Boat Food! - Chicken &/or Veggies and Dumplings.

It's a one-pot wonder on a cold, blustery day.  And this weekend was a perfect day for dumplings.  This is for chicken and green bean (weird combo, right?  But it was good!) dumplings, but I'll add info below for veggie/vegan/gluten free changes.

Water in the Bilge.

Yep, there's been water in the bilge. Actually - we've had water in the bilge since right after we bought the boat.

They like us, they really, really like us!

I cannot for the life of me remember where that quote is from.  And I'm heading off to teach some yoga and TRX, so I either have time to Google or blog.  Choosing blog.  Clearly.  Can you tell me what it's from?

Cha Ching - You're welcome West Marine. aka Chart Plotter Replacement

Did you read that post last week?  You know, the one about the chart plotter taking a nose dive mid-sail?  Mark worked with it - checking wires, looking for corrosion, etc.  It would flash on, then die again.  We finally accepted the fact that it's 10 year old technology and we need to move on.
That resulted in a week of technical research.  And the resulting paralysis of information overload.  We NEED a chart plotter.  We sail this boat based on technology.  We know our local waters, but are heading south in a month.  Sure we have an ICW chart book that shows us stuff, but it's from 2007, I think.  And as much as people have insisted that we need paper charts, the electronic versions are much more up to date.  Plus I'm a sucker for computerized anything.
We also really want to upgrade to radar.  Luna Sea came with loads of great equipment - solar panels, an Epirb, life raft, (relatively) giant fridge/freezer, AC/heater, etc.  But if we're going to take her across an ocean, I'd feel a lot better on night passages knowing that we can see what's in our path.
As we NEED the chart plotter and WANT radar, we need two that are compatible.  We ended up landing on a Garmin chart plotter/radar combo.  We'd gone to West Marine to touch and feel and experience the various chart plotters in real life - and while the boat is currently loaded with (old) Raymarine technology, we both feel that the Garmin electronics are much more user friendly.  AND West Marine currently has a chart plotter/radar combo on sale.  So we did it.  Mark loaded the online shopping cart with the combo, binoculars, and a hand held VHF combo pack.  I don't know the total cost but he groaned a bit when the cart hit the $2000 mark.  But hey - that's a lot less than the potential damages caused from running aground in unknown waters and it's a solid starting point for us as other pieces of equipment die - as I'm sure they will.  We can add on to this system, slowly (hopefully not all at once!) replacing the remaining systems with compatible Garmin electronics.  For now, our current depth sounder/speedometer is working fine, so it stays.
I don't know that we'll get the radar installed before the December trip, but that chart plotter installation is happening as soon as it shows up in the mail.  As is the davit installation - likely all arriving at the same time to create a giant pile of projects next weekend.
In the meantime, here's the chart plotter we went with (I think it's actually the one that Mark played with last weekend when Topanga stopped by) :

Garmin 740s

  As much as we hate to spend money, it IS why we bought the boat long before our plans to set sail - we can afford to replace things and leave with the safest boat possible.  And we'll have plenty of time to learn the new systems, to boot!

You guys have any experience with this unit?

Luna Sea makes a new friend.

We've had a few boats stop in and drop anchor just across the creek from Luna Sea over the past month.  It's a quiet (free!) little spot that is close to ocean access for people to hang out in as they head south.  This past weekend we had the pleasure of  meeting John and Cassie from Topanga.  (you can check out each of their blogs via the link attached to their names.) These guys are a little younger than us - which we're learning is a bit of an oddity in the sailing community.  People tend to wait until retirement to leave their jobs and go see the world.  But over the past couple of years I've noticed more and more blogs written by younger couples.  It's nice to know we won't be the only crazy people to leave our perfectly safe jobs to go traipsing around the world, Christopher Columbus style.
Anyway - John and Cassie and their adorable dog Dexter dropped anchor Saturday night and headed over to Luna Sea for some dinner and drinks.  It was great to meet them and talk about their trip.  They're only a few months in, so it's still all new to them and gives us a fantastic glimpse into where we hope to be before too terribly long.
Sunday we all slept in before a brunch of sausage and gravy (I NEVER make this, but it was pretty tasty) and then Mark and I headed over to check out Topanga.  We keep running into sailors that have a TRX but don't use it - so as usual I offered to teach them a few things.  I love this thing and am always happy to share how great of a workout it is.  Didn't hurt that I offered lessons after they'd had a few drinks Saturday night...  People will agree to anything once the southern vodka starts pouring.  (*side note: we didn't realize anyone made southern vodka, but apparently it's a thing here in GA...)

Here are some pictures - pretty much stolen from Cassie's recent post on their visit to Savannah:

John and Mark finding a good height to hang the TRX on Topanga

Cassie working on her triceps so she can keep pulling up that manual anchor.

John giving it a whirl

Mark and I hanging out on Topanga

It was really great to meet Cassie, John and Dexter - and even though my dogs are rude and tried to eat Dexter once or twice, it was fun to share stories.  And their boat is gorgeous - I'm still coveting those couches.  As John continues to stretch their cruising time line, I have high hopes that we'll meet up again in a much warmer climate!  (they brought a horribly cold Canadian front with them - thanks, guys.)