Blake Island Raft Up

With Saturday's forecast calling for sunny skies and temperatures near 60 degrees, Blake Island seemed like the ideal spot to spend a spring winter weekend.

And that we did, tied to a mooring buoy and rafted up next to our good friends Marty & Deborah on Three Sheets, their gorgeous new-to-them Island Packet 38.  Their first mate and kitty, Lily Winston Churchill, adores boat life and came along for the trip.  She bounced here and there, checking out all the unique sights and smells, and even perched on the bowsprit for a moment before Marty put a stop to such risky behavior.  She's even trained to use the head, if you can believe it.  But no, she doesn't flush.  As Aaron aptly put it, "she has people for that."

Before Three Sheets arrived, Aaron and I spent a couple hours walking the beach and trails, and thanks to a low tide, we were able to walk from the west side of the island all the way to the marina via the beach.  The tiny marina used to be an easy place to tie up and plug in, but word has evidently gotten out, as we watched a steady stream of sailboats, trawlers and power boats wind their way around the breakwater into the marina--and then right back out again.

Aaron had the camera when we saw the little guy who made these prints pawing for low-tide delicacies, but he only managed a blurry raccoon butt shot.

We knew we needed to be back to the boat before Marty & Deborah arrived, but we were having such a great time poking around the beach, we lost track of time.  When we spotted what we thought was their boat rounding the corner by Blakely Rock, we decided we'd better hustle back.  We hopped on the trail and ran as fast as our hiking boots would take us, through the woods and mud (pausing as a deer bounded across the trail in front of us) back to the other side of the island.  From our vantage point up on the trail, we caught glimpses of them through the trees.  It was a race!  As we hit the sandy beach, they were gaining on us, and we watched them get closer and closer as we ran (okay, at this point it was more of a run/walk) down the beach to our waiting dinghy.  Dude, I need more gym time.  We made it to the dinghy, heaved it down to the water's edge, pushed off and rowed back to Bella Star--just as they were approaching.  Phew.  We decided that workout burned enough calories to earn us three free drinks. :)

Here they come!

It was an awesome weekend trip, and although we've been to Blake Island many times, each trip reminds us just how lucky we are to have this little gem in our backyard--and to have great friends to share it with.  We even met the future crew of s/v Hello World and Ms. Jack Tar here!

Spring has sprung on Blake Island.