SO WHAT DID YOU DO WITH OR ON YOUR C-DORY TODAY??

Hi Jim,

Glad to hear you are getting amps again. Hope you can get your charger fixed/replaced with little trouble.

Just last night I realized you are cruising in the Florida Keys! (Daaah! Boot Key might have been a clue but I need to see a map.) We drove part way down the Keys when I was in Jr High many many years ago.

I am a little confused - you said you made the crossing to Marathon but went to Colusa for gas. On Google map Colusa is out of the way to the north on a line from Naples to Marathon. What am I missing?

I tend to prefer cooler temps but if I had the time I would love to be there with you guys - even sweating in the laundromat is better than working.
BTW Dixie is great at cooking fresh caught fish.

Great sunset!

Steve
 
Greetings Steve,

Calusa is a yacht club/marina near Goodland; close to the end of the Inland Waterway from Naples; before we went into the Gulf to Everglades City. We weren't sure of the fuel situation in EC, so our reason for the stop there. We did not find any fuel on the water at EC (didn't look all that hard, either, since we had just topped off).


And, for all, here is the tale of Saturday night, Live at Burdine's...

All week long we had been looking forward to Saturday night at Burdine’s, an outdoor bar and grill on the waterfront at the opening to Boot Key Harbor; one of our favorite singers, Eric Sone, plays here on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The four of us took a water taxi there since it is quite a ways on the water. We got there early enough to get a good table, ordered drinks and started looking the menu over for supper. Brent and Dixie had never heard of Eric Stone, but were anxious to hear him, based on our raves.

We saw a young kid setting up equipment... kinda funky equipment compared to what we had seen Eric using in the past. I told them that I thought the kid was Eric’s new guitar player. Sure enough, we overheard someone say that’s who he is.

Imagine our disappointment when we found out that the kid, Kyle, was it for tonight - Eric is playing a gig in Chicago. Oh well, we enjoyed the meal and the conversation, and then Kyle started playing... this kid is really good on the guitar. I’m talking Jimi Hendrix kinda good. He apologized for his singing, which was just fine, too... and we found out it was only his third time playing in public solo. Did I mention the kid was good?

After a half hour of playing, he seemed to fumble a bit, looking for some material to play. I walked up, introduced myself to him, and said, “I used to be a musician many years ago. I know some of Eric’s music. Mind if I sing while you play?” “Oh, God, yes please,” he said. Together we did a version of “The Whole Nine Yards.” The crowd clapped, I thanked Kyle, and sat back down. Heck, I just wanted our new friends to hear some Eric Stone music. Kyle continued his set.

A short while later, the guy who runs Burdine’s came over to our table and handed me an envelope and said, “Please use this next time you come back.” It was a gift certificate for a meal for two. Nice - I kinda sang for my supper. First I’ve done that in a lot of years.

Kyle came over during his break and asked if I’d like to sing some more. Now, this kid is 19, and I am... um, a bit older than that...with that generational difference, it took some discussion to come up with songs we both knew. In his next set, we played some Jimmy Buffett music, a Stephen Stills song, an old Beatles tune, and then he let me play his guitar and sing “Feeling Alright”, one of Joan’s favorites. It turned out to be a very fun evening.

OK, not particularly boat related... but sitting in shirt sleeves, overlooking the water, singing, laughing, eating, and drinking was a pretty nice way to spend the evening.

Best wishes,
Jim B.

Here's an image from Joan's phone camera...

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It's Sunday morning as I'm writing this. There is a nice steady rain washing the salt off the boat. The smell of sausage and eggs cooking. The wind came up during the night, but the anchors are doing their job. And, it is cool - 69º outside (almost needed a blanket last night).
 
James TXSD.....Where did you leave your truck and trailer ??? Did you have any problems locating parking... rates ?? safety ?
I am planning on leaving last week of March and staying the month of April....although it sounds like it is plenty warm there now...
Sure wish I was there....that 5 day tow across the nation kinda scares me..but the dog is ready to go...

Joel
SEA3PO
 
Went down to the boat and set the new arch on top to see how it would look. Moved it around a little --- forward--- aft----- I like it at the back of the cabin.
Now to find the time to remove all of the equipment and relocate it when I install the arch.

Won 1st, 2nd and 3rd quarters of the superbowl pool at the yacht club--- dang Colts, if they would have kicked the field goal on their last possession I would have won the 4th quarter too. Oh well-- at $1.00 a square I'm not going to retire on the winnings :lol:
 
Joel (SEA3PO) - I asked our own Mike Taylor (Papillion), who lives in Naples, where I could find secure parking. He offered parking at his place (for a fee), and it sounded like a win/win arrangement for all. Plus, it gave us the opportunity to make some new C-Brat friends; Mike and Judy are great folks.

I understand your concern about hauling across the country. It was over 1600 miles to Naples from our place, and we generally took our time (compared to our normal "road trip" pace). We've seen some warm, and now we're seeing wind and precip (winds predicted 25-30 today). I try to go with the old Hawaiian saying, "Never judge a day by the weather. No rain, no rainbows." Of course there is the Jim B. Addendum: "Goin' where the weather suits my clothes" followed by "It's cold, get me outta here!" This trip has been made very special by getting to meet some wonderful people: (in chronological order) Dr. Bob and Marie from Thataway, Mike and Judy from Papillion, Brent and Dixie from Discovery, and George and Penny from Wanderer.

Roger (Fishtales) and others - You and the Colts weren't the only winners. Last night we did something out of character by going to a bar to watch the Superbowl (along with Brent and Dixie). No TV reception here in the harbor, so the four of us bought tickets for "limited seating" at the Overseas Lounge... that was not advertising hype - we all had very little seating room. :wink: Dixie is very likable, and seems to attract people who want to tell her their life story. :mrgreen: The sound level was just a bit over "sticking your head into a jet engine", so I missed most of the commercials (the part I enjoy the most about this particular game). It was an interesting game, though. And what you saw for rain on TV is what we ran through to get to the bar. We all got t-shirts and can coozies (after the day at the 3rd world laundry, I was excited that we could now go another day with our new shirts :wink ) and bought raffle tickets for a booze basket. I bought 3 tickets for Joan... yep, I carried that heavy basket back to the boat. Of course, it is full of liquers and things that the bar couldn't sell, but it will be fun sampling things we (and apparently most other folks) wouldn't normally buy.

It was a gusty night at anchor last night. Even with two anchors set, Wild Blue still danced around a bit. I got up twice to check the set, and all was well. We are experiencing what the NW folks call "sunbreaks" (that term still cracks me up) this morning. The original plan was for a picnic on Sombrero Beach with the 6 C-Brats, but the wind is blowing all the ants towards Cuba, so we may have to do something indoors (in-boats?).

Spending some time at anchor in Boot Key Harbor was something I've wanted to do since I first saw this place (from the land) years ago.

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
Hurray !!! The Raymarine installer came up this weekend and it finally looks like everything is working. It was great to spend four hours on a nice sun shinny day with the bride and enjoy the lake. Much more fun when you know how deep the water is. Foggy Dew came over and spent Saturday afternoon with us but left the lake early on Sunday.
Coming up on that first 100 hour service and getting the camper package installed. Can't wait to get that cockpit space added like an inclosed patio. :thup Love that boat !
 
Just so you don't think everyday is a lark... the wind has been howling today, gusting above 35. A sailboat drug and moved closer to us (thanks a bunch) to reset. At one point, I looked out and saw our dinghy standing up... as in: oh s**t, the motor is under water. We got things straighted up and I started flushing the motor. Brent recommended a guy he just talked with about his generator, and I gave him a call... "get the motor here right away."

I was able to get a ride from the Smorgasboat (water taxi) before they shut down because of the wind. We picked up Brent along the way, caught a car ride with a sailboat neighbor, and handed the motor over to my new best friend, Eric, at Inflatable Boats. He dropped what he was doing and went to work on my little Merc. He had us on our way in about an hour, with the Merc declared "saved". Brent picked up a couple sparkplugs, and the soon-to-be-retired owner of the shop gave us a ride back to the marina. The Smorgasboat made one last run for the day to take back the people he had dropped off earlier. I didn't feel any better when I heard someone on the VHF trying to find the owners of a particular boat that was dragging.

Back at the boat, Joan and I put some chaffe protection on the rode. She spent most of the time I was gone up on the bow, willing the anchors to hold and checking for chaffe. This wind is supposed to continue through midnight or so and then lay down a bit, at least into the teens. It got snotty here in the anchorage, but I heard it was 7-9' waves outside the reef. It's all relative, huh?

With things settling down, Joan made us pizza quesadillas. Looks like the next round is coming, though... rain drops on the windshield and the wind increasing again. We'll take turns checking the anchor through the evening (unless it's raining again, and then it'll be just me :wink: ).

For now, I believe it's nap time. 8)

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
Jim & Joan,
Sounds like you had a very busy day. I forgot to tell you...it's county fair week here in Collier County and it is always the nastyest , coldest weather of the year. Based on the extended forecast it should pass by the end of the week..lord willing and the creeks don't rise.

Do you have two anchors out foward and one astern? "Y" or are you spinning on a mooring bouy?
 
Hi Mike,

Just the two anchors forward. I may pick up another before we move on. The only problem with a third one out the back is the fact that space is tight here. I am concerned about crossing another boat's rode or not swinging "in sync". I have us tucked in as close to the mangroves as I'm comfortable with. Looks like the wind is supposed to ease off to about 21G26 by midnight, down from 27G36. Some precip right now, but the radar shows not as heavy as yesterday.

We'll entertain ourselves with cards, Yahtzee, and some music... maybe even some good ol' fashioned conversation. :wink: Certainly quieter than last night.

We finally got the batteries juiced back up to a comfortable point. Gonna turn in early tonight, since I'm thinking I'll want to check the anchors a time or twelve.

Looks like more precip your way on the weather radar. Did the dredge finish in your canal so you can put Papillion where she belongs?

Best wishes,
Jim
 
The sun is shining and the wind has dropped below 10 knots. Showered and topped off our water. We passed Brent and Dixie heading into the showers as we were heading out. Indications are it should be a decent day to head towards Bahia Honda. I spoke to an "old salt" at the dinghy dock (who's been around here for years) and asked about the anchorage at Bahia Honda and Key West; his response: "I don't know. I just keep my boat here and take the bus to Key West when I want to go there." Interesting advice.

Yesterday George and Penny picked up the four of us and we had lunch at a restaurant near the marina. Then, they graciously took us to West Marine, a book store, and the grocery store. I'm not sure where Joan keeps putting stuff in Wild Blue, but it was sure nice to have fresh fruit again.

Brent and Dixie came over to Wild Blue yesterday and we checked weather and visited about routes. They got a chance to catch up on some on-line stuff and see what we've been writing about them. We really enjoy their easy-going attitude. Their generator is running again, our dinghy motor seems to be functioning fine. We'll see what today brings. The rest of the week is supposed to be upper 70s, lows in the upper 60s, winds less than 10 knots. With the protection in this harbor, I can see how easy it would be to stay put, but my water-logged feet are getting itchy (maybe it's a fungus? :wink: ).

Time for breakfast, and I see Joan has put some chocolate chip cookies in the oven for a later treat. See y'all later. Not sure if there'll be any signal to post, but we'll try.

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
James,
Thanks for keeping us up on yer travels. Hope you have calm seas and blue skies for the remainder of the trip, you've earned it.
Tell Brent and Dixie "HI" for us.
 
We left Boot Key Harbor today for Bahia Honda. After topping off fuel, we turned towards the Hawk's Channel side of the Keys. It's not far (about 12 miles), so we chugged along at about 6-7 knots. The crew of Discovery wanted to try some trolling so they headed a bit further out...

DiscE.jpg

Wild Blue went on ahead. Along the way, we called the marina in Bahia Honda State Park, expecting to get laughed at... quite the contrary, we were told they have slip space available with power and water. Not cheap, but available!

We made our way to the Bahia Honda Channel (careful of the shoals)...

IslandE.jpg

Around the southwest side of the island, through an opening in the old train bridge and made our way into the small marina. Surprisingly, there were only a few boats in there (only 19 side tie spaces total). Hot showers in the nearby campground; power and water. We are livin' large!

With the boat tied off, Joan took Molly for a walk on land - her first touch of ground and grass in over a week. Apparently, Molly didn't have her land-legs yet, slipped on the coaming and fell overboard! Right between the seawall and the boat! I was in the boat and heard the splash; by the time I got out the door, Joan already had scooped Molly out of the water. She was not a happy boat cat. We rinsed her off and toweled her dry, but all she wanted was back in the safety of the boat.

MollyWetE.jpg

With Molly dry and safe, the four of us took a walk around the park; a stop for ice cream (a real treat!); up to the entrance to check out the shuttle bus situation, and then down to the beach.

US4E.jpg

The water is beautiful, the park is peaceful, and the marina is very protected. Should be a good night's sleep with no one having to check the anchor set! :lol:

Here's a look at the C-Dorys tied to the seawall...

2CDe.jpg

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
Hi Jeff,

Both boats had a few visitors late yesterday. Of course, people spent WAY more time visiting with Dixie. :wink I knew they were in for a long tour when one guy was saying, "Why, back in the 50's..."

And then a few minutes later, Dixie asked if we had any peroxide... "fishing hook accident," was all she said as she hurried back to her boat. I brought some peroxide, expecting to see Brent hooked, but a kid (well, in his 20s) from a boat over by the ramp had gotten hooked by his buddy... and, of course, went right to Dixie for help.

It was a beautifully quiet night on the boat last night. Hot showers this morning, with no time limit. Molly the cat got to take a nice walk without going in the water. We've been told, "You meet the most interesting people on public transportation;" we'll find out when we take the bus to Key West today. Brent and Dixie have not been to Mallory Square for sunset, and it looks to be a beautiful day today.

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
Jim and Joan, Thanks for your continuing posts. We just thawed out from one ice/snow storm and another is due in a day or two, so seeing pics of greem palms, white sand and blue skies is pretty therapeutic!

Poor Molly! I am amazed that you two have trained her...or that she has trained you two ... so well!

We were worried about you two and Brent and Dixie when we saw the tornados in Florida on the TV. So glad you're all doing so well.

Have fun for us! John
 
We went from being boat people today to being bus people. We caught a shuttle to Key West, caught a city bus to Old Town, and walked our feet off around town. Cheeseburger in Paradise, Duval crawl, and the entertainment on Mallery Square at sunset... even though we didn't get a sunset due to a line of clouds at the horizon. So, no green flash.

Beautiful weather - sunny skies, temp around 80, reasonable humidity. Getting off the bus on the way home, we were treated to an amazing display of stars... far away from any city lights. I haven't seen the stars look like this in a long time.

Time to decide where to go next; we'll sleep on it.

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
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