crossing and making our way to Marsh Harbor

March 23, 2012

This morning was leisurely. We had breakfast on the dock with John and Carolyn and discussed the details about when to cross and left the dock about 10:00 AM.  It was a good decision not to try to go all the way to Lake Worth yesterday because we had to have to have 5 bridges open for us between Jupiter and Lake Worth.  Some open on the hour others opened on the quarter hour.  The trip he got even with Lake Worth, so we did not know exactly where to anchor.  While looking around at what we thought was the anchorage, we “PARKED” our boat to enjoy some of the activities around Peanut Island. You will also see some of the entertainment on the second video.  We told John and Carolyn to go on to the anchorage and we will be there right after high tide. We were to leave at sunset.  I think George and I talked Carolyn and John into leaving that early because no one was going to sleep until 2:00 AM and then get up and be awake when we left. As it turned out the anchorage was crowded and I don’t think we would have slept at all. The truth was George and I hate to pull anchor in the dark. 

                                        

The first time you do anything is always the most memorable.  Last year was my first crossing and it was magical.  I had expected this one might not be as special as last year.  I was little more uneasy about this crossing.  We had a buddy boat and even thought that is always wise, I felt a little more pressure to go just the right speed or stay just the right distance from them.  As I took my watch I again got adjusted to the night and our buddy boat just off our bow and on our starboard side.  The night was lit by just a crescent moon and all the stars.  The American flag was still flowing in the wind and our stern light gave it the spotlight.  There was not school of dolphin to usher us out like last year.  My first watch started at 11:00 PM and would end at 1:00 AM, by 1:00 I was again enjoying the night and let George sleep until 2:00.  Unlike last year I slept when I was not at the helm.  I went off at 2:00 and George, feeling rested let me sleep until 6:00 AM.  I took over just in time to say goodbye to the night and brilliant stars and hello the beautiful sunrise over the Grand Bahama Island. 

Sunrise over West End Bahamas

Saturday March 24, 2012

We docked at the fuel dock at West End and checked in with Clarence our old friend at the customs office. He granted us 90 days in the Bahamas. After refueling and clearing customs we moved Celebration in her slip at Old Bahama Bay Marina for the night. John and Carolyn had not slept.  They both stayed up as they crossed.  We realized then why they wanted to cross at 2:00 AM not at sunset.  We enjoyed a great breakfast at the Bar and Grill on the Beach.  George wanted to get his Bahamas phone working so he wanted to buy his simm card but the office was closed on Saturday.  It just happened that some one was coming in from Freeport and the Marina office called them to ask if they would bring a simm card for George and a phone for John.  The Bahamian people are some of the most accommodating people.  They are also very happy people. 

            After we received the phone and card, we went for a bike ride.  We went to a little grill in the village and had a lobster burger.  When we were riding back we stopped to buy some lobsters from a person who was just pulling out of the water with his catch.  Down the road we also stopped to buy some Conch.  The guy diving for the conch told us to be careful it was very slick and to watch our step.  George and Carolyn were down near the boat so to get a better picture of the conch I walked down.  When I did, the boat ramp met my backside.  Being the great blogger that I am and wanting to capture all action, not only did I fall gracefully but I took a picture on the way down. 

Yes taking pictures of all the action, including the fall.

Buying some lobsters

Sunday, March 25, 2012

On Sunday morning we were suppose to leave at 8:00.  George and I used our iphones now only as alarm clocks and to play games.  So we set our alarm and got up when it when off. John and Carolyn knocked on our boat as we were just finishing up breakfast.  We talked about the time to leave and realized it was an hour later than we thought. When we asked someone on the dock to help with the lines he asked where we were going.  We told him Great Sale Cay.  Jimmy ( pronounced Himmy as he was Spanish)  said he was going there too but was waiting till high tide.  He was going through Indian Cay channel.  George has always gone through Indian Cay Channel; but had decided not to go that way again because it is always as George puts it a “White knuckle ride” because of the skinny water. We were going instead to Memory Rock. This route was 3 hours longer but no worries of skinny waters. After talking to Jimmie, to go through Indian Cay at high tide Jimmy was a Sunday Morning God sent blessing.  The winds stayed up to 20 -23 knots all day. It would have been pretty rough ride for three hours but instead, we only had rough seas getting out of the West end inlet.  We had a great day and a great sail all the way to Great Sail Cay.  We were knowledgeable of a thunder storm heading our way, thank to our latest purchase XM weather service. We just did get anchored and covered our sails before it hit.  It blew about 30 to 33 knots for a few hours and then settled down for a good nights sleep.

Monday, March 26, 2012

Monday we spent the day at anchor resting.  Lunch was on Celebration and Dinner was on Indulgence.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

On Tuesday we weighed the anchor about 7:00 AM.  We decided to go to Powell Cay instead of Allen Pensacola so we could arrive at Green Turtle Cay at high tide.  The wind was on our nose which gave us a lot of spray.  There were salt crystals on every part of Celebration.  I felt that I had been dipped in a salt bath myself.  We got to Powell about 5:00.  Our refrigeration problems are still with us.  We had to borrow back the generator from Indulgence.  We had hamburgers, roasted peppers and potato salad on Indulgence.  I made the slaw.  Yes we eat well.  All were tired and we were looking forward to going to the docks at Green Turtle Cay.  You have to realize that when you go to the other boat, you must first let down your dingy, then let down the motor, and when you return do the revise.  It is all in an evening activity.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

On Wednesday we waited to pull anchor at about 9:00AM.  We called the Marina at Green Turtle Cay and found out that high tide was at 1:00.  We have to go in right before high tide because if you go aground you want to be on the raising tide.  We made it in and even docked ourselves with no help from the dock hand. I was pretty proud of that!  After we docked we walked down to the Pineapple’s restaurant and had some conch fritters and a George had a conch burger.  I introduced Carolyn to a Goom Bay Smash and George introduced John to a Klick Gold.  We then went for a walk in the village called New Providence.  It was a very modest little village where every one speaks.  The children go to school at 8:00 and get out of school at 3:00.  The children will speak but are very reserved and respectful.  They will only speak to you if you ask them a question.  They run about the village with seemingly very little care.  There is a lot of history here.  The loyalists to the Crown left American and settled in this area.

On Thursday March the 29 we listened to the Cruiser’s net. The cruiser’s net is a weather report that cruisers listen to.  It gives local conditions and reports from people who are actually going through the waters.  We heard last night and this a.m. that the whale Cay pass was flat.  This is good new because it can be very rough and treacherous. Therefore, we planned to leave at high tide. After that we went into the village to eat breakfast.  We walked to four different restaurants and all were closed, don’t know why that is just the way it is in the Bahamas.  One sign said closed on Wednesday but we will see you Thursday but they werThursday.  We finally found a place to eat.  It was a café and liquor store.  Yes I ate breakfast in a liquor store.  It was quite good.  We left Green Turtle Cay about 12, at high tide.  Great undocking!  I watched for skinny water as we left the docks. George and I did not say a word to each other until we were in deeper waters.  It was only a four hour sail from Green Turtle to Marsh Harbor.  We made it to Marsh Harbor about 4:00.  We of course, went to Curly Tails for a celebratory drink and then to Mangoes for dinner.  On the way to Mangoes there were some children asking for money for a school trip.  We asked where they were going and they said Orlando.  Their faces lit up with such excitement when they talked about going to Disney World.  We of course contributed to the trip.

Knee high in the water some where near marsh Harbor

George and Freida

Jupiter

Thursday March 22, 2012

We left the mooring ball about 8:00.  We are trying to get to Lake Worth by Friday night.  It is 60 miles but in a sail boat that is about 10 hours.  So we talked it over last night the Carolyn and John on Indulgence and agreed to go as far as Jensen Beach which was about half way.  However, we got to Jensen Beach around 1:00 so we changed plans.  We were afraid we were going to get to Lake Worth at 8:00 and would have to anchor in the dark.  We opted to stop at a Marina in Jupiter Fl.  It is a tiny marina but very pleasant.  We bumped on a sand bar coming into the Marina.  One of the guys on a boat next to the entrance told us to back up and get a running start and we might make it.  I thought not George!  But yes we did, we plowed our way through.

Remember our favorite phrase " the boat's tied to the dock It's time for a
Cold One"

  We ordered pizza for dinner.  George and I had pizza last year the night before we crossed so this may need to be a tradition.  You are so tired after you cross the Gulf Stream it is really quick to warm up in a frying pan.  We also called Jan and John B and the pat did come in and John B installed it with out any problem.  Our trip tomorrow should only take a couple of hours, so maybe S V Graduate will join us for the crossing.  We plan to start across some time Friday evening.

Living the Dream

George and Freida

Some sights from Southern Fl. going down the ICW

How would you like to play golf on this Golf course 

I think it is called wind surfing

Most people have a boat in their front yard in this hood!
Tiger wood lives somewhere close.

Boat Cleaning

Wednesday  March 21

 Since our refrigeration was fixed we moved the boat back to the mooring ball.  I finally got to do some “Boat Cleaning” ( better than house cleaning) and relax a bit. Jan, John B, Carolyn and John came over for dinner.  We had Pork tenderloin that George had cooked on the grill at home that we froze to bring with us. Jan made a really good sweet potato dish.  We realized that Jan and John B had a problem with their regulator and was staying an extra night at Vero Beach.  Celebration and Indulgence were both trying to make it to Lake Worth by Friday to be able to cross the Gulf Stream on Friday night or early morning Saturday a.m. (2:00 a.m.)  We hated not to wait on them but we are in hopes they will catch up if the part John B’s parts arrive on Thursday. We have a weather window Friday night / Saturday morning and hope to cross the Gulf Stream then.

He stood there all day and watched George and Steve, wonder
what he thought

Freida and George

Steve is a Genius

Tuesday March 20

We woke up with high hopes that Steve would give us some good news.  He arrived right on time.  As he got stared getting familiar with our system and situation, Carolyn called and I took the bus to meet her at Publix.  When I got back to the boat it looked like George and Steve was working on a 9^th grade science project.  The fix was much too complex for me to explain so the next paragraph George will explain what was done.

Steve read the refrigeration manual and learned that the previous technician had put to much Freon in the system. Instead of 50 psi we had 200 psi. Steve captured the Freon and the refrigeration unit started working again. Steve told me the refrigerator and freezer had hot and cold spots so we installed 12 volt computer fans in a 3” pipe with holes in it so the cold air in the bottom could be distributed throughout the refrigerator and freezer.

Now George is claiming he has a blast freezer.

Just Chilling down the ICW.

Freida and George

Vera Beach Marina

Monday March 19^th

We got up and our refrigerator was still at 28 degrees, so we had to move the boat and tie up at the dock.  That way we can keep our food frozen is with the 120 v compressor. Steve, the friend of Rob on dock 6 is coming tomorrow.  We will find out if the unit can be fixed or if Steve will pronounce it dead.  When we plugged up to shore power the temperature come down a few degrees but not much.  We ate on Indulgance and had another wonderful meal. Jan and Carolyn are really good cooks. I think I like this cooking once and every three days.

I wanted to mention the difference in last year’s trip and this year’s trip.  If you did not keep up with us last year, I made my first crossing and really it was my first time cruising.  We had three crew members on celebration, Cap. George, Al Barnes and myself, and three on our buddy boat S V Martini, Capt. Jack Sterrett, Greg Philips, and Jimmy Harrell.  As things happened George and I crossed by ourselves, which proved to be a very rewarding experience.  I really enjoyed the guys and felt that I learned a lot from sailing with each one of them.  I didn’t realized how much I had learned until this year. I really miss all of them. Jimmy and Al you are the best I hope we have an opportunity to sail with you guys again.   Later this month Jack and Greg will join us again on Martini.  Now there is one thing that always happened when I sailed with the guys.  I cooked most of the time not all of the time, but I never and I mean never had to do the dishes.  Obviously, George did not learn as much from you guys as I did.

Carolyn and John coming to see us from the mooring balls

George and Freida

Refrigeration problems not solved by generator

Sunday March 18^th

the dingy's bilge pump

We weighed the anchor at 8:00.  The chain was getting locked up on the bow roller because the pulley is not large enough.  So it took more time than usual to get under way. It was a little more stressful than usual because it was Sunday and every recreational boat in the area was on the water.   You may think George is very easy going and may not think of him as being aggressive, but you should see him when a big motor boat is trying to push him in shallow water.  He will go bow to bow until the motor boat realizes he means business. I guess people do not realize that sail boats draw 4 to 7 feet and they just can’t go out of the channel.  These were exceptionally shallow water outside of a very narrow channel.  George drove most of the day.  When we got to the Vero Beach Municipal Marina we needed to turn and go very close to the mangrove brushes which looked very shallow.  Well, we did not.  We have never been here before and didn’t have very good directions on how to come in.  We called our buddy boat Indulgence and John dinged out and we follow him in.  We still were having trouble with our refrigeration but planed to stay on the mooring ball for the night and get some dry ice to help keep our food frozen.  Going to the dock was about $100.00 dollars and the mooring ball was only $14.00.  Dry ice was the best deal.  We went to the restaurant with John and Carolyn.  It was a great meal.  George and I treated ourselves to a Key Lime pie.  It was excellent! Lime syrup drizzled on top.  It was a beautiful sunset dingy ride back to the boat.

Just chilling or at least trying to

George and Freida 

Saturday March 17

We pulled the anchor a little later than usual.  We got moving about 9:00.  As I mentioned yesterday, we are having trouble with our engine driven compressor. This is necessary to keep our food frozen while on anchor.  George called Jack, who is still in Brunswick but is joining us in the Bahamas the first of April, to consult with him about our refrigerator issues.  Jack told George about Rob on dock 6. Rob has a friend in the boat refrigerator business in Ft. Lauderdale.  Again Jack hooked us up.  It is really good to know Jack. So George called this friend of a friend of a friend (you get the idea!).  He was very helpful and very knowledgeable.  In fact I drove all that day because George was on the phone with Jack, or the new refrigerator guy, Steve.  He gave us some encouraging news. We were ready to buy a brand new system because we know this one is old and will have to be replaced soon, but he told us we need to try to fix what we have first.  Steve said he had some customers in Ft Lauderdale and could see us down there or he could see us in Vero Beach. Vero Beach is our next destination.  So we felt much better. We still need to use the generator when we anchor tonight.  The only reason we have a generator is because we were loaning it to Carolyn and John on Indulgence.  Now you would think this is a great situation.  Well not really!  You have to understand George has a history with generators!  Just ask the University of Georgia.  Any way that’s a long story and if we had a tailgate blog we would explain.  When we got to the anchorage John brought over the generator.  As a precaution we placed the generator next to the gate on the boat. George also tied it with a quick release knot just incase history repeated itself. When we turned it on we got a red and green light on the power switch panel.  So we called Mr. Forbes our electric guru.  He was not available so we decided not to use the generator.

Strategically located 

In the mean time we had been invited to eat onboard Graduate with John and Jan.  We both took a shower and dinked over to Graduate.  We had a great meal and afterwards we were all sitting in the cock pit having some Bailey’s, and George said,” Is that a red flare?”   We all saw a red flare. For you who do not know a red flare is a distress signal.  So we had to call the Coast Guard and report that we saw a red flare.  We also looked at the compass and gave a heading to the Coast guard. Before we could call another lady called in to report it. We called anyway with the headings. The Coast Guard then asked, “if you are standing looking at the horizon and you are holding a coffee cup how many coffee cups high was the flare. If you know me well you know this could be a confusing question.  I wanted to ask a tall or a grande.  The Coast Guard called several times by cell phone, I guess to verify it was not a prank call.  The Coast Guard who called the last time even wanted to know the address and the registration number of the vessel.  He also wanted to know the names and address of all who was on the vessel who witnessed the flare.  At that time we were leaving so John B just told them were had left. Talk about government red tape.  They did take us seriously though because this morning we heard them on channel 16 asking all vessels to keep a look out for anyone in distress because there had been a report of a red flare.

Just another sunset

Now back to the generator.  Mr. Forbes called us at 11:00 pm so we missed his call but he gave George some instructions, so we will try it again in the morning.

I am sorry this post is a little wordy and not a lot of pictures but we were so busy I didn’t have time to take pictures.

Life begins outside your comfort zone

George and Freida 

Seafood Trio on Anchor

Friday March 16^th 2012

dinner guest 

Jan and John B have arrived 

We left the Halifax Harbor Marina at 7:00.  We had very still waters and a beautiful morning.  Again we had an uneventful motor down the ICW.  The birds and dolphin as usual were our entertainment.  George did get a glimpse of two manatees.  There are several areas where the motor boats have a no wake zone to help protect them.  Because the weather was so clear we could see the launch towers of the space station at Cape Canaveral.  We anchored near NASA Causeway Bridge. We turned on our engine driven compressor and realized that Ed the refrigerator guy didn’t really know as much as we thought.  Our freezer was 24 degrees and would not get any cooler. Tomorrow we plan to use the Honda generator to cool the freezer using the 110V compressor. Celebration invited everyone over for a Seafood Trio dinner.    After watching a beautiful sunset we enjoyed dinning together and trying to solve our coolant problems. 

watching the sunset

Enjoying all the sunrises and sunsets

George and Freida and guests

Bikers week in Daytona

First light at Halifax Harbor Marina

Halifax Harbor Marina

A little too close to Indulgence 

We left the docks in St Augustine at first light.  The other two couples were on moorings and it was too early for the dock hands to be up.  So we undocked ourselves. Now this means that someone has to stay on the dock and untie the lines (me) while the other person (George) has to maneuver the boat in the slip. It was not the best undocking George has ever done but it was the best we had ever done it by ourselves.  Not to say it was perfect or anything.  I was pretty proud of myself.  I was on the dock with the midship line and George said throw the line and jump on.  For one quick moment I “thought he could just leave me”.  I jumped on and away we went. We traveled down the ICW a pretty uneventful but beautiful day.  We were taking 2 hours on and 2 hours off.  So after getting off of my 3:00 turn at the helm, I asked George if I had enough time to exercise and take a shower. “Sure you have enough time; we will not be there until you are on again.  So I exercised and then asked again do I have enough time to take a shower.  Again the reply was you have 30 minutes.  I always hurry when I am in the shower if we are underway.  This time I did as well.  I stepped out of the shower just in time to hear our “all hands on deck signal, the motor throttle down.  I was soaking wet. I jumped out just in time to hear “DO you have your clothes on yet?  We are here!!! We’ve got to get the lines on!!”   I put on my clothes without drying off and ran up to tie the line on without shoes.  We did get the lines on in fact the marina told us to go slow for we were going to be on the T dock stern to stern with our friends, John and Carolyn.  Jan and John B picked up a mooring ball for the night.  We asked later for a bow to stern tie and we got it.  As I got off the boat Carolyn and John was there to meet us, And as always George has a need of a beer right after we docked.  In most cases it is pure medicinal!!  Nerves are strained during docking! Halifax Harbor Marina is the prettiest Marina I have ever seen.  John and George like it because it has a West Marine on site. 

Mama's new ride

Carolyn was all excited!  It is Bikers week in Daytona!  Let’s go look.  Carolyn and I wanted to have our picture made with some rough tattooed Biker but we didn’t find one cute enough.  There were Bikers of all ages, races and careers. There were bikes and Bikers everywhere! I told Carolyn that we looked better on a sail boat than on a back of a motorcycle. The bikers looked as if they were having a good ole time.  If I were not a sailor I might be a Biker.  Looks like fun to me.

Riding the waves

George and Freida

Dinner at Columbia Resturant

March 14th

The following are some pictures from the trip down the ICW

Captain George

Celebration on the mooring

Opening just for Celebration

One really big ship 

One of the many beautiful houses on the ICW

Romeo

Juliette

We stayed at the dock in St. Augustine for one more night.  We needed someone to check a refrigeration system.  We waited until about noon. The company that was suppose to get someone kept telling us he was late for work.  I guess they are on Island time. Finally we called and told them we were going to get a bite to eat and call if the man ever comes to work. We ate lunch at Scarlett O’Hara’s, another good meal. George got to shop a little and bought his first Panama Hat.  Now at all those outdoor weddings we will not be hunting a tree to stand under. After lunch we found out that the man they wanted us to use was in the hospital with his wife.  We call another company that George has done some business with in the past.  In fact he was on first name basis with the lady in the office.  He said Jack introduced her to him on one of the trips.  Jack is the Captain of S. V. Martini which will be joining us in the Bahamas later this month. She was very helpful and got us another person and he showed up within the hour.  He was helpful and solved our problem.  It is good to know people in high places. 

John and Carolyn were with us on our shopping trip. In fact, when John and Carolyn approved of the hat, the sale was made.  I shopped around with John and Carolyn while George went back to the boat to help Ed, the refrigerator guy.  We meet up with John B and Jan so we all had a drink on Celebration as Ed was finishing up.  Where to eat that night was not a problem to agree on.  The Columbian Restaurant was everyone choice.  The only problem George and I had fully intended to have the flan for dessert.  It didn’t happen.

John B, George, Freida, Carolyn, John, Jan

Living the dream

Freida and George

A Special Escort

March 13 2012

We left this morning at first light.  We are heading to St Augustine.  St Augustine is 59     nautical miles from Fernandina. So we had to leave early.  It was low tide, need I say more.  We ran aground but did not stay aground long.  We learned later that about 5 other boats leaving at about the same time with 4 feet draft also had the same fate.  We draw 6 feet. It was a beautiful trip.  We saw some beautiful homes that face the ocean on one side and the ICW on the other. I always wonder what in the world those people do for a living.  They were not canners or Speech Pathologist that is for sure.  The highlight of the trip was when two dolphins decided to escort us for a while.  They stayed with us for at least an hour and a half. One would jump up on the port side and then the other would jump up on the starbord side. Several times he sprayed me as he was that close to the boat. Even when I made a turn they stayed with us.  It was really neat knowing you would get a picture of them because they would just come up every few minutes and splash us. We gave them a names, Romeo and Juliette.  Right before they left our side Romeo jumped up several times in a row we thought he was showing off but now I think he was saying, “good bye and have a good trip”. 

This boat sailed under the bridge under full sail......Show off!

We docked the boat at the St Augustine Maribecause we needed to have our refrigeration checked.  This Marine is right after you pass through the Lions Bridge.   This bridge is a bascule bridge, which means it is a draw bridge.  We had to wait 30 minutes for it to open.  Some bridge open on request and some are opened every half hour.  While we waited I took my shower so I was ready to go when we docked.  John, Carolyn, John B and Jan were on the docks to catch our lines, but the dock hand told them to stay back.  I always like to throw the midship line to the dock hand and that  gives him better control of the boat.  This person had a different idea.  Anyway we got docked just fine.  John B and Jan ate on their boat and we went with Carolyn and John to a really nice outside restaurant.  I had blacken redfish. Great day, great food, great friends, great memories!

convoying to Fernandina

Caravan to Fernandina

March 13 2012

Celebration left the docks at 8:30 this morning.  Along with us S.V. Indulgence with Captain John and Admiral Carolyn, and S.V. Graduate with Captain John B and Admiral Jan.  We call the wives Admiral because one time in the Bahamas when George introduced me to the mechanic as his first mate (we know a lot of mechanics… everywhere we go, we know the mechanics), and Bodie the mechanic said, “Oh no mon she is not you first mate she is your admiral”.

The Admirals waiting for their Captains

We hoped for an uneventful sail to Fernandina,  unlike last year! For those who were not following us last refer to March 1^st 2011. We went on inside ( the ICW) because the waves were a little high on the outside. It was a little chilly but a very good day.  We got to the mooring ball about 2:30 so we made good time.  We all dinged in our separate dingy and went to our favorite restaurant Espana.  If you are ever in Fernandina it is a must, real authentic Spanish food.  When we returned …..our dingy had gone aground!!! Yes ! It was low tide and our dingy was stuck in the mud! Thanks to Carolyn, John and Jan we did not need to call Seatow.

Ready to sail

March 12 2012

We got excited today because we are expecting to leave tomorrow morning. We have had four days to get every thing ready and we still had a lot of last minute stuff to do. The boat is again packed with 3 months of supplies.  Every nook and cranny is packed.  One of the mechanics that worked on our boat Friday told some one on the dock, he thought he was in Winn Dixie when he stepped on our boat.  We had to take all the old stuff out and put the new can foods in last in order to eat the old first.  We have packed again 360 Bud Light, 35 bottles of white wine, 8 bottles of red wine, 48 Diet rite (we lowered the number of diet drinks because I have stopped drinking diet drinks, but may start back at anytime.) 24 regular cokes 36 diet cokes 120  bottles of water,  and the most important of all 12 lbs of starbucks coffee!  That is just our liquid provisions.  Too many can goods to name.  We are ready to sail.