Wednesday, March 5--Marco Island to Home
After our "rocky" night off Marco, daylight couldn't come soon enough. Bleary eyed we awoke to calm seas and and good winds that would allow us to push off shore, around Sanibel Island and through Boca Grande pass in grand fashion, completing the 80 miles to home in a record 10 1/2 hours. What a ride...there were times when the knot meter hit 8.5. The approaching cold front with some thundershowers held off and we sailed under sunny skies into Ponce Channel around 4:00.
Every Wednesday at 5:30 is Happy Hour for our boating club so we had decided earlier to shower on the boat, dock and head over just to say hello. Aurora was secured by 4:50, and we were on our way at 5:15. Tired from our two long days and sleepless night we only stayed long enough for a quick hello and quickly made for the nearest restaurant. Back home bringing in only what was needed for the night, we agreed to finish "de provisioning" the boat the next day. Both of us were ready for an early night in our comfortable bed.
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Get out of our way, we’re Punta Gorda bound!
It seems once the decision is made to turn towards home on a
trip whether we are 100 or 1,000 miles from home, wild horses, rough seas, or
bad winds can keep us from our reaching destination as soon as possible.
Upon leaving Key West with the sunrise, “Lena Bea,” “Wild
Oats,” and “Aurora,” were blessed favorable 10 knot winds and calm seas, not
just for a few hours, but the whole day.
With full sails up and motors on, our heading, northeast, to get as far
as possible, probably somewhere off Cape Romano Shoals and anchor there for the
night. As those favorable winds would have it, we kept resetting our way point
and wound up a couple miles off Marco Island just in time for Michele on “Lena
Bea,” to sound her conch, signaling sunset.
We were pleased with our day’s journey and knew if the wind and weather
held we could very possibly make it home the tomorrow. Storms were predicted for late in the day
though, so the backup plan for bad weather was to get on the ICW in Ft. Myers
and possibly anchor at Pelican Bay, and then wait to traverse Charlotte Harbor
till Thursday. Or, if the blessing of
the fleet was as perfect as today, sail on the outside and in through Boca
Grande Pass to home. Worry grants no shroud of peace; the mercy of the elements
would dictate our decision when the time came.
After our 12 hour day we were ready to fix a quick, hot meal,
which for us was breakfast and settle in for the night. After cleaning up it was still too early to
make for the berth, so I pulled out a book and Dennis his guitar. This was his first opportunity to sing to his
heart’s content on the trip, so went up on deck and serenaded anyone who would
listen. It was a perfect ending to a
perfect day on the boat.
But as nightfall came so did a rocking current off the
beam. While yes, a little rocking is
nice, too much is just that, too much.
We both awoke at 12:30 unable to sleep.
Our berth is at the rear of the boat, so I went to the settee and was
able to get some sleep there, while Dennis remaining in our berth, went
sleepless in Marco Island! It’s one time
where if we had not been with other boats we would have pulled up our anchor
and headed for home in the middle of the night.
I can see/hear the headlines, “Cruise Leader Abandons Others in the
Middle of the Night off Marco Island.”
“Captain and First Mate Unaccounted For.” No, there are just things you do differently
when on a cruise with others. Needless
to say, we were good and ready to leave Marco before the Wednesday sunrise.
March 2-3--Key West
Our first night in Key West at anchor was peaceful and we slept well after our day's journey from the Tortugas. Upon arising to calm seas we made our way along with "Lena Bea" and "Wild Oats," over to the A & B Marina, fueled up with 30 gal of diesel and backed into a slip. Amenities at a marina are always appreciated after spending 5 days using only boat facilities, which although adequate, tend to get a little confining. Not sure on how long we would be at the marina, my first order of business was a shower using all the water I wanted, then laundry. Fritz was especially anxious to be ashore after so long on the boat. Even without any available grass, he thoroughly enjoyed finding trees, bushes, and an occasional crowing rooster as we strolled the back alleyways by the marina.
Later we lunched at the restaurant by our dock and were joined there by others from the cruise. Afterwards each went separate ways down Duval Street. Although not as busy as October's Fantasy Fest, the two big cruise ships we saw docked as we came in the day before added several thousand to the numbers exploring this unique town. Again we joined the rest of the group, this time at the "Flying Monkey," for dinner and said goodbye to the Mudrows and Hills who would be leaving the next morning for home, while the rest of us made reservations for another night at A & B.
On our way into the harbor we had noticed Fort Zachary Taylor along the seawall and as it was one of the places we did not see on our last visit decided the next day to get another history fix and walk the mile there for a visit. Not as beautiful and well preserved as Fort Jefferson, it was instead rather stark and lonely in the middle of a bustling city, and did not invoke the same degree of emotional wondering, nor interested visitors.
Next, Dennis wanted to find West Marine, and get his WM fix...really, find some adhesive, and then go to the Turtle Museum close by. The museum was closed on Mondays, so it will save for our next trip, but we did get what we needed from WM. For the rest of the day we wandered Duval street then topped off the day rejoining the Sharps and Northups for a lovely Italian dinner at La Trattoria.
Although Dennis and I had originally planned to go to Marathon, with wind out of the east and possible storms predicted for Wednesday, we decided to head north with the other sailors on Tuesday.
(Just to let you know we did arrive home late Wednesday afternoon ahead of the storms on Thursday and will be posting about the final two days of our trip tomorrow.)
Our first night in Key West at anchor was peaceful and we slept well after our day's journey from the Tortugas. Upon arising to calm seas we made our way along with "Lena Bea" and "Wild Oats," over to the A & B Marina, fueled up with 30 gal of diesel and backed into a slip. Amenities at a marina are always appreciated after spending 5 days using only boat facilities, which although adequate, tend to get a little confining. Not sure on how long we would be at the marina, my first order of business was a shower using all the water I wanted, then laundry. Fritz was especially anxious to be ashore after so long on the boat. Even without any available grass, he thoroughly enjoyed finding trees, bushes, and an occasional crowing rooster as we strolled the back alleyways by the marina.
Later we lunched at the restaurant by our dock and were joined there by others from the cruise. Afterwards each went separate ways down Duval Street. Although not as busy as October's Fantasy Fest, the two big cruise ships we saw docked as we came in the day before added several thousand to the numbers exploring this unique town. Again we joined the rest of the group, this time at the "Flying Monkey," for dinner and said goodbye to the Mudrows and Hills who would be leaving the next morning for home, while the rest of us made reservations for another night at A & B.
On our way into the harbor we had noticed Fort Zachary Taylor along the seawall and as it was one of the places we did not see on our last visit decided the next day to get another history fix and walk the mile there for a visit. Not as beautiful and well preserved as Fort Jefferson, it was instead rather stark and lonely in the middle of a bustling city, and did not invoke the same degree of emotional wondering, nor interested visitors.
Next, Dennis wanted to find West Marine, and get his WM fix...really, find some adhesive, and then go to the Turtle Museum close by. The museum was closed on Mondays, so it will save for our next trip, but we did get what we needed from WM. For the rest of the day we wandered Duval street then topped off the day rejoining the Sharps and Northups for a lovely Italian dinner at La Trattoria.
Although Dennis and I had originally planned to go to Marathon, with wind out of the east and possible storms predicted for Wednesday, we decided to head north with the other sailors on Tuesday.
(Just to let you know we did arrive home late Wednesday afternoon ahead of the storms on Thursday and will be posting about the final two days of our trip tomorrow.)
Garden Key, Dry Tortugas to Key West, FL—Friday, Feb. 28---March
1
Meeting for early drinks and appetizers on “Horizons,” but
still not caught up from the overnight, we made our way back to boats and
berths by 8:00 for an early night on the 27th.
Even stronger winds than on our crossing gently rocked us to sleep,
reinforcing how glad we were to be in the safe harbor of Garden Key.
Awaking Friday morning refreshed, Dennis fixed a full
breakfast and the two of us set out to explore Fort Jefferson. A ferry brings a boat-load of people from Key
West around 11:00 each day so at 10:30 there was time to explore the quiet
grounds on a self-guided tour. The fort
though never finished or used for the purpose built, has a rich history and is
a none-the-less fascinating and beautiful place. Erected in 1846 to 1874, sixteen million
bricks later, with the lower cisterns sinking and cracking allowing salt water
to contaminate the fresh water, the army abandoned Fort Jefferson. At one time or the other over those years it
housed nearly 2,000 people, soldiers, prisoners and some civilians, with the
most famous of the prisoners being Dr. Samuel Mudd, who was eventually pardoned
for his role in assisting in President Lincoln’s assassination. It is fascinating that such a remote park
could provide a rich and fascinating walk through history. Imagining all the ships and variety of people
who passed by this placed throughout the years was intriguing. If the harbor could only talk!!!
After hearing about the good snorkeling, we were anxious to
get wet. Dinghying back to Aurora we
donned our gear, including our wet suits to ward off the 75.6 degree water
temperature and headed back to shore.
Rewarded for our efforts to snorkel around the Fort we saw colorful parrot
fish, conchs, nemos, starfish, plants, beautiful corals and Dennis saw a
squid. Later that day we saw a nurse
shark underneath the boats. Probably the
most unusual animal we saw all day was in the mote around the fort was the
resident crocodile. Nobody’s really sure
how he got there, or where he came from, but he seems to be surviving quite
nicely.
Although we would have loved to stay an extra day and
snorkel some more, with winds predicted from due east on Sunday we made plans
to set out early Saturday to catch the Northeast winds for a smooth ride into
Key West.
True to predictions the winds were pleasantly 5-10 knots,
giving us some assistance on our 68 mile motor sail into Key West. Resting comfortably in the anchorage
overnight then taking dockage at A and B Marina early Sunday, we were all were
excited to again have the amenities which come with being in a slip.
Our destination and timing from here are uncertain, but will
post again as soon as we have service.
The Crossing--February 26-27
As always, unaware of what lies ahead, spirits are high when
beginning a cruise. “Lena Bea”, “Chill,”
“Wild Oats” anchored with “Aurora” the evening of the 25th by marker
# 1 in Charlotte Harbor, rising to a beautiful sunrise on calm waters, the four
captains and crew were underway by 8:00a.m. for the 24 hour cruise, destination
Dry Torgugas, FL. The first leg across the
harbor to Boca Grande Pass was uneventful, with clear skies and winds out of
the southwest allowing us upon turning westerly at marker #5 to raise the sails. A fifth boat, “Horizons” joined us at Boca,
we cleared the pass into the open waters of the Gulf at 10:30a.m. On a southwest heading with winds on our
nose, but with promise from the weather reports that the winds would favorably
shift to more westerly in the early afternoon, we continued on our course with
spirits undampened. Needless to say,
wind on the bow is not a delightful way to cruise even for a couple of hours,
but the waves were not too high, at least at first. Later as they grew to heights of 3-5 feet and
the winds continued on the nose we all began to question why we were doing this. Around 50 miles offshore “Chill” decided to
head back for the safety of Charlotte harbor, thus able to turn off their
engines and sail back. On the other
hand, the four of us pounded, with spirits greatly dampened, on until 1:00am
the next morning when the winds finally shifted enabling us to silence our
engines, and proceed the next 10 hours under sail. Spotting the massive Ft. Jefferson on the
horizon we slipped into the safe harbor of Garden Key, Dry Tortugas at 11:00a.m. About an hour later “Route 66,” joined us in
the anchorage, bringing our number to 5 boats having completed the 150 mile
crossing.
Honestly most of us would not have stayed the course had we
been by ourselves, but instead, like “Chill,” would have turned back at some
point. I can tell you, in the middle of the long,
long night, and after getting very sick for the first time ever while sailing I
was wishing to be back home with the lucky ones who for various reasons were
unable to accompany us on the trip.
Order of business after the long night was to eat, shower
and nap before exploring the shore of the Dry Tortugas National Park.
Tomorrow's finally the day! Setting sail a hundred fifty miles across the Gulf for the Dry Tortugas with 6 other fellow Mariners of Punta Gorda Isles. When I look out our lanai and see the scene to the right I wonder why we ever want to leave this almost perfect place. Are we crazy??? I know, I know, you're thinking "yes, maybe" to even want to make this trip.
Closely following the weather forecasts for the next few days the captains have agreed that the trip is a go, although there may be some wet weather late Thursday and Friday our overnight trip on Wednesday should be calm seas and fair winds. Without much moonlight the stars should brilliantly guide us to our destination. Here's a couple of our weather and sailing sites we've been checking in with to make decisions:
http://www.passageweather.com/
http://www.weather.com/weather/today/Dry+Tortugas+Park+FL+3704:19:US
Our departure time is Wednesday at 8:00 a.m. from Ponce Channel in Punta Gorda Isles and our heading is southwest. Winds are predicted to be light and variable changing directions throughout the daytime. Continuing through the night our arrival time is early on Thursday hopefully around daylight. To give you an idea of what's there here's a website for the Dry Tortugas National Park.
http://www.nps.gov/drto/planyourvisit/index.htm
Really don't know for sure when we will have the next opportunity to post because there is no service until we get back to Key West, which will be, weather permitting, on Sunday.
By then we should have some fun stuff to tell. Thanks so much for your interest in our adventure!
Closely following the weather forecasts for the next few days the captains have agreed that the trip is a go, although there may be some wet weather late Thursday and Friday our overnight trip on Wednesday should be calm seas and fair winds. Without much moonlight the stars should brilliantly guide us to our destination. Here's a couple of our weather and sailing sites we've been checking in with to make decisions:
http://www.passageweather.com/
http://www.weather.com/weather/today/Dry+Tortugas+Park+FL+3704:19:US
Our departure time is Wednesday at 8:00 a.m. from Ponce Channel in Punta Gorda Isles and our heading is southwest. Winds are predicted to be light and variable changing directions throughout the daytime. Continuing through the night our arrival time is early on Thursday hopefully around daylight. To give you an idea of what's there here's a website for the Dry Tortugas National Park.
http://www.nps.gov/drto/planyourvisit/index.htm
Really don't know for sure when we will have the next opportunity to post because there is no service until we get back to Key West, which will be, weather permitting, on Sunday.
By then we should have some fun stuff to tell. Thanks so much for your interest in our adventure!
One of our upcoming stops on our return trip, Boot Key Harbor at Marathon, now requires running lights on the dinghys so we lowered ours down today, installed the lights and modified the dinghy chaps to fit. Also made a drawstring bag for the two lights to keep them out of the sunlight when not in use. Added several items to the provisioning " to buy list" like more batteries for the lights.
Dennis defrosted the refrigerator and turned on the freezer today to get them good and cold before adding provisions on Sunday. Wanted to thoroughly clean the cabin today, but ran out of time working on other sewing and house projects that needs to be completed before leaving. Guess we'll try to fit the cleaning in tomorrow.
And as always we're checking the weather forecasts for Punta Gorda, Dry Tortugas and Key West and seeing a variety of predictions...time will tell.
http://www.nps.gov/drto/planyourvisit/drytortugasweather.htm
Latest Adventure
Well, we're finally at it again, making preparations and provisioning lists for another trip. This time to the Dry Tortugas, 70 miles West of Key West.
Today after using 20 yards of fabric, 2,000 yards of thread, and many, many hours out of the last 17 days our 35 cabin cushions are recovered. Notice the before and after pictures at the right. Now for my recovery!!!
Dennis took on fuel today for the 24 hour, 152 mile overnight trip which will commence next Wednesday, February 25, weather permitting, from Charlotte Harbor. Accompanying us will be 6 other boats, that is of course, barring no other unforeseen cancellations between now and then.
Needless to say we are excited to again be cruising to a new, and we are told, beautiful destination and hope you will accompany us as we traverse the blue waters of the Gulf.
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