Monday April 30, 2018 - S. Charleston to S. Cape Island

I know, who ever heard of Cape Island.  I never did.  And it's not even a "Cape".   More on that later.

I was up and impatient to go this morning but I had decided I would leave at 7:40am in order to get to Elliot's Cut at 9am.  Nine am was just after slack current and I wanted to have just a little current with me.  I had about 10 miles to go to get to the cut.  Shortly after leaving my anchorage, a large sailing catamaran passed me.  Then about an hour later, two trollers passed me.  When they approached the cut, the began talking on the radio about their strategies for entering the cut.  One of them confirmed that slack was at 8:45am.  As they went through, I monitored their AIS signals and it appeared they were maintaining their speed - great.  I was about 5 minutes behind the cat when I entered the cut (at exactly 9am).  Remember, there was supposed to be a little current WITH me.  If I had gotten there any later, the current would still have been WITH me but stronger.  So what happened?  The current was 2 knots - AGAINST ME!

It was a little upsetting but at least True Blue can handle a 2 knot head current.  I just gave it a little more gas and motored through going 4 knots. 

After that, it was waiting 15 minutes for the Wapoo bridge to open and in another 20 minutes, I was in Charleston Harbor.   Charleston is a really pretty city from the water.  I thought about stopping but I've been there with Joan and didn't feel any real need to go again by myself.  It took about an hour to cross the harbor.  At noon, I stopped for fuel about 10 miles north at the Isle of Palms Marina - it was very convenient.  I continued another 10 miles into a shoaly area and started hearing reports of boats running aground.  I decided to take a break and pulled off and anchored from 2pm till 4pm.  Then I continued another 10 miles to where I am now.  It was only a 40 mile day but I'm only a day away from Georgetown NC.

Sunday April 29, 2018 - Beaufort SC to S. Charlestown

Today I planned on making some good progress - and I did.  I motor sailed (mostly just motored) about 50 miles and I'm now anchored about 10 miles below Charlestown.  It was a pretty uneventful day - no groundings although there were some numbers in the high 4s.  The wind was from the North most of the day and was fairly strong (15 to 20) at times.  Right now, it is dead calm (8:40pm).  Tomorrow I'll be giving a pass through Elliot's Cut one more try.  It is a section of the ICW that is about 1/4 mile long with current that sometimes reaches 6 knots.  I thought I had it timed perfectly when I came south and ended up bucking a 4 knot current.  I chose my anchorage for tonight to "stage" for tomorrows second attempt.

Saturday April 28, 2018 - Layover in Beaufort SC

I'd say the weather the last 3 or 4 days has been the best weather I've had on my entire trip.  Days around 80,  cloudless, nights around 60, low humidity, nice breezes in the afternoon, calm at night - PERFECT by MY criteria.  Also, when I've wanted to move, the wind has been behind me.  So that's another plus.

This morning, I got up and treated myself to a nice breakfast.  I was cleaning out the fridge because I was making a grocery run today. At around 9am, I dropped my mooring and motored in to the "day dock" next to the marina.  I went to the marina office, checked out their "loaner" car and went to the Bi-Low grocery store about 3 miles away.  They had lots of things I needed that were BOGO "with card" so I naturally asked what I needed to do to get that "card".  They told me they would just give me the discount. It never hurts to ask! 

I moved the boat back to a mooring at around 2pm and spent the remainder of the afternoon there.  At about the same time, my new friend Wayne arrived and took a mooring next to me.  At around 4, he dinghied over we chatted for a while.  He was going bar hopping this evening and that really wasn't something I felt much like doing, so I stayed behind to plan my next two days on the move.

Thursday April 26, 2018 - Savannah to Hilton Head

Like yesterday, I had planned on getting up early to catch the high (6:20am) tide to take me over all the shoals in the first 2 to 3 hours of the day.  But late last night, I was reviewing my route in more detail and noticed a bridge about 4 miles north that has very restrictive opening times in the morning.  Based on that and wanting to do some engine checks before leaving, I decided to hold off leaving until after noon.  It was a beautiful morning - full sunshine and NO wind (the last two days have been west at 15 to 20).  I did my engine checks (I have a very small fuel leak I'm keeping my eye on). 

I keep changing my plans.  It's now 1pm.  My plan now is to leave the anchorage at 2:30, stop for fuel and water 3 miles north of here, cross the Savannah River and head north about 20 miles to anchor just south of the Port Royal Sound Inlet.  I was planning on going to Beaufort (SC) the same day and stay for a day or two but now I'm thinking about going outside at Port Royal Inlet and returning into Charleston.  I'll wait till tomorrow to see if the weather still looks as good as it does now (S-10).  If it does, I'll leave around 6pm and do an over nighter that will put me into Charleston at daybreak.  Why would I do this?  To save fuel, engine hours, and time.  Also, True Blue IS a SAILboat.

I did some boat work, waiting to leave today.  There are lots of dauphins in this area.  On my trip, I've seen lots of dauphins but I've found it very hard to photograph or film them.  They surface quickly, take a quick breath, and then disappear again.  It's hard to tell where they will resurface.  However, I'll often be below and hear them breathing.  They have a very distinctive sound when they surface and exhale.  It's one of the things I really like about cruising - being so "in touch" with nature. 

Wednesday April 25, 2018 - Crescent River to Savannah

My plan yesterday was to leave at about 2pm.  There were lots of shoals (Little and Big Mud Rivers to name a few).  Low tide was around noon so I figured I'd leave after that and, at least be on a rising tide, if I were to run into trouble.  But late last night, I looked again at the charts and realized that most of the shallow areas were in the first 2 hours of my trip.  That meant that I could leave early and catch most of the high (albeit falling) tide to get through those areas.  Then, I'd be in deeper water for the low tide at noon. So that's what I did and it worked perfectly - with one minor exception.  I needed to get through "Hell Gate".  Hell Gate crosses a marshy area in the center of the Ossabaw Sound/inlet.  It is a trouble spot (as the name implies??).  Low tide there was at around noon.  No problem - I'd just stop for a couple hours - just before I got there and wait for low tide to pass.  So, I anchored in Tom's Creek and waited.  It worked fine - I went through Hell Gate at 3pm and continued on to Savannah.  I ended up anchoring on the East side of Dutch Island, on the East side of Savannah. I got in at 5:30pm which made for a long day.  For much of the day, I was motor sailing since the wind was from the west.  But with all the windiness of the ICW in Georgia, it meant a lot of sail trimming.  But it did usually ad 1 to 2 knots to my speed.  But 11 hours of constant sail trimming, motoring, watching for shoals, etc. makes for a long and tiring (50 mile) day. 

I showered, ate, made a few phone calls and was out like a light before 10pm.

Tuesday April 24, 2018 - Fort Frederica to Crescent River

This part of Georgia is somewhat desolate.  I'm between Brunswick near the southern border and Savannah near the northern border.  There are lots of inlets, lots of current, lots of meandering to the ICW, 6 to 8 foot tides, and lots of shoaling.  I've decided I'm only moving when the tides are rising and for an hour or two after high tides.  The tide cycle is normally about 12 hours.  That means from low tide till high tide is about 6 hours.  So, if I leave an hour after low tide (when it is rising), I'll have about 6 or 7 hours to travel without the "fear" of running aground with the tide falling and leaving me stranded.  If I would run aground when the tide is rising, there is a fair chance the rising tide would help get me off so I could continue on my way.  The fact that I ran aground 3 times just south of Fernandina a week ago has given me a new respect for the shoaling in this area - and Georgia is supposed to be worse than northern Florida. 

So, the bottom line is I'm sitting here waiting for low tide at around 11:30am today.  I'll cross the Altamaha Sound about 5 miles north of here and then  the Doboy Sound another 10 miles north of there.  Then I'll go another 10 miles north to the Crescent River where I'll anchor for the night.  That's the plan, anyway.

Monday April 23, 2018 - Layover at Fort Frederica

Today began at about 3am when the thunderstorms and driving rain began.  I got up and turned on my anchor alarm and activated the tracking on my inside chart plotter.  I went back to bed but didn't get much sleep.  Everytime the wind would blow and the boat would heel to 10 to 15 degrees, I'd check my track.  I never did drag but my anchor alarm did sound at around 7am when the wind shifted and caused my distance to go over the alarm setpoint.  At around 10am, the rain stopped and for several hours, things dried out a little.  I ran the generator and took a cockpit shower (the wind had subsided).  It rained again for an hour in the early afternoon.  After it stopped and dried out again, my new friend Wayne paddled over for a visit.  The sun had come out briefly and it warmed up quickly.   We visited for a couple hours and then the weather began to threaten again.  Isolated thunderstorms were going around us to the north and the south - with some sprinkles and wind but no direct hits.  The rest of the evening and overnight was pretty benign and I got a good night's sleep (after falling asleep in the quarterberth at around 8pm). 

Sunday April 22, 2018 - Layover at Fort Frederica

Ahhh. A day of R & R (rest and relaxation).  I fixed a nice breakfast and did some piddling around the boat.  I was a little close to the boat next to me (a 50' steel hull boat that reminds me of Al Capron's Salty Spray).  So I relocated to give us both a little more room - for the eventual weather.  At around 11am, I saw Wayne in his cockpit and hollered over.  He had his dinghy in the water (I had put mine on the foredeck yesterday morning before leaving Brunswick).  I told him we could use my motor on his dinghy if he wanted to go over to the dock to see Fort Frederica.  The fort is a National Monument.  I had read a little about it that didn't sound too good but there was no plan B so Wayne and I both dinghied over.  I was really glad I went because it was a really nice Monument.  It is probably 100 acres in size.  There is little remaining of the original town and the fort.  Much of what is known about it is from archeological diggings.  But they have a very nice visitors center with a great 30 minute movie.  I'm embarrassed to say I've never had much of an interest in history so I'm pretty ignorant about the wars that took place in the 1700s. So this was a great history lesson for me.  And the grounds are really pretty with all the huge live oak trees with LOTS of hanging Spanish moss.

The forecast for today was for some bad weather but it's actually been pretty nice so far (it's 6pm now).  The forecast for tomorrow is for T-Storms so I think it will be another day of R&R.

Saturday April 21, 2018 - Brunswick to Frederica River

As much as I liked the town of Brunswick - and could have easily stayed a couple more days, weather is coming Monday and I didn't want to spend the $200 it would have cost to stay till Tuesday.  I like the marina too but not THAT much.  I left the marina in 20+ knots of wind and I think some of the cruisers thought I was a little nuts.  I met several people and none were leaving until the weather had passed.  In retrospect, leaving was the right thing to do although I was pretty nervous about getting past the St. Simon Sound Inlet.  The Brunswick River runs about 5 miles East to the Sound before you can make the turn north onto the ICW.  With the wind from the East, I figured it would be very rough near the inlet entrance.  I really had everything tied down for a rough ride - including a double reef in the main sail.  Fortunately, the wind was out of the NE so it wasn't coming straight into the inlet.  It was windy but the waves were never more than 2 feet.  I've had much worse on the Chesapeake.  It was another 5 miles before turning into the Frederica River and to my anchorage across from Fort Frederica.  It was a short day on the water but I was glad to have it over.

Shortly after anchoring, another solo cruiser, Wayne, paddled his dinghy over to say hello.  I had passed about 45 minutes before.  I don't pass many boats so that was unusual.  He was a really nice guy and since I had started a pot of chili, I invited him to stay for dinner.  I felt kind of bad because the chili was a mix and wasn't very tasty.

Friday April 20, 2018 - Layover in Brunswick

I really like the town of Brunswick GA.  Joan and I had visited here several years ago.  And Phil and Ollie and I had stopped here with the Pintita 4 years ago (on the Pintita's trip back from the Caribbean).

I had lots of boat work to do today but got most of it done early in the morning.  At around 1pm, I walked into town and had lunch at "The Island Jerk".  Then I walked through a really great antique mall in downtown. Lastly, I walked to a really nice hardware store where I got a few supplies. At 5pm, I went to a great "Cruisers Party".  The marina supplies free beer and many of the cruisers brought finger food. 

Thursday April 19, 2018 - Fernandina FL to Brunswick GA

The town of Fernandina is about a mile south of the St. Mary's River - a fairly big inlet into the Atlantic Ocean.  The river divides Florida from Georgia.  I had thought about leaving later in the afternoon for St. Catherine's Island but my friend and fellow cruiser Keith suggested I not anchor there tonight because there was supposed to be a strong North wind that would make the anchorage and travel north the next day very rough.  So I decided to leave earlier and ride the current north from the inlet.  It worked out pretty well.  The wind was from the west and I used the jib when I could to help my speed.  Until later in the day, I made between 6 and 7.5 knots most of the time.  Considering I didn't leave Fernandina until 10:30am, I did well to make it the 36 miles to Brunswick by 5:30pm.  Of course, nothing is easy and the last mile before I made it to the Brunswick River, the depths were getting VERY shallow (like around 5 feet - two hours below low tide).  The tides in GA are 8 feet.  If I had been there an hour later, I wouldn't have made it.  I came into the Brunswick City Marina at 5:30.  It is a really nice marina with floating docks.

Wednesday April 18, 2018 - Layover in Fernandina

I took the dinghy in to the Fernandina Marina around 11am.  My friend Wolfgang keeps his Pacific Seacraft 34 in one of the slips.  The marina continues to have a fair amount of damage from hurricane Mathew.  But the biggest issue is silt.  At low tide, about 60 percent of the slips are sitting in mud.  One cruiser I met later in Brunswick had left his dinghy tied up the dinghy dock and when he returned, it was sitting on mud.  They had to wait 5 hours before the tide came in so they could get back to their boat. 

Wolfgang and I went to lunch at the Salty Pelican. It is a pretty cool restaurant, very close to the water.  After lunch, Wolfgang went back to his boat "Yankee" to finish some boat work he had started in the morning.  I spent 2 or 3 hours walking around the town.  Did I already say "I love the town of Fernandina"? 

Salty Pelican Restaurant

Tuesday April 17, 2018 - Pine Island to Fernandina Beach

Shortly after I was anchored, I got a text from Bruce.  I called him and described my day.  He thought a good description would be the "Day from Hell".  That may be a bit of an overstatement but it's not that far off. 

I had a good start - leaving Pine Island at around 8am.  I wanted to time my pass through the San Pablo Bridge (17 miles north) so the current would be slack (none).  That worked out pretty well - I was a little early but there was barely any current.  After I went through the bridge, I anchored on the east side of the ICW.  I knew I had a loose zinc on the prop shaft and I wanted to remove it.  This had been on my mind a lot because I was concerned it might wear on either the shaft or the strut (or both).  Where I anchored was just south of the St. Johns river/inlet so I figured the water would be fairly clear - WRONG.  The outside temperature was pretty cool but the water was fairly warm.  I had some trouble getting the zinc off but finally got it.  BTW, I had installed a new zinc just before leaving the Bahamas - I should have removed the old one then.  After taking a warm shower, I was on my way again. 

Crossing the St. John's river was a bit of a challenge with the 3 knot current but soon I was on the north side and headed north for Fernandina.  My plan was to anchor in a creek just south of the town.  About 7 miles north is the Nassau Sound/inlet.  It is where the Nassau and Amelia Rivers meet and flow into the ocean.   I was crossing the point where they meet and was aware of the shoal.  I stayed what I thought was a good distance below it.  But as I crossed over what was supposed to be 12' of water, the depth went from 15' to less than 4' in just a few seconds.  This is where my bad day started.  Of course, I was doing 5 knots and when I hit, the bow went down 2 or 3 feet.  Of course, it was sand so it wasn't sudden or damaging (I hope) and much to my surprise, the bow came back up and the boat resumed it's speed.  It had to have been a very narrow sand bar that I just plowed through. 

About 5 minutes later, I appoached a J120 that was hard aground in the center of the ICW.  He radioed me and warned me to keep to the far west side of the channel.  I thanked him and proceeded.  About a half mile north, I was cruising along again - in 10' of water and suddenly, another hard bump - that I again plowed through.  I had read about this area and thought  I was heeding the advice other cruisers have given about the area.  It was near low tide and the tide was still falling so I was a nervous wreck after this second bump.  I proceeded very cautiously for the next 10 miles.  There were several areas where the depth was right around 4' and I dropped my speed down to a crawl.  I watched the depth gauge like a hawk.  As I passed the creek where I had planned to anchor for the night, it looked all shoaled over so I just kept going. 

Then, when I got to about a mile below Fernandina, I came to an area where the Coast Guard had placed several temporary buoy's marking shoals that move around frequently.  As I approached the area, I thought I was in the perfect position and ran aground for the third time.  But this time, it was not a bump.  This time I slowed to a STOP.  For 20 minutes, I tried everything.  It was low tide so I knew it would only be a matter of time before I'd be lifted off.  On the down side, the wind was pushing me toward the shallow side of the ICW.  Finally, after 6 or 7 attempts at spinning right and left, I began to move back to where I had come from and was off.  I went about 300' back and moved over to very close to the west shore - where there was 10' of water.  I proceeded through all the temporary buoy's and had no issues after that. 

I got in at around 6:30pm.  It was another day that I was glad to have behind me.

Journey at anchor

Monday April 16, 2018 - Palm Coast to Pine Island

I'm sure glad this day is "over".  I fought the current and the wind ALL day long.  I think there might have been 3 or 4 miles south of St. Augustine where the current was pushing me a little - the rest of the time, I was doing between 2.5 and 4.5 knots.  So, where is Pine Island?  It's a little island with several anchorages.  It's about 12 miles north of St. Augustine and about 20 miles south of Jacksonville.  It pretty much out in the middle of know where.  The charts show several good anchorages but when I got here, what was showing on the charts as 11 and 12 feet of water was between 5 and 7'.  And that was near the southern mouth of the horseshoe.  The northern entrance is nearly impossible to navigate into and out of.  The WNW wind was pushing me into the shallow water so I quickly spun around and stayed near the entrance (where there are lots of white caps).

Around 2pm, I had thought about anchoring about 5 miles south of here.  I was getting tired of motoring into a 3 knot current.  There is a shoal that extends south near the center of the ICW for about 1/2 mile (so the charts say).  Active Captain shows the area as a good anchorage.  My plan was to wait out the tide and move on once it went slack.  As I approached the area on the west side of the ICW, I began thinking the anchorage didn't look that great.  So I veered east to get back on the east side of the main channel.  Just after I changed course, the depth went from 11 to 7 to 5 to 4 to BUMP.  The shoal that the charts show extending south a half mile now extends south 3/4 mile.  Of course, as luck would have it, the tide was falling.  I needed to act quickly.  Also, I was pointing east and the 20 knot wind was pushing me east.  I wasn't sure how much more shallow the depth would get before it began getting deeper again.  It felt like plowing forward was not an option.  I tried spinning right - in the direction of the current and to what I assumed was deeper water.  The boat would not spin.  I tried spinning left and made a little headway.  I had the throttle wide open and was barely turning.  The wind was hitting the bow and keeping me from turning.  I had the wheel against the left stop.  My progress had stopped.  I decided to try decreasing my turn - if the prop wash hits a rudder that is perpendicular to the centerline of the boat, I figured it would not generate much forward thrust.  As I turned the wheel from center to left, I began making headway.  Then I began to turn - I was OFF.  All this was in less than 2 minutes.  I motored back south for a quarter mile and then slowly cut across to the east side of the ICW.  This time, I never saw less than 9 feet. 

The high today was about 65.  With the 20 to 30 knot winds, that made the wind chill around 50.  Needless to say, I had on my light weight foul weather gear all day.  The low tonight is supposed to get down to 48.

That sleeping bag is sure going to feel good tonight!

Sunday April 15, 2018 - Layover in Palm Coast

The Palm Coast Marina is in a very non commercial area - with one exception.  About a 10 minute walk from the marina is a large complex called the European Courtyard.  It is like a mini Epcot Center.  It has 4 or 5 nice restaurants and 10 or 15 other shops.  It is a little unusual but very nice.  One of the restaurants is a fairly upscale Indian place.  After scoping it out yesterday, I decided to try their lunch buffet today.  A fairly major storm was on the way so I went early and at three meals in one sitting. It was excellent but I suffered on the walk back from overeating. 

This morning, I did wash and sat in the lounge and had morning coffee with the local cruisers.  It's funny - they are all from the "No Frills" side of the marina.  Nice bunch anyway.  I like this place. 

At about 4pm, the first wave of the storm hit. It didn't last long but the squall line had lots of rain and gusts up to around 50 knots.  I was glad I had added that second spring line.  The second batch is supposed to come through at around 8pm.

European Village

Visited all but Rum Cay and Andros

Friday April 14, 2018 - Daytona to Palm Coast

I was up early but so were all the other cruisers.  I think I was the last boat headed north to leave the Daytona area.  Of course, I took the time to get the dinghy on deck and lash it down (about an hour).  I think I was underway around 7:30am.  I had a SSE wind between 10 and 15 most of the morning but I was fighting the current.  The net effect was around 4.5 to 5 knots most of the 20 miles it took to get to Palm Coast.  A single hander I had talked to in Solomons MD had told me about the Palm Coast Marina when I ran into him just north of there last December.  He told me they had a few $20 slips.  I had called then and they were booked up.  But today, when I called, they had one available.  They call them "No Frills" slips - because they have neither water or electric.  I'm used to being on my own for electric and I had enough water so it sounded good. 

The Palm Coast Marina is about 200 feet up a canal that goes west of the ICW so it is very handy.  I had a little trouble finding my slip (ended up turning into a very narrow fairway for small power boats).  Once I got turned around and headed for the slip, I didn't have the right lines set up and ended up being very thankful for the 4 live aboards that helped me get into the slip without banging into anything.  It is a nice marina and well worth the price. 

Friday April 13, 2018 - New Smyrna to Daytona

I was in no rush this morning since my plan was to go to an anchorage not far to the north of New Smyrna.  I wanted to be there for low tide which was at 1:30pm.  I figured I'd get there a little early to get a spot left by another anchoring cruiser.  When I did get there, I found only two boats anchored (In Rockhouse Creek).  I'm not sure why they call this creek Rockhouse since there are no houses and no rocks - that I saw.  But, at low tide, there are lots of sand bars that become exposed and several very nice white sand beaches that the local power boaters take advantage of for laying in the sun.  I took the dinghy to one of the beaches.  The dinghy had been in the water for almost two weeks so I took the motor off, stood it on it's side and scrubbed the bottom.  In that much time, small barnacles will start to form all over the bottom and it will get a good start on some nice slime that makes a mess of the deck when you put it on the foredeck of True Blue.  It worked out pretty well. 

When I got back to the boat, I dove on the prop because my speed seemed lower than what I thought it should be.  Everything  was fine except that my old zinc was loose on the prop shaft.  I'll need to go back down with an allen wrench and remove it soon.

I was soon underway again and motor/sailed the remaining 12 miles.  I arrived at my anchorage, just north of the Seabreeze/Oakridge Bridge (at the north end of Daytona) . 

           George Musson Bascule Bridge

Checking the windex while motoring?

Thursday April 12, 2018 - Titusville to New Smyrna

I was up early this morning.  I needed to remove the motor from the dinghy and remove the mainsail cover before leaving the anchorage.  Everything went well and I left the anchorage at 7am.  There is a fairly large body of water between the railroad bridge and Haulover Canal.  It was still a little breezy from the north but not too rough.  Haulover Canal divides this body of water and Mosquito Lagoon on the east side.  The canal is only about a half mile long and there were lots of Manatee swimming around in and around both ends of the canal.  After I exited the canal, I raised the mainsail for a little extra push and to let it dry out. 

I arrived at New Smyrna about 1pm, anchored just below the 65' bridge and took the dinghy into town.  New Smyrna has a historic district that is nice but really didn't seem that historic.  I would have had lunch at the Tai restaurant in town but I had left my wallet on the boat. 

I got back to the boat around 4pm and did some boat work, took a shower, ate dinner and just relaxed most of the evening.  There is a fair amount of current here but there is no wind this evening and it is VERY still - just the way I like it. 

Wednesday April 11, 2018 - Titusville to NASA Railroad Bridge

I had planned on leaving today to continue heading north.  However, the Wind Gods decided it was time for some strong Northerlies.  So I stayed on my mooring almost the entire day and departed at 5pm. for the NASA Railway Bridge Causeway.  It was a whopping 1.5 mile trip.  But it was still blowing 20 which meant 3.5 knots of speed.  But at least there was no longer a mile and a half of fetch which meant I could move around the boat without having to hang on at all times.  For most of the day, I read and planned the next several days.  I also talked to, and corresponded with, the lead autopilot technician, Lee, at Raymarine about my autopilot.  Once I got to my anchorage, I showered and at beef stroganoff leftovers.  Tomorrow should be a fun day.  I'll get up early and motor/sail 20 miles to the town of New Smyrna.

Tuesday April 10, 2018 - Layover in Titusville

If you don't like to read crying and complaining, stop reading.

First, I had to get towed back to the boat late yesterday afternoon.  The dinghy motor just would not start (and still won't).  While Keith and I were at the local brewpub (Playalinda's), it poured rain.  When I got back to the marina, I tried to use the internet for some help troubleshooting my autopilot - the internet was not working.  So I took a shower and when I went to start the motor to head back to the boat - nothing.  One of the dock hands said he was a mechanic so I let him try - nothing.  Fortunately, my friend Bruce had finished celebrating his wife Gayleen's birthday and came in to tow me back out.  At Titusville, it is quite a haul from the Marina to the Mooring field. - THANK YOU Bruce!! 

This morning, the battery in my primary cell phone was dead and would not recharge.  I did finally baby it back to working but I know it is on it's last leg.  My laptop battery is already gone - I need to order a new one - I was hoping to make it home so I could just get a new laptop - but I'll have to do both.

This morning, as I was preparing to make coffee, I dropped the container holding the grounds and spilled grounds all over the stove top and behind the stove.  What a mess.  The good thing was I got the vacuum out and ended up doing some needed boat cleanup. 

I know I'm a better sailor than some but it is humbling to be around people like Bruce and Keith.  They both make things look so easy - that I almost agonize over.  For example, Bruce keeps his dinghy (a RIB with an aluminum bottom) on davits.  It takes him about 2 minutes to store and raise his dinghy.  In the time it takes me to unload a couple things and tie my dinghy to a cleat, he is inside his boat relaxing.  Sometimes it seems like nothing is easy!  Of course, I know it's all relative.

It's now 4:30pm.  The outboard motor is fixed (installed a new spark plug but I'm almost sure the old one was OK - the engine was just flooded yesterday).  Got the phone working, and cleaned up the coffee mess.  And - it stopped raining - I'm in at the marina uploading blogs.

Monday April 9, 2018 - Layover in Titusville

I DID have a good night sleep but, in the morning, I had to wait till the tide came up a little in order to get out where I came in.  And, about 3am, the wind shifted back to the south so now the anchorage was choppy.  It almost made the entire exercise futile.  The one benefit was I charged the batteries some going up and then coming back.

So now, I'm back on a mooring - next to Bruce and Gayleen and about 300 yards from Keith Stizel of Rising Sun.  I just got back from the marina.  I filled three water containers (about 12 gallons) and went to the grocery store nearby.  Since I've returned to the US, I feel like a pack rat - wanting to stock up on food I can get so "cheaply".  I need to stop that. 

It's pretty hot and humid today and it just started raining - will be very short lived.   Tomorrow it is supposed to rain more so I may be cooped up a little.  

Sunday April 8, 2018 - Layover in Titusville

Titusville is the town that supported the Kennedy Space Center for many years.  I didn't realize this but the Space Center has been in decline for a number of years and, with it's decline, the town has also declined.  It is a fairly small town but many of the stores and downtown are look like somewhat of a ghost town.  Apparently the private (Elan Musk) Space X program that is using the space center has brought back many jobs and the town is going through somewhat of a revival.  I dinghied in this morning to do some computer work and wanted to go to the local grocery store - but forgot to bring my shoes so I guess I'll make due with what I have on board for another few days.

Change of plans - the wind veered to the north so I left the mooring around 11am and headed for an anchorage on the south side of the East section of causeway for the railroad bridge about 1.5 miles north of Titusville.  I figured I'd have a much better night sleep since I'd be protected from the north wind and I could come back in the morning.  What I didn't count on was the very shallow entrance into the anchorage.  It was mid tide and I barely scooted in.

Saturday April 7, 2018 - Eau Gallie to Titusville

Before I left on my trip, I played around with podcasts - thinking it would give me something to do while I was mindlessly motoring for hours up and down the ICW.  Well, there has been a somewhat long learning curve (that still isn't over).  But, during my trip, I've found 3 or 4 good "channels" that I've begun to enjoy listening to.  These include:

The Boat Galley with Carolyn Sherlock

Single-Handed Sailing with Matt Rutherford

On the Wind Sailing with Andy Snell

Yesterday and today, I listened to 4 or 5 hours of Matt Rutherford.  His podcasts are definitely the best I've listened to.  He is a little rough with his language but has lots of good advice for any sailor - especially those who sail solo or short-handed.  He is a good speaker and does a great job.  I'd encourage any sailor to listen to his material.  He runs an organization called Ocean Research Project and collects samples from the sea so others can study the effects of all the plastics we humans have fallen so in love with. 

I had another good day of downwind sailing and made it to Titusville at around 2pm.  The wind was blowing over 20 and my good friend Bruce got in his dinghy and helped me get hooked up to the mooring right in front of he and his wife Gayleen.  I got things packed up and the three of us took a dinghy ride into town to walk around. Before we returned, we ate at the local KFC - ahhh - to be back where junk food is so plentiful!!  We stopped at True Blue and I shared the small pie I had gotten at "Joan's Perfect Pies" the day before.  I was disappointed - it wasn't nearly as good as my "my" Joan's pies.  We had a nice chat with lots of Bahamas stories and Bruce and Gayleen hightailed it back to their boat just before a thunderstorm hit.

Bruce and Gayleen Dandt

Friday April 6, 2018 - Vero Beach to Eau Gallie (Melbourne).

I'm not sure but I feel like I'm actually getting the hang of cruising.  I've had a great day and I guess it is because of a number of things that all went well.  First, I was up early and left the anchorage just before 7.  I do like getting underway early.  I stopped for fuel and took on a little water.  I had about 30 miles to go to Melbourne.  I motored the first 2 or 3 miles, then let out the genoa to add another 3/4 knot.  After 30 minutes of that, I decided to shut off the motor.  My speed dropped from 6 to about 4.5 - but I was in no hurry since it really wasn't necessary to be to Melbourne by noon.  I think sailing always makes me happy - True Blue IS a sailboat, after all.  I really didn't know where I would anchor overnight.  I studied the charts and many of the Active Captain comments.  The wind was from the SE and was forecasted to shift to S then SW overnight.  I decided to try an anchorage just south of the Eau Gallie Causeway Bridge.  I had read some good things about the  area on my way south but the wind was not from a good direction then - it was better now. 

I dinghied to a small dock next to the restaurant Squid Lips.  I walked into town and the first place I visited was a bakery I had read about called "Joan's Perfect Pies".  Joan had a nice little shop with two employees busy making pie crust.  Of course, I took some photos and purchased a small apple pie (my Joan competes every year in the PA State apply pie baking contest).  That was lots of fun.  Then I walked about a block to a very nice Ace Hardware store where I got a good 3' extension cord for the Honda generator.  Next was a half block to the Intercoastal Brewery where I had a great beer "Stout-er space" (Melbourne is near the Kennedy Space Center).  While I was in the downtown area, a number of food vendors were setting up for a food and entertainment fest they have every 3rd or 4th Friday night.

I went back to the dock to check on the dink (the tide was falling) and then stopped at Squid Lips.  I debated on whether to have dinner but decided to get a T-shirt instead and mooch on their free wifi for 45 minutes.  Anyway, the whole town of Eau Gallie is pretty cool and I really enjoyed walking around. 

I got back to True Blue around 6 - with just enough sun left to take a shower without freezing.  I made a pretty good dinner. 

All combined to make a great day!

BTW, as I type this, I'm listening to some great live music just across the water at the Squid Lips restaurant.  Most of it is music I really like (Eagles, Crosby, Stills, and Nash, etc.).

"MY" Joan thought she baked the perfect pie but now knows hers aren't the only ones

Thursday April 5, 2018 - Layover in Vero Beach

When I got up, the wind was blowing stronger than forecasted and right out of the north - the direction I was headed.  Since I had spent the last two months in the Bahamas, I figured I'd just go by "Bahamas Time" and put off my departure another day.  I ended up moving from the boat I was rafted to (on a mooring) to an anchorage about 1/2 mile to the north of the mooring field.  While I was at anchor, I did some boat cleaning and ordered some hardware for the boat.  I called my friend Wolfgang in Fernandina Beach and he suggested having it shipped to him so I can pick it up on my way north. Since I enjoy boat cleaning (it's pretty mindless work), I had a pretty nice, relaxing day.

Wednesday April 4, 2018 - Layover in Vero Beach

This morning, I noticed that the SV Tamure had a dinghy tied to the stern.  This is the boat belonging to Scott and Kitty that I had met at Osprey Point in Myrtle Beach last November.  I knew they were headed for Vero Beach.  They were on the mooring when I arrived here, were there when I left for home over the holidays, were here when I returned in January and were here when I left for the Bahamas.  Their boat was here but I never saw them.  So, I dinghied over and re-introduced myself. They are an awesome couple with an awesome (Valient 40 boat).  They have sailed around the world twice - once in their 20s and again when their kids were teenagers.  Both times took 4 years.  Scott is having a lot of medical issues and they were leaving today to fly to Connecticut for a month so he could get medical treatment.  I helped them get their dinghy on board and with a couple other small items. Anyway, it was nice to visit and be able to give them a hand.

The remainder of the day, I made a provisioning run to Publix, did laundry, and spent some time on the internet looking up some boat parts I'll be needing soon.  Some of my 20 year old blocks (pulleys) have simply worn out and need to be replaced.  I met another cruiser (Bert) whom I had met in Rock Sound, Eleuthera and had a nice chat with him. I had a nice, relaxing afternoon/evening and enjoyed having a beer and lots of snacks (I ran out of snack food over a week ago and refused to pay $7 for a small box of Wheat Thin crackers). 

Tuesday April 3, 2018 - Fort Pierce to Vero Beach

This morning, I hailed a new friend Keith Stirzel on the radio.  On my way out of the anchorage at Great Sale Cay, he had hailed me on channel 16.  We had chatted for a while and he seemed like a really nice guy that I guessed was also sailing solo.  I also really liked his boat - a 1970 32' Camper Nicholson.  He had told me he was leaving the next morning so I figured it was possible he was within radio range (20 miles).  I was surprised when he responded to my call (to the Rising Sun).  He was still about an hour out.  I planned on being in Vero Beach by around 1pm so I could make it to the hospital - so I decided to wait for him to arrive.  As I assumed, he was also sailing solo and seemed like a really nice guy.  He is from NY and keeps his boat somewhere on the Hudson River.  It is likely that I'll see him again somewhere on the ICW. 

So, I left for Vero beach about 10am.  The tide was flooding so the current coming in the Ft. Pierce inlet would be helping with my speed north.  It took just 2 hours to get to the Vero Beach City Marina.  I had stayed there over Christmas so I knew the marina and how to get around town.  Within an hour, had taken two different busses and was at the Indian River Medical Center.  What an amazing place.  And, what amazing service.  I was very pleased with everything they did and with everyone I came in contact with on the staff.  I was also amazed at how quickly everything was done.  After a CT scan, some blood work, and a urine sample, I was told I had two small kidney stones - one on each side.  But both were too small to be causing any blockage that might cause the pain symptoms.  The doctor suggested that I might have passed a larger stone earlier but I really don't think so.  I believe the back pain I had attributed to a stone was some kind of muscle issue.  In any event, I got a clean bill of health.  So that is a big relief for me and the remainder of my trip home.  I was able to make the last bus back to the marina.  Tomorrow, I'll do some provisioning, upload several day's blogs, and get the boat ready for my trip north.

Monday April 2, 2018 - Little Bahamas Bank to Fort Pierce

It was a long night.  As I approached the deep channel north of Memory Rock (on the west side of the bank), the waves had picked up.  I had the mainsail up with no reef since the wind had lightened from around 8 to around 5 or 6.  As I got dark, I had trouble telling where the wind was coming from and I made two or three accidental jibes.  I should have rigged a preventer but I didn't.  So, I turned around and dropped the main.  After that, it was all motoring. 

Not long after I left the bank, the seas got larger and more confused.  After an hour or two, the swell picked up some.  It was only 3 or 4 feet but with the east wind, it was surprisingly rough.  Maybe it was because I was doing downwind but the boat was rocking back and forth to 25 degrees of heel - first to the left, then to the right - and on a 3 second period. I was just thankful the swell was small and the wind was light. 

At about 1am, the auto helm began acting up.  The wheel clutch began disengaging itself and the compass was going haywire.  After a couple hours of hand steering, I tied the clutch arm in place.  At about 5am, I began troubleshooting the compass and concluded that some piece of metal in proximity to the compass had been the cause. 

Once I got out of the gulf stream (about 15 nm from Ft. Pierce), the swell and wind waves died down and I had a nice motor sail into the Ft. Pierce inlet.  Entering the Fort Pierce inlet was a piece of cake. There was no swell and the surface of the water was glassy.  There were lots of people fishing on the jetties and beach goers on the beach (isn't Monday a work day?).

It took 3 calls to clear customs but I was glad that all my hard work with the SRVS vessel reporting system actually worked.

I made some calls to several local hospitals and decided on going to the one at Vero Beach tomorrow.  The rest of the day was spent cleaning up the boat and these blogs, showering, and trying to get some sleep. 

Sunday April 1, 2018 - Great Sale Cay to Ft. Pierce

I slept in till 7 this morning.  Overnight, the wind calmed down from E-12 to zero.  My plan was to leave at noon but I got the boat cleaned up and ready to go by 10 so decided to leave and just sail in the E-5 wind.  Before leaving, I installed a new zinc on the prop shaft so that took almost an hour by the time I got all my gear out and stored again.

I had my passage to Fort Pierce timed so that I would arrive between 6am and noon.  The tide was rising and the current would take me into the inlet.  Max current is 3.5 knots at the inlet so I had no interest fighting that.  To arrive at 9am, I'd leave at noon today, if I were to average 5.5 knots. 

From 10am till noon I basically drifted about 4 miles to the west and then started the engine.  I have spent the day catching up on my blogs, storing solar panels, securing the dinghy (on deck), and preparing for my overnight passage to Ft. Pierce.  It's now 5pm and I have about 25 miles to go to the west side of the Little Bahamas Bank.  After that the depths will go from 15 feet to 15,000 feet.  The wind is currently about 8 knots and I'm doing 4.5.  When the sun goes down, I'll be motoring most of the night so I'm  trying to get as many hours as possible in without using any diesel fuel.