10/28 – 10/29/23 Manteo, NC to Grace Harbor at River Dunes in Oriental, NC

After a quick overnight stop at Dowry Creek Marina in Bellhaven, NC (a well run marina that we will return to), we arrived… home! After nearly 4 months and 2,000 miles, ROBES slipped down the channel at River Dunes, going right in front of our house that is nearly complete, and easily slid into our own slip in Grace Harbor. What a happy and emotional moment. It’s been a fantastic experience and we feel blessed that it all went so well. While we had moments of stress and concern, as with all things worth doing, those moments only enriched the overall experience. And ROBES performed so well that the only equipment problems we encountered we could repair ourselves (kudos to Lee Meinke and team at Safe Harbor Lakefront, OH; Bruce Schwab at Ocean Planet Energy and Kevin Leneghan and team at Ship Shape Marine, Port Clinton, OH).

I (Bob) have to admit that it’s a bit weird, and exciting, to actually be at this point in my life. I’ve dreamed of taking my own boat back to Gloucester, MA, and beyond, since I was in college and occasionally crewing on Greg Swinson’s Navigator, harpooning tuna out of Gloucester in the late 70’s. I am sad that Greg isn’t still with us to see that I made good on my promise to him, but I’m sure he knows. And now, Julie and I are getting ready to settle into this amazing place in North Carolina and begin a fantastic new chapter in our lives. In some ways, I feel like I did when I graduated from college, with the whole world in front of me. But this time around, I have an even bigger, beautiful, blended family supporting me. And, most important of all, I’ve been able to share it all with Julie. I know I never would have done it, that the dream of a taking a long voyage would have gathered dust on the mantle and never have happened, without Julie in my life ❤️

I (Julie) have to admit that it is also a bit weird, and exciting, to actually be at this point in my life. I never dreamed of taking a boat from the shores of Cleveland, OH to Gloucester, MA and then south to NC. I also know that I would have never had the courage to complete this trip without Bob Parry in my life. I am sad that my parents are no longer with us, to not only see us make this journey but also to meet him. This past month a dear friend of mine sadly left this Earth, too soon and wayyyy too young. Laurie was the kind of friend some only dream of having, and I was lucky to have her in my life for almost 30 years! I thought of Laurie as we entered the channel into our new home… I would have never been here if not for her. At a desperate time, she was an angel, a rock of encouragement and faith, a true cheerleader. She helped this blackbird fly, and ultimately find the love of my life in my backyard ❤️ I miss her but know she was watching and opened a bottle of Veuve to celebrate. What a ride this journey has been, the trip of a lifetime, for a lifetime. I am not sad that this trip has ended, but instead happy, because our trip has only just begun!