Still having to rely on the iPhone so this will be brief and no picture.
Left Indiantown early this morning and got under the bridge again with no problem. Lake O was flat with no wind. Went on to Moore Haven - a long day. City dock is $1.00/foot including tax, shore power and shower. Will come here again.
On to LaBelle tomorrow. Then, Glover Bight. Hopefully will find wifi access soon.
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A quick note as we are now heading back to the west coast to continue our 2012 cruise in familiar water and much improved weather. The wifi here is not reachable from our slip so I will do a full posting later. Going to Moore Haven tomorrow, then LaBelle Thursday. We are glad to be on the move again in great weather finally. No regrets about not reaching the Bahamas.
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A couple of days ago I reported about the previous night's weather and the storm that arrived as I started to grill our dinner. Patty took this picture with our phone. Actually, over the years living aboard and grilling as much as we do, this picture is not unusual for me, particularly during the summer/rainy season. It makes the dinner all that much more appreciated.
Looks like the weather has left us finally. We did have a couple of brief downpours yesterday, so we timed our going into town to the market and the concert. Unfortunately, the concert was not up to par so we skipped it and headed back to the marina for some reading time and cards. The wind did blow a bit last night but the stars were out and no rain. The wind is now light and out of the north. It was in the 50s this morning with low humidity and clear skies. Paradise is back.
We will be leaving tomorrow morning to head back to the west coast. Our plans are to take a short hop to Indiantown to position ourselves for the railroad bridge and lake crossing on Wednesday. We intend to skip over Clewiston and go to Moore Haven City Dock. Then, to Labelle the following day and finally to the west coast somewhere Friday. Then we will start our "cruising" for this year, after our 2 week visit to Stuart.
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They say weather is an inexact science. Boy, is that ever right. Yesterday, it was predicted that we would have thunderstorms, windy, and gusts to 60 to 70 mph. It didn't happen during the day, although it was primarily cloudy all day. The sun was even out during the early evening. It all changed around 4:00 a.m. this morning when the wind started in. It's hard to describe the sound of high wind through the rigging of a sailboat, particularly when you are trying to sleep. So, we got up to check things out and looked at the weather radar, including the posted tornado watch, and knew the next hour or so would be interesting. The line of rain was rapidly approaching from up river. We did not have the wind instrument on, but I am sure one gust was well over 30+ mph, as the boat swung quickly and healed over. It lasted about an hour and then settled in with a light rain. Once again, the weather app on our phone showed that the worse of it was over.
Yesterday afternoon, the marina hosted an end of the season pig roast for its boaters. There were around 100 guests to enjoy the meal and music. As we have always said, Sunset Bay Marina is at the top of being boater friendly. When we were here in 2009, Patty and I even thought about moving here and working at the marina, which had then just opened.
Today is farmers' market day and another concert on the river. The weather is improving so we will take part. Our group will be splitting up this week and heading in different directions for the balance of our trips. We might meet up with Tom and Maureen on the west coast again. As always, we keep our options open.
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Before we could head into shore for our morning walk, I had to pump out the dinghy as it had a couple of inches of water in it. Fortunately, several years ago, my son, Austin, had given us a hand pump which he had used as a kayak guide one summer in Maine. It really does the job and moves a lot of water. We then went into shore and had our walk, this time without stopping for ice cream. Ten a.m. is a bit early anyway.
Before the predicted storms were to arrive yesterday evening, we all agreed to get together for our daily game session. This time it featured Pegs and Jokers, which is like Parcheesi or Sorry. A good way to pass away a couple of hours. Men 1, Women 1.
After heading back to the boat, Patty and I thought we had enough time to grill steak. Well, we waited a bit too long as it started raining as soon as I put them on. Of course, I weathered it out and finished. The real storm was yet to come. As predicted, it began around 8:00 p.m. and blew hard for well over an hour and a half, with lightening this time. Lots of rain. After the worse part had pass us by, there was just a nice steady rain. Great to sleep by.
Today we expect a repeat. The weathermen state that this pattern is very unique for this time of the year. I'm not sure if we need to experience it, particularly for the next 2 days.
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I believe that last night we got a taste of what to expect for weather over the weekend. Watching the weather radar on our iphone, we could see a line of thunder storms moving across Lake O and heading in our general direction. Fortunately, the more significant ones passed to the north, but we got our share between 8:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. Some lightning, no wind, and good rain. That rain has really been the first we've had in well over 2 weeks. At least it did wash off the topsides of Two If By Sea. The real weather is expected Saturday/Sunday. Afterwards, the wind starts in from the north. Not good for a crossing.
We have now been here in Stuart for almost 2 weeks and all 3 boats are looking at the options available to us. Tom and Maureen may head to Ft. Lauderdale next week and hopefully a window will appear and they would cross. Bob and Mary may head north to Charleston. We, on the other hand, may go back across the lake and visit all of our favorite haunts along the southwest coast of Florida. Crossing over to the Bahamas is not inexpensive. To have only 3 weeks or so to stay makes it more so. Except for Biscayne Bay, we do not enjoy cruising the east coast or the trip from the Keys north. Perhaps, tomorrow we may think otherwise.
On a brighter note, Patty got her permanent crown put in yesterday afternoon. We celebrated with ice cream, of course. Oh, happy hour had not yet started at Duffys.
Earlier, we scrubbed the waterline of the boat. It always takes a beating when sitting on a mooring ball here. We will have to do it again next week before we move on to where ever we are going. We also got some cards in during the afternoon. All in all, another good day in paradise.
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Hope your cruise goes well, whatever your actual path!
