By 10:15, we unmoored Zendo and took off bound for New London. We never can resist a trip to Jonny’s hometown even though the only member of his family who still lives nearby is his cousin Jimmy (who unfortunately we weren’t able to see this time). It was a sunny day and very hot in keeping with the heat wave that is spreading over the country this season. We had a smooth passage with calm seas and it was a good thing because we had forgotten to give Archie his CBD chewies that prevent seasickness. It took a bit longer than usual to get there however, because the current was against us the whole way slowing our speeed to an average of 6.5 knots.
As we approached New London, Jonny became quite moved as he always does to see his hometown from the water. It is a beautiful sight with the traditional tall white New London lighthouse and the uniquely styled square red brick Ledge lighthouse in the middle of the entrance.
With Groton on our right and New London on our left we entered New London harbor and alerted the Shaw Cove RR Bridge to open to let us through. I took the helm at that point and guided us to our face dock berth at Crocker’s Marina. This is a very convenient place for us to stay because it’s right in town and we can walk to many of our favorite places. We were delighted to be berthed next to a Catalina 30 sailboat which was exactly like the one we owned and loved in Miami Beach for several years!
After setting ourselves up for a couple of days on that very hot afternoon we turned on the air conditioning to cool off. At first it started switching on and off which has been a problem for us. Fortunately, a bit later it settled down, possibly because the temperature wasn’t quite as high and it didn’t have to work as hard.
We were eager to visit one of our favorite outdoor restaurants and proceeded to take Archie for a walk to Captain Scott’s. We ordered steamers, lobster rolls, and corn on the cob and sat at one of their picnic tables looking out on the marina where Zendo was docked. We finished up with a delicious ice cream cone from the dairy next door. We were very happy with our choices!
The next day was filled with boat chores. Jonny worked hard cleaning the outside of the boat and washing off that “Georgia smile” that irritatingly surrounds Zendo’s hull. Meanwhile I defrosted the freezer (which has to be done every two weeks) and did two loads of the never-ending laundry.
Our niece Samantha, Andy’s daughter, kindly drove down from her home near Boston to spend the afternoon with us. She was craving Captain Scott’s, clearly everyone’s favorite, so we happily returned there for lunch. This time we had their famous fried clams, a scallops roll, and Rhode Island clam chowder. Sam then drove us to our favorite Michael’s Dairy which really took us over the top. No more food for us!
That evening after Sam left for home, we walked into downtown New London to check out their funky bar scene. There were plenty of choices and we chose one that had the best selection of beers on tap. It was a nice way to end our visit to Jonny’s hometown!
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