From Brunswick, Ga. thru Beaufort, South Carolina 5/15 - 5/22/2022

 May 15, 2022

Brunswick Landing Marina, in Brunswick, Georgia

Brunswick is a charming, old town, and we had visited them briefly on a road trip this year.  The marina is huge, stretching a full mile along the river!  While on the river, we encountered our first annoying insects of the season – horse flies!  They started out with one, then two, then a swarm.  We are luc to have an enclosed, air conditioned driving station in the pilot house.  So, we closed all the doors and windows and retreated! 

We arrived on Sunday, and turns out nothing much was open!  One restaurant, Reid’s Pharmacy, isn’t a pharmacy anymore, but is a very nice, relaxed, attractive restaurant.  On Sundays, they offer a full dinner, with dessert, for $10.95!  A real bargain.  We had a very nice meal,with wine.  The restaurant was busy – no reservations were available, but we went on a standby list for seats at the bar.  We went for a walk while waiting, got about one block away, and received the call to come back!

The only other thing that seemed to be happening downtown that evening was a dance recital – cute little girls in tutus with their parents arriving at the theatre.

Next morning, we departed, to continue our journey on the Georgia portion of the waterway – not very long.

 

May 16, 2022  Anchorage in Duplin River. 

Not much to say, except that it was pretty and quiet.  Excellent holding for our anchor, so we got a good night’s sleep.

 

May 17, 2022  Anchored in Wahlburg Creek

Another good anchorage, quiet, good holding for the anchor.  We picked this spot because it is close to the Sunbury Crab and Marina, a place highly recommended by a few boaters. 

 

May 18, 2022   Sunbury Crab and Marina

Such beautiful country there.  We arrived aroud noon. One young man, dressed in loose clothing and rubber boots, helped us dock.  One reason we wanted to come here is that their diesel fuel was reputed to be low at $5.399. We got that information from good sources, Waterway Guide and people who always stopped there.  We only needed 100 gallons (We hold a total of 500 gallons!).  At these times of rapidly rising costs, we decided to top off at Sunbury. 

 The pump wasn’t at the dock, but in a room higher up on the dock.  The young man, Clay, pumped the gas – we both walked over and looked at the pump – the price on the pump was old.  We offered our credit card, but Clay said we should settle up at dinner that night.  With that, he hopped into his crab boat and took off for parts unknown to us!  The young man was Clay, and he turned out to be the owners’ son.  He had been left to run the place while his folks were out of town for the day. 

We had a nice relaxing afternoon.  There was a very comfortable porch swing on their covered dock, which I utilized for a while!  Another boat came in around 3, another Looper called Trinity.  We made arrangements to meet them for dinner at 5.

We had a lovely dinner and conversation with the boaters, CJ and Stick.  We were presented for a bill for the dockage and diesel – the diesel price was $6.75!! – yeowch!  Dan asked Clay (who, by the way, had not only caught the blue crab served that evening, but was in the kitchen cooking them!) about the diesel price and the Waterway Guide information.  He said that Waterway Guide had not contacted them for their fuel price recently.  He offered us some coosies and a shirt to compensate for our surprise.  We learned something that day – CALL the marina about their fuel price!!

With the exception of the fuel price shock, we really enjoyed our stay.

 

5/18/2022    Savannah, Georgia – one of our favorite cities!

We read about various marinas in the Savannah area, but we wanted to be IN the city!  There were three choices in the downtown Savannah area.  (1) was at the Westin Hotel, one on either side of the Savannah River, (2) a commercial marina on Savannah’s River Street, charging $2.50 per foot, with only electricity – no restroom/showers/laundry, or (3) the Savannah City Dock, FREE!, also offering only electricity.  We quickly decided that, if there was room (no reservations, only first come, first serve), that was where we wanted to stay!  We arrived rather late (6:00, after a long day’s cruise), and there was no other boat on the dock!  Yay!  In reviews about the dockage on the river, some folks said it was really rolly from tugboats and other commercial craft and small sports craft.  We have had plenty of experience with rolly dockages, so had few qualms about staying there.  We docked with little problem, put out four fender balls, tied four lines to their docks.  Right after we got settled, we saw a tugboat coming, so waited to see the effect from their passage.  Yes, we rocked and rolled a bit, but our boat never touched the dock – docking job well done!

We were hot, sweaty, and tired after our long day.  Fortunately, there were about 8-10 places to eat right there by our boat!  We picked a bar with fresh seafood – I got the Low Country Boil, and Dan ordered something similar.  We ate our fill – we actually had enough for two meals!  After strolling around a bit, we relaxed for the rest of the evening and turned in early. 

After a very quiet night, we got up ready to see what we could see.  We had one full day there.  We first went to Two Cracked Eggs for a delicious breakfast.  Our e-bikes then carried us all over the historical portion of Savannah!  We stopped for pictures, or just to check out something closer.  But, we made it to almost all of the historical squares (about 16, I think).  So beautiful, even though the prime flowering season was earlier in the year.  There were still plenty of flowers, though.  It’s impressive to me how much land Savannah has dedicated to beautiful wooded, landscaped park lands.  We remembered a place from a previous visit, but couldn’t remember the name or location….!  After asking around and some Google research, we found it!  It’s called the Gryphon Tea Room.  It is lovely, with a Tiffany glass dome and lovely old décor – lots of wood and crystal.  It used to be a pharmacy, way back in time…I sense a theme – old pharmacys!  The inside tables were all reserved for lunch, but we sat outside and had a refreshing drink.

We ended our bike tour in the City Market.  We strolled around, got a Pina Colada with moonshine!  As we sat for a bit to watch people (one of our favorite sports!), I spoke to a young couple about the pizza they had just eaten.  I asked if it was the best they’d ever had or just ok.  They looked at each other, and said it was fine but the best pizza is Detroit pizza!  Turns out they live near us in Royal Oak!  We discussed the best places for pizza in our home area.  They just hopped on a plane for a few days’ getaway to Savannah.  We meet the nicest people on our journey!

Before going back to the boat, we stopped at an Irish bar – we had hoped it was the same company that we remembered at a different location during our previous visit.  We had our taste buds set for a Scotch egg… Nope, this place only served liquor.  OK!  So, we had a couple of drinks, joked around with the bartender and fellow bar sitters, then returned to the boat. 

It was still early evening, so, realizing that we were in a larg-ish city that probably had a TMobile office downtown, we decided to deal with an issue we had with a TMobile device we had purchased.  We walked to the office, acquired a different device (at no extra cost?!).  After returning to the boat that time, we were really tired.  Plus, we had a long cruise for the next day – early to bed!

 

May 20, 2022  Beaufort, South Carolina

Note:  this town’s name is pronounced Bew-fort.  The same named town in North Carolina is pronounced BO-fort.

We landed at the Safe Harbor Marina in very high winds.  As my very skilled captain edged our boat into the dock, the dockhand motioned to me to lower the fender ball I had hung….lower, he signaled, lower!  So, I lowered all the balls until they were touching the water!  He was right.  The dock was only about 12 inches thick, and with the heavy winds pushing us on to the dock, we would never be able to reposition them!  We were impressed with the young dockhands, and they were impressed with us!!

We had arrived around 2:00.  Even though we were tired, we wanted to go somewhere for a meal.  The woman in the Ship Store recommended Heminways, a local favorite, only about 100 yards from the marina!  We absolutely LOVED this place.  We had some French onion soup and split a meatloaf sandwich.  A couple of beers polished off our lunch.  The place was full, and we soon realized why – they had a singer there with a guitar who was terrific!  He did everything from Johnny Cash to James Taylor to Prince!  We sat there until he quit at 5, retired to our boat for some needed rest.  I got a load of wash done, took a shower (in not very warm water), defrosted the fridge, and quit for the night!

Next morning, we filled our water tanks, got a needed pump out of our sanitary tanks, and took off.  We were really sorry not to have more time.  The town looked very pretty and interesting – we just didn’t have the time this trip – we will be back, either on the water or by road.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last stop in Florida, Fernandina Beach 5/14/2022

May 15, 2022

Our last stop in Florida was Fernandina Beach.  What a delightful town!  Lovely vibrant downtown, with interesting architecture and hardly any vacant storefront.  We strolled the town, had appetizers and wine at one restaurant, ice cream (at one of the FOUR places in town), and then a sandwich and beer at another restaurant. 

Interesting to note that we saw more dresses on women than we have seen in a very long time.  I really wanted to ask someone about that, but didn’t find a good candidate!  I took quite a few pictures of the downtown area. 

Today, Sunday the 15^th, we left out of Fernandina Beach around 9:00, and headed up the ICW with a planned stop in Brunswick Georgia.  In conversations with other boaters, we were told to watch for the green biting flies – we’ve seen them before north of Atlantic City.  We heard that the mosquitoes in Brunswick are the largest this one boater has seen!  And the last piece of advice was that we will experience ‘no seeums’ that bite all the way through Georgia and South Carolina!  We were given some dryer sheets that, according to one boater, when rubbed all over your head and torso, will keep the no-seeums away.  We’ll definitely try that.

Just near the Cumberland State Park, we are starting to see many horse flies in the fly bridge.  So far, we’re able to keep up with them, swatting the ones who hitch a ride.  We’ve closed up the rest of the boat so they cannot get inside.

Sanford, north to Jacksonville! 3/23 thru 5/14/2022

 March 23 thru April 28, 2022  (We went home for 3 weeks in there!)

We arrived at Sanford Boatworks and Marina on March 23.  This was a ‘homey’ place, and reminded us of our first marina, Olverson’s.  It’s been run by one family since 1924.  We got comfortable there, ate at the Gator’s Restaurant a couple of times.  We welcomed our friends, Dennis and Denise Sprenkle, for a visit.  They came once and took us to Deland to visit friends of theirs.

Dennis picked us up for our flight home – spent one night at their Orlando house.  We were home for about three weeks – as much as I enjoy traveling on our boat, I do miss my house, my neighborhood, my family and friends.

Dennis met our return flight and returned us to the boat.  The Boatworks is about 2 miles from the downtown of Sanford.  We did ride our bikes that way once, but it isn’t a very kind route!

After returning from Michigan, we got a few days in Monroe Harbor, right in downtown Sanford.  Lovely town.  Lots of interesting shops and restaurants.  And, we were lucky the weekend we were there, that the Art Festival was held.  We don’t have much room on the boat for more ‘stuff’, but we do have room for jewelry!  I bought several unusual pieces!

We also got the chance to meet the couple whose Youtube channel we follow, Technomadia.  They have the same boat as us and were kind enough to let us see their recent carpet installation. 

road just outside the Sanford Boatworks & Marina

In canal by Sanford

home near Sanford Boatworks

love this home near Sanford Boatworks!

another home near Sanford Boatworks

Love this tudor style!

lovely Spanish moss-draped trees

even the electric boxes in downtown Sanford are lovely!

piece of mosaic art in the square

whimsical sculpture in a Sanford restaurant

piano art in the visitor's center

fountain in the square

lovely gardens througout downtown

love this old clock

bright mural in an alley (and Dan!)

me as a butterfly!

on the wall of a store in downtown

a visitor!

we finally saw an alligator on the river!

riverside home with great boathouse/deck!

May 14, 2022   

We say goodbye to the St. Johns River.  We passed Jacksonville and entered the St. Johns River on March 20, and are just now exiting the river.  Wow!  We have enjoyed our exploration of the river very much!  I already wrote about Sanford, the town that is as far south as our boat can go.  We left Sanford on May 4.  Between March 20 and May 4, we stopped four times before arriving back in Jacksonville.

1.      Hontoon Island State Park – our favorite!  The Island can only be reached by private boat or the ferry that will take you across the river.  Because the slips at the island marina are for 25 foot boats, we had two possibilities for our 50 foot (over all length) boat.  The two T-heads provide 50 foot length – we just had to reserve two slips.  Turns out we were the only boat in the marina when we arrived!  We stayed there 5 nights.  During that time, there were several boats that came and went, plus one that came and stayed 2 nights.  After the park closed at 5:00, there was only our boat and one ranger who lived somewhere on the island.  So beautiful and quiet.  We saw a turtle throwing sand out as she dug for a nest.  A crow was standing by to snatch eggs as she laid them!  We saw all kinds of birds.  The scenery was beautiful – cypress trees and knees, Spanish moss, huge live oak trees.  We rode our bikes all over the island.

While we left the boat in Hontoon Island, we went for a two day visit to my cousin, Anne’s place in Pierson, Florida.  Always good to connect with our last relative on my dad’s side. 

We took our dinghy out and cruised completely around the island.  It was a bit challenging, since parts of the way were completely covered in lily pads!  We slowly cruised through each of those sections, then stopped the motor while Dan picked off the huge bundle of lily pads, then continued on until the next!  It took about 3 hours to go around.

While on our dinghy journey, we stopped at Blue Springs State Park.  Going from the river, where the water is tan from the tannin, to the water in the springs was dramatic!  The water in the springs was crystal clear – we could see blades of grass, every detail of fish in that water!  During colder weather, the manatees gather there to enjoy the warmer water of the springs.

Dan trying to read the sign facing the water!

Dan, to demonstrate size of the tree!

Love these cypress knees

Nice color, along with the birds!

2.    Drayton Island anchorage.  Nice quiet place, boat was still in the same place when we woke up – always a good sign!  Not much to say about the anchorage.

3.    Palatka City Dock.  Very nice docks, and our favorite price – free!  There were some nice murals all over town.  Many of the storefronts were vacant; however, many of those had projects underway.  We were shown plans that showed what a couple of those blocks will look like in a year or so.  I’d love to go back next year to see that!  There were only 2 restaurants, one serving outside from their food truck kitchen, and one Mexican restaurant.  We chose to eat in the Mexican restaurant, and the meal was very disappointing!  There was a diner from the 1930’s that looked interesting, and we stopped there for a delicious milk shake.

4.    Doctor Lake Marina, just north of Green Cove Springs.  We needed to collect our accumulated mail in Green Cove Springs.  The marinas there were full, and with the windy conditions, we didn’t want to try the town’s free docks.  We had pulled in there on the way up the river, and their docks are a bit shaky.  So, we stopped at Mandarin Holiday marina (also no room for us) for their less expensive fuel ($5.25!), and stopped for the night at Doctor Lake Marina.  People in the marina were friendly – I don’t think they see many transients!  We took an Uber the next morning to pick up our mail.

 

Jacksonville – where we entered the St. Johns River.  We have friends we met in Key West a few years ago, Lee and Betty Kryskewski.  They just moved to a condo in Jacksonville, the Plaza.  The property has a marina, so we took a slip there.  We were warned to come in at slack tide, because the marina is right on the river there and the tide could cause problems with docking.  We didn’t wait until full slack tide, but we did ok.  We walked to dinner with Lee and Betty.  We stopped at a little hole-in-the-wall Italian place that they hadn’t yet tried.  We decided that, if we lived in Jacksonville, that little restaurant would be one of our go-to places!  Delicious meal.  Next day, Lee drove us to the Navy Exchange, the hugest we’ve seen.  Got some needed provisions, particularly some large items that would be difficult on the bike!  We spent the day doing chores, including laundry on Lee and Betty’s machines, then had dinner on the boat.  Lee and Betty came to the boat after dinner for a glass of wine and conversation.  Super nice couple – we enjoyed their company!  Around 9:30, the nearby ballpark had fireworks, which we enjoyed.

Next morning, we couldn’t leave until the tide turned to slack, so we went to breakfast with the Kryskewskis.  What a delightful place – a used book store/café.  Jacksonville has a lot going on – they are turning the docks that were the shipyards into a museum district for the city. In a couple of years, that will be a big draw!

 

leaving blank space for 3/19 - 5/4 Palm Coast thru Sanford, Florida

 Apparently I wrote no articles for this period of time!  So, I have to go back, look at pictures, write what I can remember.  Lesson:  write the blog as you go!!!

From Miami to Titusville, Florida 3/11 - 3/19/2022

From Marathon north, through Miami

In order to make up some lost time, we decided to put in some long days cruising.  Our first day, we got through to the north end of Key Largo.  We anchored in Little Card Sound.  There was just one other boat there when we got there, and one other arrived late in the night.  It was a very quiet and lovely anchorage.  The anchor came up with a huge bunch of weeds and mud. 

The next day, Friday, was truly exciting!  We cruise at a pretty constant 8 - 10 mph.  The channel takes us through mangroves and open water.  As we were going along, there came at us at least 30 very loud and very fast boats.  They came around curves at full speed, coming well into our side of the channel – I sure hope they had fun, but it was anything but fun for us.  They waked us over and over – where are those water police when you need them?? 

We had been warned about this kind of thing in the Miami area, but this was well before Miami!  Anyway, once they had all passed, we went back to calmly cruising.  We had the Miami skyline in view at least 30 miles before we got there – pretty impressive!

We were happy to be able to get all the way through Miami on Friday.  After the tall high rise buildings downtown, there were high rise residences, and then one huge, beautiful, ostentatious home after another.  Channel after channel off the ICW for these huge homes and their boats.  Every home had a pool.  Some were truly gorgeous, some were pretty starkly modern, others had a Spanish look.  We enjoyed viewing them at slow speed.  Passing us were also a few big boats with their bow covered with bikini clad girls!  We also came to an area with a little island and LOTS of boats either beached or anchored, with everyone having a great time in the water.

We got all the way to Boca Raton before dark and anchored in Boca Raton Lake.  It was a very good anchorage, just to the side of the ICW.  There were quite a few boats there when we arrived, some in the shallow area, some anchored in the deeper part.  By the time night came, though, there were only a few boats left there for the night.  It was pretty breezy when we anchored, but we got the anchor down with no problem, and it held very well.  The breeze gave us a nice sleep with constant cooling air coming through the hatch over our bed!

On Saturday morning, we left at first light, planning to get as far as Stuart by the afternoon – high winds are expected to start up around 4, so we want to be somewhere secure – hopefully a marina (if we can find one with a vacant slip!).

Extremely high winds were predicted to begin around 4:00, so we were on schedule to be in a secure marina by around 3:00.  Well, ‘predicted’ turned out to be not accurate.  We were about an hour out from the marina we had found in Stuart when the winds came up, along with rain.  Whomp!!  Our bimini flew back, having pulled the front supports from their supporting members.  Yikes!  Dan tied it together to prevent further damage.  By the time we pulled into Manatee Marina in Stuart, the rain and winds had fallen off to just a light drizzle!  We had great help getting Kittiwake tied up securely next to their restaurant, Shrimpers.  You can bet we made our way inside to have some relaxing drinks and dinner!

Fort Pierce, March 13, 2022

Fort Pierce is a special place for Dan, since it is the site of the origin of the SEAL teams and also has the SEAL Museum.  We have been to the museum many times, several times in November when the SEALs have their annual muster.  The Fort Pierce City Marina is very nice, modern docks and facilities.  I was able to get some provisions with my wagon at a Save-a-Lot about a half mile away.  We had a couple of meals at Cobbs Landing, a restaurant just a short distance from the marina.  One Docktails event there had 18 people at one table, all Loopers in that place.  The ‘migration’ from the Keys and south Florida has begun!  Everywhere we go now, we see more Loopers, both in marinas and underway. The boat Sabbatical with Steve and Jane was there in Fort Pierce – we had been in Marathon at the same time and marina. 

The people on our dock in Fort Pierce were very friendly – they have docktails every evening at 5:00, and we were invited.  We did attend a couple of times.  One couple there said they’d like to go to the SEAL Museum, so Dan said we’d like to go with them (in their car!) and he would get them in with his membership.  That was a nice time with Dan providing some personal commentary on his time in the SEAL teams. 

There was a huge store in Fort Pierce that had all sorts of marine parts.  We actually extended our stay in Fort Pierce, because we had intended to leave on Saturday – store was closed on Sunday and Monday!  Tuesday, bright and early, we got an Uber to the store and spent a bit of time there.  They didn’t have everything we had hoped to find, but with some digging around in a bin, Dan was able to put together a complete system for our ‘black’ tank sensor.  The cost there was about $100 less than we would have to pay otherwise.  This system will let us know how full that critical tank is, removing the guesswork we use now.

 

Anchorage, March 17, 2022

We have gotten pretty good at finding good anchorages, even if they aren’t marked on the charts!  This one was just outside the channel, and we had a quiet night at anchor.  The morning’s departure was nice and easy too – the anchor was really dug in, but we got it up with little difficulty.

 

Titusville, March 18,  2022

We planned to go to a marina in Titusville, so that our Orlando friends, Dennis and Denise Sprenkle, could come by for a visit.  I had made reservations at Titusville City Marina.  When we were close to the marina, I called to find out which slip and which side of the boat would need lines and fenders.  Turns out our reservations were for Saturday (which I thought it WAS!), and they had no room for us that night (Friday).  Looking at the charts, there is another marina just beside the city marina – I called them, and the fitted us in for the night!  Phew!  We liked the marina, Westland.  It was pretty inexpensive and the folks were very friendly and helpful.  They are a DIY place, with many boats out of the water in various stages of repairs.  Dennis came (Denise had to go out of town) and took us to a great seafood place for dinner.  Fun times!

We will see Dennis and Denise again soon.  We are going home at the end of March.  The logistics are a bit complicated this time!  Our car is near the Miami Airport.  We have reservations at a marina in the southern end of the St. Johns River.  To get there, we have to go north to Jacksonville, turn the corner into the St. Johns, and proceed about 200 miles south to Sanford!  We want to slowly explore the river, touted to be beautiful.  We’ll move as quickly as possible to get to Sanford, then slowly explore the river after we return to the boat and as we go back up the river to Jacksonville.

We have plane tickets from Orlando to Miami, where we’ll retrieve our car and drive home.  Since Sanford is close to Orlando, Dennis will pick us up there, take us to his home for a day or so, then to the Orlando airport.  We’ll be home for most of the month of April. 

 

After Marathon - travel through Miami, then anchoring, Ft. Pierce, Titusville

 

March 12, 2022

From Marathon north, through Miami

In order to make up some lost time, we decided to put in some long days cruising.  Our first day, we got through to the north end of Key Largo.  We anchored in Little Card Sound.  There was just one other boat there when we got there, and one other arrived late in the night.  It was a very quiet and lovely anchorage.  The anchor came up with a huge bunch of weeds and mud. 

The next day, Friday, was truly exciting!  We cruise at a pretty constant 8 - 10 mph.  The channel takes us through mangroves and open water.  As we were going along, there came at us at least 30 very loud and very fast boats.  They came around curves at full speed, coming well into our side of the channel – I sure hope they had fun, but it was anything but fun for us.  They waked us over and over – where are those water police when you need them?? 

We had been warned about this kind of thing in the Miami area, but this was well before Miami!  Anyway, once they had all passed, we went back to calmly cruising.  We had the Miami skyline in view at least 30 miles before we got there – pretty impressive!

We were happy to be able to get all the way through Miami on Friday.  After the tall high rise buildings downtown, there were high rise residences, and then one huge, beautiful, ostentatious home after another.  Channel after channel off the ICW for these huge homes and their boats.  Every home had a pool.  Some were truly gorgeous, some were pretty starkly modern, others had a Spanish look.  We enjoyed viewing them at slow speed.  Passing us were also a few big boats with their bow covered with bikini clad girls!  We also came to an area with a little island and LOTS of boats either beached or anchored, with everyone having a great time in the water.

We got all the way to Boca Raton before dark and anchored in Boca Raton Lake.  It was a very good anchorage, just to the side of the ICW.  There were quite a few boats there when we arrived, some in the shallow area, some anchored in the deeper part.  By the time night came, though, there were only a few boats left there for the night.  It was pretty breezy when we anchored, but we got the anchor down with no problem, and it held very well.  The breeze gave us a nice sleep with constant cooling air coming through the hatch over our bed!

On Saturday morning, we left at first light, planning to get as far as Stuart by the afternoon – high winds are expected to start up around 4, so we want to be somewhere secure – hopefully a marina (if we can find one with a vacant slip!).

Extremely high winds were predicted to begin around 4:00, so we were on schedule to be in a secure marina by around 3:00.  Well, ‘predicted’ turned out to be not accurate.  We were about an hour out from the marina we had found in Stuart when the winds came up, along with rain.  Whomp!!  Our bimini flew back, having pulled the front supports from their supporting members.  Yikes!  Dan tied it together to prevent further damage.  By the time we pulled into Manatee Marina in Stuart, the rain and winds had fallen off to just a light drizzle!  We had great help getting Kittiwake tied up securely next to their restaurant, Shrimpers.  You can bet we made our way inside to have some relaxing drinks and dinner!

Fort Pierce, March 13, 2022

Fort Pierce is a special place for Dan, since it is the site of the origin of the SEAL teams and also has the SEAL Museum.  We have been to the museum many times, several times in November when the SEALs have their annual muster.  The Fort Pierce City Marina is very nice, modern docks and facilities.  I was able to get some provisions with my wagon at a Save-a-Lot about a half mile away.  We had a couple of meals at Cobbs Landing, a restaurant just a short distance from the marina.  One Docktails event there had 18 people at one table, all Loopers in that place.  The ‘migration’ from the Keys and south Florida has begun!  Everywhere we go now, we see more Loopers, both in marinas and underway. The boat Sabbatical with Steve and Jane was there in Fort Pierce – we had been in Marathon at the same time and marina. 

The people on our dock in Fort Pierce were very friendly – they have docktails every evening at 5:00, and we were invited.  We did attend a couple of times.  One couple there said they’d like to go to the SEAL Museum, so Dan said we’d like to go with them (in their car!) and he would get them in with his membership.  That was a nice time with Dan providing some personal commentary on his time in the SEAL teams. 

There was a huge store in Fort Pierce that had all sorts of marine parts.  We actually extended our stay in Fort Pierce, because we had intended to leave on Saturday – store was closed on Sunday and Monday!  Tuesday, bright and early, we got an Uber to the store and spent a bit of time there.  They didn’t have everything we had hoped to find, but with some digging around in a bin, Dan was able to put together a complete system for our ‘black’ tank sensor.  The cost there was about $100 less than we would have to pay otherwise.  This system will let us know how full that critical tank is, removing the guesswork we use now.

 

Anchorage, March 17, 2022

We have gotten pretty good at finding good anchorages, even if they aren’t marked on the charts!  This one was just outside the channel, and we had a quiet night at anchor.  The morning’s departure was nice and easy too – the anchor was really dug in, but we got it up with little difficulty.

 

Titusville, March 18,  2022

We planned to go to a marina in Titusville, so that our Orlando friends, Dennis and Denise Sprenkle, could come by for a visit.  I had made reservations at Titusville City Marina.  When we were close to the marina, I called to find out which slip and which side of the boat would need lines and fenders.  Turns out our reservations were for Saturday (which I thought it WAS!), and they had no room for us that night (Friday).  Looking at the charts, there is another marina just beside the city marina – I called them, and the fitted us in for the night!  Phew!  We liked the marina, Westland.  It was pretty inexpensive and the folks were very friendly and helpful.  They are a DIY place, with many boats out of the water in various stages of repairs.  Dennis came (Denise had to go out of town) and took us to a great seafood place for dinner.  Fun times!

We will see Dennis and Denise again soon.  We are going home at the end of March.  The logistics are a bit complicated this time!  Our car is near the Miami Airport.  We have reservations at a marina in the southern end of the St. Johns River.  To get there, we have to go north to Jacksonville, turn the corner into the St. Johns, and proceed about 200 miles south to Sanford!  We want to slowly explore the river, touted to be beautiful.  We’ll move as quickly as possible to get to Sanford, then slowly explore the river after we return to the boat and as we go back up the river to Jacksonville.

We have plane tickets from Orlando to Miami, where we’ll retrieve our car and drive home.  Since Sanford is close to Orlando, Dennis will pick us up there, take us to his home for a day or so, then to the Orlando airport.  We’ll be home for most of the month of April. 

Marathon, month of February

 February, 2022

After the three weeks we spent in Key West, we settled in a private club in Marathon for the month of February.  We love Key West so much, and have spent 2-3 months there for several years in a row.  Consequently, we have many favorite spots, and in our three weeks there we tried to hit them all!   We went out for at least one and sometimes 2 meals a day – and spent lots of money! 

A private club in Marathon was recommended by friends Kevin and Sandy Tucker.  It is called Harbour Cay Club.  There are only 24 slips, and each has a different owner.  The facilities are terrific, everything we needed, and the price is roughly half what other marinas are charging!  The group of owners treated us like part of their family, and we have thoroughly enjoyed our stay here.  We have gotten some (not all, not ever all!) of the maintenance chores that Dan had planned.  We had driven our car from home down to Fort Meyers, where we had left the boat at friends Dave and Barbara Doyle’s dock.  Once settled in Marathon, we rented a car one way to Fort Meyers and drove back there to retrieve our car.

It was wonderful having a car for this month, even though we now have to figure out a way to move it up the coast for our next trip home.  We think we have it planned – toward the end of our stay in Marathon, we will drive the car to the Miami airport and leave it in long term storage.  We believe we should be in Jacksonville by end of March.  We’ll fly from Jax to Miami, retrieve our car and drive it home.  We need to be home by April 6 for doctor’s appointments.

I haven’t taken many pictures in Marathon, mostly sunrises and sunsets!  It’s been nice just to stay put and relax.  We used our dinghy some.  For about a week, we endured extremely high winds, and the boat did lots of rocking and rolling!  Folks in the marina helped to get the boat tied securely and even loaned us a very large fender to keep the boat from being damaged.