Tuesday, April 28, 2009
28 April - Day 56. With the strong south-easterlies continuing to blow we decided to do something healthy and walk into New Plymouth. It's obvious that we've been here too long as we know the names of many of the people we see along the way. Our reward for the long walk in and back, as though good health isn't reward enough, was to be a hamburger and fries at Dave's. We arrived, salivating, only to find he was closed. Just up from Dave's is a hardware store. It's a small, family run affair but is very well stocked. While they didn't have the 5/8 hose for our genset they did have lamp oil and at 2/3 the Marsh Harbour price. Apparently, the locals forgo lamp oil altogether in favor of odorless mineral spirits ($12/gallon vs. $24/gallon). While dingying back to Nellie we stop by Harbour Reach, a Pacific Trawler 37, to say hello. Bill and Mary Russell are 9 years into the Great Loop. Instead of going south on the Mississippi, like everyone else, they went 1700 miles north. He's a mechanical engineer while she's a computer type. They started building their house in the '70s and have yet to finish it. Bicki and I felt like were were looking in a mirror. The view is not bad… Still in White Sound's very windy anchorage, Green Turtle Cay, Bahamas. 0nm today: 1329nm total. DBH
