01/30/2009, Staniel Cay

...Cay, that is. Deep in the Exuma island chain in the central Bahamas.
And now for a very long, and much delayed update...



05 - 18 Jan 09
Marathon, Boot Key, FL


I came back to Marathon from Key West a bit early. Before Ron and Rich left anyway. Mostly because I was spending way too much money way too fast. Partly because I was a little worried about leaving Galena alone for so long. And partly because my old friends, Dennis and Bettye (s/v Son of a Sailor) were now at Marathon and leaving soon. Also because my friend Maria (a friend from the Chesapeake Bay area) said she might stop by for a quick visit.

So back I go. Ron drove me to the bus stop. Florida has a nice set of busses that run up and down the keys. For only $3 I rode from Key West to Marathon. Not bad at all. And there's a bus stop directly in front of the marina. How convenient is that?

I get to the marina and I'm on the dinghy dock. The dinghy dock at Marathon is huge. During the day it's quite full of boats. But at night I've come back to find mine lying there almost alone.

The main dinghy dock at Marathon.
The mooring field was full, so so was the dinghy dock.

As I said, I'm at my dinghy (which appeared unmolested). I'm going through my one bag and my computer case looking for the key to the lock on the dinghy. I don't lock the dinghy usually, but since it would be there at the dock for a week, day and night, I thought it would be prudent to lock it up. But now I couldn't find the key. Just two small bags and I can't find the key. I recalled when I locked the dinghy I looked at the key and thought, "I won't need this for a while; put it in a safe, out of the way place." But I couldn't find it. After about 20 minutes I gave up and called my friend Dennis. I asked if he had a set of bolt cutters. As soon as I hung up the phone I patted down the computer case and felt the bulge of the little foam floaty-thingie attached to the key. It was in a pocket that I didn't even remember existed in the computer case. I called Dennis back and canceled the bolt cutters. I motored back to Galena. she was just fine, and seemed to be happy to see me.

I cleaned her up a bit and went to Brodines for a beer. And then went to Docksides for another. There I bumped into Dennis and Bettye. I also met their friends Ron and Sonja. Ron and Sonja were friends with Nancy and Kirk of s/v Tybee Time, who I knew from my MySpace page. Tybee Time is a boat that Nancy and Kirk were doing significant rebuilding on. They were following my travels. Nancy had told Sonja to look for me 'out there' and here we were, meeting over a beer with mutual friends. How cool is that?

Dennis and Bettye at Dockside Bar, Marathon, FL

My friend, Maria, had some business in Miami and decided to drive down to say,'Hi.' She wanted to relax a bit. Do that whole 'lay on the beach' thing. We then drove down to Key West and partied a bit. She also wanted to go for a sail on Galena. All in two days. I don't think I'd call that relaxing. But that's what she wanted to do.

Me and Maria on the beach at Bahia Honda State Park, Florida Keys

In Key West we hit the usual haunts including Capt Tony's, Hogs Breath, Green Parrot. We ate at El Mason de Pepe, the great Cuban place Ron, Rich, and I found over New Years. By the time I drove her back to her hotel and got myself back to Galena it was about 0300. Long, long day.

And Maria at the Hogs breath Saloon

The day we returned from our sail, we were heading over to Dockside for dinner when the engine on the dinghy quit. We were not far from Galen so I paddled us back. Rather than screw with it right away, I made us a simple dinner aboard and then tore the engine's carburetor apart. I cleaned the carb out and got the outboard running. I was able to get Maria back to her car before too late that evening.

Maria left on the 11th after a sharing nice lunch at Dockside.

The outboard motor on the dinghy has given me more trouble than any single piece of equipment onboard Galena. Now I was determined to find the problems. One is that there is always crap in the gas. I'll find water in the fuel tank; the one that I leave lying in the dinghy. Or I'll find water in the float bowl of the carburetor on the outboard. Both of those are easily fixed. In one case I strain the fuel through a Baha filter to filter out the water. In the other I just open the drain on the float bowl and drain out the water. I keep a screwdriver inside the engine housing just for this problem.

But sometimes there's a lot of crud in the carburetor (that's a technical term, you know?). I've found the primary jet clogged with tan-colored deposits. I've found jelly-like crud in the bottom of the float bowl. This time was different. The problem was that the float valve wouldn't close. After the engine ran for a minute or so fuel would start pouring out of the carburetor. The fuel flow from the pump was not being closed off. So I took the thing completely apart. The disassembly that I had not done before was the driving out of the pivot pin for the floats, followed by the removal of the lift valve. Yep, more crud in there.

The outboard carburetor apart, upside down, on the nav station / workbench

I hooked up the fuel line to the carburetor housing's fuel inlet bib. I found that when I squeezed the priming bulb on the fuel line fuel would only sometimes squirt out of the float valve hole in the carb. Sometimes it would not. So I concluded there must be crud in the fuel galley passages that were cut in the casting between the fuel line bib and the float valve. Maybe I could just 'blow it out.' I took a mouthful of water and blew it into the fuel line bib. Same effect: sometimes it would stream through, sometimes not.

Me blowing water through the carburetor fuel passages

There was obviously some blockage in there. The question was how do I get it out? It was too small to go through the float valve hole; since it didn't. Whatever is in there would have to come back out through the fuel line bib end of the galley. The only thing I could think of was to push water in, then pull it back out. With a bit of hesitancy I blew some water in, and then... sucked it back out. Yuck! I spit it into a glass. Sure enough, there was some stuff in the water that was not from me. And I could feel some grit in my mouth, too. Again, yuck! So a few cycles of blow and suck with mouths full of water and the line was clear.

I reassembled it all and have not had any problems since. I assume I'll still have problems with water in the tank. But like I said, that is easy to resolve. I really want to put in a water separator between the fuel tank and the engine. I've seen a filter assembly at NAPA that will work. I just have not gotten around to it yet.

It's always something on a boat.

On 13 January forecasts showed a weather window was opening up for the following Sunday. Windfinder.com and Chris Parker and even NOAA were forecasting west winds at 15-kts. Not too bad for a run northwest onto the banks then southwest to Nassau. The problem is that the forecasts all called for high winds and seas from the North by Tuesday night. That made for a very narrow window to cross that much water. If the cold front with the nigh winds behind it moved faster than projected one would be caught out in the Gulf Stream with high north winds. I've been there and done that and I really, really, don't want to do that again. The narrow window was keeping many cruisers in port. I think I can take the high winds since they will be mostly northwest and therefore behind me. I know Galena can take it. And I plan to be on the banks before they start up. Shouldn't be much more than 3-ft seas on the banks since it's only 12-ft deep.

But that forecast window is a week away. Everything can change by then, and it usually does. So I won't get my hopes of leaving here up to high just yet.

I dinghied over to say hello to my neighbors Josh and his wife aboard m/v Ophelia. They are from Montreal and we had a very long and pleasant visit.

I made three water runs in the dink (the engine is running just fine today) and filled Galena's water tanks. I took a brisk walk to K-Mart and the Home Depot. I bought a new backpack and a big Rubbermaid tub to use as a wash basin. I have not done laundry since... Charleston, I thnk. It's stacking up and I'm running out of shorts.

I went over to my other neighbor in the Marathon mooring field, s/v Moonraker with Kevin and Roxanne aboard. The visit started off fine and then I made some stupid comment and pissed off Roxanne. She went below and Kevin and I stayed in the cockpit and talked of all things boating. Then we went below and had a bit to eat while Roxanne went on deck. Apologies on apologies but she was still pissed. They are planning to run around the Gulf Coast for the winter. Maybe next year they will head east to the Bahamas.

I bumped into Kevin on shore a couple days later and again offered my apologies to Roxanne. He said don't worry about it. But I was. I liked them and felt bad about misjudging how they would take some of my 'humor.' Roxanne sent me an e-mail a few days later and said apology accepted. She also made some nice comments about my web page. So I feel better now.

On the 14th I listened to Chris Parker's weather forecast (4045mHz @ 0630hrs) for the first time this season. His broadcast didn't come in clearly until about 0650hrs. By that time he was doing the individual weather routing for 'sponsoring vessels.' Fortunately, as is usually the case, one of the boats in Marathon was a sponsoring vessel and asked about crossing the Gulf Stream on Sunday. Chris said it was a great window, but that they should only go as far as Bimini and wait there for the high northerly winds to pass.

As the week progressed he modified that to say it was just a 'good' window if you like a good, brisk sail. If you like things quieter, wait for the next window. No next window was foreseeable, however.

I did laundry in my new wash tub. Since I had fresh water available I used it. It took only a couple of hours to stomp my way through 14 T-shirts, 3 Hawaiian shirts, and 7 pairs of shorts. Just like I had seen the hooch-maids in Thailand doing laundry, I was standing in the cockpit, stomping on clothes in a plastic wash tub. Easy work, just time consuming. Everything took turns hanging on the lifelines giving Galena that lived-in look. Now I have enough clean clothes for the next month or so.

On the 15th a 'final' grocery run. I've always had trouble getting a loaf of bread home without crushing it. Last time, When I bought the wash tub, I almost made it. I even had the bread on board in the cockpit uncrushed. I was proud! Then I looked and saw that I had laid a clamp on the bag with the bread. Yep, crushed it. Damn!

But this time I actually got a loaf of bread down below and put away in perfect shape. For the first time all winter! These little victories bring a lot of joy to my life. See, if I weren't so inept I'd not have these moments of joy as I overcome my limitations!

I've just noticed that the new flatware I had purchased at the Navy exchange in Annapolis is starting to show rust spots. So much for inexpensive stainless steel. A little polishing cleans the rust spots off but I shouldn't have to do this.

I also found that the less expensive peanut butter (Publix brand in this case) doesn't stay mixed-up well. Within a couple of days the oil is floating on top while the bottom gunk has turned to a dry spackle-like substance. Also the peanut chunks migrate to the top. I had not seen that in the brand name products like Jiffy. Again, no big deal (I just spend a few minutes mixing the stuff up. But it's one more little thing that I wouldn't have expected

Also on the 15th I saw the Sunday weather window for crossing the Gulf Stream collapsing. The northwest winds, which were to follow the window on Tuesday were now forecast for Monday. So I'd only have a single day before the sailing would become... shall we say: interesting. And those winds on Monday were projected to be even stronger than before. But still, I thought, Galena is not a small craft; she's an ocean-going cruiser. And if I can't handle 20+ knots abaft the beam I shouldn't be out here calling myself a cruiser. Right? Damn Right! I still planned to leave Sunday afternoon as soon as the wind clocked around to the south.

On the morning of Sunday, the 18th of January the wind was light but still out of the SE. I messed around all morning worrying about the wind. Wondering if I should go or stay. Thinking that I really, really didn't want to stay in Marathon another week. And knowing if I didn't take this opportunity to go, I'd be here at least another week. The indecision made my stomach hurt.

By noon on Sunday the winds were begining to clock around to the south at about 10kts. I decided to go for it. It takes about an hour to get Galena ready for sea. Everything from removing sail covers to rigging jacklines; attaching the auto pilots to stowage of equipment below. The dinghy outboard has to be raised and secured on it's chocks at Galena's stern and the dinghy itself has to be secured on deck.

I departed Marathon, finally, at 1515hrs on Sunday the 18th of January after 26 days on a mooring ball. In departing I have to say I don't see what all the rage is about the place. Sure, it's inexpensive; for the Florida Keys. But there is nothing there. Unless you have a car you're stuck in what is essentially a trailer court. I just don't see the attraction. So I was happy to leave and be on my way. As I said before, I don't really feel like I'm cruising until I leave the States. And today, I will do just that.

18 - 20 Jan 09
Marathon, FL to Nassau, Bahamas


I don't have any pictures of this little jaunt. Sorry. Everything of interest happened at night. And while I did try to take a couple of shots, nothing came out.

The synopsis of the trip is pretty simple. I had to motor most of the way across the Gulf Stream since the wind was very light. But the seas were pretty calm, too. Until just before I got to the Bahama Banks, that is. Then everything started picking up. The seas were 6 to 8 feet and the wind was on my port quarter, but still too light to just sail. I'm not sure where those seas were coming from.

Once on the banks I secured the engine and sailed all day and all night. The Tongue of the Ocean (the last section of the trip before Nassau) was rough as expected with seas over 6-ft. The promised winds from the northwest finally filled in late on 19 Jan and carried me rapidly into Nassau. With just a double-reefed main Galena was galloping along making over 6-kts.

If you don't care about the details skip down a bit.

Galena's track from Marathon, FL, to Nassau, Bahamas.
240 miles in 40 hrs

18 Jan 09 1515 hrs
The wind was SW at 10 as I motored out of the Marathon/Boot Key area. Of course I'm trying to go to the Southwest so I'm pounding into a 2-ft chop all the way to the outside of the reef which was about 7 miles. Once I'm outside the reef I turned to the east and had more favorable winds and seas. Still, I couldn't really sail since I was pointed too close to the wind (starboard tack). And the wind chop was up to 3-ft out here.

18 Jan 09 1700 hrs
My heading was 090°, wind 150° @ 13-kts, Speed Over Ground 6.0-kts
I was feeling just a little sea sick. First time in a long time. Not nauseous just the lathargic, tired, "I-don't-want-to-do-anything" feeling that is usually the first signs of seasickness. It will probably go away soon.

18 Jan 09 1730 hrs
Wind was decreasing so I shook the reef out of the main. Now running with all up: Full Main, Staysail, Yankee Jib. I had a nice hot bowl of chilli for dinner.

18 Jan 09 1745 hrs
Wind has significantly decreased. Now down to 3.5-kts (apparent) from 150°. SOG less than 3-kts. So Engine On again.

18 Jan 09 1813 hrs
Wind picks up a bit so engine off.
I see rain clouds to the south of me and it's getting dark. A cautious sailor would reduced sail while there is still some light to see what he was doing. I drop the jib as I see what looks like serious wind on the water to my starboard side.

18 Jan 09 19100 hrs
I'm going too slow. Up with the jib and to hell with caution!
It's starting to get a bit warmer outside. It's up to 71° now. SOG: 5.5-kts HDG: 070°.

18 Jan 09 2200 hrs
Wind is down to less than 5-kts and SOG is less than 3. So engine back on. That brings my speed up to 7.0 kts.
I'm seeing a lot of cruise ship traffic. Nothing I have to change course for, but it's all around me. And I'm already tired and sleepy. But the touch of seasickness has left me. So that's a good thing.

19 Jan 09 0700 hrs
Winds were SW at 10-kts. 4-6 ft seas. Very 'lumpy' conditions. I'm still motorsailing and plan on turning more to the north once I cross onto the Banks below South Riding Rock.

19 Jan 09 0950 hrs
On the Great Bahama Bank. I've turned a bit north (left) of my course toward Russell light to get better speed. The seas went from 6-ft in the ocean, to 2-ft on the banks. Big difference. The engine is off and I'm having a nice, sunny, warm, quiet sail.

Harvey (my Aries Wind Vane) is sometimes a pain the ass to get properly adjusted. First you have to get his wind paddle properly oriented into the wind. Then you have to find the proper notch on the chain into which to slip the tiller hook. That's a function of weather helm. And you have to have the ship as balanced as possible before you do all this. Then you watch for a while and see what he does. A wind vane auto stearing system doesn't follow a course; it follows the wind. Every little gust or swirl will cause a change of course by a few degrees. Sometimes by a lot of degrees. So you get everything set 'right' and watch for a while. If the ship is suddenly 20° off course, you may have to adjust some things. I usually adjust too many things at once and then I'll be 20° off course on the other side! Eventually I can get everything just right. Then Harvey will guide Galena along without any input from me.


19 Jan 09 1415 hrs
Wind is diminishing. It was supposed to hit 30-kts about now and instead it's 4-kts (apparent). The temperature has stayed 71° since I hit the Gulf Stream last night. The skis are clear and the sun is warm.

19 Jan 09 1500 hrs
Wind is now 4-6 kts (ap) at 240°. Seas are 1 to 2 feet with just a few white caps. SOG: 4.4 kts with just a slight rolling motion.
I spent the better part of a week worrying about this crossing and so far it's been very mild.

19 Jan 09 1530 hrs
The sun is hiding behind some high clouds so it's time to get dressed. At least I got a little bit of sun on my butt. T-shirt and shorts is all I need right now.

This will be night #2. A first for me single-handing. I've never stayed out on a leg alone for more than one night. But I've had some naps and will take some more tonight. I should be fine.

19 Jan 09 1700 hrs
I've been sailing without incident or comment for eight hours now. Nice and relaxing. I've been napping and eating and reading. Just a very nice day on the banks. I've also been trying to decide where I'm headed. My plan was to turn south at Northwest Channel Light and make for Morgan's Bluff on north Andros Island. But the wind has stayed out of the south all day and is supposed to build overnight. That would make heading south difficult. Also, I'd arrive in the dead of night at a port I've never been to. And there would be no place to hide and wait for daylight.

In light of the timing and the winds I've decided to go directly to Nassau. If I slow down a bit I will make Nassau just after dawn. "Slow Down" is a funny problem on a Westsail. We're known for sort of automatically slowing down on our own.

I've just had a spot of heavy rain followed by wind... lots of it! For the first time in a long time I'm out on a pitching deck dropping the staysail and tucking a reef into the main while Galena dances under way too much sail. Loads of fun!

I've moved the GPS/Radar instruments below to the nav station. I've run control lines from the Aries wind vane into the cabin. I can stay below now and just poke my head up for visual checks every 15-minutes or so.

19 Jan 09 1745 hrs
Wind is 240° at 15-20 kts with SOG 6-kts. Galena is moving well under just a double-reefed main.

19 Jan 09 1820 hrs
It's getting dark and the wind is down just a bit. Fewer white caps out there and waves are about 3-ft. SOG: 5.5 to 6.0 kts. I'm approaching Northwest Channel Light. Radar shows the light and a couple of cargo vessels coming through the channel. I've been through here several times, but never before at night. A few years ago I talked with a cruiser who was hit by a 'mail boat' right here. He had some excuse about the lights on the boat not being right. But none the less, he and it collided. So I'm being very careful.

Galena is really rocking and rolling in the wind and waves. And I'm still on the Banks! I fear it will be much worse once through the NW Channel and out into the Tongue of the Ocean. The water depth goes from 14-ft on the Banks to several thousand feet in just a mile or so. Should be interesting.

19 Jan 09 1840 hrs
Rain again. Hard rain. Harvey is steering us just fine. I'm sitting below in the cabin, drinking coffee, watching screens of what's happening outside. This is just wrong but very comfy. Every few minutes I stick my head out and, nope nothing there but wind and rain.

19 Jan 09 1900 hrs
Band after band of heavy rain pass over me. waves are over 4-ft. Every now and then one does that hard "Slap!" against Galena's bow. Causes the whole boat to shake!.

19 Jan 09 2100 hrs
Passing NorthWest Channel Light. A freighter calls me and asks me to stand well clear. Duh! I see him and will stay a half mile away. We'll both be passing the light at the same time and the deep water channel there is not all that wide. Then he calls back and tells me that he will be turning to 240° after passing the light. I tell him I'll stay well north of the light and pass him starboard-to-starboard to give him room to turn south. He agrees. We pass and he looks very very close. Radar indicates that he is about half a mile away. But he sure looks close.

20 Jan 09 0100 hrs
Waves are well over 6-ft and the wind is WSW at 15-20kts. Quite a ride under only a double-reefed main. The wind is actually down a bit. But every few minutes you get that set of 3 waves that simply rock my little world and send everything crashing about; including me. I must be one big bruise by now.

20 Jan 09 0300 hrs
Wind is decreasing but I'm still making 5+ kts. My ETA is well before dawn. I might go in in the dark, but I'd rather do it in the daylight.

20 Jan 09 0600 hrs
I'm heading into Nassau harbor just as dawn is breaking. It's too early to get into a marina so I just motor over to the anchorage at the east end of the harbor and drop the hook.

The long voyage is over and I'm safe in harbor in Nassau, Bahamas. I'm very tired but otherwise just very happy to be here. I have to remember to put things away a little better before I do a trip like this again. Down below there's stuff tossed all over the place. My nav station had way too much stuff laying on it when I started. Charts, pencils, rules, guides, things like that. Now that's all on the cabin floor.

But overall a very nice passage. Now I need sleep.


18 - 20 Jan 09
Nassau Harbor Club Marina, Nassau, Bahamas
(N 25° 04.482' W 077° 18.750')
Trip: 240nm, Total: 1464, Engine: 2096


Every time I've come to Nassau I've stayed for a least a little while at Nassau Yacht Haven Marina. The customs people require you to be at a marina to do the paperwork. I guess this is so they can board the boat if they want to. But they never have.

Anyway, last year there was no room at any marina so I just anchored out in the channel for the night. The next day I went into the marina and did the clearing-in thing. But the customs agent got all huffy with me saying I was breaking their laws by not clearing in on the day I arrived at Nassau. Really gave me grief for anchoring out the previous night even though I didn't leave the boat.

This year I was about to do the same thing (although I was planning on lying about my arrival date just to not get yelled at). As I was anchoring in the area in front of Nassau Harbor Club Marina I hear someone shout, "Hey Bill!" I look and there, in that marina is Dennis and Bettye aboard s/v Son of a Sailor. In case you're not following my whole life's journal, I'd met them in 2004 on my first trip to the Bahamas and then bumped into them at least once a year since. I had had lunch with them at Marathon a few days ago before they went across to cruise the Berry's, north of Nassau. And here they were again.

I dinghied over to Nassau Harbor Club marina since they wouldn't answer the radio (who knew they monitored Ch 12?). Yes, they have room for Galena. And it's only $0.75/ft/day plus $10 water plus metered electricity. That's a bit less than Nassau Yacht Haven (last year they charged me $2/ft/day). So I dinghied back to Galena, raise anchor and motored into the marina. Clark and his buddy helped me come in without incident. Within a half hour immigrations was there to clear in a couple of us cruisers and an hour later the customs agent showed up to do all the paperwork. So many forms! So many places where they have to stamp their little stamps. Fee was the same as usual, $150 for Galena for a 120-day cruising permit. It's $300 if your boat is over 35-ft long. The immigration guy was in a good mood and gave me a 120-day visa, too. So I'm all set.

My slip-mate was a Canadian boat named Brandaris with Walter and Brenda. They were waiting for friends and then would be running down to George Town, Exuma, like everyone else.

This marina is directly across the street from the main market. I went to Starbucks to get a cup of coffee. It was rush hour. The main drag is right outside the door to the marina office.

Rush Hour traffic just east of downtown

That evening I was over at Son of A Sailor for drinks. I met Bill and Millie of s/v Against the Wind. He's a retired lawyer, something Dennis and I give him grief over constantly.

The next day (21 Jan) was spent messing around with Galena. I took a walk down the street looking for cruising guides for points south of George Town. I could/should get a new chart book for the far Bahamas. Maybe I'll do that in George Town. The one I have is many years old. And I need charts for anywhere I go south of the Bahamas. Maybe I'll just bit the bullet and order a set of charts from Bellingham Printing. They sell black-and-white prints of standard charts at considerable savings. Still, I checked the cost of all the charts I'd need to get to Australia and it would be over $500. I'll have to be sure of my plans before I spend that much money.

My fuel status was: 24/33/20 (Stbd/Port/Deck) for a total of 77-gallons. I had used 10 gallons motoring across the Gulf Stream. I put 10-gallons of the deck jugs into the starboard tank and bought 10 gal from the marina at $3.18/gal. Now Galena is just about topped-off with 87-gal. That should last quite a while. I need to do an oil change soon, too.

On the evening of the 21st we all went down town. "All" means Bettye, Bill, Millie, and me. Dennis stayed home.
We walked through the shopping center to Shirley Street and waited for a bus. Bill kept asking, 'Are you sure this is a bus stop?' I pointed out the other people standing around.

Shirley Street is more the 'norm' for Nassau neighborhoods

We took the bus to downtown. That's where the cruise ships land and the thousands of tourists disembark. They walk around the several blocks in that area and think they've seen Nassau. Well, yes, they have. But the certainly have not seen New Providence island. Nassau is just the capital city. There's a lot more to the island than the few blocks around the cruise ship port.

We walked around a bit. Bettye had never seen this part of Nassau. She and Dennis had only stayed down near the yacht marinas. Again, only seeing one small part of the island. A few years ago the guard at Nassau Yacht Haven gave me a tour of the island. We went to the Bat Cave, to the south shore, to just about everywhere. Bettye and Dennis and probably most other visitors have not seen any of that.

The ladies went to the straw market while Bill and I went to Senior Frog's.

The straw market is under the plastic on the left, Senior Frog's is straight ahead.

We were shocked when we found that a beer was $6.50! Talk about taking advantage of tourists!

Me, Bettye, Bill, and Millie at Senior Frog's, Nassau.

When the ladies were finished shopping we headed over to a small bar on a back street named The Bahamian Kitchen. We drank and ate and have a very nice time. Then we caught a cab back to the marina. And went to Son of a Sailor to finish off the evening.

22 Jan 09
Norman's Cay, Bahamas
West shore (N 24° 36.157' W 076° 49.228')
Trip: 43nm, Total: 1507nm, Eng:2103hrs


Departed Nassau Harbor Club Marina at about 0730. Dennis helped me cast off. The current was on my stern as I backed out of the slip. But I forgot about it and didn't back up enough before going forward and trying to turn to starboard and out toward the harbor. As a result I very nearly got pinned against the boats in the slips to my right. I hit forward thrust and saw the bow start to come around. Then I noticed that I was heading back into the slip instead of around to starboard. That's when I saw the problem and just about panicked. I tried the pivot-turn routine but the current was sending me back toward my slip too fast. I gave her full throttle and full starboard rudder. I missed the sterns of the boats in the slips by about 6 ft. Way too close. But I made it.

As I headed out into the harbor I raised all sails. But there was just about zero apparent wind. I ended up motor sailing almost all the way to Norman's Cay. Just the last couple of hours turned out to be a good sail. s/v Son of a Sailor almost caught up with me but not quite. Dennis suggested we anchor on the west side of the island. A place I've never tried. There's no current and less wind there. Much better than inside of the cut where I've always anchored (and some times run aground) before. As it turned out the west side was a very good place to anchor.

Galena's track from Nassau to Norman's Cay. About 43 nm.

Dinner on Son of a Sailor then home for a quiet evening alone.

The next day I went to MacDuff's (which is now called Norman's Cay Beach Club) with Bill and Millie (s/v Against the Wind). Again, $6 beers. What's with this? I wonder what the price will be at Chat n Chill in George Town. Two years ago the price there was $3. Last year it was $3.50. This year??? So a burger and a few beers cost me $40. I can't do this but every couple of days and stay on budget!

We walked around and climbed the hill to the old house up there. This was supposedly Carlos Lehder's place. But it seems way too small for a drug lord's lair.

For those who don't know the story of Norman's Cay and it's part in the drug trade of the late 1970's here's an extract from a previous blog:

Norman's island is famous (infamous?) for having once been the home of Carlos Lehder, co-founder of the Mendellin drug cartel. Lehder lived on the island in the late 70's and used the island's airstrip to run cocaine shipments between Columbia and the States. This brief history is taken from Bahama Pundit:

The facts are that from 1978 to 1982 Lehder operated one of the world's biggest cocaine rings from Norman's Cay in the Exumas. One of Lehder's associates, interviewed in the 1990s on the PBS news magazine Frontline, put it this way:

"He operated on the island from the beginning because he had the blessing of the Bahamian government. They were funneling tons of money...The Bahamian government gave Carlos a promise. We will advise you. You will get a wink from us, a signal, when things are getting too hot and you need to move out of there."

Well, things did eventually get hot - for the Bahamian government as much as for Lehder. And those activities forever tarnished the reputation of Sir Lynden Pindling, severely damaged our national psyche and almost brought down the entire government in disgrace.

Heavy pressure from the US led to the appointment of a Commission of Inquiry in November 1983. And the following year its 500-page report published the unpleasant details of widespread official corruption and described the enormous social problems the drug trade had spawned.

The son of a German father and a Colombian mother, Lehder started out as a small-time car thief and pot dealer. But his notoriety as one of the founders of the Mendellin Cartel, and his eventual megalomania, made him a legendary and feared figure much like Blackbeard - an earlier international rogue who once had free rein in the Bahamas.

At the time of his arrest in 1987 Lehder, then 37, was reported to be worth more than $2 billion. Throughout the early 1980s his airstrip at Norman's Cay was receiving cocaine flights from Colombia on a daily if not hourly basis, transferring the loads to smaller planes for distribution throughout the US.

To begin with he bought as much property on the island as he could and then chased off the remaining residents. Armed guards patrolled day and night and former Member of Parliament Norman Solomon was once threatened at gunpoint on the beach.

Lehder's social activities were also legendary: "Orgies," his one-time associate told Frontline. "Five males, 10 females and everybody runs naked and everybody switch partners and everybody drinks and smokes marijuana, and alcohol, and three days of Sodom and Gomorrah."

And he was also a Nazi, dressing in military fatigues and comparing himself to Hitler. According to Tamara Inscoe-Johnson, who has written a book on Lehder: "He spent untold hours plotting a political career, aiming at the Colombian presidency. As his goals expanded, so did his fascination with Nazism; after all, Hitler’s goal was to take over the world, and it was the same with Lehder."

Before Lehder, Norman's Cay was a popular anchorage for visiting yachts. It was developed in the early 1970s as a small residential community with a clubhouse and marina. But in 1978 a Bahamian company called International Dutch Resources began buying up land there. IDR was set up for Lehder by a regular trust company in Nassau, which conveniently managed his working capital.

According to the New York Times, Lehder was responsible for 80 per cent of the Colombian cocaine reaching the United States, mostly through the Bahamas. And the interest in his current whereabouts is ironic in view of the recent renaming of Nassau international Airport after Sir Lynden Pindling, "the father of the nation".

Lehder's Bahamian empire collapsed in mid-1983, when NBC television broke the news that Bahamian officials were on the payroll of Colombian drug lords. At first the story generated howls of protest (and some lawsuits) from top Bahamian officials, including the prime minister.

But soon afterwards, they began singing a different tune. In 1985, after the Commission report was published, Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Hanna called on Sir Lynden to resign and opposition Free National Movement leader Kendal Isaacs condemned the 'nation for sale' scandal as the worst in modern Bahamian history.

Again, a quiet night on Galena and in bed by 2000hrs.


24-26 Jan 09, Saturday-Monday
Hawksbill Cay, Bahamas
(N 24° 27.971' W 076° 46.196')
Trip: 13nm, Total: 1519nm, Eng 2103hrs.

Up at 0630 to listen to the weather reports. Everyone agrees that the winds will be NE clocking to East and then SE by the end of the week. Wind speeds will be 10-15 with a bit more by Friday. The temperature has been quite cool and we're all looking forward to the winds clocking around to the south. That should bring an end to this cold weather and get us back to T-shirts and shorts. Now, by cold I'm talking low-60's. It's supposed to be in the mid-80's here now. How and I supposed to work on my tan with this kind of weather?

Still, it's warm enough and sunny enough to sail the way I like
.

Me on the early morning sail between Normans and Hawksbill Cay, Bahamas, and working on my tan

I sailed off the hook at Normans without a problem. I love doing that! Just showing off, of course. Most cruisers can't do it; or don't feel a need to try. I like to move from island to island without the use of the engine at all. I usually shorten-up the anchor rode and then raise the mainsail with the main sheet free. Then I'm back at the windlass to break the anchor free and bring it up. Then, if I have time as Galena starts to swing away in the wind, I'll haul up the stays'l. At that point I stroll back to the cockpit and just sail away. Very cool. And quiet. And I usually get some thumbs-up from other sailors. Of course, if things somehow start to go wrong, those same sailors start putting out fenders and cursing me!

I sailed all the way to Hawksbill and into the anchorage without starting the engine. Just enough wind from just the right direction. That doesn't happen often so I was really enjoying it. Once I turned east after passing the rocks just off the west side of Hawksbill Cay I was pinching pretty tightly on a port tack. That was OK since I was approaching the anchorage. I have a habit of dropping the staysail way too soon. And I did it again today. I'm heading into the anchorage at 3-kts or so and that starts to feel fast to me as I get near other boats. I drop the staysail and my speed drops to 1.5 kts. Just barely steerage speed. A few minutes of that and I start to think about putting the staysail back up. I headed up and dropped the hook. There were three other sailboats here but no one was aboard to see my wonderful display of sailing prowess.

Since this is part of the Exuma Land and Sea Park they have installed mooring balls along the beach here. That means if you don't want to pay the fee for a mooring (I think it was $15 last year) they you have to anchor a hundre yards further from the beach than before. Not a real problem.

Galena at anchor outside of the mooring balls and my trusty dink on the beach
Hawksbill Cay, Bahamas

s/v Son of a Sailor arrived about noon from Shoud Cay where they had been the previous night. They were followed shortly by s/v Against the Wind. I invited them all over for drinks. Galena is rather small and getting four other people into her cockpit is a tight fit. I need more seat cushions, too.

Sundowners on Galena with Bettye, Millie, Dennis, Bill
Anchored off Hawksbill Cay, Bahamas

Then we all went below to play some dominos. Bettye and Dennis had never played and Bill and Millie had not played in a long time. Mexican Train is the game of cruisers. In a short time we were all pros. Five people down below is a crowd. Before everyone sat down, they were trying to mill about and tour Galena's 125 square foot interior. Actually kind of funny. But once everyone was seated it was fine. We talked and played and had a nice evening.

Bill, Millie, Bettye, and Dennis playing dominos on Galena
Hawksbill Cay, Bahamas

Again, I was in bed by 2000 hrs. Days in the sun really tack it out of me.
I plan on staying here for a couple of days and doing some snorkeling at the rocks. This is part of the Exuma Park system and there's no taking of anything here; not even shells from the beach. But you can look all you want. I also plan on laying on the beach and reading and working on that tan. I just need some sunny weather.

s/v Son of a Sailor and, behind her, s/v Against the Wind anchored next to Galena at Hawksbill Cay, Bahamas

The weather forecasts on the 26th indicated no change until next Friday which will bring a cold front with clocking and increasing winds. That might be a good day to make a run to George Town. I'll head down to Staniel Cay today or tomorrow (Tuesday?). A day or two there and then to Farmers Cay or Galliot Cut (Thursday?) and then on to George Town (Friday?).

27 Jan 09, Tuesday
Staniel Cay, Bahamas
(Actually NW of Big Major Spot: N 24° 11.359' W 076° 27.497')
Trip: 40.7nm, Total: 1560nm, Eng: 2103 hrs


I decided to come up to Staniel cay yesterday. Mostly for the WiFi that's available here, and partly for the cold beer. And because I can snuggle up close to the northwest end of this island (Big Major) and be protected by Fowl Cay from the coming northwest wind that's expected to be around 25kts as the cold front comes through here on Saturday morning.

The trip up here was terrible by most standards. 3-4 ft waves and 18kt winds. Just about on the nose. You can see from the track below that I had to do that annoying saw-tooth tacking. The kind where one tack takes you backwards instead of forwards. I hate that!

But I again managed to sail off the anchor at Hawksbill Cay and almost all the way to the anchor here. But I dropped sails and started the engine for the last few hundred yards into the anchorage. There were just too many boats around for me to sail in. I'm good; but I'm not stupid.

Several times I thought I could just start the engine and motor sail directly to Staniel. I was passed by several sailboats doing just that. And I thought ill of them for not toughing it out like me. Or for not being as silly as I.
Cay, that is. Deep in the Bahamas' Exuma chain.
Now for a very large update....

Galena pounding to Windward enroute to Staniel Cay

With Galena pounding her bow into the waves all day long, whatever deck leaks I have on the starboard side really opened up and there was considerable water dripping into the pilot berth area. I'll have to dry that side of the cabin out when I settle down here.

The Thunderball Club is open again. This will be the first time that's it's been open when I was here. For the youngsters out there, there was a James Bond movie named Thunderball. Filmed in the late '60's. And much of it was filmed right here at Staniel Cay. Anyway, the main bar/restaurant has been closed for many years. Now it's under new management and I'll be having dinner there tonight. I will probably stay here for Superbowl Sunday and spend it at the Thunderball Club, too.

Then it will be on to Black Point and Farmer's Cay. Friday a week from now is the First Friday of February. As such, there will be the annual First Friday in February Farmer's Cay Festival. I've never been in the area for that, either. But I'm here this year so I'll hang around for it. Then on to Georgetown.

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01/05/2009, Marathon, FL

24 - 29 Dec 08
Boot Key Harbor, Marathon, FL
Total: 1212 nm, Engine: 2076 hrs

I'm on a mooring ("U3") in Boot Key Harbor. Galena will be here for about 3-weeks while I visit with friends and party in Key West.

This morning I awoke to the same wind and weather that I saw when I went to sleep last night. The wind was still out of the east at about 20-kts with quickly passing light showers. I had anchored outside of the harbor because the weather forecast predicted diminishing winds for today.

Nav chart of Marathon

Picking up a mooring when your single-handing a sailboat is sometimes a bit tricky. It's even more so when the mooring field is tightly packed and the wind is trying hard to drive you into neighboring vessels.

Google Earth view of Boot Key Harbor

I prattled about for an hour or so getting Galena and myself ready to go into the harbor. I cleared away the side decks as much as possible. I laid out mooring lines at both bows and on both sides of the stern. The lines each had one end through the haws pipes and secured to a cleat. Each other end was laid over the lifelines and positioned to allow me to easily grab it. I placed boat hooks on the deck at each bow.

About 1000hrs I weighed anchor and heading into the harbor. The channel carried 8-ft all the way in. The bridge tender is very helpful and vocal. He likes to have long conversations with boaters which is very unusual in my experience. I called for an opening (the bridge is 'On Request' 0700-1900). He asked, "Is this your first time entering the harbor?" I guess he could tell by... something. Through the bridge and on into the mooring field. I called the City Marina and asked for a mooring assignment. They gave me "U3" and gave good instructions on how to find it.

I went to the ball and turned into the wind. I was going dead slow and the wind was still blowing 15-20kts. The ball disappeared beneith the starboard bow. I waited until I thought it would be along side and put the engine into neutral, locked the tiller and went forward, picking up the boat hook. I looked over the side in time to see the mooring ball drifing away as Galena's bow was blow to port and back.

Quickly back to the cockpit to give her a goose and a lot of starboard rudder. Again to the bow and the ball was within reach. I grabbed the painter and got my hands on it as Galena's bow again blew to port and astern. But I had the painter in my hand. So I held on and tried to stop Galena's motion. Eventually I was able to get her stopped and to get her starboard line through the mooring painter and back to a cleat.

Whew! She was secured. At that point I could relax. She wasn't secured to the mooring in the manner I would prefer (she was hanging off the starboard bow). But she was secure and that was the objective of the exercise. I cleared the deck of extra pre-positioned lines and gear. Then I secured a large snatch block to the ring band at the tip of the bowsprit. Then I ran a line from the bow Sampson posts to the tip of the bowsprit and through the snatch block. from there through the thimble of the mooring pendant and back along the same route. I left the original line slack and up to the starboard hawspipe as a backup.

Then the usual routine of putting on the sail covers and launching the dinghy. A quick trip to the marina office to pay my fees and get some information about the town. The lady at the office gave me a bunch of forms to fill out and wanted to see my registration for Galena and for my dinghy, too. She had to see my ID and take down my drivers license number. As I was filling out the form she noticed that I had skipped the section where one has to designate where the pump-out fitting is. The fees include twice a week pumpouts and they will do it even if you're not there. I've become a bit tired of explaining my composting head and I figured this might be a sticking point with these guys. So I just told her I didn't need any pumpout service. She stood there looking at me... waiting for more info. I said I had a composting head. She smiled and said, "Wonderful! We love those! Just write 'composting' right there." Cool.

I wanted to rent the mooring for about 3-weeks. The lady explained that a month is cheaper than three weeks ($280 vs $300). So I got the mooring for a month.

On the way back to Galena I noticed that I was moored near s/v Last Dance. Mike dinghied over and invited me over for drinks later in the day. There I met a few other cruisers. Notably Jay and Barb of s/v Walkabout. As we were sitting around chatting, Jay suddenly looked at me and asked, "Which boat did you say you were on?" "That little green one back there," I answered. Jay jumped up and, coming over to me to shake my hand (again) said, "You're my fucking hero!" To his Barb he says, This is the guy on that green boat that we watched pick up the mooring alone."

It seems he had seen me coming into the mooring field. He saw I was alone and about to try to moore the boat. So, having seen several others make a circus of this event in the past, because of the high winds, he called Barb on deck. But, I picked up the mooring without a glitch (from his vantage point) and was very impressed. It's nice to know that sometimes when things go right, someone is actually watching. Usually it's those times when everything goes horribly wrong that people are watching and taking pictures.

Jay and Barb on s/v Walkabout

jay was so impressed with me that he and Barb invited me over to Walkabout for Christmas dinner. Which, by the was was fantastic! There I met Eric and Sandy, a couple of friends of Jay's. We had a great dinner and then played dominoes for a while before calling it a night.

Brian, Sandy, Jay and Barb on s/v Walkabout

On the 26th I finally went to town and walked around a bit. Man is this place in the middle of nowhere! To the north about a mile is a Publix and a Home Depot. To the south about a mile is a West Marine. That's about it.

The marina has just finished building a new bath house but it's not open yet. Some problem with the city sewer permits or something. So 200 boats share two showers and 3 clothes washers. big lines all day long.

I discovered Dockside bar. Just a dinghy-ride away; well a rather long dinghy ride. Nice bar, beers are $1.50 during happy hour and $2 otherwise. Food is not cheap and not really that good. But it's the local bar.

Dockside Bar and Restaurant

29 Dec 08 - 04 Jan 09
Key West, FL


Capt Ron (Remeber Capt Ron? He was my buddy who was going to sail the Bahamas with me but wimped-out and was now wintering in Beaufort, NC). Anyway, he and I had planned to go to Key West for New Years Eve. He had some other friends who would be there and he had booked quarters for everyone at the Navy station on Key West.

He was driving down from North Carolina and would pick me up in Marathon. New Years Eve in Key West was the reason I sailed to Marathon from Miami. I needed an inexpensive place to leave Galena for a few weeks and Miami was just not it. Most places had only slips and they were on the order of $90 per day. Way out of my comfort zone.

Ron made a little detour to finally meet, in person, his internet babe. From what Ron says he had a very, very, good night in Tennessee. In fact, I'm happy to announce that Lydia is all he's talked about all day, every day since we've been here in Key West. Way to go, Ron!


Ron picked me up about 1300 on the 29th and in a couple hours we were at the Key West airport bar waiting for his old buddy, Rich. Rich continually cracked me up from the time I first said, "Hello" to him in the airport until we dropped him off a week and a half later. Rich is a pilot on the St Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes. He holds an Unlimited Master's ticket: Any boat, any size, any ocean. The highest license the Coast Guard issues.

Once Rich arrived and found us, we had a couple more drinks ("T", the bartender was a trip) and then over to Trumbo Point Naval Station where we had a room in the BOQ. Notice I said 'A' room Ron said they were all booked up and although we had a nice, 3-bedroom townhouse for the 3rd through the 8th, we had to share a single room from the 29th to the 3rd.

After the first night of trying to sleep with 3 old guys snoring we checked at the front desk and found that they did, indeed, have another room available. So then it was Rich in his own room and Ron and me in the other.
The first day out we followed a friend's advise and had breakfast at the Turtle Craal. The food was ok, but nothing to write home about. And the prices were a bit high.

Breakfast at Turtle Craal

Oh, as we were leaving the Naval Station, Ron and Rich took pictures of each other. Unfortunately the Navy has this thing about taking pictures of the entrance gates at their Stations.

"Delete that photo, mister"

The next day we stopped in at Harpoon Harry's (just across the street from the Turtle Craal) and had an absoultly wonderful breakfast at a fraction of the cost.

We also walked around Mallory Square and found some interesting art that Ron just couldn't keep his hands off of.

Ron is just an art lover

The Navy station is about a mile from Duval Street, where all the action is. Well, at least where all the tourists go. We had a healthy walk each way each night. Sometimes the walk back seemed quite a bit longer that the walk down.

There are a lot of beautiful people in this town. It seems that no matter where I look, I find something that catches my eye.

Side street off of Duval

We found a great little Bar-B-Que place named Eat 'n Grinn and, of course, Barb's smile caused us to come back a few times during our visit here.

Barb of the Eat 'N Grinn

The first afternoon Ron provided a guided tour. Showed us a few of the classic bars that he had frequented when he was last here about a decade ago. We hit Capt Tony's, Sloppy Joes, the Hog's Breath, et al. We staggered back to the room about midnight.

Outside the Hogs Breath Saloon


And inside the Hogs Breath


Capt Tony's

On the morning of the 30th we had a hard time getting going. I think we were still a bit drunk rather than just hung over. But we headed back to town for lunch and a drink. We found Finnigan's Wake, a quiet little Irish pub.

Finnigan's Wake for a pint of Guinness

We found an artsy souvenir shop named the Art Slut.

The sign at the Art Slut

And, inside, you find...

And once again we staggered back to our quarters in the wee hours of the morning.

On the 31st we were on Duval street with everyone else for the big conch-drop. There were several parties with big crowds at each. We were at the Conch Drop. Down at the other end of Duval Street was the pink slipper drop where the gay folks were. up the street was the wench-drop. All in all a very loud and fun night.

Duval Street on New Year's Eve

And for a video clip of the actual last ten-seconds of 2008 watching the conch drop, click here for a link to YouTube.

I was standing across the street from Capt Tony's for the big conch drop at Sloppy Joes. Here's a video clip of the event. The streets were closed off and one couldn't move without pushing and shoving. But for all the people, there were no confrontations that I witnessed. A rowdy but ruley crowd.

I met Ron's friend Rick and his wife, Anna. And Rick's brother Robert and his wife. And also Tom and his wife, Dale. Dale was a real trip and more fun than most. WE stood around after midnight and Ron headed back

Ron 'put out the old campfire' about 0230-hrs. I stayed out till about 0430-hrs. I'm not sure how I found my way back.

Duval Street after 4 AM

Between the 31st and the 1st I think I either text-messaged or called or was called by just about everyone I know. Even my old friend, Laura, whom I have not seen in years, texted me with best wishes. I think they were in or headed to St Johns, BVI, where her father-in-law has a place.

Andrea and Laura in a picture taken some years ago

(I'm now carrying my camera around with me and trying to remember to take pictures of people I meet. I'd like to be able to show you who I'm talking about rather than trying to explain it.)

The next day we were at it again and, once again, stayed out till about 0400-hrs. We walked all the way to the other side of the island and found Louie's Backyard and that thing that marks the 'southernmost point' in the united states. Everyone takes a picture here.

The much photographed Southernmost point in the USA

on 02 Jan 09 we were out exploring some of the more off-Duval pubs. We had just left the Green Parrot when Rich pointed out that the bar we were walking by was almost empty and quite quiet. The bar was the Meteor and as I looked inside there sat Capt Bill and Norm. Bill and Norm run the bars at the pool and at Red Eyes back at Mears Point Marina. Bill has invited me down every year for the past 4-years. And, now that I was actually in Key West, I had forgotten to bring his number. Ron had just suggested that I call Red Eyes and try to get Bill's number. And then there they were. Very Cool.

Norm, Me, Bill, Rich, and Ron at the Meteor

So we hung there with them for a few more drinks and, yeah, back to the Naval Station about 0300. On the way back to the base we stumbled upon the start of US-1: mile-zero. Just a sign on the side of the road but I thought it had significance and that it was certainly pixle-worthy.

Mile-Zero, US-1

We found that there were a few places that we liked so much we went back several times while we were there. The Blue Heaven was one of those places.

At the Blue Heaven

Although, when we went back there for breakfast on Saturday, we found a 90-minute wait. We didn't mind too much since the Bloody Mary's were very good.

And the next day, at the Blue Heaven waiting for breakfast

Another place we revisited was El Mason de Pepe. A Cuban restaurant with absolutely wonderful food.

At El Mason De Pepe

And the second time there we again bumped into Dan and Joan, who we had met at Louie's Backyard the previous day.

With Dan and Joan at El Mason De Pepe

Both Dan and Joan are very tall. When we first met them, Dan stood up to say goodbye... and he kept going up and up. This is one treetop daddy.

My very good and old friend, Griz, called me and set up a get together. He and his wife, Sharon, were some of the first civilian friends I had made when I got of the service. He was working at the first company I worked with. Then, as I moved from job to job around the Northern Virginia area I repeated bumped into Griz. He had recently moved out here to Sugarloaf Key and so I just had to have dinner with him and Sharon. So I did and it was so very nice to catch up.

Me and Griz cruising Key West

Ron was not feeling well so I had Griz drop me off downtown and found the bar at which we were going to meet Bill and Norm. The place is called "Cowboy Bill's." According to Capt Bill it's the only country-western bar in Key West. A little hard to find (just an alley-way entrance at 610 Duval St.) but once inside it's a very large and fun bar. Live and excellent bands, lots of happy people, and even a mechanical bull! And the bartenders have talent, too.

Click here for a video of the barmaid doing that "Cocktails" bottle-tossing thing.

Once again, I'm crawling home at about 0430hrs.

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12/24/2008

16 - 21 Dec 08
Miami Beach, FL
Anchored north of Belle Island
Trip: 78nm, Total: 1103nm, Engine: 2070hrs


Seabbatical 1 and Galena departed Lake Worth, FL, at about 1600hrs on 15 Dec.

The forecast was for east winds, 10-15kts, seas 2-4 ft. We were heading south so this sounded like a good window to make the move. Besides, we were all ready to go. I had hit the West Marine and the Publix so what else was there?

Galena was rafted up to Seabbatical, hanging off of her hook. The winds were very light at the time we left (east at 5 kts). Michelle and Clark dropped my lines and I drifted away.

Galena and Seabbatical 1 in Lake Worth, FL

I motored south down the ICW and around Peanut Island. As I lined up with the inlet Galena picked up the swell. She started that long, loping stride that says, "Ocean!"

The tide was in full ebb and the wind was out of the east. You sailors out there know what that means! I was soon pounding into 4-6 ft waves as I forced my way out between the jetties. Galena was launching fully 1/3 of her length into the air as she drove eastward toward the open sea. I was hanging on to the tiller with one hand and the boom gallows with the other. I could see some small fishing boats a little way to the south of the jetty and they were riding fairly quietly. So this was just the confusion of the outbound tide and the inbound wind/waves. Looking astern I could see Seabbatical 1 having the same trouble getting out of the inlet.

While glancing back at Seabbatical, I suddenly realized that that shape in the background was actually an outbound ship! I had drifted to the left side of the inlet so I turned sharply to starboard to get out of the way. Seabbatical 1 did the same. Now I was crabbing across these waves. This caused Galena to roll so badly that I had to actually sit down. I can usually stand at the helm in just about any seas but this was too much. I had just made it to the starboard side of the channel when the ship went streaming past me close aboard.

Finally I was able to turn south, out of the channel and out of the current. Now the waves were almost on Galena's port beam. I scampered to the mast and raised the main to a double reef plus the staysail. The wind, forecast to be out of east was actually out of the southeast. So my course to the south had me pounding into 4-ft seas.

With sails up Galena's motion steadied quite a bit. By the time I was a couple of miles from the Lake Worth inlet the seas were stable; less confused. The waves were actually almost from the east, but the wind was definitely from the south east. I shook out a reef and cut the engine. Then I raised the yankee jib. Then I shook out the final reef. Galena settled into a fast 6.5 kt run down the coast. The seas were not too bad at about 4-ft. Mostly on the beam, they caused Galena to just rise and fall; the sails keeping her steadily heeled over to about 20 degrees. Harvey, the Aries wind vane, took over the helm and I settled in for the long night.

Since we were only about a mile or so off shore (had to stay inside the Gulf Stream, ya know) the cell phone worked. I chatted a bit with family and friends and even text messaged a bit. With my Verizon Air Card I checked the weather updates and found nothing new.

Throughout the night I kept in touch with Seabbatical 1. They have a Bavaria 38, I think, and it's a lot faster than Galena. They were soon a few miles ahead of me. But throughout the night I could usually see their stern light on the horizon. The initial ride out and the wave action once we got on our southbound course was a bit much for Clark. He is apparently prone to seasickness and these seas were just about perfect for brining that out. When he was on the helm of Seabbatical I would poke at him a bit by telling him I was down below making a sandwich and brewing coffee, or heating up some soup. Next time I called it would be Michelle at the helm and on the radio.

The view forward at night

Most of the ride south was uneventful. There were a couple of moments when situations came up that, well, woke me up a bit. At one point I noticed that I was catching up with Seabbatical 1. I switched on the radar to check the range and noticed a very large blip off the starboard beam. A quick look with the binoculars and, sure enough, there was a tug pushing a barge coming out of Port Everglades. They were heading right for Seabbatical. I called and asked Michelle, "By the way, you see that barge coming at you from the shore, right?" She hadn't. But then the tug turned south before it got to her track and accellerated away. By the time it crossed Seabbatical's bow it was a couple miles ahead of her.

As we approached Miami's Government Cut, ships started to appear all across the horizon. They approached from astern, abeam and ahead. Add to that the several that were anchored out and the few fishing boats roaming around and you have a lot of lights to keep track of.

We arrived at the inlet an hour or so before dawn. Seabbatical was still not keen on entering the busy harbor in darkness and I didn't want to leave them out there alone. So we circled around till there was a bit of light. I called Clark and said, "As soon as you're ready, say the word and we'll head in." He said, "I'm ready now!" He was still feeling very sick and just wanted this voyage to end. So we headed over to the channel and into the inlet. By the time we were inside the jetty the sun was rising.

Seabbatical 1 following me into Government Cut, Miami, FL

I motored over to the north side of Belle Island off Miami Beach. As I motored through the anchorage I saw a couple of old friends. Dave and Jan on s/v Siggy's Dancer and Bob and Gail on s/v Star. Both of whom I knew from last year's trip.

My route into Miami

I put Galena to bed and then did the same for myself. Once I had had some sleep, I went to town with Clark and Mitch. After a little walking around we headed back to the boats. We were all still pretty tired from the overnight run. I tried to watch a movie but I kept falling asleep.

The problem with going to bed at 7pm is that you're up at 3am.

On the 17th Star stopped by to say, 'Hi' and 'Bye.' They were headed out. So was Siggy's Dancer. In fact most of the seven boats in the anchorage left on the 17th. Seabbatical repositioned themselves a little closer to the bridge. Then we went to town and found what came to be know as 'The Cheap Beer Place.' Zekes, 625 Lincoln st. $4 beers, a choice of over 150 different beers. And right on the main 'mall' of Lincoln steet. People watching capital of Miami Beach. We sat there for a bit and a guy sat down at an adjacent table. I looked at him and thought he looked familiar. He smiled and said, "Hi, Bill." It was Toby of s/v Cariba! I asked where Donna was, "Shopping." I introduced him and then them to Clark and Mitch. We all sat around drinking beer and making comments about the people walking by. Great fun.

I had heard of a good tattoo parlor down the road and wanted to check it out. I had a picture of a mermaid hanging in Galena. I really liked the pose. I had been thinking about getting her put on my arm as a second tattoo. She needed a little bit of a redraw since the picture I had was wide, not tall. So I printed out the picture and went looking for an artist. I ended up at Tattoo's by Lou, one of, if not the, oldest tattoo joints in Miami Beach. I talked with Andre and showed him what I had and what I wanted. We had a good chat and I made an appointment for the next day.

The picture I have on my bulkhead is by Robert Kline, it's named 'Penny.' (No, not named after you, nelpie.. but now that I think about it...)

Robert Kline's 'Penny'

And this is what Andre did with it to make it fit on my arm and to make it his own:

My new tattoo

It think it nicely complements my other tattoo that I got back in December of 2006.

My other tattoo

Donna and Toby of s/v Cariba happened by while I was getting my tattoo and stopped in to chat. The next day Donna got a new tattoo, too. Her's is of a purple Lotus flower and an Ohm symbol. She was very bold and has the tattoo put on her lower arm, inside, just below the elbow. Very sexy.

On the 20th I went over to s/v Last Dance, a big cat, for happy hour. Mike and Susan were very happy to show us their boat. It was HUGE! I met a few other cruisers in the anchorage, including Micheal and Mariaeleese (s/v Panthalassa); a very interesting couple.

Mike and The gang having sundowners aboard Last Dance

Micheal and Mariaeleece and, of course, Michelle

21 Dec 08
Key Biscayne, FL
Trip: 10nm, Total: 1113 nm, Engine: 2072 hrs


About noon on the 21st I departed Miami Beach and headed over toward Key Biscayne to stage for the two-leg run to Marathon. Sad goodbyes all around and I was off. I anchored alone just in the lee of the island, at the southwest corner. I was considering going down the ICW to Marathon. The weather forecast called for 20kt winds on the night of the 22nd. They were to clock around to the east, from the north. I was planning on stopping for the night at Rodriguez Key and if the winds went east I would be out there without much protection. I was really worried about that. But then I figured, what the hell.

My route to the staging area at Key Biscayne

At dawn on the 22nd I headed out the cut and into Hawk Channel. The wind built until it was a steady 15kts from north. My course put the wind just to the starboard of dead astern. Galena rode level and calmly in 2-ft waves on the stern. I had the main up and the staysail. The staysail was blanked by the main most of the day. But Galena still managed a steady 6+ kts all day long.

Departing Miami Beach

22 Dec 08
Rodriguez Key, FL (N 25° 02.53' W 080° 27.69')
Trip: 47nm, Total: 1160 nm, Engine: 2074 hrs


I arrived at Rodriguez Key at 1500hrs and anchored in the lee (southwest corner). The wind was still up to 15 but the water was just a light chop. The island being upwind of me made the waves nicely confused so Galena just sat there, fairly quietly.

But by 0300 the wind was up to a steady 20kts and had, as predicted, clocked to the east. Galena started bouncing around pretty good. Enough to wake me up. And by 0400 she was galloping in 2ft waves and 25kts of wind as the wind generator whined and put out a steady 20 amps! So I got up and turned on some lights and played on the computer. Nothing like a lot of wind to make a lot of electricity.

23 Dec 08
Marathon, FL
Trip: 47nm, Total: 1211 nm, Engine: 2075 hrs


I went back to sleep for a bit. When the alarm went off at 0630hrs I was ready to get up. I did the usual morning stuff including brewing a pot of coffee. I hauled up the anchor short and raised a double-reefed main. Then finished weighing anchor.

Galena swung fast to leeward once the anchor broke free. So quickly was she underway that I had to let the anchor dangle until I had her settled in on her course. Then I went forward and catted the anchor down. Galena was doing 6+ kts and riding the 5-ft waves well. Still, I was out there on the bowsprit securing the anchor with nothing holding me to the ship but my right hand. Stupid of me. But I kept telling myself that the harness is not a 'safety harness' it's a 'storm harness.' You'll never learn to stay on the boat is you always tether yourself to her. OK. So that's not a smart thing. And I know all the old saws about, "There are old sailors and there are bold sailors; but there are not old bold sailors." But Standing out there on the bowsprit, pulling the anchor home, while Galena did almost 7-kts in rough seas was exhilarating to say the least.

Hawk channel in the morning

I love the sounds Galena makes as she rushes through the water. Each speed has it's own unique sounds. At about 4 kts she starts to make a frothing bow wave that makes that first whooshing sound. Then at 6 kts the water sluicing past the rudder sounds off. The sound is a very happy sound. At 7 kts she seems to rise up out of the water just a bit and all down her sides the water noisily rushes as she strains and twists. As if she is saying, "That's enough!"

All day on the 23rd she was running before the wind. All day long she was making over 6 kts, Sometimes sh e was surfing down waves at over 8 kts (SOG). I'd get pushed out of the way by the tiller as Harvey tried to keep her bows from broaching around. The rudder, when hard over like that, is being pulled through the water almost sideways; water bubbling and frothing about at the stern. Then her bow would settle back on course; Harvey would trim the rudder amidships. Everything would quiet down for a moment.

Here's a short video clip of what I just described. I'm standing at the mast looking aft, then around. Oh, and the wind generator is actually spinning like mad. It's just the frame rate of the camera that makes it look like it's stopping and slowing. If you look closely you can see the tiller pull hard to port as Galena tries to broach down a wave.

This clip, while only about a minute long, is 15MB in size so it may take a while to download.














Oh, and you can double-click on the image to make it full screen.

For eight hours Galena strode toward Marathon, FL. I sat there in the cockpit reading a book (Alexander Kent, sort of like Patrick O'Brian, but very good in his own right). When Galena would be pushed by the big six-footers everything would run to the starboard, leeward, side of the cockpit. My coffee cup would topple over; the map would fall into the footwell. Binoculars would rush to the leeward gunnell. In just a moment everything would be out of reach and covered with coffee.

This is what my cockpit looks like.

This is what my cockpit looks like while cruising.
Lots of junk laying around the deck.

The wind was blowing at 20 kts with gusts to 30 kts out of the east. My course was southwest. The wind was just to the port of directly astern. All day I kept measuring the apparent wind. It always measured at about 15 kts apparent, 20 kts true.
I didn't appreciate how hard the wind was blowing until, just south of Boot Key Harbor entrance I turned to windward to drop the mainsail. Suddenly there was wind every where and it was blowing very, very hard!

I called the marina and asked about a mooring. They said they had plenty but couldn't assign me one until I was right there in the mooring field. So I told them I'd lie to anchor until morning. There were squalls in the offing and the wind was picking up even more. Picking up a mooring pendant is hard under the best of condition. But when one is single-handing and motoring into a 20 kt wind, things get very dicey. I can't afford to spin around and bump into a million dollar yacht.

Oh, "Where in the world is Marathon?" you might be asking. It's in the Florida Keys part way down toward Key West.

Marathon, in relation to Miami and Key west.
The Blue line is the route toward Nassau.

Tomorrow I'll go inside the harbor and grab a mooring.

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12/16/2008

30 Nov 08, Sunday
Charleston, SC

I found an error in a "how-to" book on celestial navigation. That might explain why, sometimes, I'm off by 50 miles or so. Next time I'm in sight of a clear horizon I'll see if my new understanding of the procedures will let me develop fixes that are a little closer to reality.


By 1700 the wind was slowly diminishing. but I still had rain and more wind that was comfortable when sitting at anchor. As such I was stuck on board Galena all day. Which is actually OK since each day I sit aboard I 'accrue' spending money.

Sad day today: I seem to have lost my MP3 player. It's a nice 30GB unit that I've had for quite a while. I had about 5000 cuts of my favorite music on it and now I can't find it. The last time I saw it was when I took it with me to do laundry. I fear I might have left it there, or dropped it out of my jacket pocket at the local dock bar. This really bums me out. I listen to that thing all the time. I've torn the boat apart and I simply can't find it. If I have to replace it I'll get a couple of cheap, small capacity players.

01 Dec 08, Monday

The cold front passed through and the barometer is at 1014 mb and up on the tick. That's up from a low of 1003mb yesterday. Winds are still 15-20 gusting to 30 out of the west. That's good for the batteries. The wind generator is kicking butt. The batteries are at only -38 Ah (capacity is 320 Ah). The temperature is noticeably down. At 0930 the temp was 48°. That's down from 60° yesterday.

I don't have a mast-mounted anemometer. But my wind generator gives me a good feel for the wind speed. Right now it's holding at a steady 7 amps output. That equals about 10-15 kts of wind. The wind has veered north of west and that's a good sign for departure tomorrow.

04 Dec 08
Fernandina Beach, FL
Trip: 160nm, Total: 752nm, Eng: 2012 hrs


I departed Charleston, SC, on 02 Dec a little before dawn. My plan was not well synched with the tidal currents in the harbor. Sunrise wasn't until about 0630, so I was going to depart about 30 minutes ahead of that and make it out to sea just after light.

But low tide was 0415 and the current was lagging by 1:40. I thought I could make it out of the harbor during slack tide at the latest. But I was a bit late on that.

When I awoke at 0500 two of the boats that were anchored around me had already left. They were smarter than I. I hurried through the departure procedures of: Dink on deck, sail covers off, ensure equipment secure, charts ready, engine on, lights on, anchor up.

As I left Charleston anchorage there was a drizzle of rain and absolutely no wind. I was under way by 0550hrs.

As I approached the main inlet channel a container ship crossed in front of me. As I was making my way out of the main channel and between the jetties toward open sea, another container ship passed me outbound. Charleston is a very busy port. The outbound ship was accelerating and make a considerable wake as she went by about 150 yds off my port side.

As I said, I was a little behind on the tides. As I was heading out to sea I could make only 5.1 kts compared to my usual 5.7kts. That's not bad. I've motored into currents where Galena could only make 3.5 kts! So I was only off by about 30 or 40 minutes on the tidal current thing. Still, I should have left port an hour earlier.

By 0745hrs I had all sails up and the engine secured and I was making a comfy 5.0 kts on my rhomb line course toward St Mary's inlet.

At 0815 the air temperature was a balmy 47° and winds were west at 9kts (apparent) while Galena held her course of 220°.

The temperature slowly came up to 55° while the winds stayed westerly and built to about 15-20kts with gusts to 30kts. The promised wind shift to the northwest never came.

Around noon Galena was galloping along into 3ft seas and heeled over about 25°. That made for a generally uncomfortable ride. Well, actually just tiresome, really.

The a 'sustained gust' came along that really got my attention. The gust started normally: increasing wind, Galena heads up a bit, Harvey (the Aries wind vane) catches the change and swings the helm to windward, Galena obeys and falls off a bit. heeling over a bit more. But this time the wind continued to build. Galena continued to heel... and heeled yet more. I held on and looked around suddenly a bit concerned. Within about 15 seconds the port rail was under water. Then it was a full foot under water. Green water was rushing down the side decks and into the cockpit. And Galena still continued to heel as the wind gust increased to an easy 45 kts! I lunged over the tiller (which was by now full to windward and pulled the mainsheet free on it's jam cleat. As the sheet ran out I pushed my full weight against the tiller, trying to overpower Harvey and push the helm down to allow Galena to head up. After another 5 or 10 seconds, she did just that. In another 5 seconds Galena slowed and stalled with her bows to windward; mainsail flagging in the diminishing wind; water swirling in the cockpit and filling the side deck; and me draped over the tiller still wondering, "What the hell was that?" I swear I've never seen Galena heeled over that far. I've seen her dip over to about 45° before. But this was way, way past that. Scared the hell out of me.

OK. I can take a hint. I put a reef in the main and left both head sails up. That reduced her angle of heel to about 15° and both Galena and I were a lot happier. He speed went from 6.7 kts down to 6.3 kts. Considering my hull-speed is 7.2, that's still very respectable. Galena was still galloping along, punching into 4' waves every 5-seconds or so. But the ride was a lot more comfortable. I believe I heard her sigh a 'thanks' (or was that more of a 'it's about time!').

I went below and everything that wasn't nailed down was over on the port side of the cabin. Things were even up on the shelf on the port side that I know were over on the shelf on the starboard side a few minutes ago. That's straight across the cabin! I spent some time cleaning up below before I went back on deck.

About 1630hrs I noted a freighter heading directly for me off my port quarter. I think she was heading for Savannah, GA. I was between her and her port. So I turned sharply to port to cut across her bow and get out of her way. I had moved about a half mile east and was back on course when the ship turned to starboard and crossed my stern. She was about 1/4 mile away when she passed me. But on the ocean, that's very, very close.

At 1700 I went below to use the head. I found water everywhere. I had left the sea cock for the sink open. The pounding into the waves had been forcing water up the sink drain and all the way up to the overhead. everything was soaked with sea water. Another mess to clean up. I closed the sea cock and mopped up the water. With the constant heel to port the water was all piled up against the cabinets. At least it was clean water.

By 1800 the wind was definitely north of west and steady at 20kts. Galena was holding at just under 7kts.

I noticed that my stern light was burned out. Didn't I replace that just before I left on this trip? The stern light is mounted on the wind generator pole which in turn is mounted on the aft end of the boomkin which puts it about 3' off Galena's stern. Standing out there with a screwdriver removing the lens and replacing a bulb is easy in a marina. Not so much when Galena is galloping along at hull speed through choppy seas and fading light. I should really replace the stern light with LED's as I have the sidelights.

The crescent moon is still close to Venus and Jupiter... pretty. A few hours later they set and I'm left with only Galena's stern light. I can see the phosphorescence of her wake fading into the distance behind me. At least there's some indication of progress.

Occasionally I'm surprised by the ghostly sight of a sea gull swooping through the lighted area astern.

Sometime after midnight I was watching the loom of Savannah drift astern; 30 miles from shore and I can still see civilization.

I spent a lot of time below after midnight. I was tiring of the chill of the wind and the rough motion. The wind was biting through all that I had on, which was considerable. I was wearing: a T-shirt, a sweat shirt, a hooded sweat jacket, foul-weather jacket, sweat pants, jeans, bibbed foulie pants, gloves, wool watch cap, the hood from the sweat jacket, and the hood from the foulies. All of that and I'm still cold. So I stay below between lookouts. I set the egg timer for 15 minutes. It rings and I go up the ladder and take a quick look around. Then I do a very slow scan of the horizon with the binoculars. That takes a good five minutes. Then I go below and set the timer again. Sometimes I doze standing at the ladder. Sometimes I sit down and close my eyes. Always weary of falling asleep and missing my timer's alarm. So I don't want to get too comfortable.

I'm just resting my eyes...

The intrepid sailor ready to climb up for a look around

By 0500 the wind was down to 5kts or less and had clocked around to the stern. So I fired up the engine and motorsailed the rest of the way in.

I arrived at the St Mary's inlet at about 0930hrs 3 Dec. I had to go around a couple of tugs that were dragging a 3/4-mile section of dredge pipe into the harbor.

The last time I was at Fernandina Beach the anchorage was packed with cruisers. Today there were... none!

So I anchored in 30-ft of water and went to sleep.

About 1800 on 3 Dec I awoke, got cleaned up, ate dinner, and went to town. I spent a few hours in the Palace Saloon. They bill this place as the oldest bar in Florida. Not to be confused with the Tradewinds Bar in St Augustine which is billed as the "oldest bar in the oldest city" in Florida.

The Palace

I was invited to come back on Friday to attend a ladies 51st birthday. But at the time I was not planning on staying that long.

I spent all day on the 4th on Galena just relaxing. I have to change the oil and locate that vibration I keep feeling when the engine is running. I fear it may be the prop shaft or engine mounts. When I fear a big problem, I tend not to look for it. I procrastinate the investigation.

It was cold in the morning. But my little propane heater wouldn't light. The thing would come one, but when I let go of the "Light-the-pilot" position the pilot light would go out. I took it apart and found there was a wire that had come off a spade connector. Who know there was anything electronic in something like this?

My little camp heater

I actually sat in the sun in the cockpit in just a T-shirt. This is the first time I've been warm since that day in the Alligator river back in Virginia.

I went online and updated the EPIRB registration info. It was too early to go to bed and too late to head in to town. Oh, I know: popcorn and a movie.

05 Dec 08
Still at Fernandina Beach, FL

Happiness and Joy! I found my lost MP3 player! It was hiding in a pile of folded-up clean clothing in a drawer. I had apparently placed it in the stack when I left the laundry for the trip back to Galena. And it had stayed there when I transferred the stack of clothes to the drawer.

I changed the oil (but not the filter). The mounts are OK and the shaft and coupler look fine. It occurs to me that Harvey (the wind vane) may be the cause of the vibration. I think back and realize that, yes, I had his servo-rudder down in the prop-wash whenever I noticed the vibration. That would do it. I'll leave him up and see if the vibration disappears. [Later Note: Yep, that was it.]

A week ago I think I mentioned my sore arm. Sometime about a month ago I had pulled a tendon or something just below the elbow of my right arm. The result was that I couldn't really grip anything with my right hand. No grip to speak of at all. Especially with my arm fully extended. Lots of pain at the tendons just below my elbow.

So I'd been favoring it; trying to let it rest. It was not getting better. So the other day I thought, "The hell with it." I've been working the hell out of it for the last couple of days and as a result it is a lot better. So I've been flexing and extending and lifting and pulling with the right arm and, yeah, it's getting a lot better. Still a lot of pain when I grip something with my arm extended, but it's better than it's been in a month.

06 Dec 08
St Augustine, FL
Trip 56nm, Total 808nm, Engine 2024 hrs

I was up at 0530 and was ready to leave Fernandina Beach by 0600. I had a breakfast of oatmeal and coffee and was off as soon as I could see the unlit buoys marking the channel.

there was a nice northerly breeze when I left so I raised the staysail after I got the anchor up. By then it was 0705: just light enough.

I had some trouble finding the channel as I motored south. For the first hour or so I was all over the place looking for deep water. I get a little concerned when the depth goes less than 8'.

View from the foredeck

I noted a lot of white smoke/steam coming from Galena's exhaust. It might be the cool air, or it might be something more serious. It might be a blockage in the cooling system. See? I always find something to worry about. I'll check the strainer and head exchanger when I get to St Augustine.

If I ran the engine over the cruise RMP of 2800 I saw a lot of steam. If I kept it down, not so much. The air temp was 60° but the humidity was high. So it may be just normal condensation of the exhaust.

By noon it looked like I might actually make it all the way to St Augustine. The currents had been favorable most of the way and I was making over 6kts all day. Last year I had to stop in the St Johns river for the night. This year I think I'll make it all the way.

There was a bit of rain at noon with a bit of wind. That put a bit of a damper on my mood.

Anyway, I arrived at the St Augustine anchorage at 1700hrs; a full 30 minutes before sunset The area to the north and west of the bridge was full of boats. so I anchored on the north east shore.

I went to town and had a beer at the Trade Winds bar. I returned home at 2100hrs to be aboard at the change of the tidal current. The current here is severe and I wanted to be sure my hook didn't trip. The first night at anchor is always a bit of a hassle.

07 Dec 08

I was up at 0800 and saw that many of the boats on the western shore were gone already. So I hauled anchor and moved Galena over to that shore. It's closer to the dinghy dock. I ended up a little too close to s/v Flamingo (a boat I've seen on this trip in years past, but have never talked to). But the next day they were gone.

Today was task day:

Grease the windlass. When I drop the anchor I use the clutch on the windlass to control the chain as it runs out. Lately it's been grabbing when I tighten the clutch. No gentle slowing down of the chain. Just a sudden stop. That's hard on everything. So I need to take the gypsy off and grease it up.

Clean inspect and grease the winches. They have been sounding and acting like there's a broken spring in them for the past month. I usually service them once a year. But missed this year's inspection. So I'll do it while I have the grease out for the windlass.

Clean the raw water strainer and engine heat exchanger. I'm concerned about that steam I've been seeing coming from the exhaust.

I accomplished all the above. There was nothing wrong with the winches. But I found some clogging of the strainer. So that should make everything better.

Servicing the winches

I walked around town until 1600 and then came home for dinner.

Lights in the town square

08 Dec 08
s/v Jennie Marie anchored nearby. I had met him (John) on my first trip into George Town, Exuma. He and I went to look for the Chat 'n Chill just after we dropped the anchor there. Much to the disapproval of Jane, as I recall.

09 Dec 08
Went to the post office and mailed a couple of letters. I transferred fuel from port to starboard tanks. I still have about 60-gallons of fuel on-board. I'm averaging 0.4 gal/hr.

On the way in to the dock the dinghy motor sputtered a bit. It sounded like there might be water in the carb again. And I didn't have any tools with me to take it about and drain it out. There's a hardware store right next to the post office. There I bought a cheap imitation Leatherman tool for $5. When I got back to the dinghy I drained the carb float bowl and hand no problem heading back to Galena.

Later in the evening, after dark, I decided I should make a water run. I had just used the last of the water in the forward tank. That means I had about 2-weeks of water left. I'm only 5-minutes from the dinghy dock here. I could fill the empty tank with two runs to the dock (I have 3ea 5-gal water jugs available for transporting water). So off I went. I went to the dock, filled my jugs, started back and the engine died. The current was running north, pushing me toward the construction barges that were around the Bridge of Lyons (which is being rebuilt). With all the construction lights in my eyes all I could see was this dark wall of the side of the barge. I was drifting toward it quite fast. Now all cruisers know that barges are very bad things to get close to. I felt a bit of panic as I saw myself being swept under the barge. That was silly of course. I'm in a dinghy. The current is only about 1.5 kts. And the barge is moored. Still I hit the side of the barge hard. I grabbed a tire/fender and tied the dink's painter to it.

I pulled out my trusty tool and drained the carb bowl again. No good. It will not start. There are construction guys working on the barge who don't even notice my down there. I suddenly had this vision of the tug starting up and taking the barge away with me tide to it. That would not be good.

Then I noticed a sucking sound when I squeezed the priming bulb on the fuel line. There was a crack in the hose near the coupling that fit it to the fuel tank. OK. I got it. The engine was sucking air instead of fuel.

So I used the leatherman-like tool to take the hose off the connector and cut off the bad bit of hose. Then I reattached the hose and, presto!, the engine fired right up.

I finish the water run and make another without incident. Now I have full water tanks.

10 Dec 08, Wednesday
Daytona Beach, FL ICW milepost 830.7
Trip: 46nm, Total: 854nm, Engine: 2033hrs

Anchored here for the night. The weather was crappy again. Rather than wait for a good window to go offshore from St Augustine, I decided to just drive down the ditch.

Aside from the weather, nothing of interest. I just stand there driving down the ditch all day.

Me in my standard pose as I motor down the ICW.... Boring.

11 Dec 08,
Titusville, FL,
Trip: 43nm, Total: 898nm, Eng: 2042hrs

I left Daytona Beach in high winds out of the east. The forecast was promising heavy rain, winds gusting to over 30kts, and the possibility of tornados. I had anchored in an open anchorage and thought it might be better to be underway than sitting at anchor. I was wrong.

At first the trip was just slow. Motoring into wind and waves has never been Galena's forte. But it was 71° and fairly comfortable.

The ICW around Ponce de Leone inlet is always shoaling. But just now it wasn't so bad. I saw no less than 13' MLW.

Then at 1245hrs the front hit. I saw the squall line coming toward me. I saw the wind whipping up the water and the rain slanting down. I zipped up my foul weather jacket. It hit. And I mean 'Hit.' The rain was horizontal and the wind was up to 40 kts on the beam. Galena slowed quite a bit. Then I heard a funny sound astern. I looked back to see my dinghy flying upside-down on her painter. All of her contents were streaming away in my wake. The fuel tank, the oars, life preserver, handle extension, line, et al. Luckily I didn't have the engine on it. I slowed Galena to an idle and pulled the dink to her leeward hip. I just had to lift the bow a bit and she flipped right-side up. But all the stuff that was inside was already being blown out of channel and out of my reach; as well as a quarter of a mile behind me!

I was bummed!

A new fuel tank would cost more than I wanted to spend. And oars! those things were expensive! Oh, and don't forget that I'm stranded on board Galena now unless I go into a marina. And that's expensive, too.

As the front passed, and it passed in about 20 minutes, the wind veered to the northwest. With the wind abaft the beam I could make some good time and would arrive at Titusville before dark.

The rest of the trip was uneventful by comparison. I was completely soaked, I was cold and miserable. The temperature dropped over 10° in those 20 minutes of front passage.

I arrived at Titusville and anchored in 8-ft of water off the town marina there.

After I hand dried off and cleaned up I "MacGyvered" a fuel can for the dinghy motor out of a coffee can.

Cut off the connector and ran hose through lid

Finished fuel tank

With the fuel tank problem solved I went to shore to visit with my good friends from the Bahamas, Michelle and Clark (s/v Seabbatical 1). They were there fitting out their boat for the winter trip south. They had planned on leaving in the next day or so.

Michelle and Clark of s/v Seabbatical 1

They trucked me around town and we had a wonderful dinner courtesy of Michelle. The next day Clark scored a used fuel tank for me for ten bucks. We all went out for dinner and had a lovely evening.

I met Scott Caskey the owner of s/v Marianne, a Westsail 32 #221. We all went out for drinks

Clark, Scott, and me, doing what sailors do best

The next day we took off down the IcW together. Actually, I took off and then they caught up. Everyone motors faster than poor old Galena.

Seabbatical 1 passing me, quickly

13 Dec 08
Melbourne, FL, ICW milepost 920
Trip: 34nm, Total 937nm, Eng: 2048hrs

Just a boring drive down the ICW. Not that I'm complaining you understand.
Clark was talking to me about going to Marathon, FL. I was telling him about wanting to go to Key West for New Years. He said the mooring balls in Marathon are cheap and there are a lot of them. OK. I'm thinking that would be a good idea. I can go to Miami, spend a few days hanging out there. And then a two-day run down the keys to Marathon. Leave Galena there and take a bus to Key West for New Years. Then from Marathon I can make the crossing to the Bahama Banks and on to Nassau. Sounding like a plan.

I saw an old ship anchored off the side of the ICW. It was named "Princess Grace." Must be someone's pet project. I Googled it but couldn't find out anything.

The motor Vessel Princess Grace

14 Dec 08, Sunday
Ft Pierce, FL (south of Causeway Is) ICW 966
Trip: 44nm, Total: 980nm, Eng: 2056hrs

I had a rough (bouncy) and windy (20kt) night at Melbourne. I got up at 2300hrs to put the dink on deck since it was really not happy in the water. It was bouncing around and jerking at the painter like it was trying to get away! So I hoisted it up. I tied a short light line from it's stern to a stanchion before I lifted it out of the water. That way the wind couldn't snatch it away from me and fly it like a kite. Actually there wasn't much trouble getting it secured on deck.

I had picked an anchorage up close to a bridge abutment. As a result I had the wind waves hitting me from the southeast, and reflected waves from the bridge abutment hitting me from the northeast. Very rough place. Next time I'll move down a mile or so to be away from the bridge.

When I left Melbourne at 0700 I could only make 5.2 kts into the wind, waves and current. There was a serious tidal current running out of Ft Pierce inlet. I went from 7 kts to 3.5 as I passed the inlet. Then I was set hard to starboard as I passed under the bridge. Then, as I turned into the anchorage here I was set very hard to starboard. So much so that I was crabbing at about 30° to hold a course.

15 Dec 08, Monday
Lake Worth, FL (north end of the lake)
Trip: 45nm, Total: 1025nm, Engine: 2065hrs.

I'm anchored once again at the north end of Lake Worth. Actually I'm rafted up with Seabbatical 1. There's no wind to speak of so I thought it would be nice to raft-up. Clark came in and found a spot. Then I motored up and we were all tied up in no time.

This part of Florida has some very nice houses along the waterway

This one had an interesting bit of art in the lawn p

The trip here was mostly uneventful, except that it was actually hot outside. Almost 80° out there. And there were more than the usual number of dolphins playing around Galena as I motored along

Dolphin riding my bow wave

After naps and cleaning up a bit we had a wonderful dinner aboard Seabbatical 1 again. I taught them how to play dominoes. After my second sippy-cup it was time to call it a night.

This morning I started working on this blog entry. Clark and I were talking about leaving here tomorrow. But the window is expanding (for a change). We will probably leave for an outside run to Miami this afternoon.

We all walked down to West Marine where I bought a paddle to replace the dinghy oars that I lost the other day. Then a stop a Publix for a few stores. I bought some junk food for the overnight trip tonight. right now there is absolutely no wind. Forecast is for 10-15 kts east wind. We'll see. We might end up motoring all the way there. We'll have to go slowly to make it there after morning. Clark is not keen on going into Miami at night. I've done it before and wouldn't mind. But I understand his hesitation.

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11/30/2008

..My teeth, that is. It's COLD here.

18 - 19 Nov 08
Anchored in Town Creek,
Beaufort, NC

I'm still just enjoying Beaufort. No real hurry to get underway. But, man, I've got to get further south! We have very high winds today (20-25 kts with gusts over 30) and it's quite cold (high of 47 today). We even had snow furies! Snow hasn't hit my face in years and here I am standing in snow. This is just so wrong!

I had both the Bruce and the CQR anchors out. The CQR was holding fine but I was swinging too close to the marina docks. So I motored up a bit and dropped the Bruce. In this wind, the Bruce dragged until I came back onto the CQR again. So I'm close to the dock, but holding well on two anchors. s/v Cheeseburger in Paradise also dragged about 100 yds. He had the room to do it but that's never a good feeling.

One of the guys I had met at the Handlebar bar was Ray. He's one of those guys who, although he's 74 years old, can still put the fear of God into you. He was for 22-years a Navy Seal. He said, "Bill, I love doing only two things: Drinking and Fucking! And I've got about 1 good minute in me for either one." You got to love that attitude.

On the 19th I had one of my coldest nights aboard: 37°
Rain and winds in the 20-25 kt range again. Ron aboard Lastdance even saw gusts to 37 on his instruments. The CQR is holding, but I'm way too close to the marina dock. I'm considering moving a bit. But that anchor is holding so well I'd hate to haul it and reset it.

I think I'll be departing on Thursday 20 Nov. The wind will be moderating and I'll be a little further south. Maybe I'll find some warmth down there.

Ron invited me aboard Lastdance for breakfast and to warm up a bit. That was great. He's on shore-power and is running a couple of heaters. His boat was a toasty 75° inside. My boat was a cold 42.

I went back to Galena and alternately slept and watched DVD's all day. Both activities were accomplished without having to get out from under my down comforter. I have a small propane heater aboard and I used it on occasion. But those small gas cans cost money. So I wait until I can see my breath in the cabin, then I fire up the heater for an hour or so, then I shut it off and wait till the cabin cools off to an unbearable level again before I turn it back on.

Ron invited me out to diner at the Sandbar restaurant at the marina. It was his going away gift. He was going to stay there for another couple of weeks and then catch up with me in Florida around New Years.

By 2000 hrs on the 19th I was back aboard; and it was COLD. 35° outside, a whole 48° inside.

My plan was to make the 0630 Beaufort drawbridge opening and head south out of Town Creek, around Radio Island and back into the port.

20 Nov 08
Enroute to Mile Hammock Bay

I was asleep by 2100hrs but awake at 0200 on the morning of the 20th. I managed to get some more sleep but was finally up and getting ready to go at 0500hrs.

I was a bit concerned about raising the two anchors as the rodes had twisted, one over the other. My plan was to haul the CQR first since it was all chain and I had 80' of it out. The Bruce was on only 50' of chain. I figured I could use the windlass (manual, of course) to pull Galena forward and that would slacken the Bruce's rode enough to haul it by hand. It all worked well until I got up-and-down on the Bruce's rode. It may have been dragging, but it was still dug in deep. I don't have a chain gypsy on that side of the windlass, just a rope drum. So I took a snubbing line, which has a chain hook on the end, and took a bite on the Bruce's rode way up by the anchor roller on the bowsprit. Then I used the windlass to haul the snubber back. I could only move it about 2-ft at a time. Once the chain hook met the windlass I had to secure the chain with a second chain hook on a second snubber (yeah, I've got a lot of stuff for ground tackle) to hold it while I took another bite with the first chain hook. Then I'd winch it back two feet. After a couple of rounds of that the Bruce broke free and I swung over to hang only on the CQR.

The Bruce was fouled on the CQR's rode so I left it hanging below the bobstay while I cranked in the CQR's rode. Once it was up, I left both anchors dangling while I motored out to the bridge. The whole thing took 15-minutes. I was planning on about 25. So I had some time to wait for the 0630 bridge opening.

At 0625 I called the bridge tender to let her know I was standing by. She asked for the boat's name and hailing port. I gave it. She asked, "Is she named after the goddess or the ore?" I thought it was cool that she was so well read. As I motored through the bridge at 0630 she asked what kind of boat Galena was and commented on her fine lines.

I motored out with the ebbing tide making about 7.5 kts over the ground. But once I turned back toward the harbor on the other side of Radio Island my speed dropped quickly. With both the wind and the current against me Galena could only make 3.0 kts.

I heard s/v Oo La La on the radio and talked with them for a minute. They were at Duddley Marina and heading south today, too. So they were only a few miles ahead of me.
Jeff said to watch the current set in Bogue Sound as he was pushed to the east and went aground just outside the marks. I said, yes, I was aware. In fact I had gone aground right there myself a few years ago.

By 0930 the temperature was all the way up to 45° and the winds were west at 7-10kts. I caught up with Oo La La at the bridge at Camp Lejeune. The firing range had been closed all morning and he and others were stuck there waiting. I arrived about a half hour after they opened the waterway and made it to the bridge in time for the hourly opening at 1400.


Boats waiting at the swing bridge

s/v Ol La La followed me for a bit. We were intruding on the live fire exercises and there were Marines everywhere. We even saw some interesting assault boats.


Some kind of Marine Assault boat

I turned into Mile Hammock Bay at about 1430 and got the hook down. The holding was only marginal but there was no wind so I let it go, even though I could pull the anchor aft with full reverse. There was only one other boat in the place.

But after the 1700 bridge opening, 10 boats came in together and clustered around me. Now I was a bit concerned about my anchor. Before they showed up I figured I could drag several hundred yards before I had to worry. Now I had only a couple hundred feet before I'd bump into another boat.

The Marines were conducting training in the bay. They had some very large pontoon boats and were zooming around. I think they were making wakes to roll us on purpose. Well, it's their bay and we were intruding so I just went below and rolled with it. They packed it in just after sunset.

21 Nov 08, Friday
Wrightsville Beach, NC

I awoke early, about 0500 to the sound of my drag alarm. I had pulled back about a boat-length in the freshing wind. But I held there until I had finished breakfast. By then there was enough light to navigate and other boats were leaving. I hauled anchor and headed toward Wrightsville beach.

I was hook down in Wrightsville Beach by 1530hrs. I went in very near the bridge. Actually a bit inside the 'cable area' and close to the south side. The holding here is very good so I slept well.

22 Nov 08, Saturday
South Harbor Village Marina, Southport, NC.
Trip: 26nm, Total: 451nm, Engine: 1977 hrs

I arrived here very early in the day: 1130hrs. I got a huge lift from currents all the way from Wrightsville Beach. I was making over 7.5 kts all the way down the Cape Fear river. But the weather was still very cold. I even found ice at the hose bib on the dock at the marina.


Yup, there's ice under the hose bib.

I did a few chores around Galena before I headed for the local watering hole. I tied the dinghy to the deck. I replaced the frayed dinghy painter with the new line I had purchased, what, a month ago? I setup the Aries wind vane. I topped off the fuel and water tanks.

While fueling Galena I sprayed diesel fuel all over me. My watch cap, my jacket, my shirt. What a smelly mess.

I cleaned up Galena's deck a bit. I had chunks of mud from the anchor chain all over the foredeck. I swept that up and then washed everything down.

I'm springing for a marina because I need water and fuel. The marina is costing me $54 and 50 gal of fuel was $140. A beer and a burger at the new bar (just opened off to the left as you walk toward shore; named the 'Dead End Saloon') and I was ready for bed.

I had left my electric heater on while I was at the bar and when I returned I was very pleased to find Galena's internal temperature a comfy 68° for a change.

The weather forcasts for tomorrow, 23 Nov, look good for an offshore run to Charleston. The winds are going to be even lighter than they had forcast earlier. They should be on the stern so I may have to motor.

23 Nov 08
I departed the marina at Southport at 0630. It was just getting light. I had a gentle breeze flowing me off the dock and current on the stern. So started casting off lines: spring lines, bow lines, looped the stern line around the dock cleat and jumped aboard. The bow was already swinging off the dock. I let slip the stern line and started coiling it. Then I saw that as Galena turned away from the dock, her stern was being pushed toward the dock by the current. The Aries was heading for a piling on the dock. I dropped the dock line and put the engine in gear and gave it a strong goose. The wind vane just barly missed the piling as Galena moved away from the dock and into the channel. Whew! I have to keep focused on what's happening and stay a step further ahead in the future.

I motored out of the river and turned west along my route.

I heard two boats, s/v Kokopelli and s/v Lee-Ann talking on the VHF. I saw two boats running along the coast line. I called them to say. hi. I had met Gary and Janet of Lee-Ann in the bar at Beaufort. So we chatted a bit.

I was able to just sail for only about an hour. Everything was up and I was making 5kts in 7-10 kts of wind. But after a while the wind died and I fired up the engine. I motorsailed all the rest of the way. With the engine just ticking over I was making fine time. When the wind died a bird landed on the bow pulpit and rode along for a while


The sky was clear and the sun felt nice. For the first time in weeks the sun actually warmed my face. I was able to open my jacket, take off some of the many layers of clothing I was wearing.

I talked with Lee-Ann and Kokopelli several times throughout the day and night. Having someone around to talk with helped keep me awake and focused.

The sun lost it's heat early in the afternoon and the air was once again very cool. So I bundled back up. On of the nice things about sailing or even motorsailing off shore is that I can go below and cook meals, make notes, or just relax for a few minutes out of the wind.

I was happy that the air temp stayed a moderate 54° all night long. The sea was just about calm with just a small, 2ft swell running from the northeast.

The jib came down about midnight when the apparent wind just died. I left everything else up to control the rolling.

Early in the morning Lee-Ann was on the radio calling Kokopelli. Gary had noted a problem with his oil pressure. When Gary went below to look around, he found oil sprayed all over the engine compartment. He obviously had a leak in the oil system somewhere. He found it in a hose leading to the oil cooler. The hose had rubbed against the oil filter and had worn through. He fixed the hose, but he had no spare oil. Kokopelli was there to hand him a gallon of oil. By this time they were about 4 miles behind me so all I could do for them was worry.

I entered Charleston harbor at about 0500. And by 0700 I had the hook down in front of the City Dock. I was asleep by 0715.

24 - 30 Nov 08, Monday
Charleston, SC
Trip: 132nm, Total: 583nm, Engine: 2001hrs

My fuel status is 22/33/20 (gallons in the starboard and port tanks and in the jugs on deck). So I only used 10 gallons of fuel to motorsail 132nm. not bad.

I went to town on the evening of the 24th. I found a couple of nice bars, made my pilgramage to the Peter O'Neill gallery and stared at the paintings for a bit. I really like one of his latest works, The Embrace

Then I went over to Aromas Bar for some Pad Thai and a few drinks. I met Mandy the lovely bartender who took good care of me.

She also a very good bartender

While there I also met Ali and had a nice, long chat with her and her daughter.

Ali and her daughter at Aromas Restaurant
They had a solo guitarist who just rocked! I went back a few days later and, again they had fantastic entertainment.


I walked downtown to have lunch at Basil Thai Restaurant. The Pad Thai was not as good as at Aromas.

The Basil Restaurant in downtown Charleston

Capt Ron, of s/v Lastdance has decided to stay in Beaufort, NC, for the winter. So once again I'm on my own. Have a good winter, Ron.

But along the way, I noted a sign at a crosswalk. I thought it was a joke until I saw people actually taking a flag and holding it up as they walked across the street, at a crosswalk, with the light. Strange.


On the 29th, m/v Executive Suite came by to say, Hi. Brian and BJ are friends from the Bahamas last year and they live here in town. On the way north last spring Moonligh Serenade and I had a couple of nice evenings with them. BJ's mom is visiting but they may call me Monday and we'll go out for dinner or something. They are also heading to Key West for New Years so I might see them there.

The walk to town takes only about 20 minutes if you really strut it out. But it takes over an hour when one is staggering home late at night. I found a real dive of a bar named Big John's tavern. They have huge burgers for only $6.50 and two-dollar beers. My kind of place.

There was rain all day on the 29th. But little wind. My batteries were down to 75% of their charge and I was thinking I'd have to run the engine tomorrow to charge them up. But on the 30th I awoke to high winds and rain. The wind was 20-25 kts out of the Southwest; just as forcast. They say it will moderate later today. But the rain will increase. I'm having a bumpy morning here.

Tomorrow I'll get ready for the off-shore run. This will be about 165 miles and will be one of the longer runs. Should take me about 36 hrs, that's what it took last year. We'll see.

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