Fri Jan 30,2015
Ceasars Creek, Elliot Key
Florida
We started off with bacon, eggs, bagels and cream cheese. Sun was bright, weather was perfect and we had slept like babies. A day that starts like that is hard pressed to get better, but it did. We expected no wind or what there was off our stern. The pleasant surprise was we got wind on our beam at 8-11 and seas less than a ft. We motored until we got out of Biscayne Bay then put up our sails when we saw we had wind and from a good direction. We sailed over aqua water in gentle winds with perfect temperatures and no heeling, well almost no heeling. It was the most relaxing enjoyable sail I have ever had, bar none. If every day on a sail boat was like that I would cruise as a life style.
We anchored between clumps of mangroves in Ceasars Creek around 3;30. We were just doing drinks and the fly in the ointment arrived. Or rather the no see ums. Fortunately it was not so hot we couldn't close the hatches and ports and go below. I got several bites before we got closed up. Hate those little suckers. I was going to grill prime steaks tonight but no way with the bugs.
Plans now are to stay here tomorrow and tomorrow night, but plans change on a dime so we will see.
And yes everybody I AM HAVING FUN NOW.
Voyages of Sea Turtle
Friday, January 30, 2015
Thursday, January 29, 2015
Last Day in Ft Lauderdale
Wed Jan 28,2015
Ft Lauderdale
Las Olas Marina
Today I washed the boat while I still had shore water. Washed the laundry while I still had a laundromat at my disposal, and even cleaned all the real glass and plastic glass. We topped off the water and Mark brought Lee 2 jerry jugs of diesel and we filled 2 jerry jugs of water so hopefully even though it will be a while before we have ready access to either we will be ok.
Mark and Lee returned the borrowed car and took a trolley back to the marina at about the same Judy and I were finishing the laundry. It was getting late and we were all hungry so we took a suggestion our friend David Canty made to walk to Coconuts which is only a couple of blocks from the marina. It has a dinghy dock so Handleys took their dinghy and we walked. It was very busy and we had to wait a while to get seated. The food was worth the wait. It was good and plentiful. No one went away hungry or disappointed. Thanks for the tip David.
We knew it was going to be a early morning so we checked the news and weather and turned in earlier than usual.
Ft Lauderdale
Las Olas Marina
Today I washed the boat while I still had shore water. Washed the laundry while I still had a laundromat at my disposal, and even cleaned all the real glass and plastic glass. We topped off the water and Mark brought Lee 2 jerry jugs of diesel and we filled 2 jerry jugs of water so hopefully even though it will be a while before we have ready access to either we will be ok.
Mark and Lee returned the borrowed car and took a trolley back to the marina at about the same Judy and I were finishing the laundry. It was getting late and we were all hungry so we took a suggestion our friend David Canty made to walk to Coconuts which is only a couple of blocks from the marina. It has a dinghy dock so Handleys took their dinghy and we walked. It was very busy and we had to wait a while to get seated. The food was worth the wait. It was good and plentiful. No one went away hungry or disappointed. Thanks for the tip David.
We knew it was going to be a early morning so we checked the news and weather and turned in earlier than usual.
Off Again
Fri. Jan 29,2015
Coconut Grove, FL
We left Ft Lauderdale and Las Olas Marina about 7 this morning. We went out the inlet with the wind going one direction and the tide going the other. If you are a sailor you know that means a bumpy ride. We headed south about 2 miles off shore to a pretty bumpy ride still for about an hour or so. We had decent wind 12-13 knts,but not always a good direction. We put up the main and motor sailed for the first hour or so. The seas eventually calmed some and we put up the jib too and turned off the motor. We were getting better than 5knots and speed over ground better than that. It took 5 hrs off shore to get to the port of Miami ,another 2 hours to get to our anchorage for the night. .
Miami was a very busy place. The channel long and twisty. Mark and Judy went aground once briefly but came off. We came to the marina but had to anchor as no moorings or slips were available. We dinghied to the dinghy dock and walked a bit into town. There is a swanky little section called Coco Way with expensive little shops of one kind and another. Nothing up my alley so we came back to our boats. After a little drink we ate and are taking it easy.
Plans are to go about 30 miles tomorrow and stay at Ceasars Creek. It is a protected anchorage and day after tomorrow is looking bad enough we will probably stay put right there for the day.
Coconut Grove, FL
We left Ft Lauderdale and Las Olas Marina about 7 this morning. We went out the inlet with the wind going one direction and the tide going the other. If you are a sailor you know that means a bumpy ride. We headed south about 2 miles off shore to a pretty bumpy ride still for about an hour or so. We had decent wind 12-13 knts,but not always a good direction. We put up the main and motor sailed for the first hour or so. The seas eventually calmed some and we put up the jib too and turned off the motor. We were getting better than 5knots and speed over ground better than that. It took 5 hrs off shore to get to the port of Miami ,another 2 hours to get to our anchorage for the night. .
Miami was a very busy place. The channel long and twisty. Mark and Judy went aground once briefly but came off. We came to the marina but had to anchor as no moorings or slips were available. We dinghied to the dinghy dock and walked a bit into town. There is a swanky little section called Coco Way with expensive little shops of one kind and another. Nothing up my alley so we came back to our boats. After a little drink we ate and are taking it easy.
Plans are to go about 30 miles tomorrow and stay at Ceasars Creek. It is a protected anchorage and day after tomorrow is looking bad enough we will probably stay put right there for the day.
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Shop Til You Drop
Tues Jan 27, 2015
Ft Lauderdale, FL
Las Olas Marina
60s windy and sunny. Handleys arrived around 10;20 and we were off to Holly Cross hospital for Marks dr. appointment. Everyone stopped at the cafe in the hospital and got a morning munchie. We waited in an outdoor area near a pretty fountain until Mark finished and then we were off to shop.
We hit Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Costco, Walmart, Home Depot, the Apple store in the mall, and Handleys hit Publix while we were at the Apple store. Knowing that the luxury of a car was soon to be off the table we tried to leave no store unshopped. It was quite a drive to some of them too. We were not able to find everything we were hunting but got most of it. We got back to Sea Turtle around 5 tired and thirsty. A few beers fixed that for everyone else and a coke for me.
Plans change and you have to be flexible. The guests Handleys were planning to have aboard had to cancel so that left our schedule more open. Of course there is always the weather factor. There is supposed to be a week long rain coming here in a few day.. Mark and Judy have much more experience watching long range forecasts and they have Mark's treatment schedule to take into account so they are doing the planning on when and where, which is fine with us. That is a big part of the work in planning cruising. Our longest solo cruise was 24 days and I know how much work that the route planning and anchorage hunting etc. was for us. We have exceeded that already on this trip and are glad to have that burden fall mostly on Handleys.
Wed. will be clean the boat day while we have water at the dock, do the laundry and get things tied down to go off shore. If I have time do some advance cooking and then freeze it for eating underway I will do that. It can be challenging to cook when you are bobbing and bouncing underway.
Ft Lauderdale, FL
Las Olas Marina
60s windy and sunny. Handleys arrived around 10;20 and we were off to Holly Cross hospital for Marks dr. appointment. Everyone stopped at the cafe in the hospital and got a morning munchie. We waited in an outdoor area near a pretty fountain until Mark finished and then we were off to shop.
We hit Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Costco, Walmart, Home Depot, the Apple store in the mall, and Handleys hit Publix while we were at the Apple store. Knowing that the luxury of a car was soon to be off the table we tried to leave no store unshopped. It was quite a drive to some of them too. We were not able to find everything we were hunting but got most of it. We got back to Sea Turtle around 5 tired and thirsty. A few beers fixed that for everyone else and a coke for me.
Plans change and you have to be flexible. The guests Handleys were planning to have aboard had to cancel so that left our schedule more open. Of course there is always the weather factor. There is supposed to be a week long rain coming here in a few day.. Mark and Judy have much more experience watching long range forecasts and they have Mark's treatment schedule to take into account so they are doing the planning on when and where, which is fine with us. That is a big part of the work in planning cruising. Our longest solo cruise was 24 days and I know how much work that the route planning and anchorage hunting etc. was for us. We have exceeded that already on this trip and are glad to have that burden fall mostly on Handleys.
Wed. will be clean the boat day while we have water at the dock, do the laundry and get things tied down to go off shore. If I have time do some advance cooking and then freeze it for eating underway I will do that. It can be challenging to cook when you are bobbing and bouncing underway.
Monday, January 26, 2015
Dinghy Day
Monday Jan 26, 2015
Ft Lauderdale, FL
Las Olas Marina
We woke up to a cool but sunny day. Waited all morning for the dinghy fix it guy to call and let us know when he was coming. We finally called him after lunch and he said his man would come fix it at 4. It was about 1 so when Mark and Judy asked if we wanted to take a car ride to the grocery store we said yes if we could be back by 4.
In the mean time we found out when your heater and hot water are both turned on your inverter objects and throw its breaker. Which causes your shore power to shut off and you to crawl under your mattress to reset it. Live and learn.
A sudden heavy rain passed by about 1:30 and the sun came out bright like it never happened. None of our newly water repelled canvas leaked. Shortly after that Handleys arrived, filled water tanks and off we went. Got most of the stuff we needed pretty quickly while Mark and Lee went to CVS to get hair clippers. I tried to cut Lee's hair with scissors and a comb. Unfortunately it looked like a blind person attacked him with scissors. Tomorrow I will try to mitigate the damage.
After checking out at the grocery store we all stopped at Cold Stone Creamery. I have been craving ice cream for a month. (no pickles tho) Enjoyed my ice cream and waffle cone dipped in chocolate. Yummmm, We then all headed off to the marina, We invited Handleys to stay a while but like us they had things that needed to be put in the frig or freezer.
Tomorrow Mark has a short Dr appointment before he has his treatment Wed. So we are all going and heading to Costco and Trader Joes, stocking up for the trip to the keys and up the gulf side to Ft Myers.
Lee noted the wind had gotten in the 30s while we were gone. Between that and our sunny day the wind and solar panels have our batteries full. Looks like all the hassle and expense will have been worth it.
The dinghy guy finally came. His boss is a Russian named Sylvio and the worker who came was a Cuban. Talked alot about the recent changes between our 2 countries. About family in Cuba and what they earn in a year, $300 for an engineer. Interesting conversation. He blew up the tube tight and glued it with instant set glue. We shall see how it holds up.
Ft Lauderdale, FL
Las Olas Marina
We woke up to a cool but sunny day. Waited all morning for the dinghy fix it guy to call and let us know when he was coming. We finally called him after lunch and he said his man would come fix it at 4. It was about 1 so when Mark and Judy asked if we wanted to take a car ride to the grocery store we said yes if we could be back by 4.
In the mean time we found out when your heater and hot water are both turned on your inverter objects and throw its breaker. Which causes your shore power to shut off and you to crawl under your mattress to reset it. Live and learn.
A sudden heavy rain passed by about 1:30 and the sun came out bright like it never happened. None of our newly water repelled canvas leaked. Shortly after that Handleys arrived, filled water tanks and off we went. Got most of the stuff we needed pretty quickly while Mark and Lee went to CVS to get hair clippers. I tried to cut Lee's hair with scissors and a comb. Unfortunately it looked like a blind person attacked him with scissors. Tomorrow I will try to mitigate the damage.
After checking out at the grocery store we all stopped at Cold Stone Creamery. I have been craving ice cream for a month. (no pickles tho) Enjoyed my ice cream and waffle cone dipped in chocolate. Yummmm, We then all headed off to the marina, We invited Handleys to stay a while but like us they had things that needed to be put in the frig or freezer.
Tomorrow Mark has a short Dr appointment before he has his treatment Wed. So we are all going and heading to Costco and Trader Joes, stocking up for the trip to the keys and up the gulf side to Ft Myers.
Lee noted the wind had gotten in the 30s while we were gone. Between that and our sunny day the wind and solar panels have our batteries full. Looks like all the hassle and expense will have been worth it.
The dinghy guy finally came. His boss is a Russian named Sylvio and the worker who came was a Cuban. Talked alot about the recent changes between our 2 countries. About family in Cuba and what they earn in a year, $300 for an engineer. Interesting conversation. He blew up the tube tight and glued it with instant set glue. We shall see how it holds up.
Sunshine and Lollipops
Sunday Jan 26, 2015
Ft Lauderdale, FL
Las Olas Marina
Today was all cloudless sunny sky. Cool, never out of the 60s. We removed all the canvas but the roof panels, which we had treated while we had that collapsed to mount the solar panels. The rest we laid out on the dock today and sprayed with water repellent. The tricky part is putting sheets under each panel to protect it from the dock and covering every bit of window/eisen glass so the spray does not get on it. We did that and left the panels to dry. The only problem is we are in an area where we get lots of wake from passing boats and the water splashed up on one panel and left a white looking area every where it touched. I scrubbed it and hope it will not show up too much on the navy fabric as time goes by. We left those to dry and read books. Tough life. After they dried we put them back on and benefited from the bright sun. Love the greenhouse effect on a chilly day. Blessing Jack of Sunset Canvas. Getting everything zipped and buckled and snapped back is always a pain. In fact there are a couple of buckles on a slant that we never did get done. The material shrunk---that is my story and I am sticking to it. LOL
Got a call for Terri who just got back from a Caribbean cruise with our friend Bonnie. Nice to go to warm climes in the middle of winter. Also nice to get back to your pups and own bed. Glad she could go, but missed our daily chats like crazy. I had Terri withdrawal. She keeps me grounded.
A nice cabin cruiser came in next to us this afternoon. The couple came in to register while Lee was paying our way out since we will be leaving Thurs. morning. They had a golden retriever and we are a sucker for them. Lee had to admire the dog. Later they and we took pics of the most gorgeous pink sunset. We really kind of took the day off so that is about the extent of things.
Oh, there weren't really any lollipops
Ft Lauderdale, FL
Las Olas Marina
Today was all cloudless sunny sky. Cool, never out of the 60s. We removed all the canvas but the roof panels, which we had treated while we had that collapsed to mount the solar panels. The rest we laid out on the dock today and sprayed with water repellent. The tricky part is putting sheets under each panel to protect it from the dock and covering every bit of window/eisen glass so the spray does not get on it. We did that and left the panels to dry. The only problem is we are in an area where we get lots of wake from passing boats and the water splashed up on one panel and left a white looking area every where it touched. I scrubbed it and hope it will not show up too much on the navy fabric as time goes by. We left those to dry and read books. Tough life. After they dried we put them back on and benefited from the bright sun. Love the greenhouse effect on a chilly day. Blessing Jack of Sunset Canvas. Getting everything zipped and buckled and snapped back is always a pain. In fact there are a couple of buckles on a slant that we never did get done. The material shrunk---that is my story and I am sticking to it. LOL
Got a call for Terri who just got back from a Caribbean cruise with our friend Bonnie. Nice to go to warm climes in the middle of winter. Also nice to get back to your pups and own bed. Glad she could go, but missed our daily chats like crazy. I had Terri withdrawal. She keeps me grounded.
A nice cabin cruiser came in next to us this afternoon. The couple came in to register while Lee was paying our way out since we will be leaving Thurs. morning. They had a golden retriever and we are a sucker for them. Lee had to admire the dog. Later they and we took pics of the most gorgeous pink sunset. We really kind of took the day off so that is about the extent of things.
Oh, there weren't really any lollipops
Sunday, January 25, 2015
Two for One
Fri and Sat Jan 23 and 24
Fri
.The guys worked on completing the solar panels and Judy and I did laundry. Then we all walked a couple of blocks to lunch at the Quarter Deck. After lunch Judy and I explored Fort Lauderdale via the city bus. For 85 cents it is quite a bargain. We found a library, an art museum, and a nice mall. I bought a couple of things for Lee at the mall. What we were hunting for was a decent city map at a tourist information center which does not seem to exist. Handleys had been stopped for speeding in their dinghy on the way to our boat in the morning, which seems absurd considering how people fly through here at the bridge throwing wake that can knock us all over the place. They will travel slower.
Sat
We started out in the afternoon for Blue Water Books. It was dreary and rainy in the morning and not good weather for Handleys to dinghy the almost mile to our boat ,so, they waited till afternoon to come . Unfortunately when we found the place it closed on Sat at 1. It was after 1. Judy suggested we drive south to explore a couple of possibilities for anchorages for our next stop. We stopped first at Coconut Grove to check out Dinner Key Marina. They are huge and booked way in advance but they put us on a waiting list for the day we wanted and promised to call if a mooring came up. You can anchor around where the moorings are at any rate. The plus to them is that you can dinghy in and there is no charge for leaving the dinghy and they have water and fuel. The next stop was No Name Harbor in Bill Bagg Cape State park. in Biscayne Bay. It was really a big puddle and crowded, had no facilities, fuel, water or anything but a pump out and an overpriced mediocre restaurant. They even charged $8 to drive in an look at it and $2 if you walk in.
We got back to Sea Turtle about dusk and Handleys had to dinghy back to Windbird in the dark with Judy holding the red/green running light in her hand. I was tired and Lee fixed an out of a can dinner.
Our battery charger was acting weird but it was too dark to check outside and Lee thought the problem was at the marinas post .We will see about that tomorrow and get the canvas water repellent treated.
Fri
.The guys worked on completing the solar panels and Judy and I did laundry. Then we all walked a couple of blocks to lunch at the Quarter Deck. After lunch Judy and I explored Fort Lauderdale via the city bus. For 85 cents it is quite a bargain. We found a library, an art museum, and a nice mall. I bought a couple of things for Lee at the mall. What we were hunting for was a decent city map at a tourist information center which does not seem to exist. Handleys had been stopped for speeding in their dinghy on the way to our boat in the morning, which seems absurd considering how people fly through here at the bridge throwing wake that can knock us all over the place. They will travel slower.
Sat
We started out in the afternoon for Blue Water Books. It was dreary and rainy in the morning and not good weather for Handleys to dinghy the almost mile to our boat ,so, they waited till afternoon to come . Unfortunately when we found the place it closed on Sat at 1. It was after 1. Judy suggested we drive south to explore a couple of possibilities for anchorages for our next stop. We stopped first at Coconut Grove to check out Dinner Key Marina. They are huge and booked way in advance but they put us on a waiting list for the day we wanted and promised to call if a mooring came up. You can anchor around where the moorings are at any rate. The plus to them is that you can dinghy in and there is no charge for leaving the dinghy and they have water and fuel. The next stop was No Name Harbor in Bill Bagg Cape State park. in Biscayne Bay. It was really a big puddle and crowded, had no facilities, fuel, water or anything but a pump out and an overpriced mediocre restaurant. They even charged $8 to drive in an look at it and $2 if you walk in.
We got back to Sea Turtle about dusk and Handleys had to dinghy back to Windbird in the dark with Judy holding the red/green running light in her hand. I was tired and Lee fixed an out of a can dinner.
Our battery charger was acting weird but it was too dark to check outside and Lee thought the problem was at the marinas post .We will see about that tomorrow and get the canvas water repellent treated.
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