Category: Uncategorized

So we woke up and didn’t have a plan for today. We had our breakfast and coffee, then I took Frank in the dinghy to shore. As I approached the dock we had used yesterday, I noticed a security guard walking away from another dinghy then turn toward me. He approached a said “the dock is closed.” I asked why and where else could I go? “I don’t live around here- I’m not sure where you can go- but this dock is closed.” Ok-I turned the boat around and met with the others that had also just been kicked off= “Where to now?” we both were asking each other. They said “We read there is a place on the other side of the bridge” gesturing toward the south. “I see some boats over there- on this side- I’m going to check that out” I replied. I saw there were indeed some small dinghies and as I got closer they looked to be washed up and abandoned, but there was a kayak there and one dinghy that looked liked it floated and it was pulled high up on the sand at the base of the bridge, under a tree. I landed the dinghy and scoped it out. It looked like Frank and I could hop the small brick wall and get to the sidewalk. I returned to the dinghy to pull it up higher on the sand and secure it to the tree. As I was doing this the other couple in their dinghy must have seen me land and decided they would come here too. They pulled up and I told them it looked good enough. I was just going to walk the dog, and they wanted to go explore the city a bit. I wasn’t sure it would be good for leaving the dinghy for an extended period of time… Frank got his walk in and we headed back to the boat. I explained to Lauren the situation with the dock, and after discussing it we decided to move closer to Peanut Island- which is only four miles away- where we knew we could land a dinghy. We pulled anchor and headed toward the island. As we got closer we saw there were a ton of boats around it. This was a Sunday afternoon, so it was expected to be busy. We have heard a lot of people on the loop and online say they prefer not to travel on the weekends due to the amount of traffic- it doesn’t bother us.

Let me tell you a bit about Peanut Island: “Peanut Island is a 79-acre island at the mouth of the Lake Worth Inlet in Palm Beach County, Florida. The island was created by dredging-related projects in 1918 which also created the inlet and the Port of Palm Beach. Originally named Inlet Island, the island was renamed Peanut Island for a planned peanut oil-shipping operation which failed in 1946. A $13 million renovation on the island in 2005 resulted in Peanut Island Park including camp sites, a pier, and a man-made reef. It has well maintained paths that encircle the island, along with lovely gardens and picnic sites. The island also was the location of a blast shelter built in secret for President John F. Kennedy shortly after his 1960 election. Kennedy often spent winters in nearby Palm Beach, Florida.” per Wikipedia… This Island is a very popular spot to be with your boat- it is only accessible by boat- and has lots of sand bars and very shallow areas around it. As we approached we saw a bunch of boats anchored on the south side of the island, across the inlet. We pulled in and tried to find a spot among the other boats. We eventually dropped anchor and I went about having my anchor beer while making sure we were not moving. Our friend Evelyn had called and Lauren was chatting with her, hearing the news that all of Ohio restaurants and bars will be closing inside seating as of tonight. During their conversation I was watching and had a feeling/saw we were moving. Not fast, but still we were moving farther from the boat to our right and closer to the one on our left. Hmmm…I continued to watch and finally decided it was time to do something. I told Lauren we had to move, and she ended her call with Evelyn. I started the engine and we went about pulling up the anchor. Once the anchor was retrieved we debated about whether to just try to re-set it, or move somewhere else. We decided we would try the other side of the island. OMG. Once we got around to the north side of the island, there were hundreds of boats anchored about- the island shore was packed with boats pulled up to the sandy beach and boats everywhere anchored, with people standing in waist deep water, drinking, partying and having a good ol’ time. We had just heard about Ohio shutting down, but the people here were not concerned. I cannot even explain the scene good enough I’m sure- the amount of boats and people partying on and around this island was amazing. We found a spot to anchor less than a quarter mile away, off to the side, and not in the fray of the partiers. Eventually we felt secure in our new anchorage and took Frank to the island for a walk. We pulled the dinghy up on the beach between some boats and walked around the island, marveling at the scene and thinking about how this is against everything that is going on in Ohio. I chatted with a few people and Lauren kept her distance from others as best she could while we walked. We eventually went back to the boat after finding out we could no longer tour the bomb bunker as it was closed for renovations. Dinner was made and we watched the island clear out by the time it got dark.

Day 2: The island was an easy place to take Frank for his walks. Today the island was pretty much deserted, as it was a Monday and everyone was back at work. We walked around and hung out on the beach for awhile. We basically had a lazy afternoon. We did want to re-stock some supplies however before we left, so I went on a scouting mission to see if I could get to shore somewhere as there is a Publix close to where we anchored. I could not find anywhere with shore access, except for a small marina around the corner. I pulled up and asked if we could go to the store and the attendant said no, BUT he told me they leave at 5pm, and if we came after that,.. I read between the lines and thanked him. Back to the boat to hang out until later. I was sitting on the back deck, whe I looked up and saw a large fishing boat pass by very close to us. “Not a good spot to be in” someone- the Captain?- yelled. I was surprised to see them sneak up and so close! I didn’t have a response so I just watched them pass by and dock at a private marina close by. We had spent yesterday and last night in this spot and I didn’t see anyone pass us . There were a few other boats anchored around us too, so it looked okay to anchor here. I went in to tell Lauren about them and she had seen them pass by so close too! “That Captain is an idiot to put his passengers in jeopardy like that!” she said to me. It was true the boat had about a dozen people on board returning from a fishing expedition, and there was no need to come that close to us! We continued about our day, waiting for evening so we could ‘sneak’ to shore. Around 6pm we decided it was time- we dinghied over to the marina and tied off. We brought our cart with us so we could transport out goods back to the marina. We have a folding/collapsible cart which has been the super useful. We got it as a gift and have had so many compliment and comments about it! We walked to the store and used our own cart instead of a grocery cart. At this point they were ‘sanitizing’ each cart but we had our own! We filled our cart and made it back to the boat and unloaded. We discussed tomorrows destination and it was decided to anchor out again- where exactly is up in the air but we have a few options…

We got a good start for our twenty seven mile trip. We are now heading back north, through the same places we passed on the way down to Key Biscayne. We had decided though to not stop at Las Olas, but to continue past it a little to an anchorage called Sunrise Bay. We had researched it and found out there is a state park across the river which has a dinghy dock for easy dog walking. Rain was forecast for the day, but not until later. We pulled anchor and left South Beach in our wake.

The trip was nice and leisurely, since I had ‘tracks’ from our trip south. Our GPS keeps a ‘track’ of our travels, this means I could follow the tracks back and I knew we would not have any surprise shallow waters. The skies darkened a bit as we cruised along, but the rain held off for a while. We found the anchorage and saw there were many other boats already here. We again circled around looking for a spot and finally settled on one closer to the channel. This was not too bad even though we were closer to wakes from boats going up and down the channel. It is a ‘no wake’ zone around here, but not everyone follows the rules and it wasn’t too bad. Once we got the anchor down and settled in, it started to rain. We tucked ourselves inside to wait it out. The rain passed by before it got dark, so I took Frank to the park for a walk. The rest of the night was spent making dinner and planning our next destination…

Since we didn’t have too far to go and we had left early and after a not so stern warning from the Park Ranger- “No docking along the wall overnight, but I understand because of the weather” we made it to our intended anchorage by noon. We weren’t sure exactly where to anchor until we came upon the anchorage packed full of boats. We were feeling a little leary of anchoring in all of these boats with our last experience, but were willing to do it if we could find a spot. Alas, we could not find a spot as the boats were packed in. We circled through a few times looking for enough space but we couldn’t find it, so we ended up motoring over to another listed anchorage. This was down a canal back into a fancy neighborhood. We decided this was no good either as there was no shore access, but it was cool to see the million dollar homes (and their boats and landscaping) from the water. We came back out to the bay and noticed two boats anchored out by themselves- they were out of the ‘channel’ in deep water along the edge where it gets really shallow. We decided we would anchor in this general area. We dropped the anchor and I made sure the anchor was securely set.

There was a dinghy dock not too far from where we had anchored. This was nice place to come to shore- there was a park to walk Frank and a bus stop for the city’s free buses. Our first day there we took the bus to the famous South Beach. As expected it was full of partying spring breakers! The beach was packed! We walked down the boardwalk area and finally stopped for a drink at Mac’s Club Deuce– which claims to be the oldest bar in Miami and has reviews from every major network and publishing personalities. Miami Vice also filmed an episode here and had their final season ending party here! The happy hour is 2 4 1 drinks and did I mention it’s cash only?! Luckily we had some cash so we could take advantage of that happy hour! We walked around some more and found the second ‘best dive bars in Miami’: Lost Weekend. We had some more happy hour fun here too before deciding we should head back to the boat so we could have dinner and walk Frank. During dinner it was decided we would stay at least another day as the weather looks good for the next several days.

Day 2: We took the bikes to shore after walking Frank. We biked to the beach and found a spot to lay out and swim. The beach was again packed, but we were able to not be too close to anyone- we are still trying to enjoy ourselves too! After the beach we biked to the other end of the island and stopped at Miami Beach Marina: “With the famous Art Deco District nearby you are also a few steps from the exciting shopping and nightlife of trendy South Beach” to inquire about dinghy docking. We were looking into it as an option instead of the dock we’ve been leaving the dinghy as we had heard you are not supposed to leave the dinghy there all day, and the police department was right there. We haven’t had an issue, but we don’t want to push it. The marina told us we could dock there, so now that we had our answer, we walked up to their bar/restaurant for a drink. Next on our list was a special happy hour: Lauren had told me about this and I insisted we go. The deal is: $46 Lobster and Champagne- a one pound lobster and half bottle of Champagne Lallier at A Fish Called Avalon, which is on Ocean Drive. We made our way there and found a spot to park the bikes. The street and sidewalks were packed with people (kids) leaving the beach as it was now around 5pm. We found a spot inside the bar in front of a giant window overlooking the street. We ordered the ‘special’ and I added some other items. We enjoyed ourselves and felt like we were living it up! After our extravagance, we headed back to the boat for the night but made a quick stop at the store for some supplies.

The next morning we went to shore with Frank and decided it was time to move on. We still had to make sure we were in Melbourne by the end of the month- we have plenty of time we think, but you never know….

We had a longer day scheduled for today, and it turned out to be a bit longer than expected. We left around 8:30am and was going about thirty five miles or so. Since we are heading north and it is mostly ‘no wake’ zones, it took us about seven hours. I like to say “It’s a nice day for a boat ride!”

We finally made it to West Palm Beach and was looking for an anchorage. There is a free dock to dinghy to so we wanted to be somewhat close to that. Next to the free dock is a marina which was completely empty. They were going to have a large boat show there, but it had been cancelled. It looked strange to see all those docks sitting empty. Once we had set our anchor and made sure all was good, we hopped in the dinghy (with Frank) and set out to walk around the town. The restaurants were still seating people on the sidewalk patios and it was business as usual here, but we knew there were reports about this Coronavirus in the news- at this point (I think) Ohio closed its schools and Lauren was telling me there is talk about closing restaurants! It seems to be business as usual down here in Florida with some exception- there was supposed to be a rum festival going on but it was cancelled, as well as the mentioned boat show. We walked around town and picked up some beer and ice to take back to the boat with us.

Later in the evening we were trying to decide if we wanted to stay another day or continue on- we agreed to see what tomorrow brings…

When we woke up in the morning the winds had not subsided at all. We again debated whether it was worth it to leave or not, but ultimately decided to see if the weather would cooperate.

Later in the day we decided the wind wand waves would at our back so we would depart and head over to No Name Harbor. The trip wasn’t too bad, and once we got close to shore the waves were manageable. We found the entrance to the harbor, which is in Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park. Apparently “several development plans indicated the land was slated for the construction of condominiums and residential homes. The surrounding land was cleared for development in the 1950s, and charts identified the body of water as “No Name Harbor”. The plans failed, and the harbor’s name was retained.”

Upon entry into the harbor we were greeted with about fifteen or more boats all anchored in this harbor without a hint of the wind that was howling out in the bay. There was room here and there, and some helpful boaters told us we should drop anchor between them and then fall back with our scope to end up behind them. It looked good to us, so we did as they directed. There is a concrete wall running around half the harbor where people can dinghy to for shore access. There are trails, fishing piers, a small restaurant with restrooms, beaches and a lighthouse all in this park. Once our anchor was down I had the obligatory ‘anchor beer’ while sitting out back making sure our anchor was holding tight. After I was confident we were securely anchored, we took Frank ashore to explore the park. We walked the trail to the lighthouse, but it was closed for the evening. We still got some good pictures and then made our way back. The boats were all swinging in the same direction, so everything looked good. We were only about twenty feet from the concrete wall when the boat swung to the east, but there was enough room for boats to get by so I wasn’t too worried about it. Dinner was made and we hung out on the back deck enjoying ourselves and thankful we didn’t stay on the mooring ball another night- this was like a whole different world again.

Later in the night, just as I was getting ready to retire, I felt something wasn’t right. Lauren had retired already and I was trying to figure out if we were getting closer to the wall or if it was my imagination? The winds were really howling though the trees around us, but the harbor itself was flat calm. The boats were swinging a little to the wind, but nothing too rocky. I stayed up a little while longer- I felt we were closer, but were we still moving? It was now past 11pm and everyone else in the harbor seemed to be asleep. I thought about my option: start the engine and try to re-position? No- too loud and maybe we were stopped now? If I have to do it I will do it in the morning. I watched a little longer then decide to retire myself and deal with it in the morning…

“Jason- Wake up! We’re hitting the wall!” Lauren was standing at the bottom of the steps calling out to me. “Jason!” she called again. “Whhat!?- F*@k!” I groggily got up and came topside to see where we were. Our anchor had indeed drug even farther to where now our stern was really close to the wall. Inches. We well may have hit and bounced off (thank goodness for steel once again!) but we were still there, ready to possibly hit again. “This is not good” I’d like to think I calmly replied. Now I had to act and my first thought was to get a bumper between us and the wall. Lauren was doing that as I surveyed the situation. Our anchor line was still down and taught, which means the anchor was there, stretched out, but not holding very well. Hmmm… Ultimately I decided to let more anchor line out so we could maneuver the boat to the wall, then tie off to the cleats they had there. The park rules here were you could tie up boats for the day, but no overnight docking was allowed- you had to move the boat in the evening and anchor or leave. Since it was now 1am I figured no one was going to come by and give us grief over it- and if they did I would plead forgiveness. This seemed better than any alternative. We finally got the boat secure to the wall (still with the anchor down in the harbor), and after making sure we were ‘good’ with bumpers in place, we retired once again to get some rest and would deal with our issue in the morning. I was really thankful we moved toward the wall and not toward other boats.

Day 2: We debated what to do about our situation. We were now secured to the wall which is perfectly legal- for the day. We knew we were supposed to be off of it by 2am, but with the boat traffic in the harbor and our plan of leaving the next morning, we decided we would stay put for now. I tried to figure out a way to retrieve the anchor, even using the dinghy to position myself over it and trying to pull it up by hand, but that was not working. We were in a little bit of a conundrum, and after a while deciding what to do- we went to the beach!

The afternoon was quite enjoyable. We spent a bit of the afternoon wandering arounf the lighthouse ground (where we met a couple from Warren, Ohio!) and then went to the beach for a while too. We then biked into town to the grocery store and stocked up on some supplies- as much as we could carry on the bikes. Then we made it back to the harbor and back on the boat. We were still tied off to the wall, and after some more discussion we decided we would stay here for the night and leave first thing in the morning.

The next morning we went straight to work on departure. We were up early and walked Frank, then as the sun was coming up we started the engine and prepared for departure. We planned on using the self serve pump out station before we left as it was free and available, but as we were tossing our lines we saw another boat pull up to it. It didn’t matter though because our first priority was to retrieve the anchor. We pushed off from the wall, me on the bow and Lauren at the helm. I was giving directions as the anchor line was coming up. We had a somewhat tight space to do this in as another boat had pulled up and anchored where we were yesterday. Lauren was doing a great job maneuvering the boat and retrieving the line when I started to see the chain part of our line coming up. Soon the anchor was in sight and as it rose above the water line I saw there was a long broom handle caught between the prongs! I had to reach down and wrestle it free- maybe that is why the anchor didn’t set?! Once the handle was free, Lauren pulled the rest of the anchor up and we turned toward the exit. We circled around and came up on the wall right behind the sailboat that was using the pump-out station and waited. Once he left we went to work completing our pump-out and running our own hose from the water spigot so we could fill our water tanks. Now that we had topped off water and had empty toilet tanks, we were good to go for a couple of weeks at anchor if need be. Before we started to head to our next destination (an anchorage by South Beach) we took a leisurely ride through what is called ‘Stiltsville’. “Stiltsville is a group of wood stilt houses located one mile south of Cape Florida, on sand banks…on the edge of Biscayne Bay…the structures stand on wood or reinforced concrete pilings, generally ten feet above the shallow water, which varies from one to three feet deep at low tide”, but there is a deep-ish channel that runs between a row of the houses like a road. We followed that and got good views and pictures of the strange houses, then turned back north to go back across Biscayne Bay and closer to Miami Beach.

The weather was pleasant, and it was a nice day for a boat ride. We worked our way under a draw bridge then turned east to get close to South Beach…

We departed our anchorage somewhat early and headed south. This took us back along our path until we got to the Ft. Lauderdale inlet, also called the Port Evergaldes Inlet. This inlet accommodates naval vessels, container ships, freighters and cruise ships and is where we entered from our journey back to Florida from the Bahamas. We are also warned to be aware that larger vessels will often be escorted and have an enforced security perimeter, so we cannot go within one hundred yards of them. In the news lately more cruise ships are having health issues and the word Coronavirus is being associated with them too. We made our way through the channel taking care to stay in the channel but away from the huge ships that were docked. We saw several cruise ships docked here too. We continued along and went through Hallandale, Hollywood Beach, Miami Beach and several other beach-side towns along the way. We eventually came through the Port of Miami and into Biscayne Bay. The weather today was fairly windy, but it didn’t affect us as we were in the ICW. Once we came out to the open bay though, it was a different story. The waves were kicking up and there was a lot of sailboats and kite surfers out enjoying the wind. We were planning on anchoring out, but with the weather we had decided we would see if a mooring ball was available. We radio in and were told yes, we could have a mooring ball and they gave us directions to it. We found our number and got secured.

The winds maintained at a high level and we were getting bounced around in the boat. The waves continued to roll at us and they weren’t far apart. Looking out into the bay, whitecaps were frothing off the top of every wave. The ride to the dinghy dock was about a half mile, and half of that was going from the unprotected mooring field to the small islands surrounding the marina itself. Once you get behind the islands, the water was calm flat and it felt like another world. Unfortunately for Frank we had to wait until it was safe to dinghy in until the next morning. I had called the office and told them we were secure but couldn’t come check in and they weren’t worried about it at all- “just come in tomorrow when you can and check in.” they told me.

The next morning the winds were a little less, but not much. Knowing Frank had to get to shore I put his life jacket on him and loaded us into the dinghy. Lauren wasn’t too thrilled we were going, but he really needed to go. The trip in wasn’t quite as bad as I expected, but the wind and waves were coming from our back. We would just dip up and down as the waves rolled under us, and once we rounded the corner of the island it was flat. I went to the office and checked in, got our key cards and paid the small fee. Once all of this was done we started walking toward town. Coconut Grove is a cool city: “Hugging the shoreline of Biscayne Bay, Coconut Grove is an upscale, leafy neighborhood with relaxed sidewalk cafes and chic shops in and around the CocoWalk mall. The area’s several green spaces include bay-front Barnacle Historic State Park, home to a mangrove forest, and the iconic Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, centered on a lavish Italian-style villa. Sailing clubs and marinas dot the waterfront.” This pretty much is accurate- casual, upscale, lots of shops and cafes and we had a good time walking around, exploring the parks, cafes and a tap house/brewery, but they did not have their own beer yet as it had just opened. We spent the afternoon in town and eventually made our way back to the marina. The wind was still blowing pretty good and we didn’t feel like going straight to the boat, so we went to the ‘boaters lounge’ that the marina office has. It has books, magazines and wifi so boaters can hang out there for some time off the boat. We hung out for a bit, charging Laurens’ phone and reading while deciding what to do tomorrow. We don’t want to stay on theses mooring any longer getting bounced around, so we decided we will jump across the bay and go to an anchorage called ‘No Name Harbor’. Our only concern is we do not know if there is room in the harbor for us to anchor, and if that is full- where would we go? The trip is only about five miles across, but with the choppy conditions, that could be about an hour of hell. Do we really want to do that? We debated back and forth, then walked down to load into the dinghy for the trip back to the boat. It started out well, but as soon as we rounded the corner, the waves were hitting us straight on. Frank actually moved to the back, by me and behind Lauren- to get out of the spray of water we were heading into! We’ve never seen him do this before- he usually sits front and center so he can see where we’re going and what’s going on! We finally reached Klondike and Lauren was soaked! I had tried to angle into or away from the waves to minimize the spray, but she kept taking water over the bow. I was cracking up behind her with Frank and by the time we finally reached the boat we were both laughing pretty hard! Dinner was made and we retired still without a definite if we should stay or leave tomorrow…

Our not fun trip from Bimini brought us to Ft. Lauderdale. We had two options of where to make landfall: Hillsboro Inlet or Ft. Lauderdale Inlet. Hillsboro is about ten miles north of Ft. Lauderdale, and in trying to negotiate the waves and currents I kept bouncing between the two. I finally decided it would make more sense to go the shortest distance as heading toward the northern inlet wasn’t making the ride any smoother. Once we were close enough to land we had procured a slip at the city marina Las Olas Marina. We were told we could have two nights and would have to depart on the third day. We agreed to this, as I wanted to have a slip and facilities to settle in to after our jaunt across the Gulf Stream. Upon arrival we called the marina and was given a a slip number and directions, as well as having someone there to assist in docking. Once we were secured, we let out a sigh of relief. It is nice to be secured in a dock after a rough trip across the Atlantic Ocean.

After I had checked in and got all of the necessary information, we used our ROAM app to ‘check in’ to the USA from our foreign port. The cool thing about the app is it allows you to check into Customs and Immigration remotely, avoiding having to physically go to a check in point in person. Once we received our verification we were cleared, another sigh of relief came over us. Now we were back in the ‘good ol’ USA’ and could now continue our journey (which is still another 3000+ miles) back to Cleveland, Ohio, enjoying the comfort and protection of the ICW. One other bonus: Since we had left Florida and returned, our time limit for taxes had reset- “Even if the boat is not initially taxable in Florida, however, the vessel will again become taxable at a rate of 6% of fair market value if the boat remains in Florida for 90 consecutive days”. Our time has now been reset. We reached out via text messages to let everyone know we were now back and called some family to let them know we are now able to be contacted again…

Lauren and I were both pretty hungry after all of this, so we set out to find an early dinner. We ended up at Quarterdeck Restaurant which is right down the street and a very short walk. We enjoyed some sushi and it felt good to relax. After dinner we walked a little farther to the beach. Spring break was in full swing so the crowds were huge and people everywhere! We strolled along the beach for a bit, then returned to the boat. We retired early after our long day, looking forward to tomorrow and what Florida has to offer.

Day 2: We spent the morning doing boat chores- cleaning up and washing down the boat, laundry, showers, etc… I had reached out to Rob K. and found out he was in Florida and after some planning arranged to meet him at the marina tomorrow morning! YAY! Rob had met us in Mackinac Island and will be the first friend to meet us twice(!) on our trip! Arrangements were made and we finished up our chores and maintenance. Later we stopped by Nanou French Bakery for some breakfast/lunch with Frank. We sat on the patio and enjoyed being back. We were certainly disappointed we couldn’t continue on in the Bahamas, but it is nice to be back. Later after lunch and returning Frank to the boat, we wandered up to the beach. The crowds were unbelievable, but we found a spot to hang out and catch some sun and swim in the ocean. We eventually returned to the boat and finished getting everything in order and I met a couple of fellow ‘Loopers’. I was explaining to them how we had to leave in the morning and was planning on anchoring around the corner but needed to figure out how to get to shore for the dog when one guy offered me to ‘raft’ our dingy off of his boat. I thought that was a great idea, since I already had the codes to the gates and would do it just for a short time. Later in the day I checked with the office to see if we could extend our stay, but was told there was no space available as someone was coming for our spot tomorrow. and there were no other slips available.

Day 3: Rob was set to arrive around 10:00am. We got up early and made sure we were ready for our first guest since Jack visited us in January. Around 9:30 Rob let us know he was about thirty minutes away. We were all set for our visitor and for our 11am departure, so I walked up to meet him in the parking lot. We went back to the boat and we all hung out for a while and caught up on what we all had been doing in the last few months. I forgot about the time and quickly realized it was time to depart the dock. As we were pulling out I saw the dockmaster coming down to either assist or tell us we had to go, but either way we were leaving before he got to us. I had scoped out an anchorage about two hundred yards away from the marina, just around a small bend in the ICW where a couple of other boats were anchored too. We made our way over there with Rob as a passenger and dropped anchor. Now we had to sit and make sure the anchor was holding and we weren’t going to drag. After an hour we all loaded into the dinghy and headed for shore. I dropped everyone off and tied off to the other Looper’s boat as planned. We then walked up the street to the “World Famour Elbo Room Since 1938“. From their website: “To say the Elbo Room is just a beach bar is like describing the Sistine Chapel as just a room in a church. A historic dive featured in the landmark 1960 Spring Break movie “Where the Boys Are,” partiers can find cheap drinks, late hours and the comfort of knowing this is where the locals are. And it is cash only”. The place is a dive bar, but very cool to be there! We enjoyed a few beverages and then took advantage of Rob having a vehicle. He took us to a grocery store where Lauren did some shopping while Rob and I had a snack at P.F Changs next door. Lauren called us and let us know she was done after awhile and we picked her up at the store. We dropped everything off at the boat and hung out there for a little bit more. Eventually we were all getting hungry and decided to go get happy hour at Casablanca Cafe. We enjoyed their happy hour menu and ordered quite a few items. We all were having a great time! Eventually after we were all full from the food and drinks, we had to make our way back to the marina. At this point it was time for Rob to start heading back as he had driven three hours to come for the visit! We bid our farewells and watched Rob head out. I took Lauren back to the boat and retrieved Frank so he could get to shore for some land time.

Tomorrow we will be going backwards a bit, as we want to visit Key Biscayne, Coconut Grove, Miami Beach, and a few other cities along the way. Our plan is to head south in one jump, then turn around and come north in smaller jumps so we can stop at those places. Several years ago Lauren and I took our American Sailing Association courses in Florida and the Teacher/Captain brought us to Key Biscayne, so we want to see if we can re-visit some of the sights he had pointed out to us…

Morning came and we did our routine- coffee, cats and dog fed, shore visit for Frank, weather check, and we were ready to go.

We slipped our lines from the mooring around 8:30am. We planned on about an eight hour trip across. My calculations were to use the gulf stream to our advantage and let that help push us north. We kept hearing and reading horror stories about this trip- some people miss the island and have to turn back south to get there. Others come up short and have to island jump to get to their intended destination. The island is small, only about seven miles long and around seven hundred feet wide! I can see how it would be easy to miss, but with navigation we have I was feeling confident I could find and hit it. Our trip was going to be about seventy two miles,- a bit farther than we normally travel, but again I was hoping for a push in speed going with the stream. My research showed it flows north around two to three knots, so that would add the same to our speed, I hoped.

As we turned out into the ocean, we were met with some medium sized waves coming from the east. I throttled up and pushed through these and continued on. Lauren and I had made an agreement if either of us felt uncomfortable, we would immediately turn around. I was driving from the flybridge which gives me the advantage of good vision all around and I could see when the waves were coming. Lauren was hanging out inside the cabin. We continued on for a couple of hours and were soon out of sight of land. We were now in the stretch. The waves continued to pound us from two sides now- we were getting waves from the easterly wind, as well as waves from the northern current. These would cross at times making for some ‘confused seas’. Again from my vantage point I could see this happening and would do my best to turn into or with a wave, only to get another from another side. The boat was pitching and rolling, and I was holding on from my perch. Frank was hunkered down beside me, giving me glances from time to time, making sure all was well, but he was not enjoying this. I felt bad for Lauren and the cats, as I could just imagine what they were doing and feeling in the cabin. A couple of more hours into this Lauren came upstairs. She was telling me how the couch was sliding around the cabin- with her on it!- and she was doing her best to stop it from hitting the lower helm steering wheel, which could effectively cancel my steering from upstairs! We chatted for a bit and I told her we were getting closer- maybe a couple more hours and we should be able to see land. She returned to the cabin and I continued to try to steer a steady course toward Bimini.

Around 3:30pm we could see land! My charts were showing us on course, and I was expecting to hit land around 5pm. Every now and then I would think the waves were settling down, then we would get hit with another series from different angles- it was like the ocean was saying ‘hold my beer…’! We both were feeling a bit better now that we had land in sight. During the trip we only saw two other vessels, and they were commercial cargo ships passing by, but that made me feel good too- at least I knew someone else was out there and around if there was any catastrophes. Now we were getting closer and closer to land- the water was getting more and more blue and clear, and I was continuing to watch the charts. Another reason for concern around the Bahamas is the shallow depths and moving sandbars- the water is so clear sometimes it is hard to actually judge the depth! Their government does not keep up on dredging like our Army corp of Engineers does in the USA. Local knowledge is important information if you can get it; we had to rely on our charts for now, and we were getting closer. We were going from twenty five hundred feet of depth to around forty feet in a matter of a mile or so, then down to fifteen feet or less in the matter of a few hundred feet! One of the rules of entering foreign waters is to display a quarantine flag, so I called down and asked Lauren to come help while I hoist the flag. She took over driving and I got the yellow quarantine flag in order. Next we located the buoys we wanted which marks the channel into North Bimini and was heading straight for them. There was a small, very nice fishing boat I was watching also, wanting to see if we were going to cross paths or if I needed to take avoidance to them. They seemed to be stopped so I continued on. As we got close to the fishing boat it started to accelerate right in front of us! WTF! I turned a little to starboard and continued on, then heard them yelling at us. I am still not sure what I did/didn’t do or if I did something wrong, but it was not nice to have them yelling. We just continued on as we were close to getting to the channel. As we were approaching the channel, we saw a nice boat which had run aground and was sitting on a sandbar- the top half of the boat was dry and out of the water, but the bottom had clearly sunk a bit before resting on the sandbar. Hmmm…

We made our way into the harbor and called Browns Marina on the radio. We had called them yesterday to inquire about docking and rates, if they were dog friendly, etc. and they said “no problem, mon- plenty of space- call us when you get here.” They answered the radio call quickly and told me he would meet us at the dock and assist us into the space. We pulled in and saw there were about four other boats there. We got tied up and secured to the dock and the dockmaster took note of our electric and water meters. Here in the Bahamas, they charge per KW for electric, and per gallon for water. I was advised by another skipper to also note our meters as someone else had disputes with usage. It was now about 5:15pm, and as soon as we were tied up, I had to take our passports and head over to the Customs Office. Another rule: no one is allowed to leave the boat until Customs and Immigration has been completed; Only the Captain may leave to do this, bringing everyone’s passports with them to clear in to the country. I got directions from the dockmaster and ran off to clear in before the offices close at 6pm.

I made it to the Customs office and the officer gave me a stack of paperwork to fill out. I completed it rather quickly and he expressed disbelief I had done so that quick. “I have to be able to read this too” he told me as I was handing it to him. He looked it over and exclaimed “did you go to Catholic school? This writing is neat and you did it so quick!” I laughed and said yes. He completed his part and I had to pay the $300 fee for the boat and our personal paperwork. I then inquired about Immigration and he told me the directions of where to go, so off I hustled to try to get there before closing time. I walked into the building right at 6pm. I found the office and walked in. The officer there looked at me with surprise, and I apologized for not knocking. I explained we had just arrived and I was coming from Customs. He looked at his watch and back at me and said “We close at 6pm, but since you are here I will process you, however the fee is usually $75 for after hours, but again since you made it here I will only charge you $60”. The fees I knew were $50 normally, but he had a point about it being ‘after hours’ and what was I going to do? Argue? I said “deal” and we completed the paperwork. We got our passports stamped and our Visa for ninety days, and I returned to the boat officially checked in to the Bahamas. I also realized they never asked- I didn’t offer- if we had any pets. Frank, Alice and Lulu were now illegal aliens. Once back to the boat, Lauren took Frank for a potty break and I went about getting the ship more secure. A few of the other boaters there came over and invited us to join them for cocktails. I lowered our yellow quarantine flag, poured Lauren and myself a drink and we wandered over to meet the other boaters. Everyone was really friendly and it was a lively conversation, with everyone congratulating us on making it across, and us sharing our stories about the crossing. One captain asked if we had a courtesy Bahamian flag to fly? That is another rule in foreign water- you should always fly a courtesy flag of the country you are in, as well as the flag of your home country. We said we did not have a courtesy flag, and he went to his boat and gave us an old one he had from the previous year. It was a little tattered, but it would be better than nothing! I hoisted the Bahamian flag and we all enjoyed our cocktails and company for the evening as our dogs (two other boats also had dogs) got acquainted with each other too. I noticed a sign on the dock: “Just then, from one of the boats tied up at BROWN’S dock, a rocket rose with a whoosh high into the sky and burst with a pop to light up the channel.”– a quote from Ernest Hemingway ‘Islands in the Stream’- too cool! – Soon it was time for dinner and we were able to relax and enjoy our first night in the Bahamas, watching huge fish swim under and around our boat, as well as some rays and sharks. We will not be swimming here!

The next day we celebrated Lauren’s birthday! We spent some time riding around the island and exploring. We made a stop in a small store to see if they had cake mix- I forgot to plan. We visited a couple of stores looking for icing too! Cake mix was available but there was no frosting to be had and there are no large/chain grocery stores on the island, just small local convenience type stores with an interesting variety of foods in each one. Lauren and I had laughed at a ‘list’ someone on one of our forums had of items needed to travel to the Bahamas, and cake frosting was a listed item! The joke was on us though as there was none to be had, BUT I was able to get some powdered sugar, we had vanilla and milk, so I made some homemade frosting. The cake turned out pretty good, even though the frosting/decorating left a lot to be desired and I had to use a couple of pieces of dry pasta as candles! Happy Birthday!

Since we were there for almost two weeks, I will not do a day by day recap, but I will relate some stories…

The winds that night were expected to pick up, so we were happy we were at a dock. I had many lines on both sides of the boat and bumpers all around. The tide would rise and fall, and the lines would need some adjusting on a regular basis….

The Island as mentioned earlier is not very big. We took our bikes and rode from one side to the other. We found a bakery not too far away that made fresh bread- WOW was this delicious. We made trips almost every other day to procure some of this goodness. Almost every time I went, I had to wait for it to come out of the oven, so I had to wait anywhere from ten to twenty minutes. The first day I had to wait, I took the bike up a hill to overlook the vast blue ocean. I hung out and smoked a cigarette, then headed back to the bakery. On the way down the steep hill I realized my bike brakes were not working. OH SHIT! I was heading down the hill, picking up speed, and trying to decide what to do?! The end of the street/hill crossed the main road through town- I was praying there was no cars coming, but couldn’t see around the corner building- my mind was flashing and I just said “F’ it” and went straight across the road and continued on straight; my heart and adrenaline was racing and I was lucky no one was coming! I eventually was able to slow down, turn around and get back to the bakery for the bread. What I won’t do for fresh bread! And now I know not to go down hills on the bike!

We explored as much as we could on a daily basis, and covered the whole island in a couple of days. There were many places not even open due to it not being ‘tourist season’ yet. There was a beach close to the marina at the tip of the island which we passed upon entering (Where the sunken/grounded boat was) which was great to walk Frank to. So many shells and conch shells around to be collected… We also found Stuarts Conch Stand which had an amazing conch and lobster ‘salad’, which was more like a ceviche, prepared at the counter in front of us with the freshest fish, lots of fresh lime and garlic powder. There were literally ‘islands’ of conch shells in the water just outside the ‘shack’, which was truly a shack on the water. They also had 2 for $5 bud lights, which is a deal on the island! We had gone to a liquor store to check out prices and a case of beer (24) was around $50! you could buy a six pack, but beers were $3 each, regardless if you bought one, two or six! We did not buy much beer during our stay (we came prepared with beer- just no cake icing!), but we did buy an inexpensive bottle of Bahamian Rum! (remember- almost everything is imported by boat.) We also got to experience a funeral too- The custom here is to have a parade and what would amount to a second line- The musicians, funeral directors, family, and friends of the dead make up what is called the first or main line, while the crowd marching behind is collectively known as the second line. As the procession moves from the funeral service to the burial site, the first and second lines march to the beat of a brass band- this shut down the main street through town and closed businesses so all could participate. This is truly a ‘celebration of one’s life’!

Over time we watched the sunken boat move closer to the marina- to a point where we all were trying to determine how soon it would crash into our docks and the boats docked there…eventually someone on the island brought a large dump truck and parked it on the grass along the channel, then ran a rope/line from the moving/sunken boat to the truck to ensure it wouldn’t float any farther with the tides/currents. Local ingenuity at its finest. We explored the other end of the island where there is a large fancy resort- A Hilton Resort- which has a marina, hotel, and beach. We hung out on that beach quite often, it was beautiful white sand and more blue, warm water. They had some (expensive) food and drink trucks, more shells to be collected and lounge chairs to sit on. We would park the bikes, procure some chairs at the end, and enjoy the warm sun and sand. Unfortunately every day was pretty windy- winds were around twenty to thirty miles an hour! The distinction was which direction they came from- the beach was on the northwest side of the island so if the wind was coming from the south or east, the island blocked the wind and the beach was pleasant. If the wind came from the west or north, the beach was super windy and the waves were much larger crashing into the beach. Either way, we could not leave the marina with the boat and continue on like we wanted to with winds that high. Our plan was to land in Bimini, then move over to Berry Island/ Chub Cay, which is about an eighty mile jump. From there we were going to go south about thirty five miles to New Providence Island (where Nassau is, but we were going to go to the south part of the island- not Nassau). From there it was around forty miles to the Exuma Islands. Every day we watched the weather and tried to determine if we could continue on. Every day the winds were 20+mph…

About a week in, we were getting frustrated we couldn’t leave for more Bahamas traveling, but we wanted to be safe above all else. The others at the marina were also itching to be on the way, but they couldn’t leave either. We all talked every day comparing weather notes and trying to determine when it would be safe to go. It seemed like every day the forecast was for more high winds, with some rain on occasion. We were all feeling stuck at Brown’s Marina (which isn’t a ‘bad’ place to be stuck). One day one of our neighbors came to me and asked if we went to “another place, after Customs? Immigration?” I replied ‘yes’ and was curious why they were asking me? Apparently they had not known about checking into Immigration and had skipped that. They were going to go (they had been in the country two week at this point) and try to rectify this. They came back a while later and somberly told us they were getting kicked out of the country. They had seen Lauren on the dock and told her first, which Lauren thought they were joking and laughed! They told the rest of us what had happened and Lauren felt really bad she had laughed! Apparently when they showed up to report in, the officer told them they could be arrested on the spot, but said they had to leave immediately or else they would be arrested! The wife told the officer it was not safe to travel (true- wind and storm were approaching-again!) so they could not leave right now in their boat due to the conditions. The officer explained that the ferry (there is a ferry from Ft. Lauderdale, FLA to Bimini, BAH) would be operating and they had to be on it. There was no issue with their boat (or their dog) but they had to leave and could come back and ‘check in’ when they returned! They made arrangements with our other neighbor to watch their dog while they were gone and boarded the ferry to head back to the USA for the night. Night fell and the wind and rain came.

The next morning I noticed a sailboat had docked at the end of the marina. I was amazed someone had crossed the ocean in the weather and made it to Bimini. It was not a good travel day/night to try that! Since I was awake fairly early I watched as the marina started to wake up. Eventually there was movement on the new sailboat and I watched them move from the end to a dock a few boats down from us. I went to assist with the lines and met the couple that had showed up overnight. Since I had Frank ready for his walk and they had to go to customs and Immigration, I offered to show them where to go. We chatted on the way and I found out the he and she was from Switzerland, he had duel citizenship in the US and they had chartered the sailboat so he could teach her advanced sailing. She was paying for the whole trip and he was getting paid to do it. They were young-ish and I thought he must know what he is doing! I waited around while the charter couple completed the Customs and Immigration check in and we all went back to the marina for a ‘Welcome to the Bahamas’ beer. As we were drinking the beer I expressed amazement that they came across the ocean in the conditions we had overnight; that’s when the stories got interesting! He was telling the few of us how he almost got run over by a cruise ship last night! It was raining hard and he couldn’t see in front of him. He was using autopilot and had ducked downstairs in the cabin for ‘a few minutes’ when he heard the loud deep blasts of a horn. Cruise ship horns are VERY loud. He said he ran up to the cockpit to see a massive ship towering over him! He said he was so close he couldn’t even tell which way it was going! He turned hard on the rudder and passed “within feet!” of the ship. His student was downstairs the whole time throwing up from the angry ocean and being pitched about, so she was no help to him on the long trip. It took them about fourteen hours to cross! this goes to reinforce to me the Captain must be alert and there is ALWAYS someone on watch, especially if you are running on autopilot. Another good lesson is weather- I couldn’t understand why they even left? He said he listened to the charter company and they said he would be fine (instead of checking for himself). This made me question if he was a very good teacher… Later in the day he had wandered over and was chatting with Lauren as I was walking Frank. I had told them our plans and how we have been stuck here for a week now. Now he was telling Lauren we were crazy for doing this in a one engine boat- what would you do, etc.. Lauren was already anxious about this trip and now he was making it worse. When I returned from the walk Lauren started to get worried about all the crap he was putting in her ear. I was a bit upset about this- How could a Captain that almost just got run over and paid no attention to weather tell us what we should be doing?! Lauren and I discussed our plans and we came to an understanding. The weather was still not looking good for a couple of days so it didn’t matter anyway at this point. During the day another sailboat had also arrived , with two guys who just wanted to come to the Bahamas for a bit before returning back to Florida. Of those two, only the captain/owner knew how to sail and the other guy was just along for the ride. Apparently the ‘ride’ was not fun for them either!

While we continued to watch the weather, there were a couple of days we thought might be doable to leave, but when we woke up and looked, the winds were just still too high. Still no one had left the marina and a couple more boats had arrived. In this whole time only one boat had left and that was a very big catamaran sailing boat that we met on our first night. They had told us they were on their first leg of a world circumnavigation, having left from Virginia a couple of weeks ago, so they weren’t very far in. The next day the wife had some medical issues so they departed on our second day there back to the US. We now had nine boats in the marina all itching to get out and on their way. A couple were planning on going straight back to the US, and a few were going to continue on roughly the same direction we were going but to different islands. One day we planned to leave with another sailboat, but again the weather was too bad to leave in our opinion. We were up at 5:30am so we could depart right at first light. I was going to check out and the dockmaster told me we shouldn’t go out in this. I didn’t need any more convincing than that so I told him ‘never mind- we’ll stay.’ Our friend in the sailboat however did depart, and I watched him through the binoculars going out into the rough ocean and turn north- We all wished him good luck and that was the last we have heard from him (I’m assuming he made it just fine).

At this point there looked to be a day coming up that could be good for travel and everyone was making their plans. Looking further into the forecast it looked like we might be able to make it to Nassau or even maybe the Exumas, but then more high winds for another week or more was right behind, so we could potentially get stuck on one of the islands. Unfortunately there are not a lot of marinas through the island chain either, so if we get stuck in a storm it will probably be at anchor. With all of this information and talking to Lauren, we mutually decided when we get a ‘good weather window’ we would head back to Florida. As much as we wanted to try to continue on, we had to be prudent and also wanted to be in Melbourne by the end of March for a planned family gathering. All of this together meant going back to the USA would be the wisest choice. The day before we left was an okay day to travel (for some) but since we got beat up on the way here, we wanted to get the best window for the way back. That being said the two sailboats that had come later in the week (Captain teacher and the two guys) were going to depart. We were out at the beach that day and came back to see the sailboat with the teacher laying up against the inside wall, not is a dock slip. I inquired to our neighbors and they said he pulled out but had trouble with the current, so he got pushed up against the wall where they tied him off to wait until the current died down. Hmmm…my confidence in this guy is now down even more. Later I watched as they were trying to get him off the wall and he came and asked me for some help which I of course obliged. He wanted me to use our dinghy to run a very long line from his boat to a dock where there would be more assistants to help pull him off the wall. It was quite a sight to see, with everyone having their own opinion on what to do. I just sat in the dinghy floating around until they gave me the line and told me where to take it. Eventually we were successful getting him off the inside wall and he docked at the end of the T so he would be able to leave straight from there in the morning. Next the two guys were going to position their boat on the outside with him so they could leave too. Teacher/Captain took over and was maneuvering the other guys’ boat out of the slip (why??) only to be caught in a small current again. Now this boat was sideways along two docks, precariously close to a boat that was docked between the poles. More dinghy assistance and more opinions- Eventually we got him off and clear of the other boat and positioned him on the T dock as well so they too could pull right out in the morning. Morning came and again the winds were higher than we would be comfortable leaving in, but the others took off. I was once more amazed that the ‘teacher’ had the student on the bow of the boat to undo the lines BUT WITH NO LIFE-JACKET! I suggested she should put one on, assisted with the lines and watched the two boats head out to sea with her still on the bow of the boat (still no life-jacket- WTF!?) …

I had tried fishing a few times from our dock, but had no success. To be clear- I had no success with catching anything we could eat, as the one or two I did catch were really small. There were plenty of fish in the sea (I couldn’t resist…) and we would see schools of them swimming around under our boats, as well as the mentioned Rays. I tried frozen bait and even cut up a small fish I caught as bait to no avail of the elusive ‘trophy’ fish or even something we could eat. One of our last days there I walked over to the fishing boat pier and purchased some fish from a fishing boat. I was sold ‘Jack’, but I am a little suspicious of what it actually was. To be honest- I couldn’t tell you one way or another. I probably should have researched before now, as I just found out: “Jack crevalle is one of the species considered by most as junk fish. They usually wind up being discarded or used for bait…” Now I had some Jack that I watched the guy filet for me. I was handed the fish in a plastic bag and walked back to the boat with. As I came through the marina gates, a neighbor boat said he was going to fire up the grill to cook some dinner, and if I wanted to use the hot coals when he was done- go for it! This was perfect timing. I took the fillets to Lauren and shower her my score. She was a little dubious about them, but told me to prepare them. I skinned the fillets then oiled and seasoned them up. When it was time, Lauren made some rice and I grilled the fish. They actually turned out pretty tasty except for the bones we had to work around. I had a bit left over too, which I gave to the marina security guards that were hanging out. This was the closest to ‘catching’ dinner we came…

**It is interesting to note we have been hearing a bit about the Coronavirus in the news and knew it was becoming something big. On our last day at the beach we were watching hundreds of kids take over the Hilton resort for spring break. I realized not only was it a quick beach destination they could reach by boat or plane, the drinking age there is eighteen, so the party is on! We stopped into the resort to look around and they told us they were expecting around six hundred kids in the next day or two! The beach was filling up each day with large groups and we watched from the outside. Lauren was keeping up on the news on her phone and would also predict an end/delay to the baseball season before it actually happened, as well as keeping up with the steps Ohio was taking, so we were not disappointed to be leaving the masses… **

The following day was forecast to be another ‘good’ crossing day. We were up and ready and it looked like this was going to be the departure day. We got everything in order and settled up at the dock office. Everyone else was doing the same, but we were the only ones heading back to Florida- everyone else was going to continue on deeper into the Bahamas. Now that we had checked out we boarded the boat and were ready to head to sea.

The crossing was going to take us to Ft. Lauderdale and we decided we were going to try to find a dock. We had to wait until we were in US waters to be able to make phone calls as our phones were not set up for International. We left the protected harbor, passing the sunken boat as a reminder to watch the charts and depths! Once we were clear of the shallow areas I set a course toward Florida and increased the throttle. The trip back we were heading slightly north, but more east, so the trip back will be shorter in nautical miles. Once again we were in an easterly wind with the Gulf stream making northern waves as well as the waves from the east. It didn’t seem any better on the trip ‘home’ than it was on the way there, and in fact Lauren thought it was a bit worse. I kept adjusting course trying to find the smoothest angle to the waves versus our destination, but once again the ocean said ‘hold my beer…’. The trip to Ft. Lauderdale took around seven hours with not much traffic out in the ocean. Once we got closer to Florida I started to see more commercial traffic due to the Port. It was a little frustrating to see land for so long but still get beaten up by the waves. The waves didn’t stop rolling us until we were well into the channel and finally turned north in a protected area. Whew- that was a long ride! We had called and secured a slip at Las Olas Marina, right downtown and only a couple of blocks from Ft. Lauderdale Beach.

The morning got started with the coffee and Lauren taking Frank to the vet while I prepared for departure. We were both a little anxious, Lauren because of our upcoming jump across the Atlantic Ocean and me due to the repairs I did, hoping they had worked and also I have to admit I was a bit uncertain myself. I had done a ton of research about the trip and we had signed up for a weather service, which gives predictions of weather/waves and helps determine if it is a good day to make the Gulf Stream crossing. Our latest report was saying Thursday (tomorrow) would be a good day to cross- it also qualified it with a “the seas will be lumpy but doable (for some) but not fun”- more on this to come…

We prepared to depart The Pilot House Marina and we held our breath as I started the engine. It fired right up and the gauges were giving good readings! I went down to the engine room to check for any leaks, and all looked good! Yay! Now the test will be if it holds up during our travels! We eased out of the slip and headed down the channel, remembering the tips they had given me coming in about staying close to one side or the other due to shallow or rocky spots. We made it out of the channel with no issues and continued out into the ocean toward our next destination. We were only going less than ten miles away, but it would be a good test on the engine repairs and it was a good ‘jump off’ spot to get out to the ocean and gulf stream, which we would take advantage of the current to push us north as we crossed to the Bahamas.

The trip was a nice easy cruise, with Lauren driving as I went down and continued to monitor the repairs I had made. Everything was looking good, and the leak had (for the most part) been fixed. There was a small drop that formed, but nothing like the leak we had. I tightened up the bolts a little and was pleased that it seemed to be working well. We eventually came to South Sound Creek, which would take us into the state park. The creek depths were anywhere from ten to twenty feet deep and very protected so it was a nice easy ride. Once we got to Largo Sound where the park is, the depths dropped to just under five feet! The charts were showing a five foot depth, and we turned toward port to follow the five feet of water and toward the mooring balls. We ‘touched ground’ a couple times, but never came to a stop. We reached the first mooring ball (which was farthest from land) and decided we would take this one and not push our luck any more with shallow water. Once we securely attached to the mooring, I took Frank in the dinghy to find out where to pay and scout out the area around the park. The park was busy with all kinds of water activities going on from snorkeling, kayaks and canoes, and swimming at the many beaches they have. There were also plenty of bike and hiking trails. Once I found the harbormasters office, I checked in and paid the small fee for the mooring ball. We were chatting and they were surprised we even made it to the moorings with our draft! I made a note to make sure we leave either at high tide or at least a rising tide! I would have to check this out as we wanted to be leaving fairly early in the morning…

Frank and I made it back to the boat and we had lunch. Lauren wanted to go to shore to explore, so once we were done eating we all hopped back in the dinghy and headed back to shore. We wanted to do some swimming, but realized when we got to the beach that dogs were not allowed on the beach. Bummer. We normally would have pretended to ‘not see’ the sign, but a park ranger seemed to be hanging out there and was keeping an eye on us. We found a spot to sit under some shady tree and hung out there for a bit. Eventually we wandered around the park for a while and then decided to head back to the boat. We checked the weather again for tomorrows journey and confirmed it was looking pretty good with no north winds expected. One of the biggest weather issues when crossing the stream is NOT having any north winds. Apparently wind coming from the north will wreak havoc by stacking up the waves into very steep, fast waves as it would be blowing against the current of the water flowing north. Tomooorew was forecasted to have south/ southeast winds which were in our favor. The weather service also was still saying it would be a good day for some to cross, but not all. This didn’t scare me too much as I figured it was a nice way of saying “don’t blame us’!

We had dinner later and retired somewhat early. We were both getting a bit more anxous and i wanted to make sure we had a good nights sleep before embarking on an open ocean jaunt. We made some final preparations and made sure everything was secured and battened down. We looked at the weather again and finally went to bed, hoping tomorrow would would be still be a good day to cross when we woke up…

We pulled anchor and headed out of the anchorage. We took a different route out since we had bumped bottom on the way in. We made it to the ICW and turned northeast, following the markers. We found the cut called Whale Harbor Channel, and cautiously turned south and made our way toward it. Since we are now out of the ICW, we have to be careful and hope the charts are accurate until we get to the channel. We made it in and through the pass without incident and came out to the Atlantic Ocean. We followed the channel out to deeper water and turned northeast again. The rest of the trip was not too bad as the wind and waves were somewhat minimal.

I called the marina om our way there and they told me how to enter the river where they are located. “Stay to the right as to avoid the rocks on the right side of the channel when entering, then when you get to the mangroves a little ways upriver, stay to the left to avoid the shoaling there.” OK- a couple of navigational hazards to avoid, no problem. This didn’t help our stress level, but we made it in without incident. The dock master was waiting for us as we came to the end of the river where the marina is. He was pointing to our slip and we pulled in with a little assistance, avoiding a large cigarette boat docked on the ‘T’ right next to where we were directed. Once we were secured and settled in we took the bikes for a ride around town. We ended up at Snooks Restaurant and Tiki Bar. We got to watch another amazing sunset as we enjoyed some appetizers at the tiki bar. Once the sun had set and we were done eating, we made our way back to the boat. Tomorrow will be a day to do some shopping and I will attempt to make a repair to the engine. We have had an oil leak we have been able to contain, but I clearly to need replace the gasket- the problem is I cannot find the specific part I need. When we were at Marathon, our new friend Jimmy told me about using a cereal box as gasket material, so I will be attempting to do so.

Day 2- We had our morning coffee and walked Frank, then we had to get to work. Lauren researched and made an appointment for Frank the next morning as he needs his ‘pet passport’ and proof of shots within 48 hours before arriving in the Bahamas. She also did some shopping via Publix delivery service. I had stocked up on oil the night before, so I went to work on our oil leak. First I drained the oil, then I fought hard with the bolts on the cover I was trying to remove but finally won. Once I had the bolts free, I removed the cover and the last of the oil drained out. I had a bunch of towels and an oil pan ready to catch anything that spilled out. Now it was time to make the gasket. I took a cereal box and cut one side of the box for my first attempt. I pressed it up against the cover and tried to get an idea of how to cut it. I traced it with a pencil and then went to work with a knife. Once I had that completed, I put it up to the opening and retraced with pencil again, using oil smudges as a second guide to where it needed to fit. I then used that as a ‘master template’ and cut another from the other side of the cereal box, fine tuning where I had missed before. Once that was cut I placed it again and made sure I was not blocking any edges or curves of the cover. I fine tuned a few edges and figured this was as good as I was going to get it. I then used Permatex to seal the edges of the homemade gasket. I re-assembled the pieces and hoped for the best. I wanted it to dry for as long as possible before seeing if it worked, so tomorrow when I start the engine for departure will be our first test. Once the mechanical fixes were completed, Lauren assisted me in cleaning up the engine room and the bilge. We used a shop vac and tidied everything up. Soon after we finished this project, Lauren placed the order for groceries to be delivered to the marina. This was our first time trying this and it worked out pretty well. If the ‘shopper’ couldn’t find an item, they would text giving us a replacement option or we could just say never mind. We got a few items like this and then waited for the delivery. That too kept getting pushed back by about 30 minutes at a time, then finally everything arrived! We met the delivery driver in the parking lot and loaded up our cart with the items and proceeded back to the boat to unload our supplies. Soon it was dinner time, which we enjoyed while also finalizing our plans for tomorrow, our last day before we take the big jump across the Gulf Stream!