Took the day off…………

………. and went for a boat ride!  :-)My buddy Peter invited me to come for the day and enjoy a ride on his boat the M/V Turtle Bay. Today was spring launch day and I arrived just as they were approaching the launch ramp. Stupid me pulled out m…

Day 133 – 365 Project…Baby Carolina Wrens

Welcome to day 133 of  365 photos…we have had a nest of Carolina Wrens in the top of our propane tank. Yesterday, the babies decided to come out and play. They flew down from the top of the tank and then took mini-flights toward the backyard rose bushes.  Mom & dad were out there trying… Continue Reading

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FPB 64-3 Iron Lady: Canada Bound From Hawaii

FPB 64-3 Iron Lady is Canada bound from Hawaii, a relatively short 2400 NM (+/-) trip, depending on how the Pacific high treats them. Pete Rossin is filling us in on weather and vessel performance data. Information from the last five days follows: May 17 Seas slight. Wind direction and strength variable. 1650 RPM – […]

Day 132 – 365 Project…young red-bellied woodpecker

Welcome to day 132 of  365 photos…this young red-bellied woodpecker (I think that is what it is) seems to be hanging onto the tree for dear life. What a cutie he is.Camera: Nikon D7100 – Lens: Nikon 80-400mm Focal Length: 350mm – Aperture: f/8.0 – Shutter Speed: 1/400  second – ISO: 100 A cool fact… Continue Reading

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Isla San Andres Columbia

The crew of Anna Mae has enjoyed a short stay on Isla San Andres, a small little Columbian Island east of main land Nicaragua. There is a reef that surrounds the eastern side of the island which allows wonderful snorkel opportunities in shallow water …

Isla San Andres Columbia

The crew of Anna Mae has enjoyed a short stay on Isla San Andres, a small little Columbian Island east of main land Nicaragua. There is a reef that surrounds the eastern side of the island which allows wonderful snorkel opportunities in shallow water w…

12 Year Warranty?

Poking Around Prince of Wales Island

We arrived in Craig on Wednesday, 5/21.  We had good weather going around Cape Chacon but it started going downhill that afternoon as we headed up Cordova Bay. 

Since we weren’t in a big hurry, we traveled only 30 – 40 miles a day and checked out three new (to us) anchorages along the way.  We anchored in Max Cove (Klakas Inlet), Dunbar Inlet (Sukkwan Island) and Port San Antonio (Baker Island) before finally arriving at Craig.  All three of the anchorages were very secure with good holding bottoms.  We appreciated the holding because 15-20 knot winds were common in our anchorages.  Fortunately, none had long fetches that built up big waves and the wind generally dropped at night anyway.

2014-05-016xSince the neither the commercial nor the sport fishing seasons are really underway, we had our pick of spots on the transient docks at Craig.  We chose to go into the north harbor since in our previous two visits, we were in the south harbor.

Similar to Ketchikan, we’ll be here a few days, go cruising in the local area, then return for a few more days.  While here we intend to rent a car for a day and drive around Prince of Wales (PoW) Island.  As it turns out, on account of past logging, PoW Island has more roads than the rest of the islands in SE Alaska combined.  We’re also going to go out with a fishing guide for day of instruction and fishing. 

Anchors Down: FPB 64 Grey Wolf Arrives In Panama

FPB 64-6 Grey Wolf, Peter Watson Master, has arrived Balboa, Panama after a non-eventful 4100NM passage from Taieohai in the Marquesas Islands of eastern French Polynesia.Grey Wolf averaged 9.53 knots for the passage, burning less than 21L/5.5US gallons per hour for propulsion, electrical, and hydraulic requirements. For the first half of the passage Grey Wolf […]

May 14 throuh 22, 2014, Fort Myers to Clearwater, FL

Wednesday the 14th:  Moore Haven Town Dock, FL to Nick and Aline’s in Fort Myers, FL:
It was a beautiful morning that started with a great view of the moon going down.  It was 75 degrees when we got up at 05:30.  We saw 4 more alligators this morning; tried to get a picture but they didn’t turn out.  We went through 2 more locks today; the Ortona Lock and the Franklin Lock.  We made real good time with a bit of a tail wind and averaged 9 knots.  Went 45 miles in 5.5 hours with both the locks and 3 bridge openings. Just visited the rest of the day with Nick and Aline after getting here about 11:45.  It was good to see them again.

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5-14-2014:  Beautiful view of the moon just before day break.

5-14-2014:  Husky on floats on the Okeechobee Waterway.

May 15 through 18-2014, Thursday through Sunday at Nick and Aline’s:
It is nice to just relax and not have to travel. We got caught up on a few things. We took Nick’s car to West Marine, Ace Hardware, and the grocery store to stock up on just about everything. After paying the high prices for groceries in the Abaco I will never complain about prices here in the states again. Went out for some nice dinners and got caught up on visiting.

 

5-15-2014:  I got to help Nick tag this Monarch butterfly from Nick and Aline’s butterfly garden.
Butterfly blog:  http://nickiebodv.blogspot.com/

5-16-2014: Sun set on the Caloosahatchee River

May 19, 2014; Monday, Fort Myers Yacht Basin: A short 10 mile trip down to the marina. Stopped at the fuel dock and got 300 gallons of diesel and a pump-out.  Had a busy afternoon with a list of things to get done; wash boat, wash clothes, walk to Publix, dispose of old oil and get ready for an early morning.  I wanted to get a hair cut but ran out of time.

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May 20, 2014,  Tuesday,  Got going by 06:15.  There was a 70 foot boat that came in late last night that left at the same time this morning as we did.  It was from the British Virgin Islands.  The captain drove it totally with remote control; he was standing on the stern and driving backwards.  It took us 2 hours to get to Mile 0 on the Okeechobee Waterway; the turn off to Fort Myers Beach.  We then headed north up Pine Island Sound to Charlotte Harbor and then on the Sarasota Bay.  It was a beautiful morning and day and we made good time.  The first anchorage we had picked turned out to be way too shallow so we went another 8 miles and anchored by the Ringling Causeway Bridge in Sarasota.  For just spending the night, it is a nice little anchorage.  We went 90 miles today in 10 hours and 20 minutes.

5-20-2014: On the “Miserable Mile” at Fort Myers Beach; last time we were here he sold bait out of his boat and now he has a house on a barge anchored there.

5-20-2014:: Lots of dolphins following our boat again

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May 21, 2014, Wednesday, Clearwater Municipal Marina:  Got going by 06:15 again.   Another beautiful day.  Sarasota Bay was smooth with just a little ripple.  Tampa Bay was a little rougher with a light chop.  We had a lot of “No Wake” zones again today.  We got to Clearwater by 13:30, got 200 gallons of diesel and were in our slip by 14:30.  We got settled in and went for a walk over to Cooter Restaurant for drinks and “Grouper Cheeks”.  We went 63.5 miles today in 7 hours and 15 minutes.  I finally got my hair cut on Thursday.  We plan on staying here for another day before crossing the Gulf of Mexico on Friday.

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5-21-2014: Sun rise on Sarasota Bay

5-21-2014: Our boat on the face dock at Clearwater

CO’s comments:  The guy that was backing up his 70 foot boat by remote control had to have spent at least $25,000 for that system.  The boat was easier to back up and go side ways than it was for him to manually drive it forward.  It takes all the fun out of docking.  I bet if the system quit he would have trouble getting it in by himself manually.