Feb 24-26 Waiting for the weather window

The first pic shows the chart from Mobile Bay to Carrabelle that is framed by the pen and pencil lying on the chart.  This is the stretch of water we traversed since boarding the boat after the holidays.  The next pic shows the pen and pencil on the chart where we need to cross the Gulf.  This can be a treacherous crossing, as waves can suddenly get 10 to 12 feet in high winds or storms.  The crossing ususally takes about 20 hours and requires an all night journey.  Needless to say, it is important to pick the right time to cross the Gulf.  We arrived on Thursday and it is now Sunday, with no weather window in sight.  An experienced local worker here at the marina, Buddy (next pic), has been studying the weather patterns for 20 years and will help advise us when to leave.   We are learning a lot about weather patterns, currents, tides, moon phases, etc.  And we are making the best of the wait, as much as we can.  We visited the WW2 Camp Johnson museum and the Carrabelle history museum. The final pic shows Captain Barrow, who at 81 years old, was captain of the cargo ship Tarpon when it sank in 1937 during a storm.  He was reputed to be crusty –he was quoted to say ‘God makes the weather, I make the trip’.

Feb 22-23 A working oyster town

It was foggy in the morning and we could not leave the dock at White City till late morning.  Still, we got underway and made a short trip to Apalachicola, a real old Florida working town that feature oysters.  The first pic shows a large processing cylinder where they roll the oysters to clean them.  The next pic shows a typical structure where oysters are processed.  The final pic shows the oyster boats and oystermen harvesting in Apalachie Bay.   The town of Apalachicola also boasts a theatre, gift shops, good restaurants and other attractions for tourists.  But, we were off for Carrabelle the next day to get ready for the treacherous crossing of the Gulf.

Feb 21 Repairs done and off again

The new pump arrived and was replaced, but not until 2pm.   But we started out anyway for a 40 mile voyage to White City, which is basically a boat ramp and put in with a floating dock.  We needed to “go fast” to get in before dark.  At dusk, the birds were active.  We saw 3 eagles within a mile and an osprey (2 pics), which really helped make the day.  It was dark when we arrived at White City, and the fishermen at the floating dock did not want us docking up while they were fishing.  So, we treaded water for about 30 minutes until they left and docked up for the night.

Feb 19 – 20 Hunkered down in Panama City

The winds kept blowing at 40mph in Panama City on Sunday (first pic).  We sat tight in the morning.  I started the port engine to find out why there was so much water in the bilge and found the sea water pump was leaking – just what happened to us in Grafton, IL as we were starting the trip down the Mississippi.  As the winds calmed in the afternoon, we rode our bikes to St. Andrews where we found fresh Apalachicola oysters for $4 a dozen (next pic).  On Monday (2/20), with help of our harbor hosts in Panama City, we contacted a mechanic who showed up within 30 minutes and started on the pump repair.  The final pic shows Mike Grayson, the mechanic holding the leaking pump in hand.  We hope to put the new pump in tomorrow and be underway again.

Feb 13-18 Getting underway again after a long respite

We took Feb 13 and 14^th to work on the boat.  A mechanic at Turners taught me how to bleed the air from the fuel system so I can do more of the maintenance next time.   On Feb 15, it was cloudy with chance of thunderstorms but we headed out across Mobile Bay and entered the Florida Intracoastal waterway.  We anchored outside of Pensacola in the Big Lagoon with rain and thunderstorms throughout the night.  The next morning we waited for a thunderstorm to pass and then got underway for Ft. Walton Beach.   Here the city provides a free dock, so we tied up for the evening.  Another looper, TRIP TIME, was there and we were all amazed that other boats were making way this late in the season. The next morning we were off to Panama City, trying to beat out a heavy storm system, with gale force winds.  We arrived at Panama City marina and hunkered down.  The following night (Saturday, 2/18) it  arrived in full force.   The first pic shows the commercial traffic as we were leaving Mobile Bay, the tugboat wanted us to follow him so that we would be far enough away from the big ship entering port. The next pic shows LuLu’s, who has a rockin bar and restaurant – she is the sister of Jimmy Buffet.  And finally, we ran into hundreds of birds on the intracoastal waterway –mostly pelicans.  We wondered why they all gathered at that spot, but there was on place to stop in order to find out.  The weather tomorrow calls for gale force winds.

On Land and On the Boat: Mobile Bay –New Orleans: Feb 7-Feb 12

Chris and I, along with our friend Charlie, drove from South Carolina to Mobile Bay and stayed on the boat. Then, we headed out for New Orleans.  We spent 2 full days and 2 nights in the Big Easy.  We ate great charbroiled oysters at the Acme Oyster house, heard jazz at Preservation Hall, took in the history of New Orleans at museums, and took in the sights as Mardi Gras got underway.  The first pic shows Steamboat Wille at the National Historical Jazz Park.  Then a pic of Charlie and I having a B and B – that is having a bourbon on Bourban Street !!!   The next pic is Charlie and Chris outside the Port of Call where the best drink in town, the Monsoon, is featured.   The final pic shows how the French Quarter is decked out for Mardi Gras –which started the day we left out.   Then, it was back to BlueSkies in Mobile Bay.

On Land: New Years and beyond. Jan 1 – Feb 6

We celebrated New Years back at the house in Bennetts Point.   Our first crew of BlueSkies, Becky and Grover, came for nice long weekend and helped bring in the New Year.  After that, we hunkered down to get the house exterior stained and put in order.  It seemed to take forever, but the final brushstroke was made on February 3^rd.    We stayed at Bennetts Point for the Super Bowl and watched the game with Charlie, Bette, Ryan and Grayson, along with Richard and Annette –all from Bennett Point. 

On Land: Christmas at the Cannons Dec 19-Dec 30th

We drove to Asheville, NC to see our good friend :  a nice, invigorating stop on Lake Greenwood at Lu and Greg’s lake house, a volleyball group party at Steve’s, the annual reunion of Forest Service cronies at the Bywater.  Then it was on to Abington, VA for the annual Christmas reunion at the Cannon’s –where the Emersons, Cannons, and Haydens meet for Christmas.  Every year Santa leaves pajamas on Christmas Eve, but this year, he forgot to leave the pajama shirts for the men (first pic).  The next pic shows the whole group properly attired in pajamas.   After Christmas, it was off to Chelsea and Eliot’s new condo at the ski resort of Snowshoe.  The last 2 pics show grandsons Avery and Ethan ready for the ski slopes.

On Land: At Home at Bennetts Point, SC Dec 1-Dec 18

This is first time in 3 years we have been away from the boat, on land.   We sporadically visited our house at Bennetts Point over that time and it needed a lot of work on the exterior.  The first pic shows the house being washed and getting ready to be stained.  We also had visitors from out of town, Deb from New York (who loved watching the dolphins) and Dale from the Gangplank Marina (who loved watching Deb) (next pic).

On Land: Thanksgiving Nov 23-29 -- wid DA Sisters DA Sisters

The Hayden siblings have had a reunion every Thanksgiving for the past 7 years.  The 2011 reunion was graciously hosted by the eldest sibling, Phyllis, at her house in Grant, Florida.  This is a great time to reconnect.  The first pic is Phyllis at the head of the table, where she deserves to sit.  The next pic shows husband Tom in deep discussion with other guests.  The third pic shows Marty and Bill, official sponsors of HaydensVoyages, and then Janet and Tom, who put in a lot of cooking time.  Thanks to all DA Sisters for a good time.