Bonthorn: Living My Version of Life: A Visit From the Lees

August 7-13, 2019.

What better way to share our cruising lifestyle than to have our friends join us for a week onboard?

Garvin, Vien and their 2 kids probably didn't know what to expect when they stepped aboard Anjulia Sue.

Sure they had seen photos and read our updates. But were they anxious, excited, nervous, apprehensive, giddy? I'm not sure, but probably a big mix of the above.

They are good friends of ours from Ottawa and we, and the kids, have grown close over the 5 years we were living there.

We hung out fairly frequently, had been camping numerous times together and they sailed with us on our first boat on the Ottawa River, but we had never cohabited a small space together for days on end before.

To be honest, we were as unsure as they were to how this would work out!

Over the week as we got into a rhythm, they caught a pretty realistic glimpse into what we do on a day to day basis as cruisers, what it takes to keep the boat afloat, how to passage plan and how to keep relatively sane (re: Morning Mom Alone Time On Foredeck With Coffee Whilst Yoga'ing).

We said to one another that we'll see how things go, how the kids cope and if it wasn't working, we would drop them back on land, have them drive their car further on and we can meet up again at the next city.

Their mindset of FLEXIBILITY, POSITIVITY, HONESTY and ADAPTABILITY is what provided a harmonious and enjoyable week together and I truly realize now how absolutely important that is when having guests on board.... for both sides.

Just planning where to meet was probably the first inkling they had into what a cruising schedule entailed.

It wasn't until about 2 days beforehand when we could say with (almost) complete certainty the city and location of our meetup.

Another logistical component was that they had driven from Ottawa so having a safe and cheap/free place to leave their car for several days was necessary.

Also, our family needed to be in the Boston area in a couple of weeks' time because we had a flight to catch out of Boston at the end of August. So we needed to make some headway and get south when a good weather window presented itself.

In the end, we met in Rockland, Maine, but they ended up parking their car in a completely different place than originally planned due to the Rockland Boat Festival which we didn't take into account. Well we didn't even know about it until we got there.

We told them it would be tight living quarters with 4 extra bodies so I was very pleased to see they had only packed 3 dry bags of stuff! Any more and those bags would have likley gone 'missing'.

Over the next several days, we sailed, motored, motor-sailed, called Towboat US (think CAA for vessels) when our engine completely died, installed our secondary bilge pump, saw some awesome sealife & shooting stars, ate our combined weight in sweets and watermelon, did NOT get sea sick and just generally disconnected from the outside world.

On our first full day together in Rockland, we experienced torential thunderstorms and fog so thick you couldn't see past the dingy bow. We took it easy, the kids played and read. We also managed to complete several boat jobs with Garvin's help.

Unfortunately the day ended with a trip to A&E for a gashed thumb requiring several stitches. Thank goodness for travel insurance!

At Burnt Cove island we dodged dozens of lobster pots, explored a beautiful tidal beach and enjoyed a sunset bbq... culminating with a bbq propane gas fire! Time for a new bbq!

There was more excitement when we suddenly woke up at 1am to hear something crunching and dragging.... the anchor! The rocky shoreline was just a few meters away!

We hauled in some more chain and Matt waited for low tide to pass to ensure we would not drag into the rocks anymore, but we were ready to weigh anchor and get out of that bay if necessary.

Boothbay Harbor was a cute picturesque place but I will remember it as the location where our engine was resurrected by bleeding the line (thanks to the Matt and Garvin dynamic duo!), where i got to drive the coolest courtesy car to get groceries (think mid-80s boat on wheels) and where we dined on some exquisite seafood.

We found peace and solace at Goslings Island, so much so that we stayed 2 nights. Beach combing, trail walking, exploring tidal pools and walking along the sand bar at lowtide were the highlights.

In Portland, Garvin took a bus back to Rockland to get the car. The rest of us got ice cream, walked to Munjoy Park in the humid heat and then got caught in a rainstorm walking back to the harbour. All was forgotten when we dined on delicious Vietnamese food as our last dinner together. SO GOOD.

Thanks for coming all the way to see us Vien, Garvin, Sam and Louisa.

Like Aila said in her journal entry (totally unprompted, I swear!), "but the saddest thing was the Lee's left."

Wishing you safe travels on your way back to Ottawa ... and less cramped sleeping arrangements too!

Journal writing every morning. No exception.

Crafting. Always crafting.

Sleeping friends

Pre injury Garvin Lee at least you'll have a good story to tell....?

How many kids does it take to fill up a jerry can of gas?

Wild feral children after being cooped up all day during thunderstorms.

At the Rockland boat festival making paper planes and helicopters.

Getting a tow from Towboat US into Boothbay Habor.

Getting a ride to shore from towboat.

Lounging around at Boothbay Marina waiting for the dads to finish the engine work.

Have you ever seen anyone so happy to be bleeding an engine?

Sunset dinner at Boothbay Harbor. With music quiz!

These 2 were so cute all week. They certainly had a great time together!

Walking across the sandbar at low tide at Goslings Island.

These girls had a rock breaking factory going on.

Sam and Tai exploring the tidal pools on Goslings island.

Tai carried this heart shaped rock halfway across Goslings Island .
We let him keep it after a lot of negotiation. But he's already forgotten about it....