January 3 – January 13:  Can’t Wait to Leave Southern Florida / Miami

We stayed in the Crandon Park Marina on Key Biscayne until January 13.  We celebrated Tim’s 49th birthday on the 11th with a nice dinner on the boat followed up with his birthday Summer Berry Pie for desert.

We had bought a pair of folding Dahon bikes while we were in Vero Beach and one of them was stolen while we were at the Marina.   We had secured the bikes to a bike rack with a sturdy chain and lock but someone managed to steal one of them anyway. Luckily Tim was able to find another used Dahon bike the same day we discovered the other stolen but it isn’t quite as nice.  You can add that to the list of other reasons why we didn’t care much for the Miami area.

We did ride our bikes quite a bit while we were in Key Biscayne especially back and forth to the library and grocery store.  Groceries are pretty expensive in the Bahamas so we stocked up on quite a few things.  Tim and I love to drink milk but I guess we are going to have to try and cut back.   Fresh milk isn’t readily available in the Bahamas and the boxed milk (Parmalat) costs about $4 per quart.  Guess that means we will be cutting back on cookies too!

We received Shamus’ dog permit from the Agricultural Dept. of the Bahamas so we only had to wait for a good weather window to cross the Gulf Stream over to Bimini Island in the Bahamas.  That window opened on Wednesday, January 14 so the afternoon before, we fueled up and left Crandon Park Marina and headed further south on Key Biscayne to No Name Harbor which was where we planned to begin our crossing to Bimini.

January 14 – January 19:  Crossing the Gulf Stream / The Bahamas

Crossing the Gulf Stream in the wrong weather conditions can be trying on the hardiest of sailors.  Generally you want to cross when the winds are light and are blowing from the south or east.  Winds from the north are generally not good for crossing as they can stir up some pretty big waves and rough conditions because they blow against the Gulf Stream which flows north anywhere between 2 and 4 kts.  We left Key Biscayne at 3:30 a.m. in very light winds and relatively calm seas.   The winds were forecasted to build from the north throughout the morning so we had to be across by noon to avoid worsening sea conditions in the Gulf.  It was a narrow but decent weather window and we took it as did several other boats that left shortly after us.   We arrived in Bimini around 10:45 a.m. The wind had definitely perked up by the time we arrived and the seas were beginning to build but nothing uncomfortable for us.   Boats crossing a couple hours behind us probably had it a little rough towards the end of their trip.

When we arrived in Bimini we picked up a slip at the Blue Water Marina in North Bimini.  We have made some more new friends along the way especially another couple from Maine named Alex and Alexa and their two dogs Luna and Piper. We first met them at the Crandon Park Marina in Key Biscayne and ran into them again at No Name.  They crossed the Gulf Stream a couple hours ahead of us and have also been staying at the Blue Water Marina.

All of us were waiting for a good weather window to make the next leg of our trip on our journey to the Exumas.   We will cross the Great Bahama Banks to Chubb Key which is roughly a distance of 80 nautical miles.  The crossing will take roughly 13 hours.  We are going try to break that up into two 40 mile days by spending a night anchored out on the Great Bahama Bank.  Similar to the crossing of the Gulf Stream you need the right wind and wave conditions to have a comfortable crossing of the Great Bahama Bank especially if you plan to anchor at night on the Banks. 

Over the past few days while we have been waiting for a good weather window to arrive:

·         We have explored most of the island!

·         Had a fun night out with a man named Keith who was another cruiser we met in No Name on Key Biscayne and who crossed just behind us.   The three of us had drinks on the beach with Sherry and her husband Eric at Sherry’s Beach Bar and then over to another pub with a local man named Oscar for a game of pool, some dancing, and yummy fried lobster dinner. 

·         We took our boat out to a shipwreck on the south side of South Bimini to do some snorkeling with Alex and Alexa and had a great sail back to North Bimini. We followed that up with happy hour on a little uninhabited island here in the harbor.   All of our dogs had a blast!

·         We have not done any swimming off the boat in the harbor considering the very first thing we saw when I got off the boat the morning we arrived was a HUGE Bull Shark swimming next to the boat!  Turns out they feed them here when cleaning fish so there are several prowling about!  We are all keeping our toes out of the water!

·         We had a lot of fun watching the Patriots whoop the Colts butts in the AFC Championship Game at the Bimini Big Game Club.  Alex and Tim enjoyed a couple Pina Coladas while Alexa and I drank some ale (role reversal?).  So now we need to make sure we have a place to watch the super bowl in February.   Yippee!!!! Go Pats!!!

January 20:  The Great Bahama Bank

Finally a good weather window arrived to cross the Great Bahama Bank!   We dropped our dock lines around 8:00 A.M. and headed out just behind Alex and Alexa on their boat the Abby B.  We planned to cross and anchor out on the banks together and then head on to Nassau the next day.  Sea conditions were a bit choppy but not uncomfortable while we were underway and we were concerned that it would be uncomfortable anchoring out in those conditions.  Around 9:30 p.m. we tucked in behind a shoal located north of the Northwest Channel Light.  Both wind and sea state calmed down and we ended up having a peaceful night at anchor.  It was a very cool experience being anchored out of sight of land in 14 feet of water.   You could see the bottom like it was only 1 foot deep.  The stars were spectacular!

One of our concerns about anchoring out was whether or not we could convince Shamus to go to the bathroom on the boat.   While on shore in Bimini we had him urinate on some palm fronds and brought them on board.  We hoped having something he had gone to the bathroom on would convince him to go.  It didn’t even after Tim tried to show him by example that it was okay to pee on deck! Oh well!   Our vet, Chris Allen, told us he would go when he needed too.  So with that in mind we all went to bed and slept well.

January 21 – January 28:  The Berry Islands / Great Harbor Cay Marina

During the hours it took us to cross the Great Bahama Bank Tim and I talked about our journey.  We have been on the move almost constantly since we left Maine in the end of October.  We kept reading about an island chain here in the Bahamas called the Berry Islands.   Everything we read said they are beautiful and have exquisite beaches and better yet are a mostly overlooked destination by other cruisers and visitors to the Bahamas.   In addition, Great Harbour Cay Marina had fabulous reviews from cruisers who had visited there.  They mentioned the marina staff are super friendly, the facilities are very clean and the rates to stay at the marina are very affordable.   Even better – Great Harbour Cay Marina is a considered a hurricane hole – a very protected place to keep your boat in weather as severe as a hurricane. 

When we woke up on the Great Bahama Banks we decided to head to over to check out the Berry Islands.  We said our goodbyes to Alex and Alexa who continued on to Nassau and then the Exumas. 

We hope to run into them again and if not will look them up when we all get back to Maine.

We arrived at Great Harbour Cay Marina late morning and as wonderful a place as was described in the cruising guides.   The people, marina staff and other cruisers, are super. The beach just down the road from us is beautiful. After spending our first day here we decided to stay for a month.   No more pushing to get somewhere or worrying about what the weather conditions are going to be.   We will use the marina as our home base and take the boat out to explore the other islands anchorages in the Berry Island chain.  Great Harbor Cay was developed by the rich and famous back in the 50s.  Such notables as Cary Grant, Bridget Bardott, Telly Savalas and many others spent time on the island playing.  They built an 18 hole golf course, tennis courts and an exclusive hotel(Sugar Beach Hotel) overlooking the beach.  The hotel was abandoned in the 70s and about half the golf course became overgrown.  There are still nine holes but the Island is now largely undeveloped except for a handful of private residences on the beaches.  The sand on the beaches here is like talcum powder.  We have never felt such soft white sand.

As for weather here, the first few days were in the high 80s but it is now in the 70s and sunny during the day and 60s at night.  We get an occasional shower that lasts about 10 minutes.  It feels like typical Maine summer weather which we love.  The locals and many of the other cruisers think this is cold!

Since we arrived we:

·         made friends with several of the other cruisers staying here at the marina as well as several members of the marina staff including Meco, Hans who is the marina manager, and Rufus who runs the marina shop.

·         had a fabulous cheeseburger at the Beach Club. A great little bar and restaurant on Sugar Beach.   While there we met several of the locals including Malesto (spelling?  Pronounced Mal-est-toe) and her husband Terry who is a builder.  We have been warmly greeted each time we have returned.   We will go there on Thursday for a specially prepared native Bahamian meal of hog fish and / or chicken, and again this Sunday to watch the Super Bowl!

·         met a great couple named Dennis and Gwen Tynan at the Beach Club.  They invited us over to their beautiful beach house (built by Terry) and took us over to Hawks Nest Cay in their dinghy to show us the natural bridge and beautiful beaches located there.  We saw a small shark swimming in the shallow water as we all climbed into the dinghy and another one swimming in the surf just off one of the beaches on Hawks Nest Cay!  Lots of sharks in these parts!  Yikes!

·         attended several social gatherings since we arrived including a Chill and Grill hosted by the marina, a potluck organized by a couple of the other cruisers, and had a lot of fun at a big birthday party thrown at Hans’ house for his friend Ruth Ann and Gary a fellow cruiser staying here at the marina.  Gary and his wife Christelle (spelling??) have visited the marina before and have spent quite a bit of time here.  Both  are a hoot and are very popular with everyone!!  The party was attended by several of the marina staff and some of their friends, and also several of the cruisers staying at the marina.   It was a hell of a party.  Lots of laughing and dancing!   Tim and I separately received marital advice from one of the Bahamian men who attended the party.  He seemed to want to make sure we knew how to keep each other happy!  Some of his advice got a little x-rated so I won’t repeat it here!  Very funny!!!

·         helped pick up trash on the island.   One of the cruisers who recently came in organized a trash pickup event.  While this is one of the cleaner islands in the Bahamas there is still a bit of trash along the road.  Several of us showed up and we all spent a couple hours cleaning up a small section of road near the marina.   Several local people passing by in their cars honked their horns in approval of our efforts and a few of them even stopped to pick up our filled trash bags to bring them to the dump.

·         swam with a manatee! Well Tim did. There are a few that come right into the marina and it is legal to swim with them here.   I ran to get the camera to take pictures of Tim with the manatee but I hope to get in with one of them before we leave!   They seem to like being scratched and will come up to you for a pet!  They are huge but incredibly cute!

While I write this several of our friends and family are probably digging out from a blizzard that just swept through the Northeast!   I am sure several of you are wishing you were away from the cold and snow and sitting on a beach in a nice warm place!  Well you might think Tim and I are crazy but we actually miss winter – A LOT!   We both love the snow and have always loved a good blizzard!  Oh well - no snow angels this year!

Also, we have made some exciting plans for the summer.   We rented a small place in Burke, VT where we love to mountain bike.  We will be spending time there during the week and cruising on the boat on weekends and probably make it up to Penobscott Bay towards the end summer.     

Well it’s been awhile since we blogged about our travels and we have been to many different places so I will just highlight the most memorable ones.  If you want to see all the locations where we stopped along the way please click the “Where We Are” link and hover over the little red pins.  The green pin is either our most recent or current location. 

November 25- 26:  Oriental, N.C.   A Thanksgiving Celebration with New Friends

On November 25, we arrived in Oriental N.C.   Our stop here turned out to be one of our most enjoyable stops since we started transiting the ICW.   Heavy rain and strong winds were forecasted for Wednesday, November 26 and Oriental’s little harbor not only offered good protection from the storm but the town offers free dockage for transient boats up to 48 hours.  Bonus!  We like free! 

While enjoying a couple beers at the Oriental Marina’s Tiki bar, Tim and I decided to celebrate Thanksgiving a day early.   We had planned to sit tight in Oriental for Wednesday’s storm and Thursday’s forecast looked great!  It just seemed to make better sense to celebrate the holiday when we would be stuck inside due to crappy weather and then take advantage of the nice weather on Thanksgiving Day to continue south.

For our Thanksgiving feast I roasted a nice turkey breast, prepared stuffing, mashed potatoes, homemade dinner rolls and a raspberry peach crisp for desert.  I made way too much food for just the two of us so we decided to invite the cruisers who were docked alongside of us over to celebrate the holiday. Holiday meals are always more fun with more people!

Our guests were Paco and Theda Ortego, and their incredibly adorable 9 month old son Frank, and Richard Nista. Paco and Theta helped us dock when we arrived in Oriental and we had spent some time that afternoon getting to know them.    Richard arrived in Oriental shortly after we did and docked directly behind us.  He is cruising alone on his 28’ Choy Lee.   

The meal was yummy and it was nice to spend time with our guests, exchanging stories and experiences about the places we have visited, and as all cruisers do, talk about our boats, boat problems and repairs, electronics, navigating etc....  Richard won the prize for worst cruising experience on the ICW.  Several days before, he had an issue with cooling water leaking from his exhaust inside his engine compartment and filling his boat with warm seawater.  He saw the water rising and did not know where it was coming from so he purposely grounded the boat in the mud of the Alligator river.  After a long tow to a marina and some repairs Richard is underway again but now has to deal with his insurance company and any small problems that might occur later which often happens after a boat takes on salt or brackish water.  

My hat is off to Richard.  He is quite a hardy soul!  The weather has been pretty cold and wet and he doesn’t have a dodger or bimini to protect him from wind or waves and he doesn’t have autopilot!  A great guy with an even greater amount of optimism!

December 1: Minim Creek S.C:  Doggie Purgatory!

We left Oriental on Thanksgiving Day and spent our evenings at the town dock in Swansboro, N.C. and at marinas in Hampstead, N.C., Southport N.C. and North Myrtle Beach S.C. 

On December 1, we anchored for the night just off the ICW in a place called Minim Creek.  It was a beautiful and remote anchorage and we had it all to ourselves!  Once the anchor was set and the engine turned off we immediately noticed a couple owls hooting close by, ducks flying overheard and the sounds of many different bird calls.   Shamus noticed too!   The bird calls really sparked his hunting instincts!  He could barely contain his excitement as we dinghied to shore. We rafted up to an irrigation lock and then walked along the top of a short levy.  The levy and irrigation locks separate the creek from water level control canals running for long distances through acres of tall stalky plants.  The canals were inhabited by several different breeds of water fowl of various shapes and sizes and who were the source of many of the different bird calls we had been listening to.

Poor Shamus! He was pretty close to being in doggie heaven considering he was surrounded by water and brush filled with birds but it turned out to be more like doggie purgatory!  Normally we would let him let him off leash to run free, play in the water and chase the birds but we were now in alligator country.   Tim and I are fairly sure if Shamus saw an alligator there aren’t enough ducks in the world that would be enough of a distraction to stop him from running up to one and most likely becoming an alligator appetizer.   So we kept the poor pup leashed and he had to watch all those birds from afar! 

We climbed an old tower that was nearby on the levy.  Not sure of its purpose but considering it was the highest point around for miles we had a great view of the Estherville Minim Creek Canal that we had transited earlier in the day, our boat at anchor in Minim Creek, and just how far the levy and canal system we were walking on extended! Miles!!

December 2: Shoaling

 

Shoaling is issue in many places on the ICW. Believe it or not it is kind of expected that if you are transiting the ICW you will run aground at some point.  Along our way south we have heard many people calling over the radio to report they were grounded and needed a tow and our navigating resources such as Active Captain and the ICW Waterway guide are full of accounts of boaters who have run aground. The bottom of the ICW is soft and silty and shifts around a lot.  Because the bottom is soft we would likely not damage the boat if we were to run aground but we would really rather not find out.   Also there is always the possibility that if you run aground in a narrow section of the channel you could block other boating traffic trying to get through.  Needless to say we would prefer to stay afloat!

The section between Minim Creek (ICW statue mile 415) to just south of McClellanville S.C. (statue mile 450) is one of the worst sections for shoaling on the entire ICW.  In fact at low tide the bottom of the channel is often exposed.  That was the section we needed to navigate when we left Minim Creek on our way to Charleston S.C.  Oh Joy!!!

We pulled anchor in Minim Creek just after daylight and shortly before dead low tide so we had enough depth to clear the shallows where Minim Creek enters the ICW.     A few miles later we dropped anchor in the North Santee River to wait for the tide to rise enough to give us better depth in the worst of the shoaling areas.   A while after we anchored a couple, Mike and Linda, who we had met a few days earlier passed by on their boat, the C-II, headed south down the ICW.  The C-II’s draft is about the same as ours. We reached out to Mike and Linda and asked if they would let us know the depths they recorded when they passed through the shoaling areas.   The tide would be higher by the time we hit those areas so if the C-II made it through so should we – maybe!  We couldn’t know the exact track the C-II had taken through the shoaled up areas and the depth can change dramatically in just a few feet so running aground was still a high possibility.  Mike was happy to help us out and texted Tim to report he had made it through with a little depth to spare so we pulled anchor and set out for Charleston. 

By the time we reached the worse section of shoaling we were behind a sailboat and in front of them was a tug boat.  Behind us was a large motor boat.   The tug and sailboat were talking on the radio and we overheard the tugs captain say his boat tug draws 9’ which means he was dragging along the bottom and relying on his powerful engines to push through.  So now we had two boats ahead of us and if either of them were to run aground at least we knew where not to go!   On the downside, because the tug was literally pushing through he was stirring up the bottom and mixing thick silt up into the water.  Then the motor boat following us decided to pass us and stirred up the bottom even more! C’Mon Man!!! So by the time we hit the really bad area there was so much silt stirred up in the water neither of our two depth sounders could get an accurate reading. CRAP!!!!!   At times we showed less than 1’ of depth but somehow we kept moving even though a couple times it was clear our keel was dipping into the mucky bottom.  Then we came around a bend and there was a northbound tug that had pushed a barge up the ICW and was waiting in the middle of the channel to rendezvous with the tug we were following. Over the radio we learned the tugs would switch places and the tug we were following would turn around and tow the barge north to its final destination and the other tug would turn around and go back south.  Really!!!  The tug boat captains were kind enough to let the three us pass by before switching places.   The ICW is not that wide in that particular location and in order to get around the tugs and barge we had to leave center channel where the deeper water usually is and move to the side of the channel where it is usually shallower.  How shallow we couldn’t tell because our depth sounders where still not getting accurate readings!  Well we made it through the entire length of the shoaled up area including squeaking by the barge and tugs! PHEW!!!.   

We arrived in Charleston, S.C. late afternoon and got a slip at the Charleston Maritime Center and broke out a couple beers and said hello to a few friends who were already there including Mike and Linda from the C-II and our new pal Richard Nista who spent Thanksgiving with us and who we have run into several times since!  What a day!!!

December 3- 8:   Charleston S.C

The Charleston Maritime Center is located right in downtown Charleston so we spent Wednesday, December 3, exploring the area.  Charleston is beautiful.  It is one of the oldest cities in America and many of the buildings date back to the early 1700s.   Charleston has very strong laws in place to preserve its historic buildings.  We learned there is a law that once a building is over 75 years old it can’t be torn down!  In the downtown section of Charleston that is apparently not a problem.  The houses there are beautifully maintained. In other areas of the city there are some old decrepit buildings that have been abandoned but it’s against the law to tear them down.  We were told that property owners tear down their buildings before the 75 year mark to avoid the law and the restrictions that come with owning a historic property.

I made reservations to fly home to NJ on December 4 for a pre-Christmas visit with my family.   I enjoyed helping my mom and sister decorate the Christmas Tree!  It was even more special doing so when my brother Kevin joined us.  I think it is the first time Kevin, Colleen, Mom and I have decorated a tree together since we were kids. We got a good laugh looking at some of the ornaments we made in school as kids!  They are definitely our “back of the tree” ornaments!  It was also great spending time with my dad.   

Tim and pup stayed back in Charleston.  Tim did several little projects on the boat and also rented a car and mountain bike so he could see a little more of the area.   I am not sure “mountain biking” is an accurate description for off-road bike or trail riding in S.C. as Charleston is considered the “low country.”   We were told the highest point in the Charleston area is only 32’ above sea level!  I think the most elevation you will gain walking around the city is on a treadmill where you can raise the incline!  Still he had fun riding!

December 9 – December 11:  A Family Reunion

I flew back to Charleston on December 9.   I arrived back at the marina around 12:30 P.M.   We dropped our lines immediately and continued south.  We anchored about 15 miles south of Charleston in a place called Church Creek.   The following night we anchored in Beaufort S.C.   A charming little town that I would recommend making a side trip to if you are travelling in the Charleston area. 

 

On December 11, we stopped at the Thunderbolt Marina in Thunderbolt GA which is right outside of Savannah.   We had a reunion with Tim’s cousin Andrew Reilley.  Tim and Andrew hadn’t seen each other since they were teenagers and I had never met him.  Andrew lives about 10 minutes away from the marina with his three sons.   He is a busy single dad but he was able to stop by for a few hours.  Tim remembered Andrew as a really great guy who always had a smile on his face.   Tim and Andrew had a few good laughs about getting in trouble together at the annual Reilley Christmas Party called the “Gathering of the Clan” that was hosted by their Aunt Charlotte and Uncle Lee.   It was fabulous getting together with Andrew.  Unfortunately his sons were spending the night with their mom so we didn’t get an opportunity to meet them.  Next time!  

December 12 – 14

We spent our last night in Georgia anchored off Sapelo Island and the following two days at Fernandina Beach, on Amelia Island in Florida.   We arrived in Fernandina just after sunset and as it turned out shortly before the start of the towns Christmas parade.  We strolled up Centre Street which runs through the heart of the downtown historic district and was the main route for the parade. The town was beautifully decorated and it was fun to see everyone so excited to see the parade.  After walking Shamus we found a relatively uncrowded corner right where the parade made its turn up Centre Street.   It was a great spot to view the parade and it was close to the marina so we could make our escape to the boat without having to push our way through all those people when the parade ended.    Turns out we didn’t need to wait for the end of the parade to leave.  BOOM!!!!!! The pirate ship parade float blasted a canon about 6’ away from where we were standing! It deafened both Tim and I and nearly gave us heart failure.  Poor Shamus, who is terrified of guns, panicked and tried to bolt. I was holding his leash and thank goodness I had a good grip or we might still be looking for him!  Never did get to see Santa!  Damn pirates!

On Sunday we watched the N.E. Patriots, play football at a pub called the Salty Pelican surrounded by other Pats fans.  I couldn’t believe all the people wearing Patriots jerseys when I walked in.   As it turns out the owner of the bar is from Boston, and the bar tender from somewhere in New England and the rest of the Pat’s fans in the area congregate there to watch the games.  So much fun!!!

December 15 – December 19:  St. Augustine

On December 15 we departed from Fernandina Beach and the ICW.  We motored down the Atlantic Coast of Florida and came back into the ICW via the Jacksonville Inlet and anchored for the night.  Our next port-o-call was St. Augustine where we spent the next several days.   In a way we had come full circle.   In February of 2010 when we were looking for a boat we could live aboard we had visited St. Augustine to look at a couple boats  we were interested in. We had found a tavern in the old Spanish quarter of the city that had no electricity and was lit entirely by candlelight.   It also had no heat and it was only about 30 degrees that night.  Yup – a freezing cold night in Florida.  Tim and I were the only two patrons in the bar and we had a blast.  We revisited that tavern our first night back in St. Augustine. It was fun to go back.

The old section of St. Augustine is very pretty especially when it is decorated for Christmas.   Lots of decorative snowflakes hanging from the trees and off the balconies of the houses and the Christmas lights were festive.  At night there were trollies that drove tourists around to see towns Christmas lights and decorations.   The trollies would ring their bells or toot their horns and everyone on board would shout Merry Christmas!  The trollies were zooming all over town.  At first we thought the dinging of the trolley bells and the shouts of Merry Christmas from the very merry people aboard the trollies was entertaining and made us smile but not for long.   It seemed like a trolley was stopping next to us every couple of minutes and all the ringing bells and shouting started got annoying.  Bah Humbug!!!!.

We were surprised to run into Paco, Theda, and little Frank Ortega who had spent Thanksgiving with us.  They had been in Charleston S.C. the same time we were but left a few days before us.  We thought they were well ahead of us and it was unlikely we would see them again.  Turns out they had taken a side trip to Darien S.C. so Theda, who is a photographer, could photograph some of the Shrimp boats and local fisherman which allowed us time to catch up.   It is amazing how quickly you strike up friendships with other cruisers and seeing them was like reuniting with old friends! 

The St. Augustine Alligator Farm was a neat experience.  We enjoyed strolling through the zoo and viewing all the alligators, various breeds of crocodiles, birds, and even tortoises and lemurs and snakes.  The exhibits were set up to safely allow you to get a relatively close view of the alligators and crocodiles which was incredibly cool.   I had a little moment of unease in the snake exhibit.   We were looking to see a rather venomous snake in a rather small aquarium.  For the life us, Tim and I could not locate it.  Neither could one of the employees who worked there when we asked her to point it out to us. She even went to talk with a co-worker to see if the snake had been removed so they could safely clean its aquarium. They hadn’t removed the snake.   I could only imagine the damn thing had gotten loose and was slithering around somewhere nearby. Another few minutes of looking with my nose practically flat against the glass I finally spied the little bugger coiled up on a branch.  The snake was small and so well camouflaged Tim still had difficulty locating it after I told him where to look.  I was just glad to see that the snake was in its aquarium.  Phew!

December 20 – 28th:  Our first HOT Christmas!!

We anchored out the next couple of nights after leaving St. Augustine and pulled into Vero Beach on December 22.  We stayed at the Vero Beach Municipal Marina which as it turns out is a very popular place with cruisers.  We were instructed to raft up with a boat named Baloo.   Our neighbors were Bob and Anne Beck who explained they named their boat Baloo because it has as a big butt just like Baloo the bear in Disney’s “The Jungle Book”!  They were great neighbors.  They gave us the run down on the bus schedule, and the best times to try to get internet.

Vero Beach is the first real cruisers community that we have stayed at.  Obviously we have run into cruisers at our various stops along the way but this particular marina seems to be especially set up to cater to cruisers who stop off at Vero to rest and reprovision before heading over to the Bahamas, or the Caribbean Islands, or just heading further south to the Florida Keys.  The moorings are pretty cheap at only $14 per night.  There is a free bus that stops right at the marina about every hour that runs practically all over town.   Conveniently, for those of us cruisers travelling with our dogs there is a huge dog park right next to the marina where our pups can run off-leash and play with other dogs.

There were a few people who lived aboard permanently at the marina but most of the people there were other cruisers.  We ran into several people that we had met previously including our buddy Richard Nista and made several new friends while we were there. 

We had a potluck Christmas dinner with about 60 other cruisers.  There was tons of food and lots of chit chat and laughter.   Tim and I bought some scuba diving gear and folding bikes as our Christmas gifts to each other.  

The Saturday after Christmas we spent the morning finishing our preparations to leave Vero Beach.  We rode our bikes to the beach and went swimming in the ocean.  The water temperature was a perfect 65!!!  Not many of the locals agreed with us.  It is the first time we have been swimming since we left Maine!

I tried to highlight my own hair the night before we left and it is now somewhat orange with streaks of blonde.  I will have to get that fixed professionally somewhere along the way.  Oh well!  

December 28, 2014 – January 3,   

We left Vero Beach on the 28th and continued south down the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW).   We anchored in Fort Pierce and off Peanut Island near Lake Worth and then went outside to the Atlantic and headed to Miami.  By leaving the ICW in Lake Worth we avoided approximately 22 drawbridges.  Some open on demand and others that have scheduled openings. Also there is a fixed bridge on the ICW just as you come into Miami that is too low for us to pass under.  All those bridges were just too much of a pain in the ass to deal with.  We traveled in one day in the ocean what takes others 3 days in the ICW.

We anchored in Miami just off the Miami Yacht Club for 3 nights.  New Years Eve in Miami was loud.  There were one or two parties nearby blaring music and explosive fireworks that were set off in several locations around us.  5 simultaneous fireworks shows in all.  You could the colorful displays in just about every direction.

We are now on a mooring in Key Biscayne.  It is much more peaceful. 

So far we have not enjoyed our experience in the Miami area.   Most of the motor boats ignore the No Wake Zones and could care less how close they come to us and how big of wake their boat throws up.  When we were coming from the Atlantic to Miami via Fishermans Channel we were passed by a large speed boat that had to be going 60mph.   It was crazy.  The channel is narrow, and there were several boats coming and going and we all had to avoid the dredge barges working in the channel.   Ridiculous! We have met a couple nice folks, mostly other cruisers but have had several instances of people being downright rude.   We miss the nice folks from Nova Scotia and Maine!

We are preparing to cross over to the Bahamas from here.  Yesterday we mailed our application to obtain a permit to bring Shamus into the Bahamas.  In the meantime, we will start provisioning for the Bahamas and have some fun.  We hope to do at least one dive here in the keys before we leave.