Miami Vices

Jan 29-30
The last three nights we have been anchored at Dinner Key, which is the largest marina in Miami and I think in all of Florida. It’s big. The anchorage is huge as well with lots of boats here with liveaboards. And judging by the stuff growing on them they’ve been here quite a while. We are able to dinghy to shore and access some stores in walking distance and hop on various transit in this area of Miami called Coconut Grove. The other day Christopher was waiting on shore while I messed around with something at the dinghy dock. When I returned he was talking to a gentleman who asked if he could offer Christopher a drink from a fresh coconut. The man then cut open the end, cleaned out the hole and gave it to Christopher. “Mmmm, tasty good!” was his response. He and I split it and we were surprised how much was in it. It took a while to drink the whole thing. The gentleman then opened one for himself before heading off to try to make a few dollars helping someone with their boat. This was one of the friendliest homeless people we have met.

We’ve been taking this time to get some shopping done, do laundry and get to know the area. Of course one of the benefits of this spot is that the way to get downtown is by rail! And the local area bus is only $0.25. Can’t beat that! We also picked up a new mode of transport – an inflatable kayak. This will help us be more flexible so that one of us can leave the boat to go ashore without leaving the others stranded out there. It will also be a great way to get a different kind of exercise going. Our main destination today was the Museum of History of Southern Florida in Downtown Miami. It was very interesting especially after being here for a couple of weeks now. Some of the exhibits were interactive like the puzzle on the wall Christopher is working on in the picture. As we cruised back to Tiffany Rose this afternoon we were treated to dozens of expert windsurfers tacking back and forth around us. They were headed in from Biscayne Bay from a large international race. This week we have seen tons of different small sailboats headed out to race. It is a week of the Olympic Class Regatta. A number of boats are here from Canada. We haven’t met any of the racers but we met one set of parents here from Nova Scotia whose son is in on the team. They are anchored in their boat a few hundred meters from us. This really is a hot spot for sailing. We hope to get out on the Bay some more and enjoy these crystal clear waters. Tonight we are being tossed around as the boat creeks and groans on her anchor under the erratic pressures of a strong northern wind bringing another cold front in.

Two glorious days of sailing on Biscayne Bay, Jan 26-27

Yesterday we did end up hiking down the key to the beach on Key Biscayne. This beach is different than the others we’ve visited on our way south. Most have had a fairly boisterous surf. This beach had gentle waves coming in and it felt like you could walk forever out into the Atlantic and only be in water up to your knees. It was a very Christopher friendly beach.
Late afternoon we continued our hike into the village of Key Biscayne, a very pretty village. At the grocery store we ran into some boaters who keep their boat year-round at the marina and they offered to drive us back. A much appreciated offer as by then we had walked close to 5 km. and were looking for the bus schedule to figure out when we’d get back to Tiffany Rose.
Monday morning we left the mooring ball, and after pumping out and filling up with water at the marina dock, we headed south on Biscayne Bay. We headed out the Cape Florida Channel then turned around and came back into the bay by the Biscayne Channel passing Stiltsville which is a row of house high up on pilings in the bay (see picture). We put the sails up, turned the motor off and headed south.
It was great weather, much warmer than our sail last Thursday and we enjoyed sailing on a beam reach all the way to Elliot Key - part of Biscayne National Park. It is too shallow close to the key so we anchored a fair distance out in the Bay. Another Canadian boat was anchoring at the same time we were. With binoculars we couldn’t see who they were but they radioed us to see how deep the water was where we were and it turned out to be Sharon and Richard (from near Orangeville) who we’d met on the bus on Saturday. The world continues to get smaller. The water was super clear there and Dave snorkeled in to explore the bottom.
It was a windy night so it sort of felt like sleeping in a swinging hammock. This morning we put the motor on the dinghy and went over to Sharon and Richard’s boat Lucky for coffee and to hear their stories. They’ve been sailing the south for many years so it was good to get their perspectives on places they’ve been.
Then we were back to Tiffany Rose, got everything ship shape, and set off north again. The wind was friskier today than yesterday, it felt a little warmer and we had a great sail back up to Key Biscayne. It was quite exhilarating! Even though we anchored just off the western shore instead of returning to Crandon Park, Christopher recognized the area from yesterday, enough to say “Home Sweet Home” as we were pulling into the anchorage.
We are really enjoying this area south of Miami and are torn between wanting to go explore all of the Keys and wanting to make the trip across the stream to the Bahamas. Experienced cruisers tell us “it’s better in the Bahamas” but this is all so new to us that we are just thrilled to be doing what we are doing. So we continue to listen to the weather and make our travel plans one day at a time.

Exploring Key Biscayne and Miami

Friday to Sunday, January 23 – 25th, 2009

On Friday morning, we phoned Crandon Park on Key Biscayne and found that they had a mooring ball available so we pulled up the anchor and headed south of the city to Key Biscayne. We had heard that the beach there was nice but also that you could easily bus into downtown from there.
We found the mooring ball field at Crandon to be very different from the one at Vero beach. Most of the boats moored here seem to be local and of the 60 moorings here we are one of only maybe three boats that have people on them. The sunsets as we look out over Biscayne Bay are spectacular.
Friday afternoon we explored Crandon Park and the beach possibilities. Saturday we took the bus into the big city. On the bus we met a couple, Sharon and Richard, from just south of Orangeville who are here on a boat as well. Once there we found there is a free monorail that takes you around the downtown. That was a fun trip for Christopher. He was able to stand at the front of the car and video as we toured around high up on the rail. We got off at the Bayside Park where we could watch boats coming in, and enjoy a somewhat carnival like atmosphere with live music, kiddie rides etc. There is a marathon happening there today so there was a lot of event preparation going on.
Today we have set aside as our beach day, so we’ll pack up, row the dinghy to shore and hike on down there.

So…..we do have a sailboat after all! To Miami Jan 22

We’ve enjoyed our trip on the Intracoastal Waterway - the 1065 miles since Norfolk, but the one thing most sailboat cruisers will tell you is the most frustrating is the amount of motoring you do. Recently ‘sailing’ has meant that maybe we rolled the jib out for a bit to help the motor along but that motor has been a constant companion ( and we’re glad it is too, don’t want to offend our reliable friend.)
So this morning we headed down the New River in Fort Lauderdale (before the Jungle Queen started her day) looking forward to letting Tiffany Rose stretch her sails on an ocean run down to Miami. Of course, we couldn’t leave the harbour without a little excitement. Just before we headed out the inlet at Port Everglades, we turned into the wind to put the mainsail up. We are well aware that you can’t go near a cruise ship while it’s moving and we had noticed one but it was sitting at the dock. No sooner had Dave gone up to the mast and I had start pulling on the halyard did the ship let off one big whistle. We thought we could finish what we were doing because it only takes a minute but there was the Sheriff boat racing toward us and yelling to get out of the way and go back up the channel right now, toward the bridge we had just come through. So there we were motoring around in circles by the bridge with an ‘almost up’ baggy sail. The ship was away from dock and out the inlet in no time though, and we continued on.
We got out passed the markers in the inlet, turned south,, unfurled the jib and……..turned the motor off! Ahhhhhh! Finally! (Not that we don’t like the motor, our reliable friend, just thought it would enjoy the free ride as well.) The day was beautiful, sunny although a bit chilly, the wind was from the west and the waves were small. We were able to sail on a reach the whole way. We felt like we arrived at Miami sooner than we were ready to. Dave and I would take turns at the helm as we approached the Government Cut at Miami, for ‘just another couple of minutes before we head in’. Then another couple, then another. Finally we turned the motor on (did I mention it is our reliable friend?) and brought the sails in and motored in toward the city. We planned to anchor in the shelter of some islands between the MacArthur and Venetian Causeways. When we got to the spot we had in mind we were surprised and pleased to see Myosotis, the boat we had rafted with at Vero Beach already there.
We have no internet connection as I’m writing this. When we do manage to post it we hope we can add some pictures and maybe a video too.

Downtown in the "Venice" of America Jan 18-21

After being advised by the police that we could not anchor more than a day anywhere in the city limits we upped our anchor in the morning and said goodbye to the Middle River and hello to the New River. This is the main river that goes through the heart of the city and is lined with canals. We wanted to stay a bit longer here so we opted for a marina. To our delight the city marina on the New River was only 90 cents a foot with our BoatUS discount. That came out to be less than the mooring ball at the other marina. The trick was getting there. The marina was a ways up the river and as we started up we realized it was not a casual ride up the river. It is narrow, very winding, and has a swift current as the tides turn. But most concerning was the mega yacht traffic. After all this is the yachting capital of the world and there is no short supply a crazy sized craft. Our 34’ is very tiny here. As we made our way along these larger-than-life boats would be coming downstram towards us taking up most of the space. My grip on the wheel would tighten in proportion to the proximity of the others and it would go into full iron grip at some wild corners. These guys take the corners in a skidding manoever throwing their stern over to our side. We would watch as they would maddly spin their steering wheels compensating for the sliding motion, while I would feel my lips dry and crack as I held our course. And then we had to wait for bridge to open with the tourboat “Jungle Queen” breathing down our back. We heard it coming on the radio and when we turned to look, we had to look up. Gulp – get the bridge open please! As soon as we popped though the bridge we slid over to the wall and tied up at our docking spot. Phew! You can see in the picture the scale of Tiffany Rose, the little sailboat tied up to the right of the bridge, and the other boats of larger proportions. This unplanned stop has proven to be a very good one. We are right downtown tied up along the beautiful Riverwalk - a redbrick landscaped pathway along the river. Nearby is the upscale Las Olas blvd with all its glamour, a short shuttle ride to the beach, a short walk to the grocery store and best of all a train track within sight! In our four days here we’ve taken advantage of it all. We even went out to a night spot with live music, beer and chocolate milk for Christopher. He was groovin’ with the tunes when they played good ones! We’ve also taken this time to stockpile some food should we decide to cross to the Bahamas soon. Not sure if we will since there are other places we want to go as well, but it is good to be ready.

Ft Lauderdale - where we learned to go to sea! Jan 16

As expected the trip into Ft Lauderdale was bridge after bridge. We felt lucky as a couple of attendants held them for a minute or so for us, which prevented a half hour of circling and waiting each time. And since the weather wasn’t great and it was a weekday there wasn’t a lot of traffic to bounce us around between the concrete walls. Christopher had the job of working out the math to determine the number of bridges left a we progressed. Lots of equations to figure. We ended up anchoring in the Middle River in the city surrounded by fancy homes with moored mega yachts. The most interesting thing for us here is that just up stream a few metres is the BlueWater Sailing School where Shirley and I took our course last January – exactly a year ago to the day. It was a bit surreal to stand there beside the boat we took our course on, when we were just learning how to do this stuff, and here we are a year later having travelled over 1,900 water miles to get here. We even had the opportunity to meet with Captain Ted Wheeler, our course instructor – he’s in the picture with us. I guess he did a good job ‘cause here we are! On the way back to our boat the police boat came by to inform us that the city has a 24 hr anchoring limit, which means we are already over the limit and will have to go elsewhere tomorrow.

Beyond Vero Beach

We cut ties early in the morning with Bill and Jeannette on Myosotis – our rafted buddies on the mooring ball. Here is a picture Jeannette took of us “dancing in the moonlight”!

After a cleansing pump out of the holding tanks and a refill of the water tanks we started back doen the Indian River. Christopher was excited to be on the go again and with the straightforward route and a fair wind we let out the our forsail and motor sailed happily along. Felt good to have wind in the sail for the first time in ’09 and it helped keep our speed up. We expected to have many boats on the water but we didn’t see many at all.
Our destination was an anchorage in Manatee Pocket near Stuart, Fl. This is a well protected area lined with marinas and huge sport fishing boats. We can feel the cold front coming in. Going down to about 50 degrees F tonight. Brrrrr.

Thursday we were up with the sun and headed on through areas lined with excessive opulence contrasted with wildlife sanctuary zones, often across the waterway from each other. As we approach the more southern areas the number of bridges increases. These bridges often require a bit of fancy dancing and timing. Some are restricted and open at set intervals, others open when asked, politely of course. This combined with brisk winds, significant currents and boats that can leave ocean size wakes make waiting and jockying around the bridges a mouth drying challenge. And these things all open at different speeds. We had a near infraction of the mast cracking type when I approached the opening spans a little too soon, anticipating that they were opening faster and I started to let the river’s speed take us through. With our eyes wide open and shut tight at the same time we squeeked through the very centre. And this is the warm up for our thrust into Fort Lauderdale which amplifies this by having concrete walls lining the channel to happily bounce the waves back and forth creating a kind of perpetual wake machine. Woo-hoo! Tonight we dropped anchor at Lantana, south of Palm Beach. Couldn’t get a good enough internet connection here. I was out in the dark dangling our connector right off the bow to grab an airwave or two and got enough to send grandma and grandpa a quick note to let them know where we were. Then the wind would shift…

They call it Velcro Beach

Monday, January 12, 2009

We had heard that some people call Vero Beach Velcro Beach because people arrive and don't leave. When we arrived on Thursday our plan was to leave on Saturday. Well, it's Monday and here we are! With the free bus service, beach etc it is very easy to stay. We also have tried twice to view trains that we can hear from our mooring. The bus transfer station is right at the track crossing and also has a nice park/playground. In our two ventures we have been unsuccessful at tracking down a live train, so we will have to be satisified to hearing their calls off in the wilderness. We had our first overboard casualty the other day. As Dave was getting into the dinghy he had the handheld VHF radio clipped to his belt. One wrong move and splish-splash there it goes. We tried to retrieve it with the big magmet but there is not enough metal in it. We were in a hurry to get to the beach to snorkel so didn't dive in (is that ironic?). Later at the West Marine store we cashed in a pile of coupons and ended up paying only $2.00 for the same radio. Not bad. Lesson learned. Dave tried diving for it later because he found out the warranty may cover submersion damage. Our location had shifted a bit so no luck.

Reef-er Madness Jan 9

Today was the day to see what this place Vero Beach was all about. There is a bus service that will take to all over – for free! How about that?! But today we bypassed this great service and walked the mile or so to the beach. It was a fine looking beach but the wind had a chill in it. From up on a boardwalk we noticed that the turquoise water was interrupted by darker bands. When we asked about that at the lifeguard station he explained that this is an area of coral reefs – cool. Just then we saw a manatee swimming in the surf close to shore. One of the off duty lifeguards bolted in with his mask and fins trying to get a manatee ride but it eluded him. We couldn’t miss out on this first chance to snorkel so I ran all the way back to the marina, hopped in the dinghy and brought back our stuff. We spent the rest of the afternoon hovering around the coral looking at the life there. It was quite wavy and Christopher’s ever developing capacity to hold his breath at the right time prevented him from coming all the way out. He came out part way and got his face in the water for a look a couple of times. Not sure what he saw in those moments but he hasn’t stopped talking about seeing the bottom of the ocean just like in the book he received from his

On to Vero Beach

For the first time in 2009 we woke up in the dark to be ready to cast off at sunrise. With goodbye waves to the marina and manatees and a couple of folks who were up early as well we tip toed out through the shallow Eau Gallie channel. A perfect day to head off. Light winds and full sun. The engine was purring (as if a diesel can purr) and we gradually got into the swing of being mindful of the markers while keeping an eye on the depth sounder. As the morning went on the broad expanse of the Indian River Lagoon transformed into a beautiful winding waterway edged with mangroves and spectacular home properties while dolphins danced in the sparkles. Just after lunch we pulled into the channel for the Vero Beach City marina and hooked on to a mooring ball there. Actually we hooked on to another boat. This is a very popular spot and the substantial mooring area seems to be always full. So we are sharing a mooring with Jenette and Bill on Myosotis. We have never rafted up like this before and when we arrived they were away from their boat. So we gingerly and nervously pulled up beside their boat and got a line or two attached. Then we spent the next while figuring out how to properly attach ourselves. We did the best we could and then went out to explore the area. When we returned Bill and Jennette were there to great us and they had wisely adjusted the lines and fenders to make the situation more secure for us both. That evening we found ourselves dancing on the foredeck to the sound of live music be plunked away at a neighbouring boat. No internet access here so we scramble around with the laptop to find a connection somewhere.It will be sporadic.

Finally leaving Eau Gallie Jan 8

Since we had paid for our dock up until January 9th we spent that time taking advantage of our location and people there. Mr. Manatee let us take a better picture of him. We rented a car one day and had a fabulous hot day at the beach. The breakers were coming in with gusto and we quickly threw our bodies into them. I find that my streamlined hairline allows me to cut through the water very nicely allowing for superb body surfing. Christopher found the waves a bit overwhelming but he was brave at jumping in them if they didn’t crash up to his face. During these days we also got some final preparations done to get out on the water again – first time in a month. It was amazing how anxious we were about leaving the dock. A couple of the live aboard boaters sat down with us to share their knowledge about going further south. These guys have really been around out there so it was fun and insightful to hear what they had to share. Now we are excited to move on. Before we left we also got to re-meet some of the others from a couple of boats who had headed home for the holidays. It almost seemed like we were greeting old friends when really we had only known them for a day or so. Wonder if we’ll see them again in our travels.

There and Back Again

Another great on-time flight and poof! we are back in the sun and warmth being rocked gently to sleep aboard Tiffany Rose. It was a relief to step aboard and see that everything was in order after leaving the boat alone for two weeks. We had a rental car from the airport and took advantage of it to stock up on groceries. Before we turned it in the next morning we headed to the beach. It was sunny and warm and fairly busy with people getting in their last holiday frolic before heading back to colder zones for work or school. We will spend most of the week here partly working on things to get ready to head further south and to just relax while the weather is this good. We got lucky on one of our repairs. Back in November our auto pilot stopped working. When we figured out which part was at fault the company told us they no longer make or service this model - sorry. The best option seemed to be to rip out the whole thing and put in a new one for $1,600 and lots of work. Luckily while at home over the holidays I searched out a compatible part on EBAY for $200 and ordered it. And like magic it was here at the marina waiting when we arrived. After a bit of fanagaling and borrowing a large hole saw from someone who lives aboard here, this compatible control head was installed and working. Good to have an expensive and long job turn into a less expensive and easier job. Hope it lasts!

We are also revamping our 'stored away" stuff. We are taking the risk of taking out all our summer wear and putting away most of our cold weather things....hope it lasts!

There's no place like home for the holidays

We had a great flight home. Christopher was very excited since it was his first time on an airplane - and he let everyone he saw along the way know. We were lucky with our flight arriving on time which was followed the next day by a big storm and tons of flight cancellations everywhere. It was great to see all the family and in a short time it seemed like we had never left. Funny how three intense months can dissolve in a flash. It didn't seem like our bodies were ready though as we wimpered a bit at the toboggan hill with a stiff cold wind. Grandma and Grandpa were wonderful to have us stay with them for the visit. The two weeks home were quite a whirlwind with doctor appointments, visiting our tenants at our house, getting Christmas shopping in, having Christmas, recovering a bit, then New Years. So after a number of snows and thaws it is time to fly back south to our floating home to begin part ll of our journey.

Merry Christmas to all!

We will be flying out soon for a two week Christmas at home, staying with grandma and grandpa in Burlington. Thanks everyone for your thoughts and wishes throughout this first major leg of our journey. Here is a musical wish from Christopher!

Wild times by the water

Now that we are further south we have come across some new friends that deserve some blog time. Seems like each day we are fascinated by the rich wildlife on and around the water. Now that we have some relaxed time

here in Eau Gallie we were able to row the dinghy up the shallow Eau Gallie river a bit to see who lives here. Getting pictures of some of these locals is much harder with our little HP camera. Sure wish I had my sister's camera! As you will notice in the fine picture of the manatee's nose, the shutter delay doesn't allow for catching the great shot as it happens. We were hoping to see a gator but no luck this time. The white bird is an Ibis - beautiful to watch as they fly around in formation. The pelicans are amazing as they continually plunge head first into the water after the fish. And then when they are successful it is entertaining to watch them wrestle with the fish to make sure it goes down right. The sandpipers at the beach are hillarious to watch as they scurry like little cartoon characters avoiding the waves as they wash up on shore. The dolphins are everywhere now, but still hard to capture. Below is a video we tried as a few of them came up to the boat.

Tied up in Eau Gallie

December 8 - 10

We left Daytona with the thought that we could make it to Eau Gallie in 2 days. It is the destination that really would mark 'Part 1 of the Adventure' for us. That is because we are fortunate enough to be able to return home for a couple of weeks to spend Christmas with family (and attend a few medical appointments). Dave had done his research and found a marina there that seemed like the perfect spot to leave Tiffany Rose. We wanted to get there with enough time to do a good size list of boat chores before we leave, and before some unsettled weather that is forecast for later in the week.

So we headed south from Daytona passing the Ponce de Leon Inlet which we had read might be a challenge as far as having enough water depth, but all was fine. We travelled through Mosquito Lagoon and then through the Haulover Canal where we had heard and read that manatees were often seen. Dave was up front with the camera and we were sure that we saw the round back of a manatee until a dolphin showed itself close by, then we weren't sure.

We anchored at Titusville and after Christopher sighted a train going by on land we got the motor on the dingy and headed in to the marina. We ran into a number of people that we had met along the way. John and Karen from Brockville had decided to leave their boat there to travel home for the holidays and two of the Port Stanley boats had stopped there to provision and get ready to head offshore to the Bahamas soon. We did hang out at the tracks for awhile but with the darkness arriving earlier every day we had to head back without any up close train sightings.

We weighed anchor the next morning feeling that this was a significant day. Providing that all went well and we made it to our destination, it would mark the end of this last three months of travelling south, which has been quite an experience for all of us. After anchoring for five days we needed to pump out the holding tank and so we headed in to the Titusville marina first thing to do that. That meant docking at an unfamiliar dock which always gets our pulse rate up a little. That went smoothly and we headed on our way.

I'm sure we've mentioned more than once that this trip south has felt temperature wise more like a trip north. So that morning when we had awoken to warm temperatures, we had opened the hatch in the v berth, something we hadn't done in all the cold weather we'd been having. So........ what had been a well established routine in the summer of always closing the hatches before getting underway, was forgotten seeing as this was not routine for us to have opened a hatch. Later the same day.................. a large power cruiser passed us leaving a larger than normal wake. I angled into their waves, but they were large and the bow dipped down and the waves came over the bow and then I saw the look of 'Yikes!' on Dave's face as he remembered that the hatch was open. Did I mention that the v berth is Dave and my bedroom? Sigh.........now completely soaked with saltwater.

After we each took turns trying to mop up and somewhat salvage things we tried to philosophize with forced cheerfulness that this was probably a good lesson and how fortunate that this happened on a day where we were going to a marina and so the clean up would be somewhat easier (laundry,etc.) than if we were at anchor.

Before we got to the marina we needed to stop for fuel so we started looking for a spot that had fuel. The first place we contacted was waiting for a delivery of fuel so no go there. The one we found we meant a short trip up the Banana River, again wondering on approach what this dock would be like. The first glimpse brought a "You expect us to tuck in there?" reaction but as we got closer there was plenty of room, the only really unnerving part was that the marina man undid our dock lines and cast us off before we had started the engine. Thankfully it did start in a timely manner and we were off to our new temporary home.

We got hold of Steve the manager by cell phone who told us what side to have lines ready etc, then headed up the channel into Eau Gallie. When we saw him gesturing where to turn we both misunderstood and thought he wanted us to tie up there and it did not look good. When we got to the spot we realized the spot was really the entrance to a row of docks. Steve was then gesturing to us to turn into a particular slip, which Dave did perfectly I must say until we came to a complete stop part way into the slip because we were sitting on the ground. There was some discussion then about what to do as this was the only slip available and couldn't we just plough through the mud, but no, with a wing keel we couldn't, etc. So then Steve said if we could back out he'd double us up with another boat in deeper water. We weren't sure what that meant or if we could back out, but soon Steve had moved back up the row and was gesturing by a space on a dock. This meant that after Dave managed to inch us back out of the too shallow slip he then had to back all the way down this row with not a lot of space a maneuver up to the dock. Anyone who spends time around sailboats knows that backing up in tight situations is not something that sailboats are designed to do particularly well. I must say that if I were Dave I would have been hyperventilating and whining "I can't do this' and wishing for some magic force to beam me out of there. But he backed us down the row with a wide eyed "I can't believe that I'm doing this" look on his face, but did a great job, as I sprinted back and forth from one side to the other as it was not clear at all with which side we would be approaching the dock. Eventually the prop walk made that decision for us (the tendency of a boat to turn one way in reverse) and we tied up with the help of Steve and two other boaters who had arrived a day earlier. Doubling up meant that we are blocking the exit of a slip holder who apparently does not go out very often. Christopher turned off the engine with ceremonial pronouncements of it being the last 'turn off the engine' of 2008.

Now that we are safely tied up it is a nice spot. It is more a marina that is associated with a condominium, where there are a few boats who have come to stay for a few weeks like us, then there are a group of liveaboard boaters (people who live full time on their boats), then the rest of the slips are rented out to people in the condominium or local residents. It is not really a place where people come in for one night while travelling. The other boaters tell us that it is a good hurricane hole, meaning that it is well sheltered for bad weather. There are manatees in the water by the boats!

Today was the last day for the forecast of nice Florida like weather so we put off boat chores (except for numerous loads of laundry when the machine is free) and went to the beach. We actually dug out our bathing suits for the first time and played in the waves. Seeing as we are staying put for awhile and it is the Christmas season, and we have electricity, Dave put up a string of Christmas lights on Tiffany Rose. Some boats are very decorated.

We are still in the " Wow, I can't believe we made it here from Ontario" phase. We are here until we fly home on the morning of the 18th. It will be Christopher's first time on an airplane. We return on January 2nd and hope to move on to the Keys for a bit before going to the Bahamas.

50 Is Happening Here

We decided to enjoy some of the warmer weather and hang out here in Daytona Beach for a couple of days. And it so happens that I turn 50 here. The idea for this family adventure started to bubble around more than a year and a half ago – before Shirley or I had learned anything about sailing. Turning 50 is somewhat significant in the grand scheme of life, if you are inclined to keep score at all, and this voyage was in part a way for us to celebrate this. And boy, is it working! As we walked along the beach today, amongst the cars driving along, Shirley and I were commenting on how good an idea this has been. Christopher seems to be thriving on many aspects of the trip and we are feeling very alive being kept on our toes everyday by the twists and turns that adventures are. So to celebrate we went out to the Aquarium Restaurant, which was right by the dock. Now the dock in itself has been its own adventure. And dinghy docks, by definition, are not supposed to be adventurous. We tie up to the ladder here and look way up to the dock, while the current is trying to push the dinghy underneath. Good thing we have had a ladder in the barn all these years for Christopher to practice. With ample spotting we make it to the top with our stuff and then it is a dash along the very skinny dock, somewhat like a gymnastic balance beam routine. Fortunately not 40 ft away is the on-deck bar! Complete with 2 for 1 happy hour underway. Which is what we did. The restaurant itself was fun being all decorated and lit up like an aquarium, even in the restrooms. After dinner some new friends we met, Larry and Karen, who live here in Daytona Beach treated us to further drinks on the deck. As usual, the people we meet along the way are a large part of the wonder of this journey. By the end of the day it is affirmed that turning 50 is good.

A surprise in Daytona Beach Dec 5

Throughout this journey there are times when we miss people and events from back home. The Santa Claus Parade in Orangeville is one of those. Christopher has faithfully marked it on the calendar each year and has his favourite spot along the road that he likes to view from. A couple of weeks ago Willie Brown left a note on our blog commenting on how Christopher’s spot on the parade route was empty this year. So here we are, anchoring off the shore of downtown Daytona Beach in the Halifax River. Our dinghy took us to shore for some initial reconnaissance and immediately we noticed a banner exclaiming that the parade was tonight! Bonus! So we checked out a few more things in town and headed back to the boat for supper. And then, in the cover of darkness Sea Jay ll (our dinghy) took us back downtown. You could feel Christopher’s anticipatory excitement. We walked by the Firehall and it was all abuzz with a bubble machine, decorations and trucks ready to be in the parade. The street was lined with crowds of people, music was playing and choir getting ready. It was all very energized. The only odd part was that the trees were palms and people were in T-shirts and flip flops! Not often the sight in Orangeville at the end of November. But we were not there to complain about the warm weather – Santa contradiction we were experiencing. The parade began and it was all we hoped for. Not a big city glitzy parade, but more of a small town, small budget parade, with kids marching and shouting school slogans. Of course being in Daytona Beach there were a few noisy race cars and motorcycles in the mix. Santa, of course, provided the finale for the parade and that was all that was really important. So once again unexpected and unplanned events on our trip provide a great, memorable experience.

More History - Dec 4

St Augustine to Matanzas Inlet - Dec 4

With a short travel day ahead we weighed anchor in time to go through the 8:00 am lift bridge in St Augustine. On the other side we stopped for fuel and a pump out. They do it right here. Pump outs are free in an effort to keep the water cleaner. Some places, especially in North Carolina, it was hard to find a pump out and when you did they wanted $15. I don’t think I’d want to swim in those rivers. Our journey today was only 15 miles and the sun was shining and the wind was light. That meant peeling off the layers and letting some skin show, even on the water. Our new anchorage was on the Matanzas River just beside Fort Matanzas. More history! This is an interesting spot. To get to the fort we had to dinghy past it, go to the national park visitor centre and beach the dinghy there. Then we got on a small ferryboat that took us back across the river to the fort. An interpretive guide in full costume accompanied us and filled us in on the life and times of this small fort. It’s main purpose was to guard the back route into St Augustine. Its name, matanzas means massacre referring to the Spanish massacre of French soldiers in 1565. Brutal times. Our guide provided some information that helped better explain some of Christopher’s boat schooling unit on Florida as well. The visitor centre had a fine nature trail so once again we got our walking exercise amongst the ever more tropical flora and fauna. And all this was free – hooray for the National Park Service! We are getting good at finding the free stuff as it is often better than the places with admission charges and they fit much better into the travel budget – especially with the Canadian dollar in the slumps. Speaking of the dollar, we saw a wintering loon here in the river today. Not sure if it recognized us but it didn’t disappear when we dinghied right by it. We have also seen many turkey vultures, some of which I am sure have circled over our Mono Centre home. Could be a good way to send messages home in the spring…

St Augustine Dec 2-3

Historical St Augustine – Dec 2
Our next port of call was St Augustine. We were warned about very busy anchorages in fast current with poor holding for the anchors. We arrived just after lunch and were lucky to find a good spot to drop the anchor, with a stiff wind blowing. We hung around on the boat for a while to watch what the wind and current would do. When all seemed well we once again piled into the dinghy and docked over at the municipal marina. They charge $10/day to dock and you get use of the showers, laundry etc. Everything about St Augustine is historical. It claims to be the oldest settlement in the country dating back to 1565, which Christopher knew already from the boat schooling unit he had started on Florida. The architecture is fabulous and every other building seems to be a significant something. And you could pay to go into almost anywhere. An impressive fort with moat guards the entrance to the city and we watched one of our fellow boaters come in as we sat by the walls, with the cannons aimed at them. We took a very long walk to a grocery store and grabbed a cab back. Our driver was great and took us on a bit of a tour. She was a younger women and told us she is a descendant of some of the original settlers – the Minorcan’s (from Minorca in the Mediteranean, owned by Spain). That was quite interesting. At the marina there was a mini golf course, which we were told was also somewhat historical since it was still the original, well maintained, course built in 1949. Christopher was quick to point out to the attendant that it was built the same year as our house in Mono Centre. We’ll be offering tours after we return home…
One really nice part of town is the old narrow streets that have been closed to traffic and are open to pedestrians. Most of the shops are housed in the old original buildings providing a wonderful atmosphere for wandering around.

December 3 today. My brother (way older brother) Steve’s birthday - #52!! Happy Birthday bro!

Kingsley Plantation, Fort George River Dec 1

December already!? Things are zipping by!

We headed out from Fernandina Beach around 9am and continued down the waterway. We passed many saltwater marshes as we had seen in Georgia and started to see more land with trees. Everything is very flat here as it has been for many miles. Not much elevation at in through most of Florida. By early afternoon we reached the Fort George River where we would anchor for the night. After settling the boat in its spot, you can see it in the picture, and having lunch we were visited by the crews of the boats Mary Lee and Tropical Breeze who told us of the interesting spot to visit ashore. We loaded into the dinghy and headed towards the state park dock just a couple of hundred meters away. As part of the Fort George Island Cultural State Park we landed at the Kingsley Plantation National Park. This was a really interesting place to walk around. It is the site of an old plantation, first Indigo for the blue dye and then cotton. Much of the interpretive information was on the use of slaves during that time period. What a different world that was when people owned the rights to other people and totally controlled what they could and could not do. Working 14-16 hours a day for someone else with no benefit to yourself. And that was the way fortunes were made. What would they think of the newly elected President of the USA? What a change!

I saw cotton and I saw black

Tall white mansions and little shacks

Southern man when will you pay them back?

Neil Young - from the song Southern Man

This more southerly environment was also evident on this island. Our wanderings found us face to face with a couple of armadillos! Cool! I always thought they were slow moving but these things bounded off like mini armoured kangaroos! Hard to get a good picture but here is the best one we could get.

Beach Bummin'

This has been a nice break to be here in Fernandina Beach. On Saturday we spent the day walking across the island (Amelia Island) to the beach side. The weather cooperated and we had fun exploring the beach. Some people were swimming but we mostly strolled, until we plunked down and had a nap! On the walk back we went through Egan Creek park, which is a beautiful natural area. Saw a turtle or two but no 'gators. We'll keep looking.

In the evening we had Jock from Unleaded and Don and Maj-Lis from Blue Blazer over to the boat. Jock brought some fresh shrimp that we quickly boiled up. We also picked up some boiled peanuts - a southern treat. We've seen them everywhere but hadn't tried them yet. They were pretty good too. There is a great fresh fish store right on the water here so we have been having something from there every day. The shrimp, swordfish and grouper have all been mmmm!

Today has been rather stormy. Laundry was done and then we got soaked coming back. So inside some good boat schooling went on and we even had a quiet family reading time. A very rare event so far. Hopefully more to come.

To Florida, to Florida, got to get to Florida

Nov 25-28, Georgia to Florida
We're here in Fernandina Beach, Florida. It is only 2 miles from the border of Georgia, but we have that "I can't believe we made it here" feeling.
Tuesday, the day we left Walberg Creek in Georgia,was one of timing our travels to the tides. The waterway in Georgia is known for some very shallow water, and while our keel is not as deep as some boats, because it is a wing keel, if we do run aground we can't power off the way you can with a fin shaped keel so we are almost as fearful of the shallow water as the deep draft boats. Our route that day had two sections where the water at low tide would mean trouble for us. One was early on and the next was in about thirty miles. High tide was around daybreak so that was great for the early trouble spot but that had us arriving at the next trouble spot almost at low tide. Just before we were to head into the shallow area, a power boat that had been anchored in the same spot as us the last couple of nights, went on and was kind enough to radio back to us the depths they were finding. That helped us decide to turn off and anchor in the mouth of a nearby river, have lunch, do some boat schooling, have a wee nap, then with a couple hours of daylight left, we pulled up the anchor and travelled the last fifteen miles of our route with plenty of water. We anchored for the night in a creek called Wally's Leg, once again nearby our power boat guardian angel.
On Wednesday, our destination was Jekyll Island, which was only 20 miles away, but again would not be accessible according to the guidebooks if we arrived at low tide. So another early start had us arriving at our destination mid morning. We pulled into the marina there only to find half the "Canadian Fleet", a group of seven boats from Port Stanley, Ontario. We had met some of them a few times on the way so it was nice to see familiar faces. We wanted to take advantage of the day there, so we headed out to explore as soon as we could. Just before we headed out we did check the internet and were really surprised to find a note on the blog comments from Lynn Gerrard who said she had just returned from a vacation on Jekyll Island. Wow! How surprised we would have been if we had been there a week or so earlier and run into her. We hiked to the other side of the island so we could explore the beach. Great shells and some facinating formations in the sand formed by the tides that kept Christopher's attention for quite a while.
We were torn between staying longer on Jekyll Island and feeling the pull of Florida being so close. I think the cold weather of the past while and some really long days made us feel if we could just get to Florida we'd be warmer (even though we knew they had been having the same weather). I think it was the psychological pull of being able to say "we're here now, now we can rest for a day or two" that got us going early Thanksgiving morning. Leaving the dock was a trick. We had large boats close in front of us and behind us on the long dock and a swift current going by. Dave and I were discussing all our options for maneuvering out of there unscathed when the fellow who worked there came by and told us exactly what to do and that he would handle all the lines. Worked like a charm and before you knew it we were on our way.
We arrived in Fernandina Beach right around lunch time, just in time for huge free Thanksgiving lunch put on by the Methodist church. I don't know when we've seen so much food. And welcoming, there were lots of people there including most of the boaters anchored, moored or docked in the harbour. We have decided to stay here for a few days. The weather has warmed up (apparently the cold weather is returning on Monday), and besides being a very pretty little town (the shops remind us of Niagara-on -the Lake), there are train tracks with a train running to some industries here which means this is a good stop for Christopher after a recent drought in train sightings. We are enjoying waking up after sun up, until we move on and go back to rising to the 5:30 alarm. The warmer temperatures mean the dingy is more robust which of course has Dave smiling (thank you to all who sent their sympathies over his cold dinghy woes).