Bristol to Newport

The sun was shining and the winds were light when we woke this morning. We decided to take the Bristol Yacht Club launch to the Herreshoff Museum which contains the largest collection of boats designed by the Herreshoff brothers and built at the Herreshoff Manufactory. Over 60 Herreshoff boats are in the museums's collection ranging in size from the 8 1/8 foot long dinghy, Nathaniel to the 75 foot long America's Cup defender, Defiant. Several personal yachts of the Herreshoff family are also on display to include Sprite, a 20 foot cat rigged boat built in 1859 and believed to be the oldest existing private yacht in the United States.

Carla in the Galley - Thania

Dwayne at the Wheel - Thania

Besides being the preeminent designers and builders of boats, the Herreshoffs were also engaged in building the bodies of float planes and torpedo boats. Their innovative use of advanced technology sustained their ability to produce fast, high quality vessels for use by civilians and the navy. Among their most noteworthy accomplishments were the design and construction of four successful defenders of the America's Cup.

America 3 - Successful Defender of the America's Cup 1992

Buddy Melges at Lake Geneva Yacht Club

We have come to know a bit about Buddy through our racing days with the Inland Lake Yachting Association. We will always remember racing our C Scow, Illusion on Lake Geneva as it was Carla's first "big lake, big fleet" regatta. Buddy gave us a little coaching as we struggled to keep up with the fleet when we lacked a third crew member while sailing in winds brisk enough to require a third to be competitive. We finished the race in last place (as usual). Somehow after the race, our tiller was snapped in two while docking (a long story). Buddy made sure one of his support team replaced it before the races the next morning. We have fond memories of our time at the Lake Geneva Yacht Club in Wisconsin.

We arrived at Newport just before the sunset and took our place on the Coasters Harbor Navy Yacht Club mooring. We launched the dinghy as soon as the boat was secure so Carla could do the laundry while Dwayne headed to Stop and Shop for food. It was a late night getting back to the boat by 10 pm. But we were ready to depart for Martha's Vineyard in the morning.