Sally & Conrad With Our Christmas Present

 

Bill Gates Used To Own this Property

 

We Arrived!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is the first time that we have had internet since Miami to do a post. We are in Big Majors Spot by Staniel Cay in the Exumas. We left Miami on Saturday (around the 18th?) crossed the Gulf Stream (very calm), and did a 24 hour trip to Frazers Hog in the Berry Islands. We stayed there for several days waiting out weather, then traveled to West Bay on New Providence Island (where Nassau is), then sailed to Normans Cay, and yesterday sailed to Staniel Cay where we will be for several days. There are about 70 boats here for the New Years Celebrations. All is well with us. We wish everyone a Happy, Healthy, New Year!

18Kts on Biscayne Bay

 

Miami Skyline

 

Stiltsville There were 30 now there are 7

 

I Wish We Were Eating Canned Food

That would mean that we were in the Bahamas. The weather has continued to deliver NE & E winds at 15-20 knots, not viable for leaving. We went to No Name Harbor a few days ago and saw the Christmas Boat Parade last night. The sailboat was the best in our opinion, congratulations,"Second Wind" Today we realized that the conditions for sailing were idyllic for sailing Biscayne Bay. We took a trip past Stiltsville and up to Coconut Grove Sailing Club,a wonderful spot. We did go to Fresh Market because I think we have developed a supermarket "Jones" Is this one of those dreams where your legs don't work?

Cape Florida Light West View

 

Cape Florida LIght North View

 

Sis & Mom

 

Is Anybody Home? Elena's Cat

 

Hurry Up and Wait

That is what we are doing know as the window to cross to the Bahamas was good for crossing but would have made the last leg of the trip to The Berry Islands pretty dicey. This is an interesting decision considering our trip from Ft Lauderdale to Miami. I was going to name a post "the definition of insanity", because even though I knew that exiting an inlet with the current opposing the waves is tough, I thought how bad can it be. In other words doing the same thing and expecting a different result. The NE swell was about 5-6feet and the pounding was barely tolerable however when I started the turn South and found the shallower water(15') it became a tumult of square holes bordered those by those same waves. It was an interesting lesson in hydrodynamics. Once we freed ourselves from this error, we were able to put the sails up and took off at nearly 7 kts. The wind was on the beam,blowing 18-25kts,the NE swell had company(an easterly 3-4'wind wave)which made for an "interesting" motion. Needless to say we made good time to Miami to meet Conrad and Sally. After missing the weather window we decided to cruise down to No Name Harbor today,we had a nice sail and a fun cruisers get together. Looks like we could be waiting awhile for the next opportunity to cross the Gulf Stream

Waiting for Laurie

Laurie will be on the "Red Eye" from LA tonight. As per my last post I have spent the last few days being busy getting very little done. The boat is pretty well provisioned and prepared. I now have a spear,Cuban yo-yo and assorted lures(the fish and lobsters are laughing hysterically). For those who have not had to buy food for 3-4 months and stuff it into a closet that you also live in, all I can say is,lucky you.
If things go according to plan(the ones molded in jello)we will cross to the Bahamas this week. At least we should be able to sail to Miami tomorrow and maybe check out a different Publix Supermarket.

What do we do all day?

This is a question that non cruisers often ask. Well today was another exciting day in the life. We started by defrosting the fridge which caused Laurie to slice her finger on the holding plate. No big deal,we have found band aids essential and carry mass quantities.
Ok, on to the important stuff, we left our beautiful anchorage to get water and evacuate the "amazing tank of death"(waste holding tank). sounds simple enough. Well that is unless one forgets to check the bridge opening schedule and have to sit in 20-25knots of wind on a weekend in Ft Lauderdale waiting for the next opening. We made it through unscathed but we were instructed to go in a slip with a following current that is encased in concrete pilings. Twenty knots of wind,following current, can you say the word damage. So we requested to go to the face dock, easy as pie. Well the concrete pilings were challenging the anchor and keeping my cajones tucked up. After three go rounds we were securely tied to the dock,at least until we realized it was the wrong T-head. Round two went slightly better.
Now we are ready for "business", well almost. It took the marina personnel half an hour to find the fittings and another 20 minutes for me to figure out that someone had left another intake on the pumpout open. Oh, I forgot, the previous sanitation engineer didn't rinse the hose. I will leave that to your imagination. Finally we are done and off to another anchorage where the dinghy protocol is easier.
We arrive at the Middle River, 3.5 miles from our last locale. It is still blowing and the current is opposing so Kismet is doing her dance. Unfortunately she is trying to step on the neighbor's toes,not once but twice. On the third anchoring we called it good.
So the answer to the question is-not much but it almost took all day.

"Occupy" This

 

Sunrise in Lake Sylvia

 

Arrival in Lake Sylvia, Fort Lauderdale

After two days of travel from Stuart, FL, we dropped the hook at 1630 in Lake Sylvia. On day 1, we left Stuart at 0700 and motored down the ICW (through 8 bridges), to arrive in Lake Worth anchorage at around 1400. On day 2, yesterday, we left the inlet at Lake Worth at 0700 and sailed the entire way (46 miles!) to enter the Port Everglades inlet and wind our way through beautiful Fort Lauderdale to the Lake Sylvia anchorage. This is such a cool spot - we are really in Florida now!

The "Coastal Queen" 51 years on the ICW

 

Birthday Party at Mulligans in Vero

 

50NM+ Aliquots

Time for a breather. We arrived in Stuart Fl. Yesterday after breaking the cardinal rule(IMHO) of ICW travel for the past month, we are close enough to Ft Lauderdale to enjoy a new place. This trip is not a job and should be enjoyed, unless you have the dreaded "schedule". There was one stretch that we took 5 days to do one year and did in one day this time. We did have a nice birthday dinner for Laurie with our 2009 traveling friends,"Passages&Polar Pacer" in Vero Beach. Even "Velcro Beach" couldn't slow us much. Stuart seems quite nice and we hope to explore it.

Georgia was a Peach

We are currently in St Augustine Fl. Tropical Storm Sean, one of the oddest low pressure systems on record kept us on the ICW almost all the way here. We visited Beaufort S.C. and I(jim&george) finally got to take the carriage ride and historical tour. Laurie went shopping with Mo. Since Capers Island, we have been fortunate that the current and tides moved us along with no stress through the low spots. Georgia was beautiful with spectacular anchorages and amazing vistas. We made it to Sapelo Island(home of the best Thanksgiving ever) and went out Doboy Sound. We had a very pleasant spinnaker run most of the way to Fennandina Beach Fl.( Our remaining appendix is still intact). After catching up with Ed& Karen on the other "Passages" who were preparing to launch there, we made a very fast trip to St Augustine before the front moves in. Hoping we can slow down a little before we need to be in Ft Lauderdale to set up for Laurie's trip for her mom's 90th birthday.

All Cruisers Should Go to Capers

 

Won't Somebody Take My Picture???

 

Mo & Jim on Capers Beach

 

Capers Island

 

Millions of Monarch Butterflies on Capers

 

A Trip to Capers Island

For a couple of years now, I have read about Capers Island (North of Charleston SC, just off the ICW). So, this trip, we decided to make it a priority and stop. Passages and Kismet were anchored in Whiteside Creek by 1500. And off we all went in the dinghy for the mile plus trip across the ICW to Capers Inlet. The interesting thing about this area is that storms destroyed the dunes, and then exposed the trees to the sea, resulting in very interesting formations. Of course, before we took the right turn to the beach we walked 2 miles through the forest with gazillion mosquitoes chasing us. When we arrived at the beach (finally), we had cocktails, before heading back to the mother ships! Today we motored through Charleston, to set the anchor in Tom Point Creek for the night. Tomorrow we will be in Beaufort, SC. It was finally 70 degrees today.

81%

For those who think the ICW is a motor boat ride , the above is the percentage of days we have sailed(not motorsailed) since Deltaville Va. One of those days was the Dismal Swamp but we will count it because unfortunately we didn't sail all day, everyday. The run from Deltaville to Hampton was absolutely a magnificent sail, one of the top 3 in Kismet's nearly 22,000 mile career. The North winds have made it possible for us to have many pleasant trips while still making good time. Yes, we could have made more progress but being able to glide down the "Ditch" is serene. We spent the day in Georgetown S.C. visiting "Island Moon" Hoping to keep the streak going tomorrow.

Dolphins in Bogue Sound NC

 

Boats on the Pasquotank River

 

Mo in the Deep Creek Lock

 

Making Tracks South

I can't believe it has been 8 days since our last entry! Traveling south with Mo & George and we are at mile 283 on the ICW in Wrightsville Beach, NC today. We have made stops in Portsmouth, VA anchoring at Hospital Point, then on through the Dismal Swamp in one day to tie up in Elizabeth City at a wall just North of the bridge for a night, then had a good sail across the Albemarle and down the Alligator River to anchor in Tuckahoe Point, a great sail down the Pungo River, across the Pamlico to anchor in Eastham Creek, on to River Dunes for a marina break (very great facilities), then a night in Spooners Creek, and one in Mile Hammock, before reaching Wrightsville at 1400 today. Fortunately, we missed the brunt of the cold front - no rain; just wind and COLD TEMPS! It is gusting into the 30s today. We are thinking of heading offshore from Cape Fear, but are hesitating because it is so cold. We'll make a decision tonight or tomorrow morning - right now we are happy to be anchored!

Dick & Anne Arriving for Happy Hour

 

Heading South

We dropped the lines at Shearwater Marina on Sunday morning and headed south to the Solomons. Had a good sail for part of the day, and then the wind shifted, so we motored in the last 8 miles to anchor in Mill Creek. Lo and behold - Grey Hound was anchored just around the bend, so we had an extended Happy Hour with them. Next day we sailed south across the mouth of the Potomac to anchor in beautiful Mill Creek in the Great Wicomico River. One of our goals this week was to get to Deltaville, VA to meet Mo and George on "Passages". They are launching their boat this week, so we will travel south with them! A strong coldfront is coming through so we will be here in Deltaville til Friday - then off to Portsmouth, VA!

One More Appointment To Go

We are sitting in the waiting room at Bassett Healthcare in Cooperstown, NY waiting to see my surgeon; the last stop for me! I had the dreaded mammogram an hour ago, and ALL IS GOOD! Next stop the Bahamas! Looking forward to getting back to Annapolis tonight. Then a little provisioning, and we head south.

We Arrived in Cooperstown NY

After a very fun time in Annapolis, we headed out yesterday for our trip North to deal with medical appointments. The fabulous weather is making the trip much nicer. We stopped overnight in Harrisburg, PA at Raymond & Susan's, and arrived in Cooperstown at noon today. First stop the dermatologist - all is well! Tomorrow I'll be at the cancer center in the A.M. Looking for another good report. We'll keep all informed!

Where's Kismet?

 

JIm & The Birthday Girl

 

Lounging in the City of Ann

We pulled in Spa Creek in Annapolis a few days ago, anchored in our usual spot by Truxton Park. We visited Sally & Conrad, "It's About Time" at Annapolis Landing Marina before they headed back to Pennsylvania for a week; then time with Jon & Yvonne on Spa Creek at their new condo. Yvonne's birthday was last night, so we had a great party with delicious food & fun friends. The weather unfortunately has been pretty dreary - rain, drizzle, overcast, no wind - we have the need to run the engine for power. We will be in the area til October 16th. We will be leaving "Kismet" at Jon & Yvonne's dock for a week while we head up to NY for Doctor's appointments.

The Aquarium, Etc.......