Weather was still looking good. We were not in a hurry, but still departed the Redington Shores anchorage at 8:00 a.m. We traveled a whole hour to tie up at the free dock at Indian Rocks Beach. It must have been a while since Ray has docked. Linda was on the port stern ready to throw a line to Bob when he hollered at me as to where I was. Low and behold we were bowing in starboard side. What? We never do this. Not a good sign as to the start of our long day(s) ahead.
Linda ran a few errands; bread from CVS, they didn't have eggs, and a drop of mail at the Post Office. After our hour stop we were on our way to cross the Gulf of Mexico, the dreaded part of the whole trip.
We had mentioned that the worst of the weather should be in the morning, but then improve as the day(s) progressed, but if we stuck our nose out there and didn't like it we would turn around and come back in. It was close to another hour by the time we were heading out Clearwater Pass. It was not bad, but not perfect, but if it was going to get better, we could handle it. The seas were on our port stern, rolling us a bit.
By mid-afternoon Linda went ahead and attempted some fishing to cut down on the boredom. Before she could even get the second rig set for trolling she had a quick bite. A check of the bait showed that something had taken a small bite out of the ballyhoo, somehow missing the hook, but rendering it useless. Once she got the next one rigged, it was fish on almost immediately again. This produced a king mackerel, nothing we wanted to keep. With all of the live bait gone, next out was a bucktail. The last ballyhoo produced another king mackerel on the other rig, another throw back. Before that one could get set back out it was fish on the bucktail, but lost it, bucktail and all. With two more bucktails set out it was quiet for a while, almost to dusk and to the point of debating when to bring them in soon anyway when it was fish on. This last one was a fighter. Ray had to bring in the other line so they wouldn't get crossed when Linda saw a fish jump after that lure, but no hook up. After several minutes of reeling something that was definitely different than the first two, the bonita appeared. Fake tuna they call it. So throw back number three.
It was partially overcast and the moonrise was at 5:30 a.m. and moonset at 6:00 a.m. Therefore we knew it was going to be a dark night. There were a few stars, but not much. A couple of boat passed in the night on the radar, but no real events, just still rolling along each taking three hour shifts at the helm.
About 5:30 a.m. Spike couldn't stand the rolling from under the couch any longer. He joined us at the helm, but acted like he just wanted to jump overboard so Linda put the harness and leash on him just in case. Maybe he'll learn to be a better traveler yet. He stayed in the Admiral's chair for the remainder of the trip, tented over with a towel to help him feel more secure.
We were all sick of the rolling by the time we entered East Pass about 24 hours after departure. It was another several hours to Apalachicola, but once you've gone this long, you might as well keep going. We finally pulled into Apalachicola Marina shortly after 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 16. We all hit the shower and bed for a few hour nap. I don't know if it helped. We still all kind of felt like crap. Linda and Ray went to the marina office to check in, then stopped at Oyster City Brewing Company which was not open yet last time we were here. Then we walked across the street to The Tap Room and had some duck fries. Forgot how good those are. Next stop was Up the Creek for some oysters. After all, that's why we are here, right? If you have never been there, it has a very small bar. I think 7 barstools. It was just us and another younger fellow at the bar when a fourth person came in to sit at the bar saying "Well, I've never said this before, but here I will buy the bar a round." Very nice. Talked to him a bit. He had a beer and a dozen of the parmesan oysters at our recommendation. When he received his bill he was quite surprised at the large amount that it was, so he inquired as to the price of our drinks. Well, his and our beers were $5.00 each, but the younger gentleman just so happened to be drinking a double which was $18.00! He was a good sport about it. We teased him that it might have been cheaper at a larger bar after all. Bob and Barbara finally joined us after all of that was over, but then that same man came back in because he couldn't find anything else open.
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Reunion
We let go of mooring ball number one in Sarasota at our habitual 7:00 a.m. again. At the same time "Safari" was departing. They followed us for the day wanting to learn more about good anchorages. They travel in their boat every winter from the Tarpon Springs area to Marathon, but always stop at marinas. Just as we have learned, that can get expensive, so we prefer anchoring out and going to shore to spend our money.
We had to stop for fuel, dinghy gas and take on water, so we stopped at Madiera Beach Municipal Marina for that. That stop took about a half hour for us. "Safari" continued on, but ended up waiting for us near the entrance to the anchorage at Redington Shores.
Once we were secured and got our dinghies down we went over to the fish market to get some delicious fish dip. I had never been through the back way, so to smell that fish smoking was wonderful. Willard was already excited to learn these things, so Linda pointed out a few of the other places that could be accessed from right there.
We brought our fish dips back to the boats then headed to Indian Rocks Beach via dinghy. It ended up taking 50 minutes just because of the mostly Minimum Wake Zones to get there. On the way we pointed out all of the restaurants that were accessible by boat, joking about how we were passing so many to get to the one we wanted in Largo. Once we were tied to the free docks at Indian Rocks Beach we immediately were greeted by Bob and Barbara from "The Bar-B" who were right next door at Holiday Inn Harbourside, where they have spent the last three winters. It has been two years since we cruised with them. After hugs were had and introductions were made we headed off to walk to Mike's Pizza which we had been talking about and craving to get to, again laughing with Willard and Barbara as we walked by many restaurants to instead go about a mile to our favorite. I have to say it was worth it though. Scott, Ray's friend from childhood met us there via his motorcycle.
I think we had already scared Willard and Barbara telling them that we did not know what time we might return to the boat, therefore they had taken their own dinghy. They departed after dinner to let the rest of us catch up and visit with each other, which was very nice, so they went on ahead. The remaining four of us walked back across the bridge to PJ's restaurant, which is now across the street from where it used to be. A lot of things had changed in Indian Rocks Beach since we had been there last, a year and a half ago. Scott rode his motorcycle over. No one was brave enough to ride with him. Barbara's daughter Heidi met us there once she got off of work. Lots of laughs and catching up made for a fun evening.
We headed back to the dinghy shortly after 9:00 p.m. knowing we had an even longer ride back in the dark. We also did not want a late night because we were most likely going to head out to cross the Gulf of Mexico tomorrow if the weather held up as predicted.
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| Just thought this church spire was pretty sticking above the trees. |
Once we were secured and got our dinghies down we went over to the fish market to get some delicious fish dip. I had never been through the back way, so to smell that fish smoking was wonderful. Willard was already excited to learn these things, so Linda pointed out a few of the other places that could be accessed from right there.
We brought our fish dips back to the boats then headed to Indian Rocks Beach via dinghy. It ended up taking 50 minutes just because of the mostly Minimum Wake Zones to get there. On the way we pointed out all of the restaurants that were accessible by boat, joking about how we were passing so many to get to the one we wanted in Largo. Once we were tied to the free docks at Indian Rocks Beach we immediately were greeted by Bob and Barbara from "The Bar-B" who were right next door at Holiday Inn Harbourside, where they have spent the last three winters. It has been two years since we cruised with them. After hugs were had and introductions were made we headed off to walk to Mike's Pizza which we had been talking about and craving to get to, again laughing with Willard and Barbara as we walked by many restaurants to instead go about a mile to our favorite. I have to say it was worth it though. Scott, Ray's friend from childhood met us there via his motorcycle.
I think we had already scared Willard and Barbara telling them that we did not know what time we might return to the boat, therefore they had taken their own dinghy. They departed after dinner to let the rest of us catch up and visit with each other, which was very nice, so they went on ahead. The remaining four of us walked back across the bridge to PJ's restaurant, which is now across the street from where it used to be. A lot of things had changed in Indian Rocks Beach since we had been there last, a year and a half ago. Scott rode his motorcycle over. No one was brave enough to ride with him. Barbara's daughter Heidi met us there once she got off of work. Lots of laughs and catching up made for a fun evening.
We headed back to the dinghy shortly after 9:00 p.m. knowing we had an even longer ride back in the dark. We also did not want a late night because we were most likely going to head out to cross the Gulf of Mexico tomorrow if the weather held up as predicted.
Monday, April 13, 2015
Happy Anniversary Baby
Our 24th Anniversary!
We pulled out of the Don Pedro Island anchorage at seven o'clock again this morning. Another uneventful day of travel with the wind on our stern. We grabbed mooring ball number one in Sarasota. It took two attempts as the wind was blowing right in the inlet to the mooring field. On the second attempt, though successful, Linda had to release the boat hook. The line to the mooring ball was so large she could not get the boat hook off of it. As it started to bend against the boat she saw the better option to just let go of it. We've had this happen before. Once Ray helped to get the second line secured to the mooring ball he attempted to get the dinghy down to go retrieve the boat hook floating away. Before he could even do that though, Barbara and Willard from m/v "Safari", whom we met in Marathon came over and got it for us. They were a few mooring balls away. They were glad to see they were not the only one's that struggle with mooring balls.
We were ready to get off the bouncing boat. We loaded up our bicycles in the dinghy and headed to shore. Barbara and Willard were already there. None of us had lunch yet, even though it was after 2:00 p.m. so we headed into town. We went to Mattison's City Grille, our favorite. Thank you Barbara and Willard for our Anniversary lunch!
After lunch Ray and Linda rode bikes to Ace Hardware. While in Marathon Ray had a new davit system built to lift our dinghy out of the water and haul behind the boat. After being in the little bit of seas to get this far, he felt the need for some stand-offs to make the whole apparatus more rigid. His temporary solution was to use a 2" x 2" piece of wood. Linda had to make sure she didn't make any sudden stops in front of Ray for the trip back to the marina as he had an eight foot projectile strapped to his bike.
We put our purchase and bicycles back on the boat before heading back to town just in time to meet our friends Candice and Heather for dinner as planned. We had already arranged to meet them at Mattison's, and they were able to bring their new Yorkie Riley there too, so that's where we stayed even though we had just eaten lunch there a few hours before. Linda and Ray were still full from that lunch so we just enjoyed catching up.
Once the girls left we walked farther up town. Unfortunately we were about 20 minutes too late for a movie Linda wanted to see, so we leisurely strolled back to the marina with a side trip through the park in front of the mooring field.
We pulled out of the Don Pedro Island anchorage at seven o'clock again this morning. Another uneventful day of travel with the wind on our stern. We grabbed mooring ball number one in Sarasota. It took two attempts as the wind was blowing right in the inlet to the mooring field. On the second attempt, though successful, Linda had to release the boat hook. The line to the mooring ball was so large she could not get the boat hook off of it. As it started to bend against the boat she saw the better option to just let go of it. We've had this happen before. Once Ray helped to get the second line secured to the mooring ball he attempted to get the dinghy down to go retrieve the boat hook floating away. Before he could even do that though, Barbara and Willard from m/v "Safari", whom we met in Marathon came over and got it for us. They were a few mooring balls away. They were glad to see they were not the only one's that struggle with mooring balls.
We were ready to get off the bouncing boat. We loaded up our bicycles in the dinghy and headed to shore. Barbara and Willard were already there. None of us had lunch yet, even though it was after 2:00 p.m. so we headed into town. We went to Mattison's City Grille, our favorite. Thank you Barbara and Willard for our Anniversary lunch!
After lunch Ray and Linda rode bikes to Ace Hardware. While in Marathon Ray had a new davit system built to lift our dinghy out of the water and haul behind the boat. After being in the little bit of seas to get this far, he felt the need for some stand-offs to make the whole apparatus more rigid. His temporary solution was to use a 2" x 2" piece of wood. Linda had to make sure she didn't make any sudden stops in front of Ray for the trip back to the marina as he had an eight foot projectile strapped to his bike.
We put our purchase and bicycles back on the boat before heading back to town just in time to meet our friends Candice and Heather for dinner as planned. We had already arranged to meet them at Mattison's, and they were able to bring their new Yorkie Riley there too, so that's where we stayed even though we had just eaten lunch there a few hours before. Linda and Ray were still full from that lunch so we just enjoyed catching up.
Once the girls left we walked farther up town. Unfortunately we were about 20 minutes too late for a movie Linda wanted to see, so we leisurely strolled back to the marina with a side trip through the park in front of the mooring field.
Sunday, April 12, 2015
No pictures
No pictures today. Just a video of a fast sailboat on Linda's Facebook page.
We untied from the mooring ball at Ft. Myers Beach again at our usual seven o'clock. Ray made a wonderful breakfast while underway. It took about an hour to get to the Intracoastal Waterway. No more open water until we cross The Gulf of Mexico. It looks like that could happen in the next week.
We arrived at one of our usual anchorages near Don Pedro Island around 1:30 p.m. We were happy to find that the Slow Speed, Minimum Wake zone has been extended farther north than it used to be. That should help a little bit with the wakes. Just before our arrival we bragged that we have hardly ever seen anyone else use this anchorage. Shortly after our arrival four sailboats pulled in, two anchored on either side of us. The closest one pulled up anchor once because they thought they were too close. They did a complete circle around us and anchored in just about the same spot. If the wind and current subside enough to have us swing opposing directions, it could get interesting.
We spent the afternoon dinghying around the area, exploring some places we have been before and some new ones. That got our appetite worked up, so it's time to grill some steaks.
We untied from the mooring ball at Ft. Myers Beach again at our usual seven o'clock. Ray made a wonderful breakfast while underway. It took about an hour to get to the Intracoastal Waterway. No more open water until we cross The Gulf of Mexico. It looks like that could happen in the next week.
We arrived at one of our usual anchorages near Don Pedro Island around 1:30 p.m. We were happy to find that the Slow Speed, Minimum Wake zone has been extended farther north than it used to be. That should help a little bit with the wakes. Just before our arrival we bragged that we have hardly ever seen anyone else use this anchorage. Shortly after our arrival four sailboats pulled in, two anchored on either side of us. The closest one pulled up anchor once because they thought they were too close. They did a complete circle around us and anchored in just about the same spot. If the wind and current subside enough to have us swing opposing directions, it could get interesting.
We spent the afternoon dinghying around the area, exploring some places we have been before and some new ones. That got our appetite worked up, so it's time to grill some steaks.
Saturday, April 11, 2015
Ft. Myers Beach
I am having computer difficulties. I can't get pictures posted from Marco Island. Oh well, they weren't that good anyway. I also couldn't get connected to get this blog done in a timely manner.
All that aside, we lifted anchor from Marco Island at our usual 7:00 a.m. Thankfully it was another uneventful day of travel. The waves were barely little rollers. With nothing else exciting happening, we decided to drag fake bait again. Today produced three more Spanish Mackerel, but again none of them keepers.
We arrived in Ft. Myers Beach shortly after 1:00 p.m. We picked up mooring ball #42 in the east field. It was already hot at about 88 degrees, so we almost immediately took the dinghy to check in and go to the beach to cool off. We had fun chatting with a couple from Minnesota near the Wisconsin border. They were confused by Ray's Georgia "G" hat.
After a couple of hours we headed back to get cleaned up for dinner ashore, stopping at Salty Sam's for a couple bags of ice. We had an appetizer at Nervous Nellie's before Tom and Linda showed up from "Q's End", boaters we met in Marathon several years back. They no longer go that far south and stay in Ft. Myers Beach for the season now. They showed us to a nice dinner on the beach. We just missed sunset, but the food was good. The happening place was right next door though, so after dinner we meandered over there and made ourselves to home at another couple's table. They were on their first date. Tom and Linda have had that same experience before on Ft. Myers Beach, then were contacted by the couple one year later, still together. So we wished this couple luck and told them to look us up in a year if they were still together.
All that aside, we lifted anchor from Marco Island at our usual 7:00 a.m. Thankfully it was another uneventful day of travel. The waves were barely little rollers. With nothing else exciting happening, we decided to drag fake bait again. Today produced three more Spanish Mackerel, but again none of them keepers.
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| This was one of the largest ones caught. Sorry for the odd angle. They sure are slippery and have a decent set of teeth. Also notice the calm seas. |
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| One of the sights on our dinghy ride back. |
Friday, April 10, 2015
Marco
We were pleased with avoiding bugs last night. This morning there was no escaping them as we pulled up anchor around seven o'clock. We tried to get going as quick as poossible to escape the biting critters. There was not much wind to be had though so Linda escaped below deck again to make breakfast.
Another uneventful day. We drug fake bait for a while to pass the monotony. The first realized fish stole the whole rig. The second and third bait alarm produced Spanish Mackeral, the second even smaller than the first. As we got closer to Marco Island we reeled in the rigs only to realize that another rig was missing. Might have been dragging nothing all day. Oh well, it was fun.
Today we stayed closer to shore and did not round Cape Romano into Capri Pass at Marco Island. We decided to come into Coon Key Pass, around Goodland and through all of Marco Island. We also decided to anchor across from Factory Bay where we have only one time before. We arrived early enough to dinghy onto the island for pizza and beer at Marco Island Brewery. We were not disappointed.
We made it back aboard just after sunset but in time to see some fisherman with a tapron on the line. He lost it after a couple of jumps. About that time the mosquitos started to swarm so we have again escaped below deck.
Another uneventful day. We drug fake bait for a while to pass the monotony. The first realized fish stole the whole rig. The second and third bait alarm produced Spanish Mackeral, the second even smaller than the first. As we got closer to Marco Island we reeled in the rigs only to realize that another rig was missing. Might have been dragging nothing all day. Oh well, it was fun.
Today we stayed closer to shore and did not round Cape Romano into Capri Pass at Marco Island. We decided to come into Coon Key Pass, around Goodland and through all of Marco Island. We also decided to anchor across from Factory Bay where we have only one time before. We arrived early enough to dinghy onto the island for pizza and beer at Marco Island Brewery. We were not disappointed.
We made it back aboard just after sunset but in time to see some fisherman with a tapron on the line. He lost it after a couple of jumps. About that time the mosquitos started to swarm so we have again escaped below deck.
Thursday, April 9, 2015
Chattanooga Bound
We snuck away from some of our dock mates at 7:00 a.m. There were a few that have finally learned we always tell people later than we really leave. Who needs a crowd? That's when mistakes happen under pressure. Thank you to the friends that know us well!
It was an uneventful cruise across Florida Bay. The waves were about 1-2' as predicted, but they were on the starboard stern, making it a litlle rolly.
We pulled into Little Shark River shortly before 4:00 p.m. It was a nice enough evening to sit outside until just before sunset. We went below deck upon the first sighting of bugs. It was off to bed shortly after dinner.
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| "Yankee" |
We pulled into Little Shark River shortly before 4:00 p.m. It was a nice enough evening to sit outside until just before sunset. We went below deck upon the first sighting of bugs. It was off to bed shortly after dinner.
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