Pisces the Catamaran - Day 32

January 23, 2025

After a day and a half snowed in, Popcorn is getting cabin fever. Capt OhNo is happily working on projects but can see the mental and emotional decline of Popcorn. They arrange for Swabs to come to the dock and pick Popcorn up around 11:30am for shore leave. Capt OhNo and Popcorn spend 30 minutes digging out the dinghy from the snow and lowering it into the water and then dinghy to shore in freezing temperatures. Swabs picks up Popcorn and drops off Amazon packages full things for the boat with OhNo who heads back to Pisces at anchor. Popcorn takes a nice hot shower, works on catching up with the blog, spends time with Grandma and Grandpa Popcorn and ultimately decides to stay the night on land. She has a cozy warm evening ashore while Capt OhNo successfully replaces all 4 engine mounts!

We boarded Pisces The Catamaran on December 24, 2024 and pointed her south in a part shakedown, part healing and grieving trip.    Notes are pulled from our handwritten, on board log book.  Crew are:

Captain Clay (captain and owner of Sail & Surf Adventures, married to Ally); call sign Captain OhNo

First Mate Ally (head chef & lead investigator of all maritime mysteries, married to Clay); call sign Popcorn

Second Mate Carly (Ally’s mom, Clay’s mother-in-law, one-woman cleaning crew of Pisces); call sign Lieutenant Swabs

Dahlia (the cutest ship cat); call sign DD

*there is a very important and traumatic and magical process of getting Pisces that we are working on sharing here.  We figured if we waited to start updating until we figured out those words though, we might never start updating at all.  Know that there was a before and an after and this trip is part of our grieving process for our brother/son/friend Jacob.*

Pisces the Catamaran - Day 31

January 22, 2025

The reduced Pisces crew wakes up to about 4” of snow and sleet! It’s a beautiful, snowy morning but dangerous on deck and very, very cold. This snow storm is a once-in-a-generation weather event!

We boarded Pisces The Catamaran on December 24, 2024 and pointed her south in a part shakedown, part healing and grieving trip.    Notes are pulled from our handwritten, on board log book.  Crew are:

Captain Clay (captain and owner of Sail & Surf Adventures, married to Ally); call sign Captain OhNo

First Mate Ally (head chef & lead investigator of all maritime mysteries, married to Clay); call sign Popcorn

Second Mate Carly (Ally’s mom, Clay’s mother-in-law, one-woman cleaning crew of Pisces); call sign Lieutenant Swabs

Dahlia (the cutest ship cat); call sign DD

*there is a very important and traumatic and magical process of getting Pisces that we are working on sharing here.  We figured if we waited to start updating until we figured out those words though, we might never start updating at all.  Know that there was a before and an after and this trip is part of our grieving process for our brother/son/friend Jacob.*

Pisces the Catamaran - Day 30

January 21, 2025

Popcorn wakes early to drive herself in LBP to the Oyster Rock dock so she can go with Swabs and Grandma Popcorn to water aerobics that Grandma Popcorn still teaches at 87! Swabs and Popcorn spend the morning provisioning for the boat at Walmart and also pick up the new engine mounts for the starboard engine project. Popcorn and Swabs load up the dinghy to the absolute brim with groceries and clean laundry and as Popcorn is working on starting the engine, the plug in the dinghy bottom comes out and river water starts pouring into the dinghy! Chaos ensues. Popcorn successfully replugs the dinghy and the bails the water out. Popcorn dinghies back to Pisces at anchor with fresh bagels from The Bagel Dock along with all the other tasty provisions! The reduced Pisces crew (OhNo and Popcorn) prepare for the incoming snow storm.

We boarded Pisces The Catamaran on December 24, 2024 and pointed her south in a part shakedown, part healing and grieving trip.    Notes are pulled from our handwritten, on board log book.  Crew are:

Captain Clay (captain and owner of Sail & Surf Adventures, married to Ally); call sign Captain OhNo

First Mate Ally (head chef & lead investigator of all maritime mysteries, married to Clay); call sign Popcorn

Second Mate Carly (Ally’s mom, Clay’s mother-in-law, one-woman cleaning crew of Pisces); call sign Lieutenant Swabs

Dahlia (the cutest ship cat); call sign DD

*there is a very important and traumatic and magical process of getting Pisces that we are working on sharing here.  We figured if we waited to start updating until we figured out those words though, we might never start updating at all.  Know that there was a before and an after and this trip is part of our grieving process for our brother/son/friend Jacob.*

Pisces the Catamaran - Day 28

January 20, 2025

0600 Crew awake before dawn to brisk north winds and subfreezing temperatures.

0700 Pisces pulls anchor and departs Carolina Beach, bound for Calabash, NC.

0800 Capt OhNo on watch, iPad dies due to battery issues and cold weather, at the mouth of the Cape Fear River. Popcorn brings OhNo the paper charts which Capt OhNo uses to guide the boat.

0930 Pisces passes in close quarters with a giant container ship.

1000 Pisces makes a fuel and water stop at South Port

1400 Pisces arrives at Ocean Isle Marina. Swabs disembarks with about half of her belongings for shore leave at her parents house in Little River, SC.

1430 Capt OhNo and Popcorn bring Pisces to anchor in Calabash Creek.

1500 Capt OhNo and Popcorn launch LBP and explore the waterfront at Calabash. They speak to Patrick, a very kind manager for Oyster Rock, who says they are allowed to dock LBP on the Oyster Rock dock!

We boarded Pisces The Catamaran on December 24, 2024 and pointed her south in a part shakedown, part healing and grieving trip.    Notes are pulled from our handwritten, on board log book.  Crew are:

Captain Clay (captain and owner of Sail & Surf Adventures, married to Ally); call sign Captain OhNo

First Mate Ally (head chef & lead investigator of all maritime mysteries, married to Clay); call sign Popcorn

Second Mate Carly (Ally’s mom, Clay’s mother-in-law, one-woman cleaning crew of Pisces); call sign Lieutenant Swabs

Dahlia (the cutest ship cat); call sign DD

*there is a very important and traumatic and magical process of getting Pisces that we are working on sharing here.  We figured if we waited to start updating until we figured out those words though, we might never start updating at all.  Know that there was a before and an after and this trip is part of our grieving process for our brother/son/friend Jacob.*