PREPARATIONS

 We're getting ready to hit the road to Florida. The picture below is of our "staging area"--our study. It's almost like moving into  another house. We'll need linens, utensils, pots and pans, pillows, tools, office supplies, recreation stuff (fishing poles, golf clubs, etc.), computer, printer, of course clothes, shoes and lastly--food incl. spices and condiments.  (Don't forget beer, wine and vodka) I've been making a list of stuff we need to take with us and so far I'm at number 36. Hope there's enough room in the truck.

 The plan is to drive as far as we can the first day, spend the night in a virus infested hotel and then drive to Ft. Myers where we will meet with the broker and "close" the deal; then on to Key Largo to take possession of the boat and start moving aboard. We hope the sellers have completed all the required repairs and have left the boat clean enough for us to move aboard and spend the night. Hopefully we'll be able to work a deal with the marina where the boat is presently to give us a couple of days to get settled before we move the boat to our "permanent" home at the White Marlin Marina on Fat Deer Key, in the town of Marathon. We spent a month or so at this marina back in 2016 (see prior posts for photos). It's a very nice marina--well located in the middle Keys, very well protected and very well run.

The boat is presently on the Florida Bay side (The Gulf side) and we have never really explored that side. Many cruisers stay on this side as it is protected from the Atlantic swells, but it is rather shallow and one has to pay close attention navigating . The marina we'll be moving to is on the Atlantic side (although a bit inland and protected) so we'll need to travel down the Gulf side Intercoastal waterway to a place where we can cross over through one of the passes--probably 5 Mile Bridge. We'd like to spend a few days in the current location just to get settled in and familiar with the boat before we take her out to transit to White Marlin.

This boat did not come with a tender/dinghy, so we had to buy one, plus outboard and will have to drive up to Ft. Lauderdale to pick them up. Made the deal over the phone so all we have to do is go get them.

Interesting fact---In shopping around for the boat, then the dinghy and outboard we learned that there has been a recent run on all things boating---just like motor homes and, apparently, second homes---all brought on by the pandemic and people's desires to get out of the house into some somewhat protected activity. Our boat broker tells us he has never been busier and good boats last only days on the market. We had a lot of trouble finding the boat we wanted. In shopping for the dinghy and outboard I had quite a bit of trouble finding any available---all the manufacturers are back-ordered and it is taking months to get new equipment. I just got lucky (I actually bought the outboard from a Honda motorcycle dealer as opposed to a marine supplier) and was able to get the last dinghy of my specification from the Avon dealer in FT. Lauderdale. His was the only one in town. The dinghy becomes your "car", enabling you to get from anchored boat to shore and also allows for shallow water exploring of coves and islands---it's a necessity. We're looking forward to a lot of fun dinghying around the islands.

We'll let you know how our "plan" goes in our next post---once we're in and settled. 

Looks Like It's Going To Happen

        Attended the survey of the boat a week or so ago and it went well. As in any 13 year old boat there were a number of items that need to be addressed and the sellers have agreed to make the repairs. Nothing major at all. The yacht surveyor that I hired indicated that the major systems (engines, transmissions, hull integrity, through-hulls, electronics, air conditioners, generator, appliances) all were in excellent working order. For being 13 years old this boat had surprisingly few hours on the engines and generator. That can be good---and that can be bad. If a boat just sits around and doesn't get some regular usage, gaskets, seals etc may "dry out'" All of the "moving parts" checked out just fine despite a rather vigorous sea trial and I learned that the brokerage people that were holding this boat had been using it fairly regularly while waiting on a buyer---that's a good thing. So, it looks like it's going to go through and we will close on the 28th of October, take off for Florida and take possession. We've already reserved a slip at one of our favorite marinas in Marathon--White Marlin Marina--(see earlier posts--early like in 2015) on a month-to-month basis and we will base out of there while we rediscover the Keys.

        But---before we can begin our exploring we need to acquire a new dinghy/yacht tender. Often yachts are sold with their tenders as part of the deal--this one was not, so we'll stop off in Naples or Ft. Lauderdale or Miami to look for a new tender. WOW! have those things gone up in price since we last ventured on the water--and there are very few, if any, used ones available. They have always been a very hot commodity.

        Needless to say, Diane and I are extremely excited and ready to renew our affinity for blue waters and white sand beaches. We pray (and ask for yours) that our health and vitality remain good and we can enjoy to the fullest this new stage in our lives. It was our realization, as we sat on that deck in Vail, that we only probably had a few years left to be able to do this, that led to a rather spontaneous (and surprising) decision to go forward. Wish us good luck.