Days 138 - 151 / 1,823 Miles - Connecticut

Essex:  

Essex is a very short ride from Hamburg Cove (~ 30 minutes) and is just as "New Englandy" as we remembered it,  beautiful waters and a terrific Main St and strangely not too many changes from the last time we visited over 10 years ago, with the exception of a few more empty store fronts.  The area was much less "active" for late June/early July than I ever would have imagined.  Maybe summer comes later in New England these days.  During our stay in Essex, we were able to take a couple of days to visit with Mother Therese.

Norwich/Thames River

We left essex mid morning June 30th.  Gorgeous morning with blue skies and big sun and enjoyed a short ride in the sound then up the Thames River.  Passing through New London with Electric Boat, Groton Naval Submarine base & the US Coast Guard Academy.  Its clear that this used to be a very busy and vibrant river with the shores littered in mills and factories.  It's pretty interesting to imagine what this might have been like in it's hayday.  Upper Thames is fairly rural until the Mohegan Sun Casino rises out of the trees like a phoenix.

Norwich is at the very top of the Thames River and a great place to stop and visit for a few days. The town overlooks the river on both sides with some significant elevation.  Our daily walks/exploring here definitely gave us a different kind of workout as we climbed up and down these huge hills.  Here we celebrated Becky's birthday with a trip to the Casino. We managed to hang on to most of our money and enjoy a few hours at the blackjack table, ending the evening with a fabulous dinner at Bobby Flay's Bar Americain. The following day we enjoyed fireworks right at our marina.

Mystic

Mystic holds a special place in our hearts.  While we didn't spend a lot of time here when we had our "feet in the north", Mystic and the CT shoreline held a pretty special place in our hearts and is part of how GS got her name.  We felt it only appropriate to pay homage as we entered the Mystic River.

Our stay in Mystic was a short 4 days, and one of the best so far. On the third Jim and Diane Falkowski,  Gary and Kathy Siedlik, Jay and Allison Rocca and the newest member of our family 6 week old Amelia spent the day!  It was great to catch up with everyone.  We ended the day going into town for dinner.  Amelia had another idea however as she had Jay out in front of the restaurant walking her up and down the sidewalk.  Ending any chance of Jay having a warm meal.  Hang in there Jay we have all been there!!!

We spent the 4th with Carl, Denise, and Devin along with Isabella.  It was great to spend time with Becky's brother and his family. Giving Isabella a dinghy ride into town proved to be fun for all involved.

Mystic also gave us new acquaintances.  For the price of beer "Glenn the Dock Hand" gave Becky a master class in the art of knots and lassoing with the boat lines.  Glenn would also be a great addition to sitting around the fire and telling a bunch of lies "MY KINDA GUY!"  We met Randy and Carolyn from California who were taking a year off as well to cruise the east coast.  They are early into their  year and it was fun to see Randy come to understand every boat has ONE captain and he wasn't it :)    

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