October 14, 2020

Do you ever take the time to explore where you live? I mean really explore. Frequent the local shops and restaurants, visit local towns that you’ve never been too, vacation within your general area? With COVID putting a halt to most travel, now is the perfect time to support small and local businesses and spend time “vacationing” in our hometowns so when my friend wanted to plan a morning sailing with a local schooner we all said “yes!”

In mid September my friends and I spent a beautiful (and chilly) Saturday morning sailing on the Ginny Marie Schooner out of Port Jefferson Harbor. The Ginny Marie Schooner is a restored William Atkin Schooner captained by Captain Murphy that began pleasure cruises this past summer. It fits a maximum of six guests so whether you are going with a group of friends/family or a date night it’s perfect. Keep in mind if you book less then six people the other slots may be booked by other people so it might not be completely private. We had six in total so it was perfect for us. You can bring your own food and drink so we had bagels and mimosas and promptly at 10am we set sail into Port Jeff Harbor. The seas were rough so we stayed right in the harbor vs heading out to the Sound which was totally fine with me as the rocky water was making me slightly sea sick and a little anxious but once Captain Murphy realized that I was struggling he managed to keep the Schooner in a path of calm waters. The morning was wonderful. A perfect way for six best friends to reconnect after months of not being able to spend too much time together and exploring something right in our backyards that we have never experienced before. After we docked we headed over to Danfords for lunch on the top deck. I’ve been to Danfords more times then I can count, mostly for cocktails or appetizers on the dock. They often have live music playing and its such a nice atmosphere especially during the summer months when the boats and yachts are in the slips but I’ve never eaten on the top deck. Truthfully I didn’t even know there was space there. I split the lobster roll and truffle fries with a friend and they were both amazing! It was much quieter and no foot traffic sitting up there which made it feel like a totally different restaurant so if you’re looking to eat on the water but don’t like the crowds of people walking the docks ask to sit upstairs.

If you live local to the area I highly suggest trying it out. The Ginny Marie sets sail Monday thru Sunday at 10am, 1pm and 4pm and you can make reservations on their website Ginnymarieschooner.com For reservations at Danfords you can check their website Danfords.com Danfords has a Hotel and Spa as well so if you are not from the area or are local and looking to have a staycation, you can book a weekend away and explore the North Shore of Long Island.

For more information on Port Jefferson you can also check out Portjeff.com they have a list of local restaurants and shops as well as local events that are scheduled.

xxMJB

October 14, 2020 – Lifestyle

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