We were leaving today for the crossing to the Bahamas. But the weather window deteriorated and we are staying put. The next window is Sunday-Monday. We will try then to leave the marina Sunday morning. We might might venture out to the edge of the gulf stream and turn back. The edge of the gulf stream is only 2 miles off shore here at Lake Worth. So, a turn back would not have lots of distance traveled.
So, yesterday we made the best of it by walking to lunch at "SOUTHERN KITCHEN" and had a nice lunch and brought back a huge wedge salad to have with our left over london broil for dinner.
I got back into the sanding and varnishing mode and finished a few windows and doors. The product I use is called cetol and takes 4-6 coats of very thin applications.
But this waiting is allowing us to do some projects in the calm of a marina.
That is about the extent of our news. Waiting, waiting, waiting...

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Day 92.
2nd try. I just LOST my entire post for today after I had so eloquently had written and then lost the Internet connection when I went to post. SO, HERE IS TAKE TWO.
We are looking at Thursday for our crossing to the Bahamas. We will try if the weather forecast holds. But, the gulf stream is only 2 miles out. SO, we can find out if it's a go or not and turn back if we need to.

We have been provisioning by renting a car and going to Walmart, Winn Dixie and many other places to get everything we could possibly think of for our crossing. I have installed the salt water wash-down system and gone through the engine room fixing anything that needs attention. I changed the injector pump oil and everything else is a go with the engine and transmission. Today I added some missing screws to the railing stations and rub rail. Yesterday I had diver clean the bottom so, Liquid Therapy can slide throughout the water with ease. We are ready. So, after turning in the rental jeep today it's just fill the fuel and water tanks to full. Watch all the weather information sites I can. And then just go out there and see what it REALLY looks like.

So, one final thing to do today was get a haircut. Never found the barbershop that was recommended by the marina. But there was this guy waking his dog by the boat who just happened to be a barber that works out of his home. So, Suz and I walked to his house for my haircut. We asked how he became a barber. It happened in Vietnam. Now when this guy gave me directions to his home, he said it would have the US flag and the POW flag flying. I figured this guy might have a little Vietnam baggage..S0, how did he become a barber? Well the special forces there had a Vietnamese civilian that cut the special forces hair. It became known that the Vietnamese barber was an infiltrator and was feeding the enemy information. So, this guy (green beret' I believe) said he killed the Vietnamese barber. The US forces were glad but also upset since now they didn't have a barber. So, he said "I'll cut your hair". And that is how this guy became a barber. Very nice guy. Went on to become a policeman in Milwaukee and retired to Lake Park.FL.
You never know what paths you you will cross in life. And you never really know what dark places people have been thrust into either.

Todays picture is my new haircut.

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Hi from Susan!
Looks like we MIGHT be able to venture across the Atlantic on THIS Thursday! We will send out a mass email if we are able to leave. Also, we will try to post our lat/long more often on our SPOT satellite locator while crossing to the Bahamas, so you will know where we are. We may go out, not like what we see, and turn around. Many people do that. It just all depends... we want to be safe. It is hard to explain why we have had to wait around so long. Anyway, we are returning the rental car this AM, picking up a few more last minute things at Winn Dixie, next door!!! (: (: and Brooke my be able to get a hair cut. Guess I will wait! Can't tell you the last time I remember my hair touching my collar! Oh, last night we went to see the highly nominated for Academy awards movie, 'Hugo', and enjoyed it immensely, for a change, no violence, death, nudity or bad language! Brooke cooked a London broil on our grill and we opened the Lohr cabernet from Max and Donna .Reminded me a little of 'Oliver Twist'. Miss you all!! Remember, you will not hear as much from us when we make the cross. We will communicate when we can.
Susan
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I have changed the oil in the injector pump of the motor and checked everything I can think of mechanical. We have taken on stores and bottled water and will b filling our fuel and water tanks to full tomorrow. And, will hopefully leave early Thursday for West End, Bahamas. The weather changes constantly. And ultimately as we enter the gulf stream (only two miles out of Lake Worth Inlet) we will ACTUALLY KNOW the conditions.
Brooke

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I'M GETTING A HAIRCUT TODAY! I THINK.. Hadn't had one since we left in November. Someone said from the back I looked like Jimmy Buffet. Anyhow, it's getting a little messy and I think we are renting a car today to provision and I'll off load some hair.
So, we left Pumpkin Key anchorage (north end key largo) and headed North Tuesday for an anchorage in the Miami area. The winds were pleasant and we had to run a couple hours on the same course so, I set the autopilot and began sanding the rails on the flybridge. We did a facetime all to Carter and Nelson and showed them around the boat. Them sitting in their Den in Richmond and us motoring up Biscayne Bay. I love Apple technology.
We anchored near North Miami in an Anchorage of derelict boats near some condos. The condos kept the wind from being a problem. Sausage and wheat macaroni for dinner at anchor. Very pleasant..
Wednesday we left Miami for Boca Raton and that passage was very slow for no wake zones and we didn't want to travel very fast through Ft. Lauderdale as the homes and boats are unreal. It is amazing all the huge boats and homes. We had a tour boat following us and heard him say that most of the rich have lots more money in their boats than their homes $40,000,000 boat $15-$20,000,000 in homes. I will post some pictures in the gallery when I get a chance. We anchored in gusty winds at lake Boca Raton. 15-20kts blowing and gusts swirling. i knew this would be a sleepless night if I didn't find protection. Once again i got near some tall condo buildings and they did a great job of shielding us from much of the wind. Still at 11PM I let out 20' more of chain and the boat didn't move as far as my THREE anchor alarms were concerned.
Yesterday, Thursday we got underway abruptly as Susan's visor flew off her head and we weighed anchor and Susan drove and I hooked the visor. So, I didn't get to do my normal engine room checks. Everything is always ok when I check every morning before we set off. It was another slow day with the wind at our backs building all day long. When we pulled into Lake Park Harbor Marina my wind speed indicates gusts of 28kts. Took two attempts for me to get Liquid Therapy to the fuel dock for a pump out. And, after leaving the fuel dock he gave us a slip near the bathrooms as Susan had sprained he ankle trying to catch her visor earlier in the day. She is OK. Anyhow we had our game face on for putting Liquid Therapy into this slip with a strong cross wind. Turning and backing has to be done quickly in strong cross winds before the wind catches you and puts you in some odd angle predicament. This requires lots of bursts of horse power with the rudder. This slip was very close to the slip in front of us. When I got Liquid Therapy almost turned our anchor was almost touching the anchor of the boat in front of us. Yet I couldn't start backing much closer until I got the boat rotated. The dingy hanging in the davits was almost hitting the pilings behind me. No room in front. No room in back and the wind hitting me almost broadside. I gunned the boat a few more times to keep the rotation going and then revved reverse to get the boat as far into the slip before the wind started us moving sideways. It worked Susan got the bow lines on font pilings and threw the dockmaster a stern line too. We were in. (Not sure about how I'll get out, but at least we are in).
So today we are going to rent a car and venture into West Palm for provisions for the Bahamas. And, I might get a haircut..

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Catching up a few days this morning before we pull anchor. We returned to Islamorada World Wide Sportsman Marina Saturday morning after being moored overnight at Lignumvitae Key. My friend, Max Guzman, and his wife Donna drove over from Englewood on the west cost of Florida to visit. It had only been about 15 years since I had seen Max. He and Donna are both sailors up in the Great Lakes and Canada. I followed their blog this summer aboard their 34' Tartan Sin Sal. They wanted to see our Liquid Therapy and met us about lunchtime at the marina. TALK, TALK TALK you bet. We had lots to catch up on from the Phone Companies, ( Max and I had worked at C&P / Bell Atlantic / Verizon) and Donna at Cincinnati Bell. Max transferred to Cincinnati Bell ) We also talked a little skiing, as we both were snow skiers in the past. And of course boating. Their boat is all fixed up and ours needs LOTS of beautification. So, ideas were given to us about restoration. We ate at good places and of course were to Lorelei's for happy hour and the sunset celebration..Max and Donna left about noon on Sunday and Susan and I just didn't feel like getting underway for a few hours and elected to stay one more night. We got underway about 10AM after pump out and saying goodbye to the staff at the marina. We had contemplated going on the outside, but the wind dictated an inside passage. The winds are MUCH better. But they were forecast to reach 20kts off shore. We had a nice ride up the ICW and decided on Pumpkin Key for the evening anchor. A very pleasant breeze and sunset don't you know..
Todays picture is Max, Me Susan and Donna at Moradas Restaurant next door to the marina...........

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Today we left World Wide Sportsman Marina for a nice trip to a Florida state park on a close by key called Lignumvitae. The trip tried my navigation skills as alway around the lower keys with very little water in any channel. We were leaving the "Little Basin with only about 4' of water on an outgoing tide. It was only because the low was supposed to be higher than normal by about 6". I felt the boat touch from time to time until I got to the deeper water of Yellow Shark Channel. The channel led to an intersection channel again with not much water until we felt our way into the dock at Lignumvitae. Ranger Robbin Tangen met us and welcomed us to the island. It has been sort of protected since 1919 and finally turned over to the state parks and recreation. Lignumvitae is a tree that grows very slowly. We saw one that could not have bee 15' tall and it was estimated to be 400-500 years old. There were several rare trees there. Iron wood that was used on the decks of submarines in WWII as if a piece came off it sank. I thought all wood would float. There was a very interesting house built out of quarried coral from the island. The island had been a coral reef thousands of years ago and was submerged at that time and now is 14' above sea level.
So, we had a wind pinning us to the dock and the rangers helped me get off and told us where the mooring balls were. That's where we watched the sun go down. It's pretty dark with no moon at this time.
Picture is the rangers helping Liquid Therapy out of the slip at the park.

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