Detomos Abroad

Part 3: Hilo and the East Coast

The next morning, we were up early for breakfast, and then made a short drive to Maniniowale Beach in Kona Coast State Park, just north of the airport, for snorkeling and swimming and the building of sandcastles. The waters here were a beautiful blue with few people and minimal waves until midday when the beach became crowded and the wind picked up. While snorkeling there, we saw plenty of reef fish and a swimming green turtle. The sand was white and perfect for sandcastle building and we built an array of them.

We left the park for a late lunch of burgers and then headed back to the house where we swam in the pool and got ready for a big family dinner reserved that night at the original Merriman’s Farm-to-Table Hawaiian Restaurant near Waimea. In order to get there, we had to drive inland across the island 90-minutes to Kamuela in the north. Along the drive we saw a royal blue peacock perched on a fencepost, and numerous wild goats and deer. We had a delightful meal with quality food and quality service, complete with desserts and after dinner drinks. We returned along the western coastal route where we stopped to watch the sunset before returning home for drinks to belatedly celebrate Tony’s 40^th birthday.

On Saturday, we decided to cross the Island and explore the east coast of Hawaii, including the town and area of Hilo. We drove back through the coastal road to Waimea where we stopped for a “second breakfast” and coffee at “Waimea Coffee” and shopped at the local Saturday Morning Market where we bought a sampling of delicious, traditional Hawaiian donuts! Then we drove southeast to the famous Akaka Falls, located about 11-miles north of Hilo, and where we climbed and hiked to both overlooks. Akaka Falls is located in a state park and displays a spectacular 442-foot tall drop. “Akaka” is named after a Hawaiian Chief. 

Then we drove to Hilo for lunch waterside at the HBC (Hilo Bay Cafe). Here we had unusual cocktails and lunch while we watched an outrigger regatta taking place in the bay. We also saw a mongoose crossing the lawn. Mongooses are an invasive species on the island brought there by sugarcane plantation owners to control rats, but now they are a serious problem. Their favorite meals are small birds and their eggs, but they are also known to eat plants, fruits, and insects. The mongoose also eats sea turtle eggs, damaging that population, and is responsible for the deaths of at least eight species of birds that are native to Hawaii and that are on the endangered species list. After lunch, we traveled to the Lava tube/caves in Kanamu state park. The footing was wet and treacherous, but it was adventurous and a good time. Lastly, we decided to visit Rainbow Falls where there are two view points of the 80ft tall and almost 100ft wide Falls, before we traveling in the car back across the center of the island to our house for some relaxing pool and hot tub time!

Part 2: Coffee and Manta Rays

After breakfast on Thursday morning, it was time for a swim and play at Magic Sands Beach and then a drive up the side of the old Hualalai Volcano, to 3200 feet of elevation, to Mountain Thunder Coffee Plantation. Here we tasted their different coffees, took a tour of the processing area, and learned about their coffee making. It takes about two years for their coffee to get to market, including Co-Operative growing of the year’s crop, harvesting the beans, then sorting, roasting, and packaging of the coffee. The company harvests about 60,000 pounds of coffee per year, with only 60% of the beans ever making it into their coffee products. Their coffee has a shelf life of about one year and their blonde coffee is the strongest of their coffees. We then walked their nature trail in the cloud forest ecosystem, seeing rows of coffee trees with beans in various stages of growth. Mixed into the foliage was the Hawaiian Ti plant, (the “Good Luck” plant), with its colorful leaves that were used by the Hawaiian Chiefs and worn around their neck during rituals. The large leaves are also used to thatch roofs. Only 2.5% of the world’s forests are similar to this Cloud Forest. The Cloud Forest is characterized by persistent, low-level cloud cover, and abundant moss-covered ground and vegetation. At the Mountain Thunder Coffee Farms, the current annual rainfall exceeds 100 inches a year, and that amount of moisture gives rise to huge Hawaiian ferns. Among the branches were chameleons, cockatoos, and apapanes (bright red birds also known as “the Hawaiian Honeycreeper”), Ōhi‘a lehua trees, (the dominant tree above 1,300 ft. and principal colonizer of recent lava flows), and a local lava tube which is 40 feet deep and 60 feet wide.

At the end of the trail, we reached an observation deck overlooking the 7-acre farm of all organic coffee and a small amount of tea. Hawaii is the only U.S. state to commercially grow and harvest coffee. Although coffee is grown on several Hawaii Islands, Kona Coffee is the most-sought after and highly prized. All of their coffee is grown in the cloud forest and is picked by hand. After leaving, we stopped in town at the Kona Farmers market and looked at all the produce, crafts, and wares. Then we returned to the house for lunch and swim time. 

After a restful afternoon and a snack, early that evening we set off for our evening snorkel with the Manta Rays! We drove a short ways north of town to the Marina at Honokohau Bay where we met the “Bite Me Sport Fishing Company” for their sunset Manta Ray viewing. Everyone put on wetsuits, climbed onto their boat, and took a 25-minutes ride north until we were just offshore of the airport and in shallow water (20 ft.) We entered the water with snorkels and masks, and the crew deployed 3 surfboards, each equipped with batteries, downward facing floodlights, and hold-on loops. The lights attract plankton which attracts the Manta Rays. In the growing darkness, one holds onto the rope loop on the surf board and uses a floatation “noodle” to  keep your legs at or near the surface. Then we wait and watch with our face masks in the water. Soon, the Manta Rays came and they began to slowly cruise beneath us. Once they were used to us the manta started swimming somersaults, turning over, swallowing plankton, and showing off all their beauty. There were males and females of various sizes, but most were between 6-10 ft. wide. The longer we stayed the more Manta Rays came with some mirroring each other in a spontaneous, elegant dance. It was truly fantastic! After an hour more of viewing, we got back on the boat for warm showers and snacks and then returned to marina. Then it was back to the house to shower, grab a snack, and relax.

 Part 1: Magic Sands & Black Sands Beaches

We have been to the islands of Hawaii numerous times, but always to Oahu or Kauai. In fact, our first time to Oahu and Kauai was in 1988 when our family vacation included only ourselves and our two sons who were 7- and 4-years old. This adventure included exploring Waikiki, Diamond Head, visiting the Dole Pineapple Factory, hiking the Na Pali Coast and Waimea Canyon, and snorkeling the shallow reefs at Poipu. However, our 4-year old, (who is 40-years old now), has little memory of the trip and we decided it was time to revisit, but this time with both of our sons’ families including our 4 grandchildren. In order to make the adventure new and fresh, we decided to visit the “Big Island” of Hawaii, and rented a 7-bedroom house in Kona, Hawaii known locally as “The Big House” near Magic Sands Beach.

We embarked on our trip from our home in Florida on Monday morning with a 6-hour flight from Orlando to Seattle, followed by another 5-hour plus flight from Seattle directly to Kona. From there, we rented a car and checked into the Holiday Inn Express for one night in downtown Kona near the shore. After settling in, we walked down towards the water, had dinner & drinks at a second story restaurant named “Poncho and Lefty’s,” and watched the sun set over the ocean before exploring the waterfront beach and returning to the hotel.

On Tuesday, after a hotel breakfast, we explored the local Kona area by car, identifying interesting shops & locations, visiting Magic Sands, Keauhou, and Maniniowale beaches, and locating “The Big House” where we would all spend the next week. Our younger son, Tony, and his wife and two children, (9- and almost 6-years old) arrived from a 3-day holiday in San Francisco at noon, followed by our older son, Mike, his wife and two boys, (9- and 7-years old) who arrived from a 4-day holiday visiting friends in Los Angeles. We greeted both families with flower leis before everyone grabbed a quick lunch and then settling into “The Big House”, choosing bedrooms, and jumping into the swimming pool. It was then time for gathering supplies, ordering pizza for dinner, and walking the unique and lovely decorated footpath to Magic Sands Beach for watching the sunset. Then it was baths and bedtime for the kids and nightcaps for the adults on the patio terrace deck, before bringing the long day to its end.

On Wednesday, the grandkids were up at 6:15am and ready for breakfast and an early swim in the pool, before we set off on the first day’s adventure. This morning we would make the 90-minute drive south to Punalu’u Black Sand Beach that is known for its encounters with sea turtles. We took 3-cars and drove south along the coast, heading first to the top of a volcanic plateau where we stopped and took a break at “Coffee Grinds” for coffee and smoothies. We then continued our drive around the most southern point of U.S. land in the world and headed east to the black sand beach, parking on the far-side of the parking lot. There are less than 25 black sand beaches in the world, and when we arrived this one had one large loggerhead turtle nesting in an area restricted for turtles, and another turtle eating moss in a nearby tidal pool. Eventually everyone began snorkeling seeing a large variety of reef fish of all colors, as well as sea cucumbers, eels, and more turtles! The kids built sand castles and explored for hours. After 3-+ hours, we packed-up and began driving back. Along the way, we stopped for lunch in the little town of Naalehu, where there was a local market taking place with food trucks. After lunch, we continued back to the house and took the occasion for more pool time. For dinner, we drove into downtown Kona at “Papa Kona’s” where we were seated on the deck looking over the ocean and watched the sunset. After dinner, we strolled along the many shops, getting ice cream and watching locals play volleyball before returning home for bedtime.

Bicycling with our in-laws has become one of our favorite exercise-adventure pastimes, and we decided to explore the well-known Virginia rails-to-trails Creeper Trail. The adventure began with an 11-hour drive on Friday with our bicycles to Abingdon, Virginia, where we met up with Julie’s sister & brother-in-law, Pam & A.J. We had decided to stay at the historic Martha Washington Inn which was built in 1832 as a southern mansion for General Francis Preston & his family. After the family left the residence, it was converted to a college for young women (Martha Washington College), before becoming a civil war hospital and then finally closing . In 1934, the facility was used to house aspiring actors who appeared at the Barter Theatre (located across the street). It has been a hotel since 1935, and has active fireplaces, a library, a bar and restaurant, a pool and hot tubs, a spa and saunas, tennis courts and an 18-hole putt-putt golf course with surrounding gardens.  Many of the furnishings and antiques are original to the property.  

We have a lovely room on the 3rd floor, twice the size of a normal hotel room, with antique spindle beds and glass chandeliers. We walked the grounds and then strolled to the trailhead of the bicycle trail to see where we would be riding on Sunday, (we had decided to use Saturday to explore the town and relax from the long car ride). The day slowly devolved into cool weather and a misty rain with more of the same predicted for tomorrow (Saturday). We enjoyed dinner (included with the room) at the bar and enjoyed a game of cards on the hotel veranda before enjoying a complementary port by the fire in the library.

The next morning, we arose for a lovely complementary coffee and breakfast in the Sisters’ Restaurant, which included muffins with yogurt & granola followed by a huge plate of biscuits &gravy, sausage, quiche, and hash browns. Then, we headed out with umbrellas to window shop the downtown area. Negotiating the rain, we visited a number of boutiques and antique shops. before taking a late lunch at a Greek restaurant and heading back to the hotel where we relaxed with a glass of wine in the hot tub and enjoyed a game of cards on the veranda. Then, it was off for a light dinner in the bar and a glass of port on the veranda before preparing our bikes for an early start in the morning.

On Sunday morning, we collected a quick coffee and muffins from the restaurant before boarding our bikes and riding to the trail head by 7:30am. The first 17-miles of the trail are relatively flat heading slightly downhill for the first 9-miles, and then up. We initially traveled past large houses and a city baseball park along the South Holston River, where the water was high due to the week’s past rain. We pedaled past large farms of cattle and crops in the rolling hills of the Appalachian mountains. This trail was originally a pioneer footpath (aka – Daniel Boone).  Then, in 1900, the Virginia North Carolina Railroad was built to haul lumber, iron ore and supplies over the range. The train was nicknamed “The Virginia Creeper” since the steam engine locomotives crept along the trail so slowly. The original steam engine is still on display at the head of the trail. The trail included 47 trestle bridges and numerous gates between properties, both private and public. The last train ran in 1977.

We rode the trail for about 20 minutes when Julie’s sister suffered a flat tire.  After a quick replacement of the tube, we were on our way again along the trail. There were very few people on this part of the trail and they were mostly locals walking their dogs. We rode through farmlands and the Mt. Rogers National Forest. After 17-miles in 2 ½ hours, we arrived in Damascus where we met our shuttle to take us to the top of Whitetop Mountain.

This part of the trail is muddy, rutted and steeply uphill, and our shuttle drive tells us stories of when the train used to still run behind his house, and of spotting bears last night. Wild turkeys ran across the road in front of shuttle when we got near the top of Whitetop Mountain and the North Carolina border. At the top, we got back on our bikes and started heading slowly downhill. Our first stop was a ranger station, and then the trail became more challenging. The downhill is steep and rocky with no need to peddle. Instead, we coasted carefully, holding tight, steering, and breaking to stay on the trail. Next, we stopped at Green Cove Cooperative (a restored train station) that sells souvenirs, drinks, snacks, and a good selection of warm clothing to cater to those who are not fully prepared when the mountain top is cold. Along the trail, we crossed the Appalachian Hiking Trail, before we rode into Taylors Valley and stopped for a light lunch at Hellbender’s Café. After lunch, we rode 6 more miles of trail before arriving in Damascus, which was hosting an annual hiking trail convention, (there are 7 trails that leave from the town of Damascus). This completed the additional 17-miles downhill from Whitetop which took us about 2 ½ hours.

Then, it was onward to Abingdon – 17 more miles back along the trail we had covered in the morning.  We passed a group of horseback riders and now, saw many hikers on the trail. All along the lower trail are places along the river to sit, to camp, and to picnic. Eventually, we reached the confluence of the Middle Fork Holston and South Fork Holston rivers, but much of the remaining trail is in the sun, and day was getting hot. We finally arrived back at the hotel at ~4:30pm – it’s been a long day! After stowing our bikes, we needed showers to wash off the mud and then we all jumped into the hot tub with a cold drink. That evening, we played cards in the garden, enjoyed celebratory drinks at the bar and had a nice,  relaxing dinner.

Later, we packed our gear and the next morning we all met for an excellent breakfast before saying our “goodbyes” and heading off our separate ways.

Part 3: Burano, San Francesco del Deserto, and Porto Grandi

Tuesday, May 7^th began with a light rain, and after having breakfast on the boat, we departed Le Vignole and leisurely motored northeast past the island of S. Erasmo – a horticultural island with numerous hiking paths located on it. From here, we motored north past Burano to the island of Mazzorbo. We moored the boat against the green lawn and stone bulkhead, and walked across the local footbridge bridge to Burano. The island of Mazzorbo holds the Burano cemetery and a church from the 1600’s which is still fully functioning, (complete with crypts in the floor), a few homes, a park, and, initially unbeknownst to us, a Michelin Star restaurant. The island and city of Burano greeted us with swans and color, and is known as “The Italian Lace Island.”  The shops are filled with Italian linens and silks, with colorfully painted shops and houses, and the many canals make it “walking island” where deliveries and transport are all via water. 

The island of Burano has around 27,000 inhabitants and is one of the more densely populated islands in the Venice Lagoon. The town offered us lots of shopping and a variety of quaint restaurants, with excellent seafood and wine. In the cityscape, the bell tower “Campanile San Martino”, which is typical for the area and freestanding from the nave, catches the eye, as it leans at ~3 degrees and has done so for hundreds of years, appearing ready to fall over. We enjoyed a leisurely midday meal in Burano before taking a long stroll around Mazzorbo and returning to the boat. In the late afternoon, we returned to Burano for aperitifs, watching the locals who have now come out to walk their dogs and socialize once the large tourist’s boats have left. On the way back from Burano to our boat berth on Mazzorbo, we noticed that a previously locked gate was open to a vineyard and we decided to explore. This turned out to be the back entrance to a Michelin Star Restaurant and Wine Bar, the Venissa, so we stopped to drink Prosecco and snack on a sardine appetizer before returning to our boat for the evening. However, that evening at 1:30am, our battery alarm sounded indicating we were running low on battery power, and so we idled the engine for an hour to recharge it. This then happened again at 5:30am. We were told that the engine needs to run at least 4-hours per day to keep the batteries charged and we were surprised by this, but we concluded that perhaps we had been negligent in running it the required amount of time.

Wednesday morning after breakfast on the boat and cappuccinos in town, we bought some drinking water at the local Burano grocery before departing Mazzorbo, motoring all around the island of Burano, and heading to the Isle San Francisco del Deserto, a quiet island with an ancient but active Monastery. We docked along the bulkhead just inside the canal and took lunch on deck while listening to the birds and watching the planes take off at a distance from Venice airport located across the bay. The Monastery was closed as it was only open certain hours, so after lunch, we decided to head to the island of Torcello. Torcello is in the northern part of the lagoon, where the tides are typically less. It is a very small island, but in the past, it was one of the oldest and once most important centers in the lagoon. The typical highlights of the island are the Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta and the Church of Santa Fosca. The palines are located down a narrow waterway in front of the cathedral, but the limited space, the strong currents, and the sudden failure of one of our bow thrusters made docking there too risky. Therefore, we headed back to Mazzorbo/Burano for groceries, before heading back to San Francesco Del Deserto where the monastery was now open for visitors. Once here, we toured the St. Francis of Assisi church with a local Italian Friar. The Monastery dates from 1220 when St. Francis initially visited the island. A church and Convent were then built, but eventually the island was abandoned and deserted due to the extremely poor conditions of the Venice Lagoon. It was reoccupied and renovated in 1453, and the Friars Minor lived there until 1806. In 1856, the island was given by a patriarch to the San Franciscan Friars. Another renovation was done in the 1980’s and it is now a lovely quiet spot to visit on any trip to the lagoon. After our tour, we had cocktails and chips on our houseboat’s rooftop deck, followed by dinner onboard and a quiet evening of cards. However, that evening at 12:30am, our battery alarm once again sounded requiring us to idled the engine for an hour to recharge it. After it happened again at 4:30am, we disconnected the alarm and decided we would address the issue in the morning.

Thursday morning, we started and idled the engine as the low batteries had begun to allow our refrigerator to warm. After breakfast on the boat, we left a message with the Charter Office outlining our issues with the battery charging system and our failed bow thruster. After leaving the peacefulness of San Francesco Del Deserto and beginning to head back towards Chioggia, the Charter Office contacted us and suggested going to Porte Grandi instead – a town on the mainland in the opposite direction, located northeast of the city of Venice. Therefore, we turned the boat around and headed to Porte Grandi through canals that isolated islands and farms that were lower than the water in the canal. The shores were lined with reeds and stone bags shoring up the island edges and protecting acres and acres of farm land. Along the way we saw swans and their cygnets, and a variety of waterfowl. Porte Grandi is massive boat repair area in front of a set of locks that allow entrance to the Sile River, (The River of Silence), system. Once arriving and while waiting for the repairman, we docked at an out-of-the-way location, observed boats passing through the locks, and had lunch on the top deck. Once the boat technician arrived, he fixed the bow thrusters, (a bad switch) and fixed a broken electrical connection that was preventing the batteries from fully charging. After the repairs were made, we traveled back the way we came to Burano/ Mazzorbo for groceries and dinner. When we arrived and docked, another large cruise boat arrived bringing a crowd of visitors. We found a little café off the main path where we had drinks. For dinner, we went to an excellent restaurant named “Gailluipi” for squid appetizer, mussels, risotto, and tortellini. After dinner, Roc used the restaurant’s wifi to run an SEG Board of Director’s meeting from his phone. Then, it was back to the boat for nightcaps and relaxation.

On Friday morning after a casual breakfast on the boat and on a beautiful, sunny morning, we decided to head off to Torcello again to explore the Cathedral and vineyard there. However, when we arrived we observed some of our sister boats that had spent the night there now sitting grounded in the mud since it was low tide. After watching another couple struggle for a while to get their moored boat off of the bottom mud, we decided to skip Torcello and headed off motoring through the canal on the west side of Mazzorbo past Burano and around the Palude de Burano (swamp of Burano) and the Isle Crevan (which is for sale for $6.9M), and back to berth on Mazzorbo. We then headed back into Burano where we found a new, “classy” grocery that let us taste local-made botanical gin, sold us a bottle of Grand Marnier, before heading to the post office to mail postcards. It was then time for lunch, which we had at a small café that was surrounded by locals eating at their personal tables, on  their  front stoops, all along the street. Back at the boat, we relaxed and waited for news on Peter’s wife’s follow-up arthroscopic surgery, (which went well). That night we took dinner late, after the tourists’ boats and ferries had all left and found and ended up at Al Ombré – a restaurant with a tiny, narrow doorway opening into a courtyard of 10 tables, surrounded by bright yellow walls and flowers. For dinner we had homemade lasagna and melanzane ( i.e. Italian eggplant Parmesan) – the best dinner thus far!

Then, it was back to  the boat for nightcaps and a game of cards.

On Saturday, May 11, we decided to explore some of the area to our east and position ourselves closer for our eventual trip back to Chioggia. Saturday morning was very quiet in town and on the water with few boats or people around. After breakfast on board, we headed to town for a quick grocery run and cappuccinos, before saying “good-bye” to Burano and motoring down the canal and past Lio Piccolo, an old fishing village. As the morning progressed, numerous small boats came out for a Saturday on the water, and we observed a number of local fishermen returning, along with numerous swamps and lowlands. We headed to Punta Sabbioni, where we tied to the city dock near a restaurant, but decided to have lunch on board with the supplies that we had bought at the store,  (wine, bread, cheese, hard boil eggs, and salami). From there, we headed south past the “MOSE” and its massive flood gates protecting Venice. “MOSE” is the “Modulo Sperimentale Elettromeccanico” which translates into, ’Experimental Electromechanical Module’), and it is a project designed to protect the city of Venice and the Venetian Lagoon from flooding by blocking the lagoon off from the Adriatic Sea during extreme high tides. The project consists of rows of mobile gates that are installed on the seafloor at the Lido, Malamocco, and Chioggia inlets, and that can be raised by filling them with compressed air. After crossing the Lido inlet, we motored on to our berth at Le Vignole for the night. Since it was Saturday afternoon, young kids with their speedboats boats were jumping off the bridges and partying until dark. After that, we bought one more bottle of Prosecco from our favorite farmer and enjoyed a light dinner of duck pate, cheese, and bread.

Sunday, we would have to bring the boat back to Chioggia, since check-out was at 8:30am on Monday morning. After breakfast, we left Le Vignole and headed up Canal Nicolo towards Venice before turning on to Canal Lazzaretto to Canal dells Scoasse. Here, it became very shallow and we needed to be careful to stay in the narrow channel. We then headed past the isle Lazzaretto Vecchio, passing many sail boats that were motoring towards the inlet to the Adriatic Sea. Along the way were people out practicing paddling their gondolas and crewing shells. To the south of where we spent our first night in Malamocco, we temporarily got the wrong side of a bricole and dragged bottom slightly, stirring up the mud. Soon afterwards, we stopped at an unused commercial dock at Alberoni for lunch on deck before continuing our journey towards Chioggia. Once we arrived, we moored the boat in one of our Charter Company’s slips, and made our way to old town Chioggia to locate a sports bar in which we could watch soccer (EPL). This was a non-trivial exercise, and, after 45-minutes of strolling about, we found a little pizzeria and watched the Italian league, instead. Then we headed back to Sottomarina, stopping for drinks at the Budapest Caffe, before arriving at the beach at the Havana Club, where we ate dinner and watched Arsenal play. On the way back to the boat, we stopped at the grocery and bought chocolate, palinka, and limoncello, which we sipped that evening while playing cards.

On Monday, May 13, we arose early, finished up our eggs, toast, and coffee, and “checked-out” with the Charter Company staff. All was well, and we left on our reserved taxi at 9:00am and headed to Marco Polo Airport where we dropped off Peter for his early flight. We then had the driver take us to our hotel for the night that was located in Quarto d’Altino, about 10 minutes from the airport. Although we were very early to check in, we were greeted with cappuccinos and cookies, and then given a room in about 40 minutes. We left our belongings in the room and we went walking around, exploring the town. The Train station is only a block away, and the Town Center is a short 10-minute walk. There we found a pizzeria/restaurant where we ate a lunch of salads and spicy mussels marinara. Two and one-half hours later, we walked back to our hotel, showered, and prepared our bags for our flight back to the USA in the morning 

Tuesday morning, we were up early for the shuttle to the airport, where we checked-in and went to the lounge before catching our direct flight to Atlanta, and our connection back to our home in Melbourne, Florida. The trip convinced us that other river-canal houseboat adventures are likely in our future! Stay tuned!

Part 2: Venice and Murano

We finally pass the southern end of Venice and head to Le Vignole a small farming island divided by a small, quiet canal with lovely pedestrian bridges and footpaths. Halfway down the canal are located paline that are reserved for our Charter Company and we moored alongside the poles, and then walk to the northern end of canal where there is a ACTV Vaporetto, (water ferry), every 30 minutes to the island and city of Venice. Twenty-five years ago, large cruise ships would dock at the island of Venice, but this is no longer allowed. Given the chaos and expense of the Venice island marinas, we decide this is a more convenient way to visit the historic city.

Once in Venice, we walked to St. Mark’s Square, which was fairly crowded. Tourists were taking gondola rides and taking pictures on the Rialto Bridge. We were impressed at how different Venice was from 25 years ago – the canals were clean and clear, the streets and walks were clean and in excellent condition, and there were no hordes of pigeons annoying one’s every movement (feeding pigeons in Venice was outlawed with a 500 Euro fine in 2008). We stopped for a late lunch of spinach cannelloni, lasagna, and gnocchi  accompanied with G&Ts, before heading on to an Irish Pub to watch an English Premiere League match on television and to drink Irish whiskey and Guinness stout. After the game, it was back to the houseboat via vaporetto, where we were met on Le Vignole by a local farmer and purchased fresh strawberries, artichokes, and a local bottle of Prosecco. This was accompanied by a lesson in how to peel and eat raw artichoke hearts with olive oil and pepper, which we promptly snacked on. Back at the houseboat, we met some charter neighbors who had arrived and docked nearby.

On Monday, we slept-in and had breakfast before taking the vaporetto to Murano. As is not unusual in Italy, this day was appointed as “strike day” for ACTV and vaporetto service was sporadic and handled by alternative companies. By agreement, “worker transports” only were going to run focusing on the early morning and early evening routes. Like Venice, Murano consists of seven smaller islands, two of which are of artificial origin. However, they are all connected by bridges, albeit separated by canals and narrow watercourses. The town has become famous worldwide for its glass art. Once there, we explored the shops and found a glass factory where we met the manager, Fabrizio, who lives part-time in West Palm Beach. There, we observed a glass blowing demonstration, before being invited upstairs to see the higher quality items, including vases, chandeliers, aquariums, and large pieces of glass art. After window shopping, we lunched at a nearby square, where we had a set 3-course meal, before shopping for souvenirs, and heading back to the vaporetto station only to find no boats for an hour-and-a-half. While waiting, we shared a local beer and avoided a brief rain shower, before catching a vaporetto back to Le Vignole, where we greeted our favorite farmer and bought and drank more Prosecco and ate snacks while playing a game of cards.

Part 1: Chioggia to Le Vignole

We last explored Venice ~25-years ago, and although the town was magical, the canals were fouled, the piazzas were filled with pigeons, and the crowds of people were suffocating. Since then, we have spent a good bit of our holiday time exploring places on the water that are accessible by chartering sailboats, and these adventures have taken us around the world. However, there are interesting places along riverways that are too difficult to visit via sailboat. Therefore, when our friends pointed out that there were now houseboats available for charter in Europe, so that one can explore the riverways and coastal lagoons, we decided to “test the waters” and charter a houseboat to explore the Venice Lagoon.

The Venetian Lagoon, Laguna di Venezia; is a shallow bay of the Adriatic Sea in the north of Italy, in which a number of islands are located, including the city of Venice. The Lagoon reaches from the River Sile in the north to the Brenta River in the south. It is only ~8% land, 11% open water and dredged canals, with ~80% of the area covered by mud flats, tidal shallows, and salt marshes. The Lagoon is connected to the Adriatic Sea by three inlets: at Lido to the north, Malamocco centrally, and Chioggia in the south. The Lagoon is subject to large tidal variations (~1-meter) with extreme tides common in the Spring season.

We would fly into Marco Polo Airport located just north of Venice on the mainland, and then travel via chartered car to the southern extent of the Lagoon to the city of Chioggia, (pronounced “Chioggia”), where our charter would begin. The town of Chioggia is important and is known for its harbor, fishing, salt pans, fruit and vegetable crops and its cuisine. Chioggia is often called “Little Venice” because of its alleys, squares, palaces, and canals. The most important canal is the Vena Canal, which is crossed by nine bridges, and is guarded by the Vigo Bridge that separates the lagoon from the Piazza Vigo, where the town’s landmark, the San Marco Lion is located. Chioggia has a long and exciting founding and history, as its seafood resources and salt pans were fought over and historically generated great wealth. During World War II, the town was saved from Allied bombing when a revolt by the locals drove the German occupying forces to surrender.

We arrived on Thursday, May 2^nd, in preparation to pick-up our charter boat the next day, and stayed in a hotel in Sottomarina, a short walk from the beach located on the most eastern extent of the barrier island that protects the lagoon and stretches north to the first inlet. The area is clearly a summer resort town that is just gearing up for their busy season. We checked-in to our hotel, were greeted with cappuccinos & Prosecco, and then explored the area locating grocery stores, the boat charter offices, and houseboat itself. We then returned to the Sottomarina area and stopped at a local pizzeria for a beer and homemade “spicy salami & sausage pizza” cooked on massive sheet pan with 8 other orders and then our part cut for us. That night, we returned to the hotel and visited the rooftop for a view of the city at night where we enjoyed a glass of wine while watching the ships that move along the coast in the Adriatic.

On Friday, we enjoyed a beautiful, classic, Italian breakfast buffet at the hotel before checking-in at the Boat Charter Office and finalizing our charter details. We then checked-out of the hotel, dropped our luggage at the boat office, and proceeded to explore the town of Chioggia. After lunch at San Marco’s, we explored the “old town”, the wharfs, the stores, and the fish market until 3pm when we gathered our belongings and boarded the houseboat for our official briefing and check-out. After a review of the boat’s systems and a short check-out trip out to the Chioggia Harbor entrance and back, we unpacked; gathered minimal supplies at the grocery stores, and returned to old town Chioggia for dinner. After dinner, it was back to the boat for drinks and preparing for our shipmate, Peter, who had been delayed via airline issues, but who arrived at 12:30am.

Peter was originally scheduled to come with his wife, but an untimely accident and leg injury prevented her from accompanying him on the trip. However, we all viewed this as a “check-out” trip to evaluate potential houseboat charters in Europe in the future and he wanted to evaluate the experience firsthand.

Saturday morning, we enjoyed coffee and croissants onshore and, after a brief tour of the beach and Sottomarina, we embarked toward Venice. In order to navigate the shallows of the Venice Lagoon, we pay close attention to the bricola that are located every 100-300ft apart from each other. A bricole is a group of three wooden poles that are in the water of the lagoon and the canals. The three pole make a sort of triangular pyramid with one taller pole that has white reflectors on one side. The bricola indicate to boats the limits of the navigable channel, so that the boats do not end up in shallow water and run aground. The white reflectors face the deeper waters indicating which side of them to stay on. Today there are over 90.000 of these bricola, which are principally made up of oak posts that must be replaced every 5-10 years. Single poles in the lagoon which are often colored at the top or marked, are called paline and these poles can be used for docking one’s boat to.

After a few hours of motoring, we docked at a paline in Pellestrina for lunch (bricole #139) at restaurant Del Celeste on the Lido di Venezia, which is a narrow 12 km long island between the lagoon and the Mediterranean Sea (connected to Pellestrina), and which is only connected to the city and the mainland exclusively by boats and ferries. We dined on mussels, shrimp, and crabs before walking north towards the inlet at Malamocco and then stopping at a fine little establishment called Osteria Del Mare for gin & tonics, made with local “Ginurue” gin. After returning to the boat, we motored to bricole #7, just past Malamocco, and tied up to the bulkhead for the night. In the small village at Malamocco, we dined at Travitta Scarso, where we had a dinner of rigatoni’s, mussels, cheese, and wine sitting on the local piazza. Then it was back on to the boat for more wine and a good game of cards. 

On Sunday, we had breakfast onboard before heading back to town for a leisurely cappuccino and then disembarking towards Venice. We passed various islands: lsle Poveglia – currently undergong renovations; Isle Spirito – the last undeveloped isle in the lagoon, (last for sale in 2011 for 38M$); and Isle Clemente – now the San Clemente Palace Hotel by Kempinski; and Isle Sacco Sessioli – a man-made island built in 1870 and now a Marriott Hotel Resort. Then, we continued on to our destination at the island of Le Vignole.

Part 3 – Back in Tortola & Jost van Dyke

Sunday morning, we made a breakfast hash out of leftovers before making another quick run to shore for some dinner items, and then setting off for nearby (3-hours sail) Sandy Cay – a small uninhabited sandy islet and National Park where we could explore, snorkel, and swim. While there, we saw a pod of dolphins swim around us and Juju saw another octopus while snorkeling at the local reef. Unfortunately, when we were ready to leave, our generator would not start, so we contacted the MOD and an engineer soon came over to us by dinghy. The problem was a broken wire in the generator box, and repairs were soon completed. We then made the short sail to the island of Jost van Dyke where we visited the famous Foxy’s Tamarind Bar for drinks. 

Foxy was a local, Calypso-singing jokester with an unlimited repertoire of politically incorrect riffs, who presided over his continuously-open bar for over 50-years. Although he recently passed away, there still stands a life-size mannequin of him on duty 24/7. Foxy’s is globally known for its hospitality and some of the largest beach parties ever held. After playing our respects, we grilled hamburgers, enjoyed cocktails, and enjoyed the mild evening.

Monday morning, we decided to have a lite breakfast before sailing back to Sandy Cay for a little more recreation in the water and onshore. After exploring and snorkeling, we sailed over to Soper’s Hole, a protected port at the eastern tip of Tortola surrounded by steep mountainous slopes. Soper’s Hole is home to a fleet of charter boats and the only other Pusser’s in the Caribbean. That evening, we shopped at the local stores, had dinner at Pusser’s, and bar-hopped having drinks with local yacht captains at Omar’s Bar and Grill.

Tuesday we paid our mooring ball before setting sail to “beat” our way northwest to Cooper Island. After sailing all day, we finally motored our way into the Cooper Island’s beautiful Manchioneel Bay – a bay fronting the private Cooper Island Beach Resort which was still closed until the end of the week. This eco-friendly area does not allow anchoring, and the blossoming sea grass attracts sea turtles and considerable wildlife. After mooring onto a ball, we went snorkeling where we spotted octopi, nurse sharks, and a pod of large remora that liked to hang out below our hull. After our water sports, we grilled BBQ chicken on the grill and enjoyed our last evening aboard. 

The next morning, we made the short sail back to Nanny Cay and brought the catamaran into the fuel dock about 10am where we refueled and turned the boat back into ”Horizon”, our marina Charter Company. Juju and Craig set off for the airport for their flight to Puerto Rico, and the rest of us ate lunch at the local marina restaurant, Mulligan’s, before checking into our rooms for the night at Nanny Cay Resort. That evening, the 4 of us had a light dinner at Peg Leg’s Bar before having drinks together at our rooms. The next morning everyone set off early for flights back to the United States after a great holiday sailing trip.

Part 2 – The Catamaran, “As You Wish” and Anegada

Thursday morning we enjoyed a lovely homemade feast for breakfast before a diesel motor expert arrived to fix our engine. However, after a few hours of no success, the decision was made to offer us an alternative yacht – a 46’ Lagoon Catamaran “As You Wish”. Although never having captained a catamaran before, Rocky and the crew accepted the offer and frantic packing/unpacking and movement across boats ensued. In less than two hours, and with minimal preparation, we had left the harbor, had the sails up, and were headed towards the harbor of The Bitter End.

Once there, we picked up a mooring ball off the coastline of Saba Rock, a group of adventurers took the dingy to the old Saba Rock restaurant, formerly the home a fantastic place before being wiped of the map by Hurricane Irma. However, in spite of its all new construction, and the ever-present enormous tarpon jumping around, it was scheduled to open October 13^th for the season, which was still a week away. Instead, the proprietor gave us a grand tour before we returned to our boat for dinner outside on our back deck, and a rousing game of cards called “Phase 10”.

Friday morning, we were up for a lazy breakfast and then decided to explore The Bitter End Marina and town on Virgin Gorda. We took our dinghy to the Bitter End which was under massive reconstruction and also not yet open. Here too, all new construction is underway. Once upon a time, the Bitter End marina and resort town was a very “happening” place. However, it was completely destroyed on September 6^th, 2017 by Hurricane Irma. Today, it was still in the process of rebuilding and is targeting a reopening soon. When getting ready to leave our mooring ball, we suffered another setback as the starboard catamaran engine would not start. We notified the Manager on Duty at the Charter Marina and they sent a local engineer by boat out to take a look. A wiry old mechanic named “Polo” showed up and resolved the problem quickly by overriding the automatic primer allowing the engine to start and filling the self-primer. While waiting on the fix, we were blessed to see a jumping, twirling manta ray.  Once repairs we complete, we set sail north, setting a course for the BVI’s northern most island, Anegada, the home of some of the largest lobsters we have ever seen. The Island of Anegada is the only inhabited British Virgin Island formed from coral and limestone rather than being of volcanic origin. While the other BVI islands are mountainous, Anegada is flat and low and its highest point is only about 28 feet above sea level, earning it its name, which is the Spanish term for the flooded land, “tierra anegada”.

At about 15 square miles (38 square kilometers), Anegada is the second largest of the British Virgin Islands, but it is also the most sparsely populated of the main islands, with a population of 285 as at the 2010 Census.[4] Most of the population on Anegada live in the only village, The Settlement. Anegada is known for miles of white sand beaches and the 18-mile (29 km)-long Horseshoe Reef, one of the largest barrier coral reefs in the Caribbean. The reef makes navigation to Anegada by sailing ships complex. While we can freely sail among most of the other Virgin Islands, sailing to Anegada is discouraged by the Charter Companies because of the risk of running aground or scuttling on the reef. To date, the reef has caused hundreds of shipwrecks, including the large ships HMS Astraea in 1808, the Donna Paula in 1819, and the MS Rocus in 1929.  Anegada is also known for the large salt ponds that cover much of the west end of the island, These ponds, which support unique fauna, were designated a protected site in 1999. In the 1830s, thousands of Caribbean flamingos lived in these ponds, but they were hunted for food and feathers throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries and disappeared by 1950. They have now been reestablished and the flamingo flock numbers are in the hundreds today. 

On the sail to Anegada, we tried to avoid the sargassum (seaweed), but made good time at about 8 knots. The entry to the Anegada Harbor is very shallow (8’-10’) and the only other sailing vessels that were there were six other catamarans. Once we picked-up a mooring ball, we sent a contingent to shore to explore the possibilities of getting lobsters for dinner. Unfortunately, lobsters were “out-of-season”, but the local hotel beach bar was open for painkillers and drinks for all. Juju and Craig arranged for a tour of the flamingo salt ponds, while the rest of us socialized with the locals until we returned to our catamaran for a dinner of homemade bacon-wrapped grilled shrimp and sausage, and a lively card game. 

Saturday morning, we made breakfast burritos onboard before setting off to sail south-by-southeast to Cane Garden Bay located on the eastern end of Tortola. Along the way, we successfully caught a 4’ barracuda, which we cleaned, skinned, breaded, and ate, as “barracuda bites” – delicious. We arrived by mid-afternoon and after picking-up a mooring ball, headed to the local beach bar and store to purchase ice and water, a few supplies, and to have drinks with the locals. After a long day, we took it easy that evening and enjoyed the view of the setting sun.

Part 1 – Getting settled on the monohull, “Paradise Found”

After a long break from sailing due the pandemic, (last captained out of Naples in 2019), it was time to get back to the beautiful British Virgin Islands and charter a bareboat yacht for us and friends. We decided to go for adventure and comfort, and chartered a 54’ Jeanneau monohull with 3 large cabins, (each with their own head with walk-in shower), generator, and air-conditioning, for a 10-day adventure. Our friends, Nikki & Peter, and Juju & Craig were excited to sail with us. We arrived on Saturday, a day early, with Peter & Nikki at the local Nanny Cay Resort on the BVI island of Tortola to settle in, collect provisions, inspect the boat, and meet with locals at the bar.

On Sunday, we enjoyed breakfast at the Island Root Café before completing paperwork and boarding our yacht, the “Paradise Found”. We checked all systems, unpacked, loaded provisions, and welcomed aboard Juju and Craig before heading to the famous “Pusser’s” restaurant located In Road Town. That night we had drinks, caught-up with each other, and slept aboard in harbor ready to disembark the next morning.

Monday morning, after a quick breakfast at the Island Root Café, we left port and sailed across the Drake Passage to The Bight, a protected harbor at Norman Island and the home of a floating restaurant, bar, and club known as “Willy-T’s”. After hitching-up to a mooring ball, we took the dingy over to Willy-T’s for lunch and drinks, We then motored around the corner of The Bight to The Caves where we picked-up another mooring ball with the intent of snorkel-exploring the caves. Unfortunately, the ocean current and wind directions and the size of our vessel made this untenable, and we soon left for other harbors.

Norman Island also has a history of pirate booty being stowed upon the island. In 1750, part of the treasure from the Spanish treasure galleon named Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe was buried on the island by mutineer Owen Lloyd. Lloyd was later arrested, but word of the treasure spread, and residents of Tortola went to Norman Island and dug it up for themselves. Part of the booty was later recovered by authorities, but much of it was not. Since then, rumors or local treasure discoveries in and around Norman Island’s caves have persisted.

After leaving Norman Island, we sailed to Little Harbor at nearby Peter Island, a private island with a distant small resort and little development. Here we anchored and enjoyed a quiet night with no other boats or people visible until morning. Several of us went snorkeling near a broken-down dock where rays, turtles, and fish congregated. That night, we grilled shrimp, salmon, and veggies on the barbecue  and enjoyed each other’s company before calling it a night in our air-conditioned cabins.

Tuesday morning, we kept an eye on the weather, and hurricane Philippe as it was skirting past us 200 miles away. After breakfast on the boat, we pulled anchor and set sail along the Drake Passage towards the island of Virgin Gorda, so named by Christopher Columbus because the island’s profile on the horizon looks like a fat woman lying on her side. Along the way, Rocky caught a 4’ King Mackerel while trolling behind the boat, which we let go. Virgin Gorda contains two of the best harbors in the BVI, and the city of Spanish Town was once the capitol of the BVI. Of particular interest is the unusual geologic formation known as “the Baths” located on the southern end of the island.  At the Baths, huge granite boulders lie in piles on the beach, forming isolated grottoes that are open to the ocean’s waves. This landmark is a popular tourist attraction as well as a National Park and offers an adventurous hike/scramble through them to a trail leading up the hillside to the Top of the Baths. In order to access these from our boat, we picked-up a National Park mooring ball offshore, then took everyone via dingy to the beach’s swim limits roped-off area, and let them swim to shore. The dingy must be tethered to a mooring ball outside of the swimming area as this is the only method of access from the sea. Once ashore, we hiked to the restaurant at the Top of the Baths where we had lunch and enjoyed the view. Soon, an enormous influx of tourists showed up by bus having arrived on an excursion from the Disney ship in harbor in Road Town. After lunch, we hiked back down to the Baths and explored the trail through the granite boulders before arriving at the final beach, and swimming back to our dingy. From there, we returned to our boat and sailed to the protected harbor of Marina Cay, where we picked up a mooring ball anticipating a night of degrading weather from Philippe. Through intermittent rains, we enjoyed a dinner of salad and pasta with meatballs before our generator suddenly stopped working and would not restart. We contacted our Charter Company’s Manager on Duty, but with the winds reaching 30-knots and driving rain, it was not possible for them to come to us that evening. That night we endured high winds and torrential rains from Hurricane Philippe with no air conditioning before awakening to slowly improving conditions in the morning.

Wednesday morning it was still raining and the generator was still down. We had breakfast on-board and called back to the Charter Operator at the marina at Nanny Cay. After much discussion, we finally decided it would be best to return the boat to the marina where personnel and parts to potentially fix the generator could be readily available. In 30-knot winds, we left the safety of our mooring ball and proceeded to motor our way back to Tortola. Unfortunately, halfway there, our diesel engine displayed a sensor error, and once it was turned off would not restart. We raised the jib and continue to sail towards Nanny Cay without any power, while talking with the marina on a plan to get the yacht safely into harbor.

When just outside the harbor, the marina captain, Henry, and the Charter Company owner came to meet us and we onboarded Henry. Captain Henry sailed us into marina and landed us at the fuel dock with assistance from the support boat that pushed “Paradise Found” into position. Once safely docked, an engineer boarded to fix the engine. Since we connected to shore power, we again had air-conditioning and electrical systems. While in harbor, Nikki and Julie bought additional groceries for the boat and then went to Captain Mulligan’s restaurant for drinks and a snack. As the weather slowly improved, and since the engine had not yet been repaired, we all went to Peg Leg’s Beach Bar for drinks before returning to the boat for a dinner of spaghetti and meatballs, and a quiet night’s sleep.