” to bed in prep for our planned run to Plymouth tomorrow.