The Buzz about the BEES KNEES!
Welcome to the Bees Knees Blog! We never thought we'd be this "techy" but it seems like all the cruisers are really recommending blogging!! Maybe there's a history there with flogging and keelhauling, but, alas, here's our blog.
I initially started the blog with the third entry....then decided to add a bit more history. I found these emails that I had written back when we first splashed Bees Knees and thought they'd be cool to add to the blog....little more detailed than I wanted, but really didn't want to rewrite all of that. So.....that's the Log of Bees Knees.
I'm going to play around with the pictures and style as I go along....so bear with me if you're reading all of this initially!
Jim and I (Ann) came together in Beaufort, NC, in July 2004. At the time we were both single-handers with our own boats....Jim had "Esmeral" a 37.5 Hunter...and I had "Murph" a 32' Bristol. I also had Maggie, my 13 year old English Springer Spaniel who sailed and kayaked with me everywhere I went....and Jim had Scootie....an ancient cockatiel. We decided to sail together that Fall, putting Murph on the hard and sailing to the Bahamas on Esmeral. Our initial sail together was out the Beaufort Inlet enroute to San Salvador with Maggie, Scootie, and his daughter, Lauren, who I had met for the first time the night before! We spent 8 days at sea, three of those becalmed, and landed in San Salvador around Thanksgiving. Lauren stayed for a few more days, then flew home....hoping to come spend more time on Bees Knees in a less stressful situation.
We attempted to make it to Grand Turk, but the winds wouldn't cooperate, so we made it as far as South Caicos and gradually made our way back to the Bahamas. We sailed through the Exumas, Jim's first time in Georgetown....and Eleuthera to the Abacos. We crossed back to the States and came into Lake Worth Inlet....where Jim and I both sailed singlehanded many years. We took our time heading up the ICW to Beaufort, NC, where we ended up with Murph back in the water....docked at the Morehead City Yacht Basin...just down from Esmeral. After a few discussions about our sailing, future and safety....we decided to sell both of our boats and buy an affordable "dreamboat"!!
We're both still unsure of the exact events of discovering "Bees Knees".....but we both knew she was the right boat at the beginning! We bought Bees Knees while she sat on the hard at Core Creek in Beaufort, NC, never having sailed her. To put it mildly.....she was a "handyman's special"!! So....we suddenly had three boats just in time for hurricane Ophelia to come thru the Carolinas!! Luckily we all came thru that untainted and soon afterward sold both of our boats rather quickly.
We began the work on Bees Knees....too much to mention here....but in the meantime I went back to work at Carteret General Hospital and Jim picked up a few jobs...at West Marine (which was sooooo helpful in discounts while refurbishing the boat) and as dockboy at Morehead City Yacht Basin. Needless to say, we stayed pretty busy. My contract finished with Carteret and I found another job at Albermarle Hospital in Elizabeth City.....one of the busiest ERs I've ever worked in....and that has included Level I Trauma Centers. I began commuting....staying at the wonderful Elizabeth City Bed and Breakfast 3-4 nights as I worked...then returning to Morehead City on my days off to work on Bees Knees. We eventually moved Bees Knees up to Elizabeth City to the Pelican Marina....to save a little money...less expense on the B&B....and for the final touches had her hauled at Cobb's Marina in Norfolk, VA.
When we bought Bees Knees....I fell in love with all the wood and the classical lines. Jim was impressed with the rigging, hardware and excellent hull construction. I agreed to be responsible for all the teak (toerail, cockpit combings, handrails, dorade boxes, winch pads and other odds and ends) and he would agree to the overhangs...the classic lines! So.....while in the boatyard we had Bees Knees awlgripped and applied her official name.....along with all the other work we needed to finish up on.
We sold two cars, gave my bike to a little German girl in the boatyard, had a couple of flea market sales....and that kinda brings us up to date to the next section....the Log of Bees Knees.
I initially started the blog with the third entry....then decided to add a bit more history. I found these emails that I had written back when we first splashed Bees Knees and thought they'd be cool to add to the blog....little more detailed than I wanted, but really didn't want to rewrite all of that. So.....that's the Log of Bees Knees.
I'm going to play around with the pictures and style as I go along....so bear with me if you're reading all of this initially!
Jim and I (Ann) came together in Beaufort, NC, in July 2004. At the time we were both single-handers with our own boats....Jim had "Esmeral" a 37.5 Hunter...and I had "Murph" a 32' Bristol. I also had Maggie, my 13 year old English Springer Spaniel who sailed and kayaked with me everywhere I went....and Jim had Scootie....an ancient cockatiel. We decided to sail together that Fall, putting Murph on the hard and sailing to the Bahamas on Esmeral. Our initial sail together was out the Beaufort Inlet enroute to San Salvador with Maggie, Scootie, and his daughter, Lauren, who I had met for the first time the night before! We spent 8 days at sea, three of those becalmed, and landed in San Salvador around Thanksgiving. Lauren stayed for a few more days, then flew home....hoping to come spend more time on Bees Knees in a less stressful situation.
We attempted to make it to Grand Turk, but the winds wouldn't cooperate, so we made it as far as South Caicos and gradually made our way back to the Bahamas. We sailed through the Exumas, Jim's first time in Georgetown....and Eleuthera to the Abacos. We crossed back to the States and came into Lake Worth Inlet....where Jim and I both sailed singlehanded many years. We took our time heading up the ICW to Beaufort, NC, where we ended up with Murph back in the water....docked at the Morehead City Yacht Basin...just down from Esmeral. After a few discussions about our sailing, future and safety....we decided to sell both of our boats and buy an affordable "dreamboat"!! We're both still unsure of the exact events of discovering "Bees Knees".....but we both knew she was the right boat at the beginning! We bought Bees Knees while she sat on the hard at Core Creek in Beaufort, NC, never having sailed her. To put it mildly.....she was a "handyman's special"!! So....we suddenly had three boats just in time for hurricane Ophelia to come thru the Carolinas!! Luckily we all came thru that untainted and soon afterward sold both of our boats rather quickly.
We began the work on Bees Knees....too much to mention here....but in the meantime I went back to work at Carteret General Hospital and Jim picked up a few jobs...at West Marine (which was sooooo helpful in discounts while refurbishing the boat) and as dockboy at Morehead City Yacht Basin. Needless to say, we stayed pretty busy. My contract finished with Carteret and I found another job at Albermarle Hospital in Elizabeth City.....one of the busiest ERs I've ever worked in....and that has included Level I Trauma Centers. I began commuting....staying at the wonderful Elizabeth City Bed and Breakfast 3-4 nights as I worked...then returning to Morehead City on my days off to work on Bees Knees. We eventually moved Bees Knees up to Elizabeth City to the Pelican Marina....to save a little money...less expense on the B&B....and for the final touches had her hauled at Cobb's Marina in Norfolk, VA.
When we bought Bees Knees....I fell in love with all the wood and the classical lines. Jim was impressed with the rigging, hardware and excellent hull construction. I agreed to be responsible for all the teak (toerail, cockpit combings, handrails, dorade boxes, winch pads and other odds and ends) and he would agree to the overhangs...the classic lines! So.....while in the boatyard we had Bees Knees awlgripped and applied her official name.....along with all the other work we needed to finish up on.
We sold two cars, gave my bike to a little German girl in the boatyard, had a couple of flea market sales....and that kinda brings us up to date to the next section....the Log of Bees Knees.
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