And so begins Dick & Donna’s ICW Adventure, Part II, The Return
We dropped the lines off the mooring ball at 0704 hours only to find we have no power to the prop. We did a quick anchor drop and began the process of diagnosing the problem. I found the shaft spinning inside the coupling and no sign of a key in the shaft/coupling or anywhere in the engine pan area. We searched the tool boxes and spare parts for a key or key material but found none. I did locate a round pin made of aluminum. I placed it in the keyway and drove it in. It looked like it was holding under load so we weighed anchor and got underway around 0800 hours. We motored 8 miles down the St. Lucie River and entered the ICW northbound. There was a light west wind so I rolled out the jib to give the motor a little assistance. We were making between 6.2 to 7.3 mph depending on the wind strength. When we reached Ft. Pierce, the wind piped up hard and came around on the nose. Wind and current kept us below 5 mph the remainder of the trip to Vero Beach. We pull into the municipal marina and share mooring #16 with two Canadian boats. Checked the weather forecast and it doesn’t look good for a few days. High, 20 -30 knot, northerly winds are expected to dominate. After dinner Buddy and I conched out leaving Donna to watch TV.
Location: Vero Beach moorings at MM 952. Boat distance traveled, 45 miles. Time in actual transit, 9 hours. Top speed 7.3 mph, average speed 7.0 mph
Suddenly it's time to head home.
Time sort of gets away from you when you are having such a great time. Before we knew it April was upon us. Our winter home was scheduled to close for for a big renovation project at the end of April. All boats had to be gone from the anchorage. Our original plan had been to sail north to Daytona and stay awhile. Donna would fly home for the retreat, fly back and then we would continue the trip home to VA. Getting the car home with this plan complicated things.
A new 2 part plan developeds; part 1, sail to Daytona, rent a car, drive back to Stuart, retrieve our car and drive back to Daytona. Part 2 involved flying our friend Jan from VA to Daytona. Jan and Donna would play "touristas" for a few days in FL, drive to Savannah for more fun and then home for the retreat. After the retreat, Donna would then fly back to Daytona and we would continue our trip home aboard Ninkasi.
What about Me? Seems I am left abandoned all alone in sunny Daytona Beach for almost a month. Pulleeze, don't throw me in dat briar patch!!
A new 2 part plan developeds; part 1, sail to Daytona, rent a car, drive back to Stuart, retrieve our car and drive back to Daytona. Part 2 involved flying our friend Jan from VA to Daytona. Jan and Donna would play "touristas" for a few days in FL, drive to Savannah for more fun and then home for the retreat. After the retreat, Donna would then fly back to Daytona and we would continue our trip home aboard Ninkasi.
What about Me? Seems I am left abandoned all alone in sunny Daytona Beach for almost a month. Pulleeze, don't throw me in dat briar patch!!
The Life Style Changes
Back in FL, we begin to see our new lifestyle change. The almost daily routine of taking the dinghy to shore and socializing in the lounge remains, but activities with the car take us to new and more distant places. In some cases to places we had planned to visit by boat. We make trips to visit the parents of friends across the state in Fort Myers and Donna's old workmate friend in St Petersburg. Donna explored the shopping opportunities in Ft Lauderdale and Palm Beach. In February, we traveled to Miami and attended the Miami International Boat Show & Strictly Sail.
We drove down to Marathon in the Keys to visit friends Kathy and Dutch and stayed aboard their catamaran Drifter III. We enjoyed the trip and our time with them so much we decided to make a second trip so we could visit Key West. On the second trip we rented a room at a small family resort and stayed for three days while we explored the area.
Life was good but our plans to sail beyond Stuart seemed to be usurped by the car. Our friends Larry, Walter and Maggie, and Terry and Kitty still wanted to sail to the Bahamas and finally settled on a departure in mid March. This late departure did not sit well with us because of Donna's commitment to be back in VA by mid April for an artists retreat. We decided to stay put and bid our friends adieu as they headed further south to wait for a weather window to cross over to the Bahamas. About a week later, that decision led to another car trip south to visit those same friends stuck in Ft Lauderdale still waiting on a weather window. Two weeks later that same decision proved a good one as our friends abandoned their trip and returned to Stuart.
We drove down to Marathon in the Keys to visit friends Kathy and Dutch and stayed aboard their catamaran Drifter III. We enjoyed the trip and our time with them so much we decided to make a second trip so we could visit Key West. On the second trip we rented a room at a small family resort and stayed for three days while we explored the area.
Life was good but our plans to sail beyond Stuart seemed to be usurped by the car. Our friends Larry, Walter and Maggie, and Terry and Kitty still wanted to sail to the Bahamas and finally settled on a departure in mid March. This late departure did not sit well with us because of Donna's commitment to be back in VA by mid April for an artists retreat. We decided to stay put and bid our friends adieu as they headed further south to wait for a weather window to cross over to the Bahamas. About a week later, that decision led to another car trip south to visit those same friends stuck in Ft Lauderdale still waiting on a weather window. Two weeks later that same decision proved a good one as our friends abandoned their trip and returned to Stuart.
The 2007 Christmas Dilemmas
The next dilemma was whether to wait and return with Larry or fly back. Another command decision and we're driving south in our land yacht. Now we have a boat and car in FL and the new lifestyle changes a bit.
Dec 2007 - Buddy finally adapts...a little!
Buddy seems to finally be settling down. He hated the engine noise when we motored which was almost daily as we traveled south. Like most cats we read about, he headed for the vberth and hid behind some pillows or blanket when the motor started. Donna would bring him into the cockpit as we traveled but he never liked it, especially when forced to wear his PFD. 
On the mooring ball with no motor running, Buddy became more adverturous. Buddy would scare the bjesus out of us by jumping up on the bimini, the boom and later into the dinghy. He eventually developed three favorite spots, the boom, the bimini and the starboard side helmsman seat.He also made new friends. This one pelican seemed to delight in teasing him by floating close by the boat. He would also run all about to see the dolphins as they fed in the morning. We finally became more comfortable with Buddy running about the deck especially after his one and only splash down.
Thankfully, Buddy's splash down was a longtime in the making. It finally occured when he discovered the dinghy tied astern. The 10' painter allowed the dink to sail about in the breeze, but when there was no breeze it would occasionally drift up next to the boat. Never missing a chance to be curious, we were quite suprised to see him leap into the dinghy and walk about the tubes. On one occasion, a puff of breeze started to push the dink away and Buddy decided it was time to come back. As he pushed off with those powerful hind legs, the dink just scooted away and he fell short, ker-splash. Screaming "Cat in the Water" and reaching for a hereto unused dip net, I was amazed to see Buddy swim a few strokes, grab the boarding ladder and clamber aboard. Fortunately, I was able to grab him and prevent him from carrying a ton of river water below into the salon. Was he humbled and a little more cautious...yep, but not for long.
December 2007 - A new routine develops.
Since this is all being added after-the-fact (learning this blogging stuff), the next few entries will provide a little insight into how we spent the winter in Florida.
A typical routine begins to take shape. Sleeping-in however isn't in the cards. Any number of things seems to wake Dick. Buddy insisting on being feed at first light, local crabbers motoring by, dinghies headed to shore and dolphins venting next to the boated top the list of wake-up alarms. Sleeping with the boat wide open in December, who would have thought it. The alarms for Donna are always the same; Dick clattering about in the galley and then the smell of coffee.
Life has begun to revolve around the dinghy. It's our connection to shore for socializing, shopping, laundry, showers, and most importantly, knowledge. Slowly we begin to develop new friendships with other "snowbirds" and liveaboards who are also "living on the ball". As newbies, we have a tremendous thirst for information about anything that will make our new lifestyle easier and more enjoyable. The anchorage lounge became a daily stop for coffee, wifi connection, socializing and knowledge. Knowledge is, as everyone knows, a powerful thing, but in boating it can also be expensive as you will see later.
A typical routine begins to take shape. Sleeping-in however isn't in the cards. Any number of things seems to wake Dick. Buddy insisting on being feed at first light, local crabbers motoring by, dinghies headed to shore and dolphins venting next to the boated top the list of wake-up alarms. Sleeping with the boat wide open in December, who would have thought it. The alarms for Donna are always the same; Dick clattering about in the galley and then the smell of coffee.
Life has begun to revolve around the dinghy. It's our connection to shore for socializing, shopping, laundry, showers, and most importantly, knowledge. Slowly we begin to develop new friendships with other "snowbirds" and liveaboards who are also "living on the ball". As newbies, we have a tremendous thirst for information about anything that will make our new lifestyle easier and more enjoyable. The anchorage lounge became a daily stop for coffee, wifi connection, socializing and knowledge. Knowledge is, as everyone knows, a powerful thing, but in boating it can also be expensive as you will see later.
Day 30, Monday, November 26, 2007
We’re up at 0530. We made coffee and had a good breakfast. After that I did a dinghy run in to shore to dump the trash and turn in the shower keys. It was a beautiful morning in the basin.
We got underway about 0730. We got a little help from the end of the tide cycle but it did not last long. Next it was the tide against us and then the wind filled in against us too. As the wind increased to 15+, out boat speed dropped to 5 mph or less. It became a long day.
We got underway about 0730. We got a little help from the end of the tide cycle but it did not last long. Next it was the tide against us and then the wind filled in against us too. As the wind increased to 15+, out boat speed dropped to 5 mph or less. It became a long day.
We finally arrived at the St. Lucie Inlet “Crossroads” where we turned off the ICW (MM987) and started up the St. Lucie River. There were lots and lots of very big multimillion dollar homes on the shoreline of the river. We even got to motor sail with the jib for a while. We had to pass under three bridges, two fixed high rise and one bascule. Just past the third bridge was our new “home port”, the mooring field of Southpoint Anchorage in Stuart, FL. We contacted the office via the VHF and got our mooring assignments. We picked up #82 and Larry is on #81. Day-O said so long and continued on to their condo/dock a couple of miles further up river. Our GPS trip odometer said we had traveled 1040 miles since leaving Portsmouth, VA.
We celebrated our arrival with a few drinks and sat on deck in the warmth just enjoying the views and a great sense of accomplishment. At dusk we went below and fixed dinner. Later Donna played on the computer and I sat out in the cockpit. In time exhaustion overtook us both and we fell asleep. Later, I awoke, went below, woke Donna and we both crawled into the V-berth and went back to sleep. It was a wonderfully peaceful night.
Location: Southpoint Anchorage, Stuart, FL. ICW marker: 987. Today’s progress: 43 Statute Miles
Total Distance Traveled: 1040 miles.
Weather Holds: 4 days
Sightseeing: 2 days (1 day and 2 half days)
Actual travel: 25 days
Average mileage per travel day: 42 Statute Miles
Our view North
The view South
Looking East
Looking West
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)