Gliding on Snow

If snow-shoeing is walking on snow, cross-country skiing is gliding on it. If you're skilled, it's more like a kick-then-glide. (If you're really skilled, you also use a skating style. I mostly glide.) Nowadays, it's considered the best cardiovascular exercise because it works the entire body. In the past, it was considered a form of … Continue reading Gliding on Snow

Falling Back

Late fall is a time of falling back --- with our clocks, and sometimes our habits. It can feel like back-tracking. It's harder to pull myself off the couch. My mind goes to snacks. The ever-earlier sunset brings a mild sense of dread. I know how this goes and I know what to do: increase … Continue reading Falling Back

Harvesting Seeds

In three months, I might see a tiny sprout. In three years, I might be able to plant it. In three decades, it might look like a tree. By then, I may be dead. But the seeds I've planted will develop roots and grow tall. Eventually, some will create new seeds, and then new trees. … Continue reading Harvesting Seeds

The Fence

Our first construction project at Camp Many Moons stretches over 90', rises about 10', and is made of local hemlock. Our fabulous new fence! And we put it up all by ourselves. So satisfying. Why a fence when we live remotely, you ask? Because it isn't that remote. Yes, we have 300 feet of waterfront, … Continue reading The Fence

Happy Land Lubbers

Mainship Many Moons left Camp Many Moons over a week ago and sits in a marina about 8 miles' drive away, awaiting her lift-out date. We miss seeing it anchored off-shore and spending the night on board. But we aren't mourning. So much to do -- and fun to have -- at the camp which … Continue reading Happy Land Lubbers

A Time to Trim, A Time To Cut

The chainsaws are busy again at Camp Many Moons. It got me thinking. How do you know when to trim back and when to lop off? The question applies not just to trees but also to outmoded habits. Or stuff you don't use any more. Or relationships. When it comes to trees, the answer is … Continue reading A Time to Trim, A Time To Cut

4,000 Miles and Still Going…

Sitting at a gusty but private anchorage tonight near the town of Swansboro, N.C., it all seems so improbable. On July 30 last year, the Mainship Many Moons left Keweenaw Bay in Michigan's Upper Peninsula to start The Great Loop, not knowing how far we would get. Along the way, we've learned that we are … Continue reading 4,000 Miles and Still Going…

Up Close Before Leaving

A week on Hontoon Island was a chance to get close to nature -- very close -- and I didn't waste it. Some say that living on a boat is living in nature, and that is true to some extent. But you can still miss a lot, especially with a motor running. In my last … Continue reading Up Close Before Leaving

Where are the Loopers? Here!

Now that I'm back on The Loop, I find myself wondering where the other Loopers are now. Well, here! Some of them, anyway. Three other Looping boats joined us this week at Hontoon Island State Park on the St. Johns River in Central Florida, and three more passed by recently or arrived as we prepared … Continue reading Where are the Loopers? Here!