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Last Days – August 24th to August 25th
Friday, August 24, 2007
Up early at 5:30 am which we found really wasn’t necessary
because we had done most of the work the day before! So, we
basically waited until it got light enough for us to move the boat
over to the fuel dock by 7:00 am. Salty did his usual “get as far
away from the boat as possible” routine when we started the engines
and generator but this time, he was hiding behind one of the dock
boxes. All I could see was this big snout sticking out from behind
it, otherwise I would never have seen him – what a dork. After
getting him on board in “position” on the upper deck lounge in front
of his fan, we were able to take most of the lines off, leaving the
stern and mid-ship lines in place for an “easy off” for me when
Barry was ready to move the boat. It would have been an “easy off”,
however, someone forgot about having TWO stern lines on, so when I
got the mid-ship and starboard side stern line off, I noticed the
other stern line and raced over to get it off as quickly as possible
and just as I got it released and tossed it onto the dingy (on the
swim platform), Barry started to move the boat forward and I had to
race back down the dock and jump on “wait, wait, wait for me”!!!!!
No, it was NOT me who forgot that other stern line but I guess that
would be part of my job to check anyway – crap, its always my fault.
We got to the fuel pump at 7:00 am before anyone else and found that
the regular diesel pump was out of service so we had to use the fast
pump they use for the BIG yachts – it pumps 40 gallons a minute. We
thought it would be too powerful but as long as Barry held the flow
at a certain speed – all went well. Starboard side took 145 gallons
and port took 157 to the tune of $1,007.43 so we should be all set
to get to Marathon and top it off again there before we head out in
the Gulf and on to Cape Coral tomorrow morning. Barry saw a couple
of boats he had seen in his Boating magazines – the True North that
is a brand new custom design that is capable of traveling anywhere –
Alaska, trans-Atlantic, anywhere and there it was in Fort
Lauderdale. Then the Shadow Marine that is basically a rich man’s
boat to carry all his toys, from wave runners, tenders or even
helicopters. Really, if you have enough money and a big enough
yacht, you commission this boat (or one like it) to carry all your
toys – how rude! Along our way out to the Atlantic we saw mega
mansions and little tiny houses that because of the water they are
located on and the close proximity to the Atlantic are worth a small
fortune. As we enter the Atlantic and the current hits just as the
Atlantic hits the channel, it always gets a little rough and when
that happens, Salty jumps off his seat and heads for the helm seat –
he must feel safer with the Captain. Once out there, the water is
just like glass – bonus! We passed the Regal Express (we came across
this ship a couple of years ago) it’s a small cruise ship out of
Nassau taking tourists over to the States on a mini-cruise. We were
experiencing a strange smog-type haze for miles as we passed Fort
Lauderdale, Hollywood, and Miami but it finally cleared (or burned)
off once well past Miami. This was a very calm run with water that
didn’t have so much as a ripple and then kicked up to not even a
couple of inches – just awesome. One extremely annoying part about
the run, however, is the damn crab traps! Barry had to maneuver
through an obstacle course of these crazy red bobbing balls that are
attached to the crab traps which means no auto-pilot for miles and
miles. We had one of these crab (or lobster) traps get caught in our
props a couple of years ago and once their lines get wrapped around
your props, there is no other way except to get a diver to cut them
off. That is no fun, believe me. We arrived at Burdine’s Marina in
Marathon by 3:00 pm and wanted to fill up before we got into a slip
but there was a cigarette boat doing “something” mechanical at the
fuel dock, of all places, but we did manage to dock farther down in
front of the ship's store and fuel up there to the tune of $984.14 -
I think that's the cheapest one yet, what a deal. Once into our slip
there was really nothing to do but shower, have some cocktails and
order “take-out” food from the restaurant directly behind us…..and
wait for the final run tomorrow and home.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
We decided, because we hadn’t unpacked anything the night
before, that we could sleep in a little longer as there would be
nothing to be done really except unplug the electricity before
heading out on our long trip in the Gulf with hopes of a uneventful
run. We got Salty off the boat around 6:15 am and thought he could
just stay on land until it was time to go which was just fine by
him….then it started to rain. Crap. There were clear spots in the
sky here and there, so it was one of those showers that come in and
go quickly. At least the water was calm and the rain had stopped. We
were out of Marathon and on our way to the Seven Mile Bridge where
you pass under to get from the Atlantic side to the Gulf of Mexico
by 7:30 am. About an hour into our run it started to rain – of
course it did….and along with that, the winds picked up and so did
the waves – to about 2’ – 3’. This had all the indications of
becoming a nasty ride and the even radar showed storms all around
us. Most times, if this is the way it is in the morning at the
beginning of your run, it will only get worse as the hours tick by
into the afternoon. However, for some bizarre and wonderful reason,
the rain stopped and about an hour later the waves started to calm
down and before we knew it, the storms parted (like the Red Sea?)
and we went right through in clear skies and calm water for the rest
of the way – bonus! It didn’t take too long before we could see Fort
Myers Beach and Sanibel ahead of us, with lots of boats out for a
nice Saturday run – but we did notice a significant difference in
the size of these boats compared to the size we have been used to
seeing where we had been. We enter the old familiar Caloosahatchee
River under the new bridge leading from Fort Myers to Sanibel and
Captiva Islands – a much needed improvement over the old bridge.
Down we go through the lazy River and poked along through “Miserable
Mile” and anyone who has been through that stretch of water knows
full well, why it got that name! They say that’s where the Manatees
are and thus the reason for having to go at idle speed, but in all
the years we have been boating here, we have never seen a manatee
there. At the end of Miserable Mile, there is a very small island
that, years ago, used to be owned and inhabited but over the years
the little building disintegrated and so did the long dock leading
to it. Now, we see that there is a new dock and rumor has it that
someone bought it with the intention of building a house on it. I
can’t imagine what kind of home could be built on it – there really
doesn’t appear to be that much “land” but I guess anything is
possible and if there is a will there’s a way. Here we are “back
home” looking at the all too familiar shores of Cape Coral and Fort
Myers – and hey, there’s our neighbor, Ned Christiansen in “Passion
III” out for a Saturday sail with his buddies. Ned is quite the
boater and he’s chronicled journeys from one end of the plant to the
other, it seems. We turned into the channel leading to “home”, waved
to a “Welcome Home” seagull and docked at our very own dock by 4:00
pm. We were also welcomed home by our brand new neighbors Dave and
Jana while Salty did a bee-line to….. where else ….. his POOL! Ahhhh,
the end to another Salty Old Dog Adventure.
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