Our Pick of Pics from 2016

A picture is worth a thousand words and I don't want you to have to snore through another testament of 2016. New Year's Eve seems an appropriate time to reflect on the past year, where we sailed, what we did and what we captured in photographs. Below find our favorite pics from 2016. Note these may not be the best photographic compositions nor exciting subjects nor technical bests, but we think they most accurately tell the story of our year … less all my usual rhetoric.

We're celebrating New Year's Eve quietly … just the two of us ... aboard Nine of Cups, tied up along the wharf at Atlantic Yacht Basin in Chesapeake, Virginia, USA. The champers is cold (no kidding). We've got snacks and comfort foods galore. We're warm and snuggly with our new heater and we plan to make every effort to stay awake to toast in the new year. (We'll see how that works out .) May you and yours have a healthy and prosperous 2017. Know you're thought of often and fondly.

Christmas 2016 and the Days to Come

It's Christmas Eve and we're all ready for the big day tomorrow. Tonight, we plan to chill out with Lin and friends and then attend a Christmas Eve candlelight service at the First Parish Church in Milton, Massachusetts. Tomorrow, Lin's son, Nick, and his partner, Val, and daughter, Daphne, will join us along with long-time family friends, Steve, Prentiss and Damon. Nine around the dining table will be cozy and fun. The 21 pound turkey with all the fixin's should be just about right!

We remember Christmases past when we were away from family or sometimes away from each other. This year we're together with family and even Cups is back home in the USA.

We plan to leave Boston mid-week and head back to Nine of Cups patiently awaiting our return in Chesapeake, Virginia. No blog posting for the next week to give us a chance to celebrate, pack and make the drive south … plus we'll give Gentry, the blog mistress, a well-deserved break, too.

If you haven't seen our Holiday Newsletter you can view it here.

Have a wonderful holiday season and join us again aboard Nine of Cups at the New Year.

sy Nine of Cups Holiday Newsletter 2016

2016, our 16th year aboard? Really? It's all gone by in a flash and we sometimes wonder where all the time went. Thank goodness we write blogs, keep journals and take lots of photos, otherwise we'd be sorely challenged to figure out just where we've been and what we've done for nearly two decades.

We'd left Nine of Cups in Trinidad at last year's end and returned to her in the early springtime. After lots of boat work and projects, we began the passage home. Cups had not been in American waters since 2007 and we were looking forward to being back in the USA once again.

We've had lots of adjustments to make now that we're back. I find myself forgetting that we don't have to provision for three months at a time … there are always grocery stores nearby. We have internet and phone service quite regularly and everyone speaks English.

As always, as we near the end of the year, our thoughts turn to the upcoming year and we wonder what adventures and challenges 2017 will hold for us. Plans? Well, we' really haven't made any. Downeast Maine and Maritime Canada seem appealing, but I guess we'll wait to see which way the wind blows and take it from there. Whatever we end up doing, we know it'll be wonderful and we hope you'll continue to sail along with us.

Click here to download a pdf document of our annual Holiday Newsletter and get the rest of the story and the year in review.