April 6, 2007

Grasonville, MD: When we got up this morning, it was about 65 degrees in our stateroom. We discovered today that the boat is heated with a water cooled heat pump. This means it pulls the heat out of the bay water it pumps through the unit. Apparently the bay water is not very warm right now! We had nice hot oatmeal and brown sugar for breakfast (the second use of the stove). This is an interesting Spring Break... they are predicting 1 to 3 inches of snow tonight.

Captain Ken came back today, so we got our second piloting lesson. There was a good bit of wind so the docking was a bit of a challenge, but a good learning opportunity. The boat, with dual diesel engines with a throttle each, will basically spin in place. We are excited that the next time we go out, we will be on our own.

Tonight we walked to the Harris Crab house for dinner. We got a table covered with brown paper next to a guy who was using a hammer to pick out his crabmeat. Tonight was the last night of their oyster buffet. It included 7 types of oysters, including fried, steamed, and oysters Rockefeller. They also had two shuckers who were splitting oysters open and serving them up raw on the half shell. People were lined up and filling their plates. It was very interesting to watch, but Tom and I had fried shrimp. Momma, I wished you were there to enjoy all those oysters. We walked out afterwards and looked at the crabbing boats – they have a small cabin in the front and a wide flat back working area in the back where they pull the crab pots.

Today is Good Friday, and Tom and I would really like to find a church to celebrate Easter on Sunday with other Christians. Since we don’t have car, we have been looking for a worship place very near The Narrows. Tom went into the Yacht Center this afternoon and asked the receptionist if there was a church near by. She recommended a Methodist church in Chester over the bridge. Another lady in the office who lives near by offered to loan us her car to go, so that is the plan