And we're off 2.0

Pre-departure Memorial Day

Millie is ready to roll.

Egret happily resting on her mooring at the Niantic Bay Yacht Club

 

The happy couple with Steve and Margo.

Look what I found.  Here's the beginning of the unpublished final post from the Great Loop:

If I don't write the final blog entry, are we still on the Loop?  We are in a bit of denial that our journey is over and Egret is safely back on mooring 19 at Conanicut Yacht Club.  Getting back to Jamestown after being away for one year and one week has obviously invoked a sense of accomplishment.  After six thousand miles, the boat is running well, and all the systems are functioning.  If you've been a steady reader of the Blog, you know that for us, traveling on the Great Loop has been a bit addicting.  We constantly meet new and interesting people, travel to new places, and meet and overcome new challenges.  There's a rhythm to it all that is also very appealing and will be missed. 

But it's nice to be home.  It's nice not to worry about cell phone coverage, access to grocery stores, weather, or running into rocks.  Our bed is a little bigger, but it doesn't rock around all night.   We spent the first few weeks back with trips to Portland and Burlington to visit the kids, which was super fun.  Then off to Philly for a slew of doctor's appointments and some fun catch-up time with friends.  Never try to fit an entire year of doctor's appointments into a week.   

A quick statistical summary of our trip:

We traveled six thousand miles, through two countries, and nineteen states. Of the 371 total days away, we spent 289 on the boat and 82 off the boat.  Of the 289 days on the boat, we spent 181 in marinas, 70 at anchor, 30 on free docks or free walls, and 8 on moorings.  Over the six thousand miles, we used almost 3 thousand gallons of fuel and put 560 hours on the engine.