Catching Up, March 22

March 7-9
After leaving the newness of the Okeechobee, we returned to the more familiar waters along the west coast of Florida. On our three previous trips along this coast, we had found several spots which we looked forward to seeing again. Boca Grande ranked high on this list. We remembered fondly our first stay there in early 2013, and we found very little had changed, except our feeling of having discovered someplace special. The beach still beckoned invitingly, the shops still flaunted charming window displays, and the restaurants still exuded tantalizing aromas. But our sense of discovery had vanished. I bought a few cute garments, we ate some delicious oysters, and we generally enjoyed the day, but heading back to the dinghy, we agreed that we had no desire to linger. Had it been the weekend, we would have stayed for church services but there just wasn't enough to keep us here four more days. The one thing we did find just as alluring as before was the extremely well stocked local hardware, always one of our "must visit" places no matter where we stop, and we rarely leave empty handed.
Strong winds out of the east had made for a rocking anchorage the previous night, and our bumpy dingy ride back to 'BT indicated that we would have more of the same if not greater for the coming night. Hoisting our dinghy and it's small outboard motor can prove challenging in rough water, so my ever savy Captain decided that we would weigh anchor and move into the calm water of the nearby bayou in order to raise the dinghy. After accomplishing that task, the same ever savy Captain checked out the wind and decided we would take our chances finding a spot to drop the hook farther in on the bayou. This was not exactly kosher as they say, but there were no signs specifically prohibiting it, so we followed our usual philosophy that says forgiveness is easier than permission. We anchored bow and stern near the docks of two seemingly unoccupied houses and settled in. These are the times that I can only go to sleep because we set an anchor alarm that sounds loudly if we drift more than a specific distance. We both slept fitfully and awoke quite early and got underway as soon as it was light enough to do so.
We were rewarded with great winds for sailing out of Charlotte Harbor and once out in the Gulf, headed toward our next port, Venice.

March 9-11
Another repeat port of call, Venice sits conveniently close to both the Gulf of Mexico and the GIWW (Gulf Intracoastal Water Way, equivalent to the ICW) making it a great stopover. Fuel and water are readily available at the Crow's Nest Marina, and the adjacent restaurant offers a tasty menu. Because Captain has a medication that has to be delivered to us once a month via Fed Ex overnight delivery, we need to be in one spot long enough for this to happen. The availability of loaner bicycles as well as clean showers and laundry facilities made this a good place for that.
Speaking of bicycles, it is truly amazing now much groceries two people can carry using bicycle baskets and back packs! Let's just say that the "couple of miles" to Publix provided our exercise for that afternoon. Captain even made a run to the liquor store on a bike the next day while I caught up on laundry.
While in Venice, we enjoyed several long walks, both on the beach and in town. At the outset, I had silently vowed not to collect sea shells on this trip because I have so many at home. But we found varieties that I didn't have, so I yielded to temptation and collected a few. Our walks in town proved equally interesting as we read about local history, architecture, geography, culture, and botany. One quite interesting bit of history that we encountered concerned the Kentucky Military Institute which for years used Venice as it's winter campus. The institute went the way of many military prep schools during the Viet Nam War era and no longer exists. But we found information and memorabilia from the school in a building now used for retail and civic purposes. We are both such history buffs that we entertained ourselves for the better part of a morning reading about the school and viewing the displays. Then we topped of the morning with a delicious crab omelet at a sidewalk cafe. That's why we call this the good life!

March 11-13
Having received the package from Fed Ex, we left Venice, not sure exactly how many miles we could cover in the remaining daylight. Winds were favorable though seas were heavy, 4 - 6 foot seas with brief intervals. Once again, my pal Stugeron came to my rescue and I was able to enjoy the sail. A quick check of the charts yielded Longboat Pass as our best return to the GIWW, and access to Bradenton. Water in the pass was more than a bit choppy, and waiting for a drawbridge to lift got a little dicey, but soon we cleared and located the channel markers to guide us in the right direction. Two more draw bridges and we rested assured that we could reach our destination before dark.
We have previously stopped in the Bradenton area on two occasions, once anchoring out and once staying in a marina with friends. This time we again opted to anchor and selected a satisfactory spot in the Manatee River off deSota Point, the allure there being a state park nearby.
Saturday morning we lowered the dinghy and headed over to what we thought was a public dock near the state park. After securing the dinghy and making a less than graceful assent onto the dock ( we looked a bit like walruses rolling up on the dock after boosting ourselves from the dingy sides) we discovered the word PRIVATE painted in large letters on the dock. The adjacent house and property looked long vacant, so we again applied our forgiveness vs. permission philosophy and ducked through the woods to state park property.
The morning at the park was interesting as we learned more about early Spanish exploration in Florida and other areas. Say what you will about the motives behind the exploration and exploitation of theses newly discovered lands by Europeans, those men faced conditions and struggles few modern individuals could endure.
We were relieved to find our dinghy still secure at the dock and found it only slightly more difficult to descend from the dock than it had been to ascend. Back aboard 'BT we took another look at the cruising guides to decide whether or not to venture upriver to Bradenton proper. Weekend boat traffic was predictable heavy, and we eventually decided to have dinner on board and get a good night's rest I order to head out early the next morning.

March 13 - 16
Before turning west at Ft. Pierce, we talked about which of the west coast places we had visited before that we would like to revisit. High on Captain's list was Tarpon Springs. I think the primary lure there was the Greek meal he remembered from 2013. Recalling a very long, i. e. five mile, dinghy ride from our earlier anchorage to the town of Tarpon Springs, I called ahead to secure a slip at the city dock. During the day when we realized we couldn't make the entire distance in one day's run, we searched the charts for a good anchorage. A highly recommend one lay in the curve of a small island, honestly not much more than a sand bar with a few trees. What looked acceptable on paper failed to meet that criterion as we approached it, so we reevaluated our options. Heading south in 2013 we had anchored in a basin near a large power plant. JR remember it as noisy and bothered by strong current, so after briefly heading in that direction, we turned our attention to an anchorage just off nearby Anclote Key where we had anchored on our return north later in the same year. We had spent a restful night there before departing for our overnight Gulf crossing to Apalachicola. Choppy seas and gusting winds meant it would to be a calm night on anchor, but this location provided much more protection than the smaller key and no noise.
After coffee the next morning, we motored into the channel leading up the Anclote River to Tarpon Springs. First sight of the marina proved disappointing as the slips had free-standing poles for rather then finger piers for tying up. The biggest problem for us with this type of set up is that our large solar panels on the back of our boat can easily crash into those unforgiving pilings. I felt bad about not thinking to ask about the set up, but there really weren't many other options. The marina manager came out and helped us get on then we took time to secure the mooring lines. After that ordeal, we were ready for lunch! We remembered a good Greek restaurant nearby and were. to disappointed. Johnny is a calamari aficionado, and he was not disappointed. I enjoyed a deliciously fresh salad with amazing dressing. After that welcome break and refreshment, we were ready to spend time walking around. We needed a few grocery items, so that provide a direction for our rambling.
Later we took advantage of the ample fresh water at the dock and did some much needed cleaning of 'Bout Time. The showers at the marina provided that welcome clean feeling that only boaters and campers can truly appreciate. Afterwards we sat in the cockpit enjoying music from a nearby outdoor bar. Easy living at its finest.
Dense fog thwarted our plan to leave early Tuesday morning, so we relaxed with coffee in the cockpit and enjoyed the birds in the harbor. As soon a possible, we eased out of the slip without incident and headed back toward the gulf. When we stopped to,top off our fuel tank, folks were still talking about the fog. We thought they meant the earlier fog, but we soon learned that more fog had settled in just at the mouth of the river. It was without a doubt the thickest fog we've ever been caught in, and maneuvering in those conditions gave me new respect for our electronics. The fog persisted off and on throughout the day, slowing our progress substantially. When evening came, we had no option except to move toward shallower water and set the hook. This ended up being about six miles off shore, but with appropriate lighting on the boat, we felt reasonably safe. As it turned out, the only boats we heard were crabber running their traps early the next morning.

March 16 - 18
Better conditions prevailed the next day and we had a great sail to Cedar Key. I need to say here that both of us had pretty much fallen in love with Cedar Key on our first visit, and we had talked ever since about a return visit. Funny how those things go. Our first afternoon in town left us disappointed, as many of the businesses we remembered no longer existed. In their place we found empty storefronts.
Our favorite place to have clam chowder was still in business, and we enjoyed a late lunch before heading back to 'BT. We had hoped to celebrate St. Patrick's day at a truly one of a kind tiki bar that we discovered on our first visit. I called to talk to the owners whom we remembered fondly, only to reach an answering machine. I left a message, but no one returned my call. Another disappointment.
Back aboard 'BT we talked about our disappointment and weren't sure whether we even wanted to spend another day.
Thursday morning we decided that we would go ashore and I'd do laundry while John made the obligatory stop at the local hardware. After I started the washers, I walked a couple of doors down to the welcome center. I spent quite a while there talking to the lady at the desk, and she had reasonable explanations for some of the changes we had noticed. Feeling somewhat encouraged, I walked to the hardware to meet JR, and from there we went for a short walk waiting for the clothes to wash. We met two delightful ladies as we walked through a residential area. The first lady told us that the tiki bar has new owners, but that there would indeed be entertainment there for St. Patrick's day. That encouraged us a bit, and we continued our walk. The second lady was visiting from Texas at the home of her parents. What made us stop nearby was an osprey nest built on top of the chimney of their house! She told us about the mating pair that had set up housekeeping there and we told her about the ones back home on Egner's Ferry Bridge. Seldom do we not meet nice, friendly folks on these outings, no matter where we are. One of the many things that make our cruising life interesting.
After finishing the laundry, we took clean clothes back to 'BT, and while there I got a call from the new owner of the tiki bar. She assured us that there would be lots happening that night but couldn't be of help with transportation. Since it was farther out of town than we cared to walk at night, we began considering other options. We went back ashore, and after a stop at Kona Joe's for delicious iced coffee, we checked out the Island Hotel, in business since 1859. We love the atmosphere of places such as this one, and the menu offered several tempting dishes in addition to traditional corned beef and cabbage.
Back to 'BT for showers and cocktails. Fortunately, we were anchored near the dock, and all of the back and forth trips were easy in the dinghy. As we relaxed and donned our green shirts for the evening ashore, rain began to pour. It seemed that our St. Patrick's Day celebration would be a rather private one. Then, just as we began to think about preparing dinner, the rain stopped, so we took advantage of the break and dinghied ashore once more. Our meal at the hotel was delicious and made us glad that we had stayed at Cedar Key.
As we had walked around town quite a bit in two days, our conversations with locals and seasonal residents dispelled some of our earlier disappointment with the apparent economic changes in CK. We came to realize that not all of the changes were negative, and some of the positive ones were not readily apparent to a visitor. We left glad that we had taken time to explore this quiet little town again, and we look forward to returning.

March 18 This day gets its own separate entry!
On our trip south in November 2012, we had made a Gulf crossing from Apalachicola to Cedar Key. Many boaters had told us that a boat with our draft, 4.5 ft., would have trouble navigating the Big Bend area of the northwest Florida coast. After doing a little more homework, we discovered that with care, we could indeed go farther north, so we decided to head for the small town of Steinhatchee. We had heard from several fellow sailors that the channel up from the mouth of the river offered consistent depths sufficient for 'BT.
The day was clear, and we managed a little sailing and a good bit of motoring. As went well until suddenly Captain exclaimed, "S**t, we're fixing to run aground!" Mind you, this was more than three miles offshore. As we bumped, he checked the chart plotter and quickly realized his error. At first we assumed we could turn around and head back the way we came, but as unlikely as it my seem, that proved impossible. No matter which way we tried to move, we encountered less than 4 ft. of water. Knowing that we were on on outgoing tide only increased our anxiety.
After not too long, we got a radio call from a nearby fishing boat that offered to try and tow us to deeper water. Welcomed his offer, but on spite of his best efforts, it seemed he only caused our keel to dig deeper into the sand. We thanked him for his effort as we set free the line from his boat to ours.
We had no cell service, so calling TowBoatUS on the phone to inquire about the nearest service was out. I decided to try the VHF radio and immediately reached the nice lady at Steinhatchee. We soon were talking to her captain and agreeing that he would come put and try to free us. All this time, the tide continued to ebb, and now not only could we feel the keel aground, but also the irregular bumping of the rudder. This was not good. We both began to cringe with every bump as we imagined damage occurring.
It took longer than we anticipated for the tow boat to reach us, and we were greatly relieved to see him approaching from the horizon. He first tried the most obvious tactic of simply pulling our boat with his. Didn't budge. He tried maneuvering back and forth to create prop wash to add the wave action in hopes of lifting us out of the sand. Very little movement. No of this happened quickly, and time was not on our side. Evening was coming; high tide would not occur until after 11:00 P. M., and that it was only a 1.5 ft. change. As he continued to pull, we moved just enough to barely float, then suddenly we were hard aground again. There was so little water beneath us that is was seemingly impossible to get us off the hard sand bottom. He worked back and forth much that his tow line frayed and we had to disconnect. The next option involved using a halyard from our mast secured to his boat so that he could try to heel us over, freeing our keel, and then we could motor out to slightly deeper water. Deeper water lay less than 50 yards from where we sat, so we knew if we could just get that far we'd be okay. He began to move off our port, and we slowly heeled. Johnny used all of our engine power to try and more forward. Heeling as far as was safe, our keel remained firmly stuck.
The tow boat captain then suggested that he tie up close along side of us and attempt to prop wash from that closer vantage point. The water was increasingly choppy, and as he attempted to get in position, the stern of his boat swung violently into our boat, shattering one of our port lights. I realized what had happened, but Captain John was so busy up on our deck that he didn't even know it. The futility of that option became obvious. The three of us decided to make one last attempt at having the tow boat tie off close to our bow and create prop wash while pulling as we used our engine to try and move forward. It didn't happen quickly, but finally we began to move and ever so,slowly our depth readings increased from less than 3 ft. to greater than 7 ft. At that point we felt safe having the return to port and arranged to meet him the next day to complete the paperwork.
Now we faced that challenge of entering an unknown channel after dark, with the addition of crab traps dotting the waters through which we had to navigate. We knew it would take a least two hours to reach Steinhatchee, so we talked eachnother down from the high level,of anxiety we had experienced for the past few hours and turned our attention to what lay ahead. The danger we had faced hadbeen far greater for 'Bout Time than for us. Given enough water, she's proven herself quite seaworthy even in tough conditions, but the pounding she took was far above the call of duty. We listened carefully for any signs of damage and checked the bilge for any leaks. No evident damage. Indescreiable relief.
I took my position on the bow armed with a spotlight with which to search for crab traps. Luckily we encountered only a few traps to dodge, and getting into the channel at Steinhatchee River was made fairly easy with the aid of a lighted marker. My spotlight then became our guide from one reflective marker to the next. The river has quite a few sharp twists and turns, but we took our time, and soon the red roof of Sea Hag Marina welcomed us. It was after 9:00 P. M., but they had told us where to dock, so we tired up and let out the breaths that it felt as if we had been holding for hours. I suppose this now ranks at the top of our list of "eventful" days on the water.

March 19 - 22
We had planned to stay at Steinhatchee for two days, but the issue of the shattered port light complicated those plans. The tow boat captain agreed to be responsible for the cost of repairs, but in such a small town, gettin the needed material didn't seem likely. Our thoughts turned to contacting Beneteau. That meant waiting until Monday, so we settled in for several days in this little river town. I must say that if we had to be stranded, this wasn't a bad place to be. The folks at Sea Hag Marina couldn't be more helpful, and we clocked about five miles a day just walking about the town and adjacent areas.
Monday there was bad news and good news. The bad news was that Beneteau in SC did not have a replacement in stock and would have to have it shipped from France. The good news was that late Monday Johnny met a fellow here at the marina who was refurbishing a power boat, and he had a piece of Lexan that would make a suitable substitute. The initial installation took place Tuesday, and as I type this, we are waiting for the final touches to complete the repair.
In one of those little twists that so often occur in this boat life, the weather outside here Saturday, Sunday and Momdaynwould have made it unlikely that we could have left before today no matter what, so the wait for,the repair hasn't caused any significant delay in our plans to be in Apalachicola by Easter. Funny how those things work out.