MIDORI ADVENTURES

Although we are not shovelling ourselves out of the driveway, this is the first morning in seven days where we are not wearing fleece jackets and warm hats! Although the water temperature has been around 75F, the air temperature has been in the mid 40’sF at night and the mid 60’sF during the day. A monohull would be surrounded by the warm water, but a catamaran has cool air flowing underneath the bridge deck!

We are on a mooring ball in Matanzas Bay between Estero Island and the mainland. The tidal current runs very swiftly here and this can create problems when the mooring ball has a long pennant. In our case, the mooring ball can go between the hulls and bump on the underside of the bridge deck and get awfully close to our two outboard motors, or scrape along the side of the hull.

In spite of the cool weather, we have been getting off the boat for our daily walks. This involves a dinghy ride into the dinghy dock which is not very big, often crowded and also subject to the current.

I have been doing daily exercises on the boat and my “runners knee” is slowly improving.

Although cool, it has been sunny, except for one day of cloud and rain. This is great because our two - 240 watt solar panels are providing all of our power needs on the boat. We have not used our Honda 2,000 generator at all, but it is good to have it for backup.

The mooring field is managed through the Matanzas Inn and Marina, but there is no real gathering place for cruisers. There is a separate building across the street where the laundry and two restrooms/showers are located. We have free WiFi near the office and a fresh water standpipe near the dinghy dock and upon request, a pump-out boat will come to the boat.

Before this cold snap, Brian and I were having fun exploring the different eateries for Happy Hour deals. We have found a few places where we can have drinks and food for under $20 for both of us and this is enough for dinner.

We have T.V. reception here and have found a few good stations for news and regular programs, but have a hard time keeping our eyes open after 9:00 p.m. It seems that the programs we like aren’t on until 10:00 p.m.!

We have been invited over to Don Hanson’s boat, RING OF FIRE, for Christmas dinner. He plans to do cornish hens on the BBQ and we will provide some side dishes. We can’t think of a better way to spend Christmas Day, when so far away from family!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

First Mate Lynn and Captain Brian