Groton, CT

It was a calm night at anchor but by early morning on Sunday, July 10 the wind had changed and it got very rolly in Gardiner’s Bay.  Sophie and Ernie had invited us to come in early for breakfast before heading out.  Climbing into the dinghy was pretty challenging in the choppy bay but we managed to do it and Jonny rowed onto the beach. After a healthy and satisfying breakfast, they walked us back to the beach and we said our good-byes. Taking the dinghy back to Zendo was even less pleasant and pretty dangerous.  It took several attempts before we could get all three of us up onto Zendo.  With some difficulty Jonny finally got the dinghy properly secured and we were on our way by 9:30. Never again will we take our dinghy out in such rough waters!

Our destination for the day was to cross Long Island Sound again and make our way to Groton, CT. The trip to Groton was somewhat rough until we passed Plum Gut (the inlet between Gardiner’s Bay and the rest of Long Island). Once we got past that area the rest of our cruise was smooth sailing. 

Before going to Groton we pulled up to the beach in New London.  Three of Jonny’s high school classmates had contacted him to say they would be at the beach that afternoon and we should come by, and so we did. They were in town for their high school reunion which Jonny had to miss but they wanted to get together and see each other. They hadn’t seen each other for over 50 years! So we dropped the anchor near the beach and dinghied in to spend a couple of hours together. It was a great opportunity for them to reminisce and catch up with each other after all these years!

We arrived at Groton by noon and tied up on a mooring ball at the home of Jonny’s cousin Jimmy’s in-laws, Judy and Don. What a beautiful setting!  They had a very nice dock at the foot of the expansive lawn that sloped down from their home.  When we are in this area we usually stay in Jonny’s home town of New London at Crocker’s Marina. Jimmy had been urging us to stay at his in-law’s and now we understand why. 

Jimmy, his wife Robin, and Robin’s parents, siblings, and their kids were all gathered on the patio and we all enjoyed wine and nibbles together. What a warm welcome!

Jimmy had generously loaned us the car he recently bought for his kids who had just left for a birthright trip to Israel - a sleek black BMW convertible! Lucky us!  We would have transportation to get around to all the favorite places we like to visit when we’re in the New London area.

The next morning we took a long walk along Avery Point and the beautiful nearby neighborhoods. Archie was in heaven because he could run and frolic on Judy and Don’s huge yard and the lawns surrounding Avery Point.  This is the site of a branch of the University of Connecticut but it was previously owned by a major industrialist, Morton Plant, who built a beautiful and imposing home on the site along with his other homes in Newport and New York City’s 5th Avenue.

That afternoon we drove just 15 minutes to New London where we had lunch at one of our favorite waterside restaurants, Captain Scott’s.  We had a lobster roll and fried clams. Yum!

Of course that was followed up by a trip to Michael’s Dairy for their delicious ice cream which we ate on their grassy lawn.  These are two of our obligatory stops when we are in New London. 

We also stopped at Defender, the famous  purveyor of all kinds of boating equipment, to purchase a few items that we needed. Jonny has to replace the faucet in our shower which is leaking.  Then on to Home Depot to buy a drill to replace the one that went missing from our boat during its stay at Spencer’s Boatyard. 

We were sufficiently stuffed from lunch so Jonny, at least, didn’t want dinner. I, on the their hand, found room for the leftover pasta and scallops.  I only did it to make room in the refrigerator!

The following day after my Spanish lesson we went for a paddle on one of Don and Judy’s kayaks to a nearby sandy island.  Archie did well on the kayak perched between my legs. When he got to the beach, he went crazy running around the rocky shoreline, splashing in the water, and searching for crabs.  We get such joy out of watching him - whatever he does!

In the afternoon we discovered that Zendo was sitting on sand. The tide had receded so far that it actually took a couple of hours before we were floating again! No harm done but something we’ll need to be aware of in the future.

That evening, our last in Groton, we took Jimmy out to dinner at the On the Waterfront Restaurant in New London after picking him up at his business - Mallove’s Jewelers. He drove us back to Groton and we said our thanks and goodbyes.  This was another wonderful visit and we’d love to stay at this location in the future which Judy and Don encouraged us to do.