Two very happy cats!

Saturday afternoon around 1:30 we arrived back at North Cape Yacht Club where our boat normally lives.  Eileen and Harold, who traveled with us last fall as we brought the boat down the Hudson River and on to Annapolis, were there to help us tie up.  We spent some time off the boat catching up with friends we hadn't seen in almost a year (and a few people who didn't know that we'd been gone).  Later we got a ride home with our friend Matt, who had done some of the ICW in North Carolina with us last fall.  We got one of our cars off the jack stands, and turned on the water heater, before heading back to the boat for one last night aboard.

Sunday morning we did a bit more visiting and then loaded up the car with our dirty laundry and the cats.  They were a bit upset, no surprise there, but seemed happy once we got them back in the house.  We did a few more house/unloading/unpacking projects and then met Sue's dad, sister Chris, and the newlyweds Ethan & Kristin for dinner at Weber's.  And even though we didn't have any wind to worry about or a 70 mile day ahead of us we were still up by around 7:00.

Tomorrow we plan to unload the boat of the year's worth of stuff (dinghy, outboard, fuel cans, spare parts, charts, you name it) we have hidden below.  Then we have to figure out where to put it all once we get back home.  Then a couple of weeks cleaning and trying to undo all the wear and tear of the last 10 months.  Who knows, maybe we'll even going sailing.

For all of you who are waiting with baited breath - whatever the heck that means - for some pithy, insightful, philosophical comments to wrap this all up, unbait.  That might come in a week or so.  For now I will say, the boat was gone just over 10 months.  We traveled 6,228 nautical miles, through 12 states and only 2 countries.  We locked through 74 locks and waited for more lift, swing and bascule bridges than we care to remember.  We met lots of cruisers having similar adventures and made new friends.  We met lots of old friends along the way who went out of their way to help us out with laundry or driving around shopping or sightseeing.  We saw lots of wonderful places and things, and a few unusual things.  We enjoyed wonderful weather with surprisingly few storms or trying conditions.  We experienced a new culture and a different way of life.  We were blessed with good health and no unforeseen calamities that curtailed our trip.  We're even still speaking to each other.

For all of you who have followed our adventure I hope you enjoyed it.  Hopefully you were entertained, informed, maybe amused, and not too bored.  Thanks for your comments; they kept us amused and we always liked hearing from the homefront.  And, speaking of the homefront, we really appreciate all the help and support from Mark, who took care of the house and yard, and from Chris, who took care of the bills and the paperwork for us.  We could not have done this trip without their help.