After our departure from the boat yard on January 1, we anchored outside Cayo Costa State Park as it was too dark to head in (and a difficult entrance even in good light). Because we like that place so much, we usually begin and end our annual trips there. It is a great place to relax and shake down at the beginning and wind down at the end. This time, however, the tide would not allow us to get in or out until fairly late in the day, so if we went in the afternoon of our first day, we would not get out until the afternoon of whatever day we decided to leave and the next run would be longer than the afternoon hours would permit. As well, the weather was forecast to become much more troubled over the coming week, so we decided to forgo our usual stay and head to Naples on January 2.

The trip down was uneventful. The winds were strong, but not too, and we made it in while the light still was good. We anchored in Port Royal, our usual location. After setting the hook (but without the snubber – lesson 1), we prepared dinner and to enjoy the evening. The winds were forecast to swing from Southeast/East to North and increase in velocity. At midnight, Van got up for his nightly “constitutional” and noticed the water was mirror calm. He remarked to himself “the calm before the storm” but (lesson 2) he did not go up on deck to check things (like anchor scope, etc.). A while later, he felt the boat shift – sort of ease – but (lesson 3) did not get up to check. The next thing both of us realized was that we were broadside against another boat (smaller than Gratitude with its toe rail/rub rail was resting against Gratitude’s hull) lying on a dock. Gratitude’s bow was pointed shoreward between that dock and another one. It was 3:30 AM, pitch black, and the wind was howling. We positioned some fenders between the boats and then pondered our predicament and how to get out of it. We pulled up the anchor (remember the “easing”? – that likely was the anchor losing its hold) and started the engine. Using forward and reverse thrust and taking advantage of a strong port prop walk (when in reverse, Gratitude, like most boats, backs to port), we were able to back Gratitude away from the boat, the docks, and the shore and head into open water to re-set the anchor. This time, we really put out plenty of chain to make sure the anchor held in the increasing wind.

Needless to say, we did not get back to sleep. Van did some research to determine the address and name of the owners of the home and boat so we could contact them in case of any damage. (While some might have left in the dark, we know how devastated we would feel if someone were to damage our boat and sneak away.) There did not seem to be any life in the house when we came in the night before, so we assumed no one was there. At 7:30 AM, while we were preparing to get underway, a man and his dog walked into the back yard so we called to him and asked if he was Mr. “X”, the homeowner. He said he was and we explained what had happened, apologized profusely, and said we would send him a letter with contact information in case we had damaged his boat. He thanked us and waved us on.

Not over yet! The tide was super low that morning. We had been in and out of Naples any number of times at different tides, but not with a super low. Yup, we stopped at the entrance to the lagoon, stuck on the bottom in the soft mud. We tried getting off (which we did) and around (which we did not) and simply had to wait for the tide to come in. What was so frustrating about it is that a 109’ sailboat (that surely draws much more than Gratitude) was tied to her dock not 75’ away!

Finally, we had enough water to float us off and we headed out to the Gulf. The winds still were strong, but had shifted so we had some protection from the mainland for several hours. Then we cleared Romano Shoals and had 20 knot winds on our port quarter and the prospects for a good sail. Unfortunately, we had such a late start from Naples that we could not go as far as we would have liked and decided to drop the hook at Indian Key on the edge of the Everglades. Getting there from off-shore was a “pounding into the wind and waves” venture, but we made it just fine. When we anchored, we again let out a lot of chain both to avoid dragging anchor as we had in Naples and to wash the mud from the bottom of Naples harbor off the chain.

We got up at 5:30 the next morning planning a 6:00 am departure to make sure we had plenty of time to get to Marathon in the Keys. Well, the anchor chain kept getting jammed in the hawse pipe (a tube that directs it back into the anchor locker low in the boat) and it took us an unseemly hour to get the anchor up. We had plenty of wind to get us to Marathon and put reefs in the main both to reduce sail area and to expose more of the jib to the wind as that is our workhorse sail. Because of our delayed departure, we also used the “iron jenny” (aka the diesel) to keep us on a steady speed. When we got to Marathon, we found out that the City Marina had no room for us in the mooring field (with over 220 moorings). People are sitting here waiting to go to The Bahamas, but the winds won’t let them leave. We thought we would anchor outside the harbor, but the winds were forecast to swing to the West and increase and we would be totally exposed. So, we took the last space at the dock and came inside.

It turned out that, while expensive, it is a good thing because we have boat projects to do that are easier with power, water, etc. One of them was to replace the discharge hoses for the aft head (toilet) that had ceased working. (Have you ever wondered where clams, mussels, conch, lobster, etc. get all the calcium to build their shells? The ocean is literally full of calcium carbonate. Good for building shells, but it also precipitates from standing water, so bad for plumbing.) As a result of years (and who knows how many) of water standing in hoses over the hot summer months, the discharge hoses were virtually plugged with a sand like substance. (Yup, it also contains other ingredients, about which you need consider only briefly.) The project took two days – hot, frustrating, smelly hours spent in the bilges removing and installing the new hoses – during which Lauren reminded us that “we are living the dream!” The end result, however, is marvelous – the head pumps better than new!

We also decided to try to discern the problem with the hawse pipe, removed the chain and ran a brush and hose up that to clean out any mud or obstructions – none. Need to consider Plan B on that one.

But, we also have had some time for fun – we had dinner with old boating friends (Sue and Mack from Sumac who have “swallowed the anchor” and now go land cruising in their motor home) and with current boating friends (who shared stories of their “dream” projects). We hope to meet with Bill R., who lives here in Marathon, for lunch (he is very active in the local community theater and in the final throes of rehearsing for upcoming performances) and do some more exploring here. We also are building up stores to prepare for our departure to The Bahamas in the not–too-distant future when the weather cooperates.

People wonder what we do on the boat all day. Now you know, and some days it ain’t pretty!