Daydream's Great Loop Blog!

Good moves Pat. When you use the Air Conditioner--let the generator warm up. Start the fan first, then turn to "cool". The unit you selected should work find.

We used the Jet Pac for data in many locations where our A T & T did not work. You should be able to charge the Jet Pac from one of your 12 volt USB chargers.
You may not get 4G speeds--generally any of the cell towers are oriented toward the land--and that gives a little less signal off the back side of the antennas (ICW and seaward).

Keep kool/cool! 😁
 
We have somewhat reluctantly left Honest John's Fish Camp, where we enjoyed a great two days, and are working our way over the next few days to St. Augustine. Here is the blog post for the last two days!
 
Hi Pat,
Great pictures of your hat and the giant ice cream cone!

I like to look at where you are on AC and Google but it is annoying that the zoom buttons are top left for AC and bottom right for Google. Always going to the wrong corner. Guess I need a mouse with a roller wheel.

Looks like you are doing great. The AC you have coming should really help. I have one that runs on my Honda 1000, but I have only tried it in the driveway.

Steve
 
Pat and patty, Official Loopers now. Got the hat and the Looper radio call, and eating right. There should be an award for skinny water boating. Sounds fun to see the manatee and dolphins. Thanks for posting the link. (But yes, I did ad the blog to my favorites list.)

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

January_2010_344.thumb.jpg
 
Great start; enjoy your Adventure!

As you continue along the ICW, here's a book recommendation: Henry M. Plummer's "The Boy, me, and The Cat.". It is the story of a fellow and his eighteen year old son, who sailed the ICW from Massachusetts to Miami on their 24 foot catboat ... in 1912/1913. Great 'read and gives a real flavor of trailing the ICW before there was an ICW !

We're with you, all-the-way, enjoy!

Best,
Casey&Mary
 
P&P, good move on the air conditioner. Having lived in Baja Georgia (Duval County, FL) and Plaquemines Parish, LA for a couple of years, I couldn't imagine doing the loop with out one.

Have fun! We're with you vicariously!

Steve and Diana
 
Today's blog post covers the last two days! We are at the Palm Coast Marina, showers in the morning, and then on to St. Augustine! We fueld today, and got 3.9 statue miles per gallon, so I am no longer worried about the run on the Mississippi from Hoppies to Green Turtle Bay!
 
As you head north, do you plan to head over to Jacksonville and then south up the St Johns River? It's one of the best river cruises in the US, in our opinion. Lots of wildlife and natural beauty. And a rarity in US - travel SOUTH up a river!😂
 
El and Bill":1va32olx said:
As you head north, do you plan to head over to Jacksonville and then south up the St Johns River? It's one of the best river cruises in the US, in our opinion. Lots of wildlife and natural beauty. And a rarity in US - travel SOUTH up a river!😂
Click to expand...

Probably not going to do the St. Johns River, we are sure it is wonderful, but we are kind of sticking to our ICW route. We are enjoying the heck out of St. Augustine, had a great day today, Castillo San Marcos, St. George Street, St. Sebastian Winery, St. Augustine Distillery, what more could a person want?

Tomorrow we will head for Kingsley Plantation National Park on the Fort George River and the next day to Fernandina (Florida) / Cumberland Island National Park (Georgia), there are a couple of anchorages there. We blew our wad on the St. Augustine Municipal Marina, but it was worth it! Since we have been doing this on the cheap until we got here, I say it is "cost averaging," that is my story and I am sticking to it!

In the needs / wants category - we had Amazon ship our AIR CONDITIONER here to the St. Augustine Municipal Marina, just unboxed it this afternoon! We are told by almost everybody that as we proceed this will be a necessity. I am not sure but if Patty is uncomfortable, I am uncomfortable!
 
I agree with Bill's comment's on the St. John's--but it takes weeks to do it justice. Now that you have the air conditioner--have you decided how you are going to use it--window or floor?
 
thataway":27erxr7b said:
I agree with Bill's comment's on the St. John's--but it takes weeks to do it justice. Now that you have the air conditioner--have you decided how you are going to use it--window or floor?
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We'll use the AC in on the cockpit floor in the doorway, unless and until we find out that won't work. I think it will. Patty will make a shroud out of our shower curtain held in place with adhesive backed velcro. Don't know when we will get a chance to try it out. It is nice and cool here in St. Augustine, and fans work fine if/when needed!
 
Pat Anderson":1jd2vm2g said:
thataway":1jd2vm2g said:
I agree with Bill's comment's on the St. John's--but it takes weeks to do it justice. Now that you have the air conditioner--have you decided how you are going to use it--window or floor?
Click to expand...

We'll use the AC in on the cockpit floor in the doorway, unless and until we find out that won't work. I think it will. Patty will make a shroud out of our shower curtain held in place with adhesive backed velcro. Don't know when we will get a chance to try it out. It is nice and cool here in St. Augustine, and fans work fine if/when needed!
Click to expand...

What happens to the condensate water that comes out of the back of the AC when you run it on the floor?
 
ssobol":y9i1rpal said:
What happens to the condensate water that comes out of the back of the AC when you run it on the floor?
Click to expand...

No problem with water on the cockpit floor! It will sit on the threshhold, tilted back toward the cockpit.
 
ssobol":22pmk04y said:
What happens to the condensate water that comes out of the back of the AC when you run it on the floor?
Click to expand...

We have used the same AC on the sill of the door of our 22, slight tilt aft, and the condensate goes onto the cockpit floor. The Ozite carpet gets a little wet, the water drains into the bilge pump sump (our 22 has the removable cockpit door) The 25's self bail, but some might go into the aft bilge. The idea using on the floor is to avoid lifting onto the front window, because of bad backs. The AC works OK there, especially with a good fan to distribute it thru the interior.
 
Two thoughts:

When you use the shower curtain as a cover around the a/c, be sure to kitty and doggy proof any escape potential. Since you will be sleeping with the door open, the two furry ones may get curious about what's on the other side of that curtain.

Cost averaging is a good way to view the expenses as you travel. Following along with what you've written so far, your experiences with having a dock seem to bring you more fun on this trip. The high points will not be just what you see from the boat, but also what you experience while on land.

Your boating will be different on this adventure compared to what you have been doing in the PNW. Before you retired, using the boat in the San Juans and other great cruising areas there, was an escape... sitting at anchor, watching the sunset, was the escape from work and everyday life. As you take 6 months or more to do this trip, it is everyday life. And, the reason to boat isn't to get away from the hustle and bustle - it is the conveyance that takes you (at a less hurried pace) to all the great places. I encourage you to "shoot your wad" often to be able to have the same fun you experienced in St. Augustine.

We spent a week in New York City while cruising on Wild Blue - our stay at Liberty Landing Marina for a week cost most than what we spent in a month along the Erie Canal... and it was so worth it. So, mix it up - enjoy some peaceful nights at anchor and get the boat in a slip so you can easily walk or bike around to see the sights.

Enjoy!
 
Tonight and tomorrow night we will be anchored off National Parks. Tonight is Kingsley Plantation National Park on the Fort George River and tomorrow is Cumberland Island National Park just over the Florida / Georgia border. We will be anchoring out but plan to spend plenty of time ashore at each national park!

We won't be tightwads when we get to Savannah and Charleston! If there is someplace along that anybody thinks is really special, we would love to hear about that too!
 
A minor distinction - Kingsley Plantation is a National Historic Preserve - administered by the National Park Service. Our family is tightly associated with the NPS and the administrative operation is very different between an historic preserve and a park. So is the budget! Of course, the budget for the entire NPS has been under threat for years. Just this week they can look for new personnel to replace retirees or vacancies. Enjoy your visit El and Bill
 
As you cruise north into Georgia, we suggest a stop at Amelia Island. A short walk to Fantastic Fudge -- the name is not an exaggeration, as I'm sure other C-Brats will attest. Yum -- El and Bill
 
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