Open Concept

Pictures, of before and after demo, will show you what I mean.  I say bring a lawn chair and cooler.  Sure would save us a lot of time. 

Material is coming in next week, so rebuild will begin.

Back in Myrtle Beach

We arrived back in Myrtle Beach a week ago.  This after continuing to have some of the best sailing of our lives.  Even an overnight sail from Cumberland, GA  to Charleston, SC. 

Past posts have talked about the performance changes with the new props and sails.  Another advantage, of the new sails, has been the motion.  Our first year, I equated sailing a catamaran to riding an F-350 truck on a rough road. That is no longer the case.  I know speed has a lot to do with it.  The boat tends to push through the water better and does not wallow on top.  We noticed a substantial change the minute we raised the sails last fall.  I think it is the pressure created in stiff and properly shaped sails.  Either way, we can now do overnight sails without the exhaustion we used to get. 

Now that we have the boat performing at a level we are happy with.  It is time to create the perfect catamaran interior.  This summer, we are completely gutting  whole salon area between the two hulls.  That means, all new nav area, seating, cabinets, refrigeration, A/C, cooking appliances, countertops and flooring.  We'll post pictures of before and after. 

 Hungry Nurse shark at the charter boat dock.  We saw several large sharks on the way up past Georgia.  They were hanging out following the shrimp boats and eating any injured fish.

 Hungry Pelican's do not look as intimidating as the shark.

Dolphins swimming in our bow wave.

Had to move out of the channel to make room for a submarine and its escort vessels near Cumberland Island.

  Sunset on the Indian River near Cocoa Beach.

   

Great Sailing!

We are sitting in St. Augustine today.  Arrived on Tuesday and waiting for the next weather window.  Right now, that looks like Saturday or Sunday.  Need the sea to calm down after the low came up the coast.

We thought we were going to have to ride out another hurricane in Fernandina Beach again.  We felt secure there, during Sandy, and figured we would head there if Tropical Storm Anna continued to develop.  Right now, looks like if it does develop, it will be way offshore.  We'll keep an eye on it.

For 10 days, we moved nearly every day.  Successfully staying ahead of a low that finally caught and passed us.  It dumped a lot of rain in southern Florida, but we kept moving north and have been in brilliant sun everyday except yesterday.  Each day, we would get up and look at the forecast where we were, and further north, and decide that if the wind was right, push on.  Westerly winds, when sailing outside, gave us flat seas. We did have to tack from Lake Worth to St. Lucie.  Yes, we sailed into St. Lucie inlet.  Seventeen feet was the shallowest water we saw and we were only an hour past low tide.  I am sure it can get rough, but no worse than Fort Pierce or St. Augustine Inlets.  Well marked and easy to enter.  After that, we had two days of beam reach sailing with an East wind and flat water of the Indian River.  Some of the best sailing I can remember. 

 Dolphins abound in Boot Key Harbor.  They all show up as the boats start to leave.

 One of the many mega yachts in Fort Lauderdale.  I like the anchor door that closes to hide the ugly hook.

 This is the third time we almost ran over f'ing turtles.  You can tell by the look in her eye, she is not too happy we interrupted.

     Miami skyline from Marine Stadium anchorage.

Tom and Ashley's First Visit

Back to back visits and good times for all.

Tom and Ashley came down with the goal to go fishing in the Keys.  They were not disappointed.  We went fishing, from Yasmine Ann, for the first time and they were able to catch three large Jack Crevalle.  We anchored right near the old seven mile bridge and Tom's first cast brought one in. 

A few days later, we went on a fishing charter and caught 24 Mahi, 3 Bonitos and Yammy caught the largest (again!), with a 40-45 lb Marlin.

We have left Marathon now and are sitting in Fort Lauderdale, waiting for the next window to jump.  Three great sailing days with Sunday from Rodriquez to Miami one of the 2% days you hope for.  We haven't been back to Fort Lauderdale since we bought the boat and are staying in Lake Sylvia for the first time. 

On the way to Rodriquez Key, we stopped at Hen and Chickens Reef, off of Islamorada.  All we can say is WOW!  Some of the most amazing coral formations and sea life we have ever seen in the Keys. Highly recommended stop for everyone.  This has given us an incentive to buy an underwater camera for next year.

 Jack Crevalle.  They grunt like a pig when out of the water.  Put up a great fight, but not good eating.  Tom and Ashley prefer catch and release anyway.

 Yammy's Catch.  Over 20 minutes later, it was spent. 

 If you want to catch the biggest fish of the day.  Don't bring Yammy along.  Last year was the 35 lb King Mackerel.

 You can see Tom reeling one in behind Ashley.  We hit a school and nailed a dozen within minutes. 

 Now that's a haul.  We brought a bag of fresh fillets to Castaway's and had them cooked up that night.  Best Mahi I have ever had.

 

Rochelle and Kevin's First Visit

It was so great to finally have one of our kids make it down here.  They spent 5 days and we did everything we could, including a trip to key west, except snorkel.  The wind gods kept it too rough at the reef, but that kept us cool on the boat.  Temps have been unusually hot hitting near 90 everyday.

Once our new grandson is old enough to enjoy, we looks forward to them returning for another adventure on Yasmine Ann.

 Rochelle wasn't here 5 minutes and was greeted by one of our lawn pets.  The fact they are herbivores, does not quell the fear factor.

 Went to the turtle hospital one day.  You learn a lot about sea turtles, but it is also sad.  This one had its rear flipper taken by a shark.

Rochelle and Kevin returning from another kayak adventure.

 I understand Kevin's paddleboard experience went much better here than in Jamaica.  No tow boat needed.

 Great pictures from our trip to the Dolphin Research Center.  A must stop for anyone going through Marathon.

 He was actually spinning the hula hoop.

Better than a sunset picture.  Rochelle is due in July.

Mangrovia

Kent and Jane, from Rising Tide, arranged a dinghy expedition of a settlement, we call Mangrovia.  It is actually Boot Key and used to be a bustling island with many fishing businesses and a radio station.  It was connected to the mainland with a lift bridge.  Once Marathon became a city and had to take over maintenance of the bridge, they decided it was too expensive and removed the lift section.

Now, a key you can only get to buy boat, has become a bit of folklore fodder.  So 4 boats decided to go and explore.  To be honest, it was a little freaky.  Sunk boats everywhere.  Ramshackle buildings and  "stuff" just scattered everywhere.  There were a few active fishing camps back there. 

Like I said, a lot of folklore, but I was told that once you staked a claim, it was yours for free.  Not sure if that is true.  Can't imagine living surrounded by mangroves.  The no-seeums have to be brutal.

 Heading back into Mangrovia

 Sunken attempt at building a submarine

 One of the largest iguana's we have seen.  I think sit eats people's pets that wander to the island.

 Our own Gilligan's Island on the south side of Boot Key.

 Sunset from Burdine's.  We go every Wednesday to hear Cory and Ty.  They are both cutting CD's this summer in Nashville, so they may be too big to be back.  We hope not!

Is it Spring?

Must be.  The lobster traps are disappearing as the season ends April 1st.  Maybe we can start using autopilot again.

Another crazy month with unexpected travel. We did get to sail to Looe Key and try out, what is reported as, the best snorkeling in the Keys.  It is about 19 miles away and allowed us to spend the weekend in Newfound Harbor.

It was a pretty rough day, with the swell coming in from the Atlantic, but I found the snorkeling to be average.  I think our own Sombrero Reef is just as good, if not better.  The water is approaching 80 degrees again, so you can snorkel for a long time.

Finally got the new invertor/charger installation complete.  Amazing what you find when you start digging into past installations.  Had to rewire all of the AC from the shore power inlets and install a new breaker box with an AC buss.  Now we are up to code and safe.  Found there had been a meltdown, in the old breaker box, due to improper wire gauges and oversized fuses and breakers.  Spent nearly as much money on components as I did for the inverter/charger.

We still have another month here in the Keys.  Enjoy your spring commissioning of your boats, cars and homes.

 Heading to Sombrero Reef with Sid and Bonnie's grandson Caden

 And their granddaughter Rian

 Dolphins Fishing in Newfound Harbor.

Newfound Harbor