New England to Maine

We left Port Washington after our 2 free nights on the mooring and made a short stop also at the free town dock. We have got to say this place is a model for cruiser friendly and we felt we repaid their hospitality by shopping and eating out here, a fair trade indeed.

Our next stop was intended to be Port Jefferson but the wind gods were testing us. We got 15-20 with 25 knot gusts against us on the incoming tide. So our tacking angle was way over 100 degrees and that meant a lot more distance to cover and we couldn’t make it before dark. So we picked our back up stop of Northport Harbor and anchored in the lee of the wind in a calm bay for the night. The next morning we were up early and the wind had died so we motored into Port Jefferson. This is the antipathy of Port Washington, lots of moorings and not even a town dock for free. So we anchored out by the Sand Breakwater and walked the beach for the afternoon. We met a lovely couple on s/v Blue Dog, Shannon and Lee who are living aboard and working from the boat. This means they have kept pretty much to the US coast so we had to tell them about the Bahamas to whet their appetite and get them to consider the clear and warm waters next year. They were very keen to hear about the internet connection options so they can work there, so you never know?

Classic yacht at Port Jefferson

Our next stop was Groton where we had some SSCA friends to meet, Suzanne and David on s/v Sans Cles. We took a free mooring ball at the harbor entrance which was a bonus and used the SYC dinghy dock as our friends are members. It is a lovely place with the University of Connecticut having a large campus on the waterfront which you can visit to see their marine research in action. We walked the grounds and toured the old mansion in the grounds and had a chat with a student about the marine buoys they maintain. The walk was made more special by the little poetry capsules that we stopped at which amused us no end. We finished our visit with a cook out on the SYC grills with David and Sue, they had a wonderful feast for us which went well with the great the conversation about the SSCA and our respective cruising plans. The night went well past our normal bedtime as we toured Sans Cles and discussed lots of boat projects for Sue and David before they leave later this year.

University of Conneticut

The University Police building - beautiful

Fantastic Inside too

Enjoying the University Campus

Campus Poetry capsule

UConn Bouy

 

After our discussion with Sue and David we had decided to make two stops before going on to Maine to meet up with Tug, Monique and CALM. No CALM means their four children not a rest at all! So our first stop was Dutch Harbor, RI, a nice anchorage in a pretty harbor with easy access to the town dock. We dropped the hook and went into town. We saw an amazing collection of buildings on our walk which included the top of the old ferry. Then we bought some provisions and Ice Cream before returning to Moosetracks. We had emailed a couple we met his year in the Bahamas about seeing them in Newport only to find they now live near Mystic, where we just left. However Ted was keen to show us Newport as it is were he grew up and Dutch Harbor was were he kept his boat. So Ted and Ginnie from s/v Firecracker met us at the town dock and took us for a ride. First stop was West Marine for a few replacements of chaffing lines. Then we toured Newport in their car, it is a wonderful town with so much history and luckily for us Ted was born and raised here so knew a huge amount about everything we drove past. Thanks for making it so special you guy’s. We finished the evening with a fantastic seafood meal in downtown Jamestown.

LIS lighthouse near Newport

Dutch Harbor - Old ferry remains

 

Out with Ted & Ginnie

The next day we moved to Newport, RI and again it’s a wonderful cruiser friendly place with a reasonable choice of anchoring places and a large mooring field. They have lots of town docks for a large waterfront area and the main one even has showers you can use for a small fee. We certainly felt Newport was big and popular with lots of tourists even on weekdays. We took a walk around the historic district and visited several museums of Newport history and there is a lot of it! The Newport Artillery was closed when we got there, but at the historic Mill site they were having the Black Ships festival and the cannons and men of the Artillery were there and about to have a live firing salute. It was fabulous to talk to the Artillery men and to see the cannon actually fired. We took video and posted a snippet here on YouTube Cannon firing. We stopped for a beer in the oldest tavern in the USA from 1673, just because it’s historic of course, and then had lunch for the same reason at the Fastnet Irish pub. The next day the Artillery was open and we took the video for them on a USB stick and they gave us a personal tour of the museum which is excellent and has 128 uniforms from around the world as well as lots of cannons and other artifacts. We walked around a bit more of town and visited the International Yacht Restoration School where they are restoring wooden boats, the largest being the Coronet, and talked with students who are working on the restoration projects. Then we returned to Moosetracks for lunch and to cross the harbor to see Fort Adams in the afternoon again a lovely historic site but a little neglected. Newport was a wonderful stop and we would come again and do more if time permitted but we have a weather window so onward we go.

12m Americas cup boat in Newport Harbor

Firing a real Paul Revere Cannon

The old library in Newport

The International Yacht Restoration School

The Newport Artillery Museum

Airfoil sailing in the harbor - this was stunningly fast!

The oldest tavern in the USA - The White Horse Tavern

Fort Adams

President Kennedy's personal yacht

The next stop was Onset, a quiet little town just before the Cape Cod Canal. We were only taking advantage of the harbor to anchor so that our timing was right for the canal as again they have HUGE tides and the current really does rip through the canal at nearly 5 knots. So we got up early to catch the tide and after hailing the Canal Control we found the bridge open but trains scheduled between 7-11 am with no definite times. So we took the hint and were off before 6:30. The tide was at Max Flood and we had a magnificent ride for nearly 10 nm with 10 knots average speed and a peak of 11.1 knots which is a new record for Moosetacks.

Cape Cod Canal

We had decided to head straight for Maine while the weather window was available as Tug and Monique were only in Maine for 1 week and we didn’t want to miss them all. So we left the canal straight for Booth Bay area on a non-stop overnight trip. Unfortunately our radar which was playing up was now dead so this was going to be a fun one. We were pleasantly surprised though how little traffic there is up here and virtually nothing was around all day on AIS or visually. The largest collection of boats were all together on a whale watch in the Massachusetts Bay! So as night fell we kept vigilant watch and again saw almost no traffic. The watch got exciting quickly around 11 pm when Devin heard a May Day call. The USCG got the location from direction finding and put out a Pan Pan which Devin hailed them to repeat. It turned out it was 22 nm away however another boat was on AIS closer and we passed on their details. A larger 100 ft sailing yacht was 11 nm away and responded saying they were 55 minutes away. 5 minutes later a sheepish voice came on the radio to declare all was OK. It turns out their catch of fish moved in the hold and water started coming aboard, they obviously worked pretty quick to get it moved and stop the water coming aboard. So after 10 minutes it was all over and the USCG told us all to stand down. It really seems people need to use DSC more in radios as the ship did not give a position. We are glad Moosetracks has DSC on both radios with GPS co-ordinates provided when it’s an emergency it’s a lot more accurate and much faster.

The rest of the trip was thankfully uneventful and as expected; mist, rain and fog greeted us as we approached Maine some 30 nm miles out. However visibility was not less than 1/4 nm so we felt good but put on the automatic fog horn as a precaution. We did the 140 nm in 26 hours so a good average and only 6 hours motoring until through the canal and the wind built up. Now its time to relax and catch up on sleep.

The view everyone gets of Maine is FOG - Love Cove

The next day the sun came out and the fog lifted enough to see where we were. It was a beautiful set of bays behind a island and known as Ebenecook Harbor where Love Cove is one of it’s bays. We took the dinghy into the local Marina to see the local Island Packet dealer Norm Pierce who hails from here. We had a great welcome and chatted to Norm about all things IP and the upcoming Rendezvous. Unfortunately we would miss most of it and gave our regrets as Tug and Monique and the kids were due at the same time.

Ebenecook Bay

Booth Bay

So we left Ebenecook bay and moved to Booth bay harbor to await Tug, Monique and CALM. They arrived as we returned from looking around town and took a mooring ball near us. We spent the next hour catching up on their cruise and our travels. We then spent the rest of the afternoon walking around town and seeing the local attractions in town. Liz and Monique arranged dinner and games aboard the “Furly B” as their boat was called and had a great time with the Graves. The next day we spent at the Maine State Aquarium which is on the edge of the bay, it is a wonderful place with lots of hands on exhibits and talks by their education department. The kids had a really fun time and we all learnt a tremendous amount about lobsters and star fish as well a tour of the laboratories. After such an exciting morning we took the dinghies over to town to enjoy lunch with a harbor view. The kids really enjoyed the restaurant lobster tank which again was hands on and we could only get them away with a promise of ice cream (no not Devin’s fault). We had discovered the most delicious ice cream factory in Booth Bay and everyone wanted a second chance. After our trip to town we moved to Ebenecook bay again so Furly B was nearer home for the next morning. We enjoyed dinner aboard with Tug, Monique and CALM with games to finish off a wonderful day. So the following day with a bit of sadness and much love we said goodbye to the Graves and waved to them as they left the harbor. It was a special few days and ones we will treasure for a long time.

No one had seen Blue Lobster before!

The shark touch tank

The main touch tank

The Graves on "Furly B"

We spent the rest of the day doing needed jobs on Moosetracks and visited a fabulous museum at Love cove before moving back to Booth Bay to catch the end of the IP rendezvous. We had a lovely breakfast with the group and met several locals who were very generous in sharing their knowledge of local anchorages we should not miss in Maine. It was a wonderful group and they do truly love Norm and his wife Mary up here that’s for sure.

Love Cove Museum

Fantastic donated items inside

Inside the boat shed

 

Great hosts Norm & Mary

Well we are off to Islesboro to the SSCA GAM on Aug 1-2nd and to pick up our new Radar and Chart plotter, then find quiet spot to fit it afterwards!

We are hoping everyone’s summer is in full swing and your getting time to enjoy it too.

New York (post Sandy)

We arrived at Sandy Hook on Tuesday July 2nd and set our anchor, then after the fog lifted we started to see the damage from Hurricane Sandy. Many of the houses along the water front had damage and only a few looked like they were inhabited any longer, a lot of sea wall and shore line was missing as well. It was just a short stop to rest as Sandy Hook is just that and although a National Park is there, there is little else, so we went to refuel before going to find a better anchorage.

Sandy Hook

It was looking on active captain that gave us our first clue, very few marinas had fuel here. We eventually found Twin Lights had fuel and headed for their dock. A small oversight was reading the current before leaving and boy was it ripping through at their dock. We managed to get tied off on the second attempt but a good lesson in looking at tide tables around here with large tidal changes.

Damage from Sandy

We then moved on to Atlantic Highlands were there is a nice breakwater we could anchor behind. The marina was under a lot of repair but getting close to complete with new floating docks, but the the damage was obviously extensive by how much was new or missing still. We walked around town and had lunch at the waterfront grill “On the Deck” which was really delightful. The next day we walked into town about a mile to get some groceries and stop at the farmers market on our return.

Atlantic Highlands

Atlantic Highlands 4th July

 

We talked with several locals about the damage and happily moved on to the upcoming 4th of July celebrations. Apparently Atlantic Highlands celebrates on the 5th so we had to stay for a big firework display right over our heads. We had a fantastic display with s/v Irish Ayes crew Cindy and Ernie joining us for a wonderful evening.

 

 

 

Our good friends Harry & Melinda had written to us about options for visiting New York City (NYC) and after mulling over options we decided to go to Great Kills on Staten Island, NY and take the train/bus into NYC. Arriving at Great Kills was a shock. The harbor was only 30% occupied due to so much damage from Hurricane Sandy. Most of the marinas appeared to have lost much of their docks and most had yet to be repaired. The mooring balls were also displaced and over 8 boats were sunk or partially sunk around the basin. When we took the dinghy over to RCYC to enquire about a dinghy dock for a day to visit NYC it was obvious most marinas really got hit hard. We arranged to get a space for the dingy and had a short walk around an obviously devastated club house and yacht club. We walked the beach at Great Kills that day and did discover the locals still enjoying the beach on this holiday weekend so it appears they are very resilient here.

RCYC rebuilding

Asking a RCYC member about the reconstruction

The following day we travelled to NYC, firstly by bus then a free ferry from Staten Island to the City and finally a bus to Harlem. Our first visit was the General Ulysses S Grant memorial as Devin was named after him (middle name). It is a spectacular tomb in a lovely setting by the Hudson river with a small visitor center to tell you the history of his life. You can see more at Video: Grant Memorial, he was the first 4 star general and a two time US president and widely credited with the abolition of slavery. After all the time to get here from Great Kills we decide lunch was in order. Now NYC had so many restaurant's it is really difficult to decide. We happened upon a Thai restaurant whilst investigating an Italian restaurant next door which was a little disappointing menu wise. But Liz really liked the Thai menu, well she was right, it was a fantastic lunch of excellently made Penang & Green curry which we shared. We didn’t know eating out in New York could be so reasonable, but lunch certainly was a bargain.

Ulysses S Grant Memorial

Our next visit was to the High Line park, this is a recovered raised railway track that wound through downtown NYC and was transformed by volunteers and donations to a spectacular garden and walkway with very interesting artifact's and rest/viewing areas along its course. It was a great find and a very nice experience in downtown. You can read about it here High Line Park

Artwork in the Park

Liz in the High line Park

 

Viewing Area in the Park

A cooling water path in the park (left)

Our next stop was the 9/11 memorial, unfortunately due to all the ongoing construction there is a booking system we didn’t know about so we couldn’t see the actual memorial but did see the new tower up close. It still looks like this area will be under construction for a long time, after over 10 years that really hits home on how much was damaged. Which brings us back to Sandy, several places we wanted to see in NYC were closed as a result of damage following Sandy. Devin particularly wanted to see the Space shuttle museum but it was still closed.

So our last stop was the American Indian Museum in the old Customs House at Bowling Green. The building itself is historic and well worth a visit but the exhibitions of Indian artifacts is very well done and covers North and South American Indian tribes which was a very nice surprise. You can see a lot of what we saw by visiting their site American Indian Museum

Well after all the walking and riding we were beat. So we took the ferry and train back to Great Kills, if your thinking of doing this like we did from Great Kills we would advise using the train across Staten island as it’s much faster than the bus and then use the subway in NYC as these save a lot of time in travel. So we were back on Moosetracks for a late dinner and very tired. So much so we spent the next day at anchor to recover, oh and to get the tides right for the East river.

We left on July 10th for a fantastic anchorage behind the Statue of Liberty in NYC. It was easy in and out and had great views over the city as you can see from the photos. We saw lots of traffic on the river but our AIS and keen attention was more than capable of dealing with it and it was less intimidating than we had imagined. The weather however didn’t co-operate that much and it was overcast the whole way and even the next morning.

 

Verrazno Bridge to enter NY harbor

First of many forts guarding NYC

 

Our anchorage behind the Statue of Liberty - Statue side

Our anchorage behind the Statue of Liberty - Verrazano bridge side

 As we researched the tides we found that 6:45 am was low tide at the Battery and when we should leave to get favorable current all the way through. Well when unfavorable is 4.7 knots against you and your cruising speed is 6 knots you really want to “go with the flow” so to speak. So we were up early and set off from the Statue of Liberty across the harbor traffic (never fun) and over to the Battery and up the East river, announcing our intentions on VHF radio for any concerned traffic. But it was again uneventful and an easy transit with beautiful skylines on both sides of us. It appears our research paid off and the Hell Gate tide was fierce giving us nearly 4 knots more speed at peak but all in our favor though still that very point in the middle has some wicked turbulence and you have to be weary. So our wedding anniversary started with a great cruise through NYC!

Statue of Liberty

NYC skyline

Pier 17 historic sailing ships

Governors Island fort

Empire State building

3-4 knots added speed due to current in East river

 

We arrived early in Port Washington and settled on to a free mooring ball for 2 nights. We watched two New Zealand boats that were at the Statue of Liberty come in behind us and decided to stop over to see them. The first was Balvenie (yes named after a Scottish Whisky) the Other was Bandit. Well what a surprise to learn both boats knew friends of ours having cruised with both Ventana and Innamorata II.

Stepping Stones Light on leaving the East river

 

Nice Houses on Manhasset Bay

As it was still our anniversary we decided on a meal out to celebrate and looked up the local restaurants on the www. We found an upscale Indian restaurant called “Diwan” that had a lunch time buffet and decided right then it was just for us. We walked to the grocery store and stopped on our way back, it was a very nice place and we decided to go in. It turned out the lunch was $10.95 and it was “all you can eat” so we were sold. It was truly fantastic Indian food and lived up to all the rave reviews we saw on Yelp and we think one of the best Indians we have ever had including in England. We both had a little too much so we walked around Main street to remove a few calories.

Sailors at Port Washington

 

We returned to Moosetracks to watch the sunset with a few iced libations and a loving made chocolate brownies to round off the perfect day!

Sunset at Port Washington

 We truely hope you too are having a wonderful summer.

 

Virginia Video's

While we traveled on the North River and Great Bridge to Ablemarle canal Liz took some video so you could see what it was like.

 

The last video was from the ferry trip returning to Portsmouth as it shows where Moosetracks was docked for a few days.

 

Virginia and New Jersey

Well we left Manteo for the North River and a overnight stop before entering the Virginia Cut and the Albemarle and Chesapeake canal. It was a lovely stop in that it was totally undeveloped and we were surrounded by marsh and low trees. We left the following morning for Great Bridge hoping our timing in the season found space for us at the free docks there. We had a slight set back when we ran around in the channel on the Coinjock Bay, it’s always odd when your moving at 5 knots to slowly stop, even heeled over with sails up. As we were motor sailing we raised more sail and turned Moosetracks to the wind and she came off nicely, I always love it when that happens especially in soft muddy bottoms. The channel here is rather wide and although we were in it we were closer to the green marks as there were no reds here, nearer the edge was less water and obviously from then on we tried to stay in the middle!

The typical canal scenary

Marker 1 on the canal

Lots of these Osprey's on the canal

Before we arrived at Great Bridge we called Walter and Gwen on Salt Shaker as they had emailed us to say they were still there. We found out there was space next to them so when we arrived they gave us a hand with lines and we tucked in nicely. There is a long dock on either side of the bridge, each with space for about 6-7 boats, later in the year we know it will be hard to get an opening on one of these with everyone heading back down this way to the Bahamas and going this way so hence taking one now as this is a long run and the stop at Great Bridge is very welcome. We found it was fantastic here, Walmart only a 3 mile bike ride away (although it rained on us coming back) and lots of familiar chain stores we like. Liz stocked up on some items we needed and we took the opportunity to use the laundry machines to wash our bigger items.  The highlight was a Dairy Queen ice cream store, we just had to stop for a Blizzard to share! We found a small Saturday market was here right next to the dock and us, the produce wonderful, we brought so much produce at great prices, 3 squash each over 18 inches for one dollar, the only most expensive was a basket of huge blackberries for $5 and Liz made a Quaker Oat Blackberry crumble to share with Walter & Gwen. Liz even found a packet of custard from her sister Fiona at the bottom of a locker and we all enjoyed it. The facilities were so good we stayed for 3 nights as there was never a lack of space. We walked around to the lock to see the process before we had to do it and it was very simple. We enjoyed the small parks and signs that explained the history of the Battle of Great Bridge in the war for independence where the British were unsuccessful in crossing the river here, a major turning point for the fledgling US forces here.

Saturday market

Salt Shaker & Moosetracks at Great Bridge docks

Biking at Great Bridge

On Monday 24th June we decided to move on to Portsmouth, VA. It started with going through our ONLY lock in Moosetacks and it was just as we saw – very straight forward and uneventful, but a great experience. The lock is unusual in that it doesn’t change height much at all, its purpose is to separate the salt water from the fresh water and maintain a ecological balance since the canal was dug. Then onward we went into the Elizabeth river. As we neared Portsmouth the ships got really large as did the bridges most clearing 125 ft now. When we arrived at the Naval shipyard the first sight was a sub being serviced with its vertical torpedo doors open – we think Liz missed that photo as subs are quite small compared to the other huge behemoths in the yard. However we did get lots of pictures of war ships.
We arrived before lunch at Portsmouth Town Dock a motor of just 10 miles up river. ( Yipee another free dock). Here we were right in the town center, right by the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Museum. Unfortunately Monday all the museums etc are closed so instead we walked to the Railroad Museum, again closed ! and then onto shops, which were further than we expected. Amazingly as we are walking we notice Bill from s/v Providence sitting stationery in a van! Again another cruiser we keep bumping into, what a con-incidence his boat is in a slip in VA and had driven 30 miles to pick up bottom paint for his boat, so we visit Walmart and graciously Bill gives a ride back to Moosetracks. In the evening we complete a walking tour of the historic streets around us. On the wharf opposite us is the Hog Island lighthouse lens – it was the very first Fresnel lens made in France, and put into use in 1854. Today it is  valued at over $1 million and there it is for all to see as you walk by, on display not in a museum, like in other places. It is encased into pavilion 16 feet in diameter and about 25 ft high, there is a hurricane resistant curtain around it, which does not distract you from seeing all its beauty. Hog island is the northern most part of the barrier islands between Virginia's E shore and the Atlantic.  On Tuesday we took the 8am ferry across the river (10 min ride) to Norfolk to visit the MacArthur museum (MacArthur was a 5 star general in US , Very famous for his achievements during WWI, WWII & the Spanish American War). There is a huge memorial to him in Norfolk were he is buried. In the afternoon we visited the Shipyard Museum and also the Portsmouth Lightship. The lightship was commissioned in 1916 and taken off shore to protect what ever stretch of water was  necessary, 15 coast guards lived upon it, for 4 months at a time at anchor, then had 1 month off. The lightship was taken out of commission in 1964 and moved to the waterfront as a museum open to the public in 1967.  The next day we visited the 1945 Commodore Theatre an Art Deco Style Motion Picture theater, the first in the country. You are served dinner at your table, first you order by phone from your table direct to the kitchen, then you eat before the movie plays, it was a fun thing to do and an awesome experience. The theatre was closed for 12 yrs, but re- opened and is meticulously maintained today.

Larger bridges as we near Portsmouth

Navy warships at Portsmouth

Moosetracks at dock in Portsmouth

Wharf side Nautical store

Ferry to Norfolk

The MacArthuir Memorial

Lightship Portsmouth

Contemplating Kisses again!

Devin, Bill, Walter & Gwen at Portsmouth

 

The Commodore Theater

We have enjoyed the free docks, but it is time to get back to anchor, as it’s very hot so close to the city and noisy compared top being at anchor. You also get many folks who want to stare at you or ask for change! So we moved over to the mouth of the river to Hampton Roads. There is a nice anchorage by Old Point Comfort and Fort Monroe. So we had a peaceful nights sleep and caught the tide first thing in the morning to get a quick exit from Chesapeake Bay.
We sailed overnight up to Cape May, NJ this is a Major coast guard station, with lots of trainees, early they are out jogging and chatting as they go by, then we hear the Star Spangled Banner playing at 8am. We were fairly tired after our overnight as there were lots of thunderstorms around and we were kept very active with shifting winds, rain and lightening. We managed to avoid all the lightening thankfully but did end up motoring a lot to avoid storms. We didn’t go ashore here, just didn’t feel up to it and since there was no obvious dinghy dock we just rested aboard. On leaving Cape May via the inlet on an ebbing tide our motor quit! Well it was a symptom we had never had before, the fuel filter had clogged and occasionally we had a slight drop in RPM and had not put 2 and 2 together. Well we had anticipated this is in outfitting Moosetracks and had installed dual filters, so we simply switched the other one and we were on our way.
 So it was on to Sandy Hook, NY, which is just a stop over as you enter New York Harbor to get out of the FOG. We had a great sail up the New Jersey coast and managed to sail the whole trip which so far has been very rare. The trip wasn’t fast however as we averaged 5 knots over 120 nm. The wind was mostly from the stern at 130-180 degrees from the bow, not a great point of sail for Moosetracks without a whisker pole. But we altered course frequently with winds shifts and went a fair way out to sea to keep moving in 10-15 knot winds. Around 2am we gybed the boat and got a better angle on the swells which steadied the sails and helped too. So we arrived in Sandy Hook after 4 hours or so of staring at fog and wondering what was out there. Well with radar and AIS we have a better view than most.


CG station Sandy Hook

On July 3rd we decided to refuel and change that filter, so a busy morning with chores then a quick run to the dock for fuel. The dock was up the river and had quite the tide running, so we took 2 attempts to get safely tied up. We also took the opportunity to fill our water tanks and had nearly 200 gallons to get so it took a fair amount of time but the dock crew were very chatty and no one else was around so it went great.



Atlantic Highlands

Sunset on 4th July at Atlantic Highlands

Hurricane damage in NJ still evident

We spent the 4th of July at Atlantic Highlands in New Jersey. We went ashore to walk the town and it has a lovely main street with lots of small shops and restaurants. The area here took a hard hit from Hurricane Sandy last year and it was obvious from all the dock construction but thankfully the town itself looked pretty good. The harbor was mostly back in action but the docks for pleasure boats will not be completed until later this year. We had a lovely lunch at “On the Deck” with views of the harbor and NYC as a backdrop. That evening we had a lovely display of fireworks from all the towns along the shore and up to Staten Island. NYC had a huge display but it was just a bit too far away to fully appreciate, if anyone comes this far make sure to stop for the 4th of July because it did look amazing.


We hope your summer is in full swing too wherever you are.