Tag: Florida

  • The Windy Treasure Coast

    The Windy Treasure Coast

    Hello virtual crew members and fellow adventurers!  We welcome two new virtual crew members aboard this week: Realray and deanmitch92.  Welcome aboard and thanks for following the adventure.

    21 Dolphin Show

    Summary of week:

    To ft pierce

    The crew only travelled two days in the past week.  Mostly due to the howling winds and rough seas.  But also because the marinas south of Ft Pierce to Ft Lauderdale do not have any slips available.

    The 2017 hurricane season did a number on the marinas and backyard docks in south Florida.  The boats that survived have moved further north causing real shortages for transient boaters.

    The crew made the following moves during the week:

     

    1 – cruised a short distance to Ft Pierce Municipal Marina.

    2 – crossed the Indian River to dock at the brand new Causeway Cove Marina to wait out the weather.

    Click on the link to read the day-to-day travel log.  This includes weather report, sea conditions, captain’s log, and a summary of the day’s experience.

    Explorations during the week did answer the following questions:

    1. How did the crayon get its name?
    2. Why is this section of Florida called the Treasure Coast?
    3. What is the areas do not miss museum?

    At the Box Office

    This week’s video shows Still Waters II  make the move from Vero Beach to Ft Pierce where the crew visited the Navy SEALs Museum.  Enjoy!

    To see past videos, click on the link to the Still Waters II Vimeo site.  The library now contains 48 videos of Still Waters II cruising America’s Great Loop.

     Sunday, January 21, 2018

    The crew walked from the marina over to the Atlantic Ocean to see the other side of the barrier Island.

    17 Vero Beach Tree lined street

    18 Vero Beach

    The crew then headed back to the river side of the island to find a place to eat.  On the way, they came across this guy cleaning Sheep Head and feeding Pelicans.

    18.3

    After watching the Pelicans feed, it was time to find the restaurant.

    19 Riverside Cafe

    When the crew got back to the marina the dolphins were putting on a show.

    21.121.2

    Monday, January 22, 2018

    The crew headed towards Ft. Pierce for a short 15 mile run.  The winds are forecasted to kick up and stay above 20 mph for the next week.  When the skipper contacted the City Marina he was quoted a price for one week of dockage.  After getting settled, the skipper went up to the office to check in.  The clerk only charged for a one night stay.  The skipper questioned the one day verse one week.  The clerk said the marina was full and they did not have any room for Still Waters II.

    22 Indian River to Ft Pierce

    This sent the skipper scrambling to find another place to stay.  He called nearly ever marina all the way to Ft Lauderdale and not a single marina had an opening for the next week.

    24 Ft Pierce

    While the skipper was working the phone, the Admiral went back to the office.  She learned that there was a brand new marina just across the river.  The skipper called Causeway Cove Marina and they had a place for the crew for the next week.  The Dock Manager did make a comment about not arriving till after 1100 in the morning though.

    Tuesday, January 23 , 2018

    The crew prepared to leave the City Marina and cross the Indian River to the Causeway Cove Marina.  Because the marina requested the crew not show up till 1100, the crew walked around the marina neighborhood to kill some time.

    25 Manatee Center

    The crew did not find any manatees at the Manatee Center.  A local guy rode up on a bike and explained that when the upstream power plant closed down, the warm water stopped flowing, and the manatees found other places to hang out.

    The crew did find this one manatee.

    25.1Since the Manatee Center was a bust, the crew headed back to the marina and shoved off from the dock.  The crew crossed the river and hailed the Causeway Cove Marina to no avail.  The skipper called the marina on the phone and talked with the Dock Manager.  He commented that they were in the process of doing the ribbon cutting for the Grand Opening.  He said he would send a dockhand down to the dock.

    31.2

    Did I mention that this was a brand new marina.  Still Waters II was the fifth boat to land at the marina.  The first boat was allowed in the marina on Saturday.

    31.1

    Wednesday, Thursday, Friday

    Because high winds hampered many outside activities, the crew decided to spend a few days working in the boat.  With the crew making plans to go to the Bahamas, the skipper decided to see if he could remove the starboard 50 gallon water tank and repair the leak.  The tank has been isolated from the potable water system since the crew bought the boat.

    The skipper wrestled the tank most of the day on Tuesday, but did finally succeed in removing the tank in one piece.  He moved the tank to the dock and performed a leak check.  He found a small six inch crack in a seam of the tank.

    IMG_5857

    He used an epoxy putty to repair the aluminum tank. He allowed the putty to cure overnight, and performed a leak check on Thursday.  With the repair holding and the tank not leaking.  The skipper drained the tank and set about putting it back in the boat.

    After the installation, he filled the tank and the repair seemed to be holding.  Unfortunately, later in the day, the skipper was checking the tank and noticed it had started leaking again.  It was a much smaller leak than before, but leaking non the less.

    IMG_5859

    The skipper pulled the tank again on Friday, found the leak, and applied another round of epoxy putty.  He also went to a auto parts store and bought some JB Weld.  He painted the epoxy repairs with the JB Weld to give two layers of defense to the repairs.

    IMG_5861

    After satisfied that the tank  was fixed, the skipper re-installed the tank late Friday night.

    The crew did take off for a few hours and visited an Aquarium and local History Museum, while they waited for the epoxy to repair.  Both visits were interesting and educational.

    The History Museum concluded with an area dedicated to the prominent families of the area.  One colorful family that all should recognize is the Binney Family.  Well, maybe you do not recognize the name of the family, but I am sure you will recognize the world famous product that Edwin invented in 1903.

    29.1

    The museum told the story of how the wife, Alice, actually came up with the idea of making multiple colored crayon sticks for her students.  Ed, with the help of another man named Smith, had developed a black marker from carbon and oil.  Alice basically requested that they make additional colors because she believed her students would enjoy the multiple colors to draw with at school.  So Ed went back to the drawing board, so to speak, and developed seven additional colored markers.

    Alice also came up with the idea for the name for the colored markers.  She suggested combining the French word craie for ‘chalk,’ and ola from the Latin root for ‘oil.’  The new company marketed the package containing eight colorful oil sticks for five cents a box.

    Saturday, January 27, 2018

    All work and no play makes for a boring day, so the crew headed off to learn more about the local area of Ft Pierce.  The first stop was the McLarty Treasure Museum.  Each coastal area of Florida has a unique name.  The two hundred miles from the Ft Pierce inlet to the Sebastian inlet is nicknamed the Treasure Coast.  This museum answers the question of how it got its name.

    26.2

    Turns out, that the King of Spain, Phillip V, assumed the kingship of Spain when King Charles II of Spain died childless in 1700.  The 18 year old King Phillip V took a 13 year old bride to be the Queen.  In 1714, she died from tuberculosis without reproducing a son.

    On December 24, 1714, the King took a second wife in hopes of producing a male heir.  However, after the marriage, the new Queen would not consummate the marriage until she received a proper dowry.  The King set about obtaining said dowry.

    An eleven ship fleet left Havana  in July of 1715 loaded with gold, silver, and the Queen’s jewels.  They sailed north to catch the Gulf Stream off the coast of Florida.  On July 31, 1715, the fleet was overcome by a hurricane.  All but one of the ships were smashed on the reefs off the coast of Florida between Ft Pierce and Sebastian. Gold coins, pieces of 8, and jewelry still wash ashore in these areas, giving rise to the term Treasure Coast.

    26.4

    The second stop was at the Navy Seal Museum.  Ft Pierce was the home of the Underwater Demolition Team (UDT) training leading up to WWII.  The museum traces the history of the UDT teams accomplishments leading up to the transition to SEAL Teams during the Vietnam War.  The museum then chronicles the evolvement of the SEALs to the modern fighting force we know today.

    27.10

    The crew spent four hours taking in the museum, and easily could have spent double that time.  However, the museum closed at 1600 and the crew had to leave.  If you ever find yourself close to Ft Pierce, make a stop at the SEAL Museum, it is definitely worth a visit. This is definitely a do not miss museum with all the films, interactive displays, and equipment displayed outside.

    27.1

    Boat Name of the Week

    Because of very little travel and movement of boats, the crew did knot find a worthy winner this week.

    Next Week –   

    Looking at the seven day forecast, the winds will continue to howl at over 20 mph with gusts near 30 mph.  This causes the waves to be much bigger (predicted 5-10 feet) than our crew wants to tackle crossing the Gulf Stream.  The other issue is marina availability.  With the high winds most boaters are hunkered down and not moving.  Therefore there is not any place to move south to without anchoring.  But anchoring in 20 mph winds is not much fun.

    There is a small glimmer of hope showing up on Friday and Saturday.  A window may open then as the winds start to taper off.  If the winds fall near 10 mph and out of the south as predicted, a window may open to cross over to the Bahamas on Saturday.

    Loop On – Where the road ends, the water begins. The water goes on forever, and the adventure never ends.

    Eric the Red

  • We Have Lift Off

    We Have Lift Off

    Hello virtual crew members and fellow adventurers!  Welcome back for the 2018 cruising adventure.  Hope you are staying warm where ever you may be holed up for this cold spell.

     

    Summary of week:

    14 MapThe crew made about 200 miles south, over the four days of travel.  The crew stopped at:

    1 – Marine Land Marina for the first time ever.  They will be back in the spring to enjoy the amenities when it is not 35 degrees outside.

    2 – New Smyrna Beach Marina and had a short walk around town.

    3 – Cocoa Village, dropped anchor, and watched NASA launch an Atlas V Rocket at night.

    4- Vero Beach Municipal Marina where they will sit thru the weekend.

    Click on the link to read the day-to-day travel logThis includes weather report, sea  conditions, captain’s log, and a summary of the day’s experience.

    At the Box Office

    This week there will be multiple videos.

    The  first  showcases why some people hold to the thought that you should always wear a lifejacket while out boating.  Sometimes there just is not enough time to put the life saving device on before you have to abandon ship.

    The second is a launch from Kennedy Space Center.  The crew observed the launch Thursday night while anchored near Cocoa Village.  Amazing how the fuel burn lit up the night sky.  The T-10 countdown starts at about 1.24 on the video.  Pretty exciting to watch a night launch from the boat.

    Enjoy!

    To see past videos, click on the link to  the Still Waters II Vimeo site.  The library now contains 47 videos of Still Waters II cruising America’s Great Loop

    Wednesday, January 17, 2018

    The crew started their 2018 cruising season where they left off 2017.  That would be a continuation of the cold weather they have endured ever since they turned south in Maine back in September 2017.

    The skipper assures me that others will not be sharing any empathy because they have had it much worse than our crew.  For example, back home in Texas they have already had three snow falls which is highly unusual.  And while the crew was suffering thru 50 degree days, those back home were experiencing 20 degrees and below.  And those up north even have it much worse.

    The Coast Guard is running up and down the Hudson River breaking up ice so that the tankers carrying heating oil from parts north can get to the market in New York City.  A far cry from the beauty the crew saw as they were cruising the Hudson in October.  I guess all that cool fall weather was a harbinger of things to come.

    Well with the temperatures expected to fall below freezing in northern Florida, the crew opted to pull into Marine Land Marina and get AC power so they could run the heaters.

    This marina was damaged by hurricane Irma, and has new electric power pedestals.  Unfortunately, the new electric code requires GFCI breakers on the power pedestals.  The breakers trip set points are less than 100mS if they sense a ground.   Still Waters II has a relay that trips the required ground at 85mS.  When the crew plugged into the power pedestal, the pedestal breaker was faster than the boat relay so the crew could not get power.

    The dockhand said they had one “old” power pedestal still available.  The skipper looked the situation over and believed he could get the boat safely in the spot.  They shoved off the first dock and headed over to a corner bulkhead opening.  He was able to slip the boat between the bulkhead and a catamaran.

    02 Look north up AICW from dock

    The power worked and the Admiral had heat.  That makes the sun setting  on the first cruise of the new year a complete success.

    1 Sunset at Marine Land - Copy

    Thursday, January 18, 2018

    The crew woke up to below freezing temps and 12 mph north winds.  The crew waited until 0930 to leave.  One reason was to allow the temperature to warm up a bit.  And second, to get help from Eric the dock hand to get out of this tight situation.

    At noon the temperature finally climbed above 40 degrees, but the wind blowing from the north at 15 mph did not make for much comfort.

    The weather did not seem to be bothering the pelican population though.  The smaller Brown Pelicans were numerous, as well as their big brother, the White Pelican.

    4.1

     

    An interesting observation about Pelicans.  The Brown Pelicans usually feed individually and can be seen dive bombing into the water after their prey.  The White Pelicans work together in the water to scare up their prey.  This is why you will normally see large flocks of White Pelicans hanging out together, waiting for the next scheduled feeding time.

    4 Pelican Brief

     

    The dolphins seemed to be feeding aggressively during the day also.

    7 Dolphins.JPG

    By late afternoon the temperature finally climbed to 48 degrees.  This is the warmest weather so far in 2018.  With lows in the 30’s again, the crew opted for a marina stay at New Smyrna Beach.

    The crew got settled and prepared to view a night launch from the Kennedy Space Center.  Unfortunately, within an hour of the launch window, the mission experienced some kind of valve malfunction.  The space center announced a 24 hour delay in the launch.

    All is not lost, this will allow our crew to travel 50 miles closer and get a better view for tomorrow night.

    Friday, January 19, 2018

    The move south seems to be working.  The high today climbed all the way to 60 degrees.  Other than that, there really was not much news today.  The run down the Indian River is a tad boring because the river is more than a mile wide.  Today the channel runs down the middle and there just is not much to see.

    With that said, the skipper did notice a pair of Roseate Spoonbills.  This is only the third time the crew has spotted these birds in the last 2.5 years.  They are a pretty pink with bald heads.

    8.1.JPG

     

    As neat as seeing Roseate Spoonbills, the next bird the crew would see was out of this world.  The crew decided to forgo heat to get a good anchor spot to view the rocket launch.  The overnight low is only forecasted to be 50 degrees, so they should be just fine with no heat.

    13 Atlas V

    The crew managed to set anchor about 10 miles, as a crow flies, from the launch site.   The crew set an alarm for 1930 so they would not miss the launch.  After the alarm went off, the skipper used his countdown app to verify everything was still going to plan.  The rocket launched at 1948 with a hugh fireball that lit up the surrounding area.

    The rocket seemed to almost fly right over Still Waters II and you could see the flames shooting out the back of the rocket. After lift off the crew watched for about 5 minutes, until the rocket was completely out of site.  Pretty impressive.  Just another unique experience on America’s Great Loop.

    Saturday, January 20 , 2018

    The crew got an early start for their run to Vero Beach.  For those who have been following this adventure since the start, you might recall this is where the crew launched their solo cruising career.  Captain Geoff Gow completed his training of the crew and cut the umbilical chord back in July 2015.

    While cruising today, the crew was overtaken by a boat named Island Spirit.  The skipper did not recognize the boat, but he did recognize the voice of the crew member who hailed and asked to pass.  This is the ‘new’ boat of the crew Leap of Faith.

    10 Island Spirit

    Always fun to catch up with ole friends on the water.

    Speaking of ole friends, the skipper got in contact with the crew of Hydrophilic to see if they had gotten across the Gulf Stream and over to the Bahamas.  John wrote back that they have been and still are waiting for a weather window to open.  They have been waiting to cross since December 30, 2017.

    When the crew pulled into Vero Beach, they noticed the mooring field was full of boats.  In fact, there are two boats rafted together on many of the mooring balls.

    11.1

    One ball actually has three catamarans rafted together.

    11 Vero Beach Mooring Field

    The buzz around the docks and in the Captain’s Lounge is all about a potential weather window to cross over to the Bahamas on Tuesday.  By the looks of the marina, all the double parking on Mooring balls, the skipper thinks people are itching just to go.  Many people have been waiting weeks to get across and they are running low on patience.

    Boat Name of the Week

    Best Day Ever found on a sailboat in Vero Beach Municipal Marina.

    17 Boat

    Next Week –   

    The skipper will study the weather and determine if they will head across on Tuesday with the crowd.  Tuesday is a long way off and many things can change between now and then.  If the crew does not cross, they will head to Ft Lauderdale and sit and wait for a better window to get across the Gulf Stream.

    Loop On – Where the road ends, the water begins. The water goes on forever, and the adventure never ends.

    Eric the Red

  • Seasons Greetings

    Hello virtual crew members and fellow adventurers!

    29 Season

    Summary of week:

    To Jax

    After spending a long weekend in Port Royal, the crew set out for their final push to Jacksonville.  They travelled four days and arrived in Jacksonville on Friday.

    1. On Tuesday the crew stopped in Herb Creek after a call from the crew of Monterey.
    2. Wednesday, the crew made a long day where they anchored in the Crescent River.
    3. Thursday, they made another long day and anchored off Cumberland Island.
    4. Jacksonville was an easy reach on Friday.

    Click on the link to read the day-to-day travel log.  This includes weather report, sea conditions, captain’s log, and a summary of the day’s experience.

    At the Box Office

    This week’s video shows Still Waters II cruising south thru South Carolina, Georgia, and arriving in Florida. On the way she has dolphins swim in her bow wake.  Enjoy!

     

    To see past videos, click on the link to the Still Waters II Vimeo site.  The library now contains 47 videos of Still Waters II cruising America’s Great Loop.

     

    Tuesday, November 28, 2017

    About the time the crew crossed the Savannah River and entered Georgia, the phone rang.  The skipper answered the call and found Rob on the other end of the line.  Rob and Glenda hail from Canada, and crew the Monterey.  Our crew last saw Rob and Glenda back in Jacksonville in May.  Turned out that Monterey was just south of Still Waters II.  The two crews agreed to pull into Herb Creek and anchor for the night.

    Still Waters II arrived in the creek first and found a nice wide spot to drop the anchor.  The skipper noticed Monterey pull into the creek, so he radioed Rob and discussed rafting up.

    Still Waters II and Monterey rafted in Herb Creek.

    17.5

    After the boats were rafted, the crews spent the evening talking and catching up on the last few months.

    The skipper, Rob, and Glenda on the sundeck of Still Waters II

    17.4

    Wednesday, November 29, 2017

    Monterey weighing anchor and pulling away.

    17.3

    Waving goodbye to Monterey

    17.1 Leaving Herb Creek

    After leaving the anchorage, the crew spent most of the day making way thru the endless Georgia salt marsh.

    Hi tide in salt marsh

    18 Hi Tide

    At the end of the day the crew pulled into the Crescent River and dropped the anchor for the night.

    Salt marsh glows golden at sunset

    20 Anchor in Crescent Creek

    View from anchorage in Crescent River

    20.1

    Thursday, November 30, 2017

    The weather has started to warm and the winds have fallen off which has combined to cause some very nice cruising days.  However, seemed as though the crew travelled most of the day at low tide.

    Glassy smooth water 

    21 smooth

    Travelling at low tide

    22 Low Tide

    The crew did witness some interesting things on the way south.  The pelicans dive bombing the fish entertained the crew for hours.

    22 Pelican22.122.2

    The crew cruised by this interesting solar sailor with an electric motor.

    24 Solar Sailor

    And when they anchored off Cumberland Island, this herd of wild horses came out to graze.

    25 Cumberland Island Horses

    Friday, December 1, 2017

    After weighing anchor, the crew cruised down the end of Cumberland Island and saw a few more wild horses.  Then they crossed over into the state of Florida and cruised down Amelia Island..

    Wild Horse on southern end of Cumberland Island

    25.1

    Overhead view of Amelia Island with Atlantic Ocean above the beach.

    28 Amelia Island

    After crossing the St Johns River, the crew made a few more miles and pulled into the Palm Cove Marina to end the 2017 cruising season.

    Next Week –   

    Still Waters II will stay at Palm Cove Marina for at least a month.  The crew will transform into CLOD’s (Cruisers Living On Dirt).  They will travel to Texas to visit family and friends.

    Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

    Hope to see you back on board as virtual crew members in 2018 when the crew will head for the Bahamas.

    Loop On – The water goes on forever and the adventure never ends.

    Eric the Red

  • Back to Jack

    Hello virtual crew members and fellow adventures!

     

    bridge_of_lions_medici_lion[1]
    Guarding the Lion’s Bridge

    Eric here catching you up to date on the latest travels of Still Waters II. Click on this link to see the DAY-TO-DAY TRAVEL LOG.

    I would also like to welcome Dirk and Pat, the crew of Wandering Star, aboard as our newest virtual crew members!  They will be launching their Great Loop adventure from Islamorada, Florida very soon.

    Summary of week:

    The crew made the last 70 miles to Jacksonville, Florida on Sunday.  From Jax, the crew rented a car and headed to Texas for the rest of the week to go spend some time with their grandkids.

    Jax

    Still Waters II VIMEO site

    I have posted a short video of the run to Jacksonville, titled JAX

    Sunday, March 26, 2017

    The run to Jacksonville from St Augustine is about 70 miles by the ICW.  The crew got an early start and managed to get off the dock just after sunrise.  When they left the marina and turned towards the Lion’s Bridge, there were two sailboats waiting for the 0800 scheduled opening.

     

    St_Aug_FL_Bridge_of_Lions_west_end06[1]
    Lion’s Bridge

     

    Still Waters II could slip under the 22-foot bridge so the skipper was trying to navigate towards the bridge and stay clear of the two sailboats.  The smaller sailboat captain had not posted a look out and nobody was actually at the helm.  There was one person in the cockpit messing with some lines as the sailboat was making a collision course for Still Waters II.

    As the skipper was trying to avoid a collision, the Admiral yelled over to the sailboat and got the person’s attention.  He immediately looked up and made a course correction to avoid pending collision.

    After this near miss the crew had an enjoyable run to Jacksonville.  The wind that had been howling for the better part of all last week finally decided to take a break.  The water was finally extremely calm.

    IMG_0200

    IMG_0201

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    After a forty-mile run on the ICW, the crew came to the intersection of the ICW and St John’s River.  The crew turned left on the St. John’s River for the 26-mile run to Ortega Landing.

    IMG_0206

    Upon arrival in the downtown Jacksonville area the crew could see that the Railroad Bridge was open.  Unfortunately, as they neared the bridge they heard the bridge horn sound and noticed the RR Bridge begin to close.  The skipper backed the boat down and waited for the train to appear and cross the bridge.  As you can see in the photo, Still Waters II would not make it under this 9 foot clearance.

    IMG_0208

    The crew has not had much luck making this particular bridge.  Seems that they catch a train on the bridge each and every time they pass through Jacksonville.

    IMG_0209

    After the train passed over the bridge, the skipper expected the bridge to open.  However, the bridge stayed closed and the electronic sign continued to announce the arrival of another train.  After a few minutes more, another train arrived and also crossed over the bridge.  This train was moving extremely slow and had about 100 cars.  It took over 20 minutes for the train to clear the bridge.

    IMG_0210

    When the bridge finally opened, the skipper allowed all the small boat traffic to clear the fender area of the bridge before passing through.

    IMG_0211

    After the RR bridge delay, the crew headed towards the Ortega River and the last bridge of the day.

    IMG_0212

    Once on the other side of the above bridge, the crew headed to the marina to find their slip on the B Dock.  It was a tight fit in the slip, but the crew managed to stern Still Waters II into her berth.

    Next Week

    The crew will keep the boat at Ortega Landing in Jacksonville until April 10th.  They will then move the boat up river to Huckins to have her hauled out and some work performed.  After she splashes back in the water the crew will decide when and where they are headed next.

    For the 2017 season though, they do plan to head north and cruise the Down East Loop.

    Loop On – The water goes on forever and the adventure never ends.

    Eric the Red

  • big, Big, BIG Boats

    Welcome back virtual crew members and fellow adventures!

    Eric here catching you up to date on the latest travels of Still Waters II.

    img_0253
    Painted by Kobra, a famous Brazilian street artist.  Found in West Palm Beach.

    I would also like to welcome Five Experts aboard as our latest virtual crew member.  Hope you enjoy the cruise around America’s Great Loop.

    Summary of week:

    After crossing their wake in Ft Myers, the crew took a few days off to celebrate their Gold Flag achievement.

    okeechobee_waterway_map

    On Wednesday, they headed out to start their second trip around the Loop.

    They headed east across Florida on the Okeechobee Waterway.  On Friday, they turned south on the Atlantic Inter Costal Waterway at Stuart and anchored at Peck Lake.  On Saturday, they continued south and pulled into Palm Harbor Marina in West Palm Beach.

    Link to see a map of the travel stops, day-to-day travel log, and skipper comments.

    Wednesday, February 22, 2017

    The crew set out on the Caloosahatchee River towards Moore Haven.  Unfortunately, it was raining when they left and the rain followed them as they made their way east.

    img_0172
    Looking out the front window, wishing for windshield wipers

    Finally, about noon the clouds began to break and the sun rays found the water.  Interesting enough, it rained on the crew last time they passed thru on these waters.

    img_0173
    Looking out an open side window

    However, the rain did not dampen the spirits of Still Waters II.  She had a big smile on her face when she docked at Moore Haven with her new Gold Burgee.  Day 1 of many in the books.

    img_0178

    Thursday, February 23, 2017

    Today the crew would cross Lake Okeechobee.  The winds were favorable, meaning the crew would have light winds and following seas as they crossed the big lake.  Before they got to the lake though they had some good critter watching.

    Many birds were out early feeding along the canal.  This one was caught in the act of catching a fish.

    img_0180

    They saw three alligators out sunbathing.  This was the first one of the day.

    img_0183

    Then just before entering the lake the crew noticed a crop duster in the air fumigating the local crops.  Then the plane took a course right down the canal towards Still Waters II.  The skipper thought they were going to get dusted.

    img_0181

    Then, just before the fly over, the plane pulled up to port and flew away.

    img_0182

    Soon after this little incident the crew turned onto the lake.

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    Initially, the narrow channel is well marked.  But after the first several miles, the next twenty miles are met with fewer and fewer markers.  The last 7 miles only had one marker showing the way into the Port Mayaca Lock.

     

    img_0185
    Red and Green day markers at the edge of the channel

     



    As the crew neared the Port Mayaca Lock, they heard a west bound vessel hail the lockmaster.  The lockmaster gave the vessel instructions to just motor through the lock.

    img_0187

    As Still Waters II approached the lock, the lockmaster gave her the green light and told the skipper that both gates were open and to pass through with No Wake.  After 9,500 miles, the crew is still experiencing ‘firsts’ on the Loop.  This was the first time to just motor thru a functional lock.

    img_0188
    Port Mayaca Lock, both gaates wide open

    The excitement of no delay at the lock was short lived.  After clearing the lock, the crew noticed that the normally open Amtrak bridge was closed.  The skipper reached for the radio to request a bridge opening.  But before he could key the mike, he heard a train whistle and then the train appeared and crossed the bridge.  After the train was clear of the bridge, the bridge tender raised the bridge and allowed the crew to pass on down the Stuart Canal.

    img_0189
    Waiting for the bridge to fully open

    The crew saw a couple more gators in the Stuart Canal.

    img_0192

    img_0206

    While turning around to get some pictures of a gator, the crew flushed a Bald Eagle out of his perch. The skipper watched the eagle till it landed on a power pole.   After the gator photo shoot, the crew headed back east and took a few pics of the Bald Eagle.

    img_0201

    After docking, the skipper ran into a young couple from Texas who has stopped working, bought a 36 foot Cabot, and are cruising these Florida waters.  They just completed their shakedown cruise to Miami and back to Indiantown.  They have a list of things to fix and then they will head out to explore some more.  They plan to head over to the Bahamas for their next adventure after needed repairs.

    Also at the Indiantown Marina, there was a bunch of French being spoken.  Turns out there were a half dozen boats down from Montreal spending the winter here.  The skipper spoke with them as they gathered around the table to enjoy docktails.

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    Friday, February 24, 2017

    The crew set out on the Stuart River and headed to the beginning of the Okeechobee Waterway at mile 0 near Stuart.  As they approached the Stuart Lock they saw this Texas flag flying off a sailboat leaving the lock.  The skipper flashed the hook ‘em horns sign and the sailboat crew smiled and flashed the sign back.  The sailboat’s homeport was Houston, Texas.

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    As they entered Stuart, they had the challenge of making three bridges in a bunch of traffic.  A large floating barge crossed in front of Still Waters II and it was more than a little disturbing trying to figure out what the barge’s intentions were.  By the time the bridge started opening the barge had dropped an anchor and was out of the way.

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    After the bridges, the crew headed for the Stuart Inlet which ends the Okeechobee and connects with the Atlantic Inter Costal Waterway (ICW) at mile 988.

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    Stuart Inlet, Crossroads of Okeechobee and Atlantic ICW

    The crew turned south and started down the ICW.  This is the first time the crew has seen these waters by boat.  This also marks the official first side trip of the second Loop.

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    The cruise south witnessed many boats on the water.  This was one of the many interesting boats the crew saw.

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    After dropping anchor in Peck Lack, the skipper launched the dinghy and rowed the crew over to shore.  They pulled the dinghy up on shore and walked through an interesting tunnel to the Atlantic.

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    Beached dinghy near here
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    Tunnel to the Atlantic
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    Atlantic Ocean

    Saturday, February 25, 2017

    The crew weighed anchor and headed towards West Palm Beach in the morning.  Initially the run was through Mangrove lined channels.

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    As the crew moved further south they began to leave behind the Florida Wilderness and more into the south Florida mansions.  This was an early taste of what was to come as the crew headed south.  Makes you want to ask the question, “Is that boat really bigger than their house?”

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    When the crew arrived at the Jupiter Inlet the water had turned a beautiful turquoise blue.  There was a dredge operation in progress at the inlet due to constant shoaling in the area.  The skipper was busy navigating the busy construction area as they passed this lighthouse.

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    The manuevering and navigating through the S-curves at the Jupiter Inlet finally gave way to more straight line cruising.  The crew passed some interesting yard art, or is that two chairs on that point?

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    Cruising on Saturday was bound to result in many boaters as the morning wore on. More and more boaters continued to come out and enjoy the day.  This bridge tender announced that no boats were to pass until the bridge spans were fully open.  Even the little boats had to wait.

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    After the bridge the crew entered Lake Worth.  The lake was one of the few spots that was not posted NO Wake today.  That lead to many boats speeding by constantly throwing all kinds of nasty wakes.  The crew was happy when they got across the Lake and back into a No Wake Zone.  Maybe the skipper will stop the moaning about No Wake Zones.

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    As they approached West Palm Beach they saw this mega yacht.  The little boat anchored in the foreground is 36 feet long.  Not sure how long the big blue boat is, but she is well over 150 feet.

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    After docking the crew went walking around West Palm Beach.  The main drag in town is named Clematis St. but it was dead in the early afternoon.  The locals claimed that it will start hopping when the sun goes down.

    In the meantime, the crew found the local ice cream store.  They missed it the first time walking by though.  The store is decorated in stuffed animals, and the crew mistook it for a toy store.  After correcting the error of their ways, they discovered the store specialized in Italian ice cream.  The crew took a chance and tried some.  It was good, but still not as good as the Kawartha Ice Cream in Canada.

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    Next Week

    The crew will be in route to Miami where they will rendezvous with some friends who are flying in from Texas.  After these folks get onboard, the crew and friends will head south towards the Florida Keys and eventually Key West.

    Loop On – The water goes on forever and the adventure never ends.

    Eric the Red

  • ODE of the White Flag

    ODE of the White Flag

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    My crew learned of the Great Loop in 2010 from a business associate named Al Darelius.  Soon after, my crew joined the AGLCA and began their five-year planning process to circumnavigate America’s Great Loop.  Somewhere along the way they ordered a White Burgee from the AGLC store.

    It was then that I was taken off the shelf and stuffed in an envelope by someone in the home office and mailed to this untrained outfit that would become my crew.

    By June 2015, my crew retired from work, left Texas, and moved aboard their boat in Ft Myers.  The next thing I knew, I got the shaft, and found myself proudly displayed on the bow pulpit of Still Waters II.

    The crew’s insurance required that they get some training by a licensed captain before they could solo in their boat and start this Great Loop Adventure.  After three days of intense training, the insurance company was satisfied, the licensed captain cut the umbilical cord, and my crew was on their own.

     

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    Thanks for the great training Geoff!

     

    The first time these two tried to dock by themselves it was quite the goat rope.  I am pretty sure I saw tears in the Admirals eyes as she stated that she was not sure if she was ever going to master these new skills of seamanship.

    The skipper of this crew is a persistent whipper snapper and pressed on towards their goal of completing the Great Loop while encouraging the Admiral to hang in there, it will get better.

    Something weird happened though on their 9,555-mile journey around the Great Loop.  Slowly but surely, I could see that they both were gaining confidence in these new skills.  As they began to gain even more confidence they began to venture off the beaten path and allowed me to lead them on many side trips:

    • St Johns River
    • Across the Pamlico Sound to the outer banks to visit:

    o   Ocracoke Island

    o   Cape Hatteras

    • Albemarle Sound Loop
    • Circled around to do both the Dismal Swamp and Virginia Cut
    • Circumnavigated the Chesapeake, up the west coast, down the east coast
    • Potomac River to Washington DC
    • Delaware River north to Philadelphia
    • Long Cut thru Canada:

    o   St Lawrence River to Montreal

    o   Ottawa River to Ottawa

    o   Rideau Canal to Kingston

    o   Trent-Severn

    o   Georgian Bay

    o   The North Channel

    o   St Mary’s River to Sault St Marie

    • Lake Superior, crossed Whitefish Bay to visit Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum
    • Cumberland River to Nashville
    • Tennessee River to Chattanooga and then on to Fort Louden, then:

    o   Headwaters of Little Tennessee River

    o   Headwaters of Tellico River

     

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    Still Waters II, One mile from crossing her wake

    The water view from one mile out.

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    But today, February 19, 2017 at 1122, something even weirder happened that I did not expect.  After 19 months, 23 days of me leading these two now seasoned crew members around the Loop, they pulled into the marina where they started and Still Waters II crossed her wake.

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    They promptly took me down off the bow pulpit and hoisted a Gold Burgee.  While high fives, hugs and kisses were exchanged, pictures were taken of the changing of the Burgee, I found myself relegated to the corner of the salon.

    Oh, such is the life and times of a White Burgee.

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    But what tales I can tell of all the wonderful places and people we have seen.  No matter what happens next in my life, that Gold Burgee can never replace the memory making moments that I experienced on the Great Loop.

    Thanks to all the people that helped this crew around the Great Loop such as the folks back in the home office and the forum hall of famers (Joe Pica, Alan Lloyd, Jim Healy, Foster, and the other Dave Fuller in Georgia)

    In addition, thanks to the class of 2015, 2016, and 2017 cruisers who have truly enriched the crew’s lives, made them better people, and shared your lives with them.  There are no better people than the people in the boating community and the AGLCA!

    Lastly, thanks to all the folks who have followed the crew’s blog and joined on as virtual crew members.  Your feedback, comments, and encouragement were always welcome.

    **********************************************************************

    Eric here with a few comments.  When I signed up to document this adventure for the crew, I took the liberty to hire Count Dracula as the official statistician on board Still Waters II.  He counted and compiled the following stats of the journey:

    Started                                            June 28, 2015

    Ended                                              February 19, 2017

    Total Time                                      1 year, 7 months, 23 days

    Time off the boat                          8 weeks

    Days travelled                                235

    Total Distance                                9,555 stm

    Average distance travelled          40.6 miles/day

    Marina stays                                   131

    Anchor nights                                 79

    Nights on Lock Wall                      36

    Days on the Hard                          9

     

    Engines are CAT 3208TA, Twin 275 HP for total of 550 HP

    Typically set throttles for 1,200 rpm and will travel 7-8 mph depending on wind and current

    Engine Run Hours           1,294

    Gallons of fuel                 4,167

    Cost of fuel                       $10,155

    Avg Cost per gallon         $2.44

    Fuel Burn                          3.2 gal/hr

     

    Other miscellaneous data:

    Bridges                              742

    Locks                                 151

    Countries                          2 (USA and Canada)

    Providences                     2 (Quebec and Ontario)

    States                                17

    Number of hours that the skipper thought he would be arrested while trying to enter Canada – 6

    ********************************************************************************

    The crew has decided that once around is not enough.  There are many places that they still have not gotten to explore such as the Florida Keys, Bahamas, Lake Champlain, Ohio River,……

    So, they will be departing Sweetwater Landing on Wednesday, February 22, 2017 and heading east across Florida on the Okeechobee Waterway to launch their second multi-year trip around the Great Loop.

    I hope you will continue to stay aboard as virtual crew members and watch and read as Still Waters II begins her quest for a Platinum Burgee denoting a second completion around the Loop.

    First up, the Florida Keys and the Bahamas.

    The water goes on forever and the adventure never ends!

    Eric the Red

     

  • Shell of a Day

    Hello virtual crew members and fellow adventures!

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    Eric here catching you up to date on the latest travels of Still Waters II. Click on this link to see the day- to-day travel log.

    I would also like to welcome aboard Cookie G. as our newest virtual crew member.

    Summary of week:

    The crew left Venice and made their way to the Pelican Bay anchorage across from Cayo Costa State Park.  On Friday they headed to Ft Myers to enjoy the Edison Festival of Lights.

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    Sunday – Tuesday, February 12-14, 2017

    The crew continued to enjoy the laid-back retirement vibe of Venice.  They walked the historic downtown and actually found the worst fudge on the loop.  How fudge can be so creamy and have almost no taste is baffling to the skipper.  He was a trooper though and suffered thru the pound of peanut butter fudge he bought.  The Admiral did her part to eat the chocolate fudge, but in the end the skipper took one for the team and finished it off also.

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    Venice bike trail running along side the ICW

    The crew spent much of Tuesday riding their bikes around the island and walking the many beaches of Venice.  The crew is still amazed how empty the beaches seem to be, even in this peak season for Venice.  The only thing that seems to be full are the restaurants.

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    There is one restaurant at the marina that opens at 1100, closes at 1000, and is packed the whole day.  Cars sit in the parking lot roadway waiting for a car to leave so they can pull up just to get a parking space.  Boaters actually make the marina a destination just to go in and eat.

    With all this activity, the crew had to check it out for themselves.  The Admiral had a wonderful fish sandwich and the skipper’s grouper bites were outstanding.  Best of all, they actually found a lull in the activity mid-day and only had two people in front of them in the wait line.  Yes, life is good on the beach.

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    A bad day fishing is better than a good day at work

    You know you are in a quiet town when the big thing to do is drive to the park and watch the nightly sunsets over the ocean.  But as they say, when in Rome do as the Romans do, so the crew would go walk out to the jetty and sit and watch the dolphins play while the sun would slide down and out of site.

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    Tuesday night the crew sat and talked with a couple of locals as the sun did its thing.  After the sun went down the crew invited them aboard for a quick tour of the boat.

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    The Snow Moon was also visible coming up in the east one evening.

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    This 1926 wooden yacht made its way to Venice and tied up next to Still Waters II.  The owner is selling 20 shares in the boat for $500,000 each.  But do not take too long to make your decision because there are only three shares left.

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    If part ownership in a yacht is not your idea of living the dream, maybe this 48 foot Cat that also parked next to Still Waters II is more your style.  It can be yours for a mere 12 million.

    hayfu-ii-front

    Wednesday, February 15, 2017

    The crew set out towards Pelican Bay today with the idea that they would anchor for two nights.  However, mother nature was back to huffing and puffing with high winds so they were not sure if they would anchor or not.

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    On the way to Pelican Bay

    About half-way to Pelican Bay they ducked into Cape Haze Marina for fuel.  Active Captain showed the diesel price at 2.02, the cheapest fuel in Florida, and the skipper was not going to pass that up.  The marina sells fuel at their cost.  It was a bit trying to get Still Waters II back into the fuel dock but the skipper finally made the dock.  After taking on 132 gallons of fuel, the skipper was delighted to learn that the price was 1.90 a gallon.  Yes, sir re Bob, this is a good deal and worth the trouble.

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    Tad bit shallow for Still Waters II

    After the fuel stop the crew made way to Pelican Bay.  When they arrived, there were already 15 boats in the anchorage.  The skipper found a good spot and the crew became boat number 16.  About an hour and a half later, two sailboats came in and joined the party.  The cruising guide said this was a popular anchorage, but who knew this many folks would be here mid-week.

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    A few of the newest neighbors

    Thursday, February 16, 2017

    The skipper launched the new Walker Bay dinghy and rowed over to the Cayo Costa State Park dinghy dock.

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    Upon arrival, he walked about a mile to the Gulf side of the island.

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    If you have ever hiked with the skipper you will recognize this next line, “the beach is just around the next bend.”

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    After arriving at the beach, the skipper found this most amazing shrub.  He did not know that shells grew on trees.

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    After getting a mile from the campground he discovered shell heaven.  He found nine Sand Dollars and many large sea shells.  In fact, there were so many shells he could not possibly harvest them all.  He found a few good samples to take and left the rest for the next person to make their way down the beach.

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    A few other interesting finds along the beach…..

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    A few birds were in formation along the shore guarding the shells.

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    On the way back to the dinghy dock a Park Ranger picked up the skipper and saved him the mile walk back to the dinghy. Now all he has to do is row back out to Still Waters II.

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    Still Waters II at anchor in Pelican Bay

    Friday, February 17, 2017

    Low tide was at 0800 this morning, so the crew had to wait for the tide to rise before setting out to clear a shallow spot in the entrance of the bay    When the crew went to weigh anchor, they found grass wrapped around the anchor chain.  With a little more than 140 feet of chain out, it took about 40 minutes to retrieve and clean the anchor chain.

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    Once underway, the crew had a wonderful day on the water.  The weather was perfect for a day on the water so there were a lot of other boaters out enjoying themselves.  It was not uncommon to see at least seven boats headed towards Still Waters II at any given time.  The crew is glad that they are not making this run on Saturday.

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    As the crew continued south on the GICW, they finally came to day marker red 16 which is the furthest the crew will travel south on this loop adventure.  After passing red 16, the crew turned northeast and headed to Ft. Myers.

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    Headed up the Caloosahatchee River towards Ft. Myers.

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    This water front store brings a whole new meaning to the words convenience store.

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    Turns out that this weekend is the Edison Festival of Lights and the largest parade in the southeast will be Saturday night.  This also means that the marinas are all full, but the crew snagged a slip because a long-term slip holder had his boat out for maintenance and agreed to allow the crew to use the slip for the weekend.

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    The crew feels pretty fortunate to have gotten a space to stay.  The crew talked to some boater friends that they found over in the west bay of the marina and learned that they book their slips a year in advance to ensure they have a spot for the Festival.

     

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    Yes, the 300 slip marina is full

    After docking the crew walked over to the main stage of the Edison Festival of Lights and listened to some live music.

    The first band played the blues and were pretty good.

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    The second band was named SOWFLO and played rock/reggae.

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    Saturday, February 18, 2017

    The crew discovered another public art display in the Ft Myers River District.  This was a 25-piece exhibit of Colombian artist Edgardo Carmona.  The exhibit just completed an 18 city tour in Europe.

    A few of the pieces…….

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    A snow cone vendor

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    El vendedor de raspo

    Fixing to score 10 points on the next domino play.

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    Juego de Domino

     

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    Faena En La Plaza
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    Trialogo

    While walking around in the morning to look for the art work, the crew noticed that the parade route sidewalk was almost already ‘reserved.’  People had come and placed tape down to mark there spots.  The skipper asked the locals about the practice and the locals all agreed that it was an acceptable practice and people honored the system.

    So come early in the morning, mark your spot, go home, and show back up at 1800 to claim your good spot on the parade route.  The skipper is not sure what he thinks of this system.

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    Speaking of marking your spot.  One last sculpture.

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    Territorio

    The parade turned out to be a little soggy.  The rain began to fall about 1700, two hours before the start of the parade.  There was a light drizzle for most of the parade.  But it did not seem to put a damper on the parade entrants or crowd.  There were over 130 entrants and it took almost two hours to pass by where the crew watched the parade.  The crew is glad they stayed and watched the parade, but are not going to be booking a year in advance to be back.

    Next Week

    The crew is only 10 miles from their ultimate goal of crossing their wake at Sweetwater Landing and completing their Loop Adventure.  After taking a few days off to celebrate they will head across the Okeechobee Waterway and head south towards Miami.

    Loop On – The water goes on forever and the adventure never ends.

    Eric the Red

  • Crabby Bill

    Hello virtual crew members and fellow adventures!

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    Crabby Bill Dolphin

    Eric here catching you up to date on the latest travels of Still Waters II. Click on this link to see the day- to-day travel log.

    I would also like to welcome new virtual crew members Port Canaveral Transportation. I am not sure where we will put the limo yet, but I am sure we will figure something out.

    Welcome aboard!

    Lastly, I will be dedicating this post to a good friend of the skipper, Bill Nix.  The skipper and Bill met back in 1987 and became good friends and fishing buddies.  Bill was also a huge fan of Salvador Dali’s work.  He also has an uncanny resemblemce to Crabby Bill.

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    Bill Nix, friend extraordinaire
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    Crabby  Bill ‘s is a favorite restaurant of the crew

     

    Summary of week:

    The crew left Clearwater and cruised to Gulfport to visit the Salvador Dali Museum.  After a surreal experience in Gulfport they made their way to Venice.

    Monday February 6, 2017

    With only a short run of 25 miles to Gulfport, the crew got a late start.  What a difference a few days makes.  With everybody back at work there were very few boaters on the water today.  A much more comfortable and enjoyable time today on the water.

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    Condos lining the GICW

    Much of the run was through condo lined beaches and shores.  When there was not a condo there would be private residences.  This meant that the NO WAKE signs were posted along most of the run today which slowed progress down.

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    McDonald’s on the water = milkshakes and hot apple pies for crew members

    The skipper noticed that a McDonalds was positioned along the water with a private dock.  The crew decided to dock and go buy milkshakes for an afternoon snack.  An added bonus was a Publix grocery store next door, so the Admiral also made a small provisioning run for a few items that the crew needed.

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    Arriving at the McDonald dock

    After arriving in Gulfport, the crew took a short walk to check out the waterfront part of town.

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    Overhead view of Gulfport Municipal Marina

     

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    Manatee mural on side of business

    Of course, the Admiral found the swing overlooking the Bay.

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    Tuesday, February 7, 2017

    Today’s destination was the Dali Museum which houses the largest collection of Salvador Dali’s work outside of Europe.

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    Dali Museum

    The crew wanted to stay at the St. Petersburg Marina which is next door to the museum, but the transient docks are under repair and their was no slip available.  Thus, they went to Gulfport which is about eight miles from the museum.

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    Spiral staircase inside the museum

    The skipper found a bus route that was near by (1 mile walk to pick up bus) and that would drop the crew off within a quarter mile of the museum.  The bus ride took them through some of the finest neighborhoods in St Petersburg, NOT!

    After arriving at the museum, they purchased tickets and took the audio tour of the museum and exhibits.  The audio tour was excellent.  If you would like to participate in the audio tour, go to the app store and download the free Dali Museum Virtual Tour app.  The app will show the works on exhibit and give a brief explanation on the piece.  The app is the same tour we had at the museum.

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    17 year old Dali self portrait
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    The Disintegration of the Persistence of Memory

    The above painting was a redo of his Persistence of Memory painting that he completed in 1932.  The above project was completed in the 1950’s after atomic energy was discovered and shows time melting away while the other parts are breaking down into their subatomic pieces.

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    Gala Contemplating the Mediterranean

    The above painting is a double image.  At the museum, if you stand 20 meters from the painting you can see a portrait of Abe Lincoln.  If you squint your eyes while looking at the pic you can see Lincoln.  Also, if you hold a mirror up to the painting or pic and look at the reflection you can see Lincoln.

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    The Rolls Royce was an interesting piece.  Usually you get in a car to get out of the rain.  If you look at the driver, you will notice he has on a deep dive suit and helmet.  The backseat has been enclosed and water is falling along the windows.  The passenger is a mermaid.

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    Famous Dali moustache in the gardens.

    Another neat exhibit was a virtual reality tour of the painting Archeological Reminiscence of Millet’s “Angelus”.

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    The virtual reality tour put you in the painting and you could walk around inside the painting to explore it closer.

    Overall, this was an exceptional day for the crew at the Dali Museum.

    Now all they have to do is figure out how to get back to the boat using their all day bus tickets.  There is always adventure around every corner.  They got on a route 23 bus that should have taken them within about half a mile of the marina.

    But somewhere on the route the bus driver stopped and got off the bus.  A few minutes later he got back on the bus and took off again.  The skipper noticed that they were now on route 14 verse 23.  The skipper pulled up the route maps and laid 14 and 23 out together.  He found a spot where 14 and 23 intersected.

    At the intersection, the crew got off the 14 bus and had to wait 20 minutes for a 23 bus.  Once on the 23 bus they were once again headed in the right direction.  The 7 mile distance back to the marina took almost two hours to execute.  hmmm

    Wednesday, February 8, 2017

    As the crew traveled further south on the west coast of Florida, the competition for marina slips has begun to increase.  The crew had planned to stay in Sarasota for a few days, but the marina slips were not available because a Yacht Club had arrived and taken most of the spots through the weekend.  There was one mooring ball available, but the wind is supposed to kick up to 20 mph on Thursday and the crew did not want to be out in the middle of the water bouncing around in the wind and waves tethered to a mooring ball.  The crew opted to move further south to Venice.

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    Crossing Tampa Bay

    The 52-mile run was made even longer because the course went through some narrow channels that were marked for slow speed due to Manatee Zones.

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    Following a sailboat in a manatee zone

    When the crew was not in a manatee zone they were in areas with houses and canals which were posted No Wake.

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    One of hundreds of canals lined with boats in this area

    Overhead view of a few canals.

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    Then there were the million dollar homes that lined the shore also.

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    This home has water on three sides

    The crew eventually arrived in Venice where they will hang out for a week because the marina provides a  pay for 5 nights, get 2 nights free.  The skipper has trouble passing up free.

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    Docked at Crow’s Nest Marina

    Saturday, February 11, 2017

    The crew spent an uneventful day cleaning and working on the boat yesterday, so today they decided to walk around historic Venice and check the place out.

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    One of the places the locals and snowbirds come to watch the sunsets.

    The first observation is that this is definitely a place that the retired crowd has taken over.  There are not many folks under 50 even visible.  The beach is full of older folks but no youngsters.  It is a very quiet and peaceful town.  There also is a very large snowbird population here based on the license plates driving around town.

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    Sailing at sunset

    The crew finally discovered an historical marker that explained the retirement vibe going on in town.  The town was actually designed and built to be a retirement community for railroad employees.  The ‘city plan’ was completed in 1926 by John Nolen.  George A Fuller was selected as the contractor to build the town according to the plan.  The first road was completed in 1926.

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    Folks watching the sunset from the jetty

    The Great Depression put a major hit on the development of the area and much of the plan was put on hold.  The town got a kick start when an Army Air Base was established here  in 1942.

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    A sad claim to fame is that three of the 9/11 hijackers completed their flight training at Huffman Aviation which is located at the Venice Municipal Airport.

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    February Snow Moon from Marina

     

    Next Week – The goal is to actually make it back to Sweet Water Landing Marina by the end of next week.  You might recall that this is the marina where this adventure started back on June 28, 2015.

    The skipper is watching the weather and wind to determine the actual path and travel days to make these last 58 miles before crossing their wake and  hoisting the gold flag.

    Loop On – The water goes on forever and the adventure never ends.

    Eric the Red

  • D-Day, Gulf Crossing

    Hello virtual crew members and fellow adventures!

    5-ts
    Sponge Diver Memorial

    Eric here catching you up to date on the latest travels of Still Waters II. Click on this link to see the day- to-day travel log.

    I would also like to welcome Scott M. aboard as our newest virtual crew member.  Scott plans to start the loop in May 2017.  Welcome aboard Scott.

    Summary of week:

    The crew moved to Carrabelle on Monday and launched their Gulf crossing to Tarpon Springs on Wednesday.  They then moved to Clearwater on Saturday.

    gulf-crossing

    Sunday, January 29, 2017

    The wind was forecasted to lay down Saturday about 1600.  Well that did not happen.  In fact, the winds continued to blow all day Sunday, so the crew cancelled their anticipated run to Apalachicola.  The skipper was busy recalculating the next route based on the latest weather information.

    Monday, January 30, 2017

    The wind finally laid down about 0200 in the early morning.  The crew decided to skip Apalachicola and make the 62-mile run all the way to Carrabelle because there looked to be a good weather window to cross the Gulf on Tuesday night / Wednesday.

    2-shrimp-boats
    Shrimp Boats near Port St Joe

    The crew buddy boated with The Lord’s Provision.  The two crews left just before 0900 and made good time over to The Moorings at Carrabelle.  The crew met up with  Abaco Lady, Journey and Jo-Ca, also staged at The Moorings Marina to cross the Gulf on Tuesday.

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    The Lord’s Provision, a 48′ Viking

    Based on the ever-changing weather conditions, all the crews agreed that a Wednesday / Thursday crossing looked better than launching out on Tuesday.

    Tuesday, January 31, 2017

    Tuesday became a day of relaxation and planning as all the crews were gearing up for the Gulf crossing.

    Roger, the skipper of The Lord’s Provision, decided to grill chicken for everybody, so we met on board his boat for lunch and the skipper dubbed it ‘The Last Supper.’

    11-lunch-on-the-lords-provision
    Lunch on The Lord’s Provision

    After lunch, the crews had a final preparation meeting to finalize plans to cross the Gulf.  The Lord’s Provision, Abaco Lady, and Journey were going to go fast (18 mph) and complete the crossing in 10 hours.  While Jo-Ca and Still Waters II planned to go slow (9 mph) and complete the crossing in 20 hours.

    16-carrabelle
    The Fisherman’s Wife – Some of the best fresh seafood on the loop

    After the crew meeting, most folks went to The Fisherman’s Wife for supper.  While at supper, the crew ran into the crew of Tranquility III.  The crew of Tranquility III was interested in joining the slow boats for the crossing.  The final preps were made, and the slow boats decided to leave together at 1500 on Wednesday.

    14-carrabelle
    World’s Smallest Police Station

    After spending a few days in Carrabelle the crew learned a few things worthy to share.  For starters, the town was incorporated in May of 1893.  The area had many natural resources of virgin forest and a deep water harbor.  The railroad also came to town to help the area prosper.

    During WWII Camp Gordon Johnston trained 250,000 men in the art of amphibian warfare.  The area was selected for this specific task due to the barrier islands, Dog Island and St George Island.  The army practiced their beach landings on these two islands that the crew will pass between on their way into the Gulf of Mexico.

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    East Pass to the Gulf.  St George Island on the right and Dog Island to the left

    Wednesday night / Thursday, February 1-2, 2017

    The fast boats got up before the crack of dawn and were off the dock by 0530.

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    One of the three slow boats crossing with Still Waters II

    The slow boats continued their final preps and were off the dock by 1500.  One minor issue though was an unexpected wind that blew in about 1400.  Before leaving the dock, the skipper reviewed his favorite weather sites and learned that this new wind was predicted to lay down at dark (1830).

    2-buddy-boat-for-gulf-crosing
    Tranquility III preparing to leave the dock for the Gulf crossing

    Unfortunately, when the crew got out of East Pass and entered the Gulf of Mexico, the crew found the winds about 12 mph and the waves 2-3 feet.  The three boats decided to continue to cross the Gulf based on the wind forecast.  Again, the forecast was wrong.  The wind did not lay down until about 2300 and the waves did not calm down until midnight.   This made for a very lumpy, rolly, rocky, ride for the first nine hours of the run.

    Tranquility III took the lead across the Gulf.  They have auto pilot and set a waypoint on the Red 4 Marker on the other side of the Gulf.  Still Waters II fell in behind Tranquility III and followed her across the Gulf.

    6-inspiration-iii
    Headed to East Pass and the Gulf of Mexico

    The swells were hitting the boat on the starboard beam while the windblown waves were hitting the bow of the boat.  With the average waves at 2-3 feet, there were many waves in the 4-5-foot range.  The period between waves was less than 4 seconds.

    Just a few examples of just how bad it was for the first nine hours:

    1. Tranquility III had three people onboard. Their plan was to have two people at the helm at all times, and one person below sleeping.  Within the first hour of entering the Gulf, one crew member got seasick.  Then, within the next hour, a second crew member got seasick.  Now they had one member at the helm and two members below trying to recover from the Gulf Flu.

     

    1. Onboard the Jo-Ca, the constant beating of the waves on the bow caused a port hole to blow out. Now every time a wave hit the boat they were taking on water.  Eventually this caused a high bilge alarm to warn the crew of a problem.  The forward stateroom was soaked due to the incoming water.  It took about an hour, but eventually the crew was able to affect a temporary MacGyver repair that lasted the duration of the run.

     

    1. Onboard Still Waters II, a large wave hit the boat that caused the cookie cache to go flying across the helm resulting in the loss of over half the cookies. Anybody who knows the skipper knows that this is a real big deal.
    8-sunset
    Sunset on the Gulf following Tranquility III

    Just a little bit after dark, the crew saw a red flare shoot up.  The flare was judged to be a long distance away due to the height of the flare.  The crew tried hailing any distressed vessels in the area, but there was no response.

    Then about 45 minutes later a second and third flare was seen.  These two flares were just off the starboard side and were very high.  Again, when the crew tried to hail any distressed boat, there was no response.  While the skipper was trying to hail the boat shooting the flares, the Captain of Jo-Ca hailed the Coast Guard to report the flares and our GPS position.

    The Coast Guard reported that they were performing flare training in the area and NOT to launch a search for the boat.  Interesting enough, there were no more flares after the call to the Coast Guard.  I guess training was complete.  Hmmmm, interesting indeed.  The Admiral was just relieved that they did not have to go searching for any boater in the dark and bad waves.

    8-1-white-light
    This was the crews view for the 12 hours across the Gulf in the dark.  Following the little white light on Tranquility III.  The light is dead center of pic.

    A little around 2100, a large light was seen on the horizon.  As the three-boat flotilla got closer, the crew could tell that it was a sport fisher boat with a tuna tower.  The skipper checked the charts and determined that the nearest land was 61 miles away.  The crew began to wonder why on earth would someone be out here fishing in these nasty conditions.

    A few minutes later the Captain of the sport fisher boat hailed the flotilla.  The Captain could not identify what kind of vessel the three boats were.  At the time, the three boats were running with only a quarter mile distance between boats to maintain visual contact during then night crossing.  The Captain thought we were a large tow and was beginning to worry that we were getting way to close for his comfort level.

    The Captain of Tranquility III, Mike, let the sport fisher know that we were actually three separate boats crossing the Gulf.  Mike also inquired of the sport fisher, “What are you doing out here in this weather?”  The sport fisher responded in a southern drawl, “Oh, we’re just out here catch’n a few red snappers.”

    After six hours of misery bouncing around in the waves, the crew found humor in the response.

    Finally though, the wind did lay down and the waves settled down also.  There was only a light breeze and the waves were less than 1 foot.  So much for the saying that nothing good happens after midnight.

    With the calmer seas, the crew of Tranquility III began to recover enough to come over the radio and sing “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”

    9-sunrise
    Sunrise on the Gulf

    At 0630, the dawn of a new day was beginning.  At 0720, that big ball of hydrogen fusion peeked over the horizon to give the crew a beautiful sunrise.

    At 0850, the crew spotted land and the skipper yelled, ‘Land Ho!”

    At 0945, the crew passed back within 3 miles of shore.

    At 1010, the crew passed a red day marker R4 that officially ended the Gulf crossing as the crew entered back into the GICW.

    10-r4
    Been targeting this marker since 1600 yesterday

    At 1051, the crew entered the Anclote River at low tide.

    11-entering-anclote-river
    Entering the Anclote River

    The skipper called the marina and the staff warned the skipper that the low tide had caused water levels to be about 4 feet deep on the approach to the dock.  The staff suggested that the skipper anchor and wait for the tide to rise before entering.  Since the skipper was tired from a long night with little to no sleep, he and the Admiral decided to risk the low water level and try to make the dock.  With a draft of 3 feet 9 inches and the fact that the bottom would be soft and sandy if they went aground, the crew headed for the marina.

    11-entering-anclote-river

    At 1145, the crew was safely secured at the dock.  On the last mile of approach to the dock, the water level showed to be 4 feet 3 inches.

    The crew took a well-deserved nap, then headed to Rusty Bellies to celebrate the successful Gulf crossing with the crews of Abaco Lady and Journey.

    12-pelicans-in-mangrove-trees
    Pelicans also napping in the trees

    Friday, February 3, 2017

    The crew explored the sponge docks in the afternoon and tried to learn a little about the Greek culture that spawned Tarpon Springs.

    1-tarpon-springs-sponge-docks

    In the 1880’s, John Cheyney started the first sponge business in the area.  Greek’s began to migrate to the area to work in the sponge industry.  In 1905, John Cocoris began using divers to harvest the sponges.  The heyday of the sponge industry peaked in the 1930’s with about 200 boats in the sponge industry.  In 1947, a red tide algae bloom killed off most of the sponges and the sponge industry.  Only about a dozen sponge boats still work the Gulf fields.

    2-tarpon-springs-sponge-docks
    Tile Dive Mural on the Sponge Docks

    The town now has the largest percentage of Greek’s than any other community in the United States.

    The crew tried a Greek restaurant for a late lunch and then tried some Greek pastries for a late-night snack.  While eating lunch, one of the hot menu items was Flaming Goat Cheese.  The waitress would pour some liquor over the cheese and then light the concoction on fire which would toast the cheese.

    6-mamas-greek-restaurant-flaming-goat-cheese

    The crew also walked down to Craig’s Park to discover if any manatees might be swimming around in the bayou.  The crew watched four manatees for a couple of hours while they also took in the warm Florida sunshine.

    8-ts-craig-park-manatee
    Can you see the manatee?

     

    9-craig-park
    Craig Park

    Saturday, February 4, 2017

    The initial Float Plan today was to travel to Caladesi Island State Park.  The water level approach is shallow so the skipper waited for a rising tide before heading out.  Unfortunately, within 100 yards of turning off the main channel to the State Park, the boat nudged the soft sand bottom.  There was already one boat solidly aground here and the skipper did not want to become number 2.

    1-leaving-tarpon-springs
    Leaving Tarpon Springs – 1st of many boat wakes today

    He called the State Park Marina and learned that the first come first serve slips were already taken so it was time for the skipper to recalculate the next move.  The skipper then called the Marker 1 Marina in Dunedin only to learn that they were also full.

    3-lighthouse
    Anclote River Lighthouse

    This was a beautiful Saturday which caused more than the normal number of boaters to be on the water.  The crew just wanted off of the water because all the boaters were running fast and throwing huge wakes.  Not much boating courtesy being shown on this run.

    When the skipper called the Clearwater Municipal Marina he learned that they had one slip available.  He booked the slip and headed to the marina.  Luckily, they were only 6 miles from the Marina.

    4-still-waters-ii
    Still Waters II in Clearwater Beach Marina

    After securing the boat, the crew discovered that they were docked just in front of their new friends aboard Lacuna.  You might recall they first met back at Ft Walton Beach.    Turns out that it was Jen’s birthday and her parents and brother had come down to visit.  Happy Birthday Jen from the crew of Still Waters II!!!!.

    The crew debarked the boat and took a two-hour stroll along Clearwater Beach.

    8-clearwater-beach

     

    5-dolphin-tail
    Another public art display.  120 of these dolphins are scattered around Clearwater

    Next Week – Keep heading south along the west coast of Florida with potential shore excursions in St. Petersburg, Tampa, and Sarasota.

    Loop On – The water goes on forever and the adventure never ends.

    Eric the Red

  • Blown into Port Saint Joe

    Hello virtual crew members and fellow adventures!

    5t8t92301
    Panama City 911 Memorial

    Eric here catching you up to date on the latest travels of Still Waters II. Click on this link to see the day- to-day travel log.

    Summary of week:

    After a week stay in Panama City to allow the weather to literally blow through, the crew finally made passage to Port St. Joe.  The crew continues to lay and wait here for a weather window to open so they can safely cross the Gulf.

    port-st-joe

    Sunday, January 22, 2017

    As reported in last week’s blog entry, the winds have really decided to kick it up a notch.  Today the Coast Guard was putting out Gale Force Wind Warnings (winds > 40 mph).  The wind did not disappoint.

    By 1000 the winds were blowing 15-20 mph.  Unfortunately, the wind direction was out of the east-southeast.  This caused three foot waves to form and come directly into the marina and against the beam of Still Waters II.

    The skipper spent the next four hours adding and adjusting lines and fenders to protect the boat from the dock.  It got so bad that the skipper could not stay on the boat because she was bobbing up and down so bad.  He took a seat on the dock in between adjusting lines and fenders.

    Finally, about 1400 the wind shifted direction from the west-northwest which caused the waves to shift also, so now the waves were hitting the break water wall.  This resulted in the waters in the marina to calm down and become almost smooth.  With the wind shift, the winds also picked up intensity.  The wind speed quickly rose to the low 30’s with gusts over 40.

    The winds stayed strong through the rest of the day and began to die off during the night into the low 20’s.  On Monday, the winds continued to drop in intensity until they finally got back down to normal, less than 10 mph about dark.

    img_0039
    This sailboat did not survive the wind

    The good news is that Still Waters II suffered no damage.  Many of the other boats were not as fortunate.  When the winds were out of the east on Sunday, the boats were swinging up and down as much as 3-5 feet.  This caused damage to several boats as they crashed into the wood docks.  In addition, the high winds ripped the canvas and bimini tops off several boats.

    And you are probably asking yourself, “Where was the Admiral during the Sunday afternoon fun?”  She had gone to Church.  When she left Church she got a severe weather alert with a tornado warning.  She did the smart thing and went shopping at Home Depot to wait out the warning.

    By the time she got to the boat, the wind had shifted direction and the marina water had calmed down.  The skipper told her he was glad she missed the fun.

    Tuesday, January 23, 2017

    While in Panama City, the crew bought a new dinghy.  This was a safety purchase as they prepare to cross the Gulf.  Better to be prepared for the unexpected in case something happens to the mother ship.

    For example, a local boater shared a story with the skipper where a series of unfortunate and seemingly unrelated events resulted in an explosion onboard his boat.  The boat burned to the water line before the fire department could arrive and extinguish the fire.

    The skipper spent most of the day adjusting the davit system to hold the dinghy on the swim platform.  Hopefully with these adjustments the crew will not lose a third dinghy.

    img_0040
    Walker Bay dinghy mounted on davits

    Wednesday, January 25, 2017

    With the weather cooperating today, the crew headed east to Port St. Joe with no issues.

    img_0010
    Leaving the East Bay

    While passing through the East Bay a dolphin decided to play in the wake of the boat.  At one point, the dolphin jumped completely out of the water as high as the helm on the boat.  Interesting looking eye-to-eye with a dolphin when you are 10 feet above the water line.

    img_0011
    Salt Marsh in Wetappo Creek

    The crew made it far enough east to enter the Eastern Time Zone.  The loss of an hour caused the crew to arrive at Port St. Joe Marina just 30 minutes before closing.

    The crew is not sure how long they will stay here, so the Marina Staff took a credit card and put it on hold much like a reservation at a hotel.

    img_0013
    The crew saw more derelict boats on this run than anywhere on the loop

     

    img_0015
    Continuation in Wetappo Creek

     

    img_0019
    Entering the Port St. Joe Marina basin

    Shore Excursions at Port St. Joe

    The crew wandered around the small downtown area on Thursday afternoon. They found this interesting store display of a guy having a bad day.

    img_0021

    They then walked over to the area Welcome Center and enjoyed the view of the bay.

    img_0023

    On Friday, Abaco Lady and the Journey pulled into the marina.  There are now seven loopers at Port St. Joe.  People are moving east to take advantage of the weather window to cross the Gulf Tuesday and Wednesday.

    Saturday, we walked over to the SanDollar with Journey and Abaco Lady to enjoy a good breakfast.  Conversation was exciting as stories were swapped about the Loop and the fun that has been had.

    Latter in the day, The Lord’s Provision arrived and joined the party at Port St. Joe.  The crew of Still Waters II will probably buddy boat across the Gulf together.

     

    Next Week – As mentioned several times, the next big challenge in front of the crew is to cross the Gulf over to the West Coast of Florida.

    The following pic and information is from Alan Lloyd’s Navigation Notes.

    img_0034

    1. Tarpon Springs Route – 175 miles

    Carrabelle to Buoy 2 – 112 miles

    Buoy 2 to Tarpon Springs – 63 miles

    Steinhatchee Route (yellow/red) -206 miles

    Carrabelle to Steinhatchee – 85 miles

    Steinhatchee to Buoy 2 – 58 miles

    Buoy 2 to Tarpon Springs – 63 miles

    The brown and green routes have a controlling depth of only 4.5 feet.  With the draft of the boat at 3’ 9 inches, the margin of only 9 inches to going aground is not worth the risk.  These routes are off the table for the crew.

    The crew plans to travel at 9 mph, so it will take about 20 hours to cross over to Tarpon Springs on the red route.  This can be done in one long cruise starting about 2100 and arriving in Tarpon Springs about 1700 the next day, an hour before sunset.  The pro of this route is that you only need one weather window to cross.  The con is that you cruise 9 hours in the dark and will not get much sleep, if any in those 20 hours.

    The pro of the Steinhatchee route is that you have more daylight time and less night time travel.  However, the con is that you need two days of good weather to cross.  This time of year, getting two days back to back is rare.  The weather windows seem to be about a week apart, so after arriving in Steinhatchee, the crew might be stuck for a week waiting for the next good day.

    And what may a good day look like, says you?

    The crew is using the following criteria:

    Winds less than 10 mph

    Wave height less than 2 feet

    The skipper is using Eddy’s Weather Wag to help gage the criteria, as well as consulting three independent marine weather sites to pick the window.  But as you know, predicting the weather no easy task.

    For example, on Monday, January 23rd, Eddy was predicting a Saturday/Sunday weather window.

    Ahoy Fellow Loopers!

    Told you it would get worse!  Latest check of sea conditions at Buoy 42036 show 15 footers rolling across that part of the Gulf.                                                          

    It will take a while for things to settle down out there.  The predicted Saturday-night / Sunday weather-window (28th-29th) will likely be the next crossing opportunity.   

    By Wednesday, January 25th, Eddy had this to say:

    Ahoy Fellow Loopers!

    It looks like a conspiracy!  Mother Nature and King Neptune are not only dismantling this weekend’s projected weather-window, but they’re also taking away Florida’s warm, balmy temperatures!                                   

    Is there no end to this merciless mistreatment?  How long can we endure 50 degree temperatures at night?  How can you be expected to keep a tan when daytime highs are only in the 60s?  And that’s just here in south Florida!  Our fellow Loopers who are trapped along the northwest Gulf coast are suffering even worse.

     I’m hopeful that the arrival of a new month will change all this.  If we collectively concentrate on sending out positive vibes, perhaps we could effect that change by the last day of this month.  That would show Mother and King where the real power lies!  To paraphrase: “Let our people go” (across the Gulf)!

     Then on Thursday, January 26th, Eddy had these encouraging words:

    Ahoy Fellow Loopers!

    This morning, four out of four on-line weather sites that I reviewed predict that a weather window will be available for a Tuesday-night / Wednesday crossing.  That would be January 31st and February 1st.  Just like most people, sometimes these sites get it right and sometimes they don’t.

     However, only one of those four sites is still predicting that a Saturday-night / Sunday crossing opportunity.  That would be January 28th & 29th.  This particular site has been very reliable in the past for getting it right.

      So (to paraphrase Dirty Harry) the question you have to ask yourself is, “Am I feeling lucky”?  

     Our crew is not feeling lucky.   The sites the skipper uses to watch the weather do not meet the crew’s criteria for safe travel.  For example, this is the Sail Flow page wind and wave height prediction for Saturday/Sunday.  Wind is never below 10 mph and the waves build to 6 feet.  No thank you.

    weather1

    However, the Tuesday night/ Wednesday crossing is looking promising.  Winds less than 10 mph (even the gusts are under 10) and waves only 1 foot for the whole run.  Now that is what I’m talking about!

    weather2

    IF, and that is a big IF, the weather predictions hold, THEN this is the anticipated Float Plan for the crew next week:

    Monday – travel to Carrabelle and stay at the Moorings Marina.

    Tuesday –

    1-      Move the boat after lunch and anchor at Shipping Cove by Dog Island (this will shave an hour off the night time travel)

    2-      Weigh anchor about 2100 and enter the gulf via East Pass

    3-      Target Buoy R2 (N28-56.5 W83-11.0) west of Crystal River

    Wednesday –

    1- Arrive near Buoy R2 about 0900

    2- Arrive near Buoy R4 (N28-14.8 W82-49.9) about 1500

    3- Arrive at Turtle Cove Marina, Tarpon Springs about 1700

    After crossing the Gulf the crew will get some well deserved sleep and figure out what their next move will be.

    Loop On – The water goes on forever and the adventure never ends.

    Eric the Red