Log 51
Myrtle Beach, SC. to Wrightsville Beach, NC.
6:30 AM
Wednesday, May 24, 2000
SeaPath Yacht Club
Wrightsville Beach, NC.
Day 52
It will be a short log today. First of all I’m in kind of a hurry, and secondly there isn’t much to report on yesterday’s trip.
Yesterday…
We left Myrtle Beach at about 7:30. Our plans were to go about 85 miles, but as soon as I got my e-mail, and then my voice mail, I knew there may be issues. Then I talked to our customer in Richmond, and I knew there were issues. Bottom line is we had a lot more volume to handle through the facility than we ever had before, and we told them we had concerns that things were not ready yet, and it turns out they weren’t. So…..Steve and I are going to drive to Richmond (today) to have a meeting to sort out how we work together, with Perdue, to get these issues handled. I’ll be in Richmond the next two weeks, but this is the right thing to do.
Handling all of this yesterday took almost all of my morning, but there were a couple of highlights. First of all there was the pontoon bridge just north of Myrtle Beach. The center part of this bridge is built on a boat and sits in the middle of the water. (I’m serious) Once an hour they stop traffic, and a cable pulls the boat sideways (kind of like the bow of the boat pivots, and the stern of the boat swings). This takes away the center part of the bridge (which is sitting on the boat) and allows for the passage of boats. Once the boats have passed, another cable pulls it back into place. (Wouldn’t it have been fun to be around for the meetings when they talked about some idea someone had to construct that bridge. You want to build WHAT?)
The other thing is that as we got closer (and I was off of the phone) the scenery got very pretty. We were following the coastline, just inside small barrier islands, and the watercolor, and beaches were very pretty. We reached Wrightsville Beach about 3 PM.
Once we got here we cleaned up the boat, and Steve went and got the rental car. I got the dinghy ready for the girls to use while we’re gone. We took advantage of the rental car, by going out to dinner at a local favorite (King Neptune’s), and also went to the store to get some needed items.
Today,
Steve and I are off to Richmond. It’s about 250 miles, and we need to be there mid afternoon, so we’ll leave about 8. If things go well, we’ll stay the night, and head back in the morning. I’m sure the girls will have a great time. It looks like the weather will be great, and Deb’s cousin called (Lori Cunningham, who lives in the area), and so they will be fine. Actually this works out pretty good, because we were trying to get together with Deb’s Aunt JoAnn Cunningham, in Myrtle Beach, and that didn’t work out, and Lori is JoAnn’ s daughter, so Deb can at least see some of the family that she doesn’t see that often.
I’m not sure there will be a log tomorrow, but we’ll see.
BK.
Wednesday, May 24, 2000
Tuesday, May 23, 2000
Chapter 50: Georgetown to Myrtle Beach
Log 50
Georgetown to Myrtle Beach, SC.
5:15 AM
Tuesday, May 23, 2000
Myrtle Beach Yacht Club
Myrtle Beach, SC.
Day 51
I woke up way too early this morning. The first time I looked at the clock it was just before 4 AM, and I finally got up about 4:30. One of those deals where you have a lot on you mind. Have you been there?
It’s an absolutely beautiful morning. About 68 degrees, and a 100% clear sky. I can’t wait to finish this, and take a walk on the dock.
Yesterday…..
We untied the lines about 7:30, and left Georgetown. AS my log said yesterday, the skies were very overcast, and it was raining all around us. And that is what continued to happen. It was raining around us, but not on us. There were a couple of times that is sprinkled, but that was about it. As the day went on the weather got better, and it turned out to be a very nice day. These folks here need rain bad, but it just didn’t happen.
A good portion of the morning was spent on the phone working on Pro Source business. (Maybe that’s why I woke up so early this morning) I’m not complaining though, because cruising along and working is just fine with me. Speaking of cruising. The waterway was just beautiful almost the entire way here. A good portion of the way, we wound around through rivers, where the water went all the way up to banks of cypress trees. It was absolutely gorgeous. I think I misread the waterway guide, about where the great cruising was, because yesterday was special. It would be very interesting to see exactly where we were on a map of South Carolina, because some of the time it felt very remote.
The only issue we had along the way was as we were being passed by a large sport fishing boat, and I quickly got behind him to avoid his large wake, it felt like we hit something. I looked to see if I may have gotten out of the channel, but we were in 12 feet of water. Two things could have happened. He may have stirred something up in the water, and I hit it, or with all of the maneuvering by his boat, and mine, the boat may have cavitated. In either case there is no vibration in the boat, so I guess we’re fine.
Quick story: We met a couple on BONNIEBOB that lived on their boat and had been cruising for a couple of years. They said that last year they hit something under the water, (which they still don’t know what it was), and it took about 3 feet off of their keel. They kept going, and didn’t even know the extent of the damage until they pulled the boat to have some other repairs done, and saw the bottom. The stories you hear on the docks are absolutely amazing.
We got to Myrtle Beach Marina about 2:15. After taking on some fuel ($1.20) and getting a pump out, we were in the slip by 2:45. The girls went to look for a liquor store, while Steve and I cleaned the boat. The girls found the liquor store, but they didn’t sell beer. I know, it doesn’t make sense to me either, but that’s what they said. While we were cleaning the boat we noticed that the back deck drain was not draining properly. After further investigation we found out it was clogged, and it took us the better part of an hour to fix that. (A very messy hour)
By the time all of this was done, and we made a quick trip to the marine store, it was time to go to dinner. We ate at a great Italian place, located right next to the marina. Not only was the food great, but also the portions were HUGE. I know you won’t believe this but Steve’s pork chops were over 3 inches thick. And there were two of them. I had a small strip steak (12 oz's) and it could be the best I’ve ever eaten. To add to this, every meal was 4 courses. Soup, Caesar salad, spaghetti, and then your main dish. It was great.
Today…
The sky is getting bright now, and it looks like the day will be beautiful. I’ve been watching the weather channel for about an hour now, and we may get a late afternoon shower, but otherwise it will be perfect. Our plan is to go about 80 miles, and end up in a town called Hampstead, in North Carolina. (Mile 267 on the Intracoastal) Actually we enter North Carolina in just a few miles from here. I don’t remember what the waterway is like for the next few miles, so I’m looking forward to finding out.
Postings:
· The boat is running perfectly. The only maintenance items are the preventive kind. In fact Steve asked me yesterday if we had any boat projects he could work on.
· I heard yesterday that the New York barge canal is closed because of low water. I have not been able to verify this but that is what one of the captains told me. This could be an issue, because that is how we were planning to get from New York to Lake Ontario.
I’ve got to get going. The sun is up now, and the docks are calling……
I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Georgetown to Myrtle Beach, SC.
5:15 AM
Tuesday, May 23, 2000
Myrtle Beach Yacht Club
Myrtle Beach, SC.
Day 51
I woke up way too early this morning. The first time I looked at the clock it was just before 4 AM, and I finally got up about 4:30. One of those deals where you have a lot on you mind. Have you been there?
It’s an absolutely beautiful morning. About 68 degrees, and a 100% clear sky. I can’t wait to finish this, and take a walk on the dock.
Yesterday…..
We untied the lines about 7:30, and left Georgetown. AS my log said yesterday, the skies were very overcast, and it was raining all around us. And that is what continued to happen. It was raining around us, but not on us. There were a couple of times that is sprinkled, but that was about it. As the day went on the weather got better, and it turned out to be a very nice day. These folks here need rain bad, but it just didn’t happen.
A good portion of the morning was spent on the phone working on Pro Source business. (Maybe that’s why I woke up so early this morning) I’m not complaining though, because cruising along and working is just fine with me. Speaking of cruising. The waterway was just beautiful almost the entire way here. A good portion of the way, we wound around through rivers, where the water went all the way up to banks of cypress trees. It was absolutely gorgeous. I think I misread the waterway guide, about where the great cruising was, because yesterday was special. It would be very interesting to see exactly where we were on a map of South Carolina, because some of the time it felt very remote.
The only issue we had along the way was as we were being passed by a large sport fishing boat, and I quickly got behind him to avoid his large wake, it felt like we hit something. I looked to see if I may have gotten out of the channel, but we were in 12 feet of water. Two things could have happened. He may have stirred something up in the water, and I hit it, or with all of the maneuvering by his boat, and mine, the boat may have cavitated. In either case there is no vibration in the boat, so I guess we’re fine.
Quick story: We met a couple on BONNIEBOB that lived on their boat and had been cruising for a couple of years. They said that last year they hit something under the water, (which they still don’t know what it was), and it took about 3 feet off of their keel. They kept going, and didn’t even know the extent of the damage until they pulled the boat to have some other repairs done, and saw the bottom. The stories you hear on the docks are absolutely amazing.
We got to Myrtle Beach Marina about 2:15. After taking on some fuel ($1.20) and getting a pump out, we were in the slip by 2:45. The girls went to look for a liquor store, while Steve and I cleaned the boat. The girls found the liquor store, but they didn’t sell beer. I know, it doesn’t make sense to me either, but that’s what they said. While we were cleaning the boat we noticed that the back deck drain was not draining properly. After further investigation we found out it was clogged, and it took us the better part of an hour to fix that. (A very messy hour)
By the time all of this was done, and we made a quick trip to the marine store, it was time to go to dinner. We ate at a great Italian place, located right next to the marina. Not only was the food great, but also the portions were HUGE. I know you won’t believe this but Steve’s pork chops were over 3 inches thick. And there were two of them. I had a small strip steak (12 oz's) and it could be the best I’ve ever eaten. To add to this, every meal was 4 courses. Soup, Caesar salad, spaghetti, and then your main dish. It was great.
Today…
The sky is getting bright now, and it looks like the day will be beautiful. I’ve been watching the weather channel for about an hour now, and we may get a late afternoon shower, but otherwise it will be perfect. Our plan is to go about 80 miles, and end up in a town called Hampstead, in North Carolina. (Mile 267 on the Intracoastal) Actually we enter North Carolina in just a few miles from here. I don’t remember what the waterway is like for the next few miles, so I’m looking forward to finding out.
Postings:
· The boat is running perfectly. The only maintenance items are the preventive kind. In fact Steve asked me yesterday if we had any boat projects he could work on.
· I heard yesterday that the New York barge canal is closed because of low water. I have not been able to verify this but that is what one of the captains told me. This could be an issue, because that is how we were planning to get from New York to Lake Ontario.
I’ve got to get going. The sun is up now, and the docks are calling……
I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Monday, May 22, 2000
Chapter 49: Charleston to Georgetown
Log 49
Charleston to Georgetown, SC.
5:30 AM
Monday, May 22, 2000
Harborwalk Marina
Georgetown, SC
Day 50
I woke up before the alarm this morning. I’m not sure why, because we are in no hurry this morning, but I guess I had just had enough sleep.
I did this morning, what I do the first thing every morning I’m on the boat, and that is to turn on the weather channel (then I put on the coffee). Today is the first time in a long time that the weather doesn’t look good where we’re heading. In fact the radar shows that there is rain all around us, and not moving very quickly either. But you if you didn’t have the weather channel, you’d think the world was pretty cool, because outside, although it is still dark, it is a mostly clear sky, and it is 75 degrees. Since we have left home in September, I have only driven the boat from the lower station twice because of rain, so I guess we’ll just have to see if we end up in these storms, or not.
Yesterday…
I sent the e-mail about 7:00, and we left Charleston about 7:30. It was a beautiful morning, although a little cloudy. The guidebook says the miles we traveled were some of the most beautiful of the Intracoastal. I don’t know…… it was pretty in some places, but some of the most beautiful? I’m not sure, but maybe it was because we were spending our time dealing with all of the flies. They were awful. Every one of the boats we passed was swatting them, and not only that, they were biting as well. We had to go fast just to be able to deal with them.
Because we had to go fast, we made the short 67 miles by about lunchtime, and by 12:45 we were tied up in Georgetown for the night. My plan was to stop here, because the Waterway guide said this was a neat stop, (plus the picture of downtown looked great) and the grocery store was a good one, and they would come to your boat to pick you up. As we were coming into the harbor I thought I’d gone to the wrong place. The picture in the book showed this quaint small town with a boardwalk that looked like something out of a movie set of the Wild West. What we saw was a small group of docks with shrimp boats tied up to all of them, and at the end of the waterway was a coal factory spewing out coal smoke. The Harbortown Marina consisted on two small docks the have certainly been here a while. I think they took a few liberties with this one. We said, “Oh well, we’re here, lets stay”. And we did.
After washing the boat, and getting things organized, Deb and Chris went to the store. (No pickup on Sunday, so they either had to walk…….2 blocks up---and 12 blocks over…….or get a taxi. You got it. Taxi) I wasn’t there but the conversation over dinner about what the shopping experience was like was very entertaining. Two things come to mind this morning as I recall the discussion. First was the girls filled up a shopping cart full of beer, only to be told they don’t sell beer on Sunday. (Chris thought she’d try and negotiate this point because after all “we” were from Illinois, not South Carolina) The other thing that we laughed about was Chris saying it was like shopping in the Middle East. (And, to my knowledge, she’s never been to the Middle East. Wait a minute….I guess South Carolina is in the middle part of the East Coast) Anyway, you get the picture. We are in a small rural town.
The rest of the afternoon was spent putting stuff away, and relaxing. Deb and Chris got to read a little, and Steve and I watched the rest of the Nascar race we taped the night before. For dinner we cooked pork chops on the grill, and laughed about the shopping trip.
Side note: We have been seeing several of the same boats, as we make our way north. Some travel fast, then stop. Others travel slow, but put in long days, and they make their time that way. Last night we met a guy, and his friend/captain, who was taking his boat to New York. We shared some boating stories for a while, (he was about the 20th person to tell me that I was very smart to make this trip while I could, and I’m am definitely starting to agree with them) and as soon as I finish this I need to go over to his boat to get some places to stop, and great restaurants along the way.
Today…..
Depending on how the rain treats us, we are planning on getting to Myrtle Beach. Easy trip. Only 55 miles. I remember part of this leg from our trip in 92. We stopped along the way, in the middle of nowhere, at Bucksport Marina, and had a “Bucksport Belly Buster Burger”. (I’m sure if you think for just a minute, you can picture this place)
Who knows maybe we’ll stop there today.
I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Charleston to Georgetown, SC.
5:30 AM
Monday, May 22, 2000
Harborwalk Marina
Georgetown, SC
Day 50
I woke up before the alarm this morning. I’m not sure why, because we are in no hurry this morning, but I guess I had just had enough sleep.
I did this morning, what I do the first thing every morning I’m on the boat, and that is to turn on the weather channel (then I put on the coffee). Today is the first time in a long time that the weather doesn’t look good where we’re heading. In fact the radar shows that there is rain all around us, and not moving very quickly either. But you if you didn’t have the weather channel, you’d think the world was pretty cool, because outside, although it is still dark, it is a mostly clear sky, and it is 75 degrees. Since we have left home in September, I have only driven the boat from the lower station twice because of rain, so I guess we’ll just have to see if we end up in these storms, or not.
Yesterday…
I sent the e-mail about 7:00, and we left Charleston about 7:30. It was a beautiful morning, although a little cloudy. The guidebook says the miles we traveled were some of the most beautiful of the Intracoastal. I don’t know…… it was pretty in some places, but some of the most beautiful? I’m not sure, but maybe it was because we were spending our time dealing with all of the flies. They were awful. Every one of the boats we passed was swatting them, and not only that, they were biting as well. We had to go fast just to be able to deal with them.
Because we had to go fast, we made the short 67 miles by about lunchtime, and by 12:45 we were tied up in Georgetown for the night. My plan was to stop here, because the Waterway guide said this was a neat stop, (plus the picture of downtown looked great) and the grocery store was a good one, and they would come to your boat to pick you up. As we were coming into the harbor I thought I’d gone to the wrong place. The picture in the book showed this quaint small town with a boardwalk that looked like something out of a movie set of the Wild West. What we saw was a small group of docks with shrimp boats tied up to all of them, and at the end of the waterway was a coal factory spewing out coal smoke. The Harbortown Marina consisted on two small docks the have certainly been here a while. I think they took a few liberties with this one. We said, “Oh well, we’re here, lets stay”. And we did.
After washing the boat, and getting things organized, Deb and Chris went to the store. (No pickup on Sunday, so they either had to walk…….2 blocks up---and 12 blocks over…….or get a taxi. You got it. Taxi) I wasn’t there but the conversation over dinner about what the shopping experience was like was very entertaining. Two things come to mind this morning as I recall the discussion. First was the girls filled up a shopping cart full of beer, only to be told they don’t sell beer on Sunday. (Chris thought she’d try and negotiate this point because after all “we” were from Illinois, not South Carolina) The other thing that we laughed about was Chris saying it was like shopping in the Middle East. (And, to my knowledge, she’s never been to the Middle East. Wait a minute….I guess South Carolina is in the middle part of the East Coast) Anyway, you get the picture. We are in a small rural town.
The rest of the afternoon was spent putting stuff away, and relaxing. Deb and Chris got to read a little, and Steve and I watched the rest of the Nascar race we taped the night before. For dinner we cooked pork chops on the grill, and laughed about the shopping trip.
Side note: We have been seeing several of the same boats, as we make our way north. Some travel fast, then stop. Others travel slow, but put in long days, and they make their time that way. Last night we met a guy, and his friend/captain, who was taking his boat to New York. We shared some boating stories for a while, (he was about the 20th person to tell me that I was very smart to make this trip while I could, and I’m am definitely starting to agree with them) and as soon as I finish this I need to go over to his boat to get some places to stop, and great restaurants along the way.
Today…..
Depending on how the rain treats us, we are planning on getting to Myrtle Beach. Easy trip. Only 55 miles. I remember part of this leg from our trip in 92. We stopped along the way, in the middle of nowhere, at Bucksport Marina, and had a “Bucksport Belly Buster Burger”. (I’m sure if you think for just a minute, you can picture this place)
Who knows maybe we’ll stop there today.
I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Sunday, May 21, 2000
Chapter 48: Crew Change in Charleston
Log 48
Crew change in Charleston, SC.
6:00AM
Sunday, May 21, 2000
City Marina
Charleston, SC.
Day 49
I’m up a little late this morning, because we are in no hurry to head out, as we only have about 55 miles to go today. I’m watching the local weather channel, and they are saying we are going to have a pretty good day to resume our trek north. Partly cloudy and about 85 degrees.
Crew change day went pretty well. Darrell and Donna left about 8:00, and went to the Charleston airport to get a rental car, and drive to Myrtle Beach to fly back to Chicago. Deb was up early to do laundry, and it was a good thing, because she said as she was leaving people were lined up to use the machines. She spent the rest of the day (until about 3) cleaning, and getting everything ready for our next leg. (Except there was no need to clean Darrell and Donna’s room because they left it cleaner than they found it….thanks)
I spent the same amount of time with routine preventive maintenance. I cleaned the water strainers on both engines, and the generator. (Each engine has an intake to pull water from the bottom of the boat to keep the engines cool. These intakes have strainers on them to keep “stuff” from getting into the engine exhaust) I also cleaned the strainers on the air conditioning. Then I looked at each battery (we have 7 of them) to make sure they were full of water. It was a good thing, because a couple of them needed water badly. And finally I cleaned the air filters on all of the air conditioners. With the maintenance done, I worked on the charts for a while, planning the entire week, and making some marina reservations for the next two nights.
Deb and I were done about the same time, so we grabbed a beer, and went up to the fly bridge to sit and watch the hustle bustle of all of the boat coming in to the marina for the night. This is a very busy time of year for transient boaters, like us, who make the trip from Florida to the North. About mid to late afternoon everyone is looking for a marina for the night. (Except sail boaters, who are looking for a place to anchor. Hey…there’s nothing wrong with that, it’s just a fact) Anyway, this place is very busy with big boats coming in at a very rapid pace. They have about 5 or 6 dockhands here, and they have trouble keeping up. It’ a lot of fun to sit and watch all of these captains put their boats in some very tight places. Plus, I always learn something.
Steve and Chris arrived about 5:00, and they lost no time getting into shorts. (It was over 90 yesterday) In fact Steve wore his shorts from home, even though it was cold in Chicago. The original plan was for Deb, and Chris to go to the store for the week’s groceries, but we bagged that plan in favor of getting a taxi and going out to eat. We talked to some folks, who gave us some ideas, and we chose The South End Brewery. Funny thing about it was we have only been to Charleston twice, (in 92 when we came through here in my friends boat) and we ate there the last time, although we didn’t know it until we pulled up front of the place. Oh well, it was good then, and now. (Rome-Theresa-Les-Annie…..remember the mud pie??)
Back at the boat Deb and Chris went up top, and Steve and I watched the Nascar race on TV. Well at least part of it. When the girls came in and went to bed, we taped the rest, so don’t tell me who won. OK?
Today..
As I said we only have about 55 miles to go today. (The guidebook says the next 50 miles are some of the prettiest on the entire Intracoastal Waterway………I’ll let you know) In fact all week the maximum amount of miles we are planning for any single day is 86, so it should be an easy week. Today’s destination is Georgetown, SC. The guidebook says it is an old historic town with a neat boardwalk, and we are in the downtown marina. (Supposedly on the boardwalk, but as you may remember these adds for the marinas take a few liberties when they describe their amenities)
The sun is up now, (sunrise was at 6:17) and it looks to be a little cloudy, but it is still 75 degrees, so it will be fine for today’s travel. The marina store opens at 7 AM, and they have an e-mail plug in, so I’m going to try to send this before we head out at 7:30.
I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Crew change in Charleston, SC.
6:00AM
Sunday, May 21, 2000
City Marina
Charleston, SC.
Day 49
I’m up a little late this morning, because we are in no hurry to head out, as we only have about 55 miles to go today. I’m watching the local weather channel, and they are saying we are going to have a pretty good day to resume our trek north. Partly cloudy and about 85 degrees.
Crew change day went pretty well. Darrell and Donna left about 8:00, and went to the Charleston airport to get a rental car, and drive to Myrtle Beach to fly back to Chicago. Deb was up early to do laundry, and it was a good thing, because she said as she was leaving people were lined up to use the machines. She spent the rest of the day (until about 3) cleaning, and getting everything ready for our next leg. (Except there was no need to clean Darrell and Donna’s room because they left it cleaner than they found it….thanks)
I spent the same amount of time with routine preventive maintenance. I cleaned the water strainers on both engines, and the generator. (Each engine has an intake to pull water from the bottom of the boat to keep the engines cool. These intakes have strainers on them to keep “stuff” from getting into the engine exhaust) I also cleaned the strainers on the air conditioning. Then I looked at each battery (we have 7 of them) to make sure they were full of water. It was a good thing, because a couple of them needed water badly. And finally I cleaned the air filters on all of the air conditioners. With the maintenance done, I worked on the charts for a while, planning the entire week, and making some marina reservations for the next two nights.
Deb and I were done about the same time, so we grabbed a beer, and went up to the fly bridge to sit and watch the hustle bustle of all of the boat coming in to the marina for the night. This is a very busy time of year for transient boaters, like us, who make the trip from Florida to the North. About mid to late afternoon everyone is looking for a marina for the night. (Except sail boaters, who are looking for a place to anchor. Hey…there’s nothing wrong with that, it’s just a fact) Anyway, this place is very busy with big boats coming in at a very rapid pace. They have about 5 or 6 dockhands here, and they have trouble keeping up. It’ a lot of fun to sit and watch all of these captains put their boats in some very tight places. Plus, I always learn something.
Steve and Chris arrived about 5:00, and they lost no time getting into shorts. (It was over 90 yesterday) In fact Steve wore his shorts from home, even though it was cold in Chicago. The original plan was for Deb, and Chris to go to the store for the week’s groceries, but we bagged that plan in favor of getting a taxi and going out to eat. We talked to some folks, who gave us some ideas, and we chose The South End Brewery. Funny thing about it was we have only been to Charleston twice, (in 92 when we came through here in my friends boat) and we ate there the last time, although we didn’t know it until we pulled up front of the place. Oh well, it was good then, and now. (Rome-Theresa-Les-Annie…..remember the mud pie??)
Back at the boat Deb and Chris went up top, and Steve and I watched the Nascar race on TV. Well at least part of it. When the girls came in and went to bed, we taped the rest, so don’t tell me who won. OK?
Today..
As I said we only have about 55 miles to go today. (The guidebook says the next 50 miles are some of the prettiest on the entire Intracoastal Waterway………I’ll let you know) In fact all week the maximum amount of miles we are planning for any single day is 86, so it should be an easy week. Today’s destination is Georgetown, SC. The guidebook says it is an old historic town with a neat boardwalk, and we are in the downtown marina. (Supposedly on the boardwalk, but as you may remember these adds for the marinas take a few liberties when they describe their amenities)
The sun is up now, (sunrise was at 6:17) and it looks to be a little cloudy, but it is still 75 degrees, so it will be fine for today’s travel. The marina store opens at 7 AM, and they have an e-mail plug in, so I’m going to try to send this before we head out at 7:30.
I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Saturday, May 20, 2000
Chapter 47: Hiton Head to Charleston
Log 47
Hilton Head to Charleston
6:45 AM
Saturday, May 20, 2000
City Marina
Charleston, SC.
Day 48
I got an e-mail from a couple of you to let me know that a couple of the e-mails were messed up, so I resent them. I hope they came out ok this time.
The trip up from Hilton Head to Charleston was great. The weather was near perfect. A little windy, but other than that, it was excellent. We got out right on time, about 6:45. As soon as we got back on the waterway the terrain looked familiar. Boring, winding marshes. Even the flies came back. But in a short amount of time, things began to change, and it was hillier, and much prettier. We all commented that this trip was much nicer than the day before.
When we were about half way to Charleston I heard a sailboat call on the radio “Do you have any idea how much of a wake you cause when 8 boats pass you the way you do?” I looked back and couldn’t see anyone, but I had an idea what happened. Later I heard another boater on the radio “hey, do you guys have any consideration for your wake? I figured there must be a group of people traveling together. About 15 miles from Charleston I heard a boat that I had met earlier (he was heading south, and I was heading north) call out “If I was the leader of your group, I’d show you how to meet another boater without such a huge wake”. So now I knew there must be a group traveling together, and they were much closer to me now. About 10 miles from Charleston we had to stop for a railroad bridge, and while we waited for them to open, we looked behind us, and they were coming on strong. I decided by the way they were moving I did not want to be a part of this group, so I told the lead boat to tell his group to pass me, and I would follow. While we waited for all of them to get through the bridge I mentioned to Darrell, “I sure glad I’m not with them”. It didn’t take very long to be glad I wasn’t, because in a few minutes you heard on the radio “YOU IDIOT! DON’T YOU KNOW WHAT YOUR WAKE DOES? DON’T YOU KNOW YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR WAKE? YOU HAVE CAUSED DAMAGE TO THE INSIDE OF MY BOAT.” I’m not sure if this lead boat was not on the radio, or didn’t care, because he did not return the message, and seemed to pay no attention, because the person he “waked” kept hollering, and the armada evidently kept going. The thing that the convoy didn’t know is that they had just waked the wrong boater. He started calling the Coast Guard, and they responded. Darrell and I were listening to the whole thing, and when we came around the bend to Charleston Harbor here was the Coast Guard, blue lights flashing, with all the boats around them. Very interesting.
We arrived Charleston about 2:30. It was pretty windy, and made the docking, against the wind, very interesting. It ended up being no problem, and as soon as we tied up we got some fuel ($1.19), and cleaned up the boat. (I don’t know if the boat has ever looked better)
We decided we would get ready, and head into downtown, but we ended up sitting on the bridge, and enjoying a beer while we watched all of the traffic go by. (The boat is docked on an inside wall right next to the Intracoastal, the harbor, and the fuel dock, so it is very busy) As it turned out we didn’t leave the boat until about 5:30, so our tour of Charleston consisted of about 15 minutes of walking the streets, and then paying two college kids $20 to ride in the back of their “rickshaws” and take us to the Boathouse for dinner. Except for them overcooking my steak, (we were on the east coast, I should have had sea food anyway) we had a great meal, and took a taxi back to the boat, and we were back before dark. To say the least, we are not party animals.
Today…
Sad day. Darrell and Donna are getting ready to leave as I type this. In fact as I look out at the back deck, their bags are lined up, and ready to go. It’s only 7:35, so maybe they want to be out before I ask them to help with some boat maintainance.
Speaking of maintainance, that is how I’m going to spend my day. Nothing major, but I need to clean the A/C filters, check the water in the batteries, and clean all of the fresh water strainers. I also need to check out the vent to the holding tank. It seems to be clogged. (That sounds like fun doesn’t it?) Deb said she would spend most of here day doing laundry, (she is already at the laundry mat as we speak) and cleaning the inside of the boat.
By the time we get that all done, Steve, and Chris will be here. Their flight gets in at 4:15, so they should be here by dinnertime.
Before I end this log I thought I’d add a couple of highlights of the week:
Great weather every day
2 great days on the Atlantic
We saw 2 submarines
Touched a manatee
No mechanical problems
600 miles of cruising
Great crew!
It’s been a very good week.
BK.
Hilton Head to Charleston
6:45 AM
Saturday, May 20, 2000
City Marina
Charleston, SC.
Day 48
I got an e-mail from a couple of you to let me know that a couple of the e-mails were messed up, so I resent them. I hope they came out ok this time.
The trip up from Hilton Head to Charleston was great. The weather was near perfect. A little windy, but other than that, it was excellent. We got out right on time, about 6:45. As soon as we got back on the waterway the terrain looked familiar. Boring, winding marshes. Even the flies came back. But in a short amount of time, things began to change, and it was hillier, and much prettier. We all commented that this trip was much nicer than the day before.
When we were about half way to Charleston I heard a sailboat call on the radio “Do you have any idea how much of a wake you cause when 8 boats pass you the way you do?” I looked back and couldn’t see anyone, but I had an idea what happened. Later I heard another boater on the radio “hey, do you guys have any consideration for your wake? I figured there must be a group of people traveling together. About 15 miles from Charleston I heard a boat that I had met earlier (he was heading south, and I was heading north) call out “If I was the leader of your group, I’d show you how to meet another boater without such a huge wake”. So now I knew there must be a group traveling together, and they were much closer to me now. About 10 miles from Charleston we had to stop for a railroad bridge, and while we waited for them to open, we looked behind us, and they were coming on strong. I decided by the way they were moving I did not want to be a part of this group, so I told the lead boat to tell his group to pass me, and I would follow. While we waited for all of them to get through the bridge I mentioned to Darrell, “I sure glad I’m not with them”. It didn’t take very long to be glad I wasn’t, because in a few minutes you heard on the radio “YOU IDIOT! DON’T YOU KNOW WHAT YOUR WAKE DOES? DON’T YOU KNOW YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR WAKE? YOU HAVE CAUSED DAMAGE TO THE INSIDE OF MY BOAT.” I’m not sure if this lead boat was not on the radio, or didn’t care, because he did not return the message, and seemed to pay no attention, because the person he “waked” kept hollering, and the armada evidently kept going. The thing that the convoy didn’t know is that they had just waked the wrong boater. He started calling the Coast Guard, and they responded. Darrell and I were listening to the whole thing, and when we came around the bend to Charleston Harbor here was the Coast Guard, blue lights flashing, with all the boats around them. Very interesting.
We arrived Charleston about 2:30. It was pretty windy, and made the docking, against the wind, very interesting. It ended up being no problem, and as soon as we tied up we got some fuel ($1.19), and cleaned up the boat. (I don’t know if the boat has ever looked better)
We decided we would get ready, and head into downtown, but we ended up sitting on the bridge, and enjoying a beer while we watched all of the traffic go by. (The boat is docked on an inside wall right next to the Intracoastal, the harbor, and the fuel dock, so it is very busy) As it turned out we didn’t leave the boat until about 5:30, so our tour of Charleston consisted of about 15 minutes of walking the streets, and then paying two college kids $20 to ride in the back of their “rickshaws” and take us to the Boathouse for dinner. Except for them overcooking my steak, (we were on the east coast, I should have had sea food anyway) we had a great meal, and took a taxi back to the boat, and we were back before dark. To say the least, we are not party animals.
Today…
Sad day. Darrell and Donna are getting ready to leave as I type this. In fact as I look out at the back deck, their bags are lined up, and ready to go. It’s only 7:35, so maybe they want to be out before I ask them to help with some boat maintainance.
Speaking of maintainance, that is how I’m going to spend my day. Nothing major, but I need to clean the A/C filters, check the water in the batteries, and clean all of the fresh water strainers. I also need to check out the vent to the holding tank. It seems to be clogged. (That sounds like fun doesn’t it?) Deb said she would spend most of here day doing laundry, (she is already at the laundry mat as we speak) and cleaning the inside of the boat.
By the time we get that all done, Steve, and Chris will be here. Their flight gets in at 4:15, so they should be here by dinnertime.
Before I end this log I thought I’d add a couple of highlights of the week:
Great weather every day
2 great days on the Atlantic
We saw 2 submarines
Touched a manatee
No mechanical problems
600 miles of cruising
Great crew!
It’s been a very good week.
BK.
Friday, May 19, 2000
Chapter 46: St. Simons Island to Hilton Head
Log 46
ST. Simons Island, GA to Hilton Head, SC.
5:30 AM
Friday, May 19, 2000
Harbortown Marina
Hilton Head, SC.
Day 47
With all of the terrible weather, I feel bad telling everyone how great our weather is. But it is!
We had a great day yesterday. We untied our lines at 6:45, and rejoined the Intracoastal at MM 667. The sun was just coming up, and it was about 75 degrees. (Which is almost 20 degrees warmer than it will be at home today) The waterway through Georgia continued to look the same. Fairly wide, and easy to navigate. There were only two problems. First of all, it was pretty boring. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t have traded places with anyone, but each mile looked almost like the last. The other problem that we had to deal with was the flies. Big flies, and lots of them. In fact we had to go fast so they didn’t bother us as bad. (Keep in mind we were traveling through miles, and miles of marshes) I also came up with another reason not to own a sailboat, because they wouldn’t be able to “outrun” the flies. (I hope I never end up owning a sailboat, and having to eat all of these words)
There were two bright spots to the trip yesterday. The first one was going through a small town called Thunderbolt. This is where they make Palmer Johnson boats, and they had a bunch of them (average size over 100 feet) sitting out so we could admire them as we passed. In fact one pulled out right in front of us, and then followed us up the waterway. The other bright spot was our destination. This marina we are staying is very nice. (And pricey too. They charge you 1.75 per foot, per night) Actually this is a small complex of stores, and restaurants, and it is all built around the marina. It’s not very large, but neat. Last night there was two different areas of live music, both within ear shot of our boat. This morning as I write this it is still dark out, and the harbor is very pretty. (I’m not sure if I didn’t see it in the dark last night, or my appreciation of beauty it keener in the morning)
Anyway….we got to Harbortown at about 3:30 yesterday, after traveling over 100 miles. We took on some fuel ($1.33), pumped out the holding tank, and we were at the slip by 4:30.
Side note: The four of us have really got a routine down for docking, and cleaning the boat. Everyone has a job, and they do it without much discussion. I’m not sure how this even came about, but the last three days this has happened, and it’s worked great. When we get done, the boat is all tied down properly, very clean, and all organized for the next event. Cocktail Hour!!
After getting all of this done yesterday we all took a walk around the shops a little (no marine store..what’s up with that?) They also have a big lighthouse at the entrance to the harbor, which you can climb to the top of. And we did. (We took a couple of pictures, from up there, so if they turn out, I’ll put them on the web page.) When we came back to the boat Deb had dinner ready. She made chicken enchiladas, and they were great. After dinner Darrell and I went to get an ice cream cone, and everyone was glued to TV set to watch the final episodes of Friends, and Frasier. (Hey…. we have to stay touch!)
Today…
Heading for Charleston. It’s supposed to be another very nice day. Sunny, and almost 90 degrees. This is our last full day with Darrell and Donna, so we need to make the most of it. (Like we haven’t done every day since they got here)
Right now I’ve got to go to work. I must fire up these engines. Organize the charts, and get the captains area set to go. Darrell will unhook the power cord, and water hose from the dock. Right before we untie the lines, I’ll pour a fresh cup of coffee, and climb to the bridge to survey the situation, and then give the command “lets go”. Then we will have to grab the sunglasses because the sun will just be coming up, and get prepared for another 6 to 8 hours of cruising. Am I lucky, or what????
See ya……
BK
ST. Simons Island, GA to Hilton Head, SC.
5:30 AM
Friday, May 19, 2000
Harbortown Marina
Hilton Head, SC.
Day 47
With all of the terrible weather, I feel bad telling everyone how great our weather is. But it is!
We had a great day yesterday. We untied our lines at 6:45, and rejoined the Intracoastal at MM 667. The sun was just coming up, and it was about 75 degrees. (Which is almost 20 degrees warmer than it will be at home today) The waterway through Georgia continued to look the same. Fairly wide, and easy to navigate. There were only two problems. First of all, it was pretty boring. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t have traded places with anyone, but each mile looked almost like the last. The other problem that we had to deal with was the flies. Big flies, and lots of them. In fact we had to go fast so they didn’t bother us as bad. (Keep in mind we were traveling through miles, and miles of marshes) I also came up with another reason not to own a sailboat, because they wouldn’t be able to “outrun” the flies. (I hope I never end up owning a sailboat, and having to eat all of these words)
There were two bright spots to the trip yesterday. The first one was going through a small town called Thunderbolt. This is where they make Palmer Johnson boats, and they had a bunch of them (average size over 100 feet) sitting out so we could admire them as we passed. In fact one pulled out right in front of us, and then followed us up the waterway. The other bright spot was our destination. This marina we are staying is very nice. (And pricey too. They charge you 1.75 per foot, per night) Actually this is a small complex of stores, and restaurants, and it is all built around the marina. It’s not very large, but neat. Last night there was two different areas of live music, both within ear shot of our boat. This morning as I write this it is still dark out, and the harbor is very pretty. (I’m not sure if I didn’t see it in the dark last night, or my appreciation of beauty it keener in the morning)
Anyway….we got to Harbortown at about 3:30 yesterday, after traveling over 100 miles. We took on some fuel ($1.33), pumped out the holding tank, and we were at the slip by 4:30.
Side note: The four of us have really got a routine down for docking, and cleaning the boat. Everyone has a job, and they do it without much discussion. I’m not sure how this even came about, but the last three days this has happened, and it’s worked great. When we get done, the boat is all tied down properly, very clean, and all organized for the next event. Cocktail Hour!!
After getting all of this done yesterday we all took a walk around the shops a little (no marine store..what’s up with that?) They also have a big lighthouse at the entrance to the harbor, which you can climb to the top of. And we did. (We took a couple of pictures, from up there, so if they turn out, I’ll put them on the web page.) When we came back to the boat Deb had dinner ready. She made chicken enchiladas, and they were great. After dinner Darrell and I went to get an ice cream cone, and everyone was glued to TV set to watch the final episodes of Friends, and Frasier. (Hey…. we have to stay touch!)
Today…
Heading for Charleston. It’s supposed to be another very nice day. Sunny, and almost 90 degrees. This is our last full day with Darrell and Donna, so we need to make the most of it. (Like we haven’t done every day since they got here)
Right now I’ve got to go to work. I must fire up these engines. Organize the charts, and get the captains area set to go. Darrell will unhook the power cord, and water hose from the dock. Right before we untie the lines, I’ll pour a fresh cup of coffee, and climb to the bridge to survey the situation, and then give the command “lets go”. Then we will have to grab the sunglasses because the sun will just be coming up, and get prepared for another 6 to 8 hours of cruising. Am I lucky, or what????
See ya……
BK
Thursday, May 18, 2000
Chapter 45: St. Augustine to St. Simons Island
Log 45
ST. Augustine to ST. Simons Island, GA.
5:35 AM
Thursday, May 18, 2000
Golden Isles Marina
ST. Simons Island, Ga.
Day 46
We had a great day yesterday.
We left our marina in ST. Augustine about 6:30 just as it was starting to get light. In fact the sun didn’t come up until we were just north of the city. And when it did, it was beautiful. The first hour or so was a little cool, as the temperature was about 70. Then it warmed up nicely, and finally got to about 85 later in the day.
The Intracoastal has taken some very dramatic changes. Since we entered the Intracoastal in FT. Meyers, in January, the waterway has been narrow, with lots of population. Once we crossed the ST. Johns River near Jacksonville, and entered Georgia, the waterway opened up, and all day yesterday we were in much wider waters bordered by marshland. The markers were much farther apart, and the water is much deeper. These marshes are very close to the coast, and at times open up to huge “sounds” where they meet the Atlantic Ocean. The other thing changing is the tides. They are much larger, and they happen twice a day, verses once a day in parts of Florida. (How does that happen?) These tides really affect travel in certain places, because it can increase, or decrease your speed by up to 2 to 4 miles an hour. You should see some of the sail boats try to fight this tide sometimes. (As if I didn’t already have enough reasons not to own one of those, here’s one more)
We made great time yesterday. We started at mile marker 778, and made it to mile marker 677. It was a beautiful day, and we were able to make good time in those back marshes. We were at our marina by about 2:30. Once we got here we took on some fuel, ($1.25) and washed the boat. This is a great marina with all of the amenities, including a ship store, a bar, and a pool. We used all three. (Yes… Deb found a Pina Colada. And Darrell is becoming quite the Margarita Man)
I guess the most interesting fact about yesterday is how I can see the boating changing. No more mega yachts. No more million-dollar homes lining the water. We now see much smaller boats, and very modest lifestyle. Because we have been through here before (in 1992 when I took a friends 47 foot boat from Tampa to Philadelphia) I know what to expect, but it is very interesting to see the contrast. I have told people before that in this trip you see the almost every style of boating you can imagine, and it is sure proving to be true. (In one area we saw what slightly resembled a boat, and it looked like it might be floating. We assumed it had been abandon, until we saw someone come from the inside, and then we realized he probably lived there.)
In case I haven’t mentioned it lately. This trip is AWESOME!
Today….
It’s 6:05 now, and 74 degrees. The plan is to leave between 6:30 & 7. We would like to make it to mile marker 565, and Hilton Head Island, so we have to go about 110 miles. If we can make time like yesterday, it should be no problem. If we make it to Hilton Head, we only have to get another 80 miles or so on Friday, in order to get Darrell and Donna to Charleston where they can get a rental car. They will then drive to Myrtle Beach to catch a flight home. Charleston is also where Steve, and Chris fly into, on Saturday.
Well I need to get going…
BK.
ST. Augustine to ST. Simons Island, GA.
5:35 AM
Thursday, May 18, 2000
Golden Isles Marina
ST. Simons Island, Ga.
Day 46
We had a great day yesterday.
We left our marina in ST. Augustine about 6:30 just as it was starting to get light. In fact the sun didn’t come up until we were just north of the city. And when it did, it was beautiful. The first hour or so was a little cool, as the temperature was about 70. Then it warmed up nicely, and finally got to about 85 later in the day.
The Intracoastal has taken some very dramatic changes. Since we entered the Intracoastal in FT. Meyers, in January, the waterway has been narrow, with lots of population. Once we crossed the ST. Johns River near Jacksonville, and entered Georgia, the waterway opened up, and all day yesterday we were in much wider waters bordered by marshland. The markers were much farther apart, and the water is much deeper. These marshes are very close to the coast, and at times open up to huge “sounds” where they meet the Atlantic Ocean. The other thing changing is the tides. They are much larger, and they happen twice a day, verses once a day in parts of Florida. (How does that happen?) These tides really affect travel in certain places, because it can increase, or decrease your speed by up to 2 to 4 miles an hour. You should see some of the sail boats try to fight this tide sometimes. (As if I didn’t already have enough reasons not to own one of those, here’s one more)
We made great time yesterday. We started at mile marker 778, and made it to mile marker 677. It was a beautiful day, and we were able to make good time in those back marshes. We were at our marina by about 2:30. Once we got here we took on some fuel, ($1.25) and washed the boat. This is a great marina with all of the amenities, including a ship store, a bar, and a pool. We used all three. (Yes… Deb found a Pina Colada. And Darrell is becoming quite the Margarita Man)
I guess the most interesting fact about yesterday is how I can see the boating changing. No more mega yachts. No more million-dollar homes lining the water. We now see much smaller boats, and very modest lifestyle. Because we have been through here before (in 1992 when I took a friends 47 foot boat from Tampa to Philadelphia) I know what to expect, but it is very interesting to see the contrast. I have told people before that in this trip you see the almost every style of boating you can imagine, and it is sure proving to be true. (In one area we saw what slightly resembled a boat, and it looked like it might be floating. We assumed it had been abandon, until we saw someone come from the inside, and then we realized he probably lived there.)
In case I haven’t mentioned it lately. This trip is AWESOME!
Today….
It’s 6:05 now, and 74 degrees. The plan is to leave between 6:30 & 7. We would like to make it to mile marker 565, and Hilton Head Island, so we have to go about 110 miles. If we can make time like yesterday, it should be no problem. If we make it to Hilton Head, we only have to get another 80 miles or so on Friday, in order to get Darrell and Donna to Charleston where they can get a rental car. They will then drive to Myrtle Beach to catch a flight home. Charleston is also where Steve, and Chris fly into, on Saturday.
Well I need to get going…
BK.
Wednesday, May 17, 2000
Chapter 44: Daytona to St. Augustine
Log 44
Daytona to ST. Augustine
5:05 AM
Wednesday, May 17, 2000
ST. Augustine Municipal Marina
ST. Augustine, FL.
Day 45
Yesterday was a great day…
We were in no real hurry to leave yesterday morning because we only were going a little over 50 miles. After I typed my log, I walked down the dock to send my e-mail, and it was beautiful. At 6:15 there was almost no wind, it was already 75 degrees, and the sun was just coming over the horizon. I was surrounded by huge boats, in a beautiful marina, and I thought to myself that this must be heaven. If not, it ought to be like that. As Barb, my mother in law, would say “If you can find something better than this, I’ll go in with ya”
We left the marina about 8:00, and took our time going through Daytona. It was nice, but the farther north we went the nicer it got. The water way narrowed quite a bit, and some of the homes that lined the water were amazing. The entire trip was pretty, some wide areas, but mostly narrow rivers, and man made canals. It wasn’t until we got almost to ST. Augustine that it widened again. A very enjoyable ride.
We arrived at ST. Augustine about 1:00 PM. We didn’t need any fuel, so we pulled directly into our slip, and we had no more than tied up when it started raining. It was weird, because it didn’t even look like rain until all of a sudden it started to sprinkle, and we looked up to see one cloud. One dark cloud. It turns out the rain was over the Atlantic, and the wind switched, blowing it in. It only lasted about 20 minutes, and we sat up on the bridge, and watched it.
After the short rain the sun came back out in force. We washed the boat, I checked in at the marina, and visited the marine supply store. Nothing new! Donna wanted to see some of ST. Augustine, so we chose a marina that was right down town. We all decided to take a walk into town with different agendas. Donna wanted to site see a little. Deb was looking for the perfect Pina Colada. I was looking for a hardware store. Darrell? I don’t know, I think he was just glad to be with us. As it turned out we didn’t find anything we were looking for, but I don’t think we cared.
A short note here; during our walk I got a call from Neal Walsh, our customer in Richmond. He was not having a good day, and he said “he wanted to talk to someone about something other than business” He knew I was making this trip, so we talked about how it was going. The point of all of this is as we were hanging up he said “Have a great time, your guys are handling things just fine” If he would have given me a sack full of money he wouldn’t have made me any happier.
While walking around we found a place for Deb to try the Pina Coloda’s. She said they were ok, but I found the perfect Margarita. Or at least I can’t remember one better. After that we split up. Deb, and Donna stayed in town, and Darrell and I went back to the boat, where I spent about an hour with the charts, getting ready for the today.
The evening was great as well. We walked into town and ate at a place called Harry’s. Great seafood, and they even gave us a 10% discount for staying at the marina. Back to the boat, and a short walk up and down the docks to walk our dinner off, and we called it a night. Even Darrell went to bed early. (9:00)
Today….
Up a little earlier than usual. (4:45) I need to get this log written, and we are going to head out at first light. We have about 100 miles to go today, and all on the inside. Having made this part of the trip before I seem to remember the waterway changing quite a bit from here. Once we get past Jacksonville, it turns from rivers, to swamps, with only a narrow ditch to navigate in. It’s not really a problem, just slower going than in some areas. The other thing we have to contend with from here is being much more affected by the tides. They range from 5 to 8 feet, and the current they make, can really change the speed you can go.
I’ll keep you posted….
BK
Daytona to ST. Augustine
5:05 AM
Wednesday, May 17, 2000
ST. Augustine Municipal Marina
ST. Augustine, FL.
Day 45
Yesterday was a great day…
We were in no real hurry to leave yesterday morning because we only were going a little over 50 miles. After I typed my log, I walked down the dock to send my e-mail, and it was beautiful. At 6:15 there was almost no wind, it was already 75 degrees, and the sun was just coming over the horizon. I was surrounded by huge boats, in a beautiful marina, and I thought to myself that this must be heaven. If not, it ought to be like that. As Barb, my mother in law, would say “If you can find something better than this, I’ll go in with ya”
We left the marina about 8:00, and took our time going through Daytona. It was nice, but the farther north we went the nicer it got. The water way narrowed quite a bit, and some of the homes that lined the water were amazing. The entire trip was pretty, some wide areas, but mostly narrow rivers, and man made canals. It wasn’t until we got almost to ST. Augustine that it widened again. A very enjoyable ride.
We arrived at ST. Augustine about 1:00 PM. We didn’t need any fuel, so we pulled directly into our slip, and we had no more than tied up when it started raining. It was weird, because it didn’t even look like rain until all of a sudden it started to sprinkle, and we looked up to see one cloud. One dark cloud. It turns out the rain was over the Atlantic, and the wind switched, blowing it in. It only lasted about 20 minutes, and we sat up on the bridge, and watched it.
After the short rain the sun came back out in force. We washed the boat, I checked in at the marina, and visited the marine supply store. Nothing new! Donna wanted to see some of ST. Augustine, so we chose a marina that was right down town. We all decided to take a walk into town with different agendas. Donna wanted to site see a little. Deb was looking for the perfect Pina Colada. I was looking for a hardware store. Darrell? I don’t know, I think he was just glad to be with us. As it turned out we didn’t find anything we were looking for, but I don’t think we cared.
A short note here; during our walk I got a call from Neal Walsh, our customer in Richmond. He was not having a good day, and he said “he wanted to talk to someone about something other than business” He knew I was making this trip, so we talked about how it was going. The point of all of this is as we were hanging up he said “Have a great time, your guys are handling things just fine” If he would have given me a sack full of money he wouldn’t have made me any happier.
While walking around we found a place for Deb to try the Pina Coloda’s. She said they were ok, but I found the perfect Margarita. Or at least I can’t remember one better. After that we split up. Deb, and Donna stayed in town, and Darrell and I went back to the boat, where I spent about an hour with the charts, getting ready for the today.
The evening was great as well. We walked into town and ate at a place called Harry’s. Great seafood, and they even gave us a 10% discount for staying at the marina. Back to the boat, and a short walk up and down the docks to walk our dinner off, and we called it a night. Even Darrell went to bed early. (9:00)
Today….
Up a little earlier than usual. (4:45) I need to get this log written, and we are going to head out at first light. We have about 100 miles to go today, and all on the inside. Having made this part of the trip before I seem to remember the waterway changing quite a bit from here. Once we get past Jacksonville, it turns from rivers, to swamps, with only a narrow ditch to navigate in. It’s not really a problem, just slower going than in some areas. The other thing we have to contend with from here is being much more affected by the tides. They range from 5 to 8 feet, and the current they make, can really change the speed you can go.
I’ll keep you posted….
BK
Tuesday, May 16, 2000
Chapter 43: ...to Daytona
GCT Log 43
FT. Pierce to Daytona
5:25 AM
Tuesday, May 16, 2000
Halifax Harbor Marina
Daytona Beach FL.
Day 44
Short day yesterday. We only made about 53 miles, but we had, and have a plan.
As soon as we left our marina in Titusville, we were in one of those areas that the people who write those cruising guides talk about. It was very narrow, and very shallow. It was awful. As hard as Darrell and I tried we found it very difficult to find enough water to float this boat in. The good news is we never ran aground, but let me tell you it was close. (Later, on the radio I heard a charter captain call on the radio to another boat and tell him to stay back until he got through this shallow area because he said “at times I need to move around a lot to fine deeper water”) It so happens that while we were in this area the girls fixed a wonderful breakfast, but my stomach was in such knots, I really couldn’t eat it.
Once we got through this area the water got a little deeper, and much easier to navigate. It also was very slow going because we were near some towns, and several Manatee zones. (Speaking of Manatees, we had one at the back of our boat in Titusville. He stayed there for several minutes, laying on his back between our boat and the dock, drinking the fresh water we were spraying to wash down the boat. Deb has several pictures, and Deb and Darrell even touched him. He had several places where he was hit with a prop, and also had barnacles growing on him) Anyway, we decided to only go to Daytona, and then to make an early day of it on Tuesday as well and just go to St Augustine and spend the afternoon looking around. With that in mind it made the slow going a little easier.
The 53 miles was a pretty trip as we wound around marshes, and very shallow areas. It was quite a contrast, as we got closer to Daytona with all of the high-rise hotels. By the time we got here it was about 12:15. We got some fuel ($1.19 @ gal), and had the holding tank pumped out, and we were having lunch at our slip at 1:15 PM. Once settled, we had two important missions. Deb and Donna needed to find a grocery store for a couple of things, and Darrell and I needed to visit the West Marine store that was located next to the marina. (You never know what came in last night) Steve, and Carl will be glad to know I bought a new water hose. I have been connecting some different colored ones together for a while, and I am finally “dialed in”.
Once we met back at the boat we went in search of the “perfect margarita”. The good news is we found a place called McKay’s to have one. The bad news is they weren’t that good. Oh well, back to the boat, where we had spaghetti, watched the rest of that movie I missed the night before, and then took a walk on the dock before calling it a night. (9:00 for me)
Today…
Well as I said, today we are heading to ST. Augustine, about 50 miles, all on the inside. (They are saying 4 to 5 footers on the Atlantic today) The weather should be near perfect. Sunny, and 85. We are going to start a little later (8:00) because there is no reason to rush, and I can get some work done (company work, not boat)
A couple of follow up’s…
Remember that guy next to us in Titusville that just sat there on the back of his sailboat? After I wrote the log I went out there to get the boat ready to go, he was still there. Same chair, same cigarettes, but this time he had coffee instead of a beer. Maybe he stayed there all night.
Remember the smoke in the engine room. We still have no clue what it was, and everything is working great.
The boat engines, and the entire boat is working great!
Talk to you tomorrow.
BK
FT. Pierce to Daytona
5:25 AM
Tuesday, May 16, 2000
Halifax Harbor Marina
Daytona Beach FL.
Day 44
Short day yesterday. We only made about 53 miles, but we had, and have a plan.
As soon as we left our marina in Titusville, we were in one of those areas that the people who write those cruising guides talk about. It was very narrow, and very shallow. It was awful. As hard as Darrell and I tried we found it very difficult to find enough water to float this boat in. The good news is we never ran aground, but let me tell you it was close. (Later, on the radio I heard a charter captain call on the radio to another boat and tell him to stay back until he got through this shallow area because he said “at times I need to move around a lot to fine deeper water”) It so happens that while we were in this area the girls fixed a wonderful breakfast, but my stomach was in such knots, I really couldn’t eat it.
Once we got through this area the water got a little deeper, and much easier to navigate. It also was very slow going because we were near some towns, and several Manatee zones. (Speaking of Manatees, we had one at the back of our boat in Titusville. He stayed there for several minutes, laying on his back between our boat and the dock, drinking the fresh water we were spraying to wash down the boat. Deb has several pictures, and Deb and Darrell even touched him. He had several places where he was hit with a prop, and also had barnacles growing on him) Anyway, we decided to only go to Daytona, and then to make an early day of it on Tuesday as well and just go to St Augustine and spend the afternoon looking around. With that in mind it made the slow going a little easier.
The 53 miles was a pretty trip as we wound around marshes, and very shallow areas. It was quite a contrast, as we got closer to Daytona with all of the high-rise hotels. By the time we got here it was about 12:15. We got some fuel ($1.19 @ gal), and had the holding tank pumped out, and we were having lunch at our slip at 1:15 PM. Once settled, we had two important missions. Deb and Donna needed to find a grocery store for a couple of things, and Darrell and I needed to visit the West Marine store that was located next to the marina. (You never know what came in last night) Steve, and Carl will be glad to know I bought a new water hose. I have been connecting some different colored ones together for a while, and I am finally “dialed in”.
Once we met back at the boat we went in search of the “perfect margarita”. The good news is we found a place called McKay’s to have one. The bad news is they weren’t that good. Oh well, back to the boat, where we had spaghetti, watched the rest of that movie I missed the night before, and then took a walk on the dock before calling it a night. (9:00 for me)
Today…
Well as I said, today we are heading to ST. Augustine, about 50 miles, all on the inside. (They are saying 4 to 5 footers on the Atlantic today) The weather should be near perfect. Sunny, and 85. We are going to start a little later (8:00) because there is no reason to rush, and I can get some work done (company work, not boat)
A couple of follow up’s…
Remember that guy next to us in Titusville that just sat there on the back of his sailboat? After I wrote the log I went out there to get the boat ready to go, he was still there. Same chair, same cigarettes, but this time he had coffee instead of a beer. Maybe he stayed there all night.
Remember the smoke in the engine room. We still have no clue what it was, and everything is working great.
The boat engines, and the entire boat is working great!
Talk to you tomorrow.
BK
Monday, May 15, 2000
Chapter 42: Ft. Pierce to Titusville
GCT Log 42
Ft. Pierce to Titusville, Fl.
6:45 AM
Monday, May 15, 2000
Titusville Municipal Marina
Titusville, FL.
Day 43
Yesterday…
Our Mothers Day was a good one. We left the marina in FT. Pierce at 6:55, and it was only about a mile to the ocean. The Atlantic was beautiful, with just the slightest of swells, and those were at our stern. I set a course of 351 degrees on the autopilot to get us to the entrance buoy at Cape Canaveral, (55 miles) and we were there by 10:30 AM.
There is a canal that connects the Atlantic to the Intracoastal called the barge canal. It’s about 3 miles long, with one lock to keep the seawater from dumping into the Banana River. On that canal is where our friend, Bert, keeps his boat so we stopped for a few minutes to see his catamaran. He was getting ready to leave, on an airplane, back to Trinidad, so we only stayed a short time.
As we were coming out of the lock we had a scary experience. Deb was in the salon getting something, and she came up to say she smelled smoke, and it was coming from the air conditioner ducts. I jumped up, and what I found was it was coming from the engine room. After a few minutes of panic while looking for anything that could be causing this smell (it smelled like rubber burning) we didn’t find anything. That is both good news, and bad news. We looked everywhere for what could have caused this, but up till now we still don’t have a cause. I’m going down in the engine room as soon as I complete this to look again, but for now it is a mystery.
Our original plan yesterday was to try to make it to mile marker 840, near New Smyrna, but we couldn’t find a marina with a transient slip, so we ended up stopping in Titusville. (Mile marker 885) This marina is ok, but not one of the nicer ones we have ever been in. It seems to have more than its share of Live-a-boards (people who use their boats as homes), and that makes it look a little old. The good news is they have floating docks, so the tide does not affect us.
The boat next to us is one of those live a boards. It is a sailboat, and you can tell someone lives aboard, because if it were a home you could picture it with old cars in the yard with grass growing up around them. Maybe even a refrigerator in the front yard as well. Anyway there is this guy sitting on it in one of those plastic chairs, chain smoking, and chain drinking. He would talk to those who went by, and the more time went on the less sense he made. When I went to bed he was still sitting there. Maybe I should go out and look now to see if he made it in last night.
To end the day we enjoyed a shrimp cocktail, during cocktail hour, and then Darrell cooked some great steaks on the grill for dinner. This together with some corn on the cob, and excellent biscuits, and we were all set. Earlier in the day Deb had promised Darrell we would watch a move before bed, so we did. Well, I should say… they did.
Today…
It’s a little cooler this morning (72) than it has been, but they say it will be about mid 80’s by noon. After another check in the engine room we need to get going to try to make it to ST. Augustine by dinner. There is a friend there we are going to try to have dinner with, but I’m not sure we can make it that far (120 miles) because right now my plan is to stay inside all day. They are talking about some chance of storm today as a cold front goes through, and I don’t want to be out there if these predictions come true.
No matter what happens, it’s going to be a great day.
BK
Ft. Pierce to Titusville, Fl.
6:45 AM
Monday, May 15, 2000
Titusville Municipal Marina
Titusville, FL.
Day 43
Yesterday…
Our Mothers Day was a good one. We left the marina in FT. Pierce at 6:55, and it was only about a mile to the ocean. The Atlantic was beautiful, with just the slightest of swells, and those were at our stern. I set a course of 351 degrees on the autopilot to get us to the entrance buoy at Cape Canaveral, (55 miles) and we were there by 10:30 AM.
There is a canal that connects the Atlantic to the Intracoastal called the barge canal. It’s about 3 miles long, with one lock to keep the seawater from dumping into the Banana River. On that canal is where our friend, Bert, keeps his boat so we stopped for a few minutes to see his catamaran. He was getting ready to leave, on an airplane, back to Trinidad, so we only stayed a short time.
As we were coming out of the lock we had a scary experience. Deb was in the salon getting something, and she came up to say she smelled smoke, and it was coming from the air conditioner ducts. I jumped up, and what I found was it was coming from the engine room. After a few minutes of panic while looking for anything that could be causing this smell (it smelled like rubber burning) we didn’t find anything. That is both good news, and bad news. We looked everywhere for what could have caused this, but up till now we still don’t have a cause. I’m going down in the engine room as soon as I complete this to look again, but for now it is a mystery.
Our original plan yesterday was to try to make it to mile marker 840, near New Smyrna, but we couldn’t find a marina with a transient slip, so we ended up stopping in Titusville. (Mile marker 885) This marina is ok, but not one of the nicer ones we have ever been in. It seems to have more than its share of Live-a-boards (people who use their boats as homes), and that makes it look a little old. The good news is they have floating docks, so the tide does not affect us.
The boat next to us is one of those live a boards. It is a sailboat, and you can tell someone lives aboard, because if it were a home you could picture it with old cars in the yard with grass growing up around them. Maybe even a refrigerator in the front yard as well. Anyway there is this guy sitting on it in one of those plastic chairs, chain smoking, and chain drinking. He would talk to those who went by, and the more time went on the less sense he made. When I went to bed he was still sitting there. Maybe I should go out and look now to see if he made it in last night.
To end the day we enjoyed a shrimp cocktail, during cocktail hour, and then Darrell cooked some great steaks on the grill for dinner. This together with some corn on the cob, and excellent biscuits, and we were all set. Earlier in the day Deb had promised Darrell we would watch a move before bed, so we did. Well, I should say… they did.
Today…
It’s a little cooler this morning (72) than it has been, but they say it will be about mid 80’s by noon. After another check in the engine room we need to get going to try to make it to ST. Augustine by dinner. There is a friend there we are going to try to have dinner with, but I’m not sure we can make it that far (120 miles) because right now my plan is to stay inside all day. They are talking about some chance of storm today as a cold front goes through, and I don’t want to be out there if these predictions come true.
No matter what happens, it’s going to be a great day.
BK
Sunday, May 14, 2000
Chapter 41: Ft. Lauderdale to Ft. Pierce
Log 41
FT. Lauderdale, Fl. to FT. Pierce, Fl.
5:20 AM
Sunday, May 14, 2000
Pelican Yacht Club
Ft. Pierce, FL.
Remember at my last log I predicted that yesterday would be a great day. Well I was wrong. It was an awesome day! At 6:50 we untied the lines, and left Pier 66. The sun was up, and you could tell it was going to be beautiful. It only takes about 10 minutes to get to the Atlantic, and when we got there it was quite a sight. There were almost no winds, so the ocean was almost flat. There was a slight swell, and it was just enough to gently rock the boat as we made the turn north. In fact as it turned out the swells were at our starboard aft, so they kind of pushed us along. My plan was to test the Atlantic, and duck into an inlet if necessary, but you could tell that wouldn’t be necessary.
The first way-point (that is the technical/nautical term for a particular longitude/latitude point on a map) was Lighthouse point, almost 10 miles away. We blew by that in about 45 minutes. The next waypoint was an inlet just north of West Palm Beach.
No problem, lets keep going. Finally, I set a course (almost due north) for St. Luice inlet. This was about 70 miles from where we entered the Atlantic, and the way we were going it seemed like it would be no problem. As it turns out, that was in fact the case. No problem
Once we came inside, we rejoined the Intracoastal at about mile marker 995, where we made a hard right, and headed north again. This intersection is also the place where if you go east on the St. Lucie River, you would end up on Lake Okeechobee. We were at this exact intersection last January 1st, when we went south to Ft. Lauderdale.
For the next 30 miles we followed the Intracoastal, and ended up in FT. Pierce. The place we’re staying is called Pelican Yacht Club. I knew this place because we had a friend who had a boat here, and I’ve been here a few times to go boating on it. Once we arrived, we put in some fuel ($1.35 @ gallon) and tied up to our slip. We all grabbed something to clean with, and washed the salt off the boat. I also went to the office, and got my e-mail. After that some good ole fashion relaxing, with Deb and Donna on the bow, and Darrell and I up on the bridge.
We had a bit of a surprise during dinner. I had called a friend of ours (Bert McGuire) who we knew from when we lived in Germany. He was the engineer who built the distribution center we were operating for Kraft. He has just since relocated to Coco Beach. When we talked it didn’t sound like he would be able to meet us in Ft. Pierce, but just as we were putting the chops on the grill, he called, and said he was on his way. He arrived about an hour later.
I wish you could have listened to him tell some of his stories. He has lived, and traveled all over the world, and has just moved from Trinidad. In fact not only has he just moved from there, but he sailed his 53-foot catamaran from there. The stories of his trip made our adventure seem like a trip to the local 7-Eleven. It was great to see Bert, but he kept us up past my bedtime, and I didn’t get to bed until after 10.
Side note: When Deb and I were in Germany a few years ago Bert took us to his relatives who live in former East Germany, for Easter. It was a memorable experience seeing both East Germany, and meeting his relatives who had lived there all of their lives. Anyway, during our visit we met a young girl named Anka, who Deb still sends cards too. Bert tell me he forwards our e-mails to Anka, in Germany, so I wanted to say “Hi to Anka” from Deb and I. (I guess I need to be careful who I talk about in these logs, because who knows where these things end up!)
Today….
It promises to be another beautiful day here in central Florida. (Which is a sharp contrast to home where it is rainy, and cold) I just helped a 75-foot boat leave the dock, and he tells me it will be perfect out on the Atlantic this morning. He is heading for New York, and will make almost the entire trip outside.
Our plan is to go about 100 miles, or so today, and end up about ½ way to St Augustine, where we want to be on Monday evening. I don’t see anything keeping us from doing that. By covering the distance we did yesterday we have already gained a day, according to my schedule.
So I need to end this and get to work. A quick check in the engine room to review the fluid levels, set up the charts, and the electronics, and we’re off.
HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MOM! I LOVE YOU.
BK.
FT. Lauderdale, Fl. to FT. Pierce, Fl.
5:20 AM
Sunday, May 14, 2000
Pelican Yacht Club
Ft. Pierce, FL.
Remember at my last log I predicted that yesterday would be a great day. Well I was wrong. It was an awesome day! At 6:50 we untied the lines, and left Pier 66. The sun was up, and you could tell it was going to be beautiful. It only takes about 10 minutes to get to the Atlantic, and when we got there it was quite a sight. There were almost no winds, so the ocean was almost flat. There was a slight swell, and it was just enough to gently rock the boat as we made the turn north. In fact as it turned out the swells were at our starboard aft, so they kind of pushed us along. My plan was to test the Atlantic, and duck into an inlet if necessary, but you could tell that wouldn’t be necessary.
The first way-point (that is the technical/nautical term for a particular longitude/latitude point on a map) was Lighthouse point, almost 10 miles away. We blew by that in about 45 minutes. The next waypoint was an inlet just north of West Palm Beach.
No problem, lets keep going. Finally, I set a course (almost due north) for St. Luice inlet. This was about 70 miles from where we entered the Atlantic, and the way we were going it seemed like it would be no problem. As it turns out, that was in fact the case. No problem
Once we came inside, we rejoined the Intracoastal at about mile marker 995, where we made a hard right, and headed north again. This intersection is also the place where if you go east on the St. Lucie River, you would end up on Lake Okeechobee. We were at this exact intersection last January 1st, when we went south to Ft. Lauderdale.
For the next 30 miles we followed the Intracoastal, and ended up in FT. Pierce. The place we’re staying is called Pelican Yacht Club. I knew this place because we had a friend who had a boat here, and I’ve been here a few times to go boating on it. Once we arrived, we put in some fuel ($1.35 @ gallon) and tied up to our slip. We all grabbed something to clean with, and washed the salt off the boat. I also went to the office, and got my e-mail. After that some good ole fashion relaxing, with Deb and Donna on the bow, and Darrell and I up on the bridge.
We had a bit of a surprise during dinner. I had called a friend of ours (Bert McGuire) who we knew from when we lived in Germany. He was the engineer who built the distribution center we were operating for Kraft. He has just since relocated to Coco Beach. When we talked it didn’t sound like he would be able to meet us in Ft. Pierce, but just as we were putting the chops on the grill, he called, and said he was on his way. He arrived about an hour later.
I wish you could have listened to him tell some of his stories. He has lived, and traveled all over the world, and has just moved from Trinidad. In fact not only has he just moved from there, but he sailed his 53-foot catamaran from there. The stories of his trip made our adventure seem like a trip to the local 7-Eleven. It was great to see Bert, but he kept us up past my bedtime, and I didn’t get to bed until after 10.
Side note: When Deb and I were in Germany a few years ago Bert took us to his relatives who live in former East Germany, for Easter. It was a memorable experience seeing both East Germany, and meeting his relatives who had lived there all of their lives. Anyway, during our visit we met a young girl named Anka, who Deb still sends cards too. Bert tell me he forwards our e-mails to Anka, in Germany, so I wanted to say “Hi to Anka” from Deb and I. (I guess I need to be careful who I talk about in these logs, because who knows where these things end up!)
Today….
It promises to be another beautiful day here in central Florida. (Which is a sharp contrast to home where it is rainy, and cold) I just helped a 75-foot boat leave the dock, and he tells me it will be perfect out on the Atlantic this morning. He is heading for New York, and will make almost the entire trip outside.
Our plan is to go about 100 miles, or so today, and end up about ½ way to St Augustine, where we want to be on Monday evening. I don’t see anything keeping us from doing that. By covering the distance we did yesterday we have already gained a day, according to my schedule.
So I need to end this and get to work. A quick check in the engine room to review the fluid levels, set up the charts, and the electronics, and we’re off.
HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MOM! I LOVE YOU.
BK.
Saturday, May 13, 2000
Chapter 40: Last Day in Ft. Launderdale
Log 40
Last Day in Ft. Lauderdale
5:20 am
Saturday, May 13, 2000
Pier 66 Marina
Day 41
By all rights, this should be a short log. We haven’t moved the boat yet, and so how much can there be to write about. Let’s see.
The day started out, and stayed the same. Hot, and sunny. I took my coffee, and did my dock walk, and there were several boats heading out. And a few of them were heading for the Bahamas. I was envious, because you knew they were going to have a great ride. All reports of the Atlantic were to be flat. Dead calm. I hope there that way today.
Most of yesterday was spent cleaning, fixing, and rearranging. Deb cleaned the entire inside of the boat, and did laundry. (Now you may be asking, like me; what laundry could there be to do? We just got on the boat. Deb said that she needed to clean sheets, towels, etc.) Anyway the inside of the boat is spotless. Me? After spending a good portion of the morning on the phone, I fixed the stereo, and arranged the engine room. I also got all of the charts ready to go. In general we were getting ready to get underway.
Deb was like a little kid yesterday. Several times during the morning she would come up to the fly bridge, and hug me, or give me a kiss, and tell me how excited she was. She couldn’t wait for Darrell and Donna to get here, and she was so excited about what was coming. I was playing the tough guy, and said it was no big deal. Right!
Darrell and Donna arrived almost on schedule. They got to the boat about 2:30. The first thing they did was put their shorts on, because it was hot out, and then we all broke out a beer to toast the beginning. Not much time to waste though, because Deb and Donna needed to go get groceries. They caught a taxi, and it took about 2 hours for them to return. Darrell and I caught up on what has been happening.
The day ended with the 4 of us going to the Pelican Bar for drinks and dinner. It was a beautiful evening, and we sat on the deck, overlooking the harbor. Yes, Deb had a Pina Colada. In fact she had two of them. (You see the second one was only 66 cents, so she had to.) We also had a first. Darrell had his first margarita. And his second margarita. (How can you be that old and have never had a margarita?) After dinner we took a walk up and down the docks to admire the boats. I’m going to miss this place.
Today is going to be near perfect for this part of the world. As I have been writing this I have been watching the Weather Channel, and listening to the weather on my marine radio. The temperature is 74 degrees (at 5 am), the winds are calm, and the waves are predicted to be 2 foot, or less. Yes!!
My plan is to leave at first light (about 6:45 am) and head out into the Atlantic. We will take a hard left, and head almost due north. The thought is to make the most of the calm conditions, so we can make some time outside (verses the Intracoastal) and try to make it about 100 miles, to Ft. Pierce, FL. If the seas change, or if we get tired, we can always go inside, and have our pick of many different places to stop. In this part of the country it is no problem finding a marina.
So that’s the plan. It’s now 6:05, and the sky is just starting to show the slightest sign of getting lighter, so I need to get busy. This is going to be a great day!
BK.
Last Day in Ft. Lauderdale
5:20 am
Saturday, May 13, 2000
Pier 66 Marina
Day 41
By all rights, this should be a short log. We haven’t moved the boat yet, and so how much can there be to write about. Let’s see.
The day started out, and stayed the same. Hot, and sunny. I took my coffee, and did my dock walk, and there were several boats heading out. And a few of them were heading for the Bahamas. I was envious, because you knew they were going to have a great ride. All reports of the Atlantic were to be flat. Dead calm. I hope there that way today.
Most of yesterday was spent cleaning, fixing, and rearranging. Deb cleaned the entire inside of the boat, and did laundry. (Now you may be asking, like me; what laundry could there be to do? We just got on the boat. Deb said that she needed to clean sheets, towels, etc.) Anyway the inside of the boat is spotless. Me? After spending a good portion of the morning on the phone, I fixed the stereo, and arranged the engine room. I also got all of the charts ready to go. In general we were getting ready to get underway.
Deb was like a little kid yesterday. Several times during the morning she would come up to the fly bridge, and hug me, or give me a kiss, and tell me how excited she was. She couldn’t wait for Darrell and Donna to get here, and she was so excited about what was coming. I was playing the tough guy, and said it was no big deal. Right!
Darrell and Donna arrived almost on schedule. They got to the boat about 2:30. The first thing they did was put their shorts on, because it was hot out, and then we all broke out a beer to toast the beginning. Not much time to waste though, because Deb and Donna needed to go get groceries. They caught a taxi, and it took about 2 hours for them to return. Darrell and I caught up on what has been happening.
The day ended with the 4 of us going to the Pelican Bar for drinks and dinner. It was a beautiful evening, and we sat on the deck, overlooking the harbor. Yes, Deb had a Pina Colada. In fact she had two of them. (You see the second one was only 66 cents, so she had to.) We also had a first. Darrell had his first margarita. And his second margarita. (How can you be that old and have never had a margarita?) After dinner we took a walk up and down the docks to admire the boats. I’m going to miss this place.
Today is going to be near perfect for this part of the world. As I have been writing this I have been watching the Weather Channel, and listening to the weather on my marine radio. The temperature is 74 degrees (at 5 am), the winds are calm, and the waves are predicted to be 2 foot, or less. Yes!!
My plan is to leave at first light (about 6:45 am) and head out into the Atlantic. We will take a hard left, and head almost due north. The thought is to make the most of the calm conditions, so we can make some time outside (verses the Intracoastal) and try to make it about 100 miles, to Ft. Pierce, FL. If the seas change, or if we get tired, we can always go inside, and have our pick of many different places to stop. In this part of the country it is no problem finding a marina.
So that’s the plan. It’s now 6:05, and the sky is just starting to show the slightest sign of getting lighter, so I need to get busy. This is going to be a great day!
BK.
Friday, May 12, 2000
Chapter 39: Heading North
Log 39
Heading North
5:08 am
Friday, May 12, 2000
Pier 66 Marina
Day 40
I’ve been looking forward to writing this log for some time now. The reason is, I knew when I wrote it, I would be on the boat, and getting ready to head north. I also knew that when I wrote this, Deb, and I would be on the boat for 5 weeks (although 2 of those weeks, I’ll be commuting from the boat in Norfolk to Richmond) The will be the longest time we have ever spent on the boat at once. This is an exciting time, and we have so many adventures ahead of us.
Side note: Writing this log, and this entire day will be much better now because I just checked my voice mail, and I got an update from our new distribution center we are operating for Perdue Farms (the east coast poultry company) in Richmond VA, and the night went very well. We are finishing our second week of production, and this is great news. I’ll try not to bore anyone with too much information from this new operation, but I will tell you it is a huge part of my life now, and these daily updates from Richmond will have a lot to do with my ability to enjoy this adventure.
Yesterday…
All in all, the day was pretty smooth. Deb and I flew out of Midway Airport on ATA Airlines, directly into FT. Lauderdale. We arrived to perfect weather. Hot, and sunny. We had an interesting cab driver, who was telling us OJ Simpson jokes before the car was barely moving. Each time there was a new subject, he had the answers. When he heard we were boaters he told us he had a 39 foot Sea Ray when he lived in New Jersey, but he had to sell it because his partner went to prison. (Get the picture?)
It was great to see the boat again. I had the marina pull it out from under cover, and wash it up, so it looked good. They had also started the A/C so it was cool inside. In fact the only surprise was the fact that our holding tank was full, and we had just emptied it before we left for home the last trip. How could this happen? ( I’ll try to quickly explain this) Our holding tank holds our waste from the toilets. We normally have it pumped out at marinas, but we also have the ability to pump it overboard if we are over three miles from shore. Anyway, the pump is located below the water line, and evidently, the river water backed up through the pump, and filled up the holding tank. There is a shut-off valve at the thru-hull fitting that will keep this from happening, but it was open. I always keep this closed, but maybe I forgot. Anyway, we pumped out the water, and we were on our way.
The trip from Jackson Marine to Pier 66 is very special. It takes about an hour, and you must idle all the way, but you go by some of the biggest boats, and prettiest homes you will ever see. As you know by now Pier 66 is one of my favorite marinas. I guess the reason is, the average boat is probably about 80 feet long. Also, it has a neat bar overlooking the Intracoastal waterway where you can watch all the boat traffic heading to, and coming from, the Atlantic. Deb and I went there for dinner, and watched the sun go down. And yes, Deb had one of her favorite Pina Colatas. Great end to a great day.
Today….
Perfect weather.
I have a lot to do today. The boat needs to be ready to roll. We didn’t do a great job of putting stuff away yesterday, because we were too excited. Today I need to organize the charts, and get everything put where it belongs. Now that we are here, and I can see what the weather will be, I need to plan where we will spend the next few nights, and make some marina reservations.
Darrell and Donna arrive at about 2 PM today. Once settled, Deb and Donna need to get the weeks groceries. (Oh, and maybe a case of beer) Bottom line is we need to get set to cruise.
So that’s it for now. It is about 6:00, and the sky is just starting to brighten up, so I think I’ll take a cup of coffee, and walk the dock. (One of my favorite things in the whole world to do) This morning I’ll be paying special attention to the sunrise, to tell me when I can plan on leaving the marina each morning, and get underway. My plan, starting tomorrow, is to leave just after first light, so we can get the most miles in, yet be at our slip by late afternoon each day.
I wish everyone of you could feel the way I do now……..
BK.
Heading North
5:08 am
Friday, May 12, 2000
Pier 66 Marina
Day 40
I’ve been looking forward to writing this log for some time now. The reason is, I knew when I wrote it, I would be on the boat, and getting ready to head north. I also knew that when I wrote this, Deb, and I would be on the boat for 5 weeks (although 2 of those weeks, I’ll be commuting from the boat in Norfolk to Richmond) The will be the longest time we have ever spent on the boat at once. This is an exciting time, and we have so many adventures ahead of us.
Side note: Writing this log, and this entire day will be much better now because I just checked my voice mail, and I got an update from our new distribution center we are operating for Perdue Farms (the east coast poultry company) in Richmond VA, and the night went very well. We are finishing our second week of production, and this is great news. I’ll try not to bore anyone with too much information from this new operation, but I will tell you it is a huge part of my life now, and these daily updates from Richmond will have a lot to do with my ability to enjoy this adventure.
Yesterday…
All in all, the day was pretty smooth. Deb and I flew out of Midway Airport on ATA Airlines, directly into FT. Lauderdale. We arrived to perfect weather. Hot, and sunny. We had an interesting cab driver, who was telling us OJ Simpson jokes before the car was barely moving. Each time there was a new subject, he had the answers. When he heard we were boaters he told us he had a 39 foot Sea Ray when he lived in New Jersey, but he had to sell it because his partner went to prison. (Get the picture?)
It was great to see the boat again. I had the marina pull it out from under cover, and wash it up, so it looked good. They had also started the A/C so it was cool inside. In fact the only surprise was the fact that our holding tank was full, and we had just emptied it before we left for home the last trip. How could this happen? ( I’ll try to quickly explain this) Our holding tank holds our waste from the toilets. We normally have it pumped out at marinas, but we also have the ability to pump it overboard if we are over three miles from shore. Anyway, the pump is located below the water line, and evidently, the river water backed up through the pump, and filled up the holding tank. There is a shut-off valve at the thru-hull fitting that will keep this from happening, but it was open. I always keep this closed, but maybe I forgot. Anyway, we pumped out the water, and we were on our way.
The trip from Jackson Marine to Pier 66 is very special. It takes about an hour, and you must idle all the way, but you go by some of the biggest boats, and prettiest homes you will ever see. As you know by now Pier 66 is one of my favorite marinas. I guess the reason is, the average boat is probably about 80 feet long. Also, it has a neat bar overlooking the Intracoastal waterway where you can watch all the boat traffic heading to, and coming from, the Atlantic. Deb and I went there for dinner, and watched the sun go down. And yes, Deb had one of her favorite Pina Colatas. Great end to a great day.
Today….
Perfect weather.
I have a lot to do today. The boat needs to be ready to roll. We didn’t do a great job of putting stuff away yesterday, because we were too excited. Today I need to organize the charts, and get everything put where it belongs. Now that we are here, and I can see what the weather will be, I need to plan where we will spend the next few nights, and make some marina reservations.
Darrell and Donna arrive at about 2 PM today. Once settled, Deb and Donna need to get the weeks groceries. (Oh, and maybe a case of beer) Bottom line is we need to get set to cruise.
So that’s it for now. It is about 6:00, and the sky is just starting to brighten up, so I think I’ll take a cup of coffee, and walk the dock. (One of my favorite things in the whole world to do) This morning I’ll be paying special attention to the sunrise, to tell me when I can plan on leaving the marina each morning, and get underway. My plan, starting tomorrow, is to leave just after first light, so we can get the most miles in, yet be at our slip by late afternoon each day.
I wish everyone of you could feel the way I do now……..
BK.
Saturday, April 29, 2000
Chapter 38: Getting Ready to Head North
Log #38
Getting ready to head north
11:00 am
Saturday, April 29, 2000
On an airplane heading for Phoenix, AZ.
It seems like I’m always on an airplane heading somewhere. Deb, and I are on our way to a conference in Phoenix for a few days, so I thought I’d take some time to update my logs, and give a preview of our northbound plans.
Before I talk about the trip north, let’s get up to date a little bit.
My last log left off with Deb and I in Miami Beach, and I was getting ready to head into a marine store to see what they had. Good news, I found something I needed. Actually what happened was, when we were washing the boat I knocked the scrub brush, and handle in the water, so I needed to replace it. Which I did………plus a few other items I couldn’t live without.
The morning was somewhat cloudy, but you could tell the sun could break through almost any time. I decided to take the bimini top down, so whatever sun there was I could enjoy it on the fly bridge. Getting out of the slip was not quite as much of a challenge as getting in, but almost. Deb, and I took our time untying all the lines, and getting HEADQUARTERS ready to exit, without hurting anyone. As it turned out, we did fine, and were quickly out in the main channel, with all of the huge ships heading to their berths, getting ready to unload their goods in Miami.
In about 3 quick miles we were back on the Intracoastal, and heading north. The sun by now had broken through the clouds, and it was a little cool, but very nice. The only thing noteworthy, as we headed back was a bridge that wouldn’t wait. We were following 3 other northbound boats, and they were about ½ mile ahead of us. The bridge was getting ready to open, so I called the bridge to tell them I’d pick up my pace in order to make this opening, (the next one was 30 minutes later) but just as we got almost up to the bridge, they dropped it. I bitched a little bit, until I thought…….I’m on a boat…….it’s sunny out………I’m in Florida, in the winter……..ok, ok, ok……..this is no big deal.
We had a great trip back to Ft. Lauderdale. When we arrived, we stopped at Pier 66 to top off the fuel ($ 1.26 @ gal.) and Deb picked up our rental car that we left there, while I took the boat, by myself, up the New River, and back to Jackson Marine. By the time I got to the marina, Deb was waiting on the dock to help me tie up. We had plans on where we were going to dock, but someone had just brought their boat in, and took our spot. As it turned out they lived just a few miles from us in Batavia. (They saw our name, and home port on the back of our boat, and instantly became friendly)
We found another spot, washed the boat, and ended the day with a great, very long, dinghy ride on the New River, as we looked at all the huge yachts. Ft. Lauderdale is amazing!
We are just a short time away from getting started on our return trip, and I’m getting excited. I have ordered all of the charts we will need to get us home. There are three different types. First I need Cruising Guides, for all the areas, to tell me about places to go, and information on the marinas. Next I need paper charts of all of the waters we will be in. I will then read the cruising guides, as I follow the charts, and use a highlighter to plot our course on them. This is makes it easy to see where you need to go, and saves me a lot of time as we travel. (I also love doing this, and I spend many hours dreaming about “being there”. Actually, the planning piece is one of my favorite parts about this kind of a trip.) The other thing I need is electronic charts. These are little chips that have the charts burned into them, and I can load them in my Chart plotter, which interfaces with my GPS, and I can see where I am at all times. The problem is these are expensive, and a luxury on this type of trip, so I’m trying to figure out which ones I need, and which ones I would like to have. No matter which ones I order, the cost of the charts is very costly. I hope I can find a way to sell these charts after we are home, because they will be useless to me.
Anyway……….a number of you have asked about how many legs we have left, and what our plans are, so I thought I’d give you a recap of what is coming up. (Remember, if you want to catch up on what has happened so far, and where we came from………log on to
www.greatcircle.homepage.com, and you will see all of the previous captain’s logs.)
Our plans from here are.
Thursday, May 11th Deb and I head to Ft. Lauderdale to get on the boat at Jackson Marine, and take it to Pier 66. From this point Deb will be on the boat for 5 weeks.
Friday, May 12th Darrell, and Donna Thompson (boating friends of ours, who were on the boat during the first leg) will fly into Ft. Lauderdale in the afternoon, and meet us at Pier 66, and travel with us the first week.
Saturday, May 13th. The official day we begin out trip north!
Saturday, May 20th we should be somewhere around Charleston, SC. Darrell, and Donna will get off, and head home, and Steve and Chris Thoke (my partner in business, and his wife… who got married on the boat last January) will get on board.
Saturday, May 27th by now we should be in Norfolk, VA. (1,065 miles from Ft. Lauderdale) Steve and Chris, will head home. For the next two weeks I will go to work in our Richmond VA. Facility, and Deb will stay on the boat. It is only about an hour drive from Norfolk to our facility, so I will drive it to work each day, and come back to the boat at night. We have already found the marina we will stay in here (we did this on one of our trips to Richmond earlier) and it’s right downtown, so Deb can explore Norfolk during the day. We also plan to have a few of the management team on the boat over the weekend that we are docked there.
Thursday, June 8th Rome and Theresa Hubert fly into Richmond. (They’re our neighbors, who became friends while we were living in Bourbonnais IL. from 1988 to 1996)
Friday, June 9th we continue our journey, and head out from Norfolk, into the Chesapeake Bay. We need to hustle in order to get to ST. Michaels Maryland, by Saturday night, in order to meet one of our customers, and entertain him and his wife on the boat on Sunday.
Monday, June 12th Barb Cunningham (Deb’s Mom) will fly into Baltimore, to join us on our way up to New York City.
Tuesday, June 13th We’ll leave Baltimore, to finish our trip up the Chesapeake, through the C&D canal, into the Delaware Bay, and to Cape May at the very southern tip of New Jersey. From there we’ll head out into the Atlantic, and up to Atlantic City. From Atlantic City it’s a little over 100 miles, all outside in the ocean, up to New York City.
Saturday, June 17th We should arrive in New York City
Sunday, June 18th we head home, and I go back to work for 2 weeks.
Saturday, July 1st we fly back to the boat in New York City. We will be joined by Steve, and Claudia Larry. (Steve is one of our VP’s at Pro Source) We will also be joined by Gary, and Joan Hedge. (I used to work with Gary at my previous company) They will be with us for the next week.
Sunday July 2nd. We will leave New York Harbor, and head up the Hudson River to Troy NY. At Troy we will turn due west, as we join the beginning of the Eire Canal. We will follow the Eire Canal west to the Oswego Canal, and then head north to Lake Ontario.
Saturday, July 8th by now we should be at the southeast corner of Lake Ontario, in Oswego NY. We will all head home, and I will go back to work for 2 more weeks.
Friday, July 21st We will fly back to the boat, joined by Terry and Jeanie Ruhland (Jeannie is Deb’s sister) This will be our final leg which will take us across Lake Ontario, into Canada. We will then navigate through the Trent-Severn waterway, through the Georgian Bay, and on the very north side of Lake Huron. At that point we will join Lake Michigan, near Mackinaw Island. We will then come down the east side of Lake Michigan, and head across to Chicago at, or about Michigan City. From there it’s all river as we leave Chicago, and join the Kankakee River, and then finally the Illinois River, about 50 miles from our marina.
Saturday, August 5th we should arrive Starved Rock Marina. Our starting point.
So that’s it. We have a long way to go, and a lot of things to see along the way. Hopefully things will go smooth, and we will only have great memories to look back on.
I’ll keep you posted along the way.
BK.
Getting ready to head north
11:00 am
Saturday, April 29, 2000
On an airplane heading for Phoenix, AZ.
It seems like I’m always on an airplane heading somewhere. Deb, and I are on our way to a conference in Phoenix for a few days, so I thought I’d take some time to update my logs, and give a preview of our northbound plans.
Before I talk about the trip north, let’s get up to date a little bit.
My last log left off with Deb and I in Miami Beach, and I was getting ready to head into a marine store to see what they had. Good news, I found something I needed. Actually what happened was, when we were washing the boat I knocked the scrub brush, and handle in the water, so I needed to replace it. Which I did………plus a few other items I couldn’t live without.
The morning was somewhat cloudy, but you could tell the sun could break through almost any time. I decided to take the bimini top down, so whatever sun there was I could enjoy it on the fly bridge. Getting out of the slip was not quite as much of a challenge as getting in, but almost. Deb, and I took our time untying all the lines, and getting HEADQUARTERS ready to exit, without hurting anyone. As it turned out, we did fine, and were quickly out in the main channel, with all of the huge ships heading to their berths, getting ready to unload their goods in Miami.
In about 3 quick miles we were back on the Intracoastal, and heading north. The sun by now had broken through the clouds, and it was a little cool, but very nice. The only thing noteworthy, as we headed back was a bridge that wouldn’t wait. We were following 3 other northbound boats, and they were about ½ mile ahead of us. The bridge was getting ready to open, so I called the bridge to tell them I’d pick up my pace in order to make this opening, (the next one was 30 minutes later) but just as we got almost up to the bridge, they dropped it. I bitched a little bit, until I thought…….I’m on a boat…….it’s sunny out………I’m in Florida, in the winter……..ok, ok, ok……..this is no big deal.
We had a great trip back to Ft. Lauderdale. When we arrived, we stopped at Pier 66 to top off the fuel ($ 1.26 @ gal.) and Deb picked up our rental car that we left there, while I took the boat, by myself, up the New River, and back to Jackson Marine. By the time I got to the marina, Deb was waiting on the dock to help me tie up. We had plans on where we were going to dock, but someone had just brought their boat in, and took our spot. As it turned out they lived just a few miles from us in Batavia. (They saw our name, and home port on the back of our boat, and instantly became friendly)
We found another spot, washed the boat, and ended the day with a great, very long, dinghy ride on the New River, as we looked at all the huge yachts. Ft. Lauderdale is amazing!
We are just a short time away from getting started on our return trip, and I’m getting excited. I have ordered all of the charts we will need to get us home. There are three different types. First I need Cruising Guides, for all the areas, to tell me about places to go, and information on the marinas. Next I need paper charts of all of the waters we will be in. I will then read the cruising guides, as I follow the charts, and use a highlighter to plot our course on them. This is makes it easy to see where you need to go, and saves me a lot of time as we travel. (I also love doing this, and I spend many hours dreaming about “being there”. Actually, the planning piece is one of my favorite parts about this kind of a trip.) The other thing I need is electronic charts. These are little chips that have the charts burned into them, and I can load them in my Chart plotter, which interfaces with my GPS, and I can see where I am at all times. The problem is these are expensive, and a luxury on this type of trip, so I’m trying to figure out which ones I need, and which ones I would like to have. No matter which ones I order, the cost of the charts is very costly. I hope I can find a way to sell these charts after we are home, because they will be useless to me.
Anyway……….a number of you have asked about how many legs we have left, and what our plans are, so I thought I’d give you a recap of what is coming up. (Remember, if you want to catch up on what has happened so far, and where we came from………log on to
www.greatcircle.homepage.com, and you will see all of the previous captain’s logs.)
Our plans from here are.
Thursday, May 11th Deb and I head to Ft. Lauderdale to get on the boat at Jackson Marine, and take it to Pier 66. From this point Deb will be on the boat for 5 weeks.
Friday, May 12th Darrell, and Donna Thompson (boating friends of ours, who were on the boat during the first leg) will fly into Ft. Lauderdale in the afternoon, and meet us at Pier 66, and travel with us the first week.
Saturday, May 13th. The official day we begin out trip north!
Saturday, May 20th we should be somewhere around Charleston, SC. Darrell, and Donna will get off, and head home, and Steve and Chris Thoke (my partner in business, and his wife… who got married on the boat last January) will get on board.
Saturday, May 27th by now we should be in Norfolk, VA. (1,065 miles from Ft. Lauderdale) Steve and Chris, will head home. For the next two weeks I will go to work in our Richmond VA. Facility, and Deb will stay on the boat. It is only about an hour drive from Norfolk to our facility, so I will drive it to work each day, and come back to the boat at night. We have already found the marina we will stay in here (we did this on one of our trips to Richmond earlier) and it’s right downtown, so Deb can explore Norfolk during the day. We also plan to have a few of the management team on the boat over the weekend that we are docked there.
Thursday, June 8th Rome and Theresa Hubert fly into Richmond. (They’re our neighbors, who became friends while we were living in Bourbonnais IL. from 1988 to 1996)
Friday, June 9th we continue our journey, and head out from Norfolk, into the Chesapeake Bay. We need to hustle in order to get to ST. Michaels Maryland, by Saturday night, in order to meet one of our customers, and entertain him and his wife on the boat on Sunday.
Monday, June 12th Barb Cunningham (Deb’s Mom) will fly into Baltimore, to join us on our way up to New York City.
Tuesday, June 13th We’ll leave Baltimore, to finish our trip up the Chesapeake, through the C&D canal, into the Delaware Bay, and to Cape May at the very southern tip of New Jersey. From there we’ll head out into the Atlantic, and up to Atlantic City. From Atlantic City it’s a little over 100 miles, all outside in the ocean, up to New York City.
Saturday, June 17th We should arrive in New York City
Sunday, June 18th we head home, and I go back to work for 2 weeks.
Saturday, July 1st we fly back to the boat in New York City. We will be joined by Steve, and Claudia Larry. (Steve is one of our VP’s at Pro Source) We will also be joined by Gary, and Joan Hedge. (I used to work with Gary at my previous company) They will be with us for the next week.
Sunday July 2nd. We will leave New York Harbor, and head up the Hudson River to Troy NY. At Troy we will turn due west, as we join the beginning of the Eire Canal. We will follow the Eire Canal west to the Oswego Canal, and then head north to Lake Ontario.
Saturday, July 8th by now we should be at the southeast corner of Lake Ontario, in Oswego NY. We will all head home, and I will go back to work for 2 more weeks.
Friday, July 21st We will fly back to the boat, joined by Terry and Jeanie Ruhland (Jeannie is Deb’s sister) This will be our final leg which will take us across Lake Ontario, into Canada. We will then navigate through the Trent-Severn waterway, through the Georgian Bay, and on the very north side of Lake Huron. At that point we will join Lake Michigan, near Mackinaw Island. We will then come down the east side of Lake Michigan, and head across to Chicago at, or about Michigan City. From there it’s all river as we leave Chicago, and join the Kankakee River, and then finally the Illinois River, about 50 miles from our marina.
Saturday, August 5th we should arrive Starved Rock Marina. Our starting point.
So that’s it. We have a long way to go, and a lot of things to see along the way. Hopefully things will go smooth, and we will only have great memories to look back on.
I’ll keep you posted along the way.
BK.
Monday, April 10, 2000
Chapter 37: Ft. Launderdale to Miami Beach
Log 37
Ft. Lauderdale to Miami Beach
6:55 am
Monday, April10, 2000
Miami Beach Marina
As you can see by the location above, we moved the boat further south. We had a great day yesterday. Here are some highlights…………..
· Up fairly early to a beautiful day. Although it was windy, and predicted to continue that way.
· Seeing all that sun got me excited, and we agreed after we get some work done, we would pick out a marina in Miami, and head there for the night.
· Left the marina about noon, and joined the Intracoastal just outside Pier 66. We were at the 1065 mile marker, and our marina was at the 1089, so we had 24 miles to go. It was bright, and sunny but 15 to 25 mph winds out of the north. The good news was we were heading almost directly south, so we were never really bothered by the wind. (until we got to the slip, that is)
· The 24 miles south of Ft. Lauderdale is a combination of narrow man made cuts, natural rivers, and wide open lakes. It is different in some ways because you instantly notice the difference in wealth. There are some beautiful homes, but very different from Ft. Lauderdale. The marinas are also very different. Not bad, but more like we are used to seeing back home.
· After about a 3 hour cruise, we arrived in the Miami area. I missed my turn for the marina, because it was down a long canal called the “Government Cut”, and I mistook it for the ship channel. Which it turns out it was. It was a 3 mile long channel, leading from Miami to the Atlantic, and all along the whole length were ships. 5 of them being cruise ships. Neat sight, and pictures to come.
· When we arrived at our marina the wind had still not died down yet. It was blowing a pretty steady 15 mph, and gusting. We knew it would be a tricky docking, and we were right. I would try to describe it, but I can’t. Let’s just say, no one panicked, and nothing got damaged. It was far from pretty, but as one guy told Deb, “you did a hell of a job, for just 2 people”.
· While I spent a long time,(well I did watch the last 43 laps of the Nascar race), trying to figure out the best way to tie the boat, Deb washed off all of the salt. (it amazing how much gets on the boat, and how much time you need to spend cleaning it off) While we were doing all of this we kept hearing music, and something like an auctioneer up at the marina, so once finished, we headed up to see what was going on. Deb always loves to get a Pina Colata, so once we accomplished this ($7.50……before tip) we found out there was a US Bill Fishing Tournament going on. ($100,000 in prize money) The place was a zoo! People everywhere. Loud people everywhere. So we headed back to the boat to relax.
· Back at the boat, we relaxed with our cocktails, and Deb made a Pizza. She has made these on a regular basis, and they turn out great. The convection oven on the boat works great, and since it works similar to the one we used in England, Deb has figured it out.
· Did you ever feel like that the wind you were feeling late in the day could last all night? I did, and it did. Before the night was over, I used almost every rope on the boat. (I just counted them. 10) I was up a couple of times to add a rope, and do some adjusting. Deb………she slept on the couch. She tells me that after 20 years of marriage that this is only the second time she has done that (while I was home), and I don’t remember the first time. The problem was the wind was moving the boat so much, that the ropes were straining, and they would creak. She hates that, so she went to sleep in the salon, where it was less noisy. She’s not awake yet, but I look forward to hearing about how much sleep she got.
This morning as I write this it is 70 degrees, still windy, and it’s looks to be mostly cloudy. I can’t turn on the weather channel, because Deb is sleeping next to the TV, so I’ll have to wait to find out what the day will be like.
Today we head back north. (It’s almost sad to think this is as far south as we will get on the GCT) The plan is to talk to Detroit, and see if they recommend anything further on these engines. (which is why I stayed an extra day, hoping we would get everything done, and I wouldn’t have to come back until May 11th ) By the way, the engines ran great yesterday. They ran just like they do when I am on a river back home, so I’m thinking that the reason I thought they had less power on the sea trial, was because of the bad sea conditions. Bottom line is I think our problem is fixed. All under warranty.
Well I must close now. It is still too early to leave, but the ship store opens at 8 am, and you never know what they might have……….that I don’t have.
BK.
Ft. Lauderdale to Miami Beach
6:55 am
Monday, April10, 2000
Miami Beach Marina
As you can see by the location above, we moved the boat further south. We had a great day yesterday. Here are some highlights…………..
· Up fairly early to a beautiful day. Although it was windy, and predicted to continue that way.
· Seeing all that sun got me excited, and we agreed after we get some work done, we would pick out a marina in Miami, and head there for the night.
· Left the marina about noon, and joined the Intracoastal just outside Pier 66. We were at the 1065 mile marker, and our marina was at the 1089, so we had 24 miles to go. It was bright, and sunny but 15 to 25 mph winds out of the north. The good news was we were heading almost directly south, so we were never really bothered by the wind. (until we got to the slip, that is)
· The 24 miles south of Ft. Lauderdale is a combination of narrow man made cuts, natural rivers, and wide open lakes. It is different in some ways because you instantly notice the difference in wealth. There are some beautiful homes, but very different from Ft. Lauderdale. The marinas are also very different. Not bad, but more like we are used to seeing back home.
· After about a 3 hour cruise, we arrived in the Miami area. I missed my turn for the marina, because it was down a long canal called the “Government Cut”, and I mistook it for the ship channel. Which it turns out it was. It was a 3 mile long channel, leading from Miami to the Atlantic, and all along the whole length were ships. 5 of them being cruise ships. Neat sight, and pictures to come.
· When we arrived at our marina the wind had still not died down yet. It was blowing a pretty steady 15 mph, and gusting. We knew it would be a tricky docking, and we were right. I would try to describe it, but I can’t. Let’s just say, no one panicked, and nothing got damaged. It was far from pretty, but as one guy told Deb, “you did a hell of a job, for just 2 people”.
· While I spent a long time,(well I did watch the last 43 laps of the Nascar race), trying to figure out the best way to tie the boat, Deb washed off all of the salt. (it amazing how much gets on the boat, and how much time you need to spend cleaning it off) While we were doing all of this we kept hearing music, and something like an auctioneer up at the marina, so once finished, we headed up to see what was going on. Deb always loves to get a Pina Colata, so once we accomplished this ($7.50……before tip) we found out there was a US Bill Fishing Tournament going on. ($100,000 in prize money) The place was a zoo! People everywhere. Loud people everywhere. So we headed back to the boat to relax.
· Back at the boat, we relaxed with our cocktails, and Deb made a Pizza. She has made these on a regular basis, and they turn out great. The convection oven on the boat works great, and since it works similar to the one we used in England, Deb has figured it out.
· Did you ever feel like that the wind you were feeling late in the day could last all night? I did, and it did. Before the night was over, I used almost every rope on the boat. (I just counted them. 10) I was up a couple of times to add a rope, and do some adjusting. Deb………she slept on the couch. She tells me that after 20 years of marriage that this is only the second time she has done that (while I was home), and I don’t remember the first time. The problem was the wind was moving the boat so much, that the ropes were straining, and they would creak. She hates that, so she went to sleep in the salon, where it was less noisy. She’s not awake yet, but I look forward to hearing about how much sleep she got.
This morning as I write this it is 70 degrees, still windy, and it’s looks to be mostly cloudy. I can’t turn on the weather channel, because Deb is sleeping next to the TV, so I’ll have to wait to find out what the day will be like.
Today we head back north. (It’s almost sad to think this is as far south as we will get on the GCT) The plan is to talk to Detroit, and see if they recommend anything further on these engines. (which is why I stayed an extra day, hoping we would get everything done, and I wouldn’t have to come back until May 11th ) By the way, the engines ran great yesterday. They ran just like they do when I am on a river back home, so I’m thinking that the reason I thought they had less power on the sea trial, was because of the bad sea conditions. Bottom line is I think our problem is fixed. All under warranty.
Well I must close now. It is still too early to leave, but the ship store opens at 8 am, and you never know what they might have……….that I don’t have.
BK.
Sunday, April 09, 2000
Chapter 36: The Final Sea Trial
6:45 am
Sunday, April 09, 2000
Pier 66 Marina
Between the weather channel, and your e-mails, it seems this is the place to be. 68 degrees now, and the forecast calls for lots of sun, and upper 70’s to the lower 80’s.
I’m siting here this morning, having a cup of coffee while I write this, and looking out at the intracoastal. It’s a great sight, (even though it is still dark) to sit here, and look at all of the boats heading out for a day of fishing, or heading for points unknown. The “points unknown” is truly amazing. These boats come from, and are headed to, everywhere. I think we’re on a big trip, but this is just routine for some of these folks. It’s exciting to hear all of the stories.
Yesterday was a pretty good day. Our mechanic (Pastor) showed up at about 7 am, with another mechanic in tow. After a quick check of his equipment, we went out to the Atlantic. (by the way, one of the reasons we are staying here at Pier 66 is because it is so close to the ocean. From our slip we can be in the ocean in 5 minutes) Once we rounded the bend, and got a look at the Atlantic, it didn’t look too bad. The swells looked to be 1 foot, or so.
Wrong! In fact the swells were so bumpy that the table in our salon fell again, and this time it didn’t break the base, but it did break another hinge. I can’t believe we let that happen again. That’s the last time.
Engine wise, we have good, and bad news. The good news is the port engine runs fine. All of the diagnostic equipment showed that everything was normal. The bad news is it still smoked more that I thought it should, and I didn’t feel it had the power it used to. Although I will say that I’m used to running in a calm river, not an angry Atlantic. Pastor says everything is ok, but we still we need to clean the “aftercooler”. So my plan is to do that, and we should be good to go north.
The rest of the day yesterday was spent doing some clean up, and minor repairs. Deb got some groceries, and started to plan for our return on May 11th. The last couple of visits we have had to totally empty the refrigerator, because the boat would be out of the water, without electric. This time, even if we have some more work done, the boat will stay in the water, so we can start to stock up.
I cleaned the boat, and the dinghy, and by the time all of that was done, it was time for a dinghy ride. (always one of our favorite things to do) The ride was fun, as usual, but cut short because that cold front that has brought all of the bad weather everywhere, finally made it to south Florida. The front brought with it strong winds, and rain. So we made it back to the boat just “after” the rain started.
Pork chops on the grill……..Overboard, on the TV, and we made it an early night.
Like I said, a good day.
What’s up for today? I’m not sure. I still need to get in that engine room, and clean. When we had the bottom done, a lot of dust, and dirt got in there, as well as dirt from having the mechanics work on the engines, so it’s a mess, and that bothers me. But if the day is as nice as they predict I may have a problem staying in that engine room.
What I do know is that I need to end this log. The sun is bright now, and I can’t keep my mind on writing this. I need to get out there, with a fresh cup of coffee, and walk the docks. I’m sure there is someone with a great boating story that I need to hear.
I hope all of you have a great day…………..
BK.
Sunday, April 09, 2000
Pier 66 Marina
Between the weather channel, and your e-mails, it seems this is the place to be. 68 degrees now, and the forecast calls for lots of sun, and upper 70’s to the lower 80’s.
I’m siting here this morning, having a cup of coffee while I write this, and looking out at the intracoastal. It’s a great sight, (even though it is still dark) to sit here, and look at all of the boats heading out for a day of fishing, or heading for points unknown. The “points unknown” is truly amazing. These boats come from, and are headed to, everywhere. I think we’re on a big trip, but this is just routine for some of these folks. It’s exciting to hear all of the stories.
Yesterday was a pretty good day. Our mechanic (Pastor) showed up at about 7 am, with another mechanic in tow. After a quick check of his equipment, we went out to the Atlantic. (by the way, one of the reasons we are staying here at Pier 66 is because it is so close to the ocean. From our slip we can be in the ocean in 5 minutes) Once we rounded the bend, and got a look at the Atlantic, it didn’t look too bad. The swells looked to be 1 foot, or so.
Wrong! In fact the swells were so bumpy that the table in our salon fell again, and this time it didn’t break the base, but it did break another hinge. I can’t believe we let that happen again. That’s the last time.
Engine wise, we have good, and bad news. The good news is the port engine runs fine. All of the diagnostic equipment showed that everything was normal. The bad news is it still smoked more that I thought it should, and I didn’t feel it had the power it used to. Although I will say that I’m used to running in a calm river, not an angry Atlantic. Pastor says everything is ok, but we still we need to clean the “aftercooler”. So my plan is to do that, and we should be good to go north.
The rest of the day yesterday was spent doing some clean up, and minor repairs. Deb got some groceries, and started to plan for our return on May 11th. The last couple of visits we have had to totally empty the refrigerator, because the boat would be out of the water, without electric. This time, even if we have some more work done, the boat will stay in the water, so we can start to stock up.
I cleaned the boat, and the dinghy, and by the time all of that was done, it was time for a dinghy ride. (always one of our favorite things to do) The ride was fun, as usual, but cut short because that cold front that has brought all of the bad weather everywhere, finally made it to south Florida. The front brought with it strong winds, and rain. So we made it back to the boat just “after” the rain started.
Pork chops on the grill……..Overboard, on the TV, and we made it an early night.
Like I said, a good day.
What’s up for today? I’m not sure. I still need to get in that engine room, and clean. When we had the bottom done, a lot of dust, and dirt got in there, as well as dirt from having the mechanics work on the engines, so it’s a mess, and that bothers me. But if the day is as nice as they predict I may have a problem staying in that engine room.
What I do know is that I need to end this log. The sun is bright now, and I can’t keep my mind on writing this. I need to get out there, with a fresh cup of coffee, and walk the docks. I’m sure there is someone with a great boating story that I need to hear.
I hope all of you have a great day…………..
BK.
Saturday, April 08, 2000
Chapter 35: Still in Ft. Lauderdale
Log 35
6:00 am
Saturday, April 08, 2000
The date, and time listed above is the time I finally sent this log. As you will see, I have actually been jotting some of these notes as time went along so I didn’t forget the sequence of events.
3/25/00 (sitting in a hotel room in Richmond, VA.)
Deb and I are in Richmond this morning, (got here on Friday night, and will leave here on Tuesday) to meet all of the new management team (and their spouses) that we have hired for our new facility. We will all be going out to dinner together (54 of us) to celebrate the facility opening, and prepare for all of the long hours ahead. I had a minute so I thought I’d update my logs.
Captain’s note: Since log #33 I have talked to several of you, and many people have mentioned the repairs I was having done. (as one of my friends wife said to him “this can’t be any fun, all he does is work on the boat”) To my non boating friends, let me explain…..…..Boating is about working on the boat. Sure there are a lot of other things that make it wonderful, but working on it is part of the deal. A big part of the deal, and a major part of the expense of owning a boat. Deb and I have owned several boats, and whether they were new, used, or otherwise, we are always working on them. The thing that makes this different, is the fact that we are counting on all of the systems to get us through this trip, verses sitting at a dock most of the time. Also, I am documenting all of the activity. Had I kept a log on the other boats, it would look similar. Do I wish these engines, and all other systems, would run perfect? Yes, but I not sure if that’s realistic. The only thing you can do is fix things as they happen, and make sure you are doing all of your preventive maintainance, to keep major repairs to a minimum. Repairs or not, I love this stuff!
· When I completed Log 34, I was on a plane heading home from Jackson Marine. We had a good weekend, but also left Florida without getting the port engine fixed. What we did have though, was a plan to get that done.
· Once I got back home I got out my contacts list, and started calling people. Among those were the Detroit factory, and the head marine engineer. We had a good conversation, and he called the mechanic that was doing the repairs. After several conversations it was determined that we had 4 fuel injectors bad, and the engineer thought it could also be something else, so we planned on a sea trial with several pieces of diagnostic equipment hook up to the engines. This sea trial will take place April 7th. (this is a Saturday, and normally they would not do warranty work on overtime, but the factory has authorized these additional costs) Hopefully we will find out if there is anything else causing this engine to be low on power.
· 3/31/00 (on a plane heading for Richmond VA.)
Yes, I’m heading back to Richmond again. This time I’ll be here Monday, and leave Friday. The official start-up is just a few days away, and I’m here to work with the customer (Perdue Chicken), to make sure they are feeling good about everything we are doing. When I leave Friday, I’ll be heading back to FT. Lauderdale, for the weekend, to sea trial the boat again.
When I left Jackson Marine (3/20) I gave them a work order to pull the boat and check the props, as well as align the shafts (this was to check out the vibration the mechanic felt). As it turns out the props looked fine, but we decided to have them balanced to be sure they were perfect. (as I write this I haven’t heard if they were ok or not) When they were checking the shafts, they found them to be out of shape. The port shaft was 5/1000th off, and the starboard one was 7/1000th off. How did that happen? Remember back in one of the logs where I told you about crossing the Gulf, and at the end of that crossing we went into Clearwater? Remember that I took a wrong turn, got out of the channel, and ran aground just before we got to our marina? Well, I thought everything was fine, and I didn’t do any damage. I guess I was wrong! So we had to pull both of the shafts, and send them in to be straightened. The good news is, there shouldn’t be any more vibration. (I’m always looking for the bright side of these events) Anyway that’s where we are as of today. I’ll be on the boat this weekend, so hopefully everything will be back together, and in near perfect shape. We’ll see…………
5:10 am
Saturday, April 08, 2000
Pier 66 Marina
FT. Lauderdale, FL.
Well, we’re back on the boat again. Deb came in from Chicago yesterday, and I came in from Richmond. We met at the Miami airport, drove straight to the boat and got there at about 2 PM. (by the way, I’m watching the weather channel now, and they say today will be a wind chill of 1 degree. Yikes!)
When we got to the boat things were looking good. They had buffed, and waxed both the hull, and the top side, and as I said, it was looking good. I talked to the guy who put the props, and the shafts back in, and he said things were in great shape there as well. Our Detroit mechanic (Pastor) showed up and he was all set. He had installed a bunch of diagnostic equipment in the engine room, and he was ready for our sea trial on Saturday morning. (Annie…..I discovered this morning that we forgot to clean the coffee pot when we left last time, and this first pot of coffee looks like…….well……….let’s just say I threw it out)
After a good check of all systems, I fired up the engines, and Deb, and I headed out of Jackson Marine. Destination……Pier 66 Marina. (Darrell, and Dona. Wait till you see this place!) The weather, and the day were just perfect. 85 degrees, and mostly sunny. It was a great 1 hour cruise. Once we arrived, I worked on the boat, and Deb took a taxi back to Jackson Marine to get the car. By the time she got back, I had the boat ship shape, and we went over to the Pelican Bar so Deb could have one of those Pina Colatas (can anyone spell this?)she loves. The bar had a guy with a guitar singing Jimmy Buffet songs, and it was pretty cool sitting there watching these huge boats go by, and knowing just how lucky we really are.
Today is sea trial day. At 7:15 this morning Pastor will be on board to see if putting in those 4 new injectors fixed our problem. On one hand I sure hope so, but I don’t understand how that can happen all at once. I think there may be something else. Something caused these injectors to go bad, and we need to find out what it was. (or is)
The weather channel continues to tell me how bad the weather is at home. Darn, that’s a shame. We’ll just have to suffer with another 85, and sunny today. I sure hope the snow is gone by the time we get there.
Well, the third pot of coffee is now finished, and this one seems to be drinkable, so I think I’ll end this, and try to send it out. I have a new system for doing this. I found out that Sprint has a cell phone, and a system that you can hook to your computer, and send and receive e-mail. It works great. At least in areas where they have service. I’ll see if one of those areas is here in Ft. Lauderdale.
I hope this message finds everyone doing well.
BK.
Ps. Just as I was ending this, I heard a rumble outside, and I couldn’t figure out what it was. I went outside, and found out the 85 foot boat next to us was running. They are heading 185 miles to Nassau today. I’ve got to go out and watch them head out. Is this a great place or what??????
6:00 am
Saturday, April 08, 2000
The date, and time listed above is the time I finally sent this log. As you will see, I have actually been jotting some of these notes as time went along so I didn’t forget the sequence of events.
3/25/00 (sitting in a hotel room in Richmond, VA.)
Deb and I are in Richmond this morning, (got here on Friday night, and will leave here on Tuesday) to meet all of the new management team (and their spouses) that we have hired for our new facility. We will all be going out to dinner together (54 of us) to celebrate the facility opening, and prepare for all of the long hours ahead. I had a minute so I thought I’d update my logs.
Captain’s note: Since log #33 I have talked to several of you, and many people have mentioned the repairs I was having done. (as one of my friends wife said to him “this can’t be any fun, all he does is work on the boat”) To my non boating friends, let me explain…..…..Boating is about working on the boat. Sure there are a lot of other things that make it wonderful, but working on it is part of the deal. A big part of the deal, and a major part of the expense of owning a boat. Deb and I have owned several boats, and whether they were new, used, or otherwise, we are always working on them. The thing that makes this different, is the fact that we are counting on all of the systems to get us through this trip, verses sitting at a dock most of the time. Also, I am documenting all of the activity. Had I kept a log on the other boats, it would look similar. Do I wish these engines, and all other systems, would run perfect? Yes, but I not sure if that’s realistic. The only thing you can do is fix things as they happen, and make sure you are doing all of your preventive maintainance, to keep major repairs to a minimum. Repairs or not, I love this stuff!
· When I completed Log 34, I was on a plane heading home from Jackson Marine. We had a good weekend, but also left Florida without getting the port engine fixed. What we did have though, was a plan to get that done.
· Once I got back home I got out my contacts list, and started calling people. Among those were the Detroit factory, and the head marine engineer. We had a good conversation, and he called the mechanic that was doing the repairs. After several conversations it was determined that we had 4 fuel injectors bad, and the engineer thought it could also be something else, so we planned on a sea trial with several pieces of diagnostic equipment hook up to the engines. This sea trial will take place April 7th. (this is a Saturday, and normally they would not do warranty work on overtime, but the factory has authorized these additional costs) Hopefully we will find out if there is anything else causing this engine to be low on power.
· 3/31/00 (on a plane heading for Richmond VA.)
Yes, I’m heading back to Richmond again. This time I’ll be here Monday, and leave Friday. The official start-up is just a few days away, and I’m here to work with the customer (Perdue Chicken), to make sure they are feeling good about everything we are doing. When I leave Friday, I’ll be heading back to FT. Lauderdale, for the weekend, to sea trial the boat again.
When I left Jackson Marine (3/20) I gave them a work order to pull the boat and check the props, as well as align the shafts (this was to check out the vibration the mechanic felt). As it turns out the props looked fine, but we decided to have them balanced to be sure they were perfect. (as I write this I haven’t heard if they were ok or not) When they were checking the shafts, they found them to be out of shape. The port shaft was 5/1000th off, and the starboard one was 7/1000th off. How did that happen? Remember back in one of the logs where I told you about crossing the Gulf, and at the end of that crossing we went into Clearwater? Remember that I took a wrong turn, got out of the channel, and ran aground just before we got to our marina? Well, I thought everything was fine, and I didn’t do any damage. I guess I was wrong! So we had to pull both of the shafts, and send them in to be straightened. The good news is, there shouldn’t be any more vibration. (I’m always looking for the bright side of these events) Anyway that’s where we are as of today. I’ll be on the boat this weekend, so hopefully everything will be back together, and in near perfect shape. We’ll see…………
5:10 am
Saturday, April 08, 2000
Pier 66 Marina
FT. Lauderdale, FL.
Well, we’re back on the boat again. Deb came in from Chicago yesterday, and I came in from Richmond. We met at the Miami airport, drove straight to the boat and got there at about 2 PM. (by the way, I’m watching the weather channel now, and they say today will be a wind chill of 1 degree. Yikes!)
When we got to the boat things were looking good. They had buffed, and waxed both the hull, and the top side, and as I said, it was looking good. I talked to the guy who put the props, and the shafts back in, and he said things were in great shape there as well. Our Detroit mechanic (Pastor) showed up and he was all set. He had installed a bunch of diagnostic equipment in the engine room, and he was ready for our sea trial on Saturday morning. (Annie…..I discovered this morning that we forgot to clean the coffee pot when we left last time, and this first pot of coffee looks like…….well……….let’s just say I threw it out)
After a good check of all systems, I fired up the engines, and Deb, and I headed out of Jackson Marine. Destination……Pier 66 Marina. (Darrell, and Dona. Wait till you see this place!) The weather, and the day were just perfect. 85 degrees, and mostly sunny. It was a great 1 hour cruise. Once we arrived, I worked on the boat, and Deb took a taxi back to Jackson Marine to get the car. By the time she got back, I had the boat ship shape, and we went over to the Pelican Bar so Deb could have one of those Pina Colatas (can anyone spell this?)she loves. The bar had a guy with a guitar singing Jimmy Buffet songs, and it was pretty cool sitting there watching these huge boats go by, and knowing just how lucky we really are.
Today is sea trial day. At 7:15 this morning Pastor will be on board to see if putting in those 4 new injectors fixed our problem. On one hand I sure hope so, but I don’t understand how that can happen all at once. I think there may be something else. Something caused these injectors to go bad, and we need to find out what it was. (or is)
The weather channel continues to tell me how bad the weather is at home. Darn, that’s a shame. We’ll just have to suffer with another 85, and sunny today. I sure hope the snow is gone by the time we get there.
Well, the third pot of coffee is now finished, and this one seems to be drinkable, so I think I’ll end this, and try to send it out. I have a new system for doing this. I found out that Sprint has a cell phone, and a system that you can hook to your computer, and send and receive e-mail. It works great. At least in areas where they have service. I’ll see if one of those areas is here in Ft. Lauderdale.
I hope this message finds everyone doing well.
BK.
Ps. Just as I was ending this, I heard a rumble outside, and I couldn’t figure out what it was. I went outside, and found out the 85 foot boat next to us was running. They are heading 185 miles to Nassau today. I’ve got to go out and watch them head out. Is this a great place or what??????
Monday, March 20, 2000
Chapter 34: Ft. Lauderdale Recap
GCT – Log #34 – Ft. Lauderdale recap
4:45 PM
Monday, March 20, 2000
On a plane heading home
Before I get started, thanks for all of the e-mails from my latest log. It’s great hearing from everyone. I’m glad some of you enjoy reading about these adventures, because it has become fun for me to write about them. Also, sorry about you getting log #33 6 times. Someone in e-mail land must be playing games, because according to my computer, it hasn’t even been sent yet! I kept trying to send it, but it wouldn’t go through. (honest, I must have tried at least…………………let’s see………….oh,,,,,,,,, six times----hey, wait a minute.)
Saturday……The visit to the boat was not what I had planned. I kept telling Les and Annie, this is a work trip, we are not supposed to be having fun. But I found out long ago that when Deb and I are with them,that’s impossible. So we got some work done, and had fun as well.
The first thing we did was head out for a Bloody Mary Cruise. That meant we had to first make a bloody mary, then go cruising. It was a beautiful day, so we headed out in the Atlantic, and went north about 10 miles to Lighthouse Point, through the Hillsboro Inlet, into the intracoastal. Once inside, we made a hard left, and headed south, back toward Pier 66. The whole trip lasted about 3 hours, and was awesome.
The next thing we had to do was go to the marine store. One of my favorite things. It is the only place I go where my activity can be classified as shopping. Every other time I visit a store I go buying. At the marine store, I shop. Reason is, I have just about everything I need, so I usually can’t find anything new. But every now and then I get lucky. Saturday, was one of those days.
After we got back to the boat we got out the dinghy. We used it more over this weekend, then we have since we left our dock in Illinois. The four of us always like doing this, so we used “Pea Shooter” (our dinghy’s name---don’t ask) to get around. As I have said this place is a paradise, and some of the boats are beyond description. Traveling in and out of the marinas and seeing the boats up close was a treat. The day ended with shrimp, and steak on the grill. A glass of wine, and life was (and is) great. Les and Ann went for a walk, and Deb and I called it a night.
Sunday…..we woke up to rain. The weather Friday and Saturday was great, but it started raining late Saturday, and rained all night. In the morning NOA weather said FT. Lauderdale had 2 ¾ inches overnight, and it was still raining. It would quit of and on, the sky would get bright, but just that fast it would rain again. While all of this was going on we did a few chores. Deb, and Annie did laundry, and Les and I went to the marine store to see if they had anything there that we didn’t have. (who knows what could have come in overnight) I bought an external speaker for my VHF radio, so I was happy. It ended up raining all day Sunday (I’ll bet the total was 4 or 5 inches). Sometimes it was a downpour. We were waiting for it to let up so we could move Headquarters from Pier 66 back to Jackson Marine, but it never did, so we took the front covers off the windshield, and I drove from the lower station. It turned out to be a great cruise in the rain, and we got to Jackson Marine just as the skies opened up. Once secure we tuned in the satalite, and watched the Nascar race. Just as it was over the girls got this idea to take a dinghy ride in the rain. They were all giggly, and excited, so we put on our rain gear, and headed out. The good news was it stopped raining. But they were sad because they wanted a downpour, because “it would be an adventure”. Ya gotta love em.
Once back to the boat, Deb made her now famous Pasta. Well it’s not really famous, but everyone who eats it loves it, and last night was no exception.
Great food. Great day.
Monday………Not up as early as usual. 6:30 am. Instead of typing a captains log, I put together a boat work list, then worked on some Pro Source stuff. Once that was complete I went to work getting the boat ready to leave it for a few weeks. As it turns out we will have to return to the boat on April 8th weekend to perform another sea trial. Not only will they be working on the port engine, but while we were out on this sea trial, we noticed a slight vibration that we need to have looked at. We will have to have the boat pulled out of the water to balance the props, and then once it goes back in they need to align the shafts. That will assure there is no vibration, and possible damage to the shaft bearings. So when we return we’ll make sure all of this is done, and we should be good to go.
I guess that’s it for now, but I have mixed emotions as I end this. I always look forward to spending time on the boat, but I do not want to come back here in April. There is too much to do at work, and I was hoping this trip would take care of all our needs before we head north in May. But you play with the hand you’re dealt, and I can see mine clearly. So………..the next log will be in early April.
BK.
4:45 PM
Monday, March 20, 2000
On a plane heading home
Before I get started, thanks for all of the e-mails from my latest log. It’s great hearing from everyone. I’m glad some of you enjoy reading about these adventures, because it has become fun for me to write about them. Also, sorry about you getting log #33 6 times. Someone in e-mail land must be playing games, because according to my computer, it hasn’t even been sent yet! I kept trying to send it, but it wouldn’t go through. (honest, I must have tried at least…………………let’s see………….oh,,,,,,,,, six times----hey, wait a minute.)
Saturday……The visit to the boat was not what I had planned. I kept telling Les and Annie, this is a work trip, we are not supposed to be having fun. But I found out long ago that when Deb and I are with them,that’s impossible. So we got some work done, and had fun as well.
The first thing we did was head out for a Bloody Mary Cruise. That meant we had to first make a bloody mary, then go cruising. It was a beautiful day, so we headed out in the Atlantic, and went north about 10 miles to Lighthouse Point, through the Hillsboro Inlet, into the intracoastal. Once inside, we made a hard left, and headed south, back toward Pier 66. The whole trip lasted about 3 hours, and was awesome.
The next thing we had to do was go to the marine store. One of my favorite things. It is the only place I go where my activity can be classified as shopping. Every other time I visit a store I go buying. At the marine store, I shop. Reason is, I have just about everything I need, so I usually can’t find anything new. But every now and then I get lucky. Saturday, was one of those days.
After we got back to the boat we got out the dinghy. We used it more over this weekend, then we have since we left our dock in Illinois. The four of us always like doing this, so we used “Pea Shooter” (our dinghy’s name---don’t ask) to get around. As I have said this place is a paradise, and some of the boats are beyond description. Traveling in and out of the marinas and seeing the boats up close was a treat. The day ended with shrimp, and steak on the grill. A glass of wine, and life was (and is) great. Les and Ann went for a walk, and Deb and I called it a night.
Sunday…..we woke up to rain. The weather Friday and Saturday was great, but it started raining late Saturday, and rained all night. In the morning NOA weather said FT. Lauderdale had 2 ¾ inches overnight, and it was still raining. It would quit of and on, the sky would get bright, but just that fast it would rain again. While all of this was going on we did a few chores. Deb, and Annie did laundry, and Les and I went to the marine store to see if they had anything there that we didn’t have. (who knows what could have come in overnight) I bought an external speaker for my VHF radio, so I was happy. It ended up raining all day Sunday (I’ll bet the total was 4 or 5 inches). Sometimes it was a downpour. We were waiting for it to let up so we could move Headquarters from Pier 66 back to Jackson Marine, but it never did, so we took the front covers off the windshield, and I drove from the lower station. It turned out to be a great cruise in the rain, and we got to Jackson Marine just as the skies opened up. Once secure we tuned in the satalite, and watched the Nascar race. Just as it was over the girls got this idea to take a dinghy ride in the rain. They were all giggly, and excited, so we put on our rain gear, and headed out. The good news was it stopped raining. But they were sad because they wanted a downpour, because “it would be an adventure”. Ya gotta love em.
Once back to the boat, Deb made her now famous Pasta. Well it’s not really famous, but everyone who eats it loves it, and last night was no exception.
Great food. Great day.
Monday………Not up as early as usual. 6:30 am. Instead of typing a captains log, I put together a boat work list, then worked on some Pro Source stuff. Once that was complete I went to work getting the boat ready to leave it for a few weeks. As it turns out we will have to return to the boat on April 8th weekend to perform another sea trial. Not only will they be working on the port engine, but while we were out on this sea trial, we noticed a slight vibration that we need to have looked at. We will have to have the boat pulled out of the water to balance the props, and then once it goes back in they need to align the shafts. That will assure there is no vibration, and possible damage to the shaft bearings. So when we return we’ll make sure all of this is done, and we should be good to go.
I guess that’s it for now, but I have mixed emotions as I end this. I always look forward to spending time on the boat, but I do not want to come back here in April. There is too much to do at work, and I was hoping this trip would take care of all our needs before we head north in May. But you play with the hand you’re dealt, and I can see mine clearly. So………..the next log will be in early April.
BK.
Friday, March 17, 2000
Chapter 33: It's March - and Leg Three Begins
Captains Note......
There are a few new people that get these "GCT Logs". Along the way people have asked to be put on the list, and others I have added because I thought they might enjoy the journey. If you don't want to be bothered by receiving these just let me know. If you are new, and have no clue what is going on....... or anyone wants to catch up on what has happened, we now have all of the past logs (and some pictures) on a web site dedicated to this trip.
Just go to www.greatcircle.homepage.com, and it's all there.
Don't forget my disclaimer...spelling, and grammar mistakes are to be ignored.
Now for the latest update;
6:00 am
Friday, March 17, 2000
Jackson Marine
FT. Lauderdale, FL.
It's hard to believe it is mid-March already. From a boaters standpoint, winter is over, and boating is just around the corner. I'm even luckier than that. I get to visit our boat during the "off season" and that makes the winter even shorter.
This morning we are at Jackson Marine, in Ft. Lauderdale. This the boat yard I took the boat to in January to have some work done, and store it for the winter. Most of the repairs are done, and we came down here to check the boat out, and make sure everything will be ready when we get ready to leave.
As I mentioned when we dropped the boat off, as a marina, this place leaves a lot to be desired, but as a boatyard, it's great. I have had good luck getting them to do the things I had requested.
I arrived here yesterday. I flew in from Richmond VA., where I spent a couple of days visiting our new distribution center we are going to operate for Perdue Farms. It's a very exciting, and complicated, project that is about 2 weeks away from star-up. Things are hectic, but going fine, and it looks like we will begin on time. Receiving our first load of fresh chicken on April 3rd. As I write this I almost feel guilty not being there. Years ago when I was running these type of projects, I would be on site a lot of the time. Today we have great experienced people running the project, and as Victor Yamada our facility manager told me recently, "Bob, until we get this place going, I'm not sure you want to be here, and I'm not sure we want you here." Both of those may be true, but I'll be there a lot over the next few weeks.
When I got to the boat things looked fine. There was someone on board finishing the washing, and it looked pretty good. I fired up the engines, and although they took some time to catch, they both started, and ran fine.
I also started the generator, and things looked fine here as well. The only problem was when I went in the engine room it was awful. They had covered the boat while they sanded the bottom, but the grit from the sand blasting had gotten in, and it needs a lot of effort to get it back to shape. That will have to happen over time.
Last night I drove up to West Palm Beach to pick up Debbie, and Les and Ann (Deb's sister and brother in law.) They came in at about 10:00, and by the time we got back to the boat it was way past my bed time.
Today, we will be leaving Jackson Marine early, and heading down the New River, through the center of Ft. Lauderdale, and to Pier 66 marina. We will be meeting a mechanic from Detroit (the engine manufacture of my boat engines) and taking a sea trial. If you remember, when we left Clearwater, I noticed that the port engine was not running the way it should, so I'm going to have it checked out.
6:15 am
Saturday, March 18, 2000
Pier 66 Marina
FT. Lauderdale, FL.
We picked up the mechanic (Pastor was his name) on the dock at Pier 66 marina. It was a short jump from there to the ocean for our sea trial. He went in the engine room and hooked up his computer to the engines, and we went through several different variations of running the boat. First 1000 rpm, then 1200, 1400, etc. It took about 30 minutes to complete his tests, and when he did, he came up to sit beside me on the bridge, and said "how do you like south Florida?" Fine I said, why? "Because, based on your engines, you're going to spending a lot of time here." My heart fell to my gut. He went on to tell me that the port engine needed lots of help. He showed me a computer print out of the results of his tests, and it showed that the injectors were bad, and that is why the boat didn't have it's normal power. (as well as a problem with the inter-cooler, whatever that is). He also told me there was a vibration on the port side. I don't know what that is, but we will have to have it checked out. (Boy am I glad I had this looked at now, instead of along the way somewhere) After a fair amount of discussion, and several phone calls, it was determined that the mechanic would get on the boat next Tuesday, when the boat was back at Jackson Marine. It would take a few days to repair, which is not a problem, but it will mean that I will have to come back here again to do another sea trial, to make sure things were fine. (I think the best thing may be to move my office here for the remainder of the winter, to make sure this stuff is done right) I'm sure we'll get through this, but it is becoming a logistics challenge.
The rest of yesterday was spent with the girls grocery shopping, Les cleaning the boat, while I helped him, in between working on Pro Source stuff. Late in the afternoon we took a long dinghy ride around the area.
This place is just unbelievable. Annie just keeps saying "oh, my goodness!"
As I said in previous e-mails, this is a boaters paradise. Every boat you see is nicer, and bigger than the last one. We all wish we could see the inside of some of them, but that won't happen.
The day ended with Annie cooking fresh tuna steaks on the grill. They were awesome! We all had plans to go to the Pelican Bar at the marina, and listen to the band, but Deb and I decided to stay on the boat and watch a movie.
(The River Wild)
Today the plans are for more boat cleaning, and then we'll see from there.
The only thing I do know is it is too nice now to sit inside here and write this log. Annie is up and eating breakfast up on the bridge. It's already 70 degrees, and beautiful. The forecast calls for low 80's and mostly sunny.
(The weather channel said in Chicago the wind chill is 5 degrees) I'd better get out there and enjoy this.
BK.
There are a few new people that get these "GCT Logs". Along the way people have asked to be put on the list, and others I have added because I thought they might enjoy the journey. If you don't want to be bothered by receiving these just let me know. If you are new, and have no clue what is going on....... or anyone wants to catch up on what has happened, we now have all of the past logs (and some pictures) on a web site dedicated to this trip.
Just go to www.greatcircle.homepage.com, and it's all there.
Don't forget my disclaimer...spelling, and grammar mistakes are to be ignored.
Now for the latest update;
6:00 am
Friday, March 17, 2000
Jackson Marine
FT. Lauderdale, FL.
It's hard to believe it is mid-March already. From a boaters standpoint, winter is over, and boating is just around the corner. I'm even luckier than that. I get to visit our boat during the "off season" and that makes the winter even shorter.
This morning we are at Jackson Marine, in Ft. Lauderdale. This the boat yard I took the boat to in January to have some work done, and store it for the winter. Most of the repairs are done, and we came down here to check the boat out, and make sure everything will be ready when we get ready to leave.
As I mentioned when we dropped the boat off, as a marina, this place leaves a lot to be desired, but as a boatyard, it's great. I have had good luck getting them to do the things I had requested.
I arrived here yesterday. I flew in from Richmond VA., where I spent a couple of days visiting our new distribution center we are going to operate for Perdue Farms. It's a very exciting, and complicated, project that is about 2 weeks away from star-up. Things are hectic, but going fine, and it looks like we will begin on time. Receiving our first load of fresh chicken on April 3rd. As I write this I almost feel guilty not being there. Years ago when I was running these type of projects, I would be on site a lot of the time. Today we have great experienced people running the project, and as Victor Yamada our facility manager told me recently, "Bob, until we get this place going, I'm not sure you want to be here, and I'm not sure we want you here." Both of those may be true, but I'll be there a lot over the next few weeks.
When I got to the boat things looked fine. There was someone on board finishing the washing, and it looked pretty good. I fired up the engines, and although they took some time to catch, they both started, and ran fine.
I also started the generator, and things looked fine here as well. The only problem was when I went in the engine room it was awful. They had covered the boat while they sanded the bottom, but the grit from the sand blasting had gotten in, and it needs a lot of effort to get it back to shape. That will have to happen over time.
Last night I drove up to West Palm Beach to pick up Debbie, and Les and Ann (Deb's sister and brother in law.) They came in at about 10:00, and by the time we got back to the boat it was way past my bed time.
Today, we will be leaving Jackson Marine early, and heading down the New River, through the center of Ft. Lauderdale, and to Pier 66 marina. We will be meeting a mechanic from Detroit (the engine manufacture of my boat engines) and taking a sea trial. If you remember, when we left Clearwater, I noticed that the port engine was not running the way it should, so I'm going to have it checked out.
6:15 am
Saturday, March 18, 2000
Pier 66 Marina
FT. Lauderdale, FL.
We picked up the mechanic (Pastor was his name) on the dock at Pier 66 marina. It was a short jump from there to the ocean for our sea trial. He went in the engine room and hooked up his computer to the engines, and we went through several different variations of running the boat. First 1000 rpm, then 1200, 1400, etc. It took about 30 minutes to complete his tests, and when he did, he came up to sit beside me on the bridge, and said "how do you like south Florida?" Fine I said, why? "Because, based on your engines, you're going to spending a lot of time here." My heart fell to my gut. He went on to tell me that the port engine needed lots of help. He showed me a computer print out of the results of his tests, and it showed that the injectors were bad, and that is why the boat didn't have it's normal power. (as well as a problem with the inter-cooler, whatever that is). He also told me there was a vibration on the port side. I don't know what that is, but we will have to have it checked out. (Boy am I glad I had this looked at now, instead of along the way somewhere) After a fair amount of discussion, and several phone calls, it was determined that the mechanic would get on the boat next Tuesday, when the boat was back at Jackson Marine. It would take a few days to repair, which is not a problem, but it will mean that I will have to come back here again to do another sea trial, to make sure things were fine. (I think the best thing may be to move my office here for the remainder of the winter, to make sure this stuff is done right) I'm sure we'll get through this, but it is becoming a logistics challenge.
The rest of yesterday was spent with the girls grocery shopping, Les cleaning the boat, while I helped him, in between working on Pro Source stuff. Late in the afternoon we took a long dinghy ride around the area.
This place is just unbelievable. Annie just keeps saying "oh, my goodness!"
As I said in previous e-mails, this is a boaters paradise. Every boat you see is nicer, and bigger than the last one. We all wish we could see the inside of some of them, but that won't happen.
The day ended with Annie cooking fresh tuna steaks on the grill. They were awesome! We all had plans to go to the Pelican Bar at the marina, and listen to the band, but Deb and I decided to stay on the boat and watch a movie.
(The River Wild)
Today the plans are for more boat cleaning, and then we'll see from there.
The only thing I do know is it is too nice now to sit inside here and write this log. Annie is up and eating breakfast up on the bridge. It's already 70 degrees, and beautiful. The forecast calls for low 80's and mostly sunny.
(The weather channel said in Chicago the wind chill is 5 degrees) I'd better get out there and enjoy this.
BK.
Sunday, January 09, 2000
Leg Two Summary
Sunday, January 9, 2000
Back Home Again
As promised, I am going to conclude leg #2 with a summary of this leg, and plans for the future. I'll start this now, and see how soon I can finish it.
The first thing I must tell you is that as I write this I have a huge smile on my face. The leg from
Tierra Verde to Ft. Lauderdale was an awesome trip.
I have memories that I will never forget. As I said , we have made most of that trip before, but for some reason, this time it was more dramatic. I think there were two reasons for this. 1-We are on a slower pace, and have more time to enjoy the scenery, and the surroundings. 2-On our previous trip we never went below Stuart, FL., and the trip south to Ft. Lauderdale was just spectacular. Even if you were not a boat lover, like I am, you would still be very impressed.
Leg #2 highlights;
* The weather was near perfect. When we first arrived it was sunny, and lower 70's. As the week went on it was sunny, and in the 80's. It rained twice. Each time for only a few minutes, and neither time did it stop us from anything. So far we have completed two legs, and spent 5 weeks on this trip, and the weather has been almost perfect the entire time.
* I enjoyed the crossing of Lake Okeechobee more this time. Why? I don't know, but it was great.
* I really enjoyed being in areas that are easy to get "boat stuff" done. If you can dream it, someone in the area can make it happen. During the trip I ended up canceling the contract with the expensive marina that we were going to stay at, and instead we are keeping it at a boat yard for half the cost.
The boat yard is certainly nothing to look at (and that's being kind), but they can handle any repairs, and we won't be on the boat anyway.
* Having Carl aboard was an extra treat. He took all the pictures. He kept everyone laughing with his quick wit. And Steve, Carl, and I got to talk a lot about business.
* I learned that, whenever we can, we need to allow the first day of the trip to be "a shakedown day". (or at least only go a few miles the first
day) There is too much to be done to think you can just show up, fire the boat up, and take off. Having time to start off properly makes the rest of the trip, go much smoother.
* I learned that you should not run your 24 volt charger all the time.
(that's the one that charges my engine batteries) When the guys from Cruisers Yachts came down and put in the new charger they told me to shut it off when I'm not on the boat. No one ever told me that before. Maybe that's why it burnt out while we were at Tierra Verde, and we ended up losing a day to charge the batteries. I'm not sure, but it's shut off now, and when I get back to the boat I'll turn it back on.
* I'm really getting to know the boat, and I love it. It offers us enough space, handles like a runabout, and has many of those big boat features that normally come on boats much larger than ours.
* If you remember, the one thing I wanted to do was enjoy this adventure, and not be worrying about what I was missing elsewhere. It is a delicate balance with a new company, but so far this is working. I stay in touch with work early each day, and then concentrate on the voyage. Doing it this way allows me to enjoy the boating moments. It's already obvious to me that this is more than I dreamed it would be, and I don't want to look back and know that I wasted some of it. When we meet people along the way, and they hear we are making "The Great Circle" many of them tell me that this is one of their dreams as well. They are always commenting that they wish they could do it like we are doing it. Yes......Deb, and I are very fortunate.
Statistics so far on our trip?
* Days 31
* Miles 1,928
* Engine hours 192
* Gen. Hours 288
* Fun lots
* Memories can't count 'em
* Cost worth it!
What's next?
Well first of all the boat comes out of the water this week to re-do the bottom. Boats that stay in the water like ours have a bottom paint on them to keep things from growing. We are not sure if the bottom paint was bad, or the application was wrong, but ours is pealing off, and so it needs to be totally stripped off, and new paint put back on. We are also having some other warranty work done while we are gone. Nothing major, but it's good to keep up on this, rather than find someday you have a long list of things that don't work.
We will be going back to the boat for a long weekend in March with Deb's sister Ann and her husband Les. It will be a good time to follow up on the repairs, do some PM items, and visit Ft. Lauderdale again, before leaving in May.
May 12th is the date we have planned to begin leg #3. This will be a 2 week leg that should get us to Charleston, SC., the first week, and then to Norfolk, VA. the second week.
Leg #4 then gets us to New York City.
Leg #5 to Rochester, New York.
Leg #6 should get us back to our slip in Ottawa, IL., by August 6th. In between each leg I will come back to work for 2 to 3 weeks to make sure I keep up on things. We'll see how it goes, but that's our plan.
I hope this last note finds everyone is doing fine. Thanks for all of the e-mails. Once we get back to see the boat in mid March, I'll send you an update.
BK.
Back Home Again
As promised, I am going to conclude leg #2 with a summary of this leg, and plans for the future. I'll start this now, and see how soon I can finish it.
The first thing I must tell you is that as I write this I have a huge smile on my face. The leg from
Tierra Verde to Ft. Lauderdale was an awesome trip.
I have memories that I will never forget. As I said , we have made most of that trip before, but for some reason, this time it was more dramatic. I think there were two reasons for this. 1-We are on a slower pace, and have more time to enjoy the scenery, and the surroundings. 2-On our previous trip we never went below Stuart, FL., and the trip south to Ft. Lauderdale was just spectacular. Even if you were not a boat lover, like I am, you would still be very impressed.
Leg #2 highlights;
* The weather was near perfect. When we first arrived it was sunny, and lower 70's. As the week went on it was sunny, and in the 80's. It rained twice. Each time for only a few minutes, and neither time did it stop us from anything. So far we have completed two legs, and spent 5 weeks on this trip, and the weather has been almost perfect the entire time.
* I enjoyed the crossing of Lake Okeechobee more this time. Why? I don't know, but it was great.
* I really enjoyed being in areas that are easy to get "boat stuff" done. If you can dream it, someone in the area can make it happen. During the trip I ended up canceling the contract with the expensive marina that we were going to stay at, and instead we are keeping it at a boat yard for half the cost.
The boat yard is certainly nothing to look at (and that's being kind), but they can handle any repairs, and we won't be on the boat anyway.
* Having Carl aboard was an extra treat. He took all the pictures. He kept everyone laughing with his quick wit. And Steve, Carl, and I got to talk a lot about business.
* I learned that, whenever we can, we need to allow the first day of the trip to be "a shakedown day". (or at least only go a few miles the first
day) There is too much to be done to think you can just show up, fire the boat up, and take off. Having time to start off properly makes the rest of the trip, go much smoother.
* I learned that you should not run your 24 volt charger all the time.
(that's the one that charges my engine batteries) When the guys from Cruisers Yachts came down and put in the new charger they told me to shut it off when I'm not on the boat. No one ever told me that before. Maybe that's why it burnt out while we were at Tierra Verde, and we ended up losing a day to charge the batteries. I'm not sure, but it's shut off now, and when I get back to the boat I'll turn it back on.
* I'm really getting to know the boat, and I love it. It offers us enough space, handles like a runabout, and has many of those big boat features that normally come on boats much larger than ours.
* If you remember, the one thing I wanted to do was enjoy this adventure, and not be worrying about what I was missing elsewhere. It is a delicate balance with a new company, but so far this is working. I stay in touch with work early each day, and then concentrate on the voyage. Doing it this way allows me to enjoy the boating moments. It's already obvious to me that this is more than I dreamed it would be, and I don't want to look back and know that I wasted some of it. When we meet people along the way, and they hear we are making "The Great Circle" many of them tell me that this is one of their dreams as well. They are always commenting that they wish they could do it like we are doing it. Yes......Deb, and I are very fortunate.
Statistics so far on our trip?
* Days 31
* Miles 1,928
* Engine hours 192
* Gen. Hours 288
* Fun lots
* Memories can't count 'em
* Cost worth it!
What's next?
Well first of all the boat comes out of the water this week to re-do the bottom. Boats that stay in the water like ours have a bottom paint on them to keep things from growing. We are not sure if the bottom paint was bad, or the application was wrong, but ours is pealing off, and so it needs to be totally stripped off, and new paint put back on. We are also having some other warranty work done while we are gone. Nothing major, but it's good to keep up on this, rather than find someday you have a long list of things that don't work.
We will be going back to the boat for a long weekend in March with Deb's sister Ann and her husband Les. It will be a good time to follow up on the repairs, do some PM items, and visit Ft. Lauderdale again, before leaving in May.
May 12th is the date we have planned to begin leg #3. This will be a 2 week leg that should get us to Charleston, SC., the first week, and then to Norfolk, VA. the second week.
Leg #4 then gets us to New York City.
Leg #5 to Rochester, New York.
Leg #6 should get us back to our slip in Ottawa, IL., by August 6th. In between each leg I will come back to work for 2 to 3 weeks to make sure I keep up on things. We'll see how it goes, but that's our plan.
I hope this last note finds everyone is doing fine. Thanks for all of the e-mails. Once we get back to see the boat in mid March, I'll send you an update.
BK.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
