Pushing East to Apalachicola 11-29-08

It takes about 6 Loopers 5 minutes to figure out what day it is and now that we have crossed into the Eastern Time zone, add 5 more minutes. I wake up in the morning to the familiar surroundings of my v-berth bed, but I have to lie there awhile and ask myself, “Where am I?” I would definitely need more time and a little coaching to pass even a Mini-Mental Status exam these days. I like that about cruising life—everything is different practically every day except for your boat and your partner and I would not trade either of these.

We are off to Apalachicola today and hope to get there before major rain is expected. Our trusty "Intercoastal Waterway Chartbook" directs us through long narrow sections with very interesting descriptions of the adjoining land masses—the impenetrable swamp, cypress swamp, low swampy area, bayou and marsh. I can not tell you what the differences are but all have a subtle beauty and quietness as we proceeded almost alone for the whole morning. Questions that I cannot answer: "if the swamp is so impenetrable, how did they get a house there; what is the story behind the chair; how shallow is that island"? I think that these are the proverbial FL swamplands that are for sale to naive investors.

We then entered Lake Wimico which is very shallow (1-3 feet) off the narrow buoyed channel. This was made a bit more interesting by increasing winds and tidal flow so we had to be very vigilant to stay within the markers. There is anxiety with cruising, and in these situations, we do a rehearsal for the worse case scenario, i.e. “What would we do if our engine cut out right here and we are blown into the shallows in this really remote area?”

We arrived at the Water Street Marina at noon. We chose this marina as it is close to town and they have floating docks. However, at extreme low tide which is today, there is only 4’6” of depth at this marina which discouraged other Looper boat with deeper keels, "Golden Lily" and "Highlander", from coming in.

The forecasted rain did materialize but we were able to get a picture of palm trees with Christmas evergreen decorations in front of Water Street Hotel and Marina. The Yule Log lighting ceremony was cancelled but Santa did arrive by shrimp boat yesterday so Christmas is on.

We did tour the Raney House in the rain. It is another example of Greek revival architecture during the antebellum period and gives a glimpse of life in the mid 1800's. We plan to tour more historical areas tomorrow, rain or shine.

St. Joseph Peninsula State Park 11-28-08

One of the advantages of staying in an area an extra few days is the opportunity to really explore. Our gracious host, Ray Whitney, offered us the use of his Toyota so that we could drive 20 miles to St. Joseph Peninsula State Park which is situated between the Gulf and St. Joseph Bay. It is the crown jewel in the FL park system and offers a sweeping landscape of towering dunes and untamed wilderness.

On the bay side, we explored the nature trails, peeked in on nesting birds and were surrounded by the quiet subtle mood of nature that was so nicely captured by the passing red kayak. The Gulf side offered a wilder side with rough surf, seagulls flying and kids playing on the beach. To have such different experiences in the same afternoon was memorable.

This area offers 2 campgrounds and modern cabins for rent and would be well worth a visit on the way to southern FL.

It Does Not Get Better Than This (Port St. Joe) 11-27-08

This part of Florida is dubbed the “Forgotten Coastline” but we will never forget our time here. Port St. Joe (PSJ) deserves a full page spread in the Destination section of “The Waterway Guide.” We almost didn’t come here but got a recommendation from fellow Looper, Madison Groves on “Joy@Sea” and we are so glad that we visited. Looper rate is $.75 per foot--that is a deal!

Port St. Joe Marina has certainly earned its title as “Florida’s friendliest marina.” P SJ Yacht Club Commodore, Ray Whitney, greeted us warmly when we arrived, offered us his car and he and his lovely wife, Patsy, fellow boaters, Jim and Rita, and visiting friends, Luke and Mary from Chicago, took us out for Thanksgiving dinner at Tindell Air Force Base. We felt so at home with them.

We also met Rudy and Jill who built their 34’ wooden trawler, “Briny Bug”, over a 4 year period and took it cruising up to Lake Eire. Fellow boaters lent Bob some tools he did not have so he could do some engine maintenance. We have not had any mechanical problems so far which is a testament to Bob's preventative maintenance program, the sturdy 135 Ford Lehman engine and some luck. Everyone we met is working on their next cruising plan—these are our kind of people.

The area is favored with spectacular beaches—St. Joseph Peninsula State Park was voted America’s #1 ranked beach in 2002. Port St. Joe was a mill town as late as 2000 and it is to be commended for reinventing so successfully as a tourist destination. Local residents who have transplanted here all talk about the beauty of the area, the amenties available and the charming 1950’s small town feel.

We will be back.

Swampland on the Way to Port St. Joe (11-25-08)

We only have 45 mile trip today to Port St. Joe. I am a little tired from all the nightly adventures that I describe in “Tales from the Sea.” The overnight rain has cleared the air and we head east into a clear sunny sky.

Today’s trip is similar to yesterday as we will traverse larger bays ( East Bay and Big Cove) and snake through narrow connecting channels (Wetappo and Gulf) which makes the journey very interesting. The harder part on the larger bays is finding the red and green channel markers when the sun is in your eyes but the rest is easy. We had company this morning from the powerboat “Rita” who welcomed us to the area and told us that we had 2 dolphins swimming in our stern wake. They were beautiful and fast and again eluded my camera lens.

Another Looper boat, “Lady Margaret”, a beautiful hand-built wood trawler, is 5 miles ahead of us. We hailed them to ask about their plans to cross the Gulf. This is our new preoccupation and any boater who has ever crossed has definite opinions about when and how to cross: “Take the overnight from Carrabelle to Tarpon Springs (170 miles) as you will not have the problem of your rudder getting fouled in crab pots….. No, don’t do that, take the multi-day Rim Route from Carrabelle to Steinhatchee (70 miles) and then along the coast to Crystal River then Tarpon Springs. There are crab pots but it’s safer than doing an overnight sail and being far off shore….. Be mindful of when there is a high pressure system over Texas….. Anchor at the east side of Dog Island not Carrabelle as you get ahead by 5 miles….. No, leaving from the north side of Dog Island is safer …….. Just leave from Carabelle at 0 dark 30 and head out East Pass at first light......"

The water turns brown as we head into the Wetappo narrow channel and the land is swampy but very interesting. Fishing is great here but we are also finding more debris. Is that an alligator or a tree limb? We are surprised to find that we have 4 bars on the cell phone in this remote area.

One decision we have made is to spend a few days in the Port St. Joe Marina and not to push on for a Gulf crossing on Thanksgiving. The old Peggy and Bob would have pushed it; the new, relaxed versions have learned a thing or two about enjoying the moment. We decided to make the stop here as other Loopers recommended it, it bills itself as “the Gulf Coast’s Friendliest Marina” and the town has a good grocery store, restaurants, movie store and walking areas.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tales from the Sea 11-25-08

This has been an exciting morning for me since 4am when I awoke to the sound of “tat, tat, tat” next to my bed. I logically thought, “We had overnight rain which is still dripping off the flybridge.” I went back to sleep but my unconscious was already alerting me to the presence of something as I had dreams about Neptunian monsters. I awoke again to the same sound and went outside to check the decks and nothing could account for that sound.

I listened again and it sounded like it was coming from the closet. I got out the flashlight and started tearing the closet apart looking for some critter with eyes. Bob’s side of the closet is loaded with all sorts of power packs of techno tools and I went through the bags looking to see if one of them was on. Nothing.

Okay, I am going to have to go down to the bilge so I lifted the small floorboards up and the noise got LOUDER. There is probably a giant bilge rat down there. My plan was to blind it with a flashlight while I trapped it with a colander. Don’t worry as I’ll have time to buy a new one before I need it to drain pasta.

I started to lift the large floor boards up when I was startled from behind and almost had a heart attack. It was Bob wondering what I was doing. I explained that I was fixing to do battle with a bilge creature. He laughed hysterically and said that the sound was fish nibbling debris off our hull and keel. It must have been an Old Country Buffet spread down there as these fish were really chowin’ down.

We decided to stay up as I was already so full of adrenaline. We began to ready the boat for an early departure when we noticed that our dinghy oar was askew and a big chunk of it had been bitten off!!!! What did this????? Alligators????

Panama City (11-24-08)

We are getting closer to the Eastern Time zone and daylight comes earlier in the morning so we were able to leave at 6:30 for a 61 mile trip to Panama City. We were pushing it a bit today as we are still undecided if we will try to cross the Gulf on Thanksgiving which looks like the next opportunity.

We crossed Choctawhatchee Bay and then squeezed into the narrow Cedar Swamp part of the GIWW. The name sounds dank and dark but this part of the GIWW is like a coastal version of the Cumberland River with evergreen covered sandy banks. It is a beautiful 20 mile ride along a 40 yard channel and the only company was the occasional fisherman and another Looper boat, “Lady Margaret”. We had adequate depths of 10-17 feet. We were also visited by dolphins again but sorry, still no pictures. Bob saw them this time so I am not making this up.

It is a shift when you emerge back into the broad West Bay and then St. Andrews Bay as the boat traffic increases as do the size of the boats.

Picking a marina for the night is always a little difficult for first timers to an area. We always appreciate recommendations but sometimes, we just have to wing it. We pulled into Panama City Municipal Marina and it is ok. We did get a side-tie dock, staff helped us tie-up and the bathrooms are clean. We’re passing this info on to you as it may help with your dock choices. We walked around Panama City, and like so many small and medium size towns, it has been hit by an economic turndown. They do have a bakery and coffee shop within walking distance of the marina so that is a plus but no grocery store or courtesy car. "The Nutcracker" ballet will be performed here on 11/29 and there will be a "Star Spangled Christmas" boat parade on 12/13.

After talking with other boaters, it would probably be better to stop at either St. Andrew Marina which has been renovated and has floating docks or Bay Point Marina in the Lagoon area.

Niceville FL (really) 11-23-08

We left Pensacola at 7am with cloudy skies, 50 degrees and 1 foot chop on the bay. We heard and saw some reminders of how tricky boating can be sometimes. The Coast Guard broadcast a “Pan Pan” this morning for the overdue 75’ fishing vessel, “Master John”, and a pleasure craft needed assistance further up the Intracoastal at St. Joe’s. The CG was diligent in responding to both situations and it is good to know that we have help out here when needed. We passed 2 sailboats that were aground but no owners on board so must have happened earlier.

The Verizon aircard had a signal for most of today and I was busy trying to find out more about how to cook a small turkey this week in the SeaWard Princess 3 burner /oven propane stove. It is a hot oven and I usually decrease the temps for most things but I have never cooked a turkey in it. We have the Owner’s Manual but it only covers installation, not how to cook in it. The internet had a lot of sites for ordering parts but nothing on actually cooking. Anybody have any suggestions???

After 7 hours and 57 miles, we decided to go to Bluewater Marina in Niceville. It had been recommended by some sail boaters that we met in Pensacola. It is one of the “nicest” marinas yet with such a great view. L J Schooner's Bar is located at the marina and is named after a famous sailing dog who frequented it. It is a small tiki bar with the best drinks and really interesting people. The main restaurant is adding an oyster bar which will probably be ready next year. There are walking and bike trails and there is a heated outdoor pool which is still open about 1/2 mile from the marina. Courtesy car also available.

Pensacola (11/20-11/22/08)

We did not expect to spend 4 nights here at Palafox Marina but did so due to small craft advisories. You could do way worse. We decided to really work at this leisure thing and played tourist for 3 days.
We had really wanted to anchor close to the beautiful Pensacola beaches but high winds prohibited this so we did the next best thing—rented a car for a day and drove to the beautiful Gulf Islands National Seashore. The sand is like super fine white sugar which contrasts strikingly with the green water. We brought our beach chairs, umbrella and books for a full beach day as well as polar fleece and hot drinks as it was cold. You would not know this to look at the picture of Bob and the guy parasailing on a boogie board but look close and you can see the goose bumps.
The next day we got even more adventurous or cheaper and decided to take the #58 bus out to the National Museum of Naval Aviation. It is about an hour ride from the downtown transfer station, but at $1.75 a ride and the chance to be green, it was well worth it. Bob is a pilot so this was a must-see for him and I also enjoyed it. We did the Flight Simulator together and I handled some of the weapons but could not really shoot. Am I a pacifist or just a lousy shot? Here’s Bob picking out his next dinghy—a yellow seaplane that we could just tow behind the boat.
The following day was even colder and more blustery. We decided to visit the Department of Leisure Activities at the Escambia County Office Building to put in a suggestion that they have to find a way to get the temperatures up so more people can get outside to leisure. The streets of Pensacola are pretty deserted and looked like St. Paul when it’s in the frigid zone. We thought what do we usually do when it’s cold—go to a movie. We hopped on the #42 bus which took us to a local Mall theatre where we saw “The Changeling.” It has an interesting plot but Angelina Jolie was all wrong for the lead. She does have great lips, eye make-up and clothes though.
We had some great seafood the past few days. We definitely recommend The Fish House which is located a few blocks east of the marina. Great food and ambience await you. You have to go to Joe Patti’s Fish Market which is about a mile west of the marina. The fishing boats are parked right there unloading their catch, and when you walk in, you are greeted with the aroma of garlic and shrimp accompanied by Pavarotti singing an aria from “Tosca.” This is my kind of place. We picked up some Red Snapper at $10.49 a pound and some Cajun Crab dip—they were delicious.