When we woke up, the wind was blowing. We were very protected in the mooring field, so we weren't quite sure how windy it was"out there". The winds were expected to increase later in the day and to continue several more days. We really didn't want to get stuck there. Our toilet control part was going to be delivered to Vero Beach on Tuesday. We decided to try to leave, if we didn't like what we were experiencing, we would turn around and go back to Stuart We left the marina and headed ESE into the wind, but it wasn't too bad, with only a little spray over the bow. It was indeed blowing 15kts, but the short fetch made it very doable. One hour later, we reached the ICW and turned north, the ride was very comfortable. We were on a run. At 9:00, we arrived atJensen Beach (our planned destination). So we reevaluated our plans. The winds were suppose to increase to 20kts later today and stay that way for a couple days. From Jensen Beach, we would have 25nm tomorrow to Vero Beach. Since we were having such a comfortable ride and the weather might to worse tomorrow, we decided to skip Jensen Beach and to go directly to Vero. We would probably spend 3 night there, but we like Vero Beach and it will be nice to have a couple non-travel days. At 12:30, we were at Vera Beach City Marina picking up our mooring ball. It was at that point, when we turned into the wind, that we realized that it was blowing like stink. We dinghied to shore and checked in ($15/night for mooring ball) and committed to 2 nights there. Back on the boat, Matt went to work on the Yamaha engine and fixed the gas leak. We spent the remainder of the day on the boat just relaxing. Trip Log-Day 6: 38.6nm, 6.25 hours (this is the 3rd time in 6 days that we've traveled exactly 38.6nm in a day). Trip Total- 195nm, 35.25 hours Vero Beach mooring field
4 Comments
The route from home to Stuart-158nm or 182 statue miles. We were awake by 6:00 this morning. It was getting light outside, so we got up. After a leisure breakfast, we filled the water jugs, topped off Blue Moon's water tank and gave her a bath. At about 8:30, the lock was about to open for east bound traffic. So we hurriedly contacted the lock master, left the dock, deployed the fenders and stood by for our final lock, St. Lucie Lock. Twenty minutes later, we were at sea level after being lowered 11ft. At 10:00, we picked up a mooring ball at Sunset Bay Marina and Anchorage in Stuart($30/night). We put the dinghy into the water, and our old Yamaha started right up, but it was leaking gas. Matt tightened all the connections, but it was still leaking. He thinks the fuel pump is now leaking. So we exchanged the Yamaha engine for my father's 1972 (45 year old) vintage Mercury engine, which we brought along "just in case". Matt diligently tried to get the engine to start, all the while saying "it started right up at home". As he pulled and pulled on the starting cord, I had a flash back to 45 years ago; to the lake in MA and watching my dad trying to get this engine to start so that I could take the boat on a ride on the lake. I suddenly found myself reciting "squeeze the ball...squeeze the ball". Matt finally did get the engine purring and we made it to land. After we checked in at the marina, we made a beeline to our favorite ice cream shop in Stuart and they didn't disappoint us (for those of you counting, that's ice cream #2 of the trip). Our next stop was to Pelican Pete's Bar and Grill on the water for an ice cold beer. Getting into the cruising mode and already having our ice cream and beer, our next stop would be to the Dollar Store followed by a trip to Publix for a few items, the four mainstays of a cruiser's life. Back on Blue Moon, we stowed the purchases and chilled. It was 19:00 before we ashore for dinner. We decided to go to Duffy's as we had been there previously and liked it. The first time there, 5 years ago, Matt had gotten a Duffy's card where we accumulate points for every purchase. Reading the back of the Duffy's card it said the points expire after a year of non-use and we hadn't been there for several years...oh well. But the the waiter checked to see what was on the card, he said that we could get $10 off our meal. That was a nice surprise. After dinner, we walked back to the marina. The town was busy with people everywhere. Back on the boat, the sounds of a wonderful band playing nearby lulled us to sleep. Trip Log-Day 5: 7nm, 1.5 hour, 1 lock Trip Total-158nm, 29 hours Left-View of the mooring field from the marina. Right-Blue Moon on a mooring Me with ice cream and Matt at Pelican Pete's with beer. Dad's 1972 vintage dinghy engine and Matt putting it to good use. Top left-Matt at Duffy's with his Duffy's card & bee
Top right-Stuart at night Bottom right-By the fire pit at the Marina Bottom left-One of the never ending trains going through Stuart. At 6:00 we were awoken by the sound of the passing boats filled with fishermen. At 6:45, we were off the dock and on our way to cross Lake 0. As soon as we got out on the lake, I reported to Matt that our "electric" toilet wasn't working. It had no power to flush the toilet. We figured that we would just have to manage until we got to St.Lucie later in the day and Matt had a chance to look at it. It took about 4 hours to cross the lake. The wind was on our beam and it would have been a great sail if we were on a sailboat. At 10:45, when we reached the far side of the lake, the winds had increased to 12-15kts and were still increasing. The Port Mayaca Lock was wide open and we were able to just go through. As we continued down the Waterway, we noticed that the water level was extremely low. Instead of seeing gators along the shore, we saw cows and horses grazing along the water's edge. Two hours later(12:45), we were arriving at St Lucie Lock Park. This is a federal park which has both camper sites and boat docks. With a Senior National Park pass, you can get a slip for $15/night(instead of $30) with power and water. If you have ever stopped here, you know Edna. She is a very old lady who has been park resident volunteer for many many years and she is still here. After we got secure in the slip and turned the A/C on, Matt went to work trying to figure out why there was no power to empty the bowl of the head. With the help of his handy dandy multimeter and Greg, a very helpful Raritan employee, Matt was able to determine that the problem was with the toilet's control box. He ordered a new one which is supposed to be delivered to Vero Beach Marina on Tuesday (we expect to be there). So until Tuesday, Matt will hotwire the toilet so that we can flush it intermittently (a minor inconvience). With that problem practically solved, it was time to sit on the back of Blue Moon and enjoy cold beverages and watch the yachts pass in and out of the Lock. Dinner was chicken parmesan on Blue Moon's aft deck. No other boat joined us at the docks for the night. We had them all to ourselves. Trip Log-Day 4: 43nm, 6.25 hours, 1lock(open) Total Trip-152nm, 23.5 hours Left-Open Port Mayaca lock looking at Lake O Right-Cows grazing along the waterway. Horses getting a drink of water on this warm day. Left-Blue Moon at St. Lucie Lock Park.
Right-St. Lucie Locks We had a very comfortable night with the A/C on. At 6:00, the traffic of the bridge started which woke us, so we decided to get going. We had another long day ahead of us. We would prefer not traveling so many hours everyday, but there aren't many over night options on the waterway. After today, we have one more long day ahead of us, then we can begin to slow down. We left the slip at 6:45 and had breakfast along the way. At 8:00, we arrived at Ortano Lock where we were lifted 6 ft. This is not one of our favorite locks and it can be challenging when you're going in the east direction. The lock isn't very long and the lock master wants to get you through quickly, so he tends to open the lock doors more than we'd like. This causes massive amounts of water to rush past the boat while we try to keep the boat steady with the lines. We have found that staying further back in the lock or being behind another boat helps a lot. Any way, we locked thru without incident and we were on our way again. As we cruised the waterway, we saw cows and deer on the shore, alligators in the water and smelled the smoke from nearby fires. We were making real good time. At 10:15, we arrived at Moore Haven Lock where we were raised another 6 inches (hardly worth the effort). Once through the lock, we were now on the rim of Lake O (Okeechobee-for you non-Floridians). This stretch was infested with alligators. We must have seen over a hundred of them. They were everywhere: on the shore, in the water and some even swam toward and under the boat. This is our ninth trip through Lake O and we've never seen so many. We arrived at Clewiston at 12:15. Capt.Sam, the dock master at Roland Martin Marina, greeted us at the dock and helped us get settled. Once the power was hooked up, the A/C was turned on. It isn't too bad in the shade (86°, humidity 75% with a nice breeze blowing). But we have it so we might as well use it. We spent the afternoon sitting on back of Blue Moon doing very little. We read, relaxed, chatted with boat neighbors, and slept. Soon it was time for happy hour and dinner at the Tiki Bar where the beer was cold and the food was tasty. Trip Log-Day 3: 33nm in 5.25 hours traveling. 2 locks Trip Total-109nm 17.25 hours. Left-Moorehaven Lock Right-One of many, many alligators on the Okeechobee Top- (left)The marina, (right) Blue Moon at marina
Middle-(left) Us at The Tiki Bar, (right) alligator relaxing on a rock Bottom-(left)Sunrise before the fog bank, (right) after the fog bank. We awoke at sunrise, had breakfast and were ready to go at 8:15. Once we had the muddy anchor cleaned and stowed, we headed east on the Caloosahatchee River. An hour later, Blue Moon was at Ft Myers Yacht Basin getting fuel. With her tank fuel, she was no longer listing to port. At 12:30, we approached Franklin Lock,the first of the five locks on the Okeechobee, where the boat was raised 2.5ft. Since SW Florida was experiencing a severe drought, the lake level was only 11.77ft. The lake is at its lowest level in 5 years. We feared that the Army Corp of Engineers might have started the restricted opening schedule of 3-4x/day to reduce the lose of water from the lake. It wouldn't been a big deal, just an inconvience. A phone call to the lockmaster reassured us that the locks were still opening "on demand". Once through that lock, we were on our way to LaBelle. We arrived at the Town Docks at 15:15. LaBelle doesn't charge to use the docks and are available on a first come basis with a maximum stay of 3 days. Plus is electricity and water hookups are available at the slips. Several friendly boaters took our lines as we entered the slip, which made the job of docking and securing the boat so much easier. Once settled, we took a walk into the town and ended up at McDonald's for ice cream sundaes. I know.." McDonald's for ice cream???" But we were in LaBelle and there aren't many options. Returning to Blue Moon, we decided to start to the A/C. We were beginning to experience the predicted abnormal wave of warm weather for this time of the year, but the main reason for turning it on was to drown out the noise of the cars crossing the nearby bridge. Although the A/C did feel pretty good. Had dinner followed by an evening of reading and relaxation. Day 2 Trip Log: 38nm in 6 hours. 1 lock, Trip total-76nm, 12 traveling hours. Left-The sign says We're here!
Center-Blue Moon at the slip Right-My healthy salad. Matt opted for pork tenderloin. We got a later start than we wanted this morning. After we had loaded the final items on the boat, put the internet on vacation, cleaned out the refrigerator and generally got the house ready for our long absence, we waited for a 9:30 appointment with the new pool man. He never came and never called, so we cancelled him. Then Matt contacted another company to service the pool in our absence. With that done, we were ready to depart. By 10:15, Blue Moon was leaving the dock. Fully loaded with every inch of storage filled, we could still see her water line (at least her starboard waterline). With most of the storage and the full water tanks located on her port side and only the half filled fuel tanks on her starboard, she had a significant list to her port. This will be corrected tomorrow when we refuel in Ft Myers. I still can't understand how I possibly got all the food from our large home refrigerator into Blue Moon's dorm sized fridge, but mission accomplished. It was a beautiful day to begin a cruise. Blue Moon's new weather station told us that the temperature was 76°, the humidity was 55% and moderate winds. We arrived at Matlache at noon. Although it was a falling tide, we decided to go down Matlache Pass toward Ft Myers. We made it through the Pass without a bump and soon we were cruising down the Miserable Mile on the ICW to the anchorage for the night. At 16:15, we arrived at Glover Bight and anchored for the evening. Because we both were still recovering from our "cruise cold", we skipped the celebratory beer and toasted with cranberry juice instead. We both went to bed early after dinner as we were exhausted. It was a very pleasant night on the boat. Perfect temperatures and the gentle rocking of Blue Moon provided us both with a very restful sleep. Today we are starting our trip on the Okeechobee Waterway across the state to the east coast. Day 1 Trip Log: Traveled 38.6 NM in 6 hours fighting the tide the whole time. Left-We're headed east on the Callosahatchee River.
Right-Our packed refrigerator. I did get admonished for opening the door and letting "all the cold air out", when I took this photo. :-) We've been home from our Transatlantic cruise for 4 days and it's getting time for us to leave on our next adventure. Our float plan is fluid with no firm itinerary. We do know that we are leaving tomorrow, that we will be staying in the ICW (when possible) and that we plan to be back to Florida sometime in September. It would be nice to get up to Lake Champlain this summer, but we'll see how things go.
|