The Intercoastal - 2 Weeks at Sea

For the  last two weeks, with kind waters and weather, we've gradually been making our way from St. Augustine to the Chesapeake with Blue Chip. One thing that makes these annual pilgrimages memorable is observing various communities along the way and the technology that makes this water journey possible. 

The Intercostal Waterway (ICW) is a mix of rivers and manmade canals that originally allowed shipping from Florida up through Virginia. Pleasure boats now often use it more than industry, but regardless, water locks, bascule and swing bridges permit boats of various sizes to make their way along the ICW, without having to negotiate the more unpredictable ocean waters. 

A water lock is an enclosed, rectangular chamber with gates at each end, within which water is raised or lowered to allow boats of all sizes to overcome water level differences. Locks are most often used by boats on canals, but can be found along rivers as well.  

Locks first appeared in Ancient Greece 14,000 years ago. In more modern Europe, they first appeared in Belgium in 1180, the Nethrlands in 1373 and the US in the 1820's to connect the Great Lakes. 

The lock starts out gated at the far end. Boats pull into the open end of rectangular and tie up by looping lines around metal kleats, allowing enough give to rise or drop several inches to more than 20 feet. Once the gate close, water is gently allowed in or out to bring your boat level with water on the other side. 

Once this achieved, previously closed gate opens and off you go, always thanking the "lock keeper," who operates the entire  process. The process then repeats in reverse, adjusting the height from the other side for the next group of boats. 

Clearance for bridges is the other ICW challenge. Because we can lower our antennas, our clearance requirement can drop from 22 to 16 feet. But if the tide is high or the bridge low, as is almost always the case with a railroad bridge, technology and a bridge keeper is required. 

Bridges either open on a schedule or "on demand" where you call the bridge keeper from your boat radio. It's always spectacular to see a huge piece of metal either suddenly swing 90 degrees horizontally or vertically to open and let you pass through. 

Although far from new technology, it's always a bit of a thrill to make your way through with a small regatta of other boats also making the ICW pilgrimage. 

Stopping at small towns, sampling the local fare, anchoring out at night and passing all manor of ships is all part of the ICW adventure. 

Florida to New York to Boston to New York to Florida

Ok, so that was last week. And YES, it gets confusing, even for us. But we are living on the boat these days, which is kind of like a hotel room suite - so it all kind of works, if you don't think about it too much.

                       

Is began with Guy's Bar Mitvah - that would be the smiling 13 year old nephew in the blue shirt. He is the first son of Steve's very dear "niece" Jill, so how could we say no? Accompanied here by his sister Sophie and brother Hunter, it was a memorable day for all, celebrated NYC Tribeca style at the Tribecca Grillnwith game room for the kids and casual elegant downtown ambiance for the adults. The weekend was rounded out with Shabbat Friday and brunch Sunday, while spending time with family and meeting new friends. With two others preparing for their big day, we are certain to all get to know  each other very well!

From there we made a quick trip to Boston. Did we go to a Red Sox game? Honestly I don't remember if it was this trip or the last one. In any case the BOYS are doing GREAT! Big Poppy is having a record breaking last year (?) and the boys are helping with a productive send off. We're thinking playoffs - but trying not to jinx it by saying it out loud. 

                  

Then it's back to NYC. Steve is a presenter at a midtown conference. Step out your door at Times Square and you never know what you might see. The theme here is "Falun Dafa is not bad" - a Chinese spiritual practice that combines meditation and qigong. I don't know about this Buddhist approach, but the midday parade was a blast! Two blocks away, great LYFT graphics!

                  

   Karen spent time with her Mom  and brother Chris in the west village near the HighLine. Rubber encrusted smart cars as art commingle with gardens, loungers and walkers.  The building from the village up to midtown was incredible. The number of cranes reminds you of Shanghai 10 years ago. These buildings can't go up fast enough, but threaten to engulf the HighLine, obstructing its views and ending up being a wharehouse of abandoned homes owned as investments for Ciniese, Russians, South Americans and Norwegians. Hey, you've got to park your money somewhere. 

There was also visiting a friend from Istanbul, artist studio visit, a Broadway show and dinner at Po, plus simply being with old friends. A New York City fix is food for the soul. 

      

Then it's back to St Augustine at sunset to pick up the boat and continue north - all in exactly 7 days. How time does fly by!

   

 

   

     

Lepidoptera Flourishes on Useppa - Or - If You Plant it They Will Come

The Useppa Island Butterfly Society originated several years ago when the island donated a sandy, unbuildable 1/3 acre plot to the care of islanders Colleen and  Craig Ligabell for a butterfly garden. When they departed three years ago, Judith Sear and I (that would be Karen)  took over its stewardship. 

Butterflies each have a specific plant or plant family they will lay their eggs on and can detect these from as far as five miles away. Could we attract more Florida specific butterflies to Useppa and encourage them to remain here? What began as simply keeping the partly developed site going turned into spread sheets identifying native flowering plants to reduce water usage, while cross referencing nectar versus larval plants in the correct proportion to attract less migratory butterflies that would happily reside on Useppa year round. This year was the big push.

      

        

Bamboo structures which had been built from island harvested stands were cleared, many having collapsed from the weight of 200 pound mature vines, coupled with the 40 and 50 MPH winds that can tear across the island. Gatewood Construction helped us to rebar and cement cedar trellises that we hope to have for many years to come. 

                          

Dutcman's pipe vine grew as rapidly as a couple of feet a day to quickly cover its trellis. The minute yellow eggs, the size of a pencil point, are the first sign of our success. Swallowtails search out pipevine as their preferred plant for laying clusters of eggs. The hatched larva/caterpillars remain in clusters as they quickly devour the vine's dense foliage.

                     

                            

Gulf Fritillary lay individual minute brown and tan eggs on the underside of passion vines. The Lady Margaret crimson colored passion vine boasts further evidence of success. The orange caterpillars "hatch" from the egg and quickly become the size of a nail's crescent. Voraciously eating the vine,  they will eventually grow black spikes and rapidly become over an inch long before curling up into a chrysalis from which a butterfly will emerge. These butterflies are native to the Gulf of Mexico, hence their name. Given the correct balance of larval and nectar plants, these hatchlings should stay with us on Useppa for generations to come. 

                         

The most rewarding aspect of the days dedicated to planning, planting, weeding, relocating plants, fending off gopher turtles that love our tender seedlings (don't get me started!) and repairing water lines, is sharing the garden with people of all ages. Young children either inherently know about caterpillars or must have read The Hungry Caterpillar, ever popular with the preschool set. Emerson, one of the island's full time children, visits with a Monarch caterpillar, happily munching on scarlet milkweed.

                         

It's us older folk that often have confusion about how the whole butterfly lifecycle works. Here's five of the seven stages we painted on stepping stones so that the the young people have a teaching tool for those that somehow missed hatching butterflies chapter at school. 

    

Having a garden has always been a dream of mine. As a New York City - and now Boston - girl, I thought I'd have to be content with pots and containers. Now I can spend days on end painting the landscape with color and structure that has purpose. (I know those of you that know me well are simply  shocked to hear that spreadsheets and highlighters  were involved in the creative process in creating this garden. It's just SO unlike me!) Do you think There is a graduate program that would certify me as a master gardener and lepidopterist while still obtaining an MFA? How many lives do we have? Come visit the garden.

What happens on Useppa?

It's challenging to imagine what could possibly occupy us on an island 1 mile long, a 1/4 mile wide, with no paved roads, cars or shops and only one small restaurant. To give you an idea, here's a recap of this past winter. 

Steve started the year winning a quadrant of the annual croquet tournament. When not addressing the ball in his whites, he's been working this past year to bring reliable  Internet service to our little island of 100 homes. UWIN - Useppa Wireless Internet Network - has been an experience of fortitude and patience (peppered with a bit of cursing) for Steve and his small band of determined, tech savvy islanders. Nothing deters the UWIN team. OSHA is clearly NOT present and life insurance policies have been significantly increased as the team scales the Inn's three story metal roof by rope, sans harnesses, and wearing boat shoes (!) to view potential tower locations. Fellow Useppans will be grateful when we're high speed live, but collections for the UWIN widows is also being discussed. 

Land stewardship was another theme this year as the Kaufmans, with their neighbors the Sears, identified an arborist (NOT island volunteers in boat shoes with ragged ropes!) to help rescue one of the island's two banyan trees that reside in front of our homes. 

Years of rot have been trimmed back. The tree is again safe to climb and hopefully will last another 100 years. 

A person has to eat and Useppans like nothing more than to entertain. Net result a coq a vin cooking class. You can guess who prepared the food and who oversaw the table preparation in his tuxedo. 

Any ocassion is worth celebrating. The island prides itself on being an equal opportunity venue as O'Kaufman presided over the St Patrick's Day golf cart Parade.

Family and friends are always welcome! They came this year from near and far - some too camera shy to appear here. Know that you are welcome to join us - just ask. And if the island activities don't win you over ...... 

  

... then sunsets surely will.