Saturday morning was a slow starter. We slept in and sat around for a while... feasted on the yummy banana bread that Bubs brought, then she and I went for provisions while the guys readied the boat for the short hop to Island Moorings. We were under way by mid day with flags happily flapping in a light and surprisingly cool breeze.
The trip was short so we opted not to raise sails. This did nothing to keep us from enjoying the ride over, with the usual dolphin show. I never tire of watching them jump along in front of these massive tankers.
The water was gorgeous as we entered Piper Channel on the final approach to our destination. Bruce and I suffered a tiny bit as we anxiously watch the depths along the way. This channel is notorious for silting in. Our guest suffered no such qualms and in the end, we made it in just fine without incident. 
Bubs called me up on deck to watch as Chuck and Bruce ran to the aid of one of our newer Club Members. He had been prematurely talked into bring his trawler over for the weekend alone and was very new to boating. The poor guy hit three other boats before he got close enough that Chuck could Spidey up the side and take the helm. Chuck got the boat under control while the grateful owner collected his wits.
Chuck brought the trawler safely into the slip and everyone around helped to secure her for her very shaken Captain. We're calling it another PLUS! Later we learned that this was his first time out and one of the couples in our Club have volunteered to teach him to drive the boat. We're hoping this happens before he tries another unfamiliar harbor. Maybe he should stick to anchoring out for the time being... well maybe.
We retired to the boat to prepare our pot luck offerings of Bruce's Cheesie Potatoes and Bubs Spicy Wheels.
Recent Club deserters... Bill and Jan... joined us as guests to this, the first Club event they've been to in months. They were warmly received by all and I heard no murmurings otherwise. Maybe we can lure them back to our clutches with our winning ways... 
The dinner was great and plentiful... The Club provided Brisket and the members brought everything else. As usual, it was way too much!
Some of us (more than others) barely made it through to the end of the formal portion of the dinner. It had been a long day and we were feeling very heavy about now... see Chuck there on the right about to fall into the water...
Soon the crowd began to thin as we all drifted back to our respective boats and beds.
They made climbing up the slope look too easy. We explored a bit topside of this spoil island. It kind of had a crater in the center, like being on a sandy moon...
We all enjoyed the view and the breeze before we decided we had better head back down. The skies looked ominous and it seemed like the clouds were bigger than they had been before...
Bruce volunteered to go first so that he could backtrack for our abandoned shoes. Seems much higher from below, right?
Bubs was nervous about how we would get back down. We found the spot we had come up and strategized. 
I had a plan and decided to go for it!
Chuck was next, then we go Bubs safely down... one foot in front of the other, plant your heel then wait for the slide to stop before the next step. It was kind of like Nature's escalator.
With darkening skys we loaded ourselves back into the dinghy and shoved off towards the channel entrance. With any luck we could skip along in front of the squall...
NO SUCH LUCK! We were Pounded! First a couple of huge drops... then a deluge!
Bruce got us up to ramming speed but with four people in our little dink, it wasn't going to plane. Chuck and Bubs were the sacrificial lambs as they took all the stinging raindrops leaving Bruce and I safe behind them with raindrops dripping off our brims and laughter all around. OK, well maybe it was just me laughing like an idiot.
Well once we got back into the channel and ran for our lives for a while... the deluge became a shower, then dried up altogether. I'm going out on a limb here but I'm calling this the biggest PLUS of all. It was a grand adventure and I've not laughed so much in months. 
We were nearly dried out by the time we reached the marina. The boat was dry as a bone. No rain had reached the marina and we gladly hung out our wet things to dry on the lifelines while we prepared to head for home. Brittney had invited a couple of friends for a short afternoon sail. We departed and headed up the CC Ship Channel with the wind on our nose and nice cloud cover. 
The kids lounged on the deck and watched the dolphin show. 
This is all PLUS PLUS PLUS... but the best part was the dolphin show. Today, for some reason, we were befriended by one really nice sized dolphin who decided to treat us to multiple leaps. I wasn't quick enough with the camera for the best part... a four jump chain off to our port side. This big boy jumped higher than I've ever seen outside of Sea World.
Bubs was able to get some good ones while I scrambled to get Bruce to take the helm so I could take pictures. I'm always after the elusive perfect dolphin pic... The dolphin jumped once off our bow and again here on the port side. I've never had them jump so close to the boat before. It was spectacular PLUS!
We left our boy behind and turned up into the ICW for a short sail. The winds clocked around making pointing difficult and it was looking like we might be in for more showers so we cut our sail short with promises of better sailing days to come. I somehow managed to land the boat on the first pass with plenty of witnesses! PLUS... We ended our weekend not with a mad dash for home, but a leisurely snack on the veranda with good friends. I left the crowd on deck and snuck off to bed... I had to work in the morning!
This was a great weekend and left me longing for the day when I no longer have to call an end to it. We love the boat more and more, and even more so as it provides us with so many opportunities for adventure, even here in our own back yard.
