Carolina Beach, Va.

7 July 2015    75 sm today

We had a long day ahead of us so we left at 600 am heading south for Florida and home. It was another beautiful day with light winds and flat water. What a difference sunshine makes, when we came up it was overcast and dreary but today was bright and sunny. We caught some good push from the outgoing tides in places so we had a quicker trip than planned. Wish every day would be like that. We really enjoyed our short time in DC.

Washington DC

6 July 2015    0 sm today

I'm late posting this as we left the dock at 600 am this morning 7 July.

Yesterday we boarded the Old Town Trolley for a tour around DC. This is the same company that we have used in many cities and it's a hop on hop off. The drive around lasted about 1.5 hrs. We got off at the American Indian Museum because it had been recommended for lunch. There were authentic foods from all regions of the country. We sampled many side dishes and really enjoyed them. Afterwards we hopped back on and headed for the American History Museum. Later we took the Metro back near the marina and joined the rest of our group for docktails which was cut short by a rain shower. We grilled a steak and ate aboard.

Money.

Jefferson Memorial.

The Capitol Dome.

For my friend Rick!

Washington DC

5 July 2015    0 sm today

The day started off with some rain showers in the morning. Then we had brunch at the Capital Yacht Club with some of our fellow cruisers. Later we took the metro to the National mall. We walked almost 1.5 miles in each direction to visit the WW2 memorial, the Viet Nam Wall, the Washington Monument, The Lincoln Memorial and the Korean War Memorial. We were lucky that the crowds had thinned out after the 4th fireworks but all the fencing to keep people in were still up.

Smithsonian. 

Washington Monument.

WW 2 Memorial.

At the Vietnam Wall.

Lincoln Memorial.

Reflecting pond.

Korean war Memorial.

Washington DC

4 July 2015    8 sm today

We delayed our departure from National Harbor due to rain showers but made the short hour trip to Capital Yacht Club before lunch. After getting secured and passing the electrical test to ensure that the boat was not leaking current back to the dock we were welcomed and checked in. We had lunch on board and made plans for our stay. We later went for a walk to find the metro station that we'll use to go to the museums and National Mall to see the monuments. On the way back we picked up some ribs from a sidewalk truck that I'd read about before. Have to have ribs on the 4th. The rain came again about 400 pm but only lasted a little over an hour. Everyone got together on the dock about 530 pm with horderves to share. It was nice talking to folks that are on this cruise that we had not been traveling with. After a quick dinner it was up on the fore deck to watch the fireworks. It didn't disappoint us!

Departing National Harbor.

Gaylords.

Woodrow Wilson Bridge.

A bird surfing.

A river lighthouse.

Alexandria Marina.

Ronald Reagan airport.

The Washington Monument.

Getting ready for the festivities.

National Harbor

3 July 2015    0 sm today

Yesterday started with an early morning walk to see the Gaylord Hotel. Later we boarded a ferry along with 8 other MTOA couples and headed for Mt. Vernon. It was a great day and we thoroughly enjoyed touring the Gen. George Washington's mansion and property. Returning to National harbor about 5 pm we headed up for happy hour and dinner.

Zeus playing in the sand.

Two large bird sculptures.

Front of the Gaylord.

Inside that glassed in area.

Mt. Vernon.

View from the porch.

Washington's chair carriage.

Washington's tomb.

He is buried here along with Martha.