days seventeen and eighteen - morning sail, rafted up

Sleep late.  Chilly and the wind still gusting.  Wake to blue skies.  No rush to go anywhere.

Sail off anchor 9:10, sail down the Tred Avon towards Oxford.  Still windy and rough, turn back up the Tred Avon to explore.

It's a pleasant morning tacking upriver, plenty of wind but it is sometimes blocked by stands of tall trees on shore.  Playing the wind on the gentle curves of the river, it is quite a change from yesterday.  Late morning near Shipshead Creek, turn back for a nice run downriver.  Just past Bailey's Neck turn to port on Triple Creek.  Pass the first cove and then in the second I see a white-hulled ketch with blue trim, Sheila waving from the cockpit and Michael on the docks to help with lines.  How nice.  Rafted up with my cruising friends at noon.

Just in time for lunch.  I always seem to meet my world cruising friends just in time for a good meal.

Michael and Sheila are tied up on Snug Harbor at the dock of friends Rob and Penelope.  I am graciously welcomed into the group for a couple days.  

I've known world cruisers Michael and Sheila for many years now, with planned and unplanned meetings at several creeks, rivers and harbors over the years, mostly on Chesapeake Bay but even as far away as Portugal.  It is a treat to see them.

So it is a couple of days of good company, good meals, running errands, cleaning gear, meeting more friends and enjoying a life I find myself surprised to have found.