Walldog's Journeys

Porch Roofs

2012-01-27T22:57:00.001-06:00

The Porch roof over project is coming along nicely. We should be finished next week.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T09:31:00.003-06:00

Not Fit for Man nor Beast

2011-12-24T08:58:00.001-06:00

Out there today! That is except for jake, he is the only one that enjoyed his walk today. 51d F. Winds gusting to 27, white caps on the bay....brrrr. Good day to stay on the dry side of the windows. Merry Christmas!

Dr. Jake C. Harleton

2011-12-11T16:49:00.001-06:00

Dr. Jake C. Harleton is 7 years old today!

He loves the Christmas Parade

Plenty of petting from Kids of all ages.

He even loves the snow.

He goes to church...at least for the Pet
Blessing (petting).

Our Friends David and Patty sent me a shirt.

Jake decided it was his shirt.

He had a great time helping us pick tangerines.

Great fun at the Pearland Dog Park.

Fourth of July celebrations in Valdez, Alaska. He actually lead the parade with us on our trikes.

What about Me??

Jake loves to go for a trike run.

What a beautiful baby.

He always gets to go with us.

Beach Bum!!

Road Kill!!

Happy Birthday Dr. Jake C. Harleton, MD "Jake" and many more!!

Willie's Tug in New Slip

2011-12-10T10:05:00.001-06:00

We have been keeping our new Ranger Tug 27 at our low outside dock. Works fine except when a Norther blows through and we have tremendous currents, turbulent waters and winds that cause Willie to move about a little too much for my comfort. The extraordinary high tides during the Norther makes for constant tending with a fixed dock. Using the lift inside the boat house required some modifications that we just completed enough to make this her permanent home.

As you can see Willie's Tug just fits with very little room to spare. We will fine tune the project in the next few days, but as you can see it works. Today with wind out of the Northeast and two foot waves or so in the bay, she is snug in her new home.

Walldog, Willie, and Jake

Sleepless Night

2011-11-27T11:18:00.001-06:00

Quite a wind event last evening and this morning. Sustained North winds of 36 with gusts to 49. Willie's Tug is side tied to our low dock that is usually about 12 inches above mean high tide. Well during the evening we had about 3 inches of water over the dock. We doubled up on all our lines and and used all of our fenders. All night we continually adjusted the fenders to keep Willie off the pilings and dock. Between adjustments we prayed and checked our insurance policy. Currently the wind is down a bit at 21 gusting to 29 so it is a bit calmer in our "protected channel". Praise God, Willie's Tug survived with nary a scratch, but Walldog is a bit tired this morning.

La Serda Del Norte

2011-10-15T15:22:00.000-05:00

Willie has been writing about our friends cabin in Island Park UT. Here is a picture of that cabin taken on October 6th, just a few days after we were there.

Looks like we just dodged the snow.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

How We Got Here or

2011-09-26T07:30:00.000-05:00

How two people and an 80 pound dog live aboard a 27 foot boat for 4 months.

It all started with our 18' SeaDoo Challenger jet boat. Herb thought this shallow draft boat would be perfect for our shallow waters in the Laguna Madre. Willie never liked this boat because it was rough and wet riding. Herb liked it because it was sporty and fast.

Our search for a more suitable boat started when we saw the C-Dory CD25 owned by Jim Bathurst, our neighbor in Port Isabel. A boat with an enclosed cabin and windshield wipers. After introducing ourselves to Jim, he became a friend and advisor in our quest for the perfect boat. Jim introduced us to the internet group called the C-Brats. This group is an owners group for folks that own or are interested in C-Dory boats. The C-Brats led us to the TugNuts, a group devoted to the Ranger Tugs, and they led to the first Willie's Tug.
Willie loved this boat, Jake loved this boat and Herb loved this boat. We spent many hours plying the waters of the ICW and Brownsville Ship Channel watching dolphins.

While owning this 1997 Ranger Tug R21 with an 18 hp Yanmar diesel, we were introduced to the Laguna Madre Yacht Club by our neighbor Tommy Carruth. We went on an overnight with the club to Arroyo City on the Arroyo Colorado River. This was a wonderful trip, but we found out that overnights on the little 21 were not very comfortable in the Texas heat and mosquitoes. So "2footidus" set in and we continued our search for the perfect boat.

In September of 2010 we found ourselves at the Ranger Tug Rendezvous in Bremerton, WA. We traveled to the Rendezvous with our friends Bob and Nita Ostlund in their Ranger Tug R29 from their home in Bothel, WA. After visiting with about 40 or so Ranger Tug owners with their boats, we determined that we would purchase a new Ranger Tug R27. This R27 is newest of the Ranger Tug lineup of trailer-able boats. It has a 180 hp Yanmar diesel and is the largest Ranger Tug that is trailer-able without a permit, as the beam is 8.5 feet. We placed an order for the R27 at the Rendezvous asking that it be built over the winter with our taking delivery early summer 2011.

The winter of 2010-11 was spent preparing for the new Willie's Tug. Little Willie's Tug was advertised and sold on the TugNuts web site to a very nice couple from San Mateo, CA. Bob and Dil drove to Texas and spent a pleasant couple of days at our home taking possession of their new boat soon to be renamed Hercules. It was a bitter-sweet day that we watched our little tug leave Port Isabel.

Steve and Tina of the Christina Bee came for a visit and helped us enlarge our slip in preparation for bringing the new R27 home.

Russ and Toni of Traveler came for a visit and helped confirm our decision to purchase the R27. We showed them our dolphins and the shallow waters of the Laguna Madre.

Russ was a little nervous as we headed across the bay in 6 foot water. He was not prepared for that after leaving the deep water of the Pacific Northwest.

Finally the day arrived for us to load Jake in the red truck and head North and West to see and take delivery of our new Ranger Tug R27. Everyone told us how beautiful it was, but we still had not seen it for ourselves and were just a bit anxious.

We arrive at the Ranger Tug Factory in Kent, WA. and look all over the yard for our boat. It was no where to be found. We go inside and see Andrew Custis and Jeff Messmer, they tell us that our boat is waiting for us in the water at the Des Moines Marina. Andrew gives us the keys and and tells us to enjoy our evening on the boat. He will come in the morning and start our orientation.

We get our first view of the new Willie's Tug.

The next day, we get a thorough orientation from Andrew, and start making the boat our home for next 4 months. Much to do. We need to install Jake's Ferry, and learn how to use the many systems. Since most of them are similar to our RV, we adapt quickly. While we had become proficient with the 21, this 27 is much larger and a bit daunting.

After a couple of days in Des Moines, we load the boat on our trailer and move about 75 miles North to Anacortes.

Over the next 4 months, we cruise the beautiful San Juan Islands, Gulf Islands, Vancouver Island, and Desolation Sound.

The water temperature up here has not moved much from about 52d F. except for Desolation Sound where we find water in the 70s. A refreshing change for us to be able to dip our toes in those beautiful waters.

All too soon we must load up and leave the Pacific Northwest. We take about 10 days to work our way back to Port Isabel. Spending some nights with friends, some in motels, and some in RV parks using Willie's Tug as a boater home.

Finally Willie's Tug is at home in the warm waters of the Laguna Madre.

We have visited by boat Center Island, James Island, Stuart Island, Friday Harbor, Roche Harbor, Spencer Spit, Jones Island, Orcas Island, Lopez Island, Sidney BC, Buchart Cove and Gardens, Salt Spring Island, Montague Harbor, Bedwell Cove, Desolation Sound and many others.

This article is not a complete travel-log, Willie has kept a more or less daily journal which you can see here.

Walldog aka Herb Stark, Willie aka Wilma Stark, and Jake.

Interesting Day

2011-09-07T10:12:00.000-05:00

Interesting Day

by walldog on Wed Sep 07, 2011 8:10 am

Nellie Too, Adventurer, and Willie's Tug left Anacortes yesterday for Kingston on our way to Bremerton. Ran into fog in the Guemes channel and stayed in it past Port Townsend and into Admiralty Inlet before it cleared to a beautiful day. Circle T passed us in the Juan De Fuca reassuring us with his AIS. Radar performed beautifully though. Happy hour on the Adventurer's cockpit and dinner up the hill in Kingston. Another day in Paradise.

Walldog aka Herb

Classic Wooden Boat

2011-09-02T11:51:00.000-05:00

Here are a couple of nice classic wood boats that are at Cap Sante Boat Haven in Anacortes this week. Makes a nice view from the spot that Willie's Tug has in the marina.

Found in Anacortes

2011-09-01T10:32:00.000-05:00

This is Kismet owned by Jim and Lisa Favors. They recently took delivery of this Ranger Tug R27 and are on their way for a short tour of the San Juan Islands before heading South to Bremerton for the Ranger Rendezvous September 9th. We had a short visit with Jim and Lisa last evening, they seem to really like their new Tug. They moved from a 40' boat, so this is a bit of an adjustment. Look for them across the US as this trailer-able boat has opened up a whole new world of cruising for the Favors.

Check out the Favors Great Loop Blog from the link located on the right side of this page.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

And Willie Said: Day 92 - Ladysmith Maritime Society Marina on Vanc...

2011-08-12T09:34:00.000-05:00

And Willie Said: Day 92 - Ladysmith Maritime Society Marina on Vanc...: "We get a pleasant surprise today as marina guests stop by to visit. We are delighted to learn that these new friends are Linda and Tom, al..."

And Willie Said: Day 91 - Ladysmith Maritime Society Marina on Vanc...

2011-08-12T08:02:00.000-05:00

And Willie Said: Day 91 - Ladysmith Maritime Society Marina on Vanc...: "A nice sunrise this morning as we leave Nanaimo to go through Dodd Narrows enroute to Ladysmith Maritime Society Marina. It will be a good..."

And Willie Said: Day 90 - Nanaimo Harbour on Vancouver Island BC - ...

2011-08-11T13:09:00.000-05:00

And Willie Said: Day 90 - Nanaimo Harbour on Vancouver Island BC - ...: "After a visit with Patrick, Gail, Lyman and Janeane, we gain some useful information and leave Squirrel Cove to cross the Strait of Georgia..."

And Willie Said: Day 84 - Pender Harbor BC - Tuesday, August 2, 201...

2011-08-03T18:21:00.000-05:00

And Willie Said: Day 84 - Pender Harbor BC - Tuesday, August 2, 201...: "Two Cutwater boats join us for the trip continuing to Desolation Sound. Walter and Tammy in the red one, It's a Secret, and Mike in the ..."

Day 81 - Roche Harbor, San Juan Island WA - Saturday, July 30, 2011

2011-07-31T17:12:00.000-05:00

Day 81 - Roche Harbor, San Juan Island WA - Saturday, July 30, 2011: "

It is the second day of our gathering with the boaters who will travel together to Desolation Sound. For some it is a lazy day, a day to explore the area, a day to peruse the shops (and find the ice cream store), a day to visit with friends -- but for some it is a day to fine tune things.

I think Jeff wants his solar panel a bit away from his storage box.

Lincoln takes Grandpa Tim for a ride in the kayak.

Nita and Lisa enjoy their kayak rides, also.

Herb and I decide it is a good time to stroll with Jake to see the sculpture garden on the hill.

Along the way we see that Capt. Mac has arrived.

Max of Allotrope joins us for the walk and points out that some of the sculptures are no longer here; perhaps have been sold.

My favorite is the gyroscope.

Birds in the foreground, and the replica of a ship in the background.

I am not sure of the medium, but it appears to be tar forming a relief map of San Juan Island.

We look from west to east, with Roche Harbor at the left.

We see activities preparing for a wedding at Our Lady of Good Voyage Chapel on the hill.

The outside of the chapel is being decorated with fresh greenery garlad.

The reception will be in the tent we see below as we continue our walk back to the marina.

Max and Herb walk ahead to check out the wedding cake.

Find Willie's Tug. Docked bow in, starboard tie, near the left side of the photo. Dinghy is in the water.

The marina is quite busy today.

We meet Barb and Don of Barbara Ann.

And now we see that Linda is with Capt. Mac.

Max's boat has a gray stripe. Traveling with him are his parents, Jan and Doug.

The Ranger folks caught 51 crabs at Jeff's cabin on Center Island and share with the group for our evening meal.

Wedding guests are kind enough to donate a centerpiece for our table, and Lisa donates a Picton Bay Sauvignon Blanc to compliment it.

She tells me Leroy imports it from New Zealand.

The Terrenal shown below currently comes from Spain.

We meet Gail and Patrick of Ganges, Salt Spring Island, BC. Through a mis-communication, we missed seeing them when we visited the island last week.

They will be our guides for the Canadian portion of the trip.

Dinner is served.

Dinner looks wonderful!

Herb enjoys his share, and doesn't move far from the buffet table.

My blueberry cole slaw is consumed, as are many of the other sides that boaters prepared.

The Livingston crew and friends enjoy the feast.

Chiquita's tablecloth is, of course, yellow!

Max found dessert.

Andrew tries not to spill anything on his new clothes.

Gloria of Mvto Hokte has arrived.

Her boat name means 'Thank you, Girl' in Creek language.

After dinner, Lincoln instructs Herb on attaching his motor to the dinghy.

Lotsa Ranger Tugs here, on both sides of the guest dock.

Herb takes Jake and me in the dinghy closer to the shore by the marina office to see the Colors ceremony.

First we see the Color Guard in the center of the photo.

The Harbor flag comes down, as its music is played; the Washington State flag is next, then the Canadian and the British flags, leaving only the flag of the United States of America flying.

As each flag is lowered, the appropriate anthem is played.

Now 'My Country Tiz of Thee.'

Then the cannon sounds! Loud!

A cacophony of boat horns can be heard, but the loudest sound Herb and I hear is our own laughter as Jake reacts to the loud noise. Not sure what is going on or what is to come next, he makes himself really small, slithers under my seat in the dinghy and gets as close to Herb as he can.

Our brave guard dog.

Now back to our boats.............

Willie of Willie's Tug,

and Walldog, Willie and Jake

Day 75 - Anacortes WA - Sunday, July 24, 2011

2011-07-28T23:00:00.000-05:00

Day 75 - Anacortes WA - Sunday, July 24, 2011: "

On Jake's morning walk he and Herb visited with the volunteer Park Host, Don, who has many suggestions of where to visit and things to watch out for in the Gulf Islands and Desolation Sound.

He hitches a ride with his friend Jerry to come aboard Willie's Tug, and point out his ideas on our BC chart.

I take notes as fast as he talks, so that we can review later and plan our trip.

As we start toward the US boundary, we have a perfect shot to photograph Mt. Baker, which is east of Bellingham in the state of Washington. There is still a lot of snow left on this mountain, and it can be seen from miles and miles away.

Herb decides to take a break from the wheel to enjoy the scenery from the cockpit.

He leaves me at the helm, and with auto pilot on and the cabin door open, I can be free to take a few pictures.

Willie of Willie's Tug,

and Walldog, Willie and Jake

And Willie Said: Day 74 - Beaumont Marine Park, Bedwell Harbour, So...

2011-07-26T20:20:00.000-05:00

And Willie Said: Day 74 - Beaumont Marine Park, Bedwell Harbour, So...: "We are called to return to Anacortes for our appointment on Monday for some scheduled maintenance on the boat, so we take advantage of one ..."

And Willie Said: Day 73 - Ladysmith Harbour, Vancouver Island BC, F...

2011-07-26T14:05:00.000-05:00

And Willie Said: Day 73 - Ladysmith Harbour, Vancouver Island BC, F...: "This morning we decide to go just a little farther north before going back to Cap Sante in Anacortes. Ladysmith sounds like an interesting ..."

Visitor from Texas

2011-07-13T08:32:00.000-05:00

Our friend Joe from Marble Falls Texas stopped by yesterday for a short visit before splashing his Classic Ranger Tug R21 for a few weeks in the San Juan Islands. We met Joe over on the "TugNuts". Joe is known as "Boatman" on the TugNuts.

At least a couple of us Texans know how to beat the heat. Have fun Joe.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

The Salish Sea

2011-07-04T11:58:00.000-05:00

July 4, 2011

I found this map online. It shows the area that we are boating in this summer. We will only see a small portion of this Salish Sea, but I wanted to let you know just how beautiful and vast are these waters and islands. Although weather can make these waters treacherous at times, they are mostly protected from the waves and winds of the Pacific Ocean. These protected waters form a portion of the Inland Passage used by boaters to travel to Canada and Alaska from Washington State.

This map is copyrighted by Stefan Freelan: "Map of the Salish Sea & Surrounding Basin, Stefan Freelan, WWU, 2009"

Stefan Freelan's web page tells us that the name "Salish Sea" was officially recognized in 2009 by the governments of British Columbia and the State of Washington. It does not replace the names of any of the named straits and waters. It is a new name given to the collective group of waters.

We have friends who own a Ranger Tug 29. Craig and Kathy Wilson have named their boat the "Salish Rover". Aptly named, as they are based out of Gig Harbor in Puget Sound and ply the waters of the Salish Sea.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Cypress Island

2011-07-04T09:45:00.001-05:00

July 1, 2011

A red letter day for sure. Willie catches her first mooring buoy on her first try. The procedure is for the Captain to maneuver the boat close to the buoy and for the mate (in this case the Admiral) to slip the bowline through the loop atop the buoy. Some times this is very difficult with wind and currents, but Willie threaded the needle like a pro.

Hopefully these free mooring buoys furnished and maintained by the Washington DNR keep us far enough away from this rock shore. They allow up to 3 days use before you need to move on to another location. We did not have to use our Washington State Parks pass to tie up here. You can use your dinghy (Jake's Ferry) to get to the beach. There you will find composting toilets, camp sites and walking trails for public use. Most of Cypress Island is public with very little private property. There are 4 mooring buoys here at the place called Cypress Head.

After lunch and a brief nap, we continue our circumnavigation of Cypress Island. We poke around in the various coves and bays following the shoreline closely. There are two more sites on the East and North sides of the island, Eagle Harbor and Pelican Beach. Both of these locations have several more buoys.

Plenty of pretty little islands scattered around the perimeter of Cypress Island. We are cautious of the ones we do not see, those just below the surface of the water. We have updated and hopefully accurate charts that show us these unseen surprises. Not like the soft sands of our Gulf of Mexico, these rocks are unforgiving if you run upon them with your boat. We have our paper charts, our Garmin 5212 main chart plotter, and up to date charts on our IPAD.

The waters are very calm today except as we return via the Guemes Channel. The waters here are awash with the wakes of large pleasure boats rushing to get to their favorite spot in the San Juan Islands for this holiday weekend. Interesting maneuvers as various ones crisscross in front of our direction of travel.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

Anchor Rode

2011-07-04T07:52:00.000-05:00

June 30, 2011

Today we marked our anchor rode. Rode is the chain and rope (Line) that ties the anchor to the boat. It is run out and pulled back in by a windlass. That is a winch that lets the rode out and pulls the anchor back up. We mark it with pieces of vinyl that let us know how much we have out. With a scope of 7 to 1, we have enough rode to allow us to anchor out at about a depth of 35 feet. We laid the anchor rode out on the dock and measured and marked it in 30 foot increments. We have 50 foot of chain and the rest is 5/8 inch rope. A good thing to check is to be sure the bitter (loose) end of the rode is securely tied to the boat.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

James Island

2011-06-21T12:48:00.000-05:00

After leaving Spencer Spit, we cruised over to the West side of James Island. We found space at the dock and decided to risk it even though we had heard about the raccoon problem. Across the dock was a Camino Troll named "Falcon" piloted by Paul and Sharron and a Yellow Lab named Luke. We enjoyed visiting with them and look forward to seeing them on the water again soon.

Paul told us about his combat with the raccoons that visited him the previous night. They were very aggressive and got a couple of lamb chops from his cooler. They even knew how to operate the zippers on his camperback. We decided to make sure we had no trash, food, or dog food in the cockpit. We buttoned everything up secure and retired for the evening. We slept extremely well, and were not disturbed in our sleep by the raccoon. However Paul tells us the next morning that they did return. I checked and could see that they in fact had unbuttoned my canvas and looked for food in our cockpit. Since they found none, they left without leaving much but a couple of paw prints.

James Island has quite a bit of current that flows through the dock area during tidal changes. It seems to have carved out a very deep cove. We had some wakes mainly from a foot ferry that services Decatur Island. Still a very pleasant spot to visit. We walked the trails and checked the views across the isthmus to the East. No early sun had us turning the heat on about 6:30AM. Sleeping a little later than normal, something about a rocking boat.

Our return to Anacortes was uneventful, except for a large tanker that was being pushed down the Guemes Channel. We gave them plenty of room.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

Spencer Spit

2011-06-18T16:52:00.000-05:00

After lunch at Blakely Island, and a cruise through East Sound of Orcas Island, we spent the night at Spencer Spit off Lopez Island.

We rafted with Bob and Nita of "Nellie Too".

Since we were not at a dock for the night, Jake got to use his "Ferry" for the first time this trip. I figure that I need a harness for him to pull the dinghy up on the beach. He jumps out as we touch the shore. Then I have step into the water and finish pulling the dinghy up. There is no sense in both of us getting our feet wet.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Roche Harbor

2011-06-10T18:58:00.000-05:00

We leave Friday Harbor this morning and set a course 10 miles around the North end of San Juan Island for Roche. We dodge the Washington State Ferry again as we leave Friday Harbor. The day is cloudy, with a small threat of sunshine. As we travel North a few miles, we notice that Jones Island is due East of us across the San Juan Channel. The tidal rips have smoothed out in this part of the channel, so we decide to cut across and see the new docks at Jones.

We see one boat tied up, so there is plenty of room for us to dock there. We decide not to though as we want to continue to Roche. We will return to Jones with empty holding tanks for a couple of days visit. Jones has friendly deer and nice trail to walk Jake. We look forward to our return.

Our berth in Roche is across from the little chapel. We note that mass will be celebrated Sunday at 11 AM. We may still be here.

Lunch was the special at the Limestone Cafe of a Shrimp Louie Wrap....delicious. The docks here at Roche are much higher than we are used to, the better to accommodate the large yachts that surround little Willie's Tug. We will be back here at the end of July to kick off the Desolation Sound Cruise with the Ranger Tug Factory.

Most days we travel, we turn the track feature on on our SPOT.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

Friday Harbor

2011-06-09T14:14:00.000-05:00

The sun is shining and we are in Friday Harbor. We visited here last year a couple of times via the Washington State Ferry system. A neat little community to visit. We arrived here from Anacortes yesterday afternoon and found a guest slip for a couple of days. Jake has introduced himself to all the neighbors along the docks.

We keep working on making the boat more home and livable. We have some shelves ordered from Fisheries Supply that will make the galley more user friendly. When they arrive, we may make a trip to pick them up as Trader Joes is near there and I am sure we will need to restock.

I preparation for Independence day, I mounted our American flag. The normal place would be from a flag pole at the stern of the boat, but our dinghy would cover it there, so we mounted it from the flag mount on our mast. Now we are ready for the 4th and an upcoming visit to Canada.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

Travel to Anacortes

2011-05-28T13:53:00.000-05:00

May 20, 2011

Today we leave Des Moines. We considered going by water to Anacortes, but the logistics of getting the truck and trailer there could not be worked out. So we prepared to have the boat loaded on the trailer. The marina has a sling lift for that purpose. Kenny arrives from the plant with my trailer and to assist me in loading it for the first time.

While we are working, Willie catches a great shot of a Mallard that dive bombs me. I guess I was in his way as he wanted to be in slip adjacent to us. Jake does not even protect me, seems that he has lost his natural bird dog properties.

After prepping Willie's Tug for travel, we motor over to the lift. We have to drive the tug into the slings and stay centered until the operator brings us up high enough for us to step off.

Piece of cake as this is how we have putting our previous tug into its slip at home. Except on a smaller scale.

The operator carries us over to the trailer and gently sets us down on it. We strap her down and off we go to Anacortes, working our way through the Seattle traffic. Since the trailer sets a little down in the front, we take it easy until we can get a higher draw bar for our hitch. The truck pulls it effortlessly, looks like we made a good choice.

We arrive in Anacortes without incident and try to unload at the marina. But they decline to unload it without bunk cutouts for their straps. Andrew tells me later that they did several 27s at the trawler fest. They sent us over to Cap Sante Marine who did a fine job of getting us off the trailer and into the water. We motor up the small channel and into Cap Sante Boat Haven, which will be our base of operation for the next 4 months.

Now we have to do a bit of walking to move the truck and trailer over to the temporary parking until we can find home for the trailer.

We have just enough time to get home in the slip and secure everything down before happy hour. We prepare for Capt. Mac, who will come tomorrow for a day on the water provided by the plant. We have heard many good things about his sessions.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

Des Moines Day 2

2011-05-27T12:47:00.000-05:00

These next couple posts are out of order, but I wanted to catch up on our taking delivery of the boat.

Thursday May 19, 2011

Today is on our own as we continue to put things in their place. After a bit this, we decide it is too pretty to sit at the dock. So we head out into the sound to explore and get used to the larger boat. We cruise Southeast from Des Moines following the coast line down to Tacoma. We stay clear of the traffic lanes. Yesterday we found how fast some of large commercial ships move. We do the breakin routine that Andrew recommended, 5 minutes at 2000 rpms, 5 at 3000, and 5 at 4000. After all that we find that we really like traveling about 1800 or so. But it is nice to have the power when you want or need it.

Jake finds his place on the floor between Willie and me.

Heading back toward Des Moines, we cruise along side of Vashon and Maury Islands. Maury Island appears to be actually attached to Vashon. At Robinson Point, we move close enough for Willie to photograph the light house.

We thread our way back into the narrow channel into Des Moines Marina and get a little more practice backing into a slip.

Another great day on the water here in the Pacific Northwest.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

Guemes Island

2011-05-26T22:12:00.000-05:00

We have been slip bound for the past 4 days getting some service work done to correct a couple of minor problems on the new "Willie's Tug". While down, we continued to make our nest, finding a place for the necessities of life while living abound a 27 foot boat.

This afternoon, we plotted a course around Guemes Island. Guemes Island is across the Guemes Channel from our slip at Cap Sante in Anacortes.

There was quite a bit of traffic as we left the marina and entered the channel. A tanker anchored and a Tug with a tow. We never see this on the Intercoastal Waterway in Texas. It is a bit unnerving to see a barge following a tug. As you can see from the picture, the tug is on the left side of the picture and the barge is on the right side. Notice the cables attaching the two.

We head West in the Guemes Channel and then turn North to follow the Bellingham Channel along the West side of Guemes. We turn back East going around Clark's Point on the North end of the Island. Then Southerly following the East side of Guemes going between Saddleback and Huckleberry Islands back to our starting point. A total of about 19 NM.

We back into our slip, although it does take me two tries. I guess I was a little cocky from the first two perfect landings. But we slide in the second time and at least we did not hit anyone or anything. As we used to say in my airplane driving days...any landing you can walk away from is a good one.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Taking Delivery of Willie's Tug

2011-05-22T20:55:00.001-05:00

May 17, 2011

We arrive in Kent, Washington about 3:30 PM and go to the factory. We meet with Andrew and Jeff. Horrors, our boat is not there. Andrew tells us that it is in the water waiting for us at the Des Moines marina nearby. It was not hard to find.

If we thought packing the truck was hard, putting everything from the truck into the boat is impossible.

We throw a few necessities into the boat and settle down for happy hour. After 7 days and 3000 miles, we are in our new home for the summer.

Andrew will arrive in the morning for our orientation. In the meantime, I look for power cords and water hoses to hook up our power and water. It is a good thing we are experienced motor homers, so we know what to do. It will get a little cool after the sun goes down, but we have brought some Texas weather with us to share with our friends here in Seattle.

After spending the morning going over all the systems on the boat, we take her out for the first time. New boat, new waters. Very scary and exciting. We spend about 4 hours motoring around Puget Sound between Seattle and Tacoma. Then we take her back to the slip at Des Moines. Wonder of wonders, we slide her back into the slip and did not hit anything.

I do believe Jake enjoyed the ride. He is finding his place to sleep. He does not care where is, just that he is. An attitude from which many of us could learn.

We get back from our shakedown cruise, and Andrew calls for Kenny to bring us a part to replace on the Air conditioner/Heat Pump. After replacing it , we enjoy a beer together.

A great group of folks with which to do business. They really care about putting out a quality product and their customer service is rivaled by no one.

Our first full day on the boat is good one. New friends, great service from the plant, and all this sunshine we brought from Texas.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

Summer 2011 Day 1

2011-05-11T08:31:00.000-05:00

May 10, 2011 Port Isabel to Houston

Well we are finally packed and on our way. I never believed we could get everything that was in the motor home into this Dodge truck. But it seems like we did.

We are in Houston for a couple of days before heading West Northwest to Seattle to pick up the new "Willie's Tug".

A link to the online album of our adventures is located here. You can check back from time to time as we will be adding pictures daily.

Jake has a comfortable spot to ride and is quite content. He is just glad to be going.

We hope you will enjoy riding along with us.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Willie's Tug Adios

2011-04-17T14:13:00.000-05:00

We had a great visit with some new friends from San Mateo California. They spent a fine couple of days at our home here in Port Isabel. They looked Willie's Tug over and took several rides in her. They decided to let her follow them home. With a tear in Jake's eye, we watched her leave Port Isabel.

As you can see the new owner is an OLD guy like me, so Willie's Tug should feel right at home with him and his much younger wife.

We wish them much happiness and hope to see them in Bremerton, Washington in September for the Ranger Tug Rendezvous.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

Willie’s Tug2

2011-04-03T07:42:00.000-05:00

Construction has started on the new "Willie’s Tug² ".

The new boat is a Ranger Tug R27 powered by a Yanmar 180hp marine engine. This boat is trailer-able and will be our boater-home from late May through September. A photo album of the construction progress is located here and will be updated from time to time.

Our plans are to take delivery in Seattle, cruise Pugent Sound, San Juan Islands and the Gulf Islands of British Columbia ending with the 2011 TugNuts Rendezvous in Bremerton, Washington in September.

After the Rendezvous, we plan to trailer to Lake Powell for a couple of weeks as we return to the Tropical Tip of Texas.

LMYC Mexico Triangle Race Feb. 13, 2011

2011-02-21T08:27:00.000-06:00

My friend Jim and I were given the opportunity to run the "Committee Boat" during the LMYC Mexico Triangle Race. Rick of TowBoatUS provided his "Rede 1" for the committee boat. After a checkout, he turned us loose with his boat.

The race was scheduled to run from the Jetties at South Padre Island
South east to an artificial fishing reef just off the Mexico US border. There is a yellow buoy marking the reef.

From the reef to a gas well about 9 miles Northeast, then about 9 miles back to the Jetties.

Well, the best laid plans of mice and men. At the start of the race, there was NO and I do mean NO wind. As the first leg worn on, the wind picked up to about 3 to 5 knots directly on the nose of sailboats trying to make the yellow buoy. The "Lucky Strike" was the first boat to make the turn around the yellow buoy.

The next was Abel and Frank in the O'Day 25, and third was Mike and Marylin in Sweet Pea. Since by this time it was well past noon, it was decided to omit the second point and head straight back to the Jetties.

Sweet Pea had a little competition for the buoy as they made the turn.

This Montgomery 17 "Tynee" piloted by Andres Garcia was the 4th boat in the race. Really looked good, but had a terrible time as did everyone else making headway.

Even though it was poor sailing conditions, it was a fine day to be out on the water.

Random Thoughts from our childhood

2011-02-09T08:41:00.000-06:00

My sister asked me about the Radio and TV repair shop that our father opened up in Alexandria, Louisiana in 1953 or 1954.

Daddy opened the TV shop up in 1954, I was 11 years old and for the rest of my childhood, I was there every day after school and on Saturdays. I finally got time off to play Little League and Little Boys Baseball. But most of my practice was at the shop next to Mack Weldmon's junk pile. Boy there were some big rats that lived in that pile of junk. KALB TV came on the air in 1954. Most of the day all that was on was a test pattern. Programming did not start until afternoon and early evening. Before Channel 5 came to town, the closest station was WDSU in New Orleans. We had a black and white TV. It was placed in the corner by the front door of our living/dining room on Baldwin Ave. If you got as far away from it as possible, you could just make out the images in the "snow". But we thought it was fantastic.

Daddy worked with Francis Trotter for a few years before he opened up 1401 Lee Street. Francis had a shop at the corner of 10th and Lee Streets. Daddy was a 35% partner with Francis in the shop. At first there was just radio. One of the things I remember is that the chicken processing plant had an electric grid that killed the chickens. Daddy would have go out and repair it quite often. Occasionally they would have to bring it into the shop because repairs could not be completed at the plant. Daddy and Francis had a lot fun telling stories to the local neighborhood residents about the "electric chair". It was here and later at our shop that Daddy taught me to get under the dash and check the vibrator on the car radios. If the vibrator was not buzzing, we checked the fuse, if the fuse was good, we replaced the vibrator. The vibrator was a metal can with 4 prongs to plug into a socket. All systems were 6 volts. Later when 12 volts became the norm, the vibrators had 4 prongs and 3 prongs. So we had to stock several types. If the vibrator was buzzing, then we tried the OZ4 rectifier tube that was next to the vibrator. Most of the early radios were in two sections. The power supply with the vibrator and OZ4 was hung under the dash on the passenger side or bolted to the firewall. The RF section or controls was mounted in the dash or under the dash in the center of the front seat area. If the power supply checked out ok, we then took the cover off the RF section and put our hands on the tubes checking to see if they were warm, usually at this time we would find a cold tube. Replacing the cold tube usually fixed the problem. I used to laugh at guys that would bring their car in to have the radio fixed and would say to us that they would fix it themselves if they had the proper tools. Most radios were Motorola.

LMYC Super Bowl Party

2011-02-07T15:37:00.000-06:00

An Impromptu Super Bowl party was held at the club house. A good time and fellowship was had by all. Plans were made for the Mexico Triangle race on Saturday the 12th. A few Pictures are below.

Day on the Bay

2011-02-06T14:16:00.001-06:00

Yes, we did get out on the boat today. Jake and I cruised the Laguna Madre and ship channel for a few hours. We passed and visited with Jim and Joan of Wild Blue for a bit.

Sadly we saw many dead fish as the cold temperatures affected the marine life used to the warm waters. We had water temperatures drop into the 40s and are still now just below 50dF.

Quite a bit of activity as the dredges and tugs pushing barges are out in force.

A good day temps up near 70....What a difference a day makes.

What a difference a day makes

2011-02-05T10:00:00.002-06:00

What a difference a day makes. Beautiful sunshine!! We spent most of the day yesterday in our motor home in our garage. I propped the huge door open about 6 foot and opened the back passage door. That with the 3x3 vent at the rear of the garage and the North wind gave us enough ventilation to run the aquahot diesel heater. We ran the inverter for computers and routers. We moved most of our frozen food down the reefer in the motor home. We expected the generator to come on, but the new batteries have great reserve so we never used it. With the temperature around 50 in the house, we were comfortable in the motor home. Seems like there are a lot of leaks around town with broken pipes and valves. We lost water pressure this morning and now it is off completely. I guess I will just have go play in the tug.

Winter Texan

2011-01-27T11:37:00.001-06:00

Winter Texan: "Mama, it is time for our annual migration to South Padre Island. Do you think we should upgrade our tow vehicle?

Mama: No.
Winter Texan: Well Mama, how about us getting a new RV?

Mama: No absolutely NOT. We have many more years of use from this perfectly good Travel trailer and Suzuki SUV. Besides that we can spend the night anywhere. We do not even have to go to a Wal-mart to camp.

The Winter Texans have descended upon South Texas en mass. They fill our restaurants, stores, campgrounds, beaches, hotels, motels, and churches. WE LOVE THEM!! Because of the Winter Texans, we have some of the finest restaurants and other facilities that would not be profitable otherwise. How ever you get here, just keep on coming down.
Thanks

The Rescue of an Osprey

2011-01-23T04:55:00.002-06:00

This morning we planned to attend a seminar on boat maintenance at the Laguna Madre Yacht Club here in Port Isabel. We arrived just before 10AM and took a seat next to Skip and Nancy Maggard. Skip tells us that there is an Osprey caught on a sailboat mast just outside the club. This is what I found when I went outside to see.

I snapped a picture with my Droid cellphone and posted it to Facebook trying to get it to Scarlet Colley. Luckily I had her phone number and called her to see if she knew anyone who could try to rescue the bird. She immediately sent out a request for someone to help. In a short time, George Colley arrived and we started trying to figure a way to help the poor bird. We could not tell from the ground, but as I zoomed in on the pictures later, I could see that he had one talon caught in a drilled hole in a plate on top of the mast.

George located a ladder and a another good Samaritan named Ryan arrived. The rescue begins. The ladder is not long enough to reach from the deck of the boat to the top of the mast.

So they moved it to the top of the cabin

Still not tall enough so upon suggestion from Jana Craft, they precariously put the bottom rung on the sailboat boom. Ryan got about halfway up and I heard him say "I do not think I can do this.".

But with encouragement and urging from the gallery, he climbed up high enough to reach the Osprey. Of course the Osprey was not really sure he wanted Ryan on that mast with him.

It took several minutes, but Ryan finally freed the bird, minus one talon.

The Osprey was so tired from his ordeal, that he just lay on the ground at first. When Ryan was safely down from the mast, he gathered the bird up in his arms. What a wonderful sight to see him down from the mast. Ryan and George left with him, taking him to the Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville. There is a Veterinarian there that has lots of experience with hurt animals.

A smiling hero and grateful Osprey

The Picassa Web album of the rescue to located here.

Port of Brownsville, Texas

2011-01-21T16:03:00.001-06:00

Walldog and Jake took a little boat ride yesterday before the front came through. Actually we were still out before the front arrived, but that is another story. First we went out to the jetties, as we heard on the marine vhf radio that a tug was bringing in a "dead ship". That is a term used to signify a decommissioned ship that is headed into the Port of Brownsville to be scrapped out. The salvage of no longer useful ships is a big business here.

Below is a picture of a neat little tug boat. The "Free State" evidently does not have AIS. (The Automatic Identification System (AIS) is an automated tracking system used on ships and by Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) for identifying and locating Vessels by electronically exchanging data with other nearby ships and VTS stations. AIS information supplements marine radar, which continues to be the primary method of collision avoidance for water transport.) So I do not know anymore information about it. Note the Dual exhaust pipes that go up behind the pilot house. Similar to 18 wheeler trucks. During our boat trips, we like to take pictures of commercial vessels MarineTraffic.com is a site that tracks ships with AIS and accepts our pictures of these vessels for their web site.

After turning around at the end of the Intercoastal....or beginning, we started back toward Port Isabel. We made a detour into the shrimp basin where many of our shrimpers dock their boats. Sitting prominently near the entrance is Seahunters Pride.

In need of some TLC. Even so I am sure she is still someones pride.

Because we spent so much time puttering around sight seeing, we did not get back to Port Isabel before the front came through. It was a fierce one, mostly dry, but with North winds near 40. Our little tug just kept us dry and warm even though the waves were splashing over the pilot house. Jake came inside and took refuge in the vee berth. We turned into the channel that follows the ICW through Port Isabel and separates Long Island Village from Port Isabel. The water was much rougher in that channel since the fetch was greater. Fetch is the distance that the wind has to work on the surface of the water to create waves. The greater the distance, the greater the wave. Since we missed the opening of the swing bridge across the ICW and it would be another hour before we could get through to get to our house, we decided to duck into the dock at our friend Jim's house in Long Island Village. Jim wrote a note about our visit on his blog, you can find it here: Any Port in a Storm.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

LMYC Commodore's Ball 2011

2011-01-16T06:37:00.002-06:00

The Commodore's Ball for the Laguna Madre Yacht Club was held last night at the Isle Grande on South Padre Island. Everyone dressed in their finery and enjoyed a great dinner, dancing and fellowship.

Our regular camera lens is broken, but we took a few pictures from our cell phones.

The Hon. Carlos Cascos, Cameron County Judge, was our honored guest and installed the new Flag Officers.

This is probably the only time of the year that you will see most of us dressed in anything but shorts and sandals.

New Dinghy

2011-01-01T22:54:00.001-06:00

We acquired a new dinghy for the Ranger 27 Tug. It is the West Marine RU260 made by Zodiac. We powered it with a 4 stroke 2.5 hp Suzuki.

We named it "Jake's Ferry"

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Pictures of Jake with Santa

2010-12-19T17:24:00.001-06:00

Jake had his picture taken with Santa at the Island Dog Wash on South Padre Island.

Our friend Jerry aka Jw Wilson and his company donated the photo sessions to raise money for the Laguna Madre Humane Society which operates a no kill shelter here in Port Isabel.
Walldog, Willie and Jake

WilliesTug For Sale

2010-10-29T06:31:00.002-05:00

Price Reduced to $19,995 firm. This is a bargain for a great boat.
For Sale Details SOLD

WilliesTug For Sale

2010-10-12T14:47:00.002-05:00

Willie’s Tug 1997 Ranger R21 For Sale

$24,995.00 $19,995.00

We have bought a new Ranger R27 Tug. We will take delivery in Seattle in May or June of 2011. So it is with some regret that we offer for sale Willie’s Tug. She is a 21 foot 1997 model in excellent shape. There is nothing that we know of that does not work. We made a modification to the original mast by shortening it 32 inches so that the Tug will fit in our boat house. Now it has about 10 foot clearance from the gunnels. At that time we changed out the mast head light and the anchor light to new LED fixtures. We replaced the non-original cushions with new ones from the original factory patterns. They were made by Kathy’s Upholstery of Arlington Washington. She was recommended by the factory and did an excellent job. We rewired the trailer and installed new LED lights all around. We added an spare tire and bracket. It is ready to travel anywhere. Here is a list of the equipment and options that convey with the sale:

v Hin Number: RFB02772E797

v JRC Color Radar 1800/Chart Plotter GPS with current Gulf of Mexico CMap chip

v Autopilot Raymarine Sport Pilot ST600R with wired remote

v Ritchie Compass

v Lowrance X-25B Depth Fish Finder

v VHF Marine Radio ICOM IC-M502

v 2 Shakespeare VHF Marine Antennas, one top of mast, one on Pilot House roof

v Yanmar 18hp Diesel, you will not believe how little fuel this uses.

v 6 Blue Fenders and lines

v Extra one gallon Diesel container

v 3 Standard Life Jackets

v Spare Parts, First Aid Kit, Flares and other emergency items

v All manuals

v Shortened mast and boom with guys and lines

v Cockpit shade cover

v Bruce Anchor

v EZ Loader Trailer with new spare tire and bracket

v Red Cockpit Lights

v Red and White Pilot House lnterior Lights

v Red Vee Berth Lights

v Basic Porta-potty

v Small 350 Inverter

v 30 Amp Shore Power Receptacle, No power cord available

v Factory Folding Seat for Skipper and First Mate

Contact Herb Stark at 903-736-7591. Pictures are located here: WilliesTug Pictures

Yup, We are Back in Texas

2010-09-26T06:34:00.000-05:00

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Poulsbo Yacht Club

2010-09-10T11:57:00.000-05:00

Shortly after arriving in Bremerton for the 2010 Ranger Tug Rendezvous, we had a visit from Dennis and Julie Sheehan. Members of the Laguna Madre Yacht club will remember Dennis and Julie as they formerly lived in South Padre Island and Port Isabel. They were and still are members of the LMYC. Dennis is currently Commodore of the Poulsbo Yacht Club in Poulsbo, Washington. Dennis and Julie presented Willie and me with a burgee from the PYC. This burgee has a Viking ship on it depicting the Norwegian heritage of the town of Poulsbo. I promised Dennis and Julie that the burgee would be displayed at the LYMC in a place of honor. Thank you Dennis and Julie Sheehan.

Addendum MV Cade Candies

2010-09-05T21:19:00.000-05:00

During lunch at Randy's Pier 61 today, we noticed that the MV Cade Candies was in the water at the Dakota Industries dock. We could not get close enough for a good picture.

Deception Pass September 3, 2010

2010-09-05T17:43:00.000-05:00

The Town of Anacortes is located on Fidalgo Island. Just South of Fidalgo Island is the Island of Whidbey. A narrow pass separates the two islands. This pass is named Deception Pass.

A "local historian" gave me the lowdown on how Deception Pass got its name. He said that a greek by the name of Fuca wanted to go exploring in the new world and he asked the Queen to sponsor him. She said we only send Spaniards. He said then call me Juan....thus Juan de Fuca went exploring. He mapped the area along the Washington coast and when he mapped the pass, he saw the tidal flow ebbing at 7 to 8 knots and called it a river. Later the British explored the same area and came by the "river" mapped by Juan de Fuca. They passed at flood tide and found the pass. Since they were deceived, they named the pass Deception. I have not been able to verify all of this story, but some of it seems true, the rest may just be a good story.

The currents in Deception Pass can be very interesting to boaters. A fast power boat can over come the tidal flows, but a small trawler such as Willie's Tug needs to excercise extreme caution when traversing the pass. Our top speed is only about 8 knots and with flows up to 8 knots we could be in trouble trying to go the wrong way at the wrong time. Our best time to go would be at slack tide. The period when the tidal flow starts to reverse.

A bridge built in the 1930s spans from Fidalgo to Pass Island and from Pass Island to Whidbey Island. Willie and I walked this bridge and took some pictures. I have to tell you that after walking this bridge so far above the water with large trucks shaking it, I feel safer in the boat in the water below.

It was a clear day, and we could see Mount Baker, the third highest mountain in Washington.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

MV Cade Candies Tour August 27, 2010

2010-08-30T17:19:00.000-05:00

Upon our arrival in Anacortes several weeks ago, we naturally drove around town to get our bearings. As we drove through the commercial area and neared the coast (Guemes Channel) we saw a ship being built that towered over the downtown area. We took a couple of pictures and marveled at the size, and wondered what it's purpose would be.

Sometime later, we hitched a ride with David from the 25 C-Dory "Anna Leigh". David pointed out the ship from the Guemes Channel as we returned from a tour of the San Juan Islands. He said that he understood that the builder was planning an open house on the ship sometime in August. We immediately went to the builder's office as soon as practical to find out when the open house would occur. Willie asked the receptionist about the open house. The receptionist informed Willie that the open house would not be until October. Willie must have seemed so disappointed that the President of Dakota Creek Industries, Richard Nelson, who happened to be in the front office noticed. Mr. Nelson or Dick as he prefers to be called asked Willie about her interest in the ship he was building. She must have convinced him of her sincerity as he offered to let us join a private tour he had planned for the Director of the Skagit County Port.

So that is how on Friday the 27th of August, Walldog and Willie took a two hour or so tour of this tremendous ship being built here in Anacortes, Washington. We found out that this is not the first ship that Dakota Creek Industries has built for Otto Candies, LLC., an oil field services company based in Des Allemands, Louisiana. A sister ship to this one and an only slightly smaller version are already at work for Otto Candies in the Gulf of Mexico. This ship will join them in 2011 after being fitted in Norway with a 150 ton crane. This link to the Ross Candies will give you the specifications of this ship. I will not recite all of them here except to say that this vessel is over 300 feet long, or over the length of a football field and the beam is 66 feet. It is anchored in place by a "DP2" system that will keep it at a spot in the ocean without moving more than 1 meter in up to 45 mph winds. It is designed to carry and service ROVs or Remote Operated Vessels that perform maintenance on the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico up to 8,000 feet deep. The claws, pinchers, grabbers and other tools of the ROV are serviced in a workshop that is accessed by an opening in the deck of the ship. The Cade Candies has quarters for 75 personnel. I found it interesting that the ship has lifeboat capacity for 80 people on each side of the ship.

Dakota Creek Industries plans to float the MV Cade Candies this week. The shipyard has an elevator platform that the ship will be pulled onto. The cables are already in place. Then the platform will be lowered into the water and the ship will be launched. We hope to be there when it happens and document the event. We have an album set up here with the pictures taken of the Cade Candies so far. We will add others there as we take them.

Willie asked me to pass along her thoughts on the tour:

I am overwhelmed with the size of the vessel and the completeness of this self-contained ‘city.’ The purpose is to transport ROVs (remote operating vessels) to the ocean floor, such as those at Deep Water Horizon off the coast of Venice, Louisiana.

The sophistication is such that when the boat is in place for work (DP2 it is called), it will not move more than one meter (~ three feet) in a 45 mph wind.

All systems on the boat are in duplicate, so that if something is not working, the other system will, while the down system is being repaired. If a navigation light goes out, an alarm sounds so the replacement can be turned on, and the crew will know to do the maintenance.

The staterooms are built for four-man, three-man and a few for two. One stateroom is private, and is reserved for the charter of the boat or his representative. There is a media room for orientation; there are many conference rooms for the ongoing decisions to be made while the boat is in operation. Work goes on 24/7 and there are several crews. In the galley there are dinner tables, as well as a counter and stools and a Captain’s Table. As we pass through the galley, we see notes taped on the wall informing the construction crew that the appliances are stainless steel and they should not touch!

A seawater reclamation system provides fresh water.

The heliport is built with a crash in mind. There are escape routes on the front and back of the pad, leading to the area below.

There are six levels on the boat – four decks – and the ladders of steel are steep and compact.

Joining us on the tour are Patsy, director of the Port of Skagit County in Burlington WA, and her sons who used to work for Dakota Creek. At the end of the tour Dick invites us to his office, where he has windows with a great view of Cade Candies and we get to meet his wife Linda. He gives us a calendar with pictures of the boat, and a souvenir pen.

If I say “Amazing!” or “Awesome” once, I say it a thousand times on this tour. We feel very fortunate to have this experience.

You will notice some pictures of an articulated ocean going tug in the photos. This tug, the "Legacy" and a sister ship the "Legend" are being built by Dakota Creek Industries for Crowley Maritime to match up with two 330,000 barrel capacity ATB barges that will also operate in the Gulf of Mexico. These rigs will carry product from Texas refineries to the East coast of the US.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

A Day in the San Juan Islands

2010-08-20T22:24:00.000-05:00

Willie and I just finished a great dinner of Dungeness Crab. Yesterday David of Anna Leigh picked us up at Cap Sante and gave us a grand tour of the San Juans. We put a couple of pots down on the East side of Guemes and went as far as Jones Island where he showed us his grandchildren's favorite mooring. On the way back we checked the pots and divided up the spoils. We both had enough for dinner for our families. We cooked them according to David's instructions and they were fantastic. Willie and I were fighting over the last leg.

Willie will give a more detailed post of our day later and I will copy it here for you to read if you choose.

Many thanks to David for a great day in the San Juans.

Day Twenty-six - Anacortes WA - July 24

2010-07-26T13:41:00.000-05:00

Day Twenty-six - Anacortes WA - July 24: "

We might call this a wildlife day............as we head across the walking path leading to town center, we are greeted by the honking of Canadian Geese and we see how close we can safely get to them. They don't move much, but watch us closely, and we see others sitting on the beach of Fidalgo Bay.

Farther along the tree and flower lined path a couple out for their morning exercise tells us about the eagle atop a telephone pole. He is pretty far up and surveying his surroundings, when a seagull does a few fly-bys to try to scare him away. Not successful! He stays put.

On our return we see the geese still feeding, and a couple of rabbits scampering through the campground.

It is hard to decide which restaurant to visit for lunch, but choose Rock Fish Grill and enjoy some salmon and almost halibut. A poster on the wall tells us how much people here love fish, and we think of our neighbors Sam and Bob in Port Isabel.

More exploring today takes us up to a viewpoint high above Cap Sante Harbor, and I begin to wonder how many boats there are in the world. I think they are all here. As we turn to leave, we see tourists observing our trikes, so Herb gives a bit of information on what it is like to ride them.

Back down the hill in a residential area as we return to the campground, we see more wildlife -- a deer crossing the street in front of us at a leisurely pace, and one on the side of the street enjoying more grass before she moves on.

In the late afternoon we take the trikes (and Jake) for a ride on the bike path that passes by the campground and which is fairly level -- an easy feat!

Willie of Walldog, Willie and Jake

Day Nineteen - Victor ID to Colter Bay Campground, Grand Teton Natl. Park, WY - July 17, 2010

2010-07-22T14:26:00.000-05:00

Day Nineteen - Victor ID to Colter Bay Campground, Grand Teton Natl. Park, WY - July 17, 2010: "

The campground host advises us not to go over Teton Pass; however Herb has other ideas. We leave at 6:30A in order to be 'first in line' for a campsite in the Grand Teton Natl. Park, as they are vacated. As we travel, I am as much intrigued by the road signs as I am by the awesome mountain scenery -- 'steep curve,' '10% grade,' 'park for chain-up only,' 'runaway truck ramp,' and 'trucks use low gear.' Fortunately for the cars behind us, there are turnouts along the way, and we pull over to let those vehicles pass, as we go very slow. Herb notes at one point that the computer on his instrument panel tells him he is getting one mile per gallon of diesel. (We left Victor with a full tank.)

About 25 minutes later we reach the pass and the sight we see of the tiny village below is beautiful. We made it!

As we pass through Jackson Hole, we begin to see the Tetons again, and as I exclaim, Herb tells me that we were IN the Tetons minutes ago. Oh...............

Now I see a couple of small glaciers. An easy drive on into Grand Teton National Park, we find Colter Bay Campground, and sign up for our site. It is on a loop with half-moon turnouts, close neighbors, but we have plenty of room for our slides and Jeep.

After getting settled in, we pick up our tickets for the breakfast cruise tomorrow, and look up Joan and Capt. Jim Bathurst, our friends from Port Isabel, who are working in the park this summer. We especially chose the day for the cruise when Capt. Jim is piloting. Jim now gives us a tour of the marina and a bit about how things work around here. Our visit in interrupted when he is called for a 'blue shirt' duty.

Lunch is a huge buffalo burger with copious quantities of fresh vegetables at John Colter Cafe Court. Salsa they bring out is a bit different from what we are used to in the Valley.

In front of the Visitors' Center we see pay phone booths -- strange -- but then I remember that cell phone service here is unreliable at best. We meet a guy who is interested in our trikes, and he tells us that he has ridden his trike from Portland OR to Death Valley CA. Incidentally, he is a Death Valley books author.

At the end of the day we join Joan and Jim for snacks and Happy Hour. I get to meet Izzy, the well traveled kitty, about whom much has been written. She inspects my camera at length. I want to photograph her, but I discover there is no chip in my camera. ..................but then, that's another story.

I ask Jim who should be responsible for the chip being in the camera (1) the one who uses the camera or (2) or the one who took it out to download the pictures into the computer. He agrees with both answers, and reminds me that he is wearing a sport shirt and nowhere on it does he have a badge that says 'manager.'

We catch up on the news fast, as we all have an early morning tomorrow -- Joan to the gift shop, Capt. Jim to the marina to prepare for the day's tours, and Herb and I to the marina in anticipation of a fantastic tour of Jackson Lake, views of the Tetons up close, and a scrumptious breakfast!

[No pictures posted here for obvious reason. :) ]

Willie of Walldog, Willie and Jake

Day Eighteen - Island Park ID to Victor ID - July 16, 2010

2010-07-22T14:23:00.000-05:00

Day Eighteen - Island Park ID to Victor ID - July 16, 2010: "

One last walk around the RV park with Jake and he finds a Shih Tzu he falls in love with. Soon we are on the road, stopping for diesel at a good price. Before long we come to a 6% grade area which gives us some gorgeous scenery. The Tetons are 'everywhere;' we see them for miles and miles. Along the highway are many pastures, all being irrigated. "If it a'int rock, it is being irrigated." At one point, the irrigation equipment is too close to the road and washes our windshield.

The rolling hills we see give us a ribbon like highway -- still with the Tetons in the background. We come upon a silo with a faded sign, "Pillsbury Mills," but the fields look like grass for hay and not wheat. The bicyclists are very brave, riding on the narrow strip of roadway, but I am sure they are enjoying the hills.

Arriving in Victor we see 'Old West' decor on the buildings and miss a flea market by just minutes. Lunch is Japanese fare in the cafe area of the large supermarket in the neighboring town of Driggs, where we stock up on supplies for the next few days. We are delighted to at last find the wonderful fresh cherries grown in the Northwest.

Our campground for the night, Teton RV Park, is lovely with its pines, spruce, and roses. Jake enjoys a run in the dog yard pasture near our RV site. It is good to be free!

Day Seventeen - Island Park ID - July 15, 2010

2010-07-22T14:21:00.000-05:00

Day Seventeen - Island Park ID - July 15, 2010: "

Our day begins with an expected cool morning, so I dress a little more warmly than yesterday. We leave the Harwells supervising Tim the carpenter and his crew, and drive to West Yellowstone to Wild Bill's Pizza and Saloon, the restaurant David recommends, and enjoy one of the three best pizza places we have ever found.
We then pick up a few items for dinner, which will again be at the Harwells,' and a cookie sheet for David to use for appetizers on his outdoor grill.

We drive a ways into Yellowstone and take a side road along the Madison River, which at that point may not get your ankles wet if you waded. We do not. We see many fallen trees returning to nature as the forest renews itself.

Late afternoon we return to the Harwells' for what will be the last visit for a while. Did I mention that today I am wearing a turtleneck and Herb for the first time on this trip is wearing bluejeans instead of shorts! Before long, everyone is a bit warm in the sun on the patio, and we decide the best place to be is inside the cabin among the remodeling activities. Shady, cool, and a great view!

David gets their journal and it becomes a guest book, which we and the Dahls sign as guests at the first house party in their new mountain home. We are honored to be the first. Hors d'oeuvres of Al's avacado dip and fruit are served prior to David and Herb's tamales and chili. After much picture taking, we say "so long for now" and drive down the hill for a good night's sleep.

Day Sixteen - Island Park ID - July 14, 2010

2010-07-22T14:19:00.000-05:00

Day Sixteen - Island Park ID - July 14, 2010: "

Today Patti and David Harwell take us still in the Island Park area to the Johnny Sack cabin, which is on the National Registry of Historic Places, and is owned by the US Forest Service. Sack was from Germany and became known for his craft of split bark carpentry. He took three years to build his cabin single handedly with mostly hand tools. We pass Big Spring, which is the headwaters of the Henry's Fork of the Snake River, and we watch for a time to see rainbow trout, without success. Indian paintbrush and violet geraniums line the path to the cabin.

Outside the cabin we see -- still operating -- Sack's construction of a water wheel and generator to create electricity and bring water into his cabin. If only we could capture the quiet, soothing sound the wheel makes........ The design features of the cabin itself and his furniture are nothing short of amazing, and we have the best historian and tour guide ever -- our own friend Harwell. Inlaid flooring with a different pattern in each room, handmade furniture with the split bark trim, and a lamp shade made of some of his photographs on parchment add to the awesomeness of the home. A must-see!

We are joined for the rest of the day by Melba and Al Dahl, friends from Longview, who are camped in the Valley View RV Park as our 'neighbors.' David now drives us a short distance to the Madison River Canyon Earthquake Area, and we see the mountain where a section broke off during a 7.5 on the Richter scale earthquake in 1959 and killed 28 people camping along the river. The slide dammed the river, creating Earthquake Lake, which we still see today. It will be allowed to revert to a river as erosion occurs downstream. One of the survivors was an 80 year old resident who jumped five feet from her floating house to the bank of the river.

There are several faults in the area, and it was determined that two of them moved to cause the quake. During the interpreter's talk at the Visitors' Center, the group is asked what would be the first thing they should do if they came into the area to camp overnight. Some of the answers given are 'register with the forest ranger,' 'pitch a tent,' (where is he going with this question?) and 'don't feed the bears.' Then someone is heard to say, "Pour a glass of wine." As the audience laughs, I forget what his answer it.

As we leave the Center, we see the many-ton boulders that slid during the one minute quake. The rapids that are created downstream of Earthquake Lake are rated #5 and most dangerous.

We stop for lemonade at Longhorn Cafe, and then on to the Harwell cabin for heavy hors d'oeuvres. Because of the cool mountain air Annie and Jake travel with us and enjoy frequent walks and water breaks. Leashes used and no squirrel chasing today.

From Willie of Walldog, Willie and Jake

Grand Tour Summer 2010 Day 14-15

2010-07-16T19:31:00.001-05:00

Day 14
Moab to Ogden Utah Log 274 Miles 2884 Miles total

We plan our stop here primarily to see our long time friends Karl and Emily from South Louisiana. Karl is retired, but doing some consulting work for companies that build electrical substations. They have been in Ogden since February and will leave next week. So it is great that we were able to catch them here.

We park at the Century RV Park and Karl and Emily arrive shortly after. After a visit in our motorhome, we head up the mountain for a drive and dinner at a local eatery. The Oaks is a perfect setting to continue our visit and experience the excellent climate at this time of year. We have a table overlooking the river that supplies Ogden's drinking water from a reservoir above this location. Lots of foliage and the pleasant sounds of rushing water.

Back at our RV we get a good nights sleep and plan our next day.

Day 15
Ogden Utah to Island Park Idaho Log 272 miles 3156 Total

After leaving Ogden, we cross into Idaho and start to see the Tetons off to the East in the distance. Lots of snow still on them. Soon we will see them up close.

We arrive in Island Park and are shown to a spot in the Valley View RV Campground and Laundromat. Our large grassy spot overlooks Henry Lake, a prime fishing spot in this part of the world. Our friend Bob passed through here a few days ago, so I am sure there are no fish left.

After getting settled, we go to the cabin David and Patti are remodeling on the North shore of Henry Lake. They have a new Golden Lab that came into their lives after Jake's cousin Gunner died a few months ago. Annie and Jake pick up right where Gunner and Jake left off when they came to visit us in Port Isabel over New Years. Dogs are wonderful, they became BFFs immediately.

After filet Mignons on the grill for dinner we say goodnight to rest for a full day of sight seeing tomorrow.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Summer 2010 Grand Tour Day 12-13

2010-07-12T08:57:00.000-05:00

Day 12 Pagosa Springs to Moab Log 205 Miles, 2610 Miles Total

Today we move from the higher altitudes of the San Juan mountains to the lower more arid area of Moab Utah. We warm up considerably. Our stay for the next couple of days is the OK RV Park located next to the Canyon Land Stables and Arena. This is a neatly maintained oasis which we rate high.

Day 13 Jeep Roads Moah Utah

We spend the day crawling over rocks in our jeep. Our first off road trail was the Gemini Bridges road. This road goes up to the end of Bull Canyon, which is between Moab and the North access to Canyon Lands National Park. As you may have guessed, the road goes to the two natural bridges named Gemini. Bridges are similar to Arches, but formed somewhat differently.

After driving through Dead Horse Point State Park and Canyon Lands National Park, we find another jeep road that promises to be an exciting short cut back to Moab. Short yes, quicker no. Our road is named the Long Canyon Trail or Pucker Point Road.
We quickly find out why it is so named.

Traveling from West to East this road goes down into the canyon with steep walls on each side of you. We encounter a spot where a gigantic fallen boulder makes an arch over the road. Believing that the trikes would not clear, we lower the rack until we pass through.

As we arrive back in Moab, Willie spots what she thinks is a C-Dory boat behind a motel on a trailer. I turn around to check it out because we may know them as they are a close knit group. When I see it, it is actually a Ranger Tug. We drive up to it and find that it is "Gabriella" owned by a neighbor of ours from Port Isabel. Small World.

Many more exciting pictures of our adventures today are found here.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Grand Tour Summer 2010 Day 10-11

2010-07-10T10:30:00.000-05:00

Day 10 Angel Fire NM to Pagosa Springs CO Log 175 Miles, 2405 Total

Before leaving Angel Fire, we missed the best photo of the trip. This little rabbit came hopping down the road while Jake was tethered outside. He spotted Jake and stopped for a closer look. Then the rabbit ventured even closer until he and Jake were nose to nose about 6 foot apart. Willie was struggling to get the shot from inside the coach. Not successful. Jake merely sat looking at the rabbit without moving or getting up from the position you see in the next picture.

We must have disturbed the rabbit as he broke and ran, then Jake jumped up and acted like he was going to chase him. Hilarious, but then I guess you just had to be there to appreciate it.

Here is a shot of the Rio Grande from the Royal George Bridge about 6 miles West of Taos. Hard to believe that this river makes it all the way to Brownsville, Texas. We have enjoyed crossing it several times on our trip.

We end our day at the Happy Camper RV Park just West of Pagosa Springs. Our Passport rate makes us very happy campers.

Day 11 Pagosa Springs

We spend our day enjoying the sights, sites, scents and flavors of Pagosa Springs. Pagosa Springs has built a very nice park and walk path along the San Juan River. We took full advantage of it.

Tomorrow we pack up and move on to Moab UT. More pictures are here.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Grand Tour Summer 2010 Day 9

2010-07-08T10:08:00.000-05:00

Monte Verde RV Camp, Angel Fire New Mexico

Today we treated ourselves to breakfast at Michael's Kitchen in Taos. A nice drive in the jeep from Angel Fire. Driving around we pass many shops with lots of trophies that Inez and Myrna could have bagged. They may disown Willie since she passed them up to have a nap.

Back in Angel Fire, we rest up before returning to the Segar's home for happy hour and spaghetti dinner. We have really enjoyed our visit here and appreciate them welcoming us into their family for the past two days. But after two days, it is time to move on.

Tomorrow we break camp and motor on to Pagosa Springs for a couple of days. Pictures are here.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Summer 2010 Grand Tour Day 8

2010-07-07T09:45:00.000-05:00

Raton to Angel Fire New Mexico, Log 74 Miles 2230 Miles Total.

After three nights of boon-docking, we take advantage of the 50 amp service and full hookups. We do a few loads of laundry and catch up on our other household chores.

The day starts cool and crisp. What a difference a few thousand feet in altitude makes. Although not as cool as it will be further up in the mountains, low 50s make for some nice sleeping without running the air conditioner.

Finally around 11AM MDST, we departed for the 74 miles to Angel Fire. We have been really confused about the time today. Our cell phones changed automatically, but our atomic clocks needed to be told that they changed time zones. But what really threw us off was the TV. Last night we fired up the satellite antenna for the 10PM(??) news. Which runs on the East cost feeds at 11PM their time. Wilma actually got up and turned the coffee pot on at 4AM because she thought it was 5 and was not set properly. Anyway we must have gotten enough sleep as we made the day fine.

The drive from Raton to Angel Fire is a very neat fun road that we always enjoyed on the motorcycle. All I can say is that in the motorhome it is exciting to say the least. We pass by a campsite in the Cimarron Canyon State Park that we stayed at in a tent. We laugh about now about the bear that visited us the next morning. At the time it was plenty exciting also. We see a great view of the valley and lake at Eagle Nest as we come down the hill.

Arriving in Angel Fire, we pull into the RV park and are shown to a site with great few of the mountains. Plenty of rough grass for Jake to play and exercise. After setting up, we go over to our Joe and Pearl's home. A nice visit and a great dinner with them and several other friends finishes off another great day.

Pictures are here.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Summer 2010 Grand Tour Day 7

2010-07-06T10:09:00.000-05:00

Emporia KS to Raton NM Log 411 Miles, 2042 Miles Total.

After restocking a few supplies at our SuperWally overnight stop, we continue our Westward journey. Plenty of rain has swollen the rivers and streams to flood stage and beyond in Missouri and other states along the Mississippi River.

Appropriate to the Independence Day weekend, we pass through many "Amber Waves of Grain".

Today we also follow parts of a motorcycle trip taken by Herb and Sam several years ago passing through Dodge City and SE Colorado. The Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands are Located in this area. Pretty wide open spaces. We see many signs posted along the way stating that this property is NOT for sale to the Army. Interesting, wonder what that is all about. As we travel, the elevation rises to over 3500 feet. We do not really notice that we are continually climbing.

SE Colorado is pretty desolate, so we motor along a little further than we like. We gain an hour as we change time zones, so it all works out. We find a full hookup facility in Raton, NM to catch up on laundry and empty and refill our tanks.

Tomorrow a short day to Angel Fire to visit our friends Joe and Pearl. As usual more pictures are here.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Summer 2010 Grand Tour Day 6

2010-07-04T19:27:00.001-05:00

St. Louis to SuperWally Emporia KS Log 311 Miles, Total 1596 Miles

We waited at Dwight and Nancy's until Heather arrived with the "Twins". They are Heather's children. They got a grand tour of the motor home and had a great time playing with Jake. Izzy learned quickly how to get Jake to drop his toy. She threw another toy and of course he could not resist to go retrieve it, dropping his other toy. She played switch with him until he gathered both together and stood over them. He does not share his toys....he only likes to show them to you.

We finally hitched up and drove out about 10am. Heading West on 64 and then 70, we picked out a Super Wal-mart in Emporia KS for our destination for the day. Arriving there, just before the sky opened up with a downpour. We have our reserved spot near the garden center against a curb with grass and a line of trees to block the outer street.

Tomorrow we plan about another 300 miles toward Angel Fire. We will stay somewhere West of Dodge City. Herb remembers fondly a time on the motorcycle when he and Sam had a great steak in Dodge City on their way to Napa Valley to meet Willie and Inez for an Elderhostel tour.

A link to our tour album is here.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Summer 2010 Grand Tour Day 5

2010-07-04T09:04:00.001-05:00

A Day with family in St. Louis.

Today was spent with Wilma's brothers family in St. Louis. We all went down the swim club in their sub-division. They spend a lot of time there in the summer. There were games for the kids of all ages and lots of sun.

Again happy hour on Dwight and Nancy's back patio. Jake spied a couple of rabbits and then gave chase. No problem for the rabbits.

A beautiful fireworks display capped off the day. I left my reading glasses and could not find the correct exposure setting to get proper pictures. I posted a couple that were a little artsy if not accurate.

Tomorrow we are back on the road again. Heading West.

More pictures are here.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Summer 2010 Grand Tour Day 4

2010-07-03T11:57:00.001-05:00

Grizzly's RV Park Blytheville Arkansas to St. Louis. Log 225 Miles, 1221 Miles Total.

Today we checked out two nearby Wal-marts as we scouted out a place to park for a couple of days. Wilma's brother said we could park in front of his house. I was a bit leary as we had been there previously and remembered narrow streets and large trees. But with just a little surgery, we made it work and have a very nice shady spot to enjoy our time with family.

After happy hour we enjoyed a nice rib dinner prepared by our hosts. After dinner we made plans for the next day.

A link to our photo album for the trip is here.

Grand Tour Summer 2010 Day 1-3

2010-07-02T10:09:00.001-05:00

Day 1 we traveled to Georgetown Texas, spending the night at Berry Springs RV Park. One of the best we have found in a while. They are across the road from a county park with miles of paved trails and paths for walking or bicycling. The sites are gravel, but the roads in the RV Park are paved. Our Passport America rate was $12.50 per night with 50 amp service.

Day 2 we made it to Texarkana and the big Super Wally RV Stop at the corner of US 59 and I-30. Our nights stay only cost us $16 to stock up on Arizona Diet Green Tea. I have become addicted to the stuff. A quiet night as we ran the generator and AC most of the night only turning it off in the early morning.

Day 3. A beautiful sunrise greeted us through the broken cloud cover in Texarkana. Today we traveled to Blytheville Arkansas to Grizzly's RV Park. Nice grassy area for Jake to romp and play. There are three pull-throughs here. They were long enough to accommodate us with the jeep and trikes on the back. Again a $12.50 no surprise Passport America rate with 50 amp service. Tomorrow we go to St. Louis to visit Wilma's brother. Hopefully we now can stop evacuating and start touring and vacationing.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Hurricane Alex

2010-06-29T08:17:00.000-05:00

Tuesday June 29, 2010
Hwy 77 North of Raymondville

We stopped for breakfast as we evacuate Port Isabel. We have been preparing to leave early since Thursday. Willie's Tug is on the trailer in the garage. Also everything loose is stowed away. Let 'er blow. The Port of Brownsville is expecting an 8-12 surge in the ship channel. I hope they are wrong. At any rate a lot of rain is coming that will inundate low lying residential areas. These folks are still recovering from Dolly's rains.

We just started our Trek to the Pacific Northwest a few days earlier than we planned. We will miss the 4th of July parade and fireworks. Also the social at the LMYC. The commodore is furnishing steaks for the event. Really hate to miss it.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Jake Fell in the Canal

2010-06-27T08:57:00.000-05:00

We left Jake home on our last boating adventure. Yesterday I moved the boat to the trailer to garage it until Alex makes up its mind which way it is going to go. Jake had determined that he did not like being left behind, so he followed my friend Jerry and me out to the boat. As we were boarding, Jake decided he would also. The boat was swinging on the lift slightly and he slipped down between the boat and the dock. Luckily it was high tide and I called him over the low dock and pulled him out by the scruff of the neck. He is pretty salty right now and due a bath.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

LMYC Outing to Arroyo Colorado

2010-06-21T10:55:00.002-05:00

June 19-20, 2010

Willie and Walldog loaded up the boat for our first overnight on it. Jake stayed home.
As usual we packed lots more than we needed and missed a few things we did need. We motored out of the canal and met 6 sailboats out in the bay in front of Pirate's Landing. It was really inspiring to watch the beautiful sails working to catch the wind.
We started out in the middle of the group and got passed by two of the boats. Our little Tug putting along at about 6 to 7 mph was being left behind, but not too far. Lots of traffic out on the water this Father's Day weekend. We met a large tug from New Orleans pushing a work barge. He was moving quite a bit of water and had a couple of dolphins running in front.

As we got to the turn off into the poorly marked channel for the Arroyo Colorado, we saw a sail boat that appeared to be aground. He was pointed out toward the ICW, so I assumed that he was not with us. How wrong I was. It was one of our own. I will omit telling tales and let him fill you in on the details. The channel got really shallow on the North side, but once we passed the turn it was nice deep and wide.

Expecting to see a sail boat ahead of us, we continued on to the restaurant, but we arrived first. Followed shortly by Miles and Arlette on Tenacious. A bit later Keith arrived on Movnright Sue followed by Rocky and Linda on Night Magic and then Larry and Chrisanne on Tucan . This rounded out the group and after all were sucured to the docks, we immediately retired to the restaurant for happy hour.

Dinner was great, service excellent for such a large group. We had quite a few drive down to join us for dinner. Happy hour and dinner turned into Sundowners on Tucan's spacious cockpit. A great time was had by all.

On the way home, Willie commented that "next time" we need to arrange the vee berth differently. I was just glad she did not say "never again".

More pictures can be seen at the album located here.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

Laguna Madre Yacht Club

2010-06-12T21:13:00.000-05:00

Tonight was the monthly social at the Laguna Madre Yacht Club here in Port Isabel. It started with happy hour at 6 and pot luck salads at 7. A great time was had by all. Willie and I are new members and look forward to many other socials in the future. The Club plans an outing to Arroyo Colorado next week. We will meet at the causeway and ICW and boat to the Wharf Restaurant in Arroyo City. We will overnight in the river and return Sunday to Port Isabel. It will be our first night out on our little Ranger Tug. Willie is a bit apprehensive. This is from someone who traveled across the country on a motorcycle with a tent. At least we have a comfortable berth and a cabin in which to sleep. No shower and how to make coffee is still being considered.
July 4th a boat parade is planned to go up the beach and return to the bay for the spectacular fireworks display.

Walldog, Willie, and Jake (stayed home)

Another Day in Paradise

2010-05-31T19:13:00.000-05:00

We spent most of the day out on the water of the beautiful Laguna Madre. We took a picnic lunch and anchored out in Barracuda Cove, watching the boat traffic and families out for the day on Boca Chica beach. A pleasant day. On the way home we topped off our diesel, took 2.8 gallons. We have been out on the bay at least 4 times for this amount....$7.03 at $2.45 per gallon. We do not go fast, but we go for little dollars.

The Admiral took the helm for a while:

Jake the boat dog watching for dolphins:

These were taken with my Droid...as we forgot the chip for the real camera, not too bad.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Boat ride with Jake

2010-05-08T17:05:00.002-05:00

Walldog and Jake took a ride today to check out the installation of the cut down mast. We took 27 inches out of the mast so that we could leave it installed and still fit in our boat house. We also installed new cushions made by Kathy's Upholstery of Arlington WA. She made them from the original patterns for the Ranger Tug.

We got boarded again by the US Coast Guard. I think they just wanted to look us over. Now we have two "Good as Gold" papers that keep us from inspections for at least 6 months. I wonder how many more we will get during the next 6 months. Nice folks, so we did not mind at all.

We went out to the first buoys past the jetties. Not many people on the Boca Chica side as the road is still closed from Brownsville by the gas well leak.

Coming back in to my slip, I pass as close as I can to the bulkhead without grounding out on the oyster shell rocks. I am lined up with my boat house and I hear a fishing boat trying to pass between me and the bulkhead. I do not know what he planned to do after he hit the rocks, but I waved him off and told him that I was docking there. Maybe too much cerveza.

We spent the afternoon at a real Louisiana Crawfish Boil. The mudbugs were properly cooked and excellent....I should know. A real treat.

More pictures of the boat ride are here.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Tenaha Timpson Bobo and Blair

2010-04-21T13:43:00.000-05:00

On our last trip through East Texas, we took a route that we have not traveled in a long time. Staying on US59 North of Nacogdoches, you pass through these small towns Tenaha, Timpson, Bobo, and Blair not necessarily in that order. Going from North to South, you pass through Tenaha, then Bobo, then Timpson, then Garrison. So the conductor on the old train took a little license with the order of the communities. Tex Ritter wrote a song about the area. He was from Panola County.

On the HE--WT line,
Old East Texas sure looks fine
Drop me off just anywhere (near)
Tenaha, Timpson, Bobo, and Blair

Here those drivers pound the rails,
Takin' me back to Texas trails,
Bought my ticket, paid my fair,
Tenaha, Timpson, Bobo, and Blair

Whooooo, waiting for the whistle,
Whooooo, when you hear the whistle,
It means that the stations not so far,
From where we are,

Let'er highball, engineer,
Pull that throttle, track is clear,
There's a gal just waitin' there,
Tenaha, Timpson, Bobo, and Blair.

I used to drive the road a lot during my early days in Texas. Not being familar with Tex Ritter's song, I would chant Tenaha, Bobo, Timpson, Blair and Garrison as I returned from my trips. My brother would correct me.

Tenaha and Timpson are still small towns, Bobo has a marker for its location but not much more. Blair has faded into obscurity having started as a switch location on the old railroad.

Just my day for trivia and memories.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Nearly Home

2010-04-20T07:30:00.000-05:00

Walldog, Willie and Jake are en-route back to Port Isabel from Northeast Texas. Here is where we stayed last night.

Entrepreneurship is alive and well....at least in Mexico. These guys buy these wrecked cars at auction, temporarily repair them enough to drive and tow another back to Mexico. Then they are repaired and sold for a profit.

Back in Paradise today, God willing, and the creek does not rise. Actually from all the rain flood warnings are in effect for this area through the weekend as rivers and tributaries are rising past flood stages.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Horses, Beaches, and Boats

2010-03-15T06:24:00.000-05:00

March 14, 2010

Our granddaughter is spending her Spring Break with us. She was sold by the billboards advertising horseback riding on the beach. So finally the schedules allowed a visit here and a trip to the North Beach for a horse ride. After church and a great lunch at Pirate's Landing, she and her mother saddled up and headed out. Of course proud grandmother was there to document the event.

They returned from the ride with just enough time for what else......but a pleasant boat ride in our beautiful Laguna Madre.

This pirate yelled that we came too close and he was going to run us down, but we cranked up our 18 hp and out ran him and his motley crew.

Jake does not seem too unhappy sharing his seat even though it includes "THAT DOG".

Father and daughter on Spring Break

Back in home port and a dinner of lunch leftovers.

Walldog, Willie and Jake.

Happy Hour Cruise

2010-03-15T05:55:00.002-05:00

March 10, 2010

We are getting to know our new little tug. Today we cruised out to the jettys for happy hour.

Jake was really enjoying "his spot" before THAT dog comes to visit.

We tried out the anchor in a little cove off the ship channel and watched the dredge working. One of the tender boats was a tug by the name of Bayou Blue. Listening to the crew work on vhf channel 7, it was obvious of their South Louisiana heritage.

On the way back we were treated to a partly cloudy sunset and the lights of the bay.

Pier 19's new spot light was showing the way to a good place to eat. All the Navigation lights worked and we slipped our little tug back into its berth for the night.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Tir Na Nog

2010-03-07T08:09:00.001-06:00

It has been a very interesting and exciting week. Friday a week ago, we decided to adopt a little tug boat from our new friends Brian and Jennifer in Wilmington, NC. So Saturday morning we load the truck and strike out for the East Coast. Our plan was to arrive in Wilmington on Monday, see the boat on Tuesday, load it up Wednesday and start back. Well, we arrived on Monday around noon, checked into our motel, and went directly over to see the tug. We found it exactly as advertised, a very nicely maintained and equipped 1997 Ranger Tug model R21.

Brian and Jennifer invited us to dinner Monday evening. Their daughter Megan was a little upset that her parents were letting HER boat go to a new home. Jake visited with Truman in their nice back yard, while we tried to convince Megan that we would treat Tir Na Nog well.

So Tuesday morning we hitched up and headed South because the weather was predicting snow for later in the day at Wilmington. We felt that we wanted to avoid the hilly North Georgia route we traveled on to North Carolina. Jennifer sheds a tear as we leave.

Along the way back, we attracted much interest in our little tug. We had to answer questions at the hardware store even before we got out of Brian and Jennifer's neighborhood. We had two offers of outright trades as we traveled. One was a dealer hauling two new bass boats and the other was a guy with a Zodiac type jet boat....no thanks one SeaDoo is enough.

We arrived back in Port Isabel shortly after noon on Friday. After unpacking, we headed over to the city boat launch in Modern Venice and floated our little Tug. Our friends Sam and Dave came in from fishing (no small sacrifice) to assist. We idled around to our house and docked it outside the slip. After a thorough checkout of all systems, we went for a short turn out into the bay.

Then it was back to see if she would fit into her new home. We have decided to name our boathouse the "Tug House" Here we are threading the needle.

Yes it fits, hooray!!

We have looked at many boats over the past year, but this one seems to fit us at this time. We were able to afford this one as we only spent just a little more than what we got for our SeaDoo. If we decide to do more extensive cruising in the future, we may need a larger boat. But as a wiser person than me once said, "Buy it smaller, buy it cheaper, but buy it now so you can enjoy it now." Walldog, Willie and Jake went out for a longer ride Saturday. The Coast Guard checked us out and gave us a free pass for a year. The dolphins really welcomed a new hull as they played all around us near the causeway bridge. It seemed like they were glad to see us in their waters.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Valentines Day at Daingerfield State Park

2010-02-14T11:32:00.000-06:00

Still at Daingerfield State Park

2010-02-12T15:54:00.000-06:00

Looks like we had about 4-6 inches of snow yesterday and last night. Covered the streets and loaded up the pine trees. It has been falling out all day today. Sounds like bowling balls hitting the roof of the motor home. Jake did not like it when a big pile of it fell on top of him. He came running back to me for protection. Power went out during the night and we still do not have it back on. But we have run the generator for about two hours only today to recharge the house batteries. We have plenty of diesel, food and wine. Jake and I walked up to the pavilion at the lake this morning. Only my toes got cold walking in the snow.

Our home....I climbed up on the roof this afternoon and swept snow off.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Snow in East Texas

2010-02-11T09:38:00.001-06:00

We could be in a worse place to watch it snow. We are beside a lake in the East Texas woods, in a campground in which we are the only campers. Great view, not too cold, plenty of heat and food. It does not get much better than this.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Birds of the Bay

2009-12-14T06:30:00.000-06:00

Sunday, December 13, 2009

During our boat trip to watch the Tower Implosion, I could not resist taking a few pictures of the birds. Several of our winter visitors, the white pelicans were flying around the area. It is always a treat to watch for them at this time of the year. We see more in January, I was surprised at the number today.

From Birds of the Bay

See a few more of the pictures at the link below the above shot.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

The Leaning Tower of OTSPI

2009-12-13T11:59:00.000-06:00

The Ocean Tower of SPI or as we call it The Leaning Tower of OTSPI came down today and we were there. My friend Bob took us on his boat across the Laguna Madre to a spot near the Convention Center and the tower. The demolition company had scheduled to implode the tower this morning at 9 AM. It went off right on time and seemed to have done exactly what they wanted it to do.

From Leaning Tower of OTSPI

You can see an album of pictures taken by Walldog and Bob here.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Joy Hansen 1947-2009

2009-12-06T16:04:00.000-06:00

Tuesday November 30, 2009 through Friday December 4, 2009

We traveled by motor home to Splendora Texas to attend the funeral of Wilma's nephew Gaylord's wife. She died Saturday November 28, 2009 after a long battle with cancer. The funeral was in Cleveland, Texas December 3, 2009 with burial in the Blue Branch Cemetery at Pitkin, Louisiana.

Walldog, Willie, and Jake

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-12-06T15:09:00.000-06:00

Thursday November 26, 2009 Thanksgiving

We invited our Winter Texan friends Ralph and Barb from Oklahoma to join us for Thanksgiving Day. We had our meal at noon, which we Southerners call dinner. If we served it in the evening, we would call it supper except when it is really big and then it becomes dinner even though we serve it at supper time. Herb grilled a big Salmon fillet and sauteed green beans. Wilma fixed a really nice salad and HEB supplied the pecan pie and Blue Bell homemade ice cream.

Lloyd and Herb examined and took pictures of a Hibiscus tree that has yellow and red flowers. That is red flowers and yellow flowers.

After dinner and a suitable rest period, Ralph and Barb told us about an orchard at Los Fresnos that had u-pick tangerines and oranges. We called and they said they would be open for us to pick all we wanted. A five gallon bucket of tangerines was $7.00 and a five gallon bucket of oranges was $4.00.

From my motorcycle days:
So many roads....
So little time.....

So many balls.......
So little time............

What a beautiful place in which we are most fortunate to be able to live

Thank You God!

South Padre Island World Birding Center

2009-12-06T14:27:00.000-06:00

Wednesday November 25, 2009

My sister Jenny and her husband Lloyd came to visit us for a few days Thanksgiving week. One of our touristy thing to do was visit the new South Padre Island World Birding Center. Lloyd and Jenny are avid birders, so they were excited to see the many new birds for them that make this area home. The recently opened birding center still has some maturing to do around the elevated walkways leading to the Laguna Madre Bay. The wildlife is starting to occupy this area and I am sure it will only get better as time goes by. I have posted a couple of pictures here, but you can see more here. SPI World Birding Center.

Birds were flying everywhere

Many fish were spotted in the canals dug along the walks

Monarch Butterflys were located near the convention center

An overview from the lookout tower at the birding center building.

Walldog and Willie, Jake stayed home

On Your Mark

2009-12-06T13:28:00.003-06:00

November 19, 2009
We went to Port Aransas on Thursday to visit some friends. They
invited us to stay the night on their boat. Happy hour was on the upper deck fly bridge and dinner was at a local cafe that did not take credit cards. We scraped together enough money to pay and leave a tip. After settling in for the night aboard the boat, the rain started. Several inches fell in just a few hours. Lucky we were already afloat. Sadly we left our friends and their beautiful boat and returned to Port Isabel Friday.

Atlanta to Port Isabel via Houston

2009-11-08T15:48:00.000-06:00

Tuesday November 3, 2009 to Saturday November 7, 2009
We leave Atlanta and motor to Houston. We decided to try the Lakeview RV Park about 2 miles further South on Main Street from the South Main RV Park we have stayed at in the past. The Lakeview RV Park is new with concrete streets and pads. It has a large recreation room with computer area and WiFi throughout the park. Free popcorn, excercise area, hot tub and swimming pool. All for about the same price. The shuttle to the Medical Center is also available here. A loop around the perimeter of the park is about one mile, so two loops is just about right for us and Jake in the mornings.

Our first appointment at MD Anderson was Wednesday morning, so we took the shuttle over and back, really convenient.

Wednesday evening we joined friends Joe and Pearl at the Rotary House for happy hour and dinner.

We had one last Appointment Thursday afternoon. We drove over and used the valet parking, because the shuttle timing was not good for us. We find that all is normal thanks for all your prayers. Coming back, we got to enjoy 5 PM Houston traffic. Luckily we only had a short distance to travel back to the RV park.

We stayed over another day so we could have dinner with our daughter and her family Friday night. On the way to Pearland for dinner, we stopped at the Verizon store to check out the new Droid. It appears to be a neat phone. I start to buy one, but find I can save another $100 if I wait until my "New every Two" is effective in January. The way things go, there should be another bigger and better model available by then.

Saturday, we drive about 100 miles further than we like to drive in a day to make it on in to Port Isabel. This trip was just over 1400 miles and we were gone 15 days. Good to go, but good to be back.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Amazing Grace

2009-11-05T11:19:00.000-06:00

We needed to check on some of our business in Atlanta, Texas. So we decided to try out the Amazing Grace Acres RV Park. This park is located right in Atlanta, so it was convenient for us this trip. A very nice couple, Larry and Charlotte Patterson operate this small park of about 30 sites that surround their home on a hilltop off South Boggie Street. Even though the rain over the past several days was excessive, the hilltop drained well and we did not have any problems with the gravel sites. Charlotte brought us pears from a tree in the park the first evening we were there and the day we left, she brought us bran muffins.

All Saints Day, we got to attend All Saints Episcopal Church here in Atlanta. We were members of this church many years ago when we first came to East Texas from Louisiana. It was nice to renew old friendships here. In Port Isabel, where we now live, this holiday is known as the "Day of the Dead". Where the departed family is honored. It brings to memory my South Louisiana heritage and the All Saints and All Souls Day celebrated in the Roman Catholic traditions. All of this has little to do with Halloween, which has fallen out of favor with many of my Christian friends. These holidays are quickly followed by the US Marine Corps birthday on the 10th and Veteran's Day on the 11th.

Cool nights and pleasant days and lots of sunshine. We leave Atlanta for now and head South expecting to return and visit our new friends at Amazing Grace Acres soon.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Lewisville, Texas

2009-11-05T10:33:00.000-06:00

We spent three nights in the "Campground" at Buddy Gregg's RV in Lewisville. The part we ordered did not fix our smart wheel, which controls the horn, cruise control, and wipers. The service manager determined that we needed a "clock spring". That is a cassette that contains about 10 feet of wound up flexible printed circuit that allows connections from the switches on the smart wheel to the steering column and on to the computer. A broken plastic piece had creased the flexible circuit board and broke the copper strips inside. A new one made everything work as designed. The campground at the dealership is a circle that holds about a dozen motorhomes. A small rec room with tv, kitchen, and free washer and dryers makes for a nice stay if you need service or are just passing through. With the economy, the complexion of the dealership has changed from just a high end Class A facility to a sales outlet for fewer of those to many pull behind units. The sales staff has dwindled from 8 or 10 to 2. Our service was excellent, and the technicians were competent. This seems to have fixed the intermittent problem we had with our horn blowing during the night. We left Lewisville on Friday for Atlanta, Texas.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

On The Road Again

2009-10-27T16:39:00.000-05:00

We spent the last two nights in Austin. Nice dinners with our friends Joe and Pearl. Great happy hours with views of downtown Austin. We had only planned for one night, but our windshield wipers quit on the coach. It poured down rain yesterday so we stayed put and ordered a part hoping it would be a fix. The part arrived today but did not work. So we traveled in the sunshine to Lewisville and the dealer who may be able to fix it for us. They need a part that will not be here until Thursday, sure hope they are right. It might rain again before we get back home.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Sand Castle Days 2009

2009-10-18T08:22:00.001-05:00

Wind out of the North. Red Tide causing respiratory problems on the beach. But the Sand Castle Artists are hard at work. Willie, Jake and I went to Isla Blanca Park for a brief visit to check the progress of the artists.

More Pictures are here

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Mercado at the Lighthouse Square

2009-10-10T17:46:00.000-05:00

Down to Port Isabel's Lighthouse Square today for the Mexican Market and Art Walk. A few vendors out and a visit to the open air farmers market.

Charles, Diane, and Quin

Then over to the Island to Gabriella's Italian Grill and Pizzeria for lunch and a glass of chianti.

We are worthless for the rest of the day.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

The Blessing of Pets

2009-10-04T11:27:00.002-05:00

Today is the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi and at many churches over the world a ceremony is held for the blessing of our pets.

“Blessed are you, Lord God, maker of all living creatures. You called forth fish in the sea, birds in the air and animals on the land. You inspired St. Francis to call all of them his brothers and sisters. We ask you to bless this pet. By the power of your love, enable it to live according to your plan. May we always praise you for all your beauty in creation. Blessed are you, Lord our God, in all your creatures! Amen.”

At St. Andrews by the Sea here is Port Isabel, we took Jake and met with about 40 other pets to be blessed. After the service several of pets came into the church for the main service. We took Jake home since we now live so close, but in the past he also attended the main service.

All the pets had a great time.

An Early Trike Ride

2009-09-16T05:40:00.003-05:00

Willie and I and our friends Sam and Inez loaded our trikes and their recumbent tandem bike on our cars and went to Laguna Atascosa Wildlife Refuge for an early morning ride on the 15 mile loop. Jake stayed home, too long and too hot for him. We got started about 7:45 AM and finished about two hours later. By then it was plenty hot. We saw lots of birds, rabbits and a few deer. We also saw three or four Ocelots (on the yellow signs). We look forward to returning to this loop more this winter. It follows the bay for several miles. When we have more rain filling the shallow areas, migratory birds are abundant here. Usually we also see Osprey eating a fish caught in the bay.

Walldog, Willie and Jake (stayed home).

Louisiana Billboard Rule Changes

2009-08-28T06:45:00.000-05:00

A meeting is scheduled for September 16, 2009 10 AM at Traffic Operations - Section 45, 7686 Tom Drive, Baton Rouge, LA. 70806 Rule changes will increase Renewal fees 1000% for our Louisiana Billboards To answer your concerns and objections to the proposed rule changes. If you know of any other interested persons let them know they are welcome.

Resaca de la Palma State Park

2009-08-21T13:18:00.003-05:00

Today we decided to ride our trikes. We loaded up and went to the Resaca de la Palma State Park. They have several miles of bike paths and trails with nice overlooks. The water levels are extremely low because of the drought. We went early and had a nice ride before it got too hot. Jake stayed home. We may take him on a future trip this winter. We saw a few birds and some feral hogs. The hogs grow much larger here than up in East Texas. You can see a few pictures of our trip here.

Walldog, Willie and without Jake.

Our Summer Vacation

2009-08-19T13:48:00.001-05:00

On our last post I mentioned that we had a medical appointment we needed to keep and cut our trip to the Florida Gulf Cost a little short. Earlier we had done a "Heart Saver CT Scan" recommended by our family doctor. A small suspicious spot was seen in Wilma's left lung. Well the medical appointment confirmed that the spot found in her left lung was indeed Cancer. We immediately called MD Anderson in Houston to set up second opinion appointments and discuss treatment. Houston is much hotter than Port Isabel this time of year.

We traveled by motor home to the South Main RV Park in Houston on the 4th of June. Our first appointment was the next day at MD Anderson Cancer Center. The next week was filled with several tests and consultations ending with a biopsy of the small spot in Wilma's Lung. The spot was confirmed as Cancer. The good news was that it would be able to be removed and not need further treatment with chemo or radiation. PRAISE GOD! For what it is worth, we were told that the cancer was not the type caused by smoking or passive smoke.

Monday the 15th we met with a surgeon that would schedule surgery for Wilma. He recommended an open surgery that would enter her back by cutting two ribs for access. She would be hospitalized for about a week and would have about a two month recovery time at home. The earliest he could fit us in was the 28th of July. We accepted the appointment, but asked if the Nurse Practitioner could find us an earlier surgery. Later in that week we met with a Cardiologist in preparation for the surgery. He analyzed the CT scans and recommended that Wilma start taking a cholesterol lowering drug. She elected to use Crestor which is made by AstraZeneca. Wilma is retired from AstraZeneca.

We decided to go back home to Port Isabel while we waited for the July 28th surgery or for a closer appointment. We had been back home only a day or so when we received a call from MD Anderson. They had us a surgery appointment for the 6th of July if we wanted it. It only took us a few moments to accept the closer date. The doctor scheduled was the head of the Video Assisted Thoracic Surgery or VATS department. This procedure would use a camera inserted between the ribs with 5 small incisions for removing the lower lobe of her left lung. The recovery time was greatly shortened and she would only be in the hospital a couple of days.

We traveled back to Houston on the first of July and had our first appointment with Dr. David Rice the next morning. Surgery schedule was confirmed for the next Monday, the 6th of July. We got to spend our 4th of July in beautiful downtown Houston, missing the South Padre Island fireworks for the second year in a row. Have I mentioned that it is hot in Houston this time of the year?

Wilma went in for surgery Monday morning early. The surgery was completed about 10 AM, but she was not back to her room until early afternoon. By early evening, she was on her feet for the first time. The next day was spent adjusting pain medications and walking around the nurses stations several times. The pathology came back clear including some lymph nodes that were removed as a precaution. Wednesday she was discharged back home to the motor home. Friday she walked a mile around the RV park. We continued our early morning walk around the RV park, it was too hot to walk outside later in the day. Wilma walked the length of inside of the RV many times each day.

The doctors cleared Wilma for travel, so on the 18th we moved our motor home to Avinger to take care of some business. The next weekend we came back to Splendora for Wilma's family reunion. We dry camped in the parking lot of the school next door to the church where the reunion was held. Back to the South Main RV Park on Monday. Tuesday we had a follow-up appointment with the surgeon and a chest X-ray. Dr. Rice gave Wilma a clean bill of health and told her to keep on doing what she was doing as she was progressing excellently.

At this time we had considered going to the mountains for a few weeks as that is what we planned before the unexpected surgery. But we both decided that the call of HOME was stronger than the cool mountain air. So Tuesday around noon we rolled south out of Houston-- destination Port Isabel. A stop overnight at the Kingsville Wal-mart, and then an easy morning drive on in home on Wednesday.

Now here we are 6 weeks after surgery, Wilma is doing really well, back to "normal" activities. She is walking our usual 2.3 mile loop every morning. I fixed up our trikes and we have started riding them again. We count ourselves among the most fortunate and are truly blessed. When we discovered this spot, Wilma immediately called upon the prayer warriors she stays in touch with by email and telephone. We are sure the excellent outcome of our ordeal was the result of prayer from many good folks. Thank you all and thank you God.

Walldog, Willie and Jake

Memorial Day

2009-05-25T06:02:00.008-05:00

Gerald Howard Stark 1951-2008

Today we remember our fallen soldiers, sailors, Airmen and Marines. For me today is especially poignant.

From Memorial Day 2009

This past July 4th my younger brother Gerald died. Gerald was a Vietnam Veteran with a service connected disability. He was part of a fire team that battled a blaze in the hold of his ship. They fought the fire for over 8 hours, several hours after the air masks were rendered ineffective. He suffered for the past several years with COPD, unable to walk across a room without being winded. He was very active in the VFW and never wavered in his love of God, family and country. Everyday and today especially, I salute Gerald and all the other Veterans who have died serving their country.

Herb Stark USMC 1961-1965.