February 14th, 2015

Saturday February 14, 2015:  

Pretty low key day. I received a very nice Valentine message from Missy first thing this morning....I wish she would have been able to join me down here but we both have a lot of things going on…next year for sure! 

Stopped at the Outfitter store a block from the marina to pick new shotgun flares.  I do not want to be out of date as the Florida Water Patrol is well represented in these parts.

Geez, these guys are everywhere!

Pretty calm wind around 1PM so I motored over to the fuel dock to top of the tanks.  With fuel prices on the way back up it might be cheaper now than when I come back in March. 

The wind started to pick up again just when I pulled away from the fuel dock so I had to pivot off a piling in order to back into a slip.

So check back in a month to see where we go from there.  I would like to cross the Gulf and head down to Key West but it is all dependent on the weather.

Namaste………….

February 13th, 2014

Friday February 13, 2015

You meet the nicest people in a marina.  

And the older and more beat up the boat, the nicer they are!  Roger, Trawler La Sirena, helped me with dock lines last night.  

John, S/V Kittywake, and I had a nice conversation this morning on the dock.  He is heading back to Galveston Texas in the morning.  He has a center cockpit Ketch and he struggles with single hand sailing so he is waiting for a crew member to come in today to help him.  

Also chatted with the dock master here at the marina, Dean Lord, for a while.  Very nice guy and very helpful.

The forecast does not allow me to cross the Gulf in the next week so I am going to head home on Sunday and come back mid-March after the Minneapolis Auto Show (we are displaying one of the simulators at the auto show).  The slip rental is very reasonable here so it only makes sense to stay in Port St. Joe.  

When I do cross I will go down to Carrabelle and head out from there but Carrabelle has very little to offer and Port St. Joe is one of the nicest little towns you will ever find.  Very friendly people, lots of small shops, along with Piggly Wiggley and CVS.

February 12th

Feb 12^th, 2015.  Up at 5:10, motors started 5:40, away from the dock at 6:05.  

Beautiful morning, calm winds, favorable current most of the day!  The sunrise was awesome!  

Lots of stuff to see

Dolphins played in the wake off and on throughout the trip.  

After I had gone through the “Grand Canyon” (am 18 mile stretch of man-made canal) 

and entered “West Bay” of Panama City Harbor I notice a Florida Water Patrol boat checking up on some fishing boats.  Then they chased me down and asked for my registration.  

They were confused when I told them the boat was documented with the U.S. Coast Guard and thus no state registration was required.  They did not buy my explanation and called it in to have my story checked out.  In the meantime, the younger of the two “officers” boarded my boat for a “Safety Check”.  It could have been done without boarding me but I wanted to get out of there as soon as possible so I welcomed him aboard and gave him a quick tour.  The other officer got word back from somewhere that in fact MN does not require boats to be registered when they are documented with the USCG.  So off they went..

Panama City Harbor served as a good seat for an air show.

More Dolphins!

Came across a tug hauling dredging equipment in a very narrow part of the ICW that was a little precarious getting around.  

Now in the eastern time zone.

When I left the Port St. Joe channel and entered St. Joseph Bay, the NW winds had stirred things up to a moderate chop so I bounced around getting over to the Port St. Joe marina.  I tried the marina on the radio and by phone but no answer.  The wind was blowing pretty strong but it worked out fine as I had the wind to my stern as I pulled alongside a nice long dock.  One of the other cruisers got out of his boat and gave me a hand.  It is supposed to get real windy later tonight so I have six lines out (over kill for sure but I like the security to allow me to sleep at night).  Dean, the marina manager showed up and welcomed me to make sure I was all good.  I had to wash the boat down as it was splashed pretty good with salt water coming across St. Joseph Bay.  Veggie burger for dinner and going to hit the sack early….I am bushed!

February 11th, 2015

Feb 11^th, 2015.  Up at 5AM, motors started at 5:35.  Away from dock at 6:03. 

Light wind and smooth bay crossing, piece of cake….even Missy would have liked it!  Passed Lulu’s and Homeport Marina at 9AM…3 hours from Dog River. Came across several barges just after Homeport Marina…two were tied to the north shore and two coming the other way along with a cruiser coming toward me.  Sportfish behind me must not have been on his radio as the barge Captains were a little upset with him as not only did he not answer radio calls to him, he ignored whistles by one of the barges.  One of the barge Captains came on the radio and remarked “I guess money makes you stupid!”

Dolphins showed up at 11:15 AM to greet me.  

Lots of Pelicans...love to watch them dive for lunch!

These three guys were very interested in what the Alabama DNR was doing.

Crossed over into Florida right at noon!  More Dolphins. 

 Lots of Navy and Air Force activity across Pensacola  Bay, in air and at sea.

Air Force Pilots are getting a dunk in the bay!

Mean Copter!

Navy Seals??

I heard a report on the radio of someone jumping or falling off the Navarre Bridge and saw a Coast Guard vessel rushing to assist.

Arrived at Fort Walton Beach Yacht Basin right at 5PM.  They normally close at 4PM this time of year so it was nice that one of the guys stayed on site for me.  Pretty strong current gave me my first docking challenge of the season.  I made it the second try but thought about it afterwards and would do it differently next time. Practice, practice, practice!  This is not my favorite marina, in fact it has really skinny finger piers, strong current, exposed to the channel, and there are no channel markers guiding you in.  But it is going to be cold tonight so I did not want to anchor out and did not have any other options this far east this time of year.  

The Crab Shack restaurant is right at the marina but I have plenty to eat on board!

Port transmission seemed to be A-Okay.  I checked the temp periodically during the day and it was right in sync with the starboard trans.  Aye Sea No Snow ran perfectly all day.  I did notice the fuel gauge on the port tank is not working so maybe the guys from Dog River bumped something….I will add it to my “to do list”.  I also really wish my lower helm autopilot would work properly but I can live with it.

It is going to be a rocky evening but I like the motion when I sleep! Going to try to get to Port St. Joe tomorrow...about 110 miles so it will be past sunset when I get there!

Red Sky at night, Sailor's delight!

Smoked Salmon on Triscuits with a tomato for dinner, strawberries for desert, yummmmm!