9/10/02 | Making the rounds

One reason we've been looping around the northeast has been to see the natural beauty of the region. But in addition to the campgrounds and free public land areas where we usually "anchor", our RV has spent quite a bit of time in friends' driveways over the past month. This trip is partially an excuse to visit our friends around the country, most of whom are people we met cruising who have temporarily or permanently swallowed the anchor. Not only have we been reconnecting with old friends, we have also been learning from their stories about readjustment to land life.

Some of our friends were out for a year's sabbatical, while others were out for many years, like us. Some came ashore intending only a short break, but medical problems (personal or family) either delayed or ended their cruising plans. Some went back to their former jobs; others found new jobs in their previous careers, and still others entered completely new professions.

We spent nearly a week with Paul and Lise (Effie) at their house in Maine, breaking our usual rule ("fish and houseguests stink after three days") because Paul, a carpenter, has a great workshop. We rebuilt our saggy, cheaply-made bed with real lumber, increasing the available storage space underneath and improving our sleeping surface, and made several bookshelves and storage shelves. ("Provincial" wood stain on plywood comes out precisely the color of our RV's fake-woodgrain vinyl!) It was great fun reminiscing with them about the Bahamas -- they still sail most weekends in Maine, but the water temperature is far from tropical, of course. The two other couples we visited in Maine are trying to sell their old cruising boats; one couple wants a small racing boat, the other has mostly switched their water-based recreation to canoes and kayaks.

We hiked up Mt. Megunticook in Camden, ME with Colleen (Redwings) who, after doing financial work in Asia and cruising across most of the world, is now adjusting to being a stay-at-home mom. (Britt carried 8-month-old Ian up in a backpack. It was our second hike together; although nobody knew it at the time, Ian was present in utero on our hike up Loma Isabel de Torres in the Dominican Republic.) Her husband Aaron has also undergone a radical career shift and is now teaching Spanish at a middle school. Teaching seems like a pretty good way of working only part of the year, but it's the wrong part of the year for our cruising plans. And neither of us is trained or certified at the moment, so it would have to be a serious decision and commitment.

After making the rounds in Maine, we headed back for more hiking and biking in New Hampshire and Vermont. We discovered that having bikes on board is invaluable for finding good backroads places to camp:  rather than slowly drive up every narrow, rough dirt road we see, we find a temporary parking place, then explore all the options on two wheels. Using the bikes to get to trailheads for hiking has saved us having to pay for parking, as those obnoxious "fee demo" regulations have really spread through the northeast. Some towns are just best visited by bikes, such as Burlington, VT, which reminded us quite a bit of our old hometown of Boulder, CO -- although Boulder Reservoir certainly doesn't compare to Lake Champlain. From a state campground (which sadly will be demolished this winter to make room for Stowe ski condos) we bicycled up the steep switchbacks to Smuggler's Notch, clambered through a nasty gully to a rock with a view, then scrambled through a climber's playground of jumbled boulders until our shoulders and arms ached as much as our legs did. All this exercise justified a stop at the Ben and Jerry's factory for a tour and tasting. (Employees of Ben and Jerry's, we learned, take home three free pints a day. These can't be sold, but can be traded, leading to a rather unusual ice-cream-based barter economy in the region. They also get free health club memberships and cholesterol screenings.)

At the moment we are in Kingston, Ontario, visiting with Heiner and Marleyne who still live aboard their cruising boat La Buena Vida, although not for much longer; they just bought a house, and we have spent some time helping them get it ready for them to move into. They had lived in Kingston before going cruising, and had sold nearly everything, not expecting to return. When they came back to Canada, they first tried finding jobs in Montreal, but things didn't work out. By contrast, everything seems like it's falling into place here:  good work, an inexpensive house, fine cruising nearby. Maybe we'll end up doing similarly, moving back to our old stomping grounds; although we'd like to be out of the Front Range area, there are still a lot of great things about Boulder.

We reminisced a bit about our cruising adventures as we sailed La Buena Vida out on Lake Ontario; sitting together in the cockpit, drinking rum with lime, it was easy to imagine that Windom was just a dinghy ride away. But then we jumped in (well, Britt jumped in, I edged in slowly) and the tropical illusion was entirely dispelled. Although the water was much warmer than we expected, it's no match for the Caribbean. And no pretty tropical fish. On the other hand, we didn't need to rinse the salt off afterwards.

It's been a lot of fun visiting our friends. It gives us an excuse to visit places we haven't been, as we string together an itinerary linking people and parks along the most interesting routes. It also acts as a social outlet, something we miss. We remember the places we met, the things we did together -- the potluck in Charleston, the snorkeling off Conception Island -- and it's like being out there again. We're pretty easy houseguests, as we bring our own house with us; all we need is a flat place to park, and a power outlet if we can swing it. We still have a few more stops to make, but we hope to be back in Colorado before it gets too cold to enjoy the mountains.