US Virgin Islands – Dec. 19-30, 2012

Shortly after our arrival in Francis Bay, St. John, USVI, we had an extended period of high swells sweeping into the northeast Caribbean. We were well protected from the weather, but we paid a price for our location: we could not get a useable connection on the unprotected wifi that we had used the year before. So we hitched into Cruz Bay and purchased a Choice 3G/4G cell modem/router that we hoped would solve our problem. Alas, no joy.  Friends Devi and Hunter (Arctic Tern) had acceptable reception on their 3G AT&T router, but our vendor’s signal was not visible in Francis Bay – at least from our extreme NE corner.  We were not totally isolated, however, since our iPads could receive AT&T 3G signals.  Marvelous instruments those iPads, but there are certain functions that cannot be performed on them, or that are awkward.

Nevertheless, we enjoyed our stay in Francis Bay.  We got down the kayaks from the upper deck and did some paddling in the bay.  We went for walks on the island.  We had a number of sessions of Spades with the Terns, during which the women unaccountably mostly won.  There was a repeat of last year’s dinghy float on Christmas Eve, and a large contingent of cruisers attended dinner at Maho Resort on Christmas Day. On Boxing Day there was a cruiser-initiated ugly T-shirt contest on the beach.  Barb attended (getting ashore via kayak), but I stayed on board and completed the nth rebuild of our water maker “energy transfer device”, known to Sea Recovery owners as the ETD, of course.  How did that go?  Well, the rebuild improved considerably the production rate, but there is still evidence of malfunction.  My guess is that there is a seal that looks ok but that is really not working properly.  I think Sea Recovery is a fine water maker, but I must repeat something I have said before:  if one is considering purchasing a water maker, do install a modular unit; DO NOT install a “compact” unit that is totally encased in a frame, at least not if the frame is then tucked away into an inaccessible location.  Pickling should be easy, but the attachment points are not accessible if the water maker is inside a “compact” frame.  Removing the ETD should be easy, but it is not easy if the water maker is inside a “compact” frame.   Attaching/unattaching the power and control wires should be easy, but it is not if the water maker is inside a “compact” frame.  Go modular; eschew “compact”.

On Dec. 28 we moved from Francis Bay to Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas.  Our 4G modem could see a signal, but kept going blank.  We took it in to the local Choice shop, expecting to be told that there was a problem with the power connection. Nope.  The young clerk took the unit to a back room, and returned in about ten minutes with same, but with a firmware update.  Did that help?  Yes!  Hurray!   We now have super-fast wifi on our boat!

As we were returning toward our dinghy from our visit to Choice, we ran into a large group of cruisers heading over to Shipwreck Tavern to take advantage of “hamburger night”. We reversed direction and joined them.  Huge burgers at reduced price.  Barb, ever faithful to her almost-totally vegan diet, had a veggie burger.  I didn’t.  (Her diet has been a tremendous success, by the way.  She has lost a bunch of weight and has reduced her cholesterol by 100 points to a now-acceptable level.  She is pleased and proud, and so am I.)

Next day (Dec. 29) we caught a bus and saw a movie at Caribbean Theatres.  Django Unchained.  Afterward, Barb asked me to remind her next time to never see another Tarantino movie.  The movie was done well, but extremely violent and bloody.  Is it any wonder that the USA is so plagued by massacres.

Dec. 14-19, 2012 — Le Marin, Martinique to St. John, USVI

On our six-day voyage from Le Marin to St. John, a passage of 380 nm, we landed one tuna, three mahi-mahi, and two free divers.

We began the trip with a short hop of 30 nm up to St. Pierre, where we spent a comfortable night absent the swells that so often plague that anchorage.

Next day we made 74 nm up to Les Saintes, Guadeloupe, where we avoided the painterless mooring balls by anchoring in Anse Petit.  Early next morning, while it was just getting light, we arose to find that a shift in the wind had placed a neighboring vessel right on top of our anchor.   The maneuvering roused a sleepy captain, but in the end he had only to glare as we weighed anchor and Barb blessed him with her friendly smile and wave.

As we passed along the western side of Guadeloupe, we caught the fat tuna, some of which we later had in filet sandwiches for lunch.   About three miles south of Pigeon Island, we were about a mile offshore when I heard shouting through the open port door.   Directly abeam of Tusen Takk II, even further out than us, two of the distant four “dots” I had noticed earlier, and had dismissed as fishing buoys, were now waving arms in the classic “jumping jack” gesture that means “help”.  We immediately pulled in our trolling lines and turned back to motor out to their position.   As we approached it became clear that two of the “dots” were indeed floats, but that the other two were young men wearing black wetsuits.  We could not understand any of the many things they said, since it was all in French, but by sign language it was soon enough clear that they very much wanted to be rescued and brought aboard.   They wore long fins, wet suits, weight belts and masks and snorkels, and sported impressive spear guns.   One of the floats was a fairly large bright yellow inflated plastic ball with a dive flag affixed.   The other float was a brilliant orange u-shaped affair with inflated sides and plastic “floor”, but no “stern”, apparently useful for one person to lie in and propel by kicking.  They could not understand us, and we could not understand them, since the only words we had in common were the English words “thank you” and “OK”.   Well, I did ask if they wanted to look for their “bateau”, but that was the only French word in my query.   They indicated “no”, and pointed toward shore, so we slowly headed directly in that direction while they obviously searched for something.  I assumed it was a boat that had gotten away from them and that they were hoping had drifted to shore, so I was surprised when they registered pleasure and pointed to yet another dark float.   We went up to it and I again asked about a “bateau”, thinking that perhaps their vessel had sunk and that an affixed float was fortuitously still visible.  Again, “no”, accompanied by the French word that explained what was on the submerged end of the line on the float, but alas, we could not understand.   In any case, they wanted to get off at the float, and so we parted with them saying “thank you” in English, and me saying “bon chance!”, thereby nearly exhausting my French vocabulary.

Later, we caught a nice mahi-mahi, our favorite fish, owing to its flavor and its moist and flaky texture when prepared correctly.

We spent the night at Five Islands Bay in Antigua, arriving just at dusk, due to the delays caused by our “catches”, after an 80 nm trip.  Another early start the next morning helped us to arrive after 79 nm at Ile Fourche, the barren island north of St. Barth, where we anchored in sand after reading in Doyle’s guidebook that our boat was too big for the moorings.   Next day, we again started at shortly after 5 am, since we wanted to get to St. Martin in time to do some shopping.   We anchored in Marigot Bay and took the dinghy through the French bridge in order to check in at customs, our first such act since leaving Le Marin.   Later, some walking and some shopping and some pizza consumption at “La Belle Epoque”.  Next morning, Dec. 19, my birthday, we got up super early and departed at 3:45 am to begin our 97 nm trek to St. John, USVI.   Along the way we caught two mahi-mahi, hooked simultaneously, one on the port side and one on the starboard, one hauled in by yours truly and the other hauled in by Barb. Later we were joined by an enormous pod of spotted dolphins that played in the compression wave off our bow.  Some stayed for a very long time, making me wonder how or if the pod ever regroups.  We arrived just at dusk and immediately took the mooring in the extreme northeast corner of Francis Bay, which mooring being directly in front of dear friends Hunter and Devi (Arctic Tern).   But to read about our various activities in the USVI, gentle reader, you must tune in to the next exciting episode of “Chuck and Barb Go Cruising”.

Le Marin, Martinique — December 4-13, 2012

When we arrived in Martinique on Dec. 4th, weather forecasts indicated that we would in a few days be getting high winds and seas.   Thinking ahead about the nature of anchorages further up the chain, we decided to just stay put until winds and seas subsided again.  Not the most wise choice we ever made.  We had several more nice days, during which we could probably have made it to another well-protected location.  And the “few” days of predicted strong winds turned into a full week once they arrived.

But we were snuggly ensconced in our favorite location within the Cul-de-Sac du Marin:  up next to the mangroves past the reefs east of the peninsula hosting Club Med.  We started out the stay with a visit of a couple of boat gremlins.  When we put the dinghy down from the upper deck, where it had resided since before we went on the hard in Trinidad, I held my breath while I attempted to start it so we could check in at Customs.  Started right up, much to my relief.  I shut it off when I noticed there was very little gas left in the tank, and fetched the last full gas can from the set of three that are stored under a seat in the upper deck.  Started the dinghy again, but it soon died and wouldn’t restart.  The gas I had put into the dinghy was very old.  Maybe too old?  John and Kathy (Oceana) gave us a ride in to customs, and John later took me in to buy fresh gas after we experimented and found the engine ran just fine when connected to his gas tank.  The other gremlin involved the shower hose that is housed in a box imbedded in the stern of TT2.  It burst one day while I was using it to wash off after a session of water aerobics. I couldn’t find a replacement in Le Marin chandleries or Caribbean marine catalogs so I ordered one from a USA marine catalog and had it sent to Jon and Cathie Ringen, who will be joining us in the USVIs in January.  What did we do beside fuss about boat problems?  Well, we did some shopping in Marin, did some hiking, did some grumbling about the slow wifi, and went in to Mango’s for a lunch and what we hoped would be better wifi.  Nope.  On another day we went to just outside the Marina that hosts the wifi service, where once again I was unable to download some software I had purchased from Adobe. And of course, as opposed to “boat problems”, there were also “boat chores”; for example I spent about a day and a half polishing stainless steel in both the interior and the exterior of TT2.

We had Håkon and Anna-Karin (Unicorn) over for drinks one evening, and on a couple of evenings played spades with John and Kathy.

For much of the windy time there were two large motor vessels anchored out in the harbor.  The entire eastern end of the bay is jam-packed with sailboats, but with the exception of the Dock Wise vessels we have seen near Club Med, this was the first time we had seen such large vessels in the Cul-de-Sac.

On December 14 we were finally able to resume our trek northward.  But for the details of those passages, the gentle reader will have to await the next exciting episode of “Chuck and Barb go Cruising”.

Trinidad to St. Lucia: Nov 17-Dec 3, 2012

Life at Crews Inn, Chaguaramas, Trinidad can be pleasant. Nearby chandleries, nearby roti shacks, nearby grocery store (and nearby transportation to larger grocery stores), and nearby swimming pool. Interesting restaurants, both in the immediate area, and toward Port of Spain. By the time America’s Thanksgiving arrived, we had much to be thankful for. While back in Savannah, Barb had had her cholesterol tested. She was shocked to learn that her cholesterol was 287! The doctor advised that she immediately go on statins, but she had heard about so many negatives associated with the drugs that she decided to try diet and exercise first. So for over a month she stuck to an almost-total vegan diet, and exercised every day by doing yoga, walking or biking, and totally eschewed alcohol. Then we both caught a maxi-taxi to the West Shore Clinic, where we had our cholesterol checked and I had tests done to see if the high-risk drugs for my arthritis were causing any problems. Two days later we got the results: Barb’s cholesterol was down to 185, mine was about the same as last time at 177, and my liver and blood counts continue to be normal. Yes!

Thanksgiving fell on the normal Crews Inn potluck day. Barb decided to celebrate by roasting an 11-lb. turkey for the event. (The standard protocol is for each couple/person to bring a covered dish to be shared, and to bring their/his own meat to be cooked on the grill.) Other couples learned of her intention, and brought mashed potatoes and dressing and cranberries and vegetables. Not everyone was in on the plan, so many had their own meats, but everyone got at least a taste of the traditional American thanksgiving menu.

On Nov. 28 the Wheelhouse Pub enhanced their normal “swordfish or ribs” night with seasonal entertainment: the parang band called “Los Hombres Sexuales”, whose motto is “the more you drink the better we sound”. Parang is a type of music imported from Venezuela. The songs are sung in Spanish, and often have a Christmas theme, but also sometimes include social commentary and in no way sound like North American Christmas carols.

On Nov. 29 it was time for another Crews Inn potluck. It was also Barb’s birthday and she decided to save her restaurant birthday dinner for St. Lucia, so our shared contribution was a German chocolate cake that I made. Alas, the cake was such a hit that there was none left over to take back to the boat at the end of the evening.

Early the next morning, we arose at about 4:15 and prepared the boat for departure. We had decided several days in advance to leave for Grenada on that day, and stuck with the plan even though the sea conditions had not moderated nearly as much as had been originally forecast. It took us 13 ½ hours to cover the lumpy 84 nautical miles from Chaguaramas to Prickly Bay, Grenada, a trip made all the more lumpy by the fact that the port stabilizer failed almost immediately, and had to be disabled. That night in Grenada I stayed up late and replaced the knuckle that joins the hydraulic ram arm to the yoke that swings the stabilizing fin.

Next day we motored the 37 nm from Prickly to Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou, where we anchored well in front of a sailboat that immediately began to suggest we were too close. His wife was nervous he said, because they had recently been rammed by a boat dragging on its anchor. How much chain did we have out, he wanted to know, and he expected that we would soon be starting a loud and stinky generator.

We were in no way too close. Fortunately, good-natured Barb did the talking. She pleasantly explained that we had backed off on the anchor to check its holding, and that we were secure. That our generator was neither stinky nor loud, and that in any case we had no intention of using it that evening, since our stateroom was well-ventilated and our batteries were fully charged. That we had never drug in five years of cruising the Caribbean, but that she would snorkel out and check that the anchor was firmly set in the sand. (It was.)

The irony was that the boat flew a French flag. Fellow cruisers will understand that sentence.

Next day (Dec. 2) we travelled another 39 nm in another 6-hr. passage; from Tyrrel Bay to Bequia. We always have trouble getting the anchor to set in Bequia, and this time was no exception. The sand layer is too thin, and the substrate too hard, apparently. Finally, on our fourth attempt in a variety of locations, we were secure. There were no nervous French cruisers behind us, and in fact no boats of any description to our rear, which would make it easy to depart at o-dark-thirty the next morning. After supper and after letting the engine room cool a bit, I tackled another project: I had noticed during the engine-room checks during the day that the raw water pump on the John Deere was leaking a little. So down into the warm and sweaty holy place I went, in order to change out the pump. While I was at it, I trimmed off about 2” of the feeder hose; its attachment point to the pump had gotten soft.

As this is being written, it is Dec. 3, and we are on our 69 nm trip from Bequia to Rodney Bay, St. Lucia. The seas are extremely calm and the winds are slight; this is a lovely day for a trawler. Shortly after landing a small mahi-mahi, some of which we will have for a very fresh lunch, we passed right by a sperm whale that revealed its presence with periodic blows. Life is good!

Later:

When we arrived in Rodney Bay, St. Lucia, Barb bought some fruit from the “flag boat”, and also impulsively decided to try once again to raise her own herbs.

Later, we had Cathie and John (Oceana) over for sundowners. Good to see them again and trade news and rumors.

 

Trinidad: Nov. 15-16, 2012 – Asa Wright Nature Center

On Nov. 15 one of Jesse James’ drivers (Leo) took us and another cruising couple (Anina and Charlie, aboard Prism) up to the Asa Wright Nature Center, located high up in the mountains of northern Trinidad.  We were there in 2007, and were anxious to return.  (Click here to see our posting of that earlier visit.)

Some things were different this time, and some were the same.  The food was once again delicious and abundant.   Once again tea and nibblies were served at 4 pm, and a complimentary rum punch at 6 pm, with dinner at 7:00.   Once again there were frequent rain showers.  (We imagine that during the rainy season at that altitude it would be a rare day on which it didn’t rain.)  Once again the veranda of the main building served as a convenient and productive observation post of the varied and teeming population of birds that frequent the feeding stations and their surroundings.  Once again snakes and iguanas and agouti were also easily observed.  Once again the veranda was populated with bunches of eager eco-tourists from around the world.  Once again guided orientation and observation tours on the many trails were available.

The differences from last time were notable.  First (and for me, foremost), I now possess a better lens for bird photography.  Second, our second day fortuitously fell on one of the few days of the week on which occurs a tour to the cave wherein Oilbirds reside.  If one’s visit of three days or more should happen to include such a day, then the Oilbird tour is granted gratis.  New to us was the fact that others could join the tour for a nominal fee.  We eagerly took advantage of the opportunity.  Third, this time we forgot to take along insect repellent, and Barb returned with an agonizing case of chigger bites.  Our many experiences with the affliction in Georgia have taught us that the home remedy of finger nail polish is worthless; so far this time cortisone ointment has been almost as ineffective.

Chiggers not withstanding, we had a marvelous time at Asa Wright, and have already decided that we will return next year, but stay for at least three days.  And take along appropriate bug spray.

Trinidad: Oct. 29 – Nov. 13, 2012

We are back in Trinidad, and back in the water, safely tied up at Crews Inn.  Today (November 13, 2012) is the first day of Divali and all of the stores and businesses are closed in Trinidad and Tobago.

Divali (also spelled Diwali), also popularly known as the Festival of Lights, is perhaps the most important 5-day festival in Hinduism, Sikhism and Jainism, occurring between mid-October and mid-November. Divali is an official holiday in India, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Malaysia, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Fiji.

The name Divali is itself a contraction of the word Dīpāvali, which translates into “row of lamps”. Divali involves the lighting of small clay lamps (divas) filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil, lightness over darkness and knowledge over ignorance. During Divali celebrants clean their homes, wear new clothes and share sweets and snacks with others. Some Indian business communities begin the financial year on the first day of Divali wishing for good luck the following year.

We have been to a celebration of the festival twice in past years.   Here is a link to our former coverage.

But I have gotten ahead of myself.

We returned to Trinidad on October 29, having taken a direct flight out of Miami, burdened with one more bag than when we left, having purchased a new portable drill, a new 12-volt battery charger, a bunch of zincs for the stabilizer hydraulic oil cooler, a thick book entitled “Wordpress for Dummies” (have you noticed our blog’s new look?), and lots of little things for the boat.  Yachties returning to their boat must go through customs and immigration twice:  once in the airport and once at the offices in Chaguarmas.  At the airport immigration we show the papers that were provided by the marina on our earlier departure from Trinidad; which papers document that we are returning to our vessel (and hence have no return ticket back out of Trinidad).  At the customs stands there are multiple booths such as are found in other countries:  some for locals and some for visitors; some labeled “nothing to declare” and some “something to declare”.  We knew from prior experience that as returning yachties we were to ignore all of those lines, and instead enter the office to the right of the “regular” customs stands.  As has always been the case, there is no sign indicating such; one just has to learn it the hard way.  Although Trinidad is a major destination for yachties wishing to leave their boat in a location sufficiently far south to be below the hurricane zone, we must constitute just a small fraction of the visitors arriving in Trinidad by air, since the official in the office always has trouble knowing how to complete the paperwork, as is made evident by his frequent peeks at the carbon copies of former entries.   Our delay was especially long this time, since the official could not find the appropriate book for making the entry and consequently had to step out of the office for several extended intervals.  When at last we had the appropriate copy of his entry, we could depart the airport and meet our driver from Jesse James’ “Members Only” taxi service.  When we reached Chaguaramas we then had to stop at port customs and show our airport customs paperwork and the items we were importing.  There was no charge for such an importation, since we were bringing in the goods as a “Vessel In Transit”.  Then, a quick visit to the Immigration office, where it was confirmed that our passports had been stamped at the airport, and we were free to return to our boat, which had earlier in the day been removed from Peake’s secure yard to the working yard.

When we entered our boat our first activity was to look at the check sheet we had left on a counter.   The person who was to enter the boat at least every one or two weeks was to have made entries with dates and items checked.  We were gone from September 11 until October 29, but there were only three entries, with a gap of 38 days between the last two entries!  In fact, the last entry was the day after we called to notify him that we were returning on the 29th.  We will not use that individual again.  Yachties might be interested to know that he is Anthony (Tony) Joseph, and his business is called “De Price is Right”.   He was not even apologetic about his failure to perform.  Very disappointing especially since he had been recommended to us.  The main reason we had him watching the boat was to insure that our watermaker did a fresh water flush every week.  It occasionally has to be reset.  If it failed to flush for a number of weeks, we would be faced with possibly replacing its expensive membrane.

There were a number of maintenance items to be completed before we could splash:  we had the boat compounded and then waxed, we had the bottom washed and sanded and then painted with SeaHawk 77, and we had the rudder, prop and skeg cleaned down to bare metal.  The skeg was then prepped with a special primer, followed by an epoxy primer, and then painted with the bottom paint.   On the rudder and prop Barb and I applied PropSpeed.   Also, before we left Trinidad to return to the States, we had the anchors hot galvanized and we reversed the anchor chain.

So our time on the hard was busy, but we also found time to get about a bit.   Barb went on several shopping expeditions, including a trip to the downtown market where she took some pictures.   We especially enjoyed being reunited with cruising friends Ann and Steve (Receta), Devi and Hunter (Arctic Tern) and Janie and Paul (Shian).   Once again we enjoyed eating rotis and bus-up-shuts at Grace’s at Power Boats and bake-n-shark at the Wheelhouse Pub.  We went to several movies, including an evening out at the new Imax theatre to see the latest James Bond movie “Skyfall”.   Regular screens are going to seem rather hum-drum after watching an Imax showing.

Punta Gorda, Florida: Oct. 25-28, 2012

On Oct. 25 we rented another car and drove down to Punta Gorda, Florida, stopping along the way in Green Cove Springs to pick up our packages, voting ballots and correspondence at our mailing service.  Cruising friends Ann and John Taylor now live in Punta Gorda in a lovely home on a canal; their sailboat Livin’ the Dream is docked in their back yard.  We visited an art gallery that featured large format black-and-white nature photographs.  We visited a bird sanctuary/hospital, and we attended a concert by Jim Morris and his Big Bamboo Band during our stay in Punta Gorda.   Morris’ band and songs are similar to those of Jimmy Buffet.   He even has a fan club reminiscent of Buffett’s “Parrot Heads”.   There are a number of YouTube videos of his songs, including this one.

At the last day of our visit we were joined by another cruising friend, the owner of the DeFever trawler Sojourn, John Hromadka, who drove down from Jacksonville.   John’s wry comments are always enjoyable.  Barb felt guilty about our taking the bed that by rights “belonged” to John, since his visit was planned before ours.

On Oct. 28 we drove our rental car from Punta Gorda to Miami, where we booked a motel room for the night.   Next day we caught an American Airlines flight directly to Trinidad, where we rejoined our favorite vessel Tusen Takk II, which had earlier in the day been moved out of the secure yard and into the yard where it could be worked upon.  But the account of our activities in Trinidad will have to wait until the next exciting edition of “Chuck and Barb Go Cruising”.

Savannah, Georgia: Oct. 15-25, 2012

On Oct. 15 we drove a rental car from Cary to the airport in Savannah, where Barb forgot her cell phone in the rental and Mike Dayoub met us and transported us to his lovely home on Modena Island.  Mike and Iris hosted us for our entire visit to the Savannah area, and loaned us one of their cars.   Such warm and gracious folks.

We were able to spend some time with daughter Danielle and her daughters Kristen and Abby, who live in Rincon, a town north of Savannah.  Barb and Kristen did some horseback riding, we attended a birthday party for Abby at a go-cart/fun house, and we all met at a farm that featured a maze in a cornfield, as well as other attractions.

We also had lunch with friends Dick and Karen Munson.  Dick was a colleague of mine at Armstrong Atlantic State University.   Hard to believe that I retired some seven years ago, and Dick ten!  And speaking of ex-colleagues,  Joy Reed had us over for dinner one night.   She is still at Armstrong, so is was fun to get caught up on departmental news.  She also prepared a delicious dinner for us.

Steve Ellis and wife Beth Logan had the Shipleys and the Dayoubs over for a gourmet dinner one night.   It is always fun to get caught up with Steve and Beth.  Their home is overflowing with art created by Beth and others.   And the twig furniture is created by Steve.

Cary, North Carolina: Oct. 12-15, 2012

We flew from Bismarck, ND to Raleigh on Friday, Oct. 12, on an all-day trip that featured four legs:  intermediate destinations of Denver, Kansas City and Cleveland.  Daughter Nellie and her daughters Jess and Kate live in Cary, a pleasant and prosperous city adjacent to Raleigh.   Also visiting Nellie was fellow Yale graduate Robb, who she met while on a recent Yale-sponsored service project in Ghana, Africa.  It was an all-too-brief visit, but we got in some card playing and sushi eating and precious time with our granddaughters.   And we enjoyed meeting Robb, an impressive fellow who seems to have a lot in common with Nellie.

 

Detroit Lakes, MN: Oct. 6, 2012 – Soo Pass Ranch

On our way back to Bismarck from our visit to northern Minnesota, we stopped at Detroit Lakes to visit the Soo Pass Ranch.   In the early 70’s Barb’s folks and siblings ran a dude ranch named the Soo Pass Dude Ranch at the site.   Barb was attending college in Minot at the time, but worked at the ranch in summers giving trail rides and teaching riding.  She lived in one of the small red cabins that remain to this day.  The horses are long since gone, the ranch house has been expanded, the barn converted to other uses, and the venue has converted to a massive site for an annual music festival (We Fest) as well as other events, including a snow mobile rendezvous.   On the day of our visit, the place was deserted, save for a single groundskeeper.   He was extremely gracious and gave us an impromptu tour of the facilities.