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| Diane practices guitar |
I must start this blog with an apology to the one or two of
you actually reading it for the delay since my last entry. Although I truly
enjoy writing, both the demands of traveling along the ICW in Florida (more
below), the lack of easy WiFi access, and my own laziness conspired to keep me
away until now.
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| One of the prettier bridges |
Once we left
Daytona Beach, we started to feel the pull of south Florida and decided to
crank up the speed (remember, we are a sailboat with an auxiliary
engine…cruising speed a blinding 6.5 knots!), or at least just keep moving as
quickly as we could toward the Miami area, only 250 or so miles south. Not so
fast there Captain! I’d not really taken into account the number of draw
bridges we would have to pass which seemingly multiplied like rabbits the
further south we went! Many would open on our radio call. “…keep
‘er commin Cap’n, I’ll pick her up when you get right close,” but others
opened on a schedule (let’s not inconvenience the “real” tourists driving to
the beach!). So here we were,
existing in some perverse parallel universe, actually beginning to enjoy
ourselves and slow our hectic lives just a bit when all of a sudden my watch
became a primary navigation instrument. Until we reached Miami, we would be at
the mercy of bridges, their schedules and my watch. Unfortunately, strong
southerly winds precluded any foolish idea of mine to leave the ICW and travel
offshore down the coast…at least if I wanted to stay married!
A short word
about distance and speed is appropriate here. For some inexplicable reason,
mileage on the ICW, used by both commercial and private boaters, is measured in
statute rather than nautical miles (I can imagine some
Congressional staffer, obviously not a boater, getting a big laugh out of
that!). It wouldn’t be a big deal except that our chartplotter (electronic map)
and most other instruments display nautical mile information, forcing me to at
least try to make the adjustments in my head…I’m not real good at that and remember
quite distinctly deciding to be a Navy pilot only when they assured me that
there was very little math involved! Well, since many of the aforementioned
bridges opened on a schedule and were a specific STATUTE distance apart, I had
to translate. Much of the time I was unsuccessful, which meant that there were
several occasions when we would miss a scheduled opening literally by minutes.
UGH! You have to remember as both a Navy and airline pilot, I lived my entire
professional life by a schedule, and missing a bridge opening by minutes was a
slap in my face. Diane finally brought me back to reality by reminding me
(again) that we were retired and so what if we missed a bridge….there would be
another opening in half an hour! Nuff said.
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| Vero Beach mooring field |
After leaving Daytona
Beach the thorny path south is fairly straight but through some very
interesting areas. First on the list was the so-called “Space Coast” near Cape
Canaveral. We could see the now-defunct Shuttle Assembly building from many miles
(statute and nautical!) away and the sight brought me back to the days when the
Navy was tasked to provide airborne radar assistance for shuttle launches and
we would get to view a launch from the air. The waterway topography changed by
the hour from marsh to tree-lined channels. As we continued south, the apparent
wealth of the residents rose as the homes along the ICW went from simply nice
to OMG! As our good friend JL Lyon said, “…this is how the .1% live! After
short overnight stops in Titusville and Coco Beach, we picked up a mooring in
Vero Beach, sometimes referred to as “Velcro Beach,” because many boaters get
there and…never leave! Easily the most protected anchorage we’d seen in
Florida, we found the people incredibly friendly, a free bus service to shops,
and a short walk from the beach. I could easily see why people hang there for a
long time. We even decided to remain for an extra day to enjoy the sights and
even got to see a very colorful holiday boat parade and enjoy some great food
and adult beverages.
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| Nice, but no where near the biggest mansion! |
From Vero
Beach, the bridges became more numerous, houses more glamorous, and
powerboaters far LESS friendly as they would pass us at cruising speed, putting
out enormous wakes which would violently rock even our relatively large boat.
They must have been owners of those houses, in a hurry to count their money!
Familiar places like Ft. Pierce, St. Lucie and Palm Beach fell behind over the
next couple days as I continued to work on my bridge timing skills.
We finally reached
the absolute Mecca of mega-yachts, Fort Lauderdale, after yet another day of
staring at houses that cost more than the gross national product of many small countries.
Don’t get me wrong, someone has to make money, inherit it, win a lottery, or be
really good at drug smuggling! Might as well flaunt it! Diane and I spent 2
days on a mooring in the city, taking in the sights (people watching on the
beach front is their national pastime!), visiting the largest West Marine in
the country, and drinking some of the best margaritas in the free world. Great
place to visit, no desire to live there.
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| My old home away from home - The Sherry |
Finally, on
Thursday, 13 December, Magic passed under the last drawbridge of this trip
south and headed out into the Atlantic Ocean for the short run down to the
Coconut Grove part of Miami. I’d hoped to exercise those funny white sheets
that occasionally make the boat move during the 15 mile offshore run, but alas,
one more time the wind was right on the nose, forcing us to rely on our “iron
genny.” That was OK, we were on the way to our jump-off point for the crossing
to the Bahamas. As we motorsailed (I just had to put up the mainsail!) south,
we passed just offshore one of my favorite American Airlines layover hotels,
the “Sherry Frontenac,” one of the few hotels around which caterers only to
airline crews. I have to admit I felt more than a twinge of nostalgia
remembering many wonderful visits to this iconic hotel, spending quality time
with the best flight crews in the world. While I don’t miss much of my life as
an airline pilot, I do miss the people and the flying itself. OK, back to
reality!
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| Miami at last! |
So, here we
still sit, 10 days after our arrival at the Dinner Key Marina mooring field,
waiting for that elusive “weather window” which will allow us to cross over to
the Bahamas. Of course, winter has followed us here with some of the coldest
temperatures seen this time of year for a long time. I’ve actually had to shift
back to jeans and long sleeve shirts! We need to get to the islands! The marine
offshore forecast (which is no more accurate than what you see on TV!) shows
there is a good crossing opportunity the day after Christmas, with fairly light
winds and seas. We will most likely take advantage of this small window and
“buddy sail” across with good friends Bob & Maryln (with daughter Katie) on
their sailboat “Peaceful Easy Feeling.” Exactly where in the Bahamas we will
initially go (again, it’s all about the weather) is still up in the air, it
will be nice to know there will be a friendly, helpful voice at the other end
of the radio as we cross the Gulf Stream.
By the way, if
you are watching our progress on our “In-Reach” GPS tracker as we cross to the
islands and our course seems somewhat erratic, don’t call the CG and report a
drunk sailor is causing mayhem on the Atlantic. Because the Gulf Stream is so
powerful down here, running at 2-3+ knots, we will scribe an almost “S” shaped
course east to minimize the effects of its current and save time during the
crossing (which takes anywhere from 6-9 hours). So if it looks initially like
we are headed to Cuba, don’t despair, we really will wind up in the Bahamas…I
hope!
Our trip to
this point took 40 days, 168 hours of motoring, exactly 1-½ hours of sailing,
no major breakdowns…and most importantly, Diane is still here! If you thought
it took a long time for me to update this blog, well, it will only get worse as
we hit the islands since WiFi availability will dwindle and get pretty
expensive even when available. I promise to add more when I can, but even then,
our GPS tracker will (as long as we have batteries for the darn thing!) keep
you informed of our position.
Until next
time…
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