The Atlantic – So far, so good! No animals were harmed or lives lost!
It has been over a year since I put finger to pad to update our travels – much has happened - as it always does with us!
Some data:
• We have travelled 6840 miles since we bought the boat;
• Max speed was 10.4 knots – this was sailing in the Inter Coastal Waterway, Kathy on the helm and the boat ‘rounded up’ – she nervously looked at me said – ‘what was that’ I explained that sailing boats do that when over canvassed – Hmm…. She did not like that!
• Average moving speed 4.2 knots, which ain’t bad!

We had the hurricane season in twin Dolphin Marina in Bradenton (Tampa) Florida and loved it. Pool at the end of the quay, amateur theater 300 meters way, Saturday Street Market that sold produce and arty farty stuff….. We met some very interesting people; J (name withheld to protect the guilty) was a female ex- New York Cop, who ran a local store, was a hoot to be around – the stories she had – even I, and with 20 years at sea, often blushed! She would occasionally ‘break out’ and go on a binge and everyone would warn everyone else to hide for a couple of days……. Then back to normal …. Not surprising, her last job in the NYPD was to identify body parts and put as much of them as they could together for burial after 9/11. Truly a lovely person! We also had a another yacht, just down the dock from us thrown out of the marina, for painting all his anchor chain on the dock, but did not put anything down before he did it, an ‘unusual decorative pattern’ was the result which he felt was OK….. Hmmm. One morning I was walking India, who is not known for her tender nature to other dogs, and a little old (about 103 yo, by my guess) lady who would have weighed 50kg soaking wet, was walking her German Shepard puppy, who was nearly full grown and taller than her. The dog beamed in on India and off it went, with the little old skidding along behind and about a 45 degree angle to line of direction she was being dragged in. I lifted India out over the sea wall and so as to keep them apart. To which I said ‘Lady, get your dog under control’. She hauled the dog off and got about 20 meters away and looked at me and ‘Fuck off – nasty man’! It takes a lot to make me speechless but she did it – she did not look as if she would even know THAT word!!.

Anyway we left Bradenton on the 28th November and sailed and motored to Burnt Store Marina at Punta Gorda. Quite an unusual place 15 mile for the nearest store in any direction and it was a large housing complex maybe 2000 people, totally isolated? We had New Year at the restaurant just by the boat which was great, but every Thursday was Karaoke ….. Aghhhhhhh…….. do I really sound like that when I am drunk??? We caught up Jerry and Lee Anne (Bella - 47’ Ketch) as they were returning from the Bahamas and watched and ate our way through the Super Bowl.

Next was Calsua Island Marina in Goodland (near Marco Island). We went via Fort Myer Beach to see Gary and Lisa (42’ sloop), but they got caught up when someone let them down and couldn’t make it to the boat. Unfortunately Gary was run over and killed the following week – wow where did that come from?? On passage from Fort Myers Beach to Calusa Island you need to go half way to Key West to get around the Remano Shoals, we were overtaken by a front and ran into Marco Island instead ahead of 30 knot winds and 15 feet seas, just in the nick of time. Had we tried to carry on we would have been in trouble trying to get around the shoals and reefs! Calusa Island Marina is a true delight. It is very difficult to get into and out of – but worth every moment of the effort. Wild manatees + dolphins playing around the boat, no houses and when taking the dogs for a walk (yes, we have 2 now, SCAT a 4 month old Boston Terrier….) I was confronted on the boardwalk with a bobcat – one with paws, not tires – do you know how bloody big those things are? About the size of full grown Boxer dog – What me scared – never….. I left it eat the dogs whilst I ran in the opposite direction. It could not have been hungry as the two dogs came home eventually!

At the beginning of June, we came around Key West and into the Atlantic – yippeeeee! We are currently at Marathon in the Florida Keys and will be heading to Blues Waters Marina, Tavernier, just south of Key Largo for the Hurricane season. THEN, drum roll…… over to the Bahamas for a year at Marsh Harbor on Great Abacos Island
I am planning to retire in November, but will keep Kathy working for about another 10 – 15 years so I don’t run out of anything…….. I will pay for that statement!

The Atlantic – So far, so good! No animals were harmed or lives lost!
It has been over a year since I put finger to pad to update our travels – much has happened - as it always does with us!
Some data:
• We have travelled 6840 miles since we bought the boat;
• Max speed was 10.4 knots – this was sailing in the Inter Coastal Waterway, Kathy on the helm and the boat ‘rounded up’ – she nervously looked at me said – ‘what was that’ I explained that sailing boats do that when over canvassed – Hmm…. She did not like that!
• Average moving speed 4.2 knots, which ain’t bad!

We had the hurricane season in twin Dolphin Marina in Bradenton (Tampa) Florida and loved it. Pool at the end of the quay, amateur theater 300 meters way, Saturday Street Market that sold produce and arty farty stuff….. We met some very interesting people; J (name withheld to protect the guilty) was a female ex- New York Cop, who ran a local store, was a hoot to be around – the stories she had – even I, and with 20 years at sea, often blushed! She would occasionally ‘break out’ and go on a binge and everyone would warn everyone else to hide for a couple of days……. Then back to normal …. Not surprising, her last job in the NYPD was to identify body parts and put as much of them as they could together for burial after 9/11. Truly a lovely person! We also had a another yacht, just down the dock from us thrown out of the marina, for painting all his anchor chain on the dock, but did not put anything down before he did it, an ‘unusual decorative pattern’ was the result which he felt was OK….. Hmmm. One morning I was walking India, who is not known for her tender nature to other dogs, and a little old (about 103 yo, by my guess) lady who would have weighed 50kg soaking wet, was walking her German Shepard puppy, who was nearly full grown and taller than her. The dog beamed in on India and off it went, with the little old skidding along behind and about a 45 degree angle to line of direction she was being dragged in. I lifted India out over the sea wall and so as to keep them apart. To which I said ‘Lady, get your dog under control’. She hauled the dog off and got about 20 meters away and looked at me and ‘Fuck off – nasty man’! It takes a lot to make me speechless but she did it – she did not look as if she would even know THAT word!!.

Anyway we left Bradenton on the 28th November and sailed and motored to Burnt Store Marina at Punta Gorda. Quite an unusual place 15 mile for the nearest store in any direction and it was a large housing complex maybe 2000 people, totally isolated? We had New Year at the restaurant just by the boat which was great, but every Thursday was Karaoke ….. Aghhhhhhh…….. do I really sound like that when I am drunk??? We caught up Jerry and Lee Anne (Bella - 47’ Ketch) as they were returning from the Bahamas and watched and ate our way through the Super Bowl.

Next was Calsua Island Marina in Goodland (near Marco Island). We went via Fort Myer Beach to see Gary and Lisa (42’ sloop), but they got caught up when someone let them down and couldn’t make it to the boat. Unfortunately Gary was run over and killed the following week – wow where did that come from?? On passage from Fort Myers Beach to Calusa Island you need to go half way to Key West to get around the Remano Shoals, we were overtaken by a front and ran into Marco Island instead ahead of 30 knot winds and 15 feet seas, just in the nick of time. Had we tried to carry on we would have been in trouble trying to get around the shoals and reefs! Calusa Island Marina is a true delight. It is very difficult to get into and out of – but worth every moment of the effort. Wild manatees + dolphins playing around the boat, no houses and when taking the dogs for a walk (yes, we have 2 now, SCAT a 4 month old Boston Terrier….) I was confronted on the boardwalk with a bobcat – one with paws, not tires – do you know how bloody big those things are? About the size of full grown Boxer dog – What me scared – never….. I left it eat the dogs whilst I ran in the opposite direction. It could not have been hungry as the two dogs came home eventually!

At the beginning of June, we came around Key West and into the Atlantic – yippeeeee! We are currently at Marathon in the Florida Keys and will be heading to Blues Waters Marina, Tavernier, just south of Key Largo for the Hurricane season. THEN, drum roll…… over to the Bahamas for a year at Marsh Harbor on Great Abacos Island
I am planning to retire in November, but will keep Kathy working for about another 10 – 15 years so I don’t run out of anything…….. I will pay for that statement!

Martin: 'Why aren't they carrying Bibles'?
Kathy: 'What?...Who'?
Martin: 'Those guys in the white shirts and ties'
Kathy: 'Why should they carry Bibles - they are business men'?
Martin: 'Oh - I thought they were Mormons come to preach the Good Word'
Kathy: 'What!!! - Why'?
Martin: 'Cause in Texas only Mormons where white shirts and ties.....................................'

We're in Florida! Yesssssssssssssssssssssssss!

We had a dream trip over from New Orleans - with added excitements as well. Crossing the Mississippi delta, just after New Orleans, we ran into thick fog - I mean 50' (15m) visibility - the forecast had said light fog but.................. Before we left Texas we made the decision to bite the bullet and have an AIS (Automatic Identification System) transmitter and receiver installed. This allowed us to see other vessels as well as be seen. So, how is that different from radar? Well, it certainly is not a substitute for radar - it does not show a vessel without AIS, but the advantage over radar is that it provides information on your vessel, such as, name, type, course, speed, status, anchored, etc. This is a must for anyone transiting the ICW. It means that other people can identify you and you them (even if you can't understand what they say when they call you on the radio!). During the crossing of the Mississippi delta, we managed to:

• Try to run into a 20' thick wall - they are building a flood gate station across the ICW just outside New Orleans - this is not on the paper or electronic charts! A guy who was controlling the traffic called us, by name, and advised us that if we keep going on our course will make our boat considerably shorter! The fog was so thick they sent out a workboat to lead us through the construction area! That's service. When I advised him that we were also hungry and could he come and prepare lunch for us, he declined - I guess service only goes so far!
• Moor on a pile (wooden pole driven into the sea bed) as it was really quite dangerous to keep going at this stage, but the all-seeing man at the flood gate station called us, AGAIN, and advised us the a barge carrying 5,000 tons of benzene was going to tie up there very soon. How inconsiderate. I asked him if he realized who we were? - he was not impressed!
• Get run down by the afore mentioned barge carrying 5,000 tons of benzene - actually this is a gross exaggeration, as we saw each other on the AIS and we negotiated how we were going to pass . We were only 100' apart we hardly saw each other. We did eventually anchor for about 2 hours until the fog started to lift.

The transiting of the Mississippi delta, after the fog cleared was an absolute delight. A 10' spotted dolphin adopted us for about 20 minutes - just to plague India - she would stand rigid and shake, with an expression of 'what is it - Aghhhhh'?

We made a number of overnights/longer stays which we fabulous, such as:

• Point Cadet Marina, Biloxi, Mississippi -here is where we 'washed our fuel'? Some of you may of have heard of fuel polishing' (running all your fuel through a fine filter and having the tank/s cleaned out). This is the DIY version, when one person fills the fuel tank - and leaves the plug out (me) and another person washed the deck down and water goes into the fuel tank and pushes out afore said fuel (Kathy). Ummmm.... A day later we had the engine running again! Ho hum - the joys of cruising!
• Lu Lu's restaurant at Homeport Alabama - this is owned by Jimmy Buffets sister and is a great place for a Margarita and a burger!
• Palafox Marina, Pensacola, Florida - great place to stop. Fabulous restaurant overlooking the marina and the city is just the best, with everything that you could want (even a Greek food store just down the road). We stayed there a little longer than expected and we had a double front came thorough, which decided to stop right over us! 3 days of 30 knot winds, rain thunder, etc. BUT, being in Pensacola made up for it!

Also, Pensacola was the end of ICW passage and now it was the big boys stuff - the Gulf of Mexico! When we entered Pensacola Bay, we watched the water turn from ICW turd brown to crystal clear green/blue (I must confess to there being a visible stirring in my nether regions..... Kathy said that I could put that away and stop being silly!

Anyway, when we did get a weather window we made for Panama City, via Destin - to empty the Fuzzle. The trips can only be described as 'magic' - although the wind was light - clear blue sky, golden sun, clear blue sea - Ooop's ... there's a stirring happening again! We had booked a berth at Treasures Marina at Destin but made the decision to anchor overnight instead and empty Fuzzle using the dingy. THAT WAS A GOOD MOVE! The place is Party Town! We were 3 miles down the bay and the music still made the glasses rattle on the boat!

We are now in Panama City, having decided that we could not take the chance on poor internet connections at Port St Joe, as Kathy relies on that for work (Port St Joe is beautiful, but tiny!). I love where we are in Panama City - firstly, I love Florida, pity about the old people - hang on a minute, I am one of them! We are at St Andrews Marina on the south east side of the bay, I can only describe it as a maidens dream come true (me being the maiden - well , my feminine side at least!), safe, secure, bars and restaurants all around us, a farmers market in the marina on a Saturday morning, selling homemade bread and fresh produce. I know the history and lives of more people on our dock than I ever knew in all the places I have ever lived! There is even a guy at the end if the dock, who lives aboard a 20' yacht with his scruffy, pound puppy, called Gizmo, who plays the bongos every evening - my kinda guy!. ALSO, each night, a few minutes before sunset people blow on horns and conch shells to remind everyone to watch the sun go down!

'Taint a bad life we've got!

Our trip across to New Orleans has been full of adventure - yeee har! I have often heard that the ICW is just an industrial highway- but, dat ain't so! We have had a great time and been to some wonderful place and seen some amazing things - we have not dropped the anchor once, but stayed at docks or marinas all the way over. I have attached some photos of the various places we stayed at.

We did manage to get boarded by: US Coast guard, Immigration and Homeland Security waiting for a bridge to open outside Houma, Louisiana - what the f....? Anyway, we had nothing to hide and they searched the boat from one end to the other. I was asked if I had been arrested and then he asked me if Kathy had - the Homeland Security guy said - 'Hmmm, this might not be a good time to find out!!'

Between Houma and New Orleans we managed to get a tree between the hull and the propeller - much clunking and juddering and we eventually cleared it, so we will need a haul out or I/Kathy will dive on it in Florida, if the water is warm enough.

I had one of the best meals of my life in a little restaurant in Morgan City called Jo Jo's - at first I had some reservations about the place, as it was boarded and shuttered with iron bars on the windows - but once inside it was like Aladdin's Cave! I cannot recommend this place highly enough - it is worth taking a detour for! Also, Bow Tie Marina on Lake Charles is a delight and a pleasure to go to. It is also the local Coast Guard base - very secure.

On our passage from the ICW to the Mississippi, took us along the Industrial Canal and I had an argument with the bridge master at the La Palco bridge - the man was so rude and angry - the bridge had electrical problems but he did not let us know what that meant or how long it would take. After 1 hour of standby, I asked him if he knew when we might transit, as there was a weather front moving through - he blew a fuse and shouted at me to go to a marina! As we all know I do not take kindly to people losing it with me, so I call the office of the Director of Transport. Eventually they shut the bridge down and we had the transit via the Algiers Canal.

Anyway, we did get to Seabrook Marina on the Industrial Canal and had 3 nights there. I need to say that outside the tourist areas of New Orleans, it is a dangerous dump! So much is still in ruins 7 years after Katrina and there is a general lethargy about the place which is depressing. We had originally planned to stay here for a couple of months - but we got out as soon as we could - we had to travel 30 miles to Slidell on the other side of Lake Pontchartrain to do our laundry as all the others were to unsafe!! I am re-reading a book called The Great Deluge by Douglas Brinkley - which tells the real story of Hurricane Katrina - well worth a read!

Some of you may be asking why we stop overnight at marinas? We have two reasons for that:
1. We like our creature comfort and to see the places and sites; and
2. We need to 'Empty the Fuzzle'- eh? We recently read a book called 'Bumfuzzle' by Patrick Schulte ( Another recommended read, even if you are not a sailor) and we decided that the name Fuzzle was much more suited to India's (our Boston Terrier dog). So, I am sure you work out what 'Emptying the Fuzzle' is? We have to do this at 12 hour periods - hence, the lazy way we are making it to Florida.

Next: Florida or bust!

Scene:- Recently arrived 'alien' (human kind) in Houston talking with Texan about sailing......

Texan - 'Yunnow that you can put you boat on the Eyeseedublyah and go all the way from Mexico to Canada'?
Alien - Thinks ' Ah - the eyeseedublyah must be a train that you put your yacht on to move it around the country - wow! they have everything in the US - what a place'

So I searched the internet for the 'eyeseedublyah, yacht, train' - I got no hits! Then Bingo - the ICW = the Inter Coastal Waterway (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intracoastal_Waterway) - now I get it.
Well, if I thought I had trouble working out what the eyeseedublyah was - I was in for an even bigger surprise when I tried to talking with the barges on the radio - with statements like 'comeonbyand Iwillseeyouontheone' - translation = 'You are free to pass me on my port side' - Oh, by the way, don't even try to call them on the radio with a British/Australian accent - they don't understand you! Thanks God for my Kathy - she is multi-lingual and can speak barge and a form of English called American! (I will pay for that last comment!)
Anyway - 2 more days and we be making our epic first voyage on the eyeseedublyah, with a distance of 28 miles, to a seafood restaurant where will spend the night, before heading off on the next taxing leg of the journey!!

Pip pip

Martin

Having grown up on a diet of:
• Joshua Slocum
• Sir Francis Chichester
• Sir Alex Rose - my hero
• Robin Knox-Johnson
• Donald Crowhurst - not my hero!
I have been inspired by long, epic voyages, with huge roaring seas......... People are constantly asking us - How far are you going to travel across an ocean?

Here is my reply. Have you seen what happen to Popeye when he eats spinach? - Well, it is the same for me - but with Tea. This is one of the last vestiges of my being a pom (British) - apart from this rotten accent - I must have PG Tips tea bags, with sugar AND fresh milk. Once I have consumed this nectar of the Gods I can leap tall buildings in a single bound and solve middle east peace problems........

So, the maximum distance we can travel is - until the milk turns sour - minus 1 day, approx. 4 days (although we have a fridge/freezer, there is a built in safety margin to ensure supply). Or about 400 miles, unless I can get replenishment at sea, by a passing milk tanker - Hmmm, somewhat unlikely!

Also, the longest voyage I have completed was on a BP crude oil tanker from Kwinana, Western Australia to Doha and Jebel Dhanna in the Persian Gulf back to Kwinana - 11 weeks without seeing land, apart from 4-5 hours anchored off Singapore. My observation of this voyage is 'mind numbingly boring - a sociologist paradise, 'cause each day repeats, just like Ground Hog day'!

I hope this clears up this matter!

NB. All decisions are subject to approval by Kathy!