Day 79 - Sunday, 3-30-08 - Useppa Island Club, Pine Island Sound to Seafood Shack Marina, Cortez

With the Long Boat Pass Bridge beginning to fade in the distance, the crew of Last Dance was thankful for being near the end of a very trying day but read on....

The day started with high expectations of a comfortable and fast sail in the Gulf
to Marina Jack in Sarasota and a visit from Dave and Martha on the following day. We had a smooth departure from the Useppa Island Club and fell in line with a group of about 5-6 sailboats motoring north along the ICW. Like our intended route, they exited the ICW in Pine Island Sound at Boca Grande Pass but followed an unmarked channel near shore into the Gulf. Lacking sufficient local knowledge of the channel, we chose to follow the marked channel but were able to make our turn to the north short of the outer channel markers but west of the shoal area on the north side of the channel. We had already deployed our main and head sails in the Sound to benefit from the easterly winds, although we doused the head sail in the Channel since it was blanketed by the main. Once we made our turn to the north, we redeployed our head sail and motor sailed on a close reach.
Since the distance to Sarasota was in the range of 50 nm, somewhat larger than our daily average, Gerry and Roger decided to try to maintain a minimum boat speed of 6 kts. in order to reach our destination in a reasonable amount of time. Because of the moderate 8-12 kt. winds from the east, we motor-sailed. As we continued down the track to our intended passage to Sarasota Bay and the Marina through New Pass, the winds got lighter and backed, making it difficult to carry our sails. Later, the wind veered to the NW and actually increased in velocity, building short-period, 2-4' seas that slowed our progress. Thankfully, we were near the New Pass, so we would shortly be in Sarasota Bay... wrong!!

Gerry's and Roger's research had indicated that New Pass was an acceptable channel into Sarasota Bay, but Jean, reading of one of our sailing guides, cast some doubt on this conclusion. In order to resolve the issue, Roger placed phone calls to individuals at Marina Jack and Sea Tow, both of which confirmed that New Pass was a satisfactory channel for a sailboat with a 4 �' draft. Further, we observed a sailboat following the channel into the Pass some half mile in front of us. Following the channel markers we proceeded with a careful eye on the depth readings, only to run aground on a hard sandy shoal in the marked channel. With the 2'-3' seas pushing the boat toward the beach, some 500 yds. or more away, Roger raced forward, tipped the dinghy on edge and deployed the anchor. The anchor set immediately but the pitching of the boat from the waves caused the boat's keel to impact the hard sand sending fairly violent shutters up through the rigging. Thankfully, we had completed a careful inspection of the standing rigging and found it to be in excellent condition during the installation of what has been dubbed the "$600 mast head light." Once Roger returned to the cockpit, he found that Gerry was having some success maneuvering the boat under power, so the decision was to weigh the anchor and use engine power to propel the boat towards deeper water. Roger found that the anchor had set so well that it was very difficult to retrieve but was finally successful in retrieving it. Once this was accomplished the headsail was deployed as a means of heeling the boat, thus reducing its effective draft. At this point the waves were actually helpful because they would lift the boat allowing us to inch forward with each passing wave. Last Dance's bulb keel, as opposed to a fin keel, allowed us to basically inch forward in a series of sliding movements. A fin keel would have probably dug itself into the sand and there we would have been stuck. Relief came at last when Last Dance was again floating along her lines and moving forward under power and sail. Thankfully, neither Last Dance nor her crew seemed the worse for wear.

Still thinking that New Pass was actually passable, SeaTow was called with the request for an escort into the Bay. As we waited- in deep water- we observed the SeaTow boat coming across the channel, then it stopped and Sara received a call from its captain indicating that the Pass had changed dramatically over the past week and that he recommended that we divert to Longboat Pass about 6+ miles to the north. Although it was probably about 5:30 pm at the time and the seas and winds were against us, we had no choice but to proceed to Longboat Pass. Our progress was slow against the steep 2'-3' waves but our chart plotter predicted an arrival time of about 7:20 pm, 10 minutes or so before sunset. Luckily, the seas began to subside somewhat along our track permitting us to arrive at the outer Pass marker a little ahead of our predicted ETA.

As soon as we were within a reasonable distance of the bascule bridge over the Pass, Roger called the bridge tender and requested an opening. We continued to "steam" forward, arriving at the bridge just as it was in a fully open position. Once into Anna Marie Sound, our next challenge was to hopefully pass through the Cortez Bascule Bridge to the Seafood Shack Marina, just north of the Bridge. We had no assurances that the Cortez Bridge was tended because our sailing guide indicated that the Bridge closed at 6 pm and required a 3 hr. advance reservation for after-hours openings. Thankfully, the Bridge was tended and we passed through without delay and proceeded to our mooring at the Seafood Shack Marina. In spite of some mooring difficulties due to a strong wind from the south, the boat was secured and the crew was heading to the restaurant for a well deserved cocktail and seafood dinner by 8:15 pm. We were pleasantly surprised with the quality of the food and the service. While waiting for the food to be served, Gerry and Roger walked to Annie's Bait House to get a couple of bags of ice. The bar crowd there was colorful, to say the least.

Needless to say, it was an eventful day. As they settled in for the night, the crew members of Last Dance were thankful for escaping from the New Pass grounding and arriving safely at the Seafood Shack Marina. Even with the difficulties encountered, we managed to travel over 63 nm at an average of 5.4 kts. In retrospect, in spite of all our due diligence, it was probably not sound judgment to attempt to use a pass as subject to change as New Pass can be. This is a lesson well learned! (RKS)