Wyvern's Wanderings

Vessel Name: Wyvern
Vessel Make/Model: 1977 Irwin Ketch
Hailing Port: El Jobean, Florida
Crew: Charlie and Phyllis Atha
About: After living aboard our 42' Irwin for almost 10 years, we sold her and bought a home in El Jobean, Florida. Bought a storm damaged 1996 Hunter 45 and have been working on it for the past 3 years. THEN we sold the Hunter and purchased the Irwin back. Feels like home!
Extra: Both Charlie and Phyllis are USCG licensed captains and ASA sailing instructors.
Social:
27 March 2019 | Nassau Harbor, New Providence, Bahamas
25 March 2019 | Nassau, New Providence, Bahamas
24 March 2019 | Norman's Cay, Exumas, Bahamas
23 March 2019 | Shroud Cay, Exuma Islands, Bahamas
22 March 2019 | Hawksbill Cay & Wardwick Wells, Exuma Islands, Bahamas
21 March 2019 | Emerald Rock, Wardwick Wells, Exuma Islands, Bahamas
20 March 2019 | Johnny Depp's Island, Exuma Cays, Bahamas
19 March 2019 | Staniel Cay, Exuma Islands, Bahamas
19 March 2019 | Staniel Cay, Exuma Islands, Bahamas
18 March 2019 | Staniel Cay, Exuma Islands, Bahamas
17 March 2019 | Staniel Cay, Exuma Islands, Bahamas
16 March 2019 | Blackpoint, Great Guana Cay, Exuma Islands, Bahama
15 March 2019 | Blackpoint, Great Guana Cay, Exuma Islands, Bahama
14 March 2019 | White Point, Great Guana Cay, Exumas, Bahamas
13 March 2019 | White Point, Great Guana Cay, Exumas, Bahamas
12 March 2019 | White Point, Great Guana Cay, Exumas, Bahamas
11 March 2019 | White Point, Great Guana Cay, Exumas, Bahamas
11 March 2019 | White Point, Great Guana Cay, Exumas, Bahamas
10 March 2019 | Isaac Bay, Great Guana Cay, Exumas, Bahamas
09 March 2019 | Blackpoint, Great Guana Cay, Exuma Islands, Bahama
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On our way Home

10 April 2015 | Port Charlotte, Florida
Sunny and Warm
On Jack and Kim's last day, we took them ashore to Key West so they could spend the day shopping, sightseeing and checking out all the famous bars there. Charlie and I stopped at the convenience store for some eggs and splurged on some bacon and Honey Nut Cheerios, though the prices were atrocious. We dinghied back out to the boat for the day and prepared the boat to go sailing. Picking up fins, lines and odds and ends off the deck. Then we straightened up the interior, putting away anything that might fall or roll off in the seas. We did have a few hours to relax and read. We watched the Tarpon captains and fishermen who come out to the anchorage to fish. They hook up to these gigantic fish, then drop their anchors and the captain follows the fish as it runs while the fishermen fight to get it aboard. Tarpon are a catch and release sport fish. At a little before 4:00 we took the Wyvern into the fuel dock, where we met Jack and Kim so they could pick up their luggage off the boat. They had a couple of hours to get to the airport for their flight home. We put in diesel and water and left the dock at 4:20 heading out the north channel for an overnight sail home. A total 136 miles from Key West to the entrance to Port Charlotte at Boca Grande. We put up all three sails as we left Key West Harbor and they stayed up the whole distance. At first the winds were about 15 kts. Off the beam. A perfect point of sail for the old boat. Going against the current for the first five miles, running about 5 kts. But, once out of the channel and into open water, we were running 6 to 7 kts out of the current. About dark the winds came up to about 19 kts, and gusting a bit more. We had thought about taking down the main before dark, but the winds were perfect. We should have taken down the main though since the wind came up. We were flying at 7.5 and 8 kts sometimes a bit more. A bit too much pressure for the old boat. We did roll up half of the jib and let out the main enough to sluff off some wind. The waters were naturally a bit rough. Can't have good wind without waves. And the moon didn't come up until about 11:30, so it was very dark. I really didn't want Charlie going out on deck to lower the main in those conditions. He wasn't too thrilled about doing it anyway. Ten years ago, we would have done it, no problem. It's a bitch getting old. We sailed at 6.5 to 7.5 kts. Until about 2:00 in the morning when the wind died back down to about 15 kts. On my watch, I let out the whole main again and tightened up the main. We sailed the last half of the night at about 6.5 kts. The seas also calmed down some. Don't know if it was because we came up on the Marco Island latitude and the land being a bit closer knocked down the seas, or that the wind just hadn't blown as hard this far north. Though we left the sails up the whole way into the Boca Grand channel going into Charlotte Harbor the wind continued to die after daybreak to about 2:00 when we entered the bay, the winds died down to where we barely had enough wind in the sails to keep them out. Charlie had already rolled up the jib. Lots of small fishing boats angling for Tarpon in the channel. I did have to steer around a couple. We made the 136 nautical miles in 22 hours. Quite good. We normally calculate our time at a speed of 5 kts. That would have taken us 25 hours. Now we have 20 more miles to go to get to the house. Neither of us slept well last night. Getting only about 3 hours each and that in snatches. So we decided to anchor out on the west wall of Charlotte Harbor for the night and go in tomorrow morning. We could have made it in before dark and probably would have, but the renters are still in the house. We would still be staying on the boat, so it didn't matter where we stayed. We called the renters and warned them that we would be invading their privacy and parking the boat at the dock again. They don't mind. They will be leaving in 5 days. We will stay one night on the boat at the dock, then we are taking a short drive vacation up to Orlando area. Charlie's son, Richard, and his family are at Disney World. We haven't seen them in years and will be going up to see them. For those who care, we decided to do an over nighter home for two reasons. First the wind was from the East, which would have required us to beat into the fairly strong breeze for two days to get to Marathon. And, secondly, we wanted to get home early enough to go see Richard and his family. Otherwise we would have taken the more leisurely route home up the coast arriving at the house on the 15th or 16th just as the renters left the house.

So, this season, short as it was, is over. We do have a charter in June and another possible in June, so if I'm energetic, I may write an entry or two from the Keys then. Smooth sailing this summer!!
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Wyvern's Photos - Main
3 Photos
Created 12 December 2010
Our 1996 Hunter 45
9 Photos
Created 12 December 2010