Georgetown, Great Exuma

Georgetown, Great Exuma
There is a Paradise!!!!

Friday, December 17, 2010

Friday December 17th 2010

Happy Holidays! Just a quick update. We spent most of the last week in Vero Beach, Florida, riding out the cold weather front that came through. Got down to 27 degrees for 2 nights, highs in the mid 50’s. We were on a mooring ball, so had to use a small propane heater, and lots of blankets at night. This is central Florida??

Vero Beach was very cruiser friendly, and we did enjoy our time there. There were a lot of people to get information from about the Bahamas, and for Dave to talk to about mechanical issues. The city also has a very good, free bus service that allows you to get to the ocean, and to the downtown area for almost any retail store you could need.

By Wednesday the 15th, the temperature warmed up just enough, so we left Vero Beach and headed for Fort Pierce. We decided that the boat needs new batteries before we cross to the Bahamas, so we have arranged to have them put in while we are here. It will take a few days. In the meantime, the temps are back up in the 70’s, and it may even hit 80 tomorrow. We are staying in a marina, and they are having a holiday potluck Saturday evening, with live music and smoked hams. Sounds like it could be fun!

As soon as the new batteries are in, and the weather is right, we will head on down the coast to Miami. In the meantime, we are preparing for Christmas. The cards have been mailed, packages have been sent, and all of the shopping is done. I’ve never been ready for the holidays a week before!! In fact, we won’t celebrate Christmas until the 29th, when Austin and Cindy will be with us, so I’m really ahead.

I hope all of your holiday preparations are going along as scheduled. If you don’t hear from us again before the big day, have a fabulous Christmas!!

Love & Hugs,

The Admiral

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Monday November 29th 2010

We intended to leave Beach Marine early this morning, but because of the tides, we missed our chance, and had to stay another day. But last night we had the opportunity to reconnect with some sailing friends from Jacksonville, Jennifer and John. We had a great time sharing our summer adventures with them.

We spent this extra day doing boat projects, paying bills, and washing bedding. All things that needed to be done, and now we had the time to do them. It was a quiet and peaceful day.

Tuesday November 30th 2010

The last day of November??? How did that happen? We left with the early high tide, and headed down the ICW to St. Augustine. What a great city! And, they have one of the nicest municipal marinas. We arrived in the early afternoon, and spent a few hours walking around town, before meeting up with Phil and Roxy-the wonder dog, our friends from Green Cove Springs. Fortunately, we happened upon a dog specialty shop, and I was able to buy some treats. Can’t meet Roxy unarmed!

I wasn’t sure that Roxy would remember me, but I needn’t have worried. The moment she spotted me in the crowd, she was ready to break into a dead run. Thank goodness, Phil saw what was happening and had already set the brake on his wheelchair! After a few doggie treats, we were on our way to “Scarlett O’Haras”, a restaurant we had discovered on our walk. It was located next to “Rhett’s Piano Bar”. We had dinner outside on the veranda, with Roxy under the table, just waiting for the occasional scrap. Her favorite is French fries. We enjoyed hearing about the gang back in Green Cove, and Phil enjoyed a night with “normal “ people. Do Dave and I really fit that description?

We had a fabulous time! Phil seems to be doing well and is working hard on his boat, getting it ready to sail up to Long Island, New York in March. He and Roxy have their own adventure in store. We wish them well!

Wednesday December 1st 2010

We spent another day in St. Augustine, as we needed more time to investigate this old town, and because the winds are causing havoc on the seas. It was a cool, but sunny day, and we tramped from one end of the city to the other, and back again. They have a very nice walled off shopping district with many interesting shops. We poked our noses down every street we had not been on before. We also stopped in to see the dorm at Flagler College. It used to be the Ponce de Leon Hotel and Resort, back in the 1920’s-30’s. It really is too beautiful to be used as a dorm, but it was donated to the college, and had the perfect set-up to be transitioned to a dorm. Those lucky students! It looks like you are stepping into a great villa in Italy. Lots of tile, marble, and wood adornments.

We also strolled by several museums, but each one charges a steep admission price, so we decided not to stop. We had already been to the famous fort and its’ museum on a previous trip to the city, so figured we knew enough already about the oldest city in Florida.

After a long day of walking and shopping, we decided to get some dinner. Right across the street from the marina, is an old sea captain’s home, called O. C. White’s. It is now a great restaurant, with live music. We enjoyed a fantastic meal and listened to a guitarist, who sounded a lot like James Taylor. All of his music was from our collection and genre. We stretched the meal out over several hours, and left there with our tummies full and our souls filled with spirit. It was a lovely evening.

Thursday December 2nd 2010

The winds were not cooperating, so we stayed another day in St. Augustine. It is actually one of the nicest places to get stuck. The city marina is soooo nice, and also low in price. You just step off the boat, walk up the dock, and you are right in the heart of the city. All of their Christmas decorations are now up, and at night it looks like a fairy tale city, with a ton of twinkling lights. In the town park, there is a giant Christmas tree, complete with wrapped packages beneath its boughs. Every afternoon one of the churches in town has an organ playing Christmas carols for about an hour. The only thing missing is snow. Thank goodness!

We walked back into town to do some Christmas shopping. What a fun place to do that! Late in the afternoon we stopped at a New York pizza parlor to grab something to eat, and ran into Andy from “Sisu”. We arrived in town on the same day, and have been running into him and his family on several occasions. That’s how it is cruising. You meet someone, and then every few days you may see them again in another location. We are all basically headed in the same direction, with the same goal of getting to the Bahamas, so in every harbor, we see boats and people that we have seen or met before. Everyone is very friendly, and there are a lot, I mean A LOT, of Canadians out cruising. It also seems as though most of the people in trawlers (power boats), were once on sailboats themselves, so there is a much better relationship between sailors and power boaters on this coast. Since we have not been able to sail much while on the ICW, and we have now traveled over 1800 miles, we feel like we are a trawler with a mast. We look at the big comfortable trawlers go by, with their indoor steering, and wonder why we are sitting out in the cold wind. Although I must say, the new dodger is wonderful. It really helps cut down on the cold wind, except when the wind is directly behind us!

After inhaling a slice of pizza, we walked back to the marina and decided to see what musician was playing that night at O. C. Whites. We bellied up to the bar for a drink, and since it was very cold outside, I decided I would like something hot. There was a drink on their menu called the “millionaire’s coffee”. To the original brew, they add Bailey’s, Frangelica, Grand Marnier, and rum, then top it with whipped cream drizzled with chocolate. I was skeptical. It looked like too much straight coffee was in it, for my taste. Boy, was I wrong! It was so delicious, I had two of them!

When the musician showed up, it was not the same one we had seen the night before, and he was not even close to being as good. So, after warming our innards, we moseyed on back to the boat for dinner and a quiet evening at home!

Friday December 3rd 2010

Today the winds calmed a bit, so we piled on the extra clothes and headed down the ICW for Daytona. The nights have been getting very cold for Florida. Down into the lower 30’s at night, with highs in the mid 50’s during the day. Even the water temperature is in the 50’s. Feels like home, except for the sunshine!

As we pulled into the marina harbor, the channel became very shallow. We got into the harbor and the instructions we received from the harbormaster, did not jibe with what we were seeing. OOPS! We were in the north harbor and should have gone in the south. So, out through the shallow channel again, and down a bit farther to another shallow channel, and in to the gas dock for refueling. We were surprised to find no deck hands on the gas dock, as they had told us there would be, so Dave and I managed to get the boat safely moored, then Dave went looking for help with the fueling. He found all of the deck hands up in the marina office decorating for a Christmas party. AAAARRRGGGGHH!

After refueling, we slipped into our nights mooring, and then walked to the local West Marine store to buy some new water hose. It was right on the marina property, so very close, but they did not have what we needed. It was now Happy Hour, so we stopped into the Blue Bar next door. We decided to eat on the patio, as the evening temperature was quite pleasant, and sat next to a gentleman from Montreal. We exchanged stories with him. He was French-Canadian, so we had to listen to him very intently, to make sure we understood what he was saying. It was really very interesting! Our meal was nothing to brag about, and, after the sun went down, it got quite cold on the patio. Thank goodness it was just a short walk back to the boat!!

Saturday December 4th 2010

APPLE CUP!!!!! Today we headed to Titusville, Florida. Right down by Cape Canaveral. You would not believe the Mega mansions we have seen on this waterway. And, we have seen quite a few dolphins. Even some doing flips out of the water!! After getting situated at the dock, we walked up to the marina office to check in, and find out where the nearest sports bar was located, so we could watch the Huskies beat the Cougs. Lucky for us, there were a couple of options!

We ended up taking a cab to, of all places, “Dogs R Us”. We were ushered to a small booth in a corner alcove, where they turned the game on, not one, not two, but three different flat screens!!! And, they even turned on the sound for us! So, while we watched the game, we also enjoyed Rib-eye steak, a baked potato, and onion rings. Yummy! And, it turned out to be a great game, too!! Can’t believe the Huskies are really bowl bound again. Finally! What a great way to end the regular season.

Sunday December 5th 2010

Today is laundry day. Didn’t we just do this??? Oh well, the machines are plentiful and cheap, so it was easy to do. I think I picked up some kind of flu bug. Just didn’t feel too good, so sitting in the laundry room was easy to do. We had tried to go into town. We hiked up to the bus stop the marina office had told us about, only to find that the buses don’t run on Sunday. So, we were marina bound.

After my laundry duty, I went back to the boat and took a long nap, under a nice warm blanket. We spent the rest of the day in quiet mode.

Monday December 6th 2010

This was a busy day! Thankfully, I was feeling better. We started the day by renting a car, so we could get all of our errands done in one day. After a good breakfast at IHOP, we stopped at Walmart to do a little grocery shopping. It turned into a huge provisioning trip. We decided that with easy transportation, we should take advantage and really stock up for the trip over to the Bahamas. Everything in the islands is super expensive, and sometimes hard to get, so they recommend you stock up prior to crossing over. So we did!! We filled up the trunk and part of the back seat. Then off to the hardware store for the water hose. The closest West Marine was not very, so we hoped to avoid going there. Thankfully the Ace Hardware store had what we needed.

Next, we stopped at Wendy’s for a cheap lunch from their 99 cent menu, then went across the street to the JC Penney store to search for a new swim suit! No luck there, so we moved to the Sears mall and got lucky. Not only did we find one, but it was on sale! All you ladies out there know how difficult it is even to find a suit, let alone, one that is on sale!! Florida is probably one of the only states where this could happen in December!

We also stopped at Walgreens for their sale on Diet Coke, and managed to finish up on our Christmas shopping. We even got some snowflake lights for the boat. Now I just need to get all of the Christmas cards ready to mail, before we leave the United States. Seems surreal!

After gassing up the rental car, we headed back to the marina and prayed there would be a dock cart available to help get all of our goodies to the boat. Voila!!! We were in luck. It only took two trips to get everything down the dock, then we just had to get it all on the boat. In this particular mooring, we are in a 50 foot slip that is a fixed pier. That means it does not float. There is a tide here, of a few feet, so sometimes the boat is two feet below the dock and with the current, it is a foot away from the dock. This makes passage of all the goods, very tricky! It took us awhile, but we did manage to get everything on board. Then the real work began, finding space to put everything away! Plus, I had to remove the labels from all of the cans, and write what was in them, on the top, with a permanent marker. This is to prevent a cockroach infestation. They like paper, cardboard, and glue. So, I also had to take everything out of cardboard boxes, and put the contents into plastic bags, and label that. Kept me busy for a few hours!!! We still have to provision with our fresh foods and meats, just before we cross the gulfstream. When we purchase the meats, I will have to vacuum pack them for freezing. Gee, I can hardly wait!! Thanks to Norm and Kathy, I have a new Food Saver to use!!

Tuesday December 7th 2010

Time to move on down the road, to Melbourne, Florida. We had a good, but cool day on the water, and ended up in a very nice small marina. I had my doubts as we entered the channel. They told us it would get shallow, and to favor the red markers, but the depth sounder showed 3.5 feet, and then 2.9!! Because of where it is located on the boat, you have to add 2 feet for the real depth, but we draw 5.5 feet so we were sloshing through the muddy bottom! It got better, once we were in the marina harbor and safely docked.

We were next to a trawler from Vancouver, BC. They had their boat trucked to Lake Huron and then traveled to the East Coast from there. Yikes!! They really traveled a long way!! We had fun talking about the San Juan Islands and Victoria. Sounds like they will be staying on the Florida coast this winter. We will probably run into them again before we cross over. The name of their boat was “Twin Spirits”.

Speaking of boat names, we have seen: “Tuition”, “Happy Our”, “Atsah’mibote”, to
name a few. That last one took me a few minutes! Some people are way too creative!

We had dinner at the marina restaurant, “Ichabod’s”, before getting a good nights sleep in this peaceful harbor. Tonight we were expecting an all time low temperature! Great!!!

Wednesday December 8th 2010

It was so COLD last night!! A low of 31!! And this day the wind was blowing, too. We cruised on down the ICW, dressed in many layers! It seemed so unreal. We were dressed like we would have, if we were sailing at home in Seattle, in December!! Only, if we were in Seattle, I would have been smart enough to stay home!! It was so funny, we decided we needed some pictures, so those back home would believe us! The only difference is, there are palm trees here, and the sky is blue!!!

Today the ICW was a little more interesting. Instead of the usual straight line south, the route was more twisting and turning around some strategically placed islands. It just got prettier and prettier! Then suddenly, we arrived in Vero Beach, Florida. The locals call it “Velcro Beach”, since some people arrive here and never leave. They have a very large mooring field. We are very near the end of the inlet, a long way from the marina dock, on number 54. Most of the mooring balls have two or three boats on them, as boats wait here for a good weather window, to cross to the Bahamas. We actually are on a mooring, all to ourselves.

We motored over to the dinghy dock, to check out the marina facilities, and found out they have a free bus line that runs all over town. We were just in time to catch the bus, so we hopped on. Only blocks from the marina, a small car ran a stop sign, and the bus nearly collided with it. Thank goodness the bus driver was alert, and managed to avoid disaster!! After that, we had a quiet and nice drive through the ocean beach area. It looked like Palm Springs. Lots of high end shops, expensive cars, and beachfront condos. Then we turned around and headed for the downtown area of Vero. The bus took us to a large shopping area with just about anything you could need. We got off the bus and went into a large watersports store to look for fins. They had quite an assortment, but we wanted to do a little research before purchasing, so we will go back in a few days.

We then caught the bus back to the marina, and had a cold dinghy ride back to the boat. With the sun down, it was getting quite cold, and since we are on a mooring ball, we have no AC power, so we fired up the Little Buddy propane heater. Very soon, it was quite toasty in the boat. It helped that I also fired up the propane stove and made spaghetti.

Thursday December 9th 2010

Didn’t get quite as cold last night, as the night before, but it was still cool, and for the first time in a long time, cloudy this morning. I woke up some time last night, and heard rain falling, but it has stopped this morning, and left everything wet outside. A good day to stay on board and do boat projects. Our next voyage will be to go offshore down the coast to Miami, so we will have to wait here until a good weather window opens up. That may be until early next week. It is supposed to start warming up here tomorrow. I hope so!

I may not write again until after we have crossed to the Bahamas. Depends on the timing, the weather, and whether we get wifi when we get there. Don’t worry about us. We are being uber careful!! And, we are in the company of a lot of people who have done this many times!!

Until then, stay safe yourselves. Hope the winter weather in your area is as good as it can be for this time of year!

Love & Hugs,

The Admiral