Early Rise
March 5, 2011
The power was off this morning and the marina had an eerie presence in the pre-dawn. Only little solar lights used for ambience aboard some boats could be seen. There were no slapping halyards even in the 20 knot wind and that speaks to the level of care cruisers display. Slapping halyards are destructive to both the line and the mast over time. Some have referenced the “music” of harbors where halyards slap but it is an irritation to those trying to sleep aboard.
I sat in the dark of the cockpit still barely believing we are here yet I caught myself thinking about the return to the good old USA. We will find a harbor and park Why Knot for a few weeks for a visit home. April is always a great time to be in the Hill Country and we look forward to enjoying it. We do not yet know where Why Knot will rest but we will tuck her in somewhere in Florida. Phase IV will begin when we come back and start north again. We hope to sail at least to Boston or beyond this spring and summer before hiding from hurricane season. The new ground for us is north of Charleston. There are several ports between here and there but we will expedite our movements until we get there.
So what’s on tap between now and first of April? We will have some guests arriving on the 20th after which we will start working our way back to West End. That will allow us to leisurely visit several cays and harbors on the way back. We would like to do more anchoring on the return.