Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Time to move


March 8, 2013

I entered the fun volleyball tournament, six teams of nine, we managed to get together as a team and together we won five out of five games… Woo Hoo... First place won a flag and a bottle of rum for each member. In the afternoon was practice for the four on four tournaments on Wednesday, and played 10 or more games. These will be a lot tougher games. Some of the players are very good and able to cover much of the court on their own. Much attention to the rules and legal play… should still do ok though even though many of the players played in college. The two on two and three on three players are very good…

Well the 4 on 4 volleyball tournaments went well and we only lost one game out of seven for the best winning results and clinched the first place prize and another bottle of rum.  Last night was the closing dance and prize giveaway. My friend Steve on Slow Flight got a 5 nights on a mooring in Vero Beach that he didn’t need and gave that to me. Thanks Steve…

I may go to Long Island after this for a few days before the long slow trip back to Florida… More to follow… I signed up for the rally to Long Island and will head north from there. I hope to spend a few nights in Black Point and one or two at my favorite spot off Galliot and then Staniel’s Cay and Pipe Creek and Warderick Wells before heading to Nassau. From Nassau I will then to Bimini and on to Ft. Lauderdale and hope to be there sometime in April… These are all tentative plans depending on the weather and my mood. So now you all know… I am selling my Cuba chart book to a young couple here with a cute little girl and a baby so they can go to Cuba too.

Update
I am off to Long Island in the morning for a few days. I will try to get back online there but may go silent until I get up to Black Point in a week or so.

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

March 5, 2013


Sailing with Jeanne

Now that the kids are gone we can relax and enjoy the island time together.  No more need to be somewhere at a specific time is a much better feeling to have.  We have been spending mornings at Flip Flop beach working on my tan lines when it was cooler for Jeanne and then I would play volleyball in the afternoon as Jeanne relaxes under the Caseopia trees. In the evenings we could meet friends for cards or dominoes. More boats are arriving and some leaving every day and I will need to decide if I am going to go to Cuba this year. Jeanne has decided to go back home to work at the end of January. She likes that job and the people she works with and they have offered to extend her contract to November.  We decided to stay in George Town at least until she left here. I just received an email from Graham; he will be flying in for two weeks on the day Jeanne leaves. 

Graham’s visit was great; we had a good time here even though I didn’t feel like going to sail to other islands.

March 2 2013

I just received word that David will not be joining me so it is time to make plans for a slow trip back north. Today started out mild with very light winds but as forecast the winds went suddenly up to about 25 knots. It is now about 20:00 and I have seen gusts to 40+ knots. It is a little choppy but the anchor is holding tight. The ride back in the dingy from town was a little wild with about 3 foot waves and the wind gusts trying to lift the dingy when I’d ride over a big wave but I made it safely back to the boat. I plan to stay here through the regatta and then may head to Salt Pond Long Island for a few days before I start my trip north. I entered the volleyball tournament and will see how we do over the next few days.

It will be next week before I get back online and then the next front will be here Wednesday or Thursday with stronger winds forecast. Maybe I will go to Cuba if I get to Miami too early and it is cold up north. I have come to the conclusion that I need more battery amp hours and will get 4 6volt batteries for next year and a wind generator.

March 4, 2013

I entered the fun volleyball tournament, six teams of nine, we managed to get together as a team and together we won five out of five games… Woo Hoo... First place won a flag and a bottle of rum for each member. In the afternoon was practice for the four on four tournaments on Wednesday, and played 10 or more games. These will be a lot tougher games. Some of the players are very good and able to cover much of the court on their own. Much attention to the rules and legal play… I should still do ok though even though many of the players played in college. The two on two and three on three players are very good…

I may go to Long Island after this for a few days before the long slow trip back to Florida… More to follow…

Monday, January 21, 2013

A much delayed update Jan 21, 2013


Sailing South 2012 / 2013

We left Green Cove after working on the boat for two weeks installing a new shelf, solar panels and bow roller extension among the many other chores to get the boat ready to launch.

The trip started out pleasant enough though for most of this trip the winds have been from the wrong direction. Our first stop was Jacksonville Landing for the night. In the morning we left with the tide and to get through the bridge before it closed for the morning rush hour. The timing of the tide was spot on and we rode the outgoing tide all the way to the intracoastal and then rode the incoming tide and following outgoing tide though the intracoastal all the way to St Augustine.

After spending a couple days seeing St Augustine we again headed south using the tide to help us along. Our next stop was Daytona Beach for the night and in the morning we headed for Titusville. We planned a long run for the day and late that afternoon we passed by Titusville and had a celebratory drink as we toasted passing the farthest point south that Jeanne had reached the first year. We had just enough time to make the next bridge before it closed for rush hour and anchored off Cocoa Beach for the night. We planned to relax in Vero Beach so we left at dawn for the next long run southwards.

Arriving late in the afternoon we pumped out and topped up with fuel and water and went out to a mooring and shut down the diesel. The water pump was leaking sea water onto the battery and I needed to replace the seal. We planned to stay a few days in Vero as the bus into town is free and stores are convenient for shopping and a beach and shops is a short walk away. Our time is spent relaxing and meeting new friends and shopping for necessities; and of course trinkets and gifts for the grandkids. While there Vero Beach holds its annual Christmas Parade. I locate a Volvo parts place in Ft Lauderdale on our last day there and arrange for a pump rebuild kit for when we get to Ft Lauderdale. Just before we leave I find out about another Volvo parts place in Vero Beach…

Our next stop was Manatee Pocket close to a cousins Florida condo. And we arrange to meet her for lunch while there. We met her for lunch and took her out to the boat for a bit and said our good byes. In the morning were headed out to the ocean for a long sail down to Ft Lauderdale. Unfortunately the winds were a little too far forward to sail and we had to motor sail or tack out to the Gulf Stream. After one tack we motor sailed the rest of the way and sailed into Fort Worth and then motored down the Intracoastal an hour and anchored for the night. The next day we did the bridge dance all the way to Fort Lauderdale and the Las Olas Marina. We had arranged for parts for the leaky water pump to be delivered there to affect repairs to it. We planned to spend three days there relaxing and seeing the city. For smaller boats like ours the dockage was almost as cheap as the moorings and much more convenient.

The repair went quickly and the rest of the time was spent seeing sights and shopping. We made plans to return and see the parade of lights when we were to pick up friends, Jackie and Dave. We made friends with a couple on the boat next to us who were living aboard and spent the winters down here. Bringing your own boat and the dockage is much cheaper than renting a hotel for the winter, and in a much nicer location.

After a few days we moved on to Miami. Our next stop was South Beach, an area of upscale shops and the haunt of the beautiful people. South beach is nice but a little expensive and after a few days we were ready to move on but not until we’d walked the beach and had a drink in a few of the trendy bars.

Next we went to Coconut Grove where we had a little incident with a submerged pipe but in the process made several new friends who helped in one way or another to affect the repairs. By the time Jackie and Dave arrived the rudder shaft was straight again with just some fiberglass work to be done to complete the repair. I can’t thank the friends we now have enough for helping get us into sailing mode again. We were soon on our way to the Bahamas and checked in at Bimini. I asked for and got 120 days on the permit and the visitor’s visa. We spent 2 days in Bimini and then headed out for the long overnight sail to Nassau arriving the in the afternoon of the next day. Spending a few nights there to stock up on supplies and watch the Junkanoo festival, an all-night parade and celebration in a Mardi’s Gras way. It is a lot of noise and crowds and costumes and floats with dancing and music.

A few days later we headed out for Allen’s Cay where we would anchor and could dingy ashore to feed the iguanas. In the morning we got an early start with our destination being Big Major’s Spot where the previous year there was a new year’s party on the beach. It didn’t happen this year but I made my banana bread anyways. Jackie and Dave had to fly home new year’s eve but the flights were full from Staniel’s so they left a day early an booked a room overnight in New Providence. Flying in and out of these Islands is an adventure in itself as Jeanne’s daughter Jennifer would find out soon enough.

After a few days we headed to Black Point and the hospitality of Lorraine’s CafĂ© and Scorpio’s Bar and happy hours. We planned to stay there until Jennifer and Dylan arrived. The market there is small but there is a good Laundromat with new coin showers and water available and other things to make the stay pleasant.

 

Dylan Update

Well our grandson just left in a taxi for George Town airport, they will be flying to Nassau via Rock Sound and then on to Atlanta and Detroit. I hope the return is less eventful than the trip out where a small ticketing snafu had them get off at the wrong island. They were able to flag the plane back down and hop over to the Black Point where we were waiting. For Dylan this was just another of life’s new adventures and he made the best of it. For mom it was it was slightly stressful but she also enjoyed the time we had, even with my phobia about water and battery usage. The first stop was a few days in Black Point where we met old friends and some new ones. Dylan made a few friends on the other boats with kids on them and happy hour was a happy time for about a half dozen kids. We took the dingy around the point to another island with an iguana sanctuary and Dylan delighted in the little lizards although he didn’t get overly close to them. What he did like was the “looky bucket” where we could float over a reef and watch the sea life below. Ohh and Lorraine says hello to all her friends and hopes to see them all again.

Our next stop was Big Majors Spot with the swimming pigs. It was a delight to feed and watch the pigs swimming in the sea and we had heard there were piglets though we didn’t see them. The next day we went over to Staniel’s and swam in Thunderball Grotto and fed the fish peas as they swarmed around us. On the sail from Black Point to Big Majors Spot we had a dolphin swimming with the boat and Dylan was up on the bow watching him until he tired of our slow boat and swam away. After two nights there we headed south and joined up with three other boats with kids aboard, and snorkeled on a small reef. Later we got together on Aileon for a potluck dinner and let the kids play while we relaxed and talked.

The next morning we headed out Rudder Cut on our way to George Town. The winds were marginal for sailing south east and eventually we simply Motor sailed into a tight reach and big waves. We passed through 4 rain squalls with winds up to 30 knots. We arrived at George Town and anchored off Stocking Island about 16:30.  Dylan had a good three days to relax, wade with the stingrays, play on the sandy beach, collect shells, check out the huge starfish, play in the surf on the ocean side beach, meet again and say goodbye to his new friends before they flew out at 06:00 Saturday morning. The boat got much bigger and way quieter after they left. Everyone had a good time.