4 – 7 September — Trip to ELROD Reunion in Charleston, SC.
Early September found us on the road to Charleston, SC where we attended the reunion for USS ELROD FFG-55. I commanded ELROD in 1988 and 89 through several Persian Gulf tours and one in the North Atlantic. The group that showed up was mostly from the time I had the ship and included all of those individuals shown in the dinner venue below. We had a tremendous time telling old stories from at sea and catching up on the lives we had lived since leaving ELROD, most of us leaving her over 30 years ago. The second picture is of the Ship’s XO Gary Belcher and his wife Cindy, great people.
Forgot to take a picture this trip, but we had fun anyway. Guess those pictures are really just for memory. We went to the boat Thursday the 14th and stayed the night. We met Ken and Debbie Campbell at dinner — they were traveling the area on their Beneteau Swift Trawler. A great couple we hope to see more of. Albert and Veronica arrived Friday afternoon. Carey and Veronica drove our car to Olverson’s as we wanted a car to allow us to go to a local restaurant. Albert and I took the boat the entire 13 miles to Olversons. Not too far! After a great weekend of activities and fine weather we headed back to Cole’s Point Sunday in a bit of rain. NEW FEATURE: FROM JULY 2026 ON YOU CAN CLICK ON ANY PICTURE TO SEE IT EXPAND IN SIZE. CLICK AGAIN TO REDUCE.
Weekend Events
Thursday night dinner with Ken and Debbie
Beautiful run of 13 miles to Olverson’s on Friday
Friday night out at local Mexican restaurant with the 3 couples from CYC attending the event: Albert, Veronica, Pete, Michelle, and Carey and I
Saturday relaxing, swimming and getting to know the Lodge Creek Marina crowd who we had come to visit.
Saturday evening bar-b-que dinner with the Lodge Creek marina group
Music bingo game after dinner that made us all laugh
Lazy and great Sunday brunch put on by the boaters at the pier we were tied up to
Wet but smooth trip back to our Cole’s Point slip
Surprise as Ken and Debie, from the previous Thursday were back from a trip to Onancock and another good dinner getting better acquainted.
This was one of our most relaxing and enjoyable events of the summer. We loved it.
August 18- 24 Relaxing Around Colonial Beach
Evening at Los Hermanos
Mid August has been quiet, and we enjoyed Joey (who loves relaxing on the sofa), enjoying great meals in the town’s many restaurants, and counting how much money is tied up in the dozens of Corvettes parked at Dockside (see below).
We had moved the boat from the Boathouse Marina to Cole’s Point Marina for at least the rest of the summer to make traveling to the Bay easier. Albert and Veronica Schick met us at Cole’s Point and traveled with us to Point Lookout and an event with the Colonial Yacht Club. We enjoyed a good time over the weekend and ate at both of the local restaurants, Salt, and Pier 450. That was after we enjoyed Cole’s Point Tavern with Albert and Veronica on Thursday evening — before traveling by boat to Pt Lookout.
Bolins and Schicks at Cole’s Point Tavern.
July 18 – 19 MTOA Event
We attended a fish fry with the MTOA (Marine Trawler Owners Association) at Cole’s Point. A fantastic event — 29 boats and over 60 people joining in on boating information lectures, absolutely fantastic seafood catered dinner, and grand music by a local musician playing golden oldies of the 60s. Many were also WYA members so it was nice to meet old friends at the fish fry also.
July 25 – 27 Solomons Island Trip
Four boats and 3 RVs made the trip to Spring Cove Marina. Albert and Veronica Schick joined us on the weekend event. We reserved a Pavillion at the marina where we cooked most of our food for the weekend and watched an outdoor movie. It felt like the rest of the time most were in the pool enjoying cool waters on a hot day. Great event and all 22 of us had fun. We even had a group eating event at a local restaurant that turned out to be special.
Well, the 5-month ICW/Bahamas trip is over and we’re settled in at our home in Colonial Beach. At our age we had a host of medial appointments to take care of and we were anxious to visit with friends from the town. Well, we did both. There is a lot going on in town so we were busy. We even managed a few more boat trips, one to Norfolk to watch the Tall Ships parade through the Elisabeth River, which we missed because foul weather kept us out of Norfolk on the parade date. We did make it to two stops on the James River –resorts that were well acclaimed — Wrong! The resorts were over-priced and not all that great. We decided it was ok we visited but the hometown spun marina is for us. We made the decision to move our boat to Cole’s Point — 20 miles down the Potomac for the summer as they have a pool and a nice beach to enjoy quietly. I guess I could have provided a daily tally of activities but decided not to. We’ll start again now with our showcase of activities.
We woke on Thursday, April 2nd at Atlantic Yacht Basin to warmer weather, the long‑awaited part for the boat, and a calmer Chesapeake Bay. With genuine relief, we applauded the newly installed gear‑driven raw water pump on the port engine. After returning the rental car and settling our bill, we pointed BenjOllie north and slipped through Norfolk.
Six boats entered Great Bridge Lock at Chesapeake to get us through to Norfolk—BenjOllie was number two—and what should have been a routine passage turned into an unexpected maneuvering drill. The lead sailboat was being driven by a novice who simply couldn’t get tied up. With his engine and bow thruster working overtime, he kept drifting toward us, coming uncomfortably close to crashing into our hull. Thankfully, he missed and eventually managed to secure himself on the opposite wall of the lock, well out of our way.
Once clear of the lock, the rest of the day unfolded easily. We made a smooth two‑hour run to HOSPITAL POINT, next to Portsmouth Naval Hospital and officially mile zero of the ICW. There we anchored for the night, ready to tackle the 100‑plus miles to Colonial Beach over the next two days.
Carey made my favorite loaded hot dogs for dinner, complete with a side of spicy corn, beans, and tomatoes. We ate while taking in the evening views from our anchorage (see photos below). A full moon over the Norfolk skyline and the Battleship Wisconsin with a full display of lights. A peaceful end to a very nice day. Now to bed.
On to WINDMILL POINT MARINA at the bottom of the Rappahannock River. The winds were almost 15 knots but the ride was not unpleasant as we had following seas. It was a 60 mile run so we were ready to stop when we arrived there about 2 PM. We moored quickly as we hadn’t had lunch yet and wanted to check out their Tiki Bar. A pleasant visit as we enjoyed the outdoor seating and a nice lunch. Once back on the boat we made plans for our last day of the trip — tomorrow when we pull into Colonial Beach.
Underway at 7:30 AM Saturday morning we motored up the Chesapeake Bay in 1 foot seas and light wind, turning into the Potomac River 20 miles north of Windmill Point for our 50 mile trek up the River to Colonial Beach. All total it was a 70 mile run that ended with a 3 PM arrival at our old familiar slip. The Boathouse Marina group welcomed us home and helped get us tied up. We truly enjoyed the 5 month trip but realized that we’re advancing in age and some of the chores on a trip like that took a lot more out of us then previous runs over the last 20 years. We’ll see how we feel about another winter trip after a couple days at home. If you have followed along we hope you enjoyed the story. And, we absolutely recommend long cruises to fellow boaters. The journey is definitely as enjoyable as the destinations!
