Our trip from Old Mission Harbor to Puerto Rico
September 15, 2012
Day One of the GREAT ADVENTURE was awesome. Didn’t get to sail (no wind) so we motored from Old Mission Harbor (8:08 AM) to Mackinac City (7:45PM). We are going to miss Roger and Barb Bolden. Thanks for keeping an eye on Perseverance for the last 2 summers. We started the day with a water leak and a bilge full of water. Found a chunk of rust in the pump and fixed the leak. The rest of the day was uneventful and very restful. BTW-we have Dan Lochner aboard to help. He wants everyone to know that this trip would not be possible without him…and make sure we spell his name correctly, it is D-A-N!
Admiral-Laura Captain-Jim Crew-Dan
We spent the evening walking around Mackinac City and then watched the truck parade complete with all their special lights. We could see them all through town and crossing the bridge back to St Ignace.
September 16, 2012
A very good day. Sailed all the way from Mackinac City to Rogers City. The day started off with a bang. Dan was taking a bag and a box full of trash to the dumpster when all of a sudden he tripped and the box landed in the lake. At least it landed right side up. He had to go get the dinghy and chase down the box of trash that was floating away. But he did catch it and retrieve it from the water. I think we are going to give hi the “Water Conservationist of the Year” Award for his effort. Also-the hull speed of Perseverance is 8 knots but with the wind today we saw 9.1 knots. Left Mac City about
9 AM arrived Rogers City about 5 PM.
September 17, 2012
Left Rogers City at 8:45AM A good day. All the sails are up and we are averaging about 6.5 knots. A good breakfast this morning, scrambled eggs with spam, potatoes, heirloom leeks, broccoli and smoked gouda. Sorry Arturo, I started to make it Spanish Omlette style but…it ended up scrambled. Still tasted great, though. Ended up motor sailing and the waves and swells were huge. (Later on we learned what HUGE really is.) Wind was on the nose after we made the turn. Laura thought we were headed to Canada so the turn was made and then we just motored. Met Mom & Ken when we got to Harrisville. It was dark when we got there and Ken was on the dock with a light. That was nice.
September 18, 2012
Left Harrisville about 8:30. Ken was there to help us off the dock. It is a cold, cloudy, windy day. Winds out of the north at 20-25 knots. We crossed the Saginaw Bay and ended up in Harbor Beach on the anchor. Waves were GIGANTIC and swells were at least 12-15 feet. Dan saw 10.7 knots on the GPS surfing down a wave. A NEW RECORD!
This turned out to be the roughest day we had on the entire trip. At one point we suffered a knockdown and the brand new washing machine went flying onto the floor, face first.
September 19, 2012
Left Harbor Beach at 8:01 AM> What a difference a day makes. Winds are light, 5-10 knots out of the south. But it is COLD. Probably the coldest morning yet this season. Heading to Port Huron. Pretty much making 6.5-7 knots. Sunny today. Seeing lots of freighter traffic. Came out of Lake Huron into the St. Claire River and passed under the Blue Water Bridge. Spending the next two nights at the Port Huron Yacht Club, thanks to cousin Jenny.
We did spend the nights of 9-19 and 9-20 in Port Huron. This gave us a chance to rest up after crossing Saginaw Bay and to put on provisions. A little R&R is always good.
September 21, 2012
Arrived at Jefferson Beach Marina today. Cousin Sandy Perez met us there with a car for us to use while we are here for a couple of days. Tonight we had a visit from Lisa Spencer, Heaven Reinert and her friend Chris and from Larry Witt. A fun time was had by all. Heaven mixed up two different stories and thought that Dan was a retired stripper (instead of the retired MINISTER that he really is). No one ever told Larry anything different so he left that night thinking that Dan was indeed a retired stripper. HAHA
September 22, 2012
Arrived yesterday-Friday at Jefferson Beach Marina about 2 PM. We left Port Huron at 8 AM. Light wind so we motored down the St. Clair River and across Lake St. Clair. Special thanks to cousin Sandy & Rudy Perez for letting us use a car to go to Angela & Steve Prolux’s wedding on Saturday. Loved every minute of being here and seeing all the friends and family. Only problem was Saturday. Laura broke out in shingles. Aunt Marilyn diagnosed it and Bill and Cathy Jasper took me to urgent care. Thanks to all now I am on the mend. Tomorrow we leave for Put-In-Bay, Ohio.
When Laura got back from Urgent Care, Don and Judy Warren were there as well as the Perez family. The Perez’s left when Dan took Jim to get a shingles vaccine. (Dan already had his.) Laura was a little fuzzy thanks to the drugs and invited a boat full of sailors on board. They even brought their own beer. So Don and Judy stayed until Jim and Dan returned…to keep their eye on her.
September 23, 2012
Left Jefferson Beach Marina at 8:40 AM. South winds so we motored to Lake Erie. Did NOT check our charts before we left and we scraped bottom while still in Lake St. Clair. Had to stay in the shipping channel most of the way across Lake Erie because of the depth. Lost our electronic chart plotter because of Canadian waters but we have them back now. Arrived about 6PM at Put-In-Bay. Went to town to check it out and met a bartender that has a place in Roscommon.
Jim’s brother Larry was waiting for us at the Renaissance Center in Detroit with a camera. He made us do a few interesting maneuvers so he could get the pictures he wanted.
September 24, 2012
Left Put-In-Bay, Ohio @ 8:20AM. We had good SSW winds and motor sailed all day to a beautiful harbor at Fairport, OH. Spent the night on the hook. One of the prettiest sunsets we have ever seen. Traveled 67 miles. Got to see Cedar Point from a distance. Those roller coasters can be seen for miles. Arrived at Fairport about 6:30 PM.
September 25, 2012
Left Fairport, Ohio at 8:08 AM Sunny skies but clouds are building. Winds were fair (4 to 5 knots) with following seas. We entered the “Graveyard of the Great Lakes” with 4 times as many shipwrecks as the Bermuda Triangle. Dan says the average depth of Lake Erie is 62 feet??? Really??? Arrived in Erie, PA 5:30 PM Today we had to maneuver under a 67 foot bridge to get into the marina. It was scary!
September 26, 2012
Left Erie, PA at 8:15 AM It had been raining this morning but thankfully it was not raining when it was time to leave the dock. A little problem with a cable between the battery and the starter, but no worries. Captain Jim fixed it. It was grey and rainy all day with winds @ 12-15 knots southerly and were NW to W by the end of the day. Got to Buffalo about 7:30 and got to a 17’ tall swing bridge just past the Peace Bridge (to Canada) No one was tending the bridge so we went back about ½ mile to the Buffalo Yacht Club arriving about 8:30 PM. Spent the night in the “Under the Sea” cabin. The bubbles under the boat were so loud that Laura wore ear plugs to bed. (We were parked on top of a bubbler that marked the entrance to a harbor.) The ONLY place you could hear it was in the master cabin.
September 27, 2012
Left at 8:10 AM. Went past a draw bridge, a swing bridge and OUR FIRST LOCK! (Virgin Lock) Woohoo!! Right next to the exit of the lock we stopped at Rich’s Marina to take down our masts for the canal and get other chores done. It was a long, hard day and we travelled only about one mile. But all’s well that ends well. We went to Wegman’s Grocery Store and had dinner and bought groceries. Bummed a ride there from a couple of lawn maintenance guys and took a cab back to the boat. Finished the day by putting together the 3rd cabin because Scott (Hess) and Terry (Lorree) should arrive sometime in the middle of the night.
September 28, 2012
Left Buffalo at 8:58 AM and entered the Black Rock Canal then the Erie Canal. Went through Locks # 35 and #34 with a total drop between the two of them for 49’. A fun day of motoring in “the ditch”. Jim had to change the battery cable to the starter this morning and we ended at Brockport, NY at 6:50 PM where the boat hit the wall while docking. Brockport is where all appliances were made for General Electric and Black and Decker AND where Clarence Birdseye started his research in “cold storage”. Motored all day because the masts are on the deck. Also crossed a river that went under the canal and a road that went under the canal. Ended the day with a “well fed and happy crew” according to Dan. Also-“Sailing is VICTORY, that is its appeal.” ß World’s oldest recorded reference to sailing. (Scott was driving when we docked.)
September 29, 2012
Saturday—Left Brockport @ 7:07 AM. The day started out cloudy but ended sunny. Woohoo! Terry stopped smoking for good today. It was a rough day for him but he did great. Did a load of laundry underway, too. And the new crew experienced their first lock. We ended the day in Clyde, NY at 6:50 PM. A cute little canal town with an antique store the “American Pickers” could spend a week in. We all shared some ice cream that Scott bought while we watched “Captain Ron”. It was a good day and we made about 60 miles in the canal.
September 30, 2012
Left Clyde, NY at 7:05 AM. A few sprinkles this morning with a lock right after we started, then breakfast, then a lock, then a 30 mile stretch of motoring. About 11:20 we almost missed a turn in the canal due to a missing marker. Thanks Scott. Great save. Ended up raining all day. We did 4 locks total today and ended up at Brewerton at the west end of Oneida Lake about 5 PM. Ended the day with a hot fudge sundae and content crew. (Touched bottom when we almost missed the turn…with Terry driving)
October 1, 2012
Moving on the water by 06:52 according to Dan. Following seas across Oneida Lake at 7 knots with Dan driving on a cloudy morning. Just like at home we had the Today Show on the TV with closed captioning for the hearing impaired. Arrived in Herkimer, NY @ 4:40 PM. Laura bought a Herkimer diamond pendant. Then a walk to Walmart for groceries. Then back to the boat for burgers and cocktails on the aft deck. (Jim bought a bunch of apples at a fruit market on our way TO Walmart. He had to find a place to store them until we were on our way back to the boat because they were heavy AND the fruit market was closing.)
October 2, 2012
Left at 7 AM sharp! Terry got to do his first driving into a lock today. We did 10 locks in all. We didn’t have any near misses. Everything went well. Dan DID finish his book Don’ Stop The Carnival. He said the book is excellent. We are spending the night on the wall of lock #8.
October 3, 2012
Left at 7:35 from Lock #8. Jim cleaned the starboard side of the boat while we waited for the lockmaster to show up. Today we finished the Erie Canal and entered the Hudson River. Got to the Castleton Boat Club at 4:30 and spent $75 to set both masts ourselves with their crane. Set the main mast today.
October 4, 2012
Today is Steve’s 35th birthday. We set the mizzen mast this morning and finished rigging in the rain. Finally the sun came out about 4:30 pm. Spent the night at Saugatie, NY. Got here about 6:30. (Very nice guy running the place but it is kind of green from algae)
October 5, 2012
Left at 7:15 AM. Went aground at the Esopus Meadows Light in 2.9 feet of water. Didn’t see a mark. A little head sail and a lot of luck and we were back underway in about 10 minutes. Arrived at West Point about 2 PM. We were greeted by Major Scott Katalenich at the West Point Yacht Club. Greg and Ellen Katalenich took us on a tour of the campus while Scott, Dan and Terry stayed on the boat. We came back while they went ashore and we prepared for the Katalenich clan to come for dinner with Krista & Clare, too. Lots of fun, lots of pictures, lots of history. (This was the day we got to see the witch’s castle from the movie “The Wizard of Oz”. We learned that the flying monkeys in the movie were wearing West Point Cadet uniforms.)
October 6, 2012
Happy 11th Anniversary, Patrick and Kara Witt. Left West Point at 7:05 AM. Motored down the Hudson River, under the George Washington Bridge and to the 79th Street Boat Basin Marina to meet Aunt Arlene. Visited with her for about an hour then headed to Liberty Landing Marina in Jersey City, New Jersey to pick up Tracy Bosworth. Then we headed for the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island for photo ops. WE sent Scott Hess out in the dinghy to take pictures. It was VERY rough thanks to wind and traffic so we did not put the sails up. We were concerned about getting Scott back on Perseverance. Went back to Liberty Landing Marina ($4 a foot) for the night and went to O’Hara’s for a crews night out and dinner.
October 7, 2012
Scott and Dan left for home this morning about 7 AM. Tracy and Terry swabbed the deck while Laura cleaned the inside and Captain Jim plotted our day’s journey. We left the marina at 9:50 AM and motored out of Manhattan, past the Statue of Liberty, on our way to the salt water and points south. Tracy started out driving this morning. A cold, rainy day. Saw our first pelican and our first dolphin of the trip as we entered Barnegot Inlet for the night. Arrived at 6:26 PM. End of the first day at sea.
October 8, 2012
Left Barnegot Inlet at 6:53 AM and we are motor sailing toward Cape May, NJ. Had the sails up most of the way. Terry caught a fish today and it sprinkled a little bit. And it was COLD again. But it will be warmer tomorrow. LOL. Got into Cape May about 4:30. Took on 100 gallons of diesel fuel and went to the Lobster House for a great dinner.
October 9, 2012
Left Cape May, South Jersey Marina at 7 AM. Temp is a balmy 54 degrees. Winds today out of the North at 25 kts. So we should make good time blowing south. Well, that’s what we thought! Seas were very rough. 7-9 foot waves and BIG rollers. It was rough going all the way. There was no way we could get to our intended destination before 9 PM so at 1:30 we pulled in to Ocean City, MD. Spent the afternoon in the rain on the boardwalk.
October 10, 2012
Left about 9:30 and headed south on a sunny day, high today of about 70. A beautiful day at sea. Saw several pods of dolphins and Terry saw a shark. Got in about 6:30 to Wachapreaque Inlet and a beautiful sunset. About midnight the wind started to blow-HARD. With gusts up to about 30 kts. Had us all up a few times when the anchor alarm went off. Made it through the night just fine, even though most of us didn’t get any sleep. (This same day on our way into the inlet, Capt. Jim touched bottom when he was following the marks in, just like the Coast Guard told him. Turns out the number 3 mark was “off station”. That means it moved. Also, the Coast Guard said not to worry about the wind. Yeah, right. We had to wait in the morning for the wind to let up some so we could pick up the anchor or else we would have been blown ashore.)
October 11, 2012
Left at 7:45 when the wind started to die. We had to get off the anchor and do a 180 to
leave. Took 25 minutes to get out the channel back to the ocean. We made it to Little Creek (near Norfolk, Virginia) in an uneventful day averaging 7.5 kts. thanks to the motor, the sails and Gary. (the auto pilot) Met Tracy’s sister here and she took Tracy to the grocery store then we are going out to dinner. Got here about 4:30. Today we saw a military hovercraft and we entered the Chesapeake Bay.
October 12, 2012
Left about 10 AM after we took Capt. Jim to the top of the mast to remove the wind indicator then we measured again to the water. 63’6” The lowest bridge on the ICW is 64’ so…here we go. We also had a Raymarine guy onboard to update the chart plotter. We wnt by the Norfolk Naval Base and saw 3 aircraft carriers and a few stealthy looking boats. Continued down the Elizabeth River past the Navy Boat Yards where they were working on several boats. Also saw the USS Wisconsin (Retired) It has been turned into a museum in downtown Norfolk. Had to go through a lock and that slowed us down so that when we got to Centerville at 4:10 we had to wait until 6 PM for the bridge to open again (because of rush hour). So we spent the night at a marina next to the bridge. Met 3 nice guys from 2 different boats. They came aboard for cocktails and stayed until 10 PM. We forgot about dinner, so we just skipped it and went to bed. The bridge is supposed to open on demand on the weekend so hoping for an early start.
October 13, 2012
Just before 7 AM, motor running, Jim radioed the bridge to get it to open. The bridge keeper said “Sorry, the bridge does not open until 8:30 due to rush hour. Except on weekends when it opens on demand.” Jim asked…”Isn’t today Saturday?” She said “OMG, it is! The bridge will be open in one minute.” LOL. It was. We continued down the ICW and through Albemarle Sound and stayed at the marina at the SE corner of the sound. Arrived at 4:30. A nice sunny day about 70 degrees. Good thing we are here. We were down to our last beer. Thank God this isn’t a dry county. Terry actually paid a guy to get him some Jack Daniels in town and bring it to him before we left in the morning.
October 14, 2012
Today is a BIG day. We have to go under the 64’ bridge on the ICW. The lowest one along the way. We should make it by 6” BUT I have the name and number of a place that can come out and tip us if that is necessary. Left at 7:35 after Terry got his delivery of Jack Daniels and Carolanne’s. An uneventful day other than the bridge. Good news!!!...we made it under the bridge with about 3” to spare. Woohoo! On to Belhaven, NC for the night. Arrived about 3:30. A little time to spend in town before everything closes. But it is Sunday. Only the hardware store is open in town. Terry stayed on the boat. The rest of us walked about 1 ¼ miles to the Family Dollar and picked up a few things. Then back to the boat for dinner. 78 degrees today for a high. Capt. Jim called security on the radio and told all the boats in the area that we needed clean water to make it under the bridge. They all stopped, watched us and cheered when we made it !)
October 15, 2012
Left Belhaven, NC at 7 AM with a bunch of other boats and a beautiful sunrise. Headed through the Purge River headed to Beaufort. We missed a turn and ended up in Morehead. Found a wonderful marina, Portside Marina, less $ than Beaufort. Wonderful people and a nice town. A storm is moving in but should pass us by midnight. Arrived about 5 PM. Went for a walk and went to RAPS bar & grill. Most of the stores are closed because it is Monday. (Their day off) P.S. The storm parted as it neared and went around us. Only got a little drizzle. Partly cloudy and 78 degrees today. I should add that Blackbeard, the pirate, got lost in the Beaufort Flats, too. The Royal English Navy captured and beheaded him. So glad that didn’t happen to us.)
October 16, 2012
Left Morehead City @ 8:30 after Jim talked to the marina owner and went to the store. We got about 1 ½ miles down the ICW to a 65’ fixed bridge. PROBLEM! It was high tide and there is only 62’ of clearance under the bridge. We are 63’6” high. We had to anchor off until 1:30 waiting for the tide to drop. While we waited Tracy & Laura measured for the mast boots for the sail bags and marked all of the bridges on the charts so we could see which ones were by inlets and therefore would be affected by tides. OH-OH another one tomorrow morning. Terry worked on trimming the windows and Jim worked on the water maker installation. We finally made it under the bridge and all went well today BUT we ended up running up to that next pesky bridge that is going to stop us tomorrow morning. It had already been dark for a little over an hour and all 4 of us were working to keep the boat in the channel and make the turns at the New River Inlet. We were looking for a clearance board on the bridge when a fishing boat came through with all its nets out and yelling at us because we were in the way, never mind that they were fishing in a navigation channel! We never did find a clearance board. We anchored off the side of the channel and all of us got up at 2:30 AM to make a run under the bridge at 3 AM. Otherwise we would get up and be at high tide and have to wait until 3 PM to get a chance at getting under at the next low tide. The good news is that we made it under the bridge just fine. Anchoring again for the rest of the night was a problem. Full of challenges but we did find an anchorage and spent the rest of the night, restfully. One problem we did find is that Jim is the only person who knows how to operate the windless so tomorrow we all get a lesson.
October 17, 2012
Left early for Southport, NC aka Cape Fear. No problems on the ICW. Our last day. Only significant incident was that Tracy directed us to the wrong marina, then when we got to the right on it took Capt. Jim 2 tries to get on the dock thanks to bad directions from the dock hand. Jim, Laura and Tracy went for a walk to find cocktails. Met a local stoner who tried to give us directions. After dinner the 3 of us walked to Lo Joe’s to watch the Detroit Tigers win the AL Championship. Sorry to say the game was rained out. Must wait until tomorrow. Also, met Jared, a local shrimp fisherman who is bringing us 5# of fresh shrimp to the boat later tonight. He was a no-show though so we all headed to bed.
October 18, 2012
Left about 8 AM. Just got out of the marina and the engine quit. OH OH! Capt. Jim got us up and running in about ½ hour to get out past the lighthouse. The engine was surging all day. Jim even pressurized the fuel system because we thought it was sucking air. No luck, so we have a bunch of diesel mechanics brainstorming. We made a BUNCH of calls. Should know more in the morning. Because we got such a late start we didn’t get into Winya Inlet by Georgetown until 9:30. 2 hours after dark. With some great navigating by Tracy and Great driving by Capt. Jim we are safely at anchor. Had bagels and cream cheese for breakfast. I’m not really sure why it is important to know what we had for breakfast.
October 19, 2012
Left at 7:35 AM. Headed fir St. Catherine Sound. Sunny and a good wind this morning. Motor sailing. AS the wind died shortly after noon the sails came down and the seas became smooth so all hands found some chores to do on the boat. We got some painting, drilling and cleaning done. Out in the middle of nowhere we found a mark, by chance. If Laura hadn’t looked out the window when she did, we would have hit it. LOL. Laura saw a whale this morning and Tracy & Laura saw two blow spouts this afternoon. Jim got some local knowledge on the radio that said not to try the north entrance to the sound. It is unmarked and has a couple of shoals in it. So using the (barely) marked south entrance we made anchor about 8 PM (after dark). But it did add about another hour to our trip.
October 20, 2012
I think this is the day I forgot to write in the Ship’s Log. We spent the night at Edisto Is., GA.
October 21, 2012
Left St. Catherine’s Sound BEFORE sunup at 6:35AM. Another long day ahead. Sails were up about 7:40AM. Sunny with about 7-10 kts out of the NE. We all spent the day working on the boat. Capt. Jim and Terry are doing more trim work. Laura did the cork in the Captain’s Quarters and Tracy tore the galley apart and cleaned. The wind died in the afternoon so we just motored while we worked. (Gary drove and we all check on him, frequently) Arrived at the St. Mary’s River Inlet about 4:30 and anchored off. A beautiful night and great dinner and Tracy started sewing the mast boots for the sail bags. (Whoops…I forgot a day somewhere, not sure which one I missed but today the date is correct.)
October 22, 2012
Left the St. Mary’s River Inlet at 7:30 AM headed for our final destination on this leg of the trip…St Augustine, FL. High winds and rough seas on our way out the channel this morning. The only casualty seems to be Laura’s Kindle. The screen got cracked when it hit the floor. Winds out of the East at 15 kts. But sunny! Arrived at the St. Augustine “Bridge of Lions” at 3:12. The bridge opens on the half hour. Capt. Jim first called the bridge on channel 13-no answer. Then called the marina on channel 16 and told them he would go through the bridge at 3:30 and go to the gas dock. Then the bridge didn’t open! So Capt. Jim called the marina back to ask when the bridge opens. They said on the half hour IF you call the bridge on Channel 9! Seems the bridge monitors channels 16 & 9 but only answers on ch. 9. He could see us and heard that we wanted to come through at 3:30 but did not open or call us because we did not call him on channel 9. But we got through at 4 PM, got settled in on our mooring and went to town for a celebratory dinner and a few cocktails. Feels good to be here.
October 23, 2012
Didn’t have to go anywhere today so we all slept til about 8 AM. Capt. Jim went to town to get supplies for some of our projects. Tracy finished the mast boots and started on the bimini. Terry made hurricane covers for the windows and helped Jim put up the wind generator mast. Jim hooked up the water maker. Laura did spring cleaning and helped Tracy. Back to town for happy hour and pizza tonight.
October 24, 2012
Today we rented a car and headed back to Michigan. Chuck McLaughlin and Terry Brady picked us up at the dock and took us to the rental car place. We drove straight through the night and arrived in Roscommon, MI about 8 AM . Jim and Terry picked up one of our cars and continued on to Traverse City to take Terry home and return the car at the airport. Then Jim drove back to Roscommon arriving about 10:30 AM. We left just as Super Storm Sandy was heading north up the coast of Florida.
November 25, 2012
Today, Sunday, we started our travels back to the boat. We left Roscommon, MI with the same crew we left Traverse City with. Admiral-Laura, Captain-Jim, Crew-Dan.Only change…this time we were in Jim’s van instead of on the boat. We drove straight through. We stopped at a Waffle House in Georgia for breakfast and nearly froze to death. It was a cold morning, even that far south, and the Waffle House didn’t have any heat.
November 26, 2012
Arrived back in St. Augustine. We are going to spend the day sleeping and stowing gear.
November 27, 2012
Cleaning and organizing today. Plus Ray & Jenny Witt visited.
November 28, 2012
Still cleaning and organizing and TODAY IS DAN LOCHNER’S BIRTHDAY. We picked up the rest of our crew, Chuck and Judy McLaughlin, today and got to see Sue Burdette, who gave them a ride here. Celebrated Dan’s birthday with dinner in the historic district at Harry’s and then Laura lost her credit card later in the evening, so Dan’s dinner became “The Last Supper” on Laura’s card. The boat was shaking today when we motored up to the dock to pick up the McLaughlins. We are hoping it will clear up tomorrow while we are underway. We think it is probably stuff growing on the prop.
November 29, 2012
Underway at 6:45. Woohoo! A pretty un-eventful day at sea but a lot of rolling. We did find that everything was loose. Spent the night at New Smyrna anchored in the inlet with Christmas lights on. BBQ pork chops for dinner and an early night. Got in here about 5:30. The boat is still shaking…just not quite as bad as yesterday.
November 30, 2012
The last day of hurricane season started with Capt. Jim diving down to check the prop and clean off any slimy stuff. After sitting for a month in St. Augustine it seems a bit off balance, so we do need to find out why. Had to scrape a bunch of hard crusty stuff, off of the prop. All better now. Underway late today at 7:45 AM. Arrived at Port Canaveral about 5:30.
December 1, 2012
So maybe the vibration in the prop is worse than we thought. People heard weird sounds yesterday and Capt. Jim felt some movement in the prop shaft. So the boat is coming out of the water here in Port Canaveral at Cape Marine. Capt. Jim talked to the prop shop. They are going to be out Monday morning to replace our cutlass bearing. In the mean time we need to get the rudder and prop off. So we are going to make the most of our timeout of the water and get salt water bottom paint on as well as the bimini. The boat is out of the water now. Rudder and prop off. More work tomorrow. We learned that this is where this boat stayed when Gary Olson owned it. His last known address was at Cape Marine here at Port Canaveral. The marina even had a file on the boat under his name. They have now put the entire file under Capt. Jim’s name.
December 2, 2012
Today the bimini goes on. Dan worked on the top side paint and Jim did lots of other projects. Laura, Judy and Chuck worked on bottom paint. Laura & Judy borrowed a mini-van from our neighbor, Marshall, and went to Publix & Walmart, Now we are provisioned and painting is done. As soonas we have a prop and rudder…we are back in the water.
December 3, 2012
Today we finished our chores and hopefully we get a cutlass bearing and the prop and the rudder back on. Capt. Jim told us this morning that no one makes our cutlass bearing so we also need a new prop shaft. We shall see. Cutlass bearing is available in Jacksonville. Prop shaft is available in Ft. Lauderdale. Opposite ends of the state…but available. This is sounding expensive. By the end of the day we knew that the prop shaft is within tolerances as is the cutlass bearing. As Dan says…no sense chasing ghosts. We don’t know what would be the best thing to start with but if we do both to make it brand new, we are looking at 2 weeks on the hard, sooo we decided to put it back together and go. They are putting us in the water at 8 AM tomorrow. Capt. Jim wants a note about our cutlass bearing “2.175 O.D.” Praying all goes well tomorrow. A concern now is that there was about 20-30 gallons of water in the bilge. Not sure where that came from.
December 4, 2012
Paid our bill at Cape Marine $1270 and signed the work order to put us back in the water. YEAH! The travel lift showed up at 8 AM and by 9 AM we were launched. About another hour & a half and we were underway. Had to fill up the water, swab the deck, take off the Winddex and a few other chores. First thing up was a draw bridge, then a lock, then a draw bridge. We followed that by 5-65’ fixed bridges with one more draw bridge. Thrown in for good measure. Laura did 3 super burpees after each of the 65’ fixed bridges that we cleared. We got 31 miles down the ICW and anchored by Great Island. A beautiful little spot. The boat is doing GREAT but sorry to say that Dan has a bad stomach bug. Think it is the same one that Capt. Jim had for a few days. Hope he is better soon. Anchored about 5:30. We later learned that Florida’s biggest drug ever happened today at Port Canaveral. It seems that about 2 hours after we left a bunch of bales of coke, heroine, and pot floating in the harbor. The police shut down the harbor…cruise ships and all…while they searched everything. Don’t know what they were looking for…someone had already thrown everything overboard.
December 5, 2012
Today started out rough. We were aground when we woke up. After about an hour of using the auxiliary anchor and a wench we worked our way free. Got underway about 8 AM. Beautiful weather and an easy day on the ICW except we had fixed bridges and Laura did 6 super burpees after clear passage under each of them. Tried to make it to Jupiter, FL to see John and Janet but we were about ½ hour behind so we anchored for the night. Then pulled up anchor to get another 1.4 NM to meet up with them. Ran aground again then after we were off…the anchorage was not deep enough. Now it was pitch black. Made our way out around the shoal that had hung us up and then down a narrow channel to a draw bridge. Took 4 calls to wake up the bridge operator but we got through OK. Then into a marina for the night. John made us dinner and Janet took us to Publix.
December 6, 2012
Woke up this morning to find the battery charger had quit. Found a dead short. On to West Marine with a car John & Janet lent us to buy a new one. Then installation by Capt. Jim. Finally ready to leave The Jib Club Marina about 2 PM. We crossed the Gulf Stream today. It was relatively calm, all considered, but about 1/3 of the way through the engine died. We quickly put up the jib so we had some control while Capt. Jim went to the engine room to investigate. Turns out that when the engine room got warm (when the door is closed) the rubber hose gas line collapsed and cut off the fuel. About 5 mins of confusion and hustling and we had an engine again. There was lightening all around us but it never rained on us. J Got to West End about 2 AM. A short narrow jetty coming in and a bit of an anchoring basin with a sail boat right in the middle. Never could find a good anchoring spot so we went in to the dock on the advise of the guy on the sailboat. Finally settled into bed about 3 AM. And, broke one wine glass on the crossing.
December 7, 2012
Cleared Customs this morning. All the crew had a shower this morning. And yes…that is a big deal. We had an easy day sailing to Freeport. Spent the night in a marina and went shopping. Dan, Capt. Jim and Laura had dinner at Zorba’s, Judy and Chuck ate onboard. Laura got her Pandora bracelet with a turtle bead in honor of the sea turtle we saw swimming in the Gulf Stream and then Dan, Jim and Laura went to a beauty contest in Count Basie Square.
December 8, 2012
Left at 6:45 AM for Goat Cay. A nice sunny morning that turned into a cloudy day. A nice sail and got in and dropped anchor about 4:30.
December 9, 2012
Left at 6:15 AM headed for Nassau. Got there about 4 PM with Chuck and Gary driving. By the time Capt. Jim, Laura and Dan got the boat registered and found a taxi we got to the shopping district (on Sunday) just as the 2 cruise ships that were in were leaving and the stores were closing. We couldn’t even find a bar open to have a drink. So we grabbed another cab and headed to “Fish Fry”, a local place kinda like Louisa or Las Carabas in PR. About 20 restaurant shacks specializing in conch salad. It was delicious. Then we went to a tent revival celebrating Christmas that was sponsored by the government of The Bahamas. Afterward we went to The Anchorage for Guava Duff, a local dessert. A French style bread with chunks of guava paste, topped with a custard sauce. Yum. We got to sit in the “Ugly American section” (my name for it) or All White Balacony, by ourselves. Just as we were leaving, another group (from Canada) showed up. A cab ride back to the boat to meet up with Chuck and Judy who had stayed at the boat for a quiet evening and a salmon dinner. We met a guy on a boat called Seaduced from Manchester, England later in the evening.
December 10, 2012
Left Nassau late. About 8:30 AM. Jim and Dan went to the marine store and Judy went to Starbuck’s for internet. Headed to the Highborne Cut then to Norman Cay, past the Exumas. An easy motor, very little wind and what we had was off the nose. We anchored at Norman’s Cay Cut and we finally got the chance to swim. It was awesome. Water temp was 75.2. A great day and we got in about 4 PM. Sweet potato and Black bean Chili and fresh baked bread as a butter delivery system (Dan) Judy and Laura saw an unbelievably beautiful shooting star about 7:30. We later found out that what we saw was an asteroid that landed in the ocean. It was bright green and the tail went all the way across the sky. It was as bright as lightening and lit up the cockpit like daylight. We also had an incredible moon. It was like a Cheshire cat smile in the sky BUT we could see the dark side too. It was like it was back lit by some kind of reflection. And thousands of stars. A beautiful day and night. Also saw lots of coral heads as we were in mostly 20’ of water all day.
December 11, 2012
A rough day at sea. Bounced and rocked and rolled all day after leaving a GREAT anchorage. Headed for Half Moon Cay, the island owned by Holland America Line. When we arrived about 4 PM, the Ryndam and Zuiderdam are at anchor but by 5 o’clock both are gone. We almost ran out of water and some sediment in the bottom of the tank blocked the filter. No water anywhere until Jim figured out the problem. We thought we had lost the water pump. Glad it was just the filter. We rocked and rolled all night.
December 12, 2012
Underway at 6:20 AM headed to Cat Island. A smooth, short day, so we motored. Got to Cat Island about noon and anchored in Fernandez Bay. Everything looks the same except there are no people. WE dinghyed ashore and found out that the resort is closed for one week to do repairs needed because of Hurricane Sandy. Everyone had left the day before we arrived to get to the states. We walked out to the road and hitched a ride to the mail dock to see if Carl Pender was there. He was not, so we continued with the same guy and went to the airport. There we borrowed a car and went to the store, then to the Hermitage. Back to the airport then to return the car and we got a taxi back to Fernandez Bay. Had a nice walk on the beach and visited “Sandcastle”. The place we had stayed at 10 years ago. It still looks the same just like the rest of the island. Back to the boat for a quiet dinner and evening.
December 13, 2012
Today is Mom’s surgery for breast cancer. Steve is going to TC to be with Mom & Dad. We motored to Rum Cay with an uneventful day. Made some water on the way. A great swim when we got there. Water temp was 77.3. Beautiful! Made it an early night. WE have to get up early tomorrow but before bed we saw some of the Geminude Meteor Shower. 3rd night in a row. Again…beautiful!
December 14, 2012
Mom’s surgery went well. PRAISE GOD! We all were up at 3 AM and underway by 3:20. We have a long day ahead of us. 13-14 hours or so. By 7 AM we had 3 sails up. After a corned beef hash breakfast we put up the 4th sail and were sailing a little over 7 kts. Now its time for the second shift to go on. Goodnight Dan and Capt. Jim. Well done. They did get to see a “morning star” along with Chuck (who was also awake). It turned out to be Saturn, but they thought it was really cool.
December 15, 2012
Underway about 6:30 AM. WE left the new fridge on and it is low on Freon which means it ran all nigfht. Batteries are low so we had to start the generator to charge them up so we could start the motor and pick up the anchor. Went to Mayagara and arrived about 4 PM. Went for a swim. Water temp 75.1. A nice anchorage until about 3:30 AM when some rollers started. WE had several fresh water rinses through the night. Saw some fish swimming by the boat after dark.
December 16, 2012
Underway at 6 AM. Left The Bahamas about 6:45 AM. Now we are into Turks and Caicos. Arrived at Provo, T & C about 4:30 after some confused seas (rough). Made it intothe marina at low tide and only touched bottom twice. LOL But, the guy that owns the marina took us to the local IGA and we are fully provisioned. Until we get to PR. Well at least we know we won’t starve to death. Along with the water maker we should be ok.
December 17, 2012
Slept in…gonna spend the day here resting up for our 2 ½ -3 day passage to PR. Went into Provo souvenir shopping and just had a relaxing day. Got 100 gallons of fuel and filled up the water.
December 18, 2012
Left at 8 AM. Waited for the weather report and for the tide to come in some so we had enough water to get out the channel. Motored to Big Fish Cay for some snorkeling. Our last stop before San Juan. But the motor won’t shut off. Go figure. Checked out last night from T & C.
December 19, 2012
We survived our first night at sea ok. We started our watches at 6 pm last night. A beautiful sunrise this morning. Chuck was feeling poorly most of the day. We could see the Dominican Republic on the horizon 33 miles to starboard. Started watches again at 6 PM. 1st up…Chuck with Judy. A very rocky night with stuff crashing all over the place in the boat. Dan saw some dynaflagulates in the waves. They looked like Christmas lights.
December 20, 2012
Survived our 2nd night at sea. A very rocky day as we cross the Mona Passage and the PR trench. 26,821 feet deep! Laura spilled the beans today when we got hit by a big roller. Stuff was flying all over the kitchen. Judy kept saying it was a smooth ride and we told her she was not allowed to say the word “smooth” anymore. Every time she does…it gets really rough. We had a beautiful sunset tonight.
December 21, 2012
WE got through the 3rd night at sea but at 3 AM Capt. Jim woke up to the smell of a battery getting way too hot. We had to shut down bank 1 of the batteries, then the smell stopped. Luckily no ill effects. Got to San Juan, PR today. Happy tears. About 8 AM. It was raining off and on but it was GREAT to make it to the island. And we all have phone service again. Woohoo! Chuck and Judy rented a car and went to their house to get some things done there.
They are flying back tomorrow. Capt. Jim, Laura and Dan spent the afternoon in San Juan shopping. In the evening, Dan, Jill and Luke Kalil joined us for dinner and drinks at El Convento then they came back to the boat with us. Loved every moment of today. Now we just need to see if the Mayans were wrong and the world ends on 12-21-12.
December 22, 2012
Looks like the Mayans were wrong. We are still here and today is the final loeg of this journey. At 10:30 AM we left for Fajardo. Arrived at 5 PM. Had dinner on board with Capt. Jim, Laura, Dan, Chuck, Judy, Sue Burdette, Bob Burdette and Nancy Lee.
I should probably add that we were in Puerto del Rey for a few days and Dan Lochner (a retired Lutheran minister) did a Christmas Eve service on the aft deck complete with communion for Jim, Laura and himself. It was a Christmas Eve we will never forget.
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