A Period of Transition

 A Period of Transition

October 27th, 2025

We have been in a state of constant motion since our retirement in mid-July, which sounds silly coming from someone living on a sailboat, but all the activity has left me with little time to update our blog. However, life has begun to take on a gentler pace after moving aboard Noëpe in September, and I am overdue for an update on our whereabouts.  

Jessica and I  spent the better part of six weeks sifting through a lifetime of belongings and making difficult choices about what to keep and what to jettison. We then redistributed the bulk of our belongings to friends, family, and strangers, learning that the recipient is more important than the market value, and that all those “things” demand energy, often exceeding their worth. The process is painful and slow at first, but by the end of six weeks, you are ready to chuck everything! 

Leaving family, friends, our dog (under the excellent care of our daughter Emma), and the land that we have cared for over the years was more difficult, and emotions ran high during our last few days in New Hampshire. At times, we questioned our decision to uproot ourselves from the comfort and familiarity of our lives, but that boat has already left the dock.

                                            Old Backyard

On September 16th, we moved the remainder of our belongings into a 10x15 storage unit and closed the door on another chapter of our lives. We speculate that after a year of living abroad, we won’t even remember what we have in the storage unit.

We took a few days with family before flying down to Maryland on the 21st, and we were able to catch our breath and enjoy some sailing. Getting in and out of a crowded marina has proven to be the most difficult part of maneuvering the sailboat, but we are learning and haven't broken anything.

As we began learning the various systems on our floating home, we realized that many would benefit from upgrading. It is a common trap for aspiring cruisers to get stuck at the dock in a never-ending list of projects. As our electrician Ryan put it, " everything on a boat is broken or about to break".

With that knowledge in hand, we prioritized safety and comfort. The electrical system has undergone a major upgrade with lithium and solar upgrades to keep us out of marinas, and the previous owners' patched electrical fixes are now up to ABYC standards. Electrical fires on boats are not uncommon and very serious. We also wanted to make sure that our mast stayed up, so we upgraded the standing rigging, which was serviceable but nearing the end of its lifespan. The list was long, and I won't bore you with the details, but we are closing in on our to-do list and anticipating a departure from the Chesapeake the first week of November.

                                        New Backyard

The electrical upgrades have required the dismantling of various parts of our interior for a couple of weeks, so we were blessed to have close friends from our Peace Corps days in the Kingdom of Tonga nearby in Baltimore.

Anne and Ben have hosted us at their beautiful home near Johns Hopkins University, and we have already attended two of the weekly family dinners orchestrated by their daughters Zoe & Ella. 

Baltimore reminds me of Cleveland, a rustbelt town that may be a little funky around the edges but has a large heart. Our friends are immersed in the community arts and garden scene, which leads to frequent interactions in "Smalltimore". Greg has shared his woodworking studio with me to complete a couple of small boat projects, and is accommodating overflow from our boat at his studio.

We have attended an avant-garde outdoor opera, complete with a familiar olfactory prop from a nearby urban stream, and were moved to tears by the artists' works at the American Visionary Museum. Alleyways and guerrilla green spaces are an interesting part of Baltimore's cityscape, affording interesting walks that link a diverse patchwork of neighborhoods.

We are back in Baltimore this week, dog and house sitting for Ben's daughter while they complete the electrical upgrades. We are enjoying our days with "Murph" the dog and the beautiful weather that has blessed us with sunshine, crisp days, and freshly picked apples for long walks in the wilds of Baltimore County.

"Murph"

I will work a bit harder on putting out some content for our enormous audience of four. November promises a passage around the graveyard of the Atlantic, aka, Cape Hatteras, and ports of call along the eastern seaboard.

Stay tuned, be kind, and stay in touch,

Jessica and Scott