Today's Pics

Those who stay at Atlantic Yacht Basin long enough will see 'Aphrodite' come in and tie up. The artisans here are the best in this part of the world at working with wooden boats and keeping their finishes looking like new.

She's a true piece of history and a work of maritime art.

Built in 1837 

APHRODITE was built by the Purdy Boat Company and launched in May of 1937 for Wall Street financier and later Ambassador to the Court of St. James, John Hay (Jock) Whitney of Manhasset, Long Island.

Best described as a "Commuter Yacht", this elegant and sleek 74-footer would each morning whisk Mr. Whitney from his large two-story boat house westward down Long Island Sound and thru the East River to his Wall Street office. During the 45 minute commute Mr. Whitney would go up to the forward cockpit and read the Herald Tribune to catch up on the day's news.

APHRODITE'S guest list over the years reads like a "Who's Who" in the worlds of government, business and entertainment with such luminaries as Fred Astaire, Sir Laurence Olivier, Spencer Tracy, Katherine Hepburn, Henry Ford II, FDR advisor Harry Hopkins and Nelson Rockefeller aboard for summer day cruises down Long Island Sound. APHRODITE also once served as the site for a birthday party for Shirley Temple.

She's been restored beautifully.... the whole store here THE RESTORATION OF APHRODITE


Istaboa is crankin' up this morning and starting to move south. We may be out of touch for a while unless I find net... and I usually can.

I'll send out some Spot messages and you can track us via Marinetraffic.com  if you wish.

It'll be good to be movin' again, plus it's getting cold.

Adios,

Istaboa

Today's Pics

It's looking like we may buddy boat with Two Drifters for our run south, .... A couple we met back in 2007 in the Abacos and they're staying here at AYB preparing for the long haul.
Two Drifters is a 50 Nordhavn and can make about the same speed as Istaboa so we should be a pretty good match. We've crossed paths several times over the years and have talked about traveling together.

Two Drifters anchored in White Sound, Green Turtle, Abacos

Sunset in Whitesound

Rich and Ronnie have done the non-stop run from Beaufort, NC to Ft. Pierce, Fl many times. We may do the whole trip with them or stop off at St. Simons Island, GA. We'll see... sea conditions will be a large factor in this decision.
Their destination will be back to the Abacos sometime this spring before returning to AYB for the summer.

They're driving down from New England and should arrive here today... We'll discuss more later.
This could be fun.... Never done a long passage with another boat.

Cheers,

Istaboa

Aww Man...

Mr. Las Vegas's boat sunk.

Mr. Las Vegas’ yacht sleeps with the fishes.
A 65-foot luxury houseboat belonging to Wayne Newton filled with water and sank Friday morning at a marina on the Arizona side of Lake Mead.
No one was on board the boat named Rendezvous when it went down stern-first in about 45 feet of water, leaving the bow sticking straight up out of the water in a covered slip at Temple Bar Marina.

Today's Pic

Is a weird one...
Woke up early and heard the geese... stuck my camera out the pilothouse door and snapped this shot  off without focusing... you can tell, huh?
Anyway... I like the visual.
Hope you do too.

Cheers,

Istaboa

Today's Pic

Every hour... the horn blows and the parade starts. It is thinning out a bit.
The weather's been good and I believe a lot of the crowd has moved on south.
Maybe time to join.

For Our Memphis Buddies

Today's Pic

Rainy, dreary, and cool didn't stop these kids from having their race for the cure.
Pink everywhere,

Radar Love

Back to rain and cooler weather...
but Istaboa's back in the water and we're back home.
No complaints. Let it rain.

We're out on the front docks now and enjoying the boat parade. We've seen several folks we've met along the way pass by.

Not sure when we'll join the procession... but pretty soon.

Cheers,

Istaboa

Today's Pic

Blue Blades

Today's Pic

Forget where... but may be a Daytona sunrise.