The Bay Club – Mid Ocean Canal Cruise

Although we’ve now been cruising Amazing Grace for a few years, I still get people asking me “Do you love your new boat.”

My answer is always the same:

“It’s a great boat, but what I really love is what it enables us to do with friends.”

This year we hosted several groups of friends from all over the country, we did a 17 day cruise with Peter down to NYC – meeting up with many friends along the way, and we’ve hosted parties for friends and flotilla members in Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, and Cuttyhunk.

This week we got to host a Cape Cod Canal Cruise with a group of lovely lady golfers from the Mid Ocean Club in Bermuda.

If you golf, or you’re just a fan, you’ve probably heard of a major International event called the Ryder Cup. Every two years the greatest golfers in America square off against Europe’s best in a match where the only purse is national pride.

The Ryder Cup has been happening for almost 100 years and its history is marked by incredible stories of patriotism, sportsmanship, and camaraderie (by the way, the next one begins this coming Friday!)

Mrs. Horne’s Ryder Cup

A few years ago, Linda Bodenmann – the president of The Bay Club in Mattapoisett, teamed up with some lady members of the Mid Ocean Club in Bermuda to hold a little Ryder Cup of their own.

In 2023, the ladies from Bermuda visited Mattapoisett for the first match. Last year, our lady’s team flew to Bermuda – minus Mrs. Horne, who broke here ankle the week before.

This year the match returned to Mattapoisett and Mrs. Horne invited both teams to a canal cruise the afternoon before the games began.

One of the great pluses of making Safe Harbor Onset Bay our home port, is the ability to take a left and head up the canal without entering Buzzards Bay. This enables us to execute a very comfortable 2-3 hour boating cruise even when Buzzards Bay is tossing in 20 knot winds and Small Craft Warnings.

The Cruise Logistics

As you may know, I am the home chef of the family and I take a lot of pride and pleasure in feeding friends.

I am also what’s affectionately known as a Kitchen Nazi (a play off the Seinfeld character – The Soup Nazi).

Specifically, I break out in a cold sweat whenever anyone else touches my kitchen. Needless to say, when it comes to the galley on the boat it’s ten times worse.

This meant I needed to be Chief Stew as well as Captain!

It’s possible Mrs. Horne could have handled the food and bar, but it would have been tricky and it would have taken her away from hanging out with her friends.

Fortunately, Peter was available to help and with that I created a service plan.

The Canal Cruise Service Plan

I would still need to pilot Amazing Grace in and out of our slip and the narrow channel leading to the canal, but Peter is a licensed launch operator and he could run the boat once we entered the canal.

I would normally have set up a full bar, but there are enough rogue waves in the canal to send bottles crashing without notice.

I asked Mrs. Horne to poll her guests for their beverage preferences and I created an options list.

I greeted the guests as they entered the salon, showed them the beverage options, and sent them to the Skydeck drink-in-hand.

As soon as everyone arrived, I disembarked Onset and headed for the canal, where Peter took the helm.

I returned to the galley to put out the afternoon snacks.

I wanted to serve something nice, but decided early on to stick to cold finger foods:

• Shrimp Cocktail
• Cheese and Paté Board
• Assorted Veggie Crudites and Thousand Island Dip
• Crumbl Cookies

Unfortunately, I was in such a hurry that I forgot to take a photo of the spread, but since I’m seldom in galley underway, I shot a short video of the canal.

Mrs. Horne and both teams were thrilled with the afternoon cruise – it didn’t hurt that the weather was perfect!

The Gift Of Boating

If you have a boat, you probably have a routine. You boat with a regular group of friends and travel to your favorite destinations. And there’s nothing wrong with that!

But keep in mind that you have the power to give someone an unusual and unforgettable gift – a perfect day on the water.

It’s a very rewarding experience ❤️

Next Up: The Three Amigos Together Again