The Best Laid Plans... At the time of our last update we were planning to leave Islamorada Saturday, April 5th, and cross to the Bahamas on Sunday. After a storm blew through Friday evening, the wave predictions for the Gulf Stream worsened and the Captain decided that another day in Islamorada was in order.

With another day came another trip to the grocery store for a few more final items, but this time we went north (or is it east?) to Tavernier rather than south/west to Marathon. The remainder of the day was spent helping prepare dinner and relaxing at Paz's beautiful vacation rental.

Tropical trio of Keeley, Anna Lee and Brayden. Did you ever eat the coconut we retrieved from the palm tree?


Paz, Susan, Carl, Michele and the girls, Keeley and Brayden. Thanks so much for all your hospitality!


On Sunday we travelled about seven hours to Angelfish Creek. We scoped out Angelfish Creek but it was a little narrow for anchoring, so we decided to anchor on the north side of an island between the Angelfish Creek channel and Pumpkin Key. The wind was supposed to be out of the southeast all night so we thought we would be pretty well protected.

About 8:30 that evening a storm blew through with a fair amount of lightning, wind and rain but we were on the outer edge of the watch box and by 9:30 it had essentially passed us by. About 2:30 a.m. we were awakened by wind and waves and were unable to go back to sleep so we got up. Shortly after that a very nasty storm hit us full force with north (not southeast, as predicted) winds well over fifty miles per hour and blinding, pounding rain.

The only thing we could see was the red blinking channel marker for the entrance to Angelfish Creek which seemed to be much closer that it had been when we anchored. Todd decided that we must be dragging anchor so he started the engines and tried to motor into the wind to relieve some of the pressure on the anchor and chain; however, it was too little, too late. By the time I got the navigation software and GPS up and running to see where the boat was in relation to our surroundings, it showed that we were virtually on top of the island near which we had anchored. I grabbed a flashlight to look out the sundeck and, sure enough, we were right on top of the mangroves!

Within a few seconds we drifted into the mangroves and immediately shut down the engines. At that point we were aground and could do nothing further, and we knew we weren't going anywhere, so we went back to bed at 5:30 a.m. hoping to get a few hours of sleep. The tide was still pretty low when we got up Monday morning but we knew it would be rising until about noon so we employed whatever means we could think of to pull the boat off. We got the dinghy down and tried using an extra anchor off the starboard side for leverage but the anchor wasn't big enough and didn't hold well enough to gain any ground. Todd also tried using the dinghy to pull the bow of the boat around, but the engine just didn't have enough horsepower to do us any good.

The morning after the night from hell. Todd works the rope in hopes of pulling "Life's2Short" out of the mangroves... right!


Thankful for the morning after. No damage other than some frayed nerves.



In the end we finally got the bow to swing around, with a little help from the bow thruster and the rising tide, by pulling in the slack in the anchor chain, which was at a ninety degree angle to the bow. When I got to the anchor it had a whole mess of rope and seaweed wrapped around it which, I'm sure, didn't help our situation during the storm. Nonetheless, we were free and when the Captain dove under the boat to check for damage, everything appeared to be in good working order. So other than a few incredibly stressful hours during the night, we were, thankfully, unscathed.

At that point we consulted our cruise guide and decided to go north to Boca Chita Key which is part of the Biscayne National Park. There are no services (not even a trash dumpster) and they don't allow pets, but there is plenty of space to dock boats around the perimeter of the harbor and after the ordeal of the previous evening, we were more than happy to pay the $20 per night dockage fee! Boca Chita is an absolutely beautiful place; its only downside were the mosquitoes and no-seeums that virtually ate us alive every time we left the boat!!!

A gorgeous sunset at Boca Chita.


Boys and their toys. The Miami Dade Fire Rescue conducts a drill on Boca Chita.


We stayed at Boca Chita two nights and George & Mary aboard "Love Knot" joined us about 3:30 the second afternoon. We had seen George & Mary in Ft. Myers Beach and knew they were planning to be in the vicinity so we called and let them know our plans, hoping to meet up with them again along the way. After a nice lasagna dinner that evening, with wine and dessert provided by George & Mary, we all watched American Idol before retiring for the evening.

Another wonderful sunset at Boca Chita.



"Love Knot" pulled out shortly before 8:00 Wednesday morning and we left a couple of hours later to go to No Name Harbor, a popular anchorage just southeast of Miami. No Name Harbor is part of the Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Recreation Area at the southernmost tip of Key Biscayne. It is also very pretty, pets are allowed and for $15 per night you have access to an on-site restaurant, ice, laundry (one washer, one dryer), trash and free pump-out.

The entrance to Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Recreation Area.


The view of No Name Harbor from the Boaters Grill.


On Thursday we walked down to the lighthouse at the tip of Key Biscayne and trudged up the 118 spiralling steps to the top, which offered a spectacular view of the Atlantic! After our excursion we stopped at the restaurant for a quick burger before returning to the boat. I then did a load of laundry while Todd worked on replacing the float in our shower sump which had stopped working for some unknown reason.

A Great Blue Heron with "Stiltsville" in the background. "Stiltsville" is a group of formerly private homes built in shallow water quite some distance off shore. As you might imagine, most have been destroyed by hurricanes.


The Cape Florida lighthouse at the southern tip of Key Biscayne.


The lens room at the top of the lighthouse.


A view of the lighthouse keeper's cottage and cookhouse from near the top of the lighthouse.


This shot of one of the nation's top ten beaches was also taken from the lighthouse. Miami's South Beach is in the background.


We walked about a mile to town this morning to get a few things at the grocery store and then I did another load of laundry while writing the blog update. The weather is looking good for crossing the Gulf Stream tomorrow so we will likely be up and on our way shortly after sunrise in the morning, barring any further unforeseen difficulties!

The forecast is calling for another front to move through from the north by Sunday evening, so we are considering going to the Bimini Islands tomorrow and staying there until the front passes rather than tackling the three-day journey to Nassau (Key Biscayne to Gun Cay; Gun Cay to Chub Cay; Chub Cay to Nassau). We have been talking to a couple on a sailboat in the harbor who are telling us that we shouldn't bypass an opportunity to see the Bimini Islands and Alice Town so that may be a good option for us under the circumstances. At any rate, our "plan" is to head out in the morning so, once again, please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we venture out into the deep blue ocean!

Off to the 10,000 Islands and the Florida Keys

We wrapped up our final few days at Bonita Bills, said our good-byes and untied the dock lines Friday morning, March 21st. Even though we stayed within one mile of the shore line, it was still a rather bumpy ride for the first few hours. After that it calmed down a bit and wasn't too bad for the remainder of the trip.

We arrived at Capri Pass shortly after 2:00 p.m. and met up with Mike & Mary aboard "WhatDazeIt?" as they were leaving their friend's house in Isle of Capri. We also caught up to Bill & Margie aboard "Tortuga" but they ended up stopping at Goodland for the evening while we continued on to Panther Key. We met Bill & Margie through Greg & Sandy at the Moose Lodge the previous Saturday and also had drinks with them at Bonita Bills a few days before we left.

"WhatDazeIt?" on the way to Panther Key.


Saturday was a quiet morning of conversation accompanied by Bloody Mary's and Mimosa's. "Tortuga" came in to the anchorage about 10:30 a.m. and spent some time on the beach with Mike & Mary before the rain came in that afternoon. Each couple has two small dogs and the four "children" were having a good ole time getting acquainted and playing in the sand!

Mike & Mary's dogs, H.I.D (left) and M.E. (right) looking for a handout, i.e., a carrot, aboard "Life's2Short."


Bill & Margie's catamaran, "Tortuga."


Bill & Margie came by late Sunday (Easter) morning to chat and then early that afternoon we met them at their boat to go on a dinghy ride to White Horse and Gullivan Keys. Later that same afternoon we decided to move the boats over by Four Brothers Key to get out of the wind. Bill & Margie had already moved "Tortuga" Saturday afternoon when the wind picked up as it was somewhat more protected than the anchorage at Panther.

Bill & Margie, with their pooch Oscar, as we headed out to explore the islands. Their other dog, Casey, was riding with us.


"Tortuga" headed back toward Ft. Myers Beach on Monday. It was mostly cloudy and still windy so Todd and Mike ended up spending several hours working on battery and wiring issues. The overnight low that evening was a cool 45 degrees but Tuesday was bright and sunny and windy (again). Mike & Mary dinghied over to Hog Key and enjoyed a few nice hours in the sun with great wind protection while Todd went fishing in the dinghy. He had caught a couple of fish on Saturday and came back with a nice sea trout Tuesday afternoon but ended up losing half of it when it slid off the swim deck where he was cleaning it!

Mike was having difficulty finding a good spot near Four Brothers Key to take the dogs to shore so we moved the boats back over to our original anchorage at Panther Key late Tuesday afternoon. Wednesday was still breezy and felt relatively cool on the boat but we joined Mike & Mary on the beach at Panther Key about 2:30 that afternoon and were surprised at how warm it was! We dinghied over to White Horse Key Thursday afternoon but it was just a bit too cool with the wind and intermittent cloud cover, so Mike & Mary went back to Panther and we ended up finding a great little beach on our way back. A little while later Todd went back to "Life's2Short" to get a few supplies and invited Mike & Mary to join us, which they did until the biting insects started coming out and we both headed back to our boats.

A windy day at White Horse Key. As you can tell by the photo, life was very tough for us this week!


Friday was our final day with Mike & Mary and we spent the afternoon on the same nice beach we found the previous day. Todd managed to catch a few more fish Friday morning so we had enough for a fish fry that evening. After dinner Todd and Mike got back in to battery wiring issues and ended up spending another couple of hours messing around in the engine room before calling it a day.

Our "private" sand beach that we enjoyed with "WhatDazeIt?"


Mary cuts the Captain's hair, thanks again Mary!


Sunset views from our anchorage at Panther Key.



We left the 10,000 Islands Saturday about 9:00 a.m. and had smooth water to our anchorage at Middle Cape that afternoon. On Sunday we made it to Islamorada and went to Caloosa Cove Marina to top off with fuel. Surprisingly enough their diesel was $0.10 less per gallon than it had been when we filled up at Ballard Oil in Ft. Myers Beach!

It was a fairly windy day but the seas weren't too bad, although it was noticeably rougher on the Atlantic side where the marina was. After we left the marina we went to Matecumbe Bight to anchor for the evening and took the dinghy in to the canal system of the subdivision where Todd's friend from New Jersey had rented a vacation house. We were planning to move the boat over to the house Monday afternoon and needed to (1) find the house, (2) check out the layout of the sea wall, (3) determine water depth and (4) figure out how best to dock the boat.

Another beautiful sunset, this time from our anchorage in Matecumbe Bight.




It was windy all night Sunday and into Monday, so when we moved the boat to the rental house Monday afternoon, the wind complicated our docking effort. But we made it without damaging anything and that's always a good thing! After we got the boat tied up, Todd got in the water to check the depth under the keel and props and found that both of the shaft zincs were gone, which was surprising since they were just put on in November after we completed the bottom job.

Our private dock on Lower Matecumbe Key, thanks for the invite Paz!



At any rate, Todd donned his mask and snorkel and proceeded to work on replacing the zincs. It took a lot of effort but he finally got one on and decided he'd had enough for one day. It rained lightly several times overnight and into Tuesday morning but as soon as the sun came out, Todd got back in the water and finally managed to get the other zinc on - not an easy thing to do underwater without oxygen!

Todd's friend, Paz, arrived late Tuesday afternoon and we all went to a local bar/restaurant called Lor-e-lei's to watch the sunset. Wednesday was "catch up on laundry" day and, fortunately, Paz's house has a wonderfully spacious washer and dryer that probably cut the number of loads I would have had in half! We also made arrangements for Islamorada Cleaners to come to the boat to clean the salon furniture. He arrived about noon and spent the next hour and a half cleaning several years of dirt and grime off our loveseat and chairs and they look SO much better!

After trying unsuccessfully to find some things we needed in Islamorada, we decided to make a trip to Marathon Wednesday afternoon. On Mike & Mary's recommendation we took advantage of the opportunity to go to the Keys Fisheries to experience the locally famous lobster reuben and, as promised, it was quite a sandwich! After several stops in Marathon, including a much needed trip to the grocery store, we headed back to Islamorada and enjoyed a wonderful evening poolside with Todd and Paz reliving many memories of their college days.

Poolside, the morning after Paz's world famous "Margatini's."


Todd worked on several boat projects Thursday morning, including installing a new antenna for the dash-mounted GPS that hasn't worked since Ft. Myers Beach. Then Todd & Paz went fishing Thursday afternoon and again that evening after dinner but, unfortunately, they weren't successful in their hunting and gathering efforts.

Paz and Todd head out for some afternoon exploring and fishing.


Based on the current weather forecast, the Captain has decided to leave Islamorada tomorrow, anchor out in Anglefish Creek tomorrow evening and make the crossing to the Bahamas on Sunday. It has been a hectic day doing final shopping and laundry and numerous last-minute boat projects, but hopefully we're close to being ready.  As mentioned previously, we will send out e-mail updates and update the blog as often as possible while we're in the Bahamas. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we make our way out into the deep blue! In the meantime, we will leave you with these thoughts about cruising that were sent to us by some fellow cruisers:

"Cruising takes you to where you can hear yourself think and think of nothing. Cruising takes you to a place that takes your breath away and allows you to breathe. Cruising takes you to a place where you know you will never see anything so beautiful ever again and you are so thankful to have been there for that one moment that cannot possibly be repeated, until the next day when it is and you knew it would be. Cruising is the difference between chugging coffee and sipping wine. Cruising is the difference between waking with the alarm and waking with the sun. Cruising is the difference between doing what you must and doing what you will. Cruising is the difference between going to bed when you're beat and going to bed when you're sleepy. Cruising is about living in a space possibly even smaller than your current office with less stuff than would fit in your guest bedroom, completely disconnected from the level of support, convenience, variety, luxury, and control that you have worked so hard all your life to surround yourself with - and feeling wealthy, satisfied and free. Cruising is life times ten. Are you going cruising? Then you'll need a boat."

Boat Guests - St. Petersburg to Ft. Myers Beach

Todd's parents, Bill & Marilyn, arrived at Cathy's house late Saturday morning, March 1st. Once everything was loaded on the boat, we spent a little time visiting with Cathy before undoing the lines and pulling away from the dock that had been our home for the past two months.

The Captain decided we would just make a short run that afternoon and anchor at Egmont Key, in Tampa Bay, for the evening. By 2:30 the anchor was set so we got the dinghy down and Todd took his mom over to the beach for a few hours. It was fairly breezy out in the Bay, which made the water a little too rough for comfort, but we thought it would calm down overnight. Unfortunately, it got even worse before morning and none of us got much sleep. We had turned over the master stateroom to Todd's parents so we were sleeping in the guest stateroom and it was very noisy with waves slapping the bow all night. Todd even got up and tried to sleep on a cushion in the salon but that didn't work either.

The next morning we pulled anchor and headed for Sarasota. After dropping anchor near Marina Jack's we spent the afternoon napping and relaxing. Monday morning Todd took Bill & Marilyn to shore in the dinghy where they had breakfast and spent a few hours walking around town. When they returned we pulled anchor and went as far as Englewood Beach where we enjoyed a beautiful, calm evening.

Our anchorage an Englewood Beach where a small Hobie Cat was anchored behind "Life's2Short."


A beautiful sunset!


Tuesday turned windy again and our plan to go to Boca Grande was scrapped when we got in there and decided the wind was funneling through the anchorage just a bit too much for us to want to try to back up to the mangroves. So we went back out into Charlotte Harbor and traveled a few more miles to Pelican Bay where we anchored for the evening. It was still quite windy and we didn't have much protection but we found the best spot we could and made do.

By morning the wind had died down and it was a beautiful, sunny day as we made our way to Ft. Myers Beach. When we reached Matanza's Pass we went over to fuel up at Ballard Oil where we took on 208 gallons at the bargain price of $3.70 per gallon which, by comparison, was something of a bargain given that the nearby marinas were charging $4.05!

Todd's parents enjoying the view from the bow as we made our way through Pine Island Sound.

 

The place we were supposed to tie up for the evening was occupied by a sailboater who had decided to stay an extra night so we tried, unsuccessfully, to tie up at the end of the dock where a shrimp boat is normally located and ended up going back over to a dock on the other side of Ballard Oil and tying up for the evening.

After cleaning up we went over to Bonita Bill's to see the gang before going to the Parrot Key Caribbean Grill at Salty Sam's where Todd's parents treated us to a wonderful meal. Bill & Marilyn left Thursday morning about 9:30 to head back to Orlando to pick up their dog Ginger and then on to Astor, FL where they have their motor home and boat on the St. John's River.

It was nice being able to spend some time with them aboard "Life's2Short" and we hope they enjoyed the journey from St. Petersburg to Ft. Myers Beach. I also have to mention that each evening we played a card game called Skip-Bo and the girls triumphed over the guys with a final score of seven to three. Sorry guys - better luck next time!

Todd and I moved over to the dock at Bonita Bill's early Thursday afternoon and then went to the bar to say hello to Byron, one of the guys who works there. Later that afternoon we were resting in the aft cabin when another boat hit "Life's2Short" as it was leaving the bar. Several people at the bar saw it happen but the guy didn't even stop. Even though he hit us pretty hard, it only scuffed the fiberglass on the rear starboard edge and, thankfully, didn't do any major damage.

Todd spent a few hours Friday morning washing a portion of the boat's exterior and then we decided to tackle the laundry. We carried everything up to the trolley stop and rode the few miles to Summerlin Square only to find that the laundromat we had used last year was no longer there! Since we were on foot, we ended up calling a taxi to take us a few miles further up San Carlos Boulevard to the nearest laundromat.

George & Mary, who we met aboard "Love Knot" on Pickwick Lake this past summer and have seen off and on throughout the summer and fall, live in Englewood near where we anchored Monday evening. They were planning to go to the flea market in Ft. Myers Friday morning and then come see us on the boat that afternoon so we asked if they would mind picking us up at the laundromat on their way, which worked out great for us. They had another couple with them (Gil & Nancy) and we spent the afternoon aboard "Life's2Short" visiting and enjoying Mary's wonderful hors d'oeuvres. Thanks, Mary!

George & Mary are on the right as the gang poses in front of Bonita Bill's.

 

Later that afternoon we spent some time visiting with Ken aboard his shrimp boat, "Miss Cher," and then went to Bonita Bill's to listen to a little karaoke. It got very windy overnight and into Saturday with sustained winds of forty miles per hour. We had planned to walk across the bridge to the beach for the annual shrimp festival but decided to wait until Sunday. As the Captain was messing around in the engine room that afternoon, he discovered that the oil cooler on the starboard engine had corroded and was leaking. Thankfully, he discovered it while we were here rather than in the Bahamas. Good job, Captain!

Sunday was still a little windy but nothing like Saturday so we walked over to the shrimp festival on the beach and spent a few hours touring vendor booths, eating shrimp and fresh kettle corn, one of my favorites! Since Kirby was working at Bonita Bill's, we stopped in on our way back and spent a few hours enjoying the afternoon and watching guys fish for snook off the dock.

The 50th annual Shrimp Festival gathering on Ft. Myers Beach.

 

Monday was spent getting ready for our next visitors, Bob & Linda Eckels from Springfield, MO, who were flying in to St. Petersburg and renting a car to make the trip to Ft. Myers Beach. I spent the day catching up on bills and other paperwork, reviewing our taxes, and just messing around the boat in general. Todd ordered a new oil cooler, removed the leaking one and cleaned the salt water and corrosion from around the engine, washed the remaining exterior of the boat and waxed the eyebrow (the front portion of the boat below the flybridge). All-in-all, a busy day.

Bob & Linda arrived about 11:00 Tuesday morning and we had a quick brunch before heading downtown to watch a spring training game between the Red Sox and the Mets. The game was sold out so we had "standing room only" tickets but it was a nice day with a brief afternoon shower and the Red Sox prevailed four to three. We had planned to buy some shrimp from Ken for our evening meal but he wasn't around when we returned to the boat so we went over to the beach and had a late dinner at The Beach Pierside Grill.

Need the sign say more?

 

 

 

Linda & I weren't quite as enthusiastic as the men about watching the Mets play!

 

When Todd and I were walking across the bridge Sunday to go to the shrimp festival, we were surprised to see Greg & Sandy's boat, "Latitude Dancer," at Matanza's Inn. We originally met Greg & Sandy the summer of 2006 in Demopolis and have seen them off and on since, most recently at the marina in Columbus, MS this past summer where they told us they would probably go to the Bahamas again this spring, so we thought they would be there by now.

At any rate, Todd called and left them a message that we were in the area so Sandy stopped by the boat Wednesday morning to say hello and invited us to go with them to the Moose Lodge Saturday evening for steak dinner and dancing. They have their boat on the market and almost had it sold, which is why they decided not to go to the Bahamas.

After Sandy left we got ready and drove to Lovers Key at the south end of Estero Island where we spent the next few hours combing the beach for shells with Bob & Linda. Traffic was really backed up on the return trip and we were all more than ready for lunch by the time we got back to the beach, about 4:30 p.m. Unfortunately, the service at The Barking Shark was pretty bad and the meal was mediocre at best. We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening just hanging out on the boat and playing Catch Phrase, which turned out to be pretty hilarious... Bob, you eat Chinese food with chopsticks, not toothpicks (you had to be there!).

The gang heading over the the beach at Lovers Key State Recreation Area.

 

Aw, isn't that sweet!

 

Bob & Linda with their rented "rag top." "Bob, the car is still running... again!"

 

We slept in on Thursday and went to the Channel Mark for a wonderful late breakfast where we ran in to Kirby on his day off from Bonita Bill's. It was an absolutely gorgeous day and the rest of the afternoon was spent hanging out on the dock at Bonita Bill's and on the sundeck enjoying the scenery. That evening we cooked a couple of pounds of Ken's fresh shrimp and munched on toasted cheese bread and fresh veggies and then played Catch Phrase until we were ready to turn in for the evening.

The chartered fishing boats are in so it's feeding time for our feathered friends.

 

 

 

 

Bob & Linda took off Friday morning about 9:30 for the trip back to St. Petersburg where they had an early afternoon flight to Springfield. Kirby had offered to let us use his car (affectionately known as "the Batmobile") for a major grocery run to Wal-Mart in preparation for our trip to the Bahamas, so we spent the rest of the day shopping, hauling everything to the boat, figuring out where to put it and getting it put away.

Todd replaced the oil cooler Saturday morning, rearranged some storage spaces and worked on the boat's intercom system before being asked to work at the tiki hut at Bonita Bill's that afternoon during Peppermint Patty's performance. I spent the day catching up on blog events to date and then we met Greg & Sandy, along with two other couples, at Bonita Bill's and made our way to the Moose Lodge for dinner and dancing. Two more couples joined us at the Lodge so we had a total of twelve in our group. The steak dinner was really good, as were the performers, and we all had a great time. Thanks to Greg & Sandy for inviting us!

Sunday was a quiet day, primarily spent reading and relaxing on the boat, although Todd did go help prep some food in the kitchen at Bonita Bill's that afternoon. After he was finished we went to the bar and split a sandwich before retiring to the boat for the evening. Monday turned very windy again with seas forecast to be quite rough for the next several days so it looks like we'll be here a few days longer than originally planned. Todd spent Monday morning buffing and waxing a portion of the boat while I baked some banana bread and piddled in the kitchen. That afternoon Todd went over to help Ginger at the tiki hut again. I went over a few hours later and we both ended up working (or playing at working) most of the evening.

Ginger & Captain O'Lanning, aka Irish Pimp Daddy!

 

Tuesday was another quiet day on the boat. Todd wandered over to Bonita Bill's a few times and ended up emptying the trash and washing some of the lunch crowd's dishes but neither of us strayed too far. The wind continues to blow hard today and was especially strong this morning about 5:00 a.m., waking both of us up. According to the coastal waters forecast it isn't supposed to calm down much until the weekend so I'm not sure when we'll actually pull away from the dock. Right now it's looking like Saturday but we'll see.

In the meantime we wanted to update you on the events of the past few weeks. Once we leave Ft. Myers Beach, our plan is to go to the 10,000 Islands area, just north of the Everglades, and spend some time with Mike & Mary aboard "WhatDazeIt?" before continuing on to the Keys where we will spend a few days on Islamorada with Paz, a college friend of Todd's from New Jersey who will be vacationing there the first part of April.  After that it's off to the Bahamas. We should be able to post another update before we leave the Keys; after that we're not sure since we don't know what kind of Internet access we will have in the islands but we'll update as often as possible.