Home - D'ville

Departed Ft. Monroe at 0630 this morning and tied to the Deltaville dock at 1130. Home again. That is 13 days from Nassau to here with two days waiting in Fernandina Beach for the wind to drop. I am claiming that as a world record or at least a very good average. Ate the remainder of Kentucky fried for lunch and everyone is scattering. Odyssey - Any long journey, when filled with adventure, hardships, etc. Last blog, thanks for following along. S

Interesting Day

We stayed at Sea Scape Sat night and went on the hook Sunday night just North of the Alligator Bridge. We pulled the anchor this morning at 0635 and headed for Norfolk. After ten minutes we were hard aground. Chart plotter showed us with 9.2 feet under the keel. We lowered the dingy, and I used the anchor line as a lead weight to see where the deeper water was. A power boat moved by 150 yards away, and I jumped on Marcnicliz and powered forward as the waves passed. We moved several feet. I had Bill get in the Dingy and make waves, and we got off and underway by 0810.I found that the transducer offset was changed some how and put it back at the correct setting. We are now at Great Bridge Lock waiting for the 1700 lock and plan on anchoring around Ft Monroe tonight. S

We are on the dock at Sea Scape on Adams Creek Canal

Ran hard from 0640 this morning to 1850 tonight and stopped to refuel on Adams Creek Canal. Motored sailed the whole way with many bridges to negotiate. Steak tonight and popcorn as we watch As Good as It Gets. Chilled one of the beer kegs I brought along and killed it. Plan on leaving early in the morning at first light and anchor at Alligator River. Will miss church, say a prayer for us. S

Beaufort, NC tonight, we hope

Off the hook at 0640 this morning and encountered our first bridge, Wrightsville, at a few minutes past eight. She was going to make us wait for 58 minutes for the next on the hour opening. I ask her if she had opened on the hour and if she would consider letting us slip thru. We heard nothing and were getting our lines ready to hit a fuel dock as we waited. All of a sudden the horn sounded and she opened. Someone in this crew is living right. We then had to wait about 15 minutes for the Figure Eight Bridge, and we have now passed thru and are running for the next one which is two hours away and opens only on the hour. It will be close. Rained last night and washed the salt away from yesterday. Steak tonight. Watched Slum dog last night and Doubt is up for tonight. S

"Here is your butt", Mother Nature

We departed Fernandina Beach with a forecast of winds 20 to 25 on the stern and seas of 4 feet. About 2200 on the 8th, we had 25 gusting to 35 with 6 to 8 feet.We were hitting over 12 knots of boat speed surfing down the waves, and then... we encountered something in the water that attached to the keel or rudder. Our boat speed dropped to one knot, and I had to turn the boat into the wind and back down to release it. Pretty amazing. I then came on watch at 2400 and decided to divert for three hours into Charleston instead of continuing on to Cape Fear, which was 23 hours ahead. Bill and Ben tell me it is pretty hard to sleep with your foot on the ceiling to pin yourself to the bed. Got on the hook at 0500 and slept really well. When we went to the dock to refuel it took more time to wash all the salt off the boat than to put fuel in. Now passing North Myrtle after spending the night in Georgetown, SC. Lasagna tonight. S

Good day to be on the dock

Front has passed thru, and it is a good day to tied to a dock. Looks like Wed may be the day we head back out to Cape Fear. S

Back in the "Good ole US of A"

We threw off the dock lines at Freeport (see pic) on Sat morning at 0915 and motored past West End (see pic), Grand Bahamas around 1300, and entered the Gulf Stream about 1530. Had a head current until then of a knot or so. Once in the Stream we hit 11.6 knots and rode that to abeam the Cape and set a rhumb line for Fernandina Beach, arriving here at 2000 hours. I used the Sirrus Weather to stay in the main part of the stream. That is 318 nm divided by 34.5 hours for an average speed of 9.16 knots. We took turns on watches of 3 hours with an over lap by Bill and me on Tom and Ben, ie: Tom started his watch at 1630, and Bill came on at 1800. Ben came on at 1930, and I started my watch at 2100 to 2400. There was always 2 on at a time after 1800. We saw many large ships at night, and I had rigged the radar reflector with my own radar going. Several times I saw a ship on radar before I acquired him visually. We had to add fuel at sea and took 46.8 gals here at the dock this morning. I called customs last night and got a clearence back into the US over the phone. We then walked to the Crab Shack and had fresh local shrimp for dinner. We walked to a local restaurant for the best grits ever this morning. We then walked to Immigrations and presented ourselves to ICE for our final clearence into the States. The weather looks like we will stay here until Wed or Thur before we try to go outside and bypass Georgia's shallow water and low tides. We are back at the dock that Nanc and I stayed at coming down, and I was able to call her on my cell phone yesterday while 20 miles off the coast. Marcnicliz had several Atlantic Spotted Dolphin playing under her bow yesterday. Hope the luck holds until Deltaville. S

Freeport/Lucaya

We departed at 0730 from Great Harbor Cay by the airport to here by 1700. Lot of wind and seas/ 25 to 30 with 8 to 10 feet. Not bad actually. We hope to depart here in the morning and join the Gulf Stream about 1100 and ride it to Fernandina Beach. Should be there by 1100 on Sunday morning; however everything depends on weather and Chris Parker's forecast. He has been right on so far. The two guys who have little sailing experience learned a lot today. We had cheese burgers at the bar tonight, and I will be in bed early. Thought I heard something in the steering today, but I inspected it this evening and could not see any abnormalities. Weather is nice here at the dock. Washed all the salt water off when I got here, and I am ready for bed after a cheeseburger at the pool bar. I am tucked in between a Jenneau 54 and a Beneteau 46. Took 3 approaches to get into the slip due to the high winds. Everyone is fine and having a super time. Ben is growing in knowledge and experience by the hour. Tom/Joe is having a good time. We were doing between 8 and 10 knots all the way here. See the photo at the lower right. That is 9.8 knots boat speed. We hit over 10 knots many times sliding down a wave. S

First anachorage on the way home

We departed Atlantis/Nassau at 1005 and sailed to Petit Cay at 1700 after motor sailing with and average speed of 7.57 knots. There are three other boats here, and we are North of Devil Cay by about 15 miles. We plan on departing here in the morning for Lacaya, which will take about 7 hours and spend the night to wait for a weather window to ride the Gulf Stream to Fernandina Beach on Sat/Sun. Ben was my sail trimmer and helmsmen, along with Bill and Tom. Life is good, but I miss the Pussycat already. I have Ben preparing Spaghetti for our dinner, and we have already consumed the Summer Sausage and pepper cheese. The wind is blowing at about 15 knots, and the wind generator is howling. I forgot to get the ground beef out to thaw and fired up the Honda generator to run the mico wave. We watched Cadillac Records last night and everyone fell asleep before the end. S

Nanc is one the way home

Nanc pulled out this morning at 0900 for Richmond and should be home in D'ville tonight with Noiemiester. We walked and toured last evening with Tom (Joe) and Ben who got in about 1530. The weather is changing, and I believe I will put into Devil Key tomorrow night and wait for Sat/Sun to go to the Cape or further North. S

Atlalntis

We docked at Atlantis this morning with the help of our friends Ellen and Randy who are heading to San Francisco via the Panama Canal. Nanc leaves tomorrow at 1140 and Bill Hughes arrives sometime tomorrow probably on the flight she is leaving on. We set sail on Thur and the weather looks good to run all the way to Moore Head City. S

Howling wind

The wind has blown at 20 plus since we arrived here. Yesterday it laid down some, and we rode the dingy into Atlantis and walked around and had lunch at Johnnie Rockets. Last evening the wind was gone and we watched another movie on the DVD. This morning the wind was right back up there at 20 plus. This area is feeding air into the fronts moving across the East Coast of the US. the forecast is good for next early next week with the wind backing to the SE by late in the week which will give us a nice push toward D'ville. I have included a picture from last evening. We are both well and loving life, and the beautiful world God has given us to live in. S

Back in Nassau

Well, we had a super week, sailing down the Exumas chain. I listened to Chris Parker this morning and his forecast was for high winds starting late this afternoon and lasting thru the last part of the week with another cold front coming thru next weekend and more wind. I was concerned about having Nanc in Nassau for her flight home and picking up the guys flying down to help me bring Marcnicliz home, so we departed this morning at 0900 and arrived here at 1900 after the last two hours of high winds up to 30 knots and seas of 4 to 5 feet. We both did well and so did the boat. Glad to be on anchor. We had a good time at Warderick Wells, and I will include pictures of the Banana Quits eating from our hand and Nanc walking on the beach at Shroud Cay after a trip thru the mangroves. Pretty special. We anchored at Staniel Key/ Big Majors last evening and ate at Thunder Ball Club last night. Name comes from the James Bond Movie. It sits high on a hill overlooking the surrounding Keys. Very pretty. We were able to average over 7 knots coming back with many spells over 9 knots. I was dragging the dingy behind, and that was amazing. I should have put it on the fore deck with the forecast. Next time. Party chicken for dinner tonight. I will miss the super meals Nanc puts together when it is me and the guys. I have cans of tuna, chicken, and Pringles for Bill Hughes. We will be fine. I plan on improvising next week prior to their arrival and our departure for Deltaville. S

Warderick Wells Exumas

We left Nassau on Monday and motored to Highborne Cay. Really nice place and another Lobster met his demise. We then proceeded to Shroud Cay and wondered thru the mangroves yesterday and this morning. We departed there at 1300 and motored sailed to arrived at Warderick Wells in the Exuma Land and Sea Park at 1530. We are heading for Staniel Cay/ Big Majors by Sat to ride out a strong wind thru next Tue. We will depart on Wed for Nassau if my weatherman Chris Parker is right, and he has been up until now. We start our Honda 2000 each evening to top off the batteries and watch a movie at the same time. Nanc, of course, reads constantly. We conserve water, however a shower each day is a necessity for both of us. I get up each morning at 0700 and listen to Chris Parker and then at 0830 to the Cruiser net on the SSB. It is working beyond my expectations. I am identifying those things that need to be changed before the next adventure, and there are a few. There are usually 6 to 10 other boats at anchor with us, and we talk to a few as we meet on the beach. Marcnicliz is performing well; however I constantly have to spell the name before anyone will try to pronounce it. We visited Allens Cay and saw all the iguanas that the tourists come and feed. There were really a lot of them and some were really big. We stayed off shore in our dinghy! Also, the food is really pricey on the small islands.....a head of lettuce was 10 dollars and a small jar of capers was 8 dollars! We haven't seen a lot of wild life since getting to the islands but today we did see a beautiful white heron and an osprey.

Actually, there isn't much for me to add. Speedy has done an amazing job of preparing the boat and being the captain. We've had lots of good meals....which is my job. Everyone we meet is really nice and so many people have done the trip many times. I have read a lot of books....which really makes me happy. We have really gotten into the habit of watching movies at night....which has been fun as well. Last night the stars in the sky were totally amazing. Because there is no light pollution, there really are a million diamonds in the sky. The adventure is all I hoped it would be. N

Call us Parrot Heads

Love Jimmy Buffett. S

Nassau until Monday

We decided to stay here in the Nassau Harbor Club Marina until Monday morning and then head for the Exumas's Highborne Cay. It is about 30 miles, and we will pass up Norman Cay and the Iguanas. We saw one at the zoo today.We will then sail casually down the chain to Staniel Cay and turn back to Nassau for Nanc's flight on the 1st. We plan on staying two night at Atlantis as a treat for the the guys coming to help me get Marcnicliz home. We have been chilling out and bought some groceries, defrosted the refrig, and ate downtown after the zoo at Cafe Matisse. Super lamb shank followed by a drink with the owner at the bar. We had Ellen and Randy over for dinner last evening and talked until late. Sure is easy to sleep with Marcnicliz rocking around. There are some huge tide fluctuation as you can see. We have spoken to the kids and my brother via Skype several times and feel like we are somewhat in touch. Bought the NY Times yesterday and found everything is still pretty much the same. Will try to make church in the morning. S

Nassau

OK, we made Nassau and had ole friends to dinner. We have spent the last week at Devil's Cay; have been catching lobster and grouper. We ate on the beach for several evening meals by cooking on a camp fire, and took many walks on the beach to collect shells, etc. We took a long hike on Hoffman Cay to a site that over looked the whole area which was really pretty. Another day we hiked to a blue hole which was beautiful. We caught 20 conch one day and made a chowder and fritters. You could only get into the anchorage at high tide, but we stayed there a week and had a super time. I cleaned most of the bottom of the boat off with a brush which is really hard work. Nanc said she was trying to remember how to do CPR when she saw me. We used the dingy to troll for the grouper and snorkeled for the lobster. Was windy the first few days, but the last two were made in heaven. We left this morning on a high tide and motor sailed to here in about 5 hours. The wind was on my nose which was not too conducive for sailing. We will stay here tomorrow and do laundry, put on water and fuel and leave Friday for the Exumas. Will be out of touch again for a week or so. S

We are in Nassau after departing at 0815. We dropped the anchor here at 1400 and will go into a slip tomorrow to do laundry and shop. We have had a super time, and I will expand this later. We are waiting for ole friends who slipped their boat across from us in Deltaville to arrive with a French couple we just met for dinner. S

Chub Key

Off the dock in Bimini at 0600 and dropped the anchor here at Chub Key at 1800. Motor sailed the whole way. Plan on leaving for Devil Hoffman also in the Berrys at 0730, and will spend a week there searching for lobster and grouper. S

Bimini still

The wind generator is fixed and we have stayed in Bimini due to 25 knot winds today. You can see the ocean from the marina, and there have been white caps all day. The wind generator was actually working OK, but the stop switch was malfunctioning. Another boat from Tennessee had a spare and sold it to me, and I am back in the power generating business. I equalized the batteries yesterday and that has helped our energy management tremendously. I scrubbed the teak seats with a special cleaner that Annapolis Yacht Sales South (Ann Hutchings) told me about. It looks brand new again. Our multifunctional display has quit working, so I have no way to see how much water or diesel we have on board; however I keep a pretty good idea of the gas situation by the number of hours I run the engine. One hour equals about one gallon. Could not hear the weather on frequency 4045 SSB this morning; since a different guy is sending out the info from his boat in Orient, NC. I could hear him at0730, but could not get him to respond to me. Evidently many had a problem, since he has developed a procedure for in the morning to skip from one frequency to another until enough folks respond. There are folks all over listening to his broadcasts from Dominican Republic, Cuba, Bahamas, etc. I sent him an e-mail and he returned with a written forecast for tomorrow. We plan on leaving early, and sailing all day for 76 miles to Chub Key. I will fill my water tanks tonight, since this will be the last water for 2 weeks. We had to tell friends we could not pick them up in Nassau due to the weather set backs, and timing. the wind makes things too problematic. Nanc and I rode around the island on their Tram and saw all the sites. Other than the pretty water there is not too much to see. The people are very friendly; however their economy is down the drain. Many places closed. I have been making phone calls to family and friends over Skype (Voice over IP), and it really works fine. We w ill be out of communication range for the next several weeks, I believe. I will send the Findmespot positions, but no word pictures. S

Bimini Sunday

We got up late after listening to music from the local bar last evening. My wind generator has stopped working when I need it most; however we are dockside and on shore power thru tomorrow. The wind is starting to howl. We went to church this morning, and enjoyed the service immensely. Beautiful singing. Those of you who sailed in Tahiti with us will remember, and I remembered all of you this morning. We walked back along the beach and the water is that beautiful deep blue and turquoise. We stopped at a unique house that a fellow spent 15 years building out of local shells and throw away pieces, and it was really pretty. He is a local school teacher and has written two books. I bought both for Nanc and I to read. Guess who is reading them right now. We ate at a local restaurant and Nanc had the cracked conch. I walked back to the teachers house with four American states quarters he did not have and gave them to him. He now only needs three to have all of them. The others are going to check their laundry stash. Well it is time to dig deeper into the wind generator problem and look at the beautiful world God has given us to live in. S

Bimini finally

Well....here we are in the Bahamas.....at last. We left No Name Harbor at 2:50 a.m., and I hate leaving in the dark. There are boats anchored everywhere...some without anchor lights, and it is just scary. but....we made it out of the channel and while the wind was on our nose, we motored over to Bimini and arrived about 12:00. We convinced the dockmaster to leave all three boats at the end of the T dock...the best place to be and all the boats with reservations had to go to the inside slips. We told him we would help them all dock...and we did; but there were some really bad sailors...no dock lines ready, lost control of their boats....it was crazy! Bimini is a busy, but rural island. We walked the couple of streets and there is a great beach. We plan to stay until Monday as a big "BLOW" is to come through tommorrow. We bought local lobster tails as our dinner, and each boat made a dish, and we shared dinner in our cockpit. This is a great way to live...it is half the work...or actually, one third the work for everyone! We plan to go to church tomorrow morning...which is always an interesting and uplifting experience. So.....we will now be able to start exploring the Bahamas as boaters....which is very different from a resort visit. Nanc

Moving on

Plan on pulling the anchor at 0900 in the morning and heading down to No Name Harbor for the crossing on Sat. I spoke to our weather forecaster, Chris Parker, and he said Sat should be good, but stay in Bimini until Mon or Tue due to a strong cold front moving thru the Bahamas Bank on Sunday with gusts to 40 knots. We went to Publix tonight and bought a few more groceries and dinner. I had a 60 gal bladder which I put on the floor of my dingy, and filled with water. I had a spare water pump, and I went to ACE hardware and bought some items and can now pump water from the dingy to the boat without carrying any jugs if the spigot is close enough to fill the bladder. I have the generator running, and Nanc watched American Idol but is now in bed reading her Kindel. I do not believe we will have much connectivity in the Bahamas, but we hope to use Skype to phone home, and Nanc bought an ATT unlocked phone to put a SIM card in. She spends a lot of time staying in touch with her work, but we walked quite a bit today. She gets tired, and I hailed a cab back to the dock. I will still send FindmeSpot GPS locations. You can make up the thoughts. As I was getting some items for the water transfer the dingy broke loose and floated away. Our buddies on Madame started their dingy and brought her back. We use to call our ole dingy Pita for Pain in the A--. I need to name this one Pita II. Good night, S

South Beach again

We sailed from Boca Chita Key yesterday in a brisk wind back to here. Nanc stopped talking, and I put a reef in both sails. She smiled and started talking again. I am sitting at the Nav station listening to Chris Parker on SSB for the weather to the Bahamas on Sat. We enjoyed Boca Chita, but are looking forward to going over to Bimini and the Bahamas. Got another gas can yesterday to have more petro for our Honda 2000 to charge the batteries on Marcnicliz. She is an energy hog. I had planned on installing solar panels, but put everything on hold due to Nanc's issue. The wind generator needs over 12 knots to do very much, which it did last night. Our Link 2000 does a good job of keeping me abrest of the batteries state and needs. I need a larger alternator and charger. I have a big charger back in the garage in Deltaville which I never had the chance to install.. S

Boca Chita Key

I just got off of the phone with mom and dad and they are anchored for the night at Boca Chita in a National Park. They sailed down behind DK and Carlene with the depth alarm going off repeatedly. Dad said they only had a few inches of water between their keel and the bottom but they made it without running aground thankfully. They wandered around the little island before dinner taking in the sights and sounds before enjoying yet another beautiful sunset. Dad said they spotted a Glossy Ibis along with some land crabs during their walk around of Boca Chita. They will spend the day tomorrow there and eventually they will make their way to No Name Harbor to wait for the appropriate weather window to cross. The Gulfstream is the most powerful sustained ocean current and they must cross it in order to reach The Bahamas. The current flows from south to north and it's important that there not be any northerly component to the wind when they cross. As you might imagine, when a strong current flows from the south and is met by a wind from the north, it makes for very high seas. Currently it's looking like the next weather window that will allow for their passage will come next Saturday. There are many boats in the area that are also waiting to cross. The boat that is anchored behind them tonight is from Rhode Island and there are other boats from far and wide that are also looking to cross when the weather allows. It will take the better part of a day for them to cross from No Name Harbor to Alicetown, Bimini.

Our connection was dropped before I could get many of the details but it sounds like they are having a wonderful time. Mom's leg is doing well and she's getting around just fine and they are in very high spirits. I can hear it in both of their voices when we speak and I'm glad the stress and strain of the past many months has been replaced with an "audible smile". There was some other detail about the islands to the north being made of sand and the ones to the south of them being made of coral but I didn't hear the rest of that before I lost them. As the commercial says, "can you hear me now?" Not so much....

Miami Still

The weather window closed on us, and we will probably still be here thru next Thur. Enjoying Miami. Had a great Pefier Steak at the Hoffbrau House on the end of Lincoln St. Drinks and snacks on Madame this evening. Will sail to No Name Harbor on Monday for something to do and maybe Boca Chita. S

End of ICW

Off the mooring ball in Ft Lauderdale at 0900 this morning and ran outside in 2 to 3 foot waves to Miami's Government Cut, and we are now anchored at the Venetian Causeway. This is the end of the ICW. 1089 statue miles. We put the dingy in the water for the first time since last summer and motored over and took the bus to down town Miami for dinner with the other two couples. We will fuel on Sat and top off the water tanks and hope to leave for the Bahamas on Sunday if the wind is out of the South. S

Venice of the South

Anchor up at 0650 and out into the Atlantic which was pretty rough. Once outside it was not too bad. Sailed outside all day sometimes at 8.5 knots. to here. We bypassed over 20 bridges and do not miss any of them. We arrived for the 1430 and dropped the anchor around 1500. Nanc had trouble picking up the mooring pendant, and lost her headset overboard. I went forward and rigged a snubber and managed to get it on with hand signals. Entertainment for everyone. We are at the Las Olas bridge and will spend tomorrow night here. Ate at a hamburger place close by and Normond ferried everyone to the landing in his dingy after extensive cocktails and snacks in our cockpit.My cousin who lives here is coming by tomorrow night. Saw flying fish, and I saw one fish jump stright out of the water, up eight feet and back in. DK said it was probably a Spanish Mackerel. You cannot belive the wealth concentrated here. More mega yachts than you will ever see anywhere including Monte Carlo. Cold front coming Thur. I have to go outside to Miami due to a low bridge between here and there. Should be a two hour run and then wait for a weather window to cross over. S

Happy birthday Nancy Palm Beach

Anchor came up at 0720, and we stayed inside due to higher winds than anticipated which caused us to transit many bridges. Some open on the hour, some the half, and others the quarter. Holding position in high winds from behind can be sporting. A cold front went thru, and it was decidedly cooler this morning and most of the day. Many, many power boats to contend with. All seem to want to run by as close as possible and create a wake to contend with. I am always concerned for Nanc's safety; since the radiation has weakened her thigh bone. I yell and she grabs hold, although she spends most of the time topside with me. She couldn't stand my close manuvers at one of the bridges, so whe went below and called Kath. I don't know whether she was telling on me or what! We arrive at about 1430. The anchorage here is very tight with boats and many are derilect with some one living on most of them. I now understand why the folks in Florida have trouble with those who anchor close to their places. I will take a picture to send. I had to move the boat three times to find a good spot. We hope to go outside tomorrow to Ft. Lauderdale. S

Ft Pierce

We spent two nights with Diane and Carlton Wine who we knew in Winchester. They have a beautiful condo on the ocean, and our stay was very pleasant. WE made several trips to West Marine, and managed to buy more food. If all of you reading this come to stay with us, we can feed you for a month. We attended church with them on Sat night and heard two good speakers. We celebrated Valentine's Day by buying the ladies roses, which we forgot this morning. I'll pick them up on the way back. tomorrow is Nanc's birthday. Untied from the dock at 0720 and met DK and Carlene and pressed South to here. Made several attempts to find a good anchorage, but too many boats and the anchor would not dig in. I moved several miles, and we are both now on the hook. Nanc is going to prepare a pot roast in the pressure cooker tonight and Carlene and DK are bring carrots which we do not have. Looked like storms would get us by the Sirrus feed I get on the Raymarine 120, but we went between them. We are going outside to Lake Worth tomorrow and Ft Lauderdale on Tue where the third boat is having their inverter repaired. Chris, all the high bridges are at least 64 feet at high tide. I will attach a picture for you. Pleasant dreams, S

Indialantic

The anchorage last night was super with a good dinner and drink. We started out at 0700 after wiping all the dew and condensation off the windows. I finally put them up so I could see. We saw our first Roseata Spoonbills at the cross over from the Mosquito Bay to Indian River. We could see the Space Shuttle on pad 39 as we passed behind Kennedy. I had to put the windows up to let air in, and put my short sleve shirt and shorts on. We stopped in Titiusville and got some new charts at West Marine that I needed and saw two Manatees as we left the dock. DK and Carlene stopped at Coco to see old friends, and we came on to see our friends Diane and Carlton Wine at their oceanside condo. Made the Marina here at 1600, refueled, put on water, and hooked up shore power. We put the boat to bed and are saying here for the next two nights and then back outside to Lake Worth. The third boat , we are meeting in Miami, is having some issue with their inverter overheating and may delay our cross to Bimini, but who cares. We plan on being in Miami on Tue. S

New Smyrna Beach

We departed at 0730 because of the Bridge of Lions opening schedule this morning and went back out into the Atlantic and down to Ponce de Leon inlet and are at anchor, arriving at 1745. Another long day; however we have arrived were the weather suits our clothes. I sailed about three hours and made about 6 knots most of the time. We passed the other boat several times as he motored. Beautiful sunset with a Mount Gay and coke in hand. Nanc is fixing a shrimp dish for dinner, and we spoke to Rich about selling him off to finance our life style. He was not amused. We will stay at Indiaatlantic tomorrow night with friends and leave Marcnicliz in a marina below Coco Beach. Take Sat off to relax and hope to be in Miami by Tuesday of next week. The other vessel is stopping in Coco, so we will move out at full speed tomorrow and stay in the water way to be behind Kennedy in case of a missle shot closing the Atlantic. S

St Augustine

The story from the female perspective tonight! We departed Fernandina Beach with the sunrise. It was another beautiful day. Last night we met really interesting people from Idaho. They had been on a cruise through the Panama Canal and as we chatted and watched the sunset, they couldn't understand anything about a sailboat so we gave them a tour...and they bought us drinks. Folks are great. After two hours on the Intercoastal waterway, we heard that a bridge might be closed so we went out the St. Johns River into the Atlantic for another ocean voyage. We actually sailed for two hours! We came into St. Augustine about 5:00 and have really struggled with the anchorage. There is a strong tide and a strong wind so we feel like we are "twirling". We actually got to eat dinner in the cockpit tonight and enjoy the outdoors. Speedy has sailed off his charts and needs to buy new ones in the morning. Our charts said Norfolk to FL.....but they didn't include FL. We can already tell the difference in the boating situation now that we are in FL. There are derelict boats and crowded anchorages. We are staying in St. Augustine tomorrow. While we were sailing today, we went by DK and robbed him of his wind....and he howled like a banshee! The entrance to St. Augustine was hard to discern but we made it in with out a problem. Nancy

Beaufort, SC to Kildenny Creek, SC to Fernandina Beach, FL

We left Beaufort after a good evening on the town. We anchored in Kilkenny Cheek after passing Savannah and stopping to talk very quickly to an ole friend, Steve Westgate at the Savannah Yacht Club. Had a lot of shallow water to go thru. Our buddie boat went aground several times as he led the way. We got up early this morning and went out into the Atlantic and made it to Fernandina Beach in 10 hours on a glassy sea. DK and Carlene saw a Right Whale. We are tied to the dock tonight and had a super dinner in town. Will press on to St. Augustine tomorrow and spend several days. Good night, S

Beaufort

We left Charleston at 0720 this morning and arrived here in Beaufort at 1645. Long easy ride with the tides behind us most of the way. Many more birds now that it has warmed up. We know we are in the South because of the Spanish Moss; we had to take our jackets off and put on short sleeve shirts this afternoon too. Had one of the best cheeseburgers ever this evening and will be on the anchor for the night. Anchor up at 0700 in the morning, and we will run past Savannah tomorrow. S

Charleston, SC

We pulled out this morning after the coldest night yet. Pulled the anchor at 0730 with hoar frost all over the outside. We were on the dock at 1230 because the Sawyer Bridge open early for us. I filled the fuel tank with 40.3 gals, filled the water tanks, and got rid of all the trash. I then put on my bathing suit, heavy winter coat and got out and washed the boat inside and out. It really needed it and was driving me crazy.Temp was not too bad. We have shore power tonight, and I have turned on the air condition/heat exchanger for tonight. I was afraid to try it until now, due to the rear unit possibly freezing up, and then a real problem. Kept Nanc really close on those cold nights. Plus's to everything. We will head to Beaufort tomorrow and anchor out somewhere tomorrow night. Temp is on the way up for next days and should be very pleasant. I had to take my coat off this morning about 9; since the temp was good inside the enclosure. Nanc just showered and put on her new outfit to go to dinner tonight. She explained this is her birthday month, and therefore she can wear it now. S

Heading for Charleston, SC

Just a quick update here. I just spoke to dad on the phone and they are anchored for the night on Harbor River and intend to make Charleston, SC tomorrow afternoon where they intend to meet friends for dinner. The day started very early when mom woke up and saw the clock and thought they were waking up late. The proceeded to get up and get dressed and moving before they realized that it was actually 5:50am. I wonder if that clock on the cabin wall has been adjusted to reflect what time it actually is now?

They ran for about 11 hours today and dad got that anchor dropped while there was still some light left in the sky in order to keep his agreement with my mother about sailing in the dark. He said there won't be enough earrings in the world if they have to do more night sailing. It sounds like the moon is fairly bright now and he said it's really very pretty where they are anchored.

Today they were unlucky and lucky at the same time. They snagged a herring net that stretched nearly all the way across the river that only had some coke bottle floats which made it nearly invisible. Suddenly dad realized they had snagged it and turned ninety degrees and got the prop into neutral. Luckily it popped loose and he didn't have to put on his scuba gear and swim beneath the boat to free them. In those temperatures it would not have made for a good time!

Dad changed the oil and filter on the engine today and they are ready to head out in the morning. He said they are going to be in City Marina in Charleston tomorrow night. Tonight will be the coldest night so far since their journey began although it sounded like things were warm enough inside the boat.

I guess they are really in the lowlands of the Carolinas because dad said there is nothing but flat earth as far as you can see. They passed mile marker 436 on the ICW today. Dad said that they have to make it to Sawyer Bridge tomorrow before 4PM in order to cross under. He said they should be there in plenty of time.

I asked how the wildlife viewing is so far and he said that they haven't been seeing a ton of birds but that there were quite a few herons and they have repeatedly seen porpoises. They probably know that my mom is on board and loves them.

There will probably be an update from them tomorrow as I think they will be back in the land of wi-fi again.

2nd night in Myrtle

We stayed a second day in Myrtle due to cold weather. S

Myrtle Beach

The day started pretty bad, toilet failed to flush, and the anchor would not come up with the rain and wind at 25 knots, and the light creating conditions where we could barely see. We ran hard and made Myrtle Beach's Bare Foot Landing.We came by Oak Island and I called Gen Stewart and ole friend and he was just crossing the bridge just ahead of us and could see both boats. Amazing the small degree of life's separation. Nanc has her new ear rings that I promised for the second night's problems. We will stay here tomorrow and visit our condo and wash our dirty clothes. It was an easy run after we got going. Our broker got me stright on where circut breakes were located for the head and the anchor windless . We love Myrtle and will make Charleston on Friday where we have friends to meet for dinner. The wind blew at 20 knots most of the day and made the opening of bridges problematic. We made it thru the "Rock Pile" and watched DK get 90 degress to the dock for fuel. Been there and done that. Having a super time. Nanc and Speedy

Fifty nine miles today

We are at Wilmington and the Cape Fear River. Had the tides working against us most of the way which reduced our speed over the ground even though the boat speed was our usual 6 knots. I can do 8; however my buddie's 34 catalina which is pictured can only do six, so I hang back and let him run aground and then go around the low spots. The Coast guard tried to board us this evening, but I told them the boys from Cape Charles did that in June with no write ups. They wanted to see 2 life preservers and let us go; then they sped ahead and boarded my friend DK. We went thru four bridges which slowed or progress due to the limited opening hours; either on the hour or half hour depending on the bridge. One guy at Camp Lajune would not open even though we were with in one minue of the scheduled opening. said we were not close enough. I talked with him at lenght and found his commanding officer had dictated the restriction. I ask him to tell the General that Gen Lloyd who has spent time in the AOR commanding 329 Marines 2200 other troops had more common sense. We kept our speed up and made the anchorage we are in at 6pm as it was getting dark. I have promised Nanac no more night sailing and owe her some ear rings for the second night which I will get tomorrow at Bare Foot Landing in Myrtle Beach. We hope to make Charleston on Thur. It was warm today in our enclosure, but cooled down by about 5pm. I was back in my coat. It is suppose to get really cold by morning. Nanc is fixing dinner as I write this with the propane heater going and we are snug as bugs. I will start the Honda generator just prior to turning in, and put the electric heater on and propane off. I have a CO2 detector on board, but I do not trust it while I am sleeping.

My turn....nancy is very glad we won't do any more night sailing! tooo scary. We motored for 11 hours today which was long but we saw lots of wonderful wildlife..porpoises, egrets, herons, grebs and when the sun was out it was beautiful. There are so many huge houses along the NC coast....and more being built. someone doesn''t know about the construction recession! tomorrow is to be a short day with shopping and dining out! Yea.

Super Bowl

Well, we are watching the Super Bowl, just like most of you on Marcnicliz with our friends. We made 71 miles today and refueled, added water, got rid of trash, etc. We are hard aground at the slip which was suppose to be 7 feet of water, and we only draw 5.5. I am waiting for high tide tonight to move the boat back to get away in the morning at low tide. My buddie is rafted to my port side and will help me off if necessary. We have shore power, elect heat, and the tv has super reception. Who is coming to visit in the Bahamas again? S

Jan 31, Long Day

We departed Elizabeth City this morning at 0720 and crossed the Abelmarle Sound as the wind increased to 20kts with gust to 30. It was quartering and not bad until the last 30 minutes. Because of the winds, our friends in the buddie boat, Carlene and DK had to leave early to get out of their slip due to low water. We ran until 0815pm to catch up, and you can see our location tonight at number 4. Beautiful sunset, and then we went aground as we entered the canal about mile marker 150 due to my running too close to the side of the channel. We got off pretty easily and continued on and met two rubber blacked out boats heading the other way. I coud hear their motors with no visual reference. When I turned my spot light on, they turned their nav lights on and sped past. As I put the anchor down for the night I heard them go down river, again with no lights. Navy or Coast Guard, I guess. Good night to all. S

Departure for the Bahamas - Finally!

I just spoke with mom and dad via phone and they have anchored for the night at The Hole In The Wall at the mouth of the Dismal Swamp. This journey began under the cover of darkness so that they were able to get below Gilmerton Bridge this evening in order to make the 8:30am locks in the morning. They both sounded really happy to finally be underway and to be setting forth on their journey into what will undoubtedly be a series of wonderful experiences. I think the artist Patti Smith nailed it on the head when she said, "Life is an adventure of our own design, intersected by fate in a series of lucky and unlucky accidents". Somehow it seems apropos after the journey of the last several months for them to sail off into the quiet darkness under the light of a crescent moon. Just as the moon will be a bit brighter each night moving forward on this adventure, we are hoping that each day will be brighter as well. Since the days are growing longer once again at this point, I suppose you could say that it's a matter of fact.

Mom said that it's pretty cold tonight where they are and they were going to have a cocktail and then burrow into some flannel pajamas for the night. I don't think that I've ever seen either of them in flannel pajamas in my thirty-eight years and the vision that I have of it in my head is priceless. They said it was beautiful tonight and that the lights of Hampton, VA were very bright. Mom was amazed at the number of birds floating on the water. We had a good laugh over that one. She said, "I couldn't believe how many birds there were floating on the water!" and my reply was, "that's where they live, where else would they be?" at which point we both cracked up.

And so it begins...

Tomorrow the intention is to make the 8:30am locks and then to sail on to Elizabeth City. If they are somewhere with wi-fi access, I imagine that one of the two of them will log in and post something about their day. If not, you may be stuck with my description of how events are unfolding in the early stages of their journey. The map will keep you up to date as far as their location on any given day.

Hope to leave 29 Jan

We hope to get underway on Jan 29th pending weather, etc. We have loaded on everything we need except for the perishable food stuff. Kath has added our find me spot location from Google, and I hope to update the site with our location as we have Wifi available. There is ice on the water here and none in the Bahamas. S

Bahamas Bound

We are finally ready to head South to the Bahamas. Nanc's cancer is in remission, and we will keep you updated on our progress thur this blog on our location and adventures. Speedy