Heading Home

Tonight, I am at Amelia Island Yacht Basin. I will be out of Florida tomorrow, and heading up into Georgia.  I expect to be home in just over a week, weather permitting.

After I left the Vero Beach Mooring field, I had some electronic issues.  My chartplotter was turning itself off, and my voltage meter was reading a low voltage of 11, when it should have been reading over 12.  The engine should have been keeping the batteries charged.  I was worried about my alternator, so I headed to Loggerhead Marina, on the north side of Vero Beach.  I pulled into Loggerhead at 7:45 a.m. and was met by great staff, who were very accommodating.  I checked my alternator belt and tightened it.  I checked my batteries, and they were all good, with plenty of voltage.  One battery terminal had some corrosion, which I cleaned off.  Then, everything seemed to work well. It was a good day, no problems with the alternator!  I made the best of the situation, and enjoyed the company of a few Canadian boaters, who were on the same dock, preparing their boats for the Bahamas.

After my relaxing day at Loggerhead, I headed to Daytona Beach.  I realized I would be there for a couple day due to a storm coming in.  I stayed in Daytona Beach for three nights, waiting for the rain and winds to subside.  I arrived in Daytona just before Biketoberfest.  Basically, it is the fall version of Bike Week in Daytona.  Harleys line the streets.  One of the guys who worked at the marina, offered to show me around town on his day off.  He took me to the biker areas and I tried to understand the whole biker thing, but wasn't able to.  In the end, I just wanted to get back to my sweet boat.

Daytime, one day before Biketoberfest started, you can imagine what it looks like after dark!

 As I was approaching St. Augustine, I noticed an older man, John, standing on the hull of his capsized sunfish sailboat.  He was drifting down the river.  I pulled alongside of him, and we managed to get his sailboat tied up to my boat.  We used my crane to pull his sailboat upright.  He lost his centerboard in the process, but otherwise, was not hurt.  I towed him to the other side of the river, where he lives on an old trawler, in the marshes.

John has boarded Annabelle, and we have a good line on his sailboat to help turn it over.

The mast is out of the water!

John didn't lose his life jacket, it was tied to the boat.

John, paddling back to his trawler in the marsh.

Here are a some pictures I took along the way:

Pirate ship for tourists at St. Augustine

St. Augustine Fort

Bald eagle flying from ICW channel marker

Marshes near Amelia Island

East Coast, Here I am!

Today is a big, big day for me! I finished the locks, I arrived on the Atlantic Coast of Florida, and I used my first mooring ball of the trip.

I finished the last of the locks for this journey coming through the Okeechobee waterway. There were five locks.  Now, one might think I am a pro at these locks, considering all that I have been through... Dismal Swamp, Erie Canal, Oswego Canal, Trent-Severn, Chicago and the Riverways from Illinios down to Mobile, Alabama.  I thought these locks should be simple!  The Okeechobee locks are a little different than the other locks I have seen.  They have hanging lines, like some of the locks in the Erie, which I had so much difficulty with.  There are only five locks, and each has a simple concept of just opening the gates to let the water levels stabilize between the rising or falling of the waterline.  If going up, the water is let in from the front gate, and if going down, it is released through the front gate.  Positioning my boat seemed simple enough... just stay away from the front gate, which acts like a drain in the bathtub.  The fourth lock, threw me for a loop.  I was only going down 1 1/2 feet, but the current was going to the back of the lock instead of the front, and I had to work hard at keeping my boat near the wall, by using my thrusters.  It was the longest foot and a half! I don't know why it was so difficult, except that the lock has ropes hanging from 20 - 25 feet above the water.  It is a tall lock.  The fifth and last lock, with a drop of 14 feet, was much smoother.  In these locks, they insist you take a bow and stern line.  I can't be at both the bow and stern of my boat.  In the last lock, they had me tie the bitter end of the line to my center bow cleat, and hold the stern cleat.  I had to leave my comfort zone of being at the helm for this, but it worked out well.  In general, it is a bad idea to tie any line to your boat, while you are dropping in a lock.  However, it worked!  The lockmasters were helpful. Even though I thought I had locking down, I learned new techniques for locking.  I think I could even handle the Erie canals better now.

The central part of Florida is very swampy.  One night, I anchored at Lake Hicpochee, just before getting to Lake Okeechobee.  I had a late start and a slow day, so didn't get as far as I had hoped.  However, as the sun was setting, I found a peaceful spot.  It was peaceful, until the guys with the swamp boat came out and ripped around at high speeds.  I tried to get a picture of the boat, but I think half the thrill for them was being out in the dark.  It was one of those boats that floats above the water, with a large fanlike apparatus at the stern, with the guys sitting up high.  I found a picture of a similar boat, only the boat flying by me, had two high seats, and was not taking a leisurely trip.  The lake, was really a swamp.  The opening was only five to six feet deep from the waterway.

Airboat picture taken from the internet.

Central Florida is an interesting place.  I am not sure I would want to live in such a swampy area, with as many alligators as they appear to have.  Last night, I stayed at Indiantown Marina.   One of the other transient boats, was an old, old trawler, which may have seen the best of it's years back in the seventies.  The couple who own her, may have had their best years in the fifties or sixties... hard to tell!  Anyhow, a few days ago, they found a rat aboard their trawler, so threw it overboard.  It was immediately snatched up by a hungry alligator.  Since then, they have continued to throw leftover food overboard.  Each night, they get a few small alligators hanging out around their boat.  The wife said, "I know I am not supposed to feed them, but I love animals!"  I love animals too, but they have these alligators trained well!

This morning, I was heading downstream, when I saw a water slide.  I was horrified to think about children, sliding into these alligator infested waters, where the alligators will wait around for anything to drop into the water to be eaten!  (OK... I was also starting to imagine that this could be a new Criminal Minds episode, and which gives me nightmares.)  Next to the house with the water slide, were Hummel-esque, yard art, statues of children, sitting on the wall.  It was just too creepy.  Here are the pics:

Little alligator, waiting for something to be dropped into water for dinner, at marina.

Waterslide... CRAZY... what are these people thinking?

Creepy yard art... this was next door to the water slide.

The other big thing for today, was arriving in Stuart, FL, on the East Coast!  I am now heading north on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway.  It was great to get to the Atlantic, smell the salty air, and notice the change of color of the water.

The Atlantic Ocean, from the ICW at the Stuart, FL inlet.

I had places picked out to stay in Stuart, Port Salerno, and Fort Pierce, but was too excited about moving north to stop.  I finally took a mooring ball in Vero Beach.  Other than practicing my mooring ball skills in Southport, I have not used a mooring ball this entire trip. It was easier than anchoring.  From what I have read, this mooring field is usually full, and they encourage rafting as well.  So, one person might be on the mooring ball with up to two other boats rafted to the moored boat.  I must have hit this town at the right time, because most of the mooring balls are available. I anticipate a very peaceful night!

My mooring ball in Vero Beach

Sailboat ahead of me, on mooring ball... and sharing with a heron.

Merrill Barber Bridge to Vero Beach at Sunset from mooring field

.

Down the West Coast of Florida

After a relaxing week and a half in the Clearwater area, I headed south.  Clearwater was a great place to stop and visit with friends.  Clearwater beach is beautiful! The day before I left, they were having soap box derby races, and next weekend is the Jazz festival.

Two racers heading down the hill towards the marina.

This little guy needed some assistance, but who doesn't love Legos?

After Clearwater, I headed to Sarasota.  First I had to cross Tampa Bay.  I was planning on going to a marina, but decided to anchor out and enjoy a peaceful night on the water.

Tampa Bay Bridge

 

Sunset just south of Sarasota at anchorage.

From Sarasota, I had a short day, docking in Englewood around noon.  I picked a marina across the street from the Englewood beach and spent the afternoon walking the beach and getting my laundry done.  The beach wasn't nearly as pretty as Clearwater.  Flocks of birds congregated on the beach.  The birds didn't seem too concerned about the people on the beach.  It was kind of weird.

Englewood Beach

Today, I came to Fort Myers. I arrived just before it started raining.  Throughout the day, I was keeping an eye on thunderstorms that were building up in the Gulf, and watching as they approached.  I have Sirius satellite weather on my chartplotter, so I can see how far the storms are from my boat, and try to avoid getting caught in a downpour.

From here, I head across the state, through the Okeechobee waterway.  Soon, I will be heading north towards home.  I think I have mentioned that all my "looper" friends are now behind me.  Many are headed to the "Great Loop Rendezvous", which starts next week.  Some of my friends also have insurance policies on their boats, which don't allow them to come this far south before November, because of hurricane season.  Since I have a trailerable boat, my insurance covers me.

A lot of people ask if I have been lonely on this trip of mine.  In general, I have to say "no", or at least hardly ever.  Now though, I feel like I won't be seeing other loopers for the rest of my trip.  I might see Tom, from "No Compromises", if he manages to catch up. I will be heading north when I get to the eastern coast of Florida.  Most of the other loopers will be staying in Florida or heading to the Bahamas for the winter.  Whether loopers, boaters, or random strangers, I have been fortunate to meet really nice people throughout this journey of mine.

When I started out of Southport, I thought I would be traveling with other loopers for most of the time.  I started this trip with Mark and Jane, from Average Looper.  We soon split paths, as my boat needed repairs in Norfolk.  Although we caught up a few times, our paths took us different directions.  I have been traveling alone for most of this trip, and sometimes, I meet other loopers at marinas.  I can honestly say, that when I see a "looper" flag, I have a friend... maybe one I haven't met yet.  I will miss seeing my looper buddies as I head towards home.  I will also look forward to spending time with my friends and family, when I get back.  I might just have more time than I was planning!