Its been a week since returning to NS, and I have not seen the sun for nearly a week, it was out today, about 1/2, and now its gloomy again.Oh how I yearn for that warmth
Skip boat
Some time ago, when I was planning on getting rid of the wood from my deck, Rob suggested I float a skip across the river, fill it, then float it back again.I think you guys in the US call skips dumpsters? I’m not sure.At the time, I was taken with the…
Stuart / St. Lucie
Our visit to Vero Beach was very enjoyable. We had the opportunity to socialize with dear old friends, meet new ones, and think about our future land home. And we are glad to be underway again and excited about meeting Kevin and Courtney in Ft. Lauderdale in a few days for the Holidays.
The morning was very foggy, and believe it or not, the fog seemed to thicken as dawn broke, portending a warmer day. Ken (Rusty – Slow Dancin’) towed us in our dinghy to pickup the repaired dinghy engine. Once installed we made our way around the mooring field to say good by to new and old friends: Ken and Joy (Slow Dancin’), Jim and Nancy (Solitaire), Corey and Linda (Live Wire II), and Jim and Beth (Mad Cap). We will all meet again soon in the Bahamas or on our way there.
We prepared Escapade for travel, including putting on 387 gallons of fuel (!), filling up with water and hosing down the cockpit. We then set out for Stuart in the warmth of the sun. What a glorious day! Everyone enjoyed the change–a dolphin cavorting in the bow wake, pelicans splashing in to catch their prey, cormorants flapping their wings for lift off, seagulls swarming schools of fish. The water became that aqua color that speaks of the tropics. Huge cumulous clouds billowed on the horizon but were not threatening.
On the way we passed the St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant. This was built in the late 60s-early 70s by Bechtel, one of Ken’s former employees at the same time Ken was working on Turkey Point. The plants are very similar designs, and Ken had a lot of interactions with the folks at St. Lucie.
We turned north into the St. Lucie River and anchored off the channel for the night. We’re in a huge panorama of homes and trees. The anchorage was a little rolly at first, but as soon as passing boats went home for the night, it became very pleasant.
We enjoyed our evening at anchor, and even watched our favorite Friday evening news show – Washington Week.
Clearwater, Florida to Gulfport, Florida
December 9, 2010Sunset at Clearwater BeachWe left the quiet solitude of Caledesi State Park and found the hustle and bustle of Clearwater Beach. The day we arrived in Clearwater it was a warm 86 degrees (That’s the last day of warmth we’ve had in…
Carabelle to Tarpon Springs (Crossing Gulf of Mexico)
Ready to cross the Gulf of Mexico after checking the weather again & again & getting the blessing of the dock master at Carabelle, we brought up the rear of 5 boats – Merried With Her, Scoperta, Empty Pockets & Genessee Dawn – that le…
Day58 Charleston SC
Entering Charleston Harbour Homes on the ICW Downtown Charleston Beautiful home on the waterway to Ch…
Finally an update
I admittedly have done less than a yeoman’s job in keeping current with blog entries. Having followed others I find that not keeping up is frustrating and after a while I stop checking. Not wanting that to happen I will try and keep this up with …
Rick, Deb and Izzy Aboard M/V Broulee and other Wild Adventures 2010-12-09 05:45:00
COLD SNAP HITS FLORIDA – AND YES WE ARE STILL IN MIAMI! Again, front after front coming this far south delaying our departure to the Bahamas. Looked like yesterday may have been a small opportunity, but we are waiting for a part t…
FROM LAKE CHARLES TO MORGAN CITY
We left Lake Charles a little late. The wind was blowing really hard and we were doubtful of whether or not we should go. The wind seemed to level off at around 18 knots and was slated to drop in the afternoon. So, knowing we would be running in the r…
December 3-8, 2010
CamacheeCoveYachtHarbor, St. Augustine
HalifaxHarbor, Daytona Beach
Titusville Municipal Marina, Titusville
It’s been awhile since I added to the blog. We have traveled every other day and rested on the off days. We are still on target to get to Ft.MyersBeach by either December 16th or 17th. Even though we are traveling on the ICW, the weather could be a factor by next week. It seems so odd to have to pay so much attention to what may happen with the weather.
On December 3rd we left FernandinaBeach for St, Augustine. We needed assistance leaving the dock again because of the tidal current, but mostly because of a strong wind blowing us into the dock. As it turned out, Mark placed one of orange ball fenders toward Grateful’s bow and pivoted the stern out using the fender against the dock. Our trip was uneventful – thank goodness – and we saw some interesting sights on the way to St. Augustine.
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| We passed two of these “houseboats” on the way to St. Augustine. |
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| Lady Catherine, a beautiful Trumpy yacht, passed us. |
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| Sunset at Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor |
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| Boats in dry dock facility being repaired |
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| A perfect end to a long day. |
CamacheeCoveYachtHarbor is very nice and protected. Last spring we spent a week at the St. Augustine Municipal Marina. While we had a wonderful week there with easy access to beautiful historic St. Augustine, the hustle and bustle (construction on the Bridge of Lions, tour boats coming and going, transient boats crashing and getting caught up in the current) was quite a difference from the calm, peaceful feel of Camachee Cove. On Saturday many boaters were decorating their boats for Christmas – the big regatta is next weekend.
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| Grateful at Comachee Cove Yacht Harbor |
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| Entrance to Camachee Cove |
We moved on to Daytona Beach on Sunday, and returned to HalifaxHarbor. We had a very pleasant stay with them last spring and this time was no different. Our trip was another easy one – and we shared the waterway with many more boats than we had seen before. As this day progressed apparently the wind shifted from the west to out of the north. We were getting a healthy push from the wind as well as the current, but it ushered in very cold weather for this part of the country. For the last three mornings we have been getting up to mid-30s for temps. I have pulled out all the winter gear that I needed last fall when we were traveling down the Mississippi. Even Captain Mark has reluctantly given up his shorts for a pair of sweatpants.
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| St. Augustine at dawn |
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| Castillo in St. Augustine |
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| Passage through the Bridge of Lions |
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| Halifax Harbor at sunset |
On Tuesday, we continued down to Titusville and stopped at the Municipal Marina again. We had forgotten what an adventure it was to get into a slip here. Because the docks are fixed not floating and because the fingers are only about 25 ft long, we have to go stern in so that we can get off our boat. (Our doors are located about 10 ft from the back of the boat). Things seemed to be going just great with the stern fitting between the soft posts when suddenly the dockhand yells “FORWARD” because one of those posts had moved right behind us!!! Well, Captain Mark still has fast reactions and we did not hit the post. I got the stern line to the dockhand, but then I had to run to the bow to lasso those soft posts with bow lines. Good Grief – I am going to need more practice on that skill. Anyway with expert help from the dockhand, we were finally tied down. Our power cord and water barely reach from the front of the boat back to the main dock behind us, but we are connected. And this is another great place to stay. Porter loves it because he can get off and on the boat under his own power. With floating docks we need a ladder so we have to lift Porter off the boat. He is much happier this way.
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| First dolphins to swim with Grateful – a family of three. |
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| Never get tired of watching |
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| Can you find the heron? |
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| Spilled red wine – Porter was helping clean up the mess. |
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| Heron at Titusville Municipal Marina. |
Last spring we watched the Atlas rocket launch while we were here and we thought we might see another commercial rocket launch of the Falcon 9, but it has been delayed – maybe tomorrow morning? We will look as we travel down to Vero Beach.
