CARVER OWNERS CLUB
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April 2007

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Thank goodness it's spring.  Now, it's time to get the boat ready for the season.  While it is not a normal part of most re-commissioning checklists, remember to check or have your mechanic check your shore power connections inside the boat.  Boats are wired with bare aluminum wire (no longer legal in house wiring - house wires must have a copper coated connection) and are subject to a condition called "cold creep" where the aluminum wire works it's way loose from the connections.  It's an easy fix - just reposition the wires in the shore plug and tighten the connections.  Have the circuit box checked, too, for loose connections.  The circuit box connections are made with lugs, so they are not subject to cold creep, but the connections do come loose from vibration. 

In the past year, I've received emails from eight members who have done this inspection and found heat damaged wires.  Failing to catch loose connections can lead to a devastating fire.  I know.  I've had that happen.

Now is also a good time to add smoke detectors to your boat's cabin.  The carbon monoxide (CO) detectors are not smoke detectors.  You can have a deadly fire and never set off the CO detectors.  I have three, battery operated smoke detectors in the boat - forward cabin, aft cabin, and galley.  If you have battery operated smoke or CO detectors, replace the battery in each one. Again, the cost of prevention is very low.

Editor's Note:  Robert and Susan attended the boat show Thursday through Sunday.  The number of attendees and sales declined at this year's show.  Sales and attendance increased for several years until this year.

The Annual Chesapeake Bay Rendezvous continues to change.  We still have slip reservations for $3.40 per foot per night, plus electric, we are also encouraging people to anchor out at St. Michaels.  There is a water taxi and we'll have other arrangements to take people back and forth to the actual events.  So, if you'd like to come, but don't need or want a slip, come on down.  Neither Carver dealer on the bay is sponsoring this year, so the cost of the events is higher - $250 per couple for the three day event, scheduled for June 8, 9, and 10.  It will be at St. Michaels Maryland.  We are still limited to 70 people at the Saturday night dinner. The Boat Hop is moved to Friday night in place of the welcoming cocktail party.  Saturday morning will be a series of seminars related to boating.  Topics may included - creative ways to finance your boat, a seminar on insurance, new electronics, and boat maintenance.  We've asked Walt and Barb Davis to present their Great Loop trip, but haven't scheduled that yet.  Saturday afternoon should be fun, with a series of boating contests, such as a blind dingy race.  Make sure you bring your insurance waiver forms.  We will still have the "formal" Saturday night dinner and a departure Continental breakfast.  Call 800-540-2926 to make your reservations before April 22.  Any reservations received after that will be on a waiting list

The last Saturday Night Out (SNO) of the season will be held at Harbor House Restaurant in Chestertown, MD.  This is always and extremely popular event.  It is scheduled for April 14 around 6:30 for drinks.  We already have about 32 people signed up for this event.  Email webdude@carverownersclub.com to make reservations.

Another major event is a convoy down the ICW.  We'll leave Portsmouth, VA on November 1, 2007, weather permitting,   We will stay inside the entire trip.  This will be life in the slow lane, with an average cruising speed of about 12 miles per hour or 50 miles per day.  A couple of days will be longer or shorter, depending on local conditions.  We will not cruise in bad weather.  If you've always wanted to make the trip, but have been unsure of where to start, this is your chance.  Again, many considerations limit the number of boats that can join us, but it should be fun.

Sixteen people got together at Sarah and Gary Willoughby's place in Wilmington for an enjoyable evening.  It was the day before Sarah's birthday and two days before Patsy's birthday.  Pictures are in the works.

This May is the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown, Virginia.  You may want to visit Jamestown from the water, like the settlers did, and take some time to visit other interesting places. Just north of the James River or south of the Potomac, is one of the Chesapeake Bay's finest rivers, the Rappahannock.  On the south side of the river, you'll find towns like Deltaville and Urbanna.  On the north side, you'll find great get-aways, like Tides Inn and the Carrotoman Creek. 

We enjoy going into Urbanna Creek at Urbanna, anchoring just past the bridge and ordering great Greek pizza take out. They don't deliver to the boat, but it's a dingy ride and a short walk up to the restaurant.  Urbanna has good restaurants, an adequate grocery, and very friendly people.  I rented some videos from the video rental store.  They don't accept credit cards and I wanted to return the movies before they opened. I figured that I was doomed.  The lady in the store said, "You're going to return them, aren't you?"  When I agreed, she told me to take them and return them the next morning.

The Tides Inn, Hope and Glory B&B, and Irvington are the upscale portion of the bay.  This area has the third highest household income in the US.  The town of Irvington itself has one service station and three architects.  It is also home to one of the most interesting restaurants anywhere - the Trick Dog Cafe.  The Trick Dog has good food and a remarkable atmosphere.  The prices are reasonable, too.

Up the western branch of the Corrotoman River, past the cable ferry, is a serene deep water place to anchor and chill out.  The fishing is very good, Patsy tells me.  We spend a couple of days at a time here.  It is a beautiful place.

If you have a favorite place to cruise to, especially in locations other than the Chesapeake Bay, call me and tell me about it.

If you have a story idea or just a story you'd like to tell, email or call me at 800-540-2926,  I'm especially looking for favorite cruising spots - where do you like to go?