11/11 Our night crossing of the Gulf of Mexico to Tarpon Springs, FL

The day for us to cross the Gulf of Mexico was finally here.  We had finished our preparations, filled the water tanks and were ready to go.  In a go slow boat like our trawler,  the crossing takes about 21 hours and it did.  The plan was to leave Carrabelle at 3:30 pm and arrive about 10 am at the approach to Tarpon Springs.  The sun will be high enough in the sky by then to easily see and dodge the crab pots.

We left the dock at just before 3:30.  Our buddy boat, My Bluegill Heaven, with Ted Swartz single handing his boat, pulled out just in front of us.   We headed for East Pass just off Dog Island, and nosed out into the Gulf of Mexico.  This is My Bluegill Heaven just ahead of us.  The many dolphins were escorting us as we waved good-bye to the panhandle of Florida.  A good omen,  we thought.

The first two hours were in daylight and the seas were calm.  After that we could feel the seas increasing.  All reports were that the seas would lay down.  The sunset was gorgeous. 

We had agreed on what way points we would follow on our chart plotter and that we would keep visual contact.  The Hydrophilic runs radar, so the plan was that we would follow Ted as we would be able to track him on radar.  That purple blob is what My Bluegill Heaven looked like on our radar.  John had named the agreed upon way point that we were going to  Tedpoint 1.

At night on the Gulf, there are no lights.  Here is what My Bluegill Heaven's running light looked like in the dark.  Yes, it is just that one little light in the darkness.  Can you find it?

The skies were clear and the moon was about 1/2 full.  The moon reflected on the seas.

By 8 pm,  the seas got quite a bit rollier.  While our boat is very seaworthy, this made it uncomfortable.  I was laying on our heavy sleeper sofa in the salon, when a wave moved the couch with me on it across the salon.  John was a trooper, he navigated most of the night.  Each hour we made contact with our buddy boat.  Fortunately, neither of us had problems to report. 

Finally, just about 7 am the sun rose out of the horizon.  What a wonderful way to welcome a new day. 

We still had about 5 hours to get to the docks but we knew we would do just fine.  The seas had finally calmed down after a long rolly night.  Dolphins were once again all around us welcoming us to the west coast of Florida.  We really didn't see too many crab pots to dodge.  We have so many in NC that we thought there would be many, many more.  I did see this big box floating along. 

As we entered the Anclote River, Herb Seaton, the Tarpon Springs Harbor Host, greeted us in his boat Phantom.  Later, at the docks, he came by with a map of the area and streusel cakes.  Apparently, we made it here for the fish festival, too.  He gave me recommendations for dinner and offered rides and anything else he could help with.  What a nice man.

We ate lunch at the restaurant that was right on the dock.  My shrimp were huge and tasty.  This fellow was standing right over our table waiting for us.  John took our picture. 

Then, both John and I went to bed.  We slept for hours.  I think we will sleep well tonight too.

Lat 28 degrees 9.71 North
Long 82 degrees 46.20 West

11/10 It's a go

We will be heading across the Gulf of Mexico tonight!   Eddy of Eddy's Weather Wag says go and even he and his wife are crossing.  We have a buddy boat Ted of My Bluegill Heaven is crossing with us.  He is single handing.  We will contact each other every hour.  We have filed our float plan with my sister and each of our daughters has a copy.

It is a beautiful morning.  The marina offered a free breakfast.  It was nice to have sausages and eggs for breakfast.   We filled up the boat with water.  We have provisions.  I got those coconut patties that you see everywhere in Florida for a snack while crossing during the night.  We pumped up the dinghy.  I cleaned the windows but they say it is so dark it doesn't matter.  John checked on the radios and the waypoints on chart plotter.  I think that might be all we need as I have been channeling my inner Gilligan's Island crew to see what they brought.

John is taking a siesta to get ready and I will shortly too.  This egret is spending the day with us.

I ran an errand up to the post office here in Carrabelle.  What a cute little town.  They have the world smallest police station.  It is an old phone booth.  Back in the day when it acted like a phone booth, the police would park the car by the phone booth and could answer it if there was a problem.  After it was no longer used by the phone company, the police took it over.

Tomorrow is Veteran's Day.  Carrabelle has this lovely traffic island dedicated to Veterans.

Wish us well.  See you on the other side of the Gulf of Mexico tomorrow.

11/09 Staged at Carrabelle

We woke to a nice heavy drizzle.  This area has not had rain for almost 2 months. We hadn't seen rain since we were on the Illinois River.  We have come a long way since then. 

Today, we crossed Apalachicola Bay to stage ourselves at Carrabelle for a planned crossing of the Gulf of Mexico.  It was a little choppy but there were pods of dolphin everywhere.  When it is choppy it can be hard to see them but they were jumping and crossing in front of the boat.

We arrived early afternoon at the Moorings Marina.  We fueled up before we went to our dock.  The current here made docking difficult.  Once we were all tied up, we walked up to the main street to the Fisherman's Wife restaurant for lunch.  It was one last opportunity for a fried oyster sandwich.  The IGA was next door so John and I got a few last minute items for the crossing.

The crossing for slow boats like ours is done by starting in the afternoon and traveling overnight.  One does not want to arrive in Tarpon Springs until the sun is up fairly high because there are lots of crab pots to run into.  If you run into a crab pot, it can wrap around your propeller and you will be dead in the water.

For safety's sake, we filed a float plan with my sister.  When we called the Coast Guard to ask which was the best station phone number to leave with her, the Coast Guard was thanking John for filing a plan and making sure the numbers were correct. 

Tomorrow will be a day for final preparations.  We will make a go/no go decision after Eddie's Weather Wag in the morning.  We are only going if Eddie says yes.  His predictions come out at 0400.  The Moorings offers a free breakfast.  After breakfast, we will pump up the dinghy, clean the windows, etc.  We will leave about 2 or 3 p.m.  I plan to sleep late in the morning too.

Lat 29 degrees 51.12 North
Long 84 degrees 40.51 West

11/08 to Apalachicola, FL

This morning, I got this picture of a house boat in the marina we stayed in last night. 

The day was cooler and overcast to cloudy.  The cruising was wonderful though.  We like to run from the fly bridge.  The fly bridge has a little bit of a green house effect.  It is warm but you can still see everything from up high. 

First, we went through East Bay.  The trees in the distance with the light shining through them were so pretty.

Then, we entered Wetappo Creek.  Most of the Creek was swamp on the sides.  It reminded me of going through the swamps in South Carolina.  The water seemed to end in trees at each turn.

John took this picture of our chart plotter showing the Impenetrable Swamp.

Look at these pictures and think about trying to get very deep in these swamps.

There was evidence along the creek of damages from past hurricanes.  This was just one boat we saw that was in bad shape.

We caught up with and passed our friends, Tom and Carolynn on Su Sueno.  We had a good chat about the weather for the crossing of the Gulf.

Eventually, we entered the Apalachicola River.  We planned our stop here for the night.  On our walk to dinner, we passed this mansion on the grounds of the botanical gardens. 

This area is known for its oysters.  So to do my part, I had oysters again for dinner tonight.  These raw oysters were garnished with sour cream and caviar.  They were called Moscow Oysters.  I thought a Moscow Mule would be the perfect accompaniment.

  

Tomorrow, we head to Carrabelle to stage for the crossing to Tarpon Springs.

Lat 29 degrees 43.96 North
Long 84 degrees 59.38 West

11/07 To Panama City, FL

The winds had come up during the night.  That meant a choppy crossing of Choctawhatchee Bay.  We were taking the waves on the nose as we headed east across the bay.  Most of the waves were 3-4 feet.  The dolphins made use of our wake to ease their way through the water. 

Eventually, we went under the Choctawhatchee Bay Bridge and the waves calmed down.

After a while we entered a 22 mile section known as the Grand Canyon.

This man made portion of the Intracoastal has steep sand sides.  It was quite a change after the openness of the bay.

Finally, we crossed West Bay toward Panama City.  Here is a good example of the buoys we have seen in FL.  There are so many birds that have left presents on the buoys that they have been turned white.  Both the red and the greens are white.  You need to make sure of the shape for your navigation.

We had been having an electrical problem that we wanted fixed before we crossed the gulf.  The fellow that was recommended by the marina got and installed a new alternator so we can be on our way in the morning.

For dinner, we walked the short distance to Hunt's Oyster Bar.  What a treat. 

We were seated at the bar right in front of the shuckers.  They never stopped.  They just kept shucking and shucking.  One of the shuckers told us someone ate 21 dozen oysters at one sitting.   The oysters were excellent!   I managed to eat a dozen and a half and a salad. 

Tomorrow, we head to Apalachicola.  We are watching Eddie's Weather WAG.  Eddie is an AGLCA member who reports the weather for the crossing from Carrabelle to Tarpon Springs.  This portion is expected to take about 21 hours of continuous cruising across the gulf.  Right now Eddie is thinking an overnight crossing on Thursday to Friday morning will be best.  He does daily updates and we will follow his advice.

Lat 30 degrees 10.12 North
Long 85 degrees 42.21 West

11/06 Along Santa Rosa Sound to Fort Walton Beach, FL

The day was definitely cooler as we pulled out of Pensacola.  The sun was warm but the breeze was strong.  On the fly bridge, it would warm up with the eisenglass down but cool off the minute we opened it. 

Our goal was Fort Walton Beach.  We cruised along the Santa Rosa Sound.  Santa Rosa Island is the barrier island.  It is part of the Gulf Island National Seashore.  The sands are so white on the island.

We saw many dolphin frolicking in the sound.  The panhandle is not as populated as the rest of the state, although we did see some big houses.

From Santa Rosa Island rose this huge military radar.  I have never seen a radar so large.

We arrived at the Fort Walton City Docks about 1 p.m.  These docks are free and have a free self serve pump out.  Duane and Diane from Diva Di were already here and came out to catch our lines.  We reciprocated when the crew of Seven Tenths arrived.  Their boat is named for the 7/10ths of the world that is water.

A Publix was just up the road, so off I went.  I was in the mood for salami and good Italian bread and found it there.

At 5 p.m., we hosted docktails on the fly bridge.  Diva Di has guests on board and this was their first docktails.  I think they had fun.

Lat 30 degrees 24.10 North
Long 86 degrees 36.40 West

11/5 Pensacola Naval Air Station

Today, we toured the National Naval Aviation Museum on the base at the Pensacola Naval Air Station.  It paid tribute to all sorts of Naval aviation history.  There were jets, seaplanes, and helicopters on display.

There was a display honoring those aviators in WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm and in Space, etc.  They also honored the Coast Guard and Marines.  In addition to planes, there were collections of other naval memorabilia.

 Here is the Marine One helicopter from the Nixon administration.

One movie that was very interesting explained how the planes landed on the aircraft carriers.  It had the wind and engine noises just like being on deck.  It messed up my hair.   It is amazing how they catch the big bungee to land. 

There was an exhibit on the Blue Angels.

We took the 4-D movie exhibit that made it feel like you were flying in formation with the Blue Angels over Pensacola.  I held onto my seat during one maneuver.  What fun!!

We learned about a Homeward Bound Pennant.  A ship flies this as they head into the US after being abroad and until sunset of the first day in the US.  There is one star for the first 9 months at sea and a star for every six months thereafter.  I think John and I should make and fly one when we cross our wake.  Maybe we would only need one star for each month we were away.

Pensacola seems like a nice small city.  At the waterfront this morning, a suicide awareness walk was going on.  The music started at 8 a.m.  We went to church and walked back to the marina and had dinner a restaurant overlooking the marina.  It was homecoming weekend for the high schools.  At every fountain, in the square, and at the waterfront, everyone was taking pictures.  John and I joined in when asked to join a picture on the dock.  Years from now they will be wondering who those people are.

Tomorrow, we head to Fort Walton Beach, FL.  We will still be in the Central Time Zone.  Tonight we will fall back as Daylight Savings Times ends.  In a couple of days, we will enter the Eastern Time Zone and lose that extra hour.