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Olverson’s Lodge Creek Marina

“Every day is the beginning of a new journey…enjoy the ride.” –Author Unknown

While we were at anchor last week we tried to use our generator and noticed it wasn’t spitting water out the side of the boat…like it’s suppose to. Stan investigated and found the exhaust elbow had a crack in it. It’s old, very old, and Stan knew it needed to be replaced one day…well one day is here. We decided the best place to wait for the part to be delivered was at Olverson’s since our car is there. The part has been ordered and will be delivered on Monday. 
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Old Dominion Boat Club

“A journey is best measured in friends, rather than miles.” ―Tim Cahill

One of our main reasons for visiting Alexandria was to visit friends we meet in 2014 when we took the Texas Pearl home from Florida. A casual meeting at a marina in Panama City gave us a chance to make some very special friends…it’s one of the best parts of cursing. Larry and Gail were on the home stretch of their Great Loop adventure that year and we’ve been lucky enough to see them every year since. 

We’ve enjoyed being docked at their boat club at the foot of King Street, meeting some of their boating friends and spending Saturday night at the clubs annually pig roast and sock burning party, where we got to meet some of their children and grand children. Thank you for letting us join the fun…we had a great time. 

The view of the Old Dominion Boat Club from the Torpedo Factory

Part of the delicious dinner we had at the boat club Saturday night

Part of Larry and Gail’s family

The purpose of the sock burning is to shed your winter socks and celebrate the upcoming spring equinox (which has already passed) and the beginning of the boating season.   

Sunday Gail and Larry took us on a tour of the area. They drove us around Alexandria giving us a little history lesson, down the George Washington Parkway to Mount Vernon and then over the Arlington Memorial Bridge into Washington DC to see some of the monuments. It was a great tour but the best part of the day was spending the evening at their townhouse catching up and enjoying a great meal. They’ve been wonderful hosts and we’re so glad we had a chance to come visit.

The original entry to Mount Vernon..the way George Washington would have come into his estate. We’re hoping to stop and visit Mount Vernon on our way down the Potomac later in the week.

The Martin Luther King Memorial wasn’t complete when we were in DC the last time, so it was nice to get to see it today.

“Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope”

The Jefferson Memorial…across the tidal basin from the MLK memorial

Old Dominion Boat Club

“The journey not the arrival matters.” ―T. S. Eliot

One of our favorite things to do on a Saturday morning is go to a local farmers market. Some people come strictly for the fresh fruits and vegetables…we enjoy taking in the whole scene, buying fresh baked goods, wandering the stalls sampling locally made cheeses and wines, talking to local people and watching the world come alive.
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Old Dominion Boat Club

“To travel is to breathe in the air of unimaginable places, taking in all the beauty the world has to offer.” —Kiana Azizian

We’re in Alexandria for a few days to explore, relax and catch up with friends. We haven’t been up the Potomac River since we spent a week in Washington, DC in 2011. We spent that week running, taking in everything we could…this time we are going to explore a more leisurely pace. Today we just wandering around Old Town taking in the architecture and having a great lunch at The Wharf. 
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“A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.” —John A. Shedd

We’ve finished all our boat projects and moved out into the sunshine yesterday. Our cruising season begins today…first destination is up the Potomac to Alexandria. Let the fun begin.

The Pearl in the shed…a great place to store the boat, but not a good place to live.

One last look at Olverson’s as we left this morning.

Olverson’s Lodge Creek Marina

“Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you’ll start having positive results.” ~Willie Nelson

Just a quick post to update everyone on all the fun we’ve been having since we returned to the boat two weeks ago. We both have been working very hard on projects, putting in 8 to 10 hour days, but Stan has really been the one doing the hard work. I took a little break to return to Pennsylvania to spend Easter with our family while he stayed behind and refinished the salon floor.
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Olverson’s Lodge Creek Marina

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” ―Dr. Seuss

We’ve been back onboard for four days and we’ve been very busy. Here at Olverson’s we are docked in a covered slip. It makes doing some projects easier but the lack of light makes it hard to see. The lack of sunshine on the boat also keeps us cooler…not a bad thing in the summer, but this time of year it’s a little cold without those wonderful rays of light to warm the cabin. So, we are working hard to finish projects as quickly as we can so we can move to a new location. Here are some of the things we’ve been working on. 
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Olverson’s Lodge Creek Marina

“I don’t mind being gone…it’s the leaving I don’t like.” –Susie Marshall

People think when we go back to the east coast we’re going on vacation. It’s not a vacation…it’s just life. We’re going back to our home…lots of people have two homes. Rockport is full of winter Texans, when the weather up north gets cold they come south…when the weather begins to warm up in Texas we head back to The Pearl. We enjoy the variety that having a place on the east coast and in Texas offers.
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