Home again!

Diane here . . . . well, I am sure that you have noticed a lack of postings and those of you who are following us on Spot may have noticed we are going the wrong way.  There's a reason-- but first the good news.  Right now we are in Marathon Florida, in the Florida Keys.  We have been here since Wednesday - the 13th- as a huge cold front has the State pretty much in a deep freeze with some serious North winds.  Plan to leave tomorrow but more on that later.

We had a wonderful week in Miami. (Feb 6th-11th)  Lunch with good friends Anne Sheldon and Randy and Judi McKean was delightful.  Then on Saturday, good friends, Teresa and Ed Dormer from Kingwood, (vacationing up in Del Ray Beach) spent the day with us exploring Coconut Grove.  Good times!!  Scott and Adam's flight was indeed cancelled on Friday but they made it in Saturday night.  So, we spent 4 nights at the marina then took off to Key Biscayne.  A very short sail (we motored) across the bay.  The wonderful little harbor-called No Name Harbor- that we wanted to anchor in was packed - I mean really packed with powerboats, sailboats, kayaks, and all manner of water toys.  (Scenes from Caddyshack).  We dropped anchor only to have it drag and come seriously close to some pretty big yachts.  Up went the anchor and we got out of there!  Anchored in the bay that night (Sunday) and spent most of the night up as we rocked and rolled in the current.  Monday morning we moved into No Name - note:  stay away during the week-ends but during the week it is great.  The guys went to South Beach and we rested.  Weather was blustery but we took off Tuesday morning for Rodriquez Key.  You may remember that the plan was to sail to Bimini with Scott and Adam.  Even before our plans changed, this plan only works if the weather cooperates.  This particular week - no one was going to Bimini.  North winds prevailed and with the monster storm that hit NY moving out (Yes, I know that was a thousand  miles away from Miami) our weather was also affected.  As the weather person and navigator on board, I call this "looking over your shoulder".  I can guarantee you that when a huge storm (and February has had its share this year!) is threating the Southern states and moving up the East Coast, it affects us here in Florida.  Back to our trip, from Rodgriquez Key, we sailed back to Marathon.  Adam had to leave to fly back to NY on Wednesday, so we had to get him to terra firma to get to the Miami airport. This is always hard for a sailor - you hate to be on a schedule and you feel very responsible for delivering your guest.  We made it, but there were some anxious moments. Scott did not leave until Friday so we rented a car and drove to Key West and took in some of the sights.  A cruise ship was in port and the place was packed - I really missed the quiet place we had visited before.  We loved having the guys on board and were thankful they could spend as much time as they did.  We spent this last week-end re-provisioning, doing laundry and basically getting ready for a 4 day trip up the Western coast of Florida.

                                             US IN COCONUT GROVE
                              (Overlooking the Dinner Key Marina and Mooring Field)

                                                   ED AND TERESA

                                         ADAM AND SCOTT (at the wheel)

                                     A L AT HER BERTH IN MARATHON

Sometimes a number of things happen and you know it is time to re-evaluate your plans.  That is what happened and it happened even before we left Punta Gorda.
Without going into too much detail we had a very hectic December and January-Colorado for Christmas, a major move from our condo with all of our furniture going into storage, trip to Florida, move onto the boat and a cruise.  Now I know most of this sounds absolutely delightful but it was a logistical and organizational nightmare for me.  I started having some serious memory problems, compounded by the fact that we found that I had missed checks, both paying and receiving, for November and December.  I knew by the time we left Houston for the boat that something was wrong.  We discussed it and assumed  that with our cruise (mindless) that we would have a chance to settle down and focus.  To some extent that happened and by the time we returned from the cruise we were ready to go.  Two days, however, before we left Dave had a conference call from his insurance clients.  The docket that we call our "pension plan" was being pulled and sent to an Austin law firm.  Not good.  We had to make some major decisions and basically we were all over the map.  Each day we had a different plan - the plan du jour - as we called it.  Since our son was coming half way around the world to sail out of Miami that was an easy decision.  Our next goal is to get this boat back to Punta Gorda and for both of us to go to Houston for me to seek some medical attention.  (A side note on this - my sister,  she's pretty well versed on this, has pointed me in the direction of stress and memory loss. I have finally looked this up and there is tons of literature on this. I choose to hold onto this but do want some definitive answers).  So, the next 4 days will be spent going up the western coast of Florida with hopefully, medical visits the week of the 25th or the first week of March. We will be joined in Marco Island by my brother, John, for the trip back to Punta Gorda  We will keep you posted.

                      THE DINGHY DOCK AT MARATHON CITY MARINA

Dave here---Yes--another "Perfect Storm". The insurance client decided to consolidate  the cases with a firm that already represents a number of their insureds in this litigation--a good business decision---but a bummer for me. Oh well, maybe I'll fully retire from the practice of law this time--eh-----probably not. But our first concern is to get Diane's head "right". I truly believe that the problem is a general sense of unsettledness (which I, too, share), along with the added stress of everything that we've had to do over the last month or so. We feel currently (but things seem to change so fast) that we need to get back to Houston and get Diane checked out and also concentrate on finding  a new "land based" home in the Houston area. Their's another factor as well---While we've had a marvelous trip so far--really good sailing and 95% great weather, the boat doing well (with minor issues) we miss our family and friends. There couldn't be two people more in love and compatible than us but we now know that we would realy like to do the rest of our cruising with some additional company--teaching the grandkids to snorkle, sharing the sunsets with good friends, etc--we just don't have the room to do it on this boat, so we're even thinking of selling her and concentrating on doing more frequent charters on bigger boats in all of the beautiful sailing areas we've visited over the years. Right now, though, we've got to get back to Houston and get settled and get the good diagnosis that I know we'll get once back.
Soooo---please wish us well with fair winds and we'll see you soon.
                               Life is still good----while it ain't perfect, we still feel so thankful for the opportunities that we've had and the promises of our future.

                    




                                                                                                   
                                                            

UP THE FLORIDA COAST TO MIAMI

                             APPROACHING MIAMI FROM BISCAYNE BAY

We left Marathon after topping off the fuel on Tues., Feb. 5 and motor sailed most of the way east to Rodriguez Key. The wind was just off our nose to starboard and the seas  were a bit rolly from the starboard beam. We raised the main to help with the rolling from side to side as the waves hit us on the beam (raising the main sail has the effect of damping the roll. Because it provides resistance against the air as the boat rocks back and forth it lessens the amount of roll and makes for a much more comfortable sail). Shortly later the wind began to clock just enough around to the south that we actually got a little bit of lift from the main sail and increased our speed by a fair amount. Nonetheless, we just made Rodriguez key about a half hour before sunset and dropped the hook in 10 feet of water on the north side, protected from the southerly wind and rolling seas. We had a beautiful sunset and a wonderful and comfortable night on the hook.
Wed. morning--up and at it again. This time we were able to sail without engine assist most of the way to Biscayne bay and the Dinner Key Marina, ariving at around 3 in the afternoon. After securing the boat and hooking up the power at the marina we took a walk into Coconut Grove. (The main reason we like this marina is that it is contiguous to the Coconut Grove area--a very quaint, neat part of Miami with lots of sidewalk cafe's, bars and restaurants--shopping for those who are into that--and fairly close to the Publix where we plan to provision before being joined by our son and his friend on Friday. So, we walked around C.Grove awhile--good to be able to stretch our legs a bit--stopped at Johhny Rockets for a sidewalk rootbeer float and fudge sundae, a stop at the CVS and spotted a nearby nail bar where Diane can get her much needed pedicure---honestly--those nails were 3 inches long and sharp as a knife. She really needed a pedicure after having one in Ft Myers before we left (Sarcasm added)
Today, (after the pedicure) we'll walk to the Publix and carry back some groceries for the next several days--enough to feed us and Scott and friend.
Speaking of Scott and friend--they're supposed to fly out of NYC on Fri night--just as that huge storm is scheduled to strike. So we're concerned they may be delayed a day or two. In the meantime we are to meet our Kingwood friends, Ed and Teresa Dormer here either Friday or Saturday and are having lunch with some local friends Ann Sheldon, Randy and Judy McKean (friends from Vail who live here). But mostly, today, we're just hanging out and relaxing and enjoying the beautiful weather. Well, the toe girl just got back and we're heading off for a walk and our provisioning run.
See ya later...
                                                          

Moving on Down the Coast

 
Sunrise on the Little Shark riverWell, guess what-----There is less than 23 feet of water in the Marco Island channel area---and guess what-----I found it. "Red Right Returning" ? I wish someone had told me!!
When you get distracted in a narrow channel early in the morning you run aground. At least that's what happened to me----Yep----was right of the "green" and found 4 feet of water---had to call Tow Boat US (a division of Boat US--for about $120/ year they'll come get you anywhere free of charge) He arrived within 20 minutes of my call and we were off and in deep water within 5 minutes of his arrival---Whew.
Now we had to worry about making the 60 mile run down to the Little Shark River anchorage and getting in in daylight. WE did and we did. Going out of Marco was a bit rough as the wind and 5 to 6 foot waves were on our nose just a bit to starboard  and we were rolling all over the place until we could turn to port and put the waves and wind (18 knots) on our stern. From there we had a very pleasant sail down the coast, arriving at our destination at the mouth of the Little Shark just before sunset. We had just enough time to scout the area and find a good spot to drop the hook before settling in for the night. (Side-note---Despite the remoteness of the location I was able tp get the Super Bowl--what a yawner--on the TV with our on mast digital TV antenna--whodathunk?)

                                          THE "ADMIRAL" AT THE HELM     
Monday we rose early and had a very pleasant sail south toward the Keys, 7 Mile Bridge and Marathon. We needed to run the engine to boost our speed up to an average 6 1/2 knots but it runs quietly at low RPM's and it really was enjoyable (Chuck--not as nice as two years ago when we didn't need the engine on this part of the sail)
The farther south we got the bluer the water--gorgeous.

                                          #*^*&^%** CRAB POTS
They're everywhere--thousands of them---strung together in lines/groups of 8 or 10 or so. They are a real nuisance (but since I love crab I guess we have to put up with it). The only thing marring a lot of our sailing down and then back up the coast of Fla. are these darn things. Whereas we would like to just set the sails and put the boat on auto-pilot, just checking ahead occasionally, we can't--we have to keep a constant vigil lest our ruder, or worse, opur prop gets hung up in the attached llines. From time to time you get a respite and find yourself in a stretch of water where, for some reason, there are no pots. This is true of the areas of Marine Sanctuaries that appear occasionally along the coast.

                                                          Dolphins
Dolphins are better. They have a knack of avoiding your boat and are always welcome company when under sail

                        7 Mile Bridge--Gateway to the Atlantic and Marathon

WE arrived at Marathon early Monday afternoon and had enough time to meet some fellow cruisers, share a coldy, take a shower and have an absolutely fabulous dinner, watching the sunset at "Lazy Days" just a 3 minute walk from our slip at the  Marathon Marina ( We chose to go to a marina rather than the mooring field this time as we were only staying one night and felt like enjoying the convenience of being tied up where we could step off the boat rather than have to put the dinghy in the water and then replace it on deck). We highly recommend Lazy Days. The sunset view was magnificent and the only thing better than our dinner was our lunch of fish tacos the next day from our leftovers from the night before.
It's been a truly easy and uneventful sail so far and the forecast is for more of the same. Life is good!!                                                                              
                                                        


            

FINALLY !!!!!!

This time it's for real (or as our daughter used to say, "for really". We departed on schedule on time. After a few last minute preps, like putting our car in storage and filling water tanks, and beer cooler with ice (forgot the beer!) we departed Burnt Store marina at 7:30 AM on Friday, Feb 1. We knew we would have some fairly strong winds heading out Charlotte Harbor as we were on the tail end of a pretty strong cold front that made it through here the day before (This was the one that froze the mid-west last week). We got a bit more than we expected----winds out of the north at between 16 and 20 knots with gusts up to 26. Seas were in the 3 to 5 foot range with an occasional 6 footer. Fortunately they were on our starboard beam aft of center, so while it was a rolly ride it was reasonably comfortable even while surfing down one of the big ones at over 8 knots (hull speed on our boat is just 71/2). The bigger issue was---It was COLD---AGAIN---If you followed our blog of our trip over here in 2010-11 you'll remember us describing the coldest winter known to man---well, here we go again. The non-wind chill was in the low forties as we left Burnt Store. But we knew it would warm up during the day--and it did.
At the speed we were sailing (under jib sail only) we made Cayo Costa island in record time, turned south into the ICW (putting the wind directly on our tail for a smoother ride) and continued on down the ICW to FT Myers beach under just 1/3 of our jib (the jib is the head sail--it's on a furling system that allows you to wrap it up around itself. This system also permits you to wrap it up partially, as small as you want). Even with such a small sail and the wind on our stern we still moved along at a brisk 6.5 knots.
The wind began to subside around lunch time and the temp finally rose into the low 70's, but we never got out of our layered garb until arriving at the marina.
WE arrived at the marina (Moss Marine) at around 3 in the afternoon and tucked in for the night--met some nice people--Don and Cindi Petersen, from Lost Wages, Nevada. doing the same thing we are doing except they're headed the other way. They've already been out for several months.
Saturday, we rose a little later than usual to softer weather conditions and a short trip off shore down to Marco Island---It was fabulous---wind at around 13 to 15 off our port beam and sea conditions that would simply rock you to sleep---blue sky and warm enough to take off the wind-breakers. We departed Ft Myers Beach at 8:30, headed off-shore , sailed on down past Estero Beach, Naples, etc. and eventually into Marco Island to a very nice Marina at Factory Bay.
WE had been told by several people that the entrance into Marco Island could be pretty tricky so, as we were headed in the channel we turned back out to sea to wait for another sail boat headed in, hailed him on the radio and determined he was a local and  followed him through the unusual twists and turns at the entrance. We never saw less than 23 feet of water but at one spot the GPS shows you actually going over land--an island that was "moved" during the last big storm. (That's what happens down here--the geography changes constantly with tides, currents and storms so it's always a good idea when in a new area to ask for a little local knowledge and not rely completely on GPS charts (maps) that may have been created 5 or more years ago.)
We've both been a bit rusty with our sail handling and other chores on the boat but it's coming back quickly. It's great to be back on the water in this beautiful place. Just checked in with Scott and he has landed safely after his flight from Beijing and we can't wait to see him in Miami on Friday. The weather looks great for a fun week on the East coast if not over to Bimini or beyond (again--depends on whether we get a good weather window to cross the Gulf stream).
Tomorrow we head for an overnight anchorage at the mouth of the Little Shark River, in the Everglades--check out SPOT-and then on to Marathon, in the Keys. I'm sure I won't have internet at Little Shark so it will be a couple of days before the next post
I know--I know--I promised photos and videos. Hey, it's enough that we've accomplished as much as we have--get off my back!!! We'll start posting some photos in our next post. Till then----Keep living and loving.