Fregata is once again ready for action. Thanks to some excellent technicians in Portsmouth, RI, the freezer is now working and the electrical glitches have been resolved. I repaired the generator myself. A marine generator is essentially a dedicated diesel engine that turns an alternator to produce alternating current electricity. It allows for charging batteries and powering AC equipment such as the air conditioner and water maker when at anchor. Ours was shutting itself down due to a false oil pressure error. But enough tech-talk.
We left Portsmouth in the afternoon, for another pleasant sail back down to Newport, where we moored right near the center of town. This is quite a contrast to the isolated anchorages of Maine, with a constant flow of vessels, whether private, charter, water taxis, or launches. There are numerous classic 12 meter Americas Class boats docked here, including Intrepid, the two-time winner of the Americas Cup in the late 60s and early 70s. These boats are raced today for group outings, such as business team building events.
We met the Salty Dawgs group. This is a club of cruisers that sail as a flotilla, something we wanted to try as it’s a nice way to sail to new destinations. The advantages are that the orgnaization provides support to the flotilla in terms of customized weather forecasting and routing. It provides an extra degree of security as one is generally in radio distance of other friendly vessels as well as onshore monitors. There’s as social aspect, whereby the crews form a community and optionally meet up for social activities in various locations.
This cruise started in Hampton, Virginia and sailed to Newport. The next leg will be from Newport to Rockland, Maine. We’ve done this route numerous times so we don’t really need a flotilla, but it’s a good test for future adventures, such as to the Carribean or beyond.
Yesterday’s group activity was a guided visit of Fort Andrews, perched on a bluff overlooking the entrance to the Narragansett Bay. It was first built for the army after the Revolutionary War, and rebuilt 50 years alter. Both times, the designer was a French military engineer, the latter being Simon Bernard, who served under Napolean. This fort is considered to be one of the most impenatrable in its class, with multiple lines of defense from land or sea. It even had protection against tunneling underneath. It boasts an incredible arsenal of heavy cannons, and numereous innovations.
Speaking of “dawgs”, Sandy and I are both dog-lovers, but with our somewhat nomadic lifestyle, it’s not feasible to own one. So we take advantage of OPDs (other peoples dogs). One of our new favorites is Luca, a Jack Russell Terrior belonging to Liz and Frank, a cruising couple we met while getting the repairs done in Portsmouth, We met up with them again in Newport and when we dinghied over to their catamaran to say hello, Luca spontaneously jumped aboard our dinghy to say hello! Not the first time we’ve had dinghy dog visits. I had a Golden Retriever make an unexpected dinghy visit when I was talking to his owner near Bar Harbor a few years ago.
We capped the day off with a nice dinner at Hooked, an Italian inspired seafood restaurant in Newport, and a scoop of Cherry Garcia from Ben & Jerries. Back on board, there was a beautiful moonrise to the East, serenaded by the music from a wedding party going on a hundred yards.
