An overview concerning what has happened so far with the trip. I'll send along a more detailed note in a few days. The trip was delayed when they found skin cancer on my arm. It was removed successfully, and I drove to Beaufort, NC just in time for the Memorial Day weekend. I swear every registered boat in NC (and many unregistered ones) wer all trying for the same spot on the water. It wasd a rock and roll trip down the ICW to Sneads Ferry (approximately 30 miles) where my sister lives and where they took the truck and trailer after I launched. No significant events but a lot of good small stories. Then I drove to the Chesapeake, and launched at the public ramp under the bridge near Solomon island. I spent a day at a marina getting more organized, then met Tod Mills and BuscaBrisas. We had a great trip together in all kinds of winds, and even had a great sullen bitch of a thunderstorm blow over us (good story there). He had a FAST ride back to the Marina the next day, and the following day I sailed back under a high flying spinnaker. I met up with the rest of the Chesapeake Bay Rendezvous folks at Vera's (good story there). Then met up with them the next day on the Patuxent. That night we anchored in a beautiful little cove and had 7 Montgomeries rafted up to our "token" powerboat (actually a beautiful Nimble Nomad). During the night amy right leg was very painful. I had bruised it bad when a wake from a deep draft trawler caught me going from the side deck to the cockpit on that spinnaker run down the bay. By morning it had swelled up a lot. I called my wife on the cell phone (she's a nurse) and she commanded I get to the hospital. It truned out to be a deep vein blood clot, and I was admitted for 7 days. I was hoping it would only mean a week or two delay in continuing the trip, but the truth is, I will be on medicine for 3 - 9 months. Sad to say, the trip is on hold until next year. Thank you to all of you who have so helpfully provided information and help in setting up this trip. I hope to finally meet a lot of you when this trip is re-started next year. John Edwards Miss T M17 #372