Exodusfloatnotes

Great Loop Travels

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  • Florida Four (Months)

    Safe Cove Boat Storage, Port Charlotte

    “Exodus” exited the water on Mon., Dec. 2.

    Now, for a close-up view of the damaged prop and the need for bottom paint ….

    Those were two jobs we farmed out to the boatyard to complete. But, over the course of the four months in Florida, we were able to take care of multiple other cleaning and repair tasks, such as repainting around the aft cabin windows, repairing the fiberglass on the swim platform, and changing oil and fuel filters on both engines and the generator. With the help of our friend Mike, Dennis also changed the oil in the inflatable motor, a task which included wrangling the motor onto the stand pictured below! Here are some before and after photos. (One of the two new props, the fresh bottom paint, and the swim platform repairs are pictured in the final photo).

    Christmas 2024 (at son Jonathan, daughter-in-law Erika, and family’s home) brought an official “Looper” jacket to Den.

    In January, we had the opportunity to join Pat and John (“Patti Anne”) on their Mako as well as Chuck and Kim (“Til You Can’t”) for a boat ride to Cabbage Key …

    where we had lunch at the restaurant featuring the famous Dollar Bill Bar boasting over $70,000 worth of signed dollar bills on the ceiling. One for “Exodus” is now attached.

    While Chuck and Kim were in the Ft. Myers area, we got together at the Edison and Ford Winter Estates for a tour of the research lab, botanical gardens and museum. Pictured below are hanging staghorn ferns and two examples of the many species of trees experimentally planted by Edison in an attempt to find a domestic, alternate source of rubber – a Banyan and a Mysore.

    While a great deal of clean up had happened in Punta Gorda after Hurricanes Helene and Milton, the city marina and marina at Fisherman’s Village are both closed until further notice. Some boats (a couple pictured below) have still not been removed.

    Looking out at the beautiful Peace River Harbor (below), even through the safety cones and barrier fences, it’s hard to imagine the destructive force it would require to do the damage pictured above.

    It seems like the four months have passed quickly, and we’re already reprovisioning and readying to begin the second half of the trip. At a recent estate sale, we found a couple foldable bikes, and Dennis built stands for them so as to prevent them sliding around in the cockpit.

    Safe Cove put the boat back in the water on Thursday, Mar. 27 …

    … and we will depart for Burnt Store Marina, our first stop, on Tuesday, Ap. 1.

  • Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW)

    Tampa Bay to Port Charlotte …

    … where we reach our unofficial halfway point, with the following to report:

    • 3,472 nautical miles travelled
    • 83 locks traversed
    • 1,791 gallons of diesel used
    • five months “on the road”

    On Friday, Nov. 29, we were up and underway by 7:30am, thankful for no fog, rain, or strong winds!

    The Sunshine Skyway Bridge is quite a remarkable structure (detail of cables in second picture below).

    We crossed Tampa Bay with no issues. Here are some views of our electronic charts near Bradenton and Sarasota.

    We enjoyed spotting the Ringling Mansion from Sarasota Bay but not so much spotting yet more evidence of hurricane damage (illustrated by several pictures below), such sightings occurring with greater regularity along the way.

    Great to start seeing more mangroves.

    There are a number of bridges on the GIWW, from small swing bridges like the one at Blackburn Point where we made the opening with no waiting …

    … to larger bridges where we have to either call for an opening or time it just right for the scheduled opening.

    If Den lowers the antennae, there is sufficient clearance beneath some bridges so that we can pass under without danger of hitting. However, it can be a little disconcerting to be gliding just beneath the bottom of a bridge with traffic flying by above one’s head! I find myself involuntarily ducking.

    It was exciting to cross under the Circus Bridge in Venice, as we’ve crossed over it by car several times plus we really began to feel like we were almost home.

    Den’s brother attended and played baseball for the high school here, so we were sure to take some pictures of the ballfield for him.

    There are a lot of boats out today, the day after Thanksgiving, and many speed by slower moving boats like ours, often waking us in the narrow waterway. Some kayakers and boaters in smaller boats find an island to fish from or just explore.

    As we were passing by a marina in Venice, we were contacted by “Cool Change,” Loopers we’d seen most recently in Alabama who noticed us on either AIS (Automatic Identification System) or Nebo.

    For a while, we cruised through a more rural part of the waterway with sandy beach areas and some private – and mostly hurricane-damaged – docks …

    … then anchored for the night in Lemon Bay where the surrounding buildings were pretty beaten up by hurricane winds.

    Leaving on the morning of Saturday, Nov. 30, required waiting on the wind and tide, so we didn’t get underway until 9:30. This was frustrating for a number of reasons, not the least of which was that we were due to reach home this same day! When taking the dogs to shore in the morning, we experienced the strong wind and noticed how low the tide was. When we did leave the anchorage, there was so much ground in sight that we became confused as to where the channel was. Consequently, we went aground briefly until the tide swept us off and we floated free and joined the channel. Whew.

    We again saw a good deal of destruction along the way, including a ruined manufactured home park.

    Charlotte Harbor was very bumpy with spray over the bow, but at least the sun was shining.

    Dolphin escort always welcome!

    We made it to the Myakka River and the very small South Gulf Cove Lock. It wasn’t clear how to enter the lock, as there was a hazard marker in the middle of the lock’s narrow approach! Fortunately, the lockmaster was there. When I shouted to him about the marker in the way, he said it wasn’t supposed to be there and must have been pulled into the middle of the approach by another boat. At any rate, he claimed that we could hug the mangrove on the left side and not run aground. It was a real trust issue, but we successfully made it in and through the lock.

    On our eight-mile run to Safe Cove (boat yard in Port Charlotte where the boat will be taken out of the water for four months), we saw more sunken and half-sunken boats …

    … mangroves and narrow waterways …

    … and the beautiful canals of Southwestern Florida.

    Here is the Captain piloting the boat for the last time for four months …

    … and here are several of our wonderful friends (two not pictured) waiting for us at the dock at Safe Cove. What a very welcome sight!

    And, finally, upon entering the house, we were greeted by a kind welcome home note from three of those great friends!

  • Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW)

    Anclote/Tarpon Springs to Isla Del Sol (i.e., almost Tampa Bay)

    On Wednesday morning (Nov. 27), we took the inflatable up the Anclote River to take a look at where we’d be docking at the Anclote Village Marina (which is very much a working, service-oriented marina/boat yard versus a resort-style enterprise). Though this area had also been affected by the hurricanes (e.g., the marina’s restaurant was closed owing to damage), we found that the destruction wasn’t as extensive in comparison to what we’d seen anchoring north of here.

    The picture below shows the length of dock (with power!) where we were able to reserve slips for the night along with “Til You Can’t.”

    Later, Chuck and Kim invited us to ride along in their inflatable on the Anclote River to Tarpon Springs, a great small city in Florida that Dennis and I have visited previously. Tarpon Springs is famous for its sponge industry (sponge display on boat pictured below) …

    … which began around 1890 when sponges were retrieved by hooking them from the floor of the river. In 1905, a Greek immigrant introduced the practice of diving for sponges, a method common in his country of origin. Many Greeks subsequently arrived and worked in the sponge industry. A traditional sponge diving boat is pictured below …

    … followed by a not-so-traditional sponge boat.

    Though the sponge industry is much smaller now, there remains a large Greek community in Tarpon Springs; as such, the four of us elected to have lunch at Hella’s to enjoy some authentic Greek cuisine.

    When we got back to the city dock where we’d left Chuck and Kim’s inflatable, we were greeted by this guy on a neighboring boat.

    That evening, the four of us had “docktails” and watched the sun set in front of the closed restaurant at Anclote Village Marina. We calculated that we’d been travelling together for three months! Dennis and I will be leaving tomorrow morning, because we need to make tracks given that the boat is scheduled to be taken out of the water on Dec. 3 at Port Charlotte. However, Kim and Chuck will be staying here a while longer, as they need to begin to slow down the pace of their trip; they must remain in Florida until the warmer spring months permit them to start cruising north along the east coast. We so regretted that we would not be able to celebrate Thanksgiving with them.

    Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 28) we woke to heavy fog, so we were unable to safely leave until 9:30. (Not-so-intrepid, scruffy-looking travelers pictured below.)

    You can make better time by going out into the Gulf (vs. staying inside in the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway/GIWW), but because the Gulf was very choppy that day, we only stayed in it for about 10 miles and then returned to the GIWW, ducking back in at Clearwater (below).

    The chop didn’t deter this parasailer outside of Clearwater.

    However, it did make this tour boat (below) turn around and head back out of the Gulf.

    Check out our delicious Thanksgiving turkey “dinner.”

    Went under Indian Rocks Bridge (pictured below first) on our way through the Narrows which is a small strip of land (pictured second) between the GIWW and the Gulf. Starting to see some familiar sights, such as pelicans …

    … pier fishing, and manatee areas.

    We have to call for bridge openings.

    We are beginning to see more and more hurricane damage – collapsed docks, piled sandbags, blue tarps on roofs, debris, and sunken sailboats …

    … all next to beautiful homes. (And, of course, there are the ever-present crab pots.)

    At the Treasure Island Causeway Bridge, the bridge tender opened the bridge for us at 2:40pm even though he remembered it was a holiday and was supposed to wait until 2:45. He said that it was his last day before retiring after 15 years, and he was going to open it for us because, why not?! He is moving to The Villages because his house was damaged so severely from the last hurricane.

    Because we got a late start this morning, we weren’t sure whether we’d have sufficient sunlight to make it through Tampa Bay. Sure enough, by the time we got near the Pinellas Parkway Bridge (Isla Del Sol), it was a little after 4:00pm, so tackling Tampa Bay was not viable.

    It was truly a gift from God that there was an anchorage available (spotted a group of boats anchored off the channel), as it wasn’t listed anywhere, and there were no soundings off the channel (i.e., no way of knowing the depth of any water other than what was recorded for the channel). Granted, some of the boats anchored there looked to be temporary homes for squatters, but we were very grateful for the safe harbor.

    On our way back from taking the dogs ashore (up a boat ramp that featured a wrecked boat on one side of it that appeared to be a homeless encampment with some very questionable vehicles parked nearby), we saw more evidence of hurricane damage. The sign on the fence next to the sailboat that had been thrown on shore (pictured below) ironically states, “No docking.”

    The picture of the nearby bridge at night doesn’t do it justice, but you can imagine how the colored lights reflecting in the water make for an impressive look from afar.

    We’ll tackle Tampa Bay in the morning!

  • Upper West Coast, Florida

    Including crossing the Gulf

    Very cold morning – 42 degrees! The weather has held (i.e., calm wind and waves), so we were up and on our way by 7:00am on Sunday, Nov. 24, leaving Carrabelle in Florida’s Panhandle and crossing the Gulf of Mexico to Florida’s upper west coast.

    Several other boats had left yesterday and staged at Dog Island which saved them an hour this morning, but we are thankful that we can even leave given the damaged prop. Below is “Til You Can’t” running ahead of us.

    We’re running slower than normal because of the vibration caused by the bent prop, so a couple other boats that left Carrabelle this morning – “Into the Mystic” and “Sweet Equity” – have passed us way off to our starboard (below left photo). Though cold out, the sun is shining and shimmering on the water’s surface.

    Seeing lots of jellyfish …

    … and lots and lots and LOTS of crab pot floats on the water’s surface. These floats are connected to crab pots (i.e., cages) in the water by ropes that can become tangled around a boat’s prop. Crab fishermen set the floats/pots in rows in the shallower Gulf waters. Boaters must be continuously on watch for crab pots, not only for those in rows but for the large number of single pots that brake loose from rows. The floats are every color and combination of colors, including blue, black, and green hues that don’t show up well in the water! There were many times that we narrowly dodged running over one, steering away at the last second. The third picture below shows two pots of the same (connected) row. Rows can extend for quite a distance.

    Both of us stretched our legs on the bow at different spots during the trip.

    At one point, a small bird (finch?) landed on the antenna and hitched a ride for a while, no doubt needing a rest, as it was out in the middle of the Gulf with no place on which to sit besides our boat!

    We spotted land at 1:40pm while also hearing and catching sight of a loon next to the boat. Unknown to us, loons from the Great Lakes region migrate to the Gulf of Mexico and the Florida coasts. We also saw a Needle Fish tail walk across the water. Pretty entertaining!

    We lined up with the first buoy of the fairway leading into Steinhatchee at 4:00pm and arrived at the anchorage at 4:45pm. Crossing successful!

    There wasn’t a great deal of water in this anchorage, and we were concerned about how the boat would ride in low tide (slated for 3:30am). As it turned out, our concerns were well-founded: At 3:00am, after Dennis awoke and noticed the boat was not moving, we weighed anchor, used the inflatable to pull the stern so that the boat was again floating, and then reset the anchor.

    Crab boats like the one pictured below come and go at all hours.

    When taking the dogs to shore in Steinhatchee, we observed firsthand the amount of devastation caused by the hurricanes to the area. Things were still very upended and scattered. Because we’d heard about how marina owners in the upper west coast of Florida were struggling to reopen and/or to obtain goods and provide services (e.g., dockage, fuel), we knew that we couldn’t expect much in the way of marina amenities and had done our best to provision and fuel up in Carrabelle with plans to anchor as much as needed.

    It was again a chilly morning when we left the Steinhatchee anchorage on Monday, Nov. 25, but we were able to get another early start and made it successfully that afternoon to the fairway going into Cedar Key (an area greatly damaged by Hurricane Helene). Because of the extent of that damage, we elected to remain outside of Cedar Key, anchoring off the fairway along with “Til You Can’t” by Seahorse Key. A number of dolphins greeted and escorted us as we entered the fairway, putting on quite a show!

    They then swam around us after we anchored.

    Our boat and “Til You Can’t” were the only boats in our 360 degree view, and the four of us were the only people in sight.

    Seahorse Key (below left) was like our own deserted island. The dogs loved running in the sand.

    And the sunset was stunning.

    Readying to do the “dog run” to the island the next morning (Tues., Nov. 26), we were again greeted by dolphins. They accompanied us on our way in the inflatable.

    Returning to the boat, we saw “Checkmate,” “Not So Fast” and “Tika” heading out of the fairway toward the Gulf and later exchanged float plans with them over the radio. Like us, “Checkmate” and “Not So Fast” were headed to Anclote/Tarpon Springs. “Tika” planned to go inland a bit to Crystal River.

    More dancing the crab pot tango today! It feels like crossing a minefield, because there are so many floats, seemingly everywhere. If you look below the float in the following picture, you can see the rope descending toward the crab pot.

    We’re pretty tired, but we have to take advantage of this string of nice days and make as much progress in the direction of the more protected waters of the GIWW; so, eating lunch at the helm is part of the Captain’s multi-tasking efforts. The dogs are hoping that a wave jars perhaps part of the sandwich off the plate and onto the deck!

    We anchored outside of Anclote (which is adjacent to Tarpon Springs) on Tuesday evening and experienced another absolutely breathtaking sunset, start to finish.

    Tomorrow we have reservations at Anclote Village Marina which has dockage and power! Reaching the Anclote/Tarpon Springs area, we will again be travelling mainly within the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW).

  • Gulf Intracoastal Waterway

    FL Panhandle, continued

    On Thursday, Nov. 21, we left Baytowne Marina in Miramar Beach with Kim and Chuck on “Til You Can’t” amidst windy weather and rocky seas. Exiting the marina turned out to be more challenging than crossing the bay into the channel, as there was little room for error in the narrow waterways between docks in the marina.

    On the way that day, we saw many damaged and seemingly abandoned boats from the hurricanes …

    … as well as an increasing number of live aboard situations in which people were using what were apparently abandoned boats as shelter.

    After West Bay and St. Andrew Bay, we arrived at Emerald Marina in Panama City where we caught up with “Unbridled” and learned that they would be leaving their boat at Emerald Marina through the holidays. Sailboaters in a neighboring slip were having some work done by a brave soul using a bosun’s chair to complete the maintenance.

    Did a free load of laundry (whoo hoo!), watched the sunset while waiting for the clothes to dry …

    … and got takeout from a nearby Thai restaurant. Living pretty large today!

    It was quite chilly when we left the next morning on Friday, Nov. 22, with a high in the low 60’s predicted for daytime and 40’s for night. We left along with several other boats all headed ultimately for Carrabelle where we’ll wait for a weather window to cross the Gulf of Mexico (i.e., depart the Panhandle and cross to Florida’s upper west coast).

    While we “lost” an hour owing to crossing back into Eastern Standard Time, we gained the opportunity to see beautiful sights in the bays and channels …

    … plus more “gunkholes” and duck blinds.

    Our stop in between Panama City and Carrabelle was Apalachicola where we were able to get a spot on the wall adjoining the park downtown. This was fortunate, as we learned from the radio chatter of other boats that the main marina in Apalachicola (Scipio) was full. The picture below (left) of our boat in the foreground also shows several “Looper” boats anchored across the channel.

    Apalachicola is a neat little town, reminiscent of “old Florida.”

    However, we’ll remember Apalachicola less for its quaintness and more for the unseen obstruction underwater that we hit in the middle of the channel shortly after leaving town on Nov. 23. We left early, viewing a beautiful sunrise …

    … but hit right after crossing under a bridge. The right engine developed a vibration, so Dennis called ahead to C-Quarters Marina in Carrabelle to ask if they could try to contact a diver to check the prop.

    After arriving, Dennis spoke to the Harbor Master at C-Quarters, and a delivery captain, overhearing the conversation, indicated that he too had hit what must have been the same obstruction right outside of Apalachicola. He had already contacted a diver who was on his way to the marina. Fortunately, the diver who soon showed up to check the boat the delivery captain was piloting (“Tax Relief”) agreed to check ours immediately afterward. The diver didn’t spend too long on “Tax Relief,” as the damage was extensive, and the boat was going to have to be pulled for repairs.

    I was eating some lunch in the galley when the diver began using the hammer (pictured in his hand above right) on our prop in an attempt to straighten it to the extent possible. I definitely could both feel and hear the operation! The noise was fine with me, however, because the longer it went on, the better the chance that the diver thought he could hammer out the worst of it which meant we could make the crossing in the morning!

    This proved to be the case, so with the knowledge that the prop could function reasonably well and that we would be making the voyage in the morning, we were then able to concentrate on provisioning and taking care of as many errands as possible (including “wheeling” through the ATM). These chores needed to be completed before crossing to the upper west coast of Florida because there would be limited services available given the impact in those areas of recent hurricanes.

    Later, we got the chance to join Loopers Russ and Jamie (“Naut Lost”) and Chuck and Kim (“Til You Can’t) for a very good dinner at a small restaurant within walking distance. Russ invited Dennis and Chuck to join the Looper Men’s Bible Study, and Dennis has since enjoyed being a part of this weekly virtual meeting.

    Tomorrow’s a big day, the day we cross the Gulf. That story to follow soon.

  • Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW)

    FL Panhandle

    Thankfully, the latest hurricane threat, Hurricane Sara, looks like it will not impact FL as initially expected. We left Fairport, AL, Thurs., Nov. 14, on a choppy sea, heading toward the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) that we will follow for most of the trip to our home in Southwest FL. Saw the first dolphin of the journey! No picture yet, I’m afraid, as those guys are quick!

    Officially entered the GIWW at 2:18pm.

    Further inland, houses and condos line the shore, some houses appearing new while others more traditional.

    We passed Lulu’s, a restaurant/marina/campground owned by Jimmy Buffett’s sister … (you guessed it) … Lulu. A good number of Loopers stop at Lulu’s.

    We arrived at The Wharf Marina, Orange Beach, AL, mid-afternoon. This marina is much different than many we’ve stayed at thus far, as it is really more of a resort. It ‘s definitely not a tie-up-to-the-barge-for-the-night kind of experience here.

    The area behind the large building (housing the marina office and store as well as condos) in the above picture is a street of shops and restaurants as well as a movie theatre, ferris wheel, and outdoor amphitheater seating 10,000. It is an “entertainment center,” designed to create the sense of a small town or village.

    We met up with Tanya and Dan (“Crimson Tug”) that evening (Nov. 14) and had dinner with them and Chuck and Kim. As we sat at the outdoor table, suddenly dance music started playing in the street behind us, lights began flashing, and smoke started billowing out of spots in the median.

    Shops, restaurants, and other entities in the area are referred to as being “on property,” or on the land owned by the resort.

    At noon on Friday, Nov. 15, we left for Palafox Pier Yacht Harbor in Pensacola, FL. On the way, we saw quite a few crab pot markers outside of the GIWW, lots of beautiful sand dunes,

    some (likely) protected areas,

    lots of houses and boats,

    a fort (Fort Pickens, Santa Rosa Island),

    and a coast guard station.

    Below are some sights entering the harbor in Pensacola.

    On Saturday, Nov. 16, Kim and I went to the farmer’s market downtown and took in some additional sights (Armed Forces Pelicans are part of the Pelicans in Paradise pubic art project) …

    … as well as some coffee.

    Meanwhile, Dennis and Chuck visited the National Naval Aviation Museum on the nearby base.

    Barnstormer WWI planes (barnstorming a one-time occupation of Dennis’s maternal grandfather) to fighter jets

    Beautiful dusk and sunset at the marina.

    Left for Sandestin, FL, on Sun., Nov. 17 in order to be a little further along the Panhandle before the predicted strong winds and rain arrive. A ship departed the harbor before us. You can see the assist tug beside it (middle of the ship).

    We saw several dolphins (managed to got picture of fin!) …

    … and many pelicans searching for their dinners. They dive from such heights straight into the water with such velocity that you’d think they’d get a headache!

    Many kayakers and boaters enjoy just grounding their boats and experiencing a day on the dunes.

    We traveled through Santa Rosa Sound with Santa Rosa Island separating us from the Gulf of Mexico. After the Narrows, we entered Choctawhatchee Bay and, specifically, then Horseshoe Bayou to the Baytowne Marina.

    The marina is a part of Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort, and its design is somewhat similar to The Wharf at Orange Beach but much larger in scope.

    There is something for everyone, it seems, from sport fishing and float plane rides to ziplines and ice skating amidst shops and restaurants …

    … which we found at the end of a walkway with treehouses over wetlands.

    Because of foul weather, we stayed at Baytowne Marina longer than we’d anticipated. From the looks of it, this “guy” in the boat across from us has been there a very, very long time.

    While it rained all day on Tues., Nov 19, Wed., Nov 20 was clear but very rocky with high wind causing us to postpone our departure until Thurs., Nov. 21. Pictured below are some pieces of data to take into consideration when making float plans.

    More Panhandle journey to follow soon.