Cruising for Christmas!

 Greetings dear friends, family, and followers!

I type this from Moore Haven City Docks in Florida.  Paul and I left Stuart this morning to head on our most excellent Christmas adventure vacation! 

Let me back up - we continue to enjoy Stuart - such a great place - and here are a few photos from the last few weeks.

A few weekends ago we had 4 straight days of rain!  So - when there's rain, there's a rainbow - taken from our bow at the marina.

Since it was a rainy weekend, it was a great opportunity to get to the Navy Seal Museum in Fort Pierce - which is about 30-40 minutes from Stuart.  Since we have the van, we are very mobile.  What a cool place and one of the exhibits featured the actual lifeboat from the Maersk Alabama where the 3 Navy Seals simultaneously shot the 3 hijackers, setting free Captain Richard Phillips on Easter Sunday in 2009.  What an amazing story and the museum is a great tribute to the incredibly talented and brave men who have served their country so dutifully since World War II. 

A picture of the inside of the lifeboat - it reminded me of a small commuter plane - there are 22 seats - oh yea, but with 3 bullet holes!

We met a great cruising couple - Renee & Mike - who stayed in Stuart for a few weeks - along with their sweet Golden Retriever Luka.  Mike is a navy veteran (graduated from the Academy in Annapolis) and they joined us when we went to the Navy Seal museum.  They have a beautiful boat - Blue Grotto - and I took a photo as they departed last Friday.  They will spend the winter in the Keys.  We definitely hope to run into them again soon - great people!

Paul was in Ft. Lauderdale all of last week taking a safety certification class so he can upgrade his Captain's license.  He returned on Friday evening and we spent the weekend preparing for our journey - we "fed the bitch," "pumped the bitch," and bought lots of groceries (cuz ya know we don't miss a meal).  It has been pretty up in the air as to where we would go - and our plan is still pretty open - but we did decide to head West and cross the Okeechobee Waterway and spend time on Florida's beautiful West coast.  The Okeechobee Waterway runs between Stuart and Ft. Myers - 144 miles - and there are 5 locks, 3 of which we went through today.  Our marina - Sunset Bay - is 8 miles from the InterCoastal - so we just kept heading west.  We had gone a few miles west last winter on our dinghy, but this time, we're going much farther! 

So - we departed at about 8am this morning and in less than 10 miles was our first lock - St. Lucie Lock.  Paul glides the boat in and the lock tender throws us the lines and we hold on to them - Paul at the bow and me at the stern - careful not to tie them down (but still hanging on tight) since the boat is always moving.  In this lock we rose about 8 feet.  Then, we headed about 25 miles to Port Mayaca lock.  This lock was much more uneventful - we rose less than a foot.  Paul took a video - please click here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWVg50jb66E

When you leave this lock, you cruise right into Lake Okeechobee.  It is HUGE and pretty shallow - we were on it for about 25 miles. 

Heading into Lake Okeechobee from the lock.  The lake is pretty brown and not terribly exciting . . . which is fine when you're on a boat - you don't want a lot of excitement.  Because the water is shallow and there was some wind today, it was a little choppy, but very bearable.  Lake Okeechobee is the largest fresh water lake in Florida and the 7th largest fresh water lake in the USA!

A look back at the Port Mayaca lock.

So - we went 25 miles across the southern part of the lake and the next town is Clewiston.



The lake is behind us and we hit the shore on the other side - it reminded me a lot of the Everglades.

 

If you want to go into Clewiston, you go straight through this lock.  However, since we wanted to continue on the waterway,  we took a right here to continue West.




Heading to Moore Haven from Clewiston - a long canal - very flat.  A nice ride - wide, deep, and uncomplicated!

So - we reached the third lock - Moore Haven Lock - in about 10 miles.  One of the gates wasn't working, so Paul masterfully guided Master Plan through a 25' opening - Master Plan is 15' wide, so when you factor current and wind, there is not a ton of wiggle room - he did an excellent job!!

Moore Haven Lock - Paul navigated Master Plan beautifully through this narrow opening!

In the lock - Paul on the bow and me on the stern.  In this lock, we were lowered 3 feet.



Gives you an idea of where we are and how far we are from everything. 

We arrived to Moore Haven City Docks at about 4pm.  It's a small town and sadly adversely affected by the rough economy.  We were really surprised not to see any alligators today, but maybe tomorrow!  This area is well known for them.  A nice couple from our marina are docked here as well - they made the trip yesterday and saw a ton of alligators, so we hope we'll see them (from a safe distance of course!) tomorrow.


He's a great captain, and great husband AND he does windows!  :-)



Master Plan at the Moore Haven City Dock settling in for the evening.



Pictured here is City Hall (across the street from the picnic table) - where we pay for the slip. This is pretty much the extent of the town - there is a library next door and a playground behind City Hall.



Our new purchase - two used bikes - we bought them to use this winter and thought it would be a good idea to bring them on this trip.  We took a little ride around town once we got settled.

So - our plan for tomorrow is to head to Sanibel Island - about 80 miles - and then we'll take it from there depending on weather and what we feel like doing next!

Thanks for following along and for your love and support - we'll be blogging again soon!  Love, Jen & Paul

Today's Quote:

When you recover or discover something that nourishes your soul and brings joy, care enough about yourself to make room for it in your life.

~ Jean Shinoda Bolen

Enjoying Stuart!

Good evening everyone -

Greetings from sunny Stuart.  Paul and I continue to enjoy this great area.  We are settling in nicely and it's nice to reconnect with people we knew last year and meet many new and friendly faces.  We have been blessed with beautiful weather; it has been quite windy on occasion, but very comfortable here at the dock. 

Paul flew to Norfolk on Monday and returned yesterday with our van - so we have a vehicle here, which is convenient and opens up a lot of options!  We also purchased bikes, so we would get more exercise and not be tempted to jump in the van everytime we needed to run a quick errand.  We discovered a great bike shop here and the people were really friendly and we found two used bikes reasonably priced and in really good condition.  Paul arrived late yesterday afternoon with the van and we picked them up today.  There are several bike racks by the Marina Office - so we're keeping them there (locked up of course).

Our marina is called Sunset Bay for a good reason - the sunsets here are amazing!



This past Saturday, there was a boat parade - so in the true spirit of things, the owner of the marina's restaurant decked out his boat in Christmas lights and docked it in the heart of the marina!  We saw the parade from afar - there were probably about 15 boats with great lights and decorations - very cool.



Every Sunday afternoon, there is a free concert right in downtown area on the water - the band this particular week wasn't all that great, but it is a really cool offering to the community.  Earlier in the day on Sunday in the same area is a great Farmer's market with lots of cool things available made locally.



To get from downtown Stuart to the marina is a lovely boardwalk that runs along the river - very pretty and scenic and not terribly far - maybe a half mile - lovely!



Along the board walk, we see lots of cool wildlife - this heron perches on a rock waiting to hopefully catch a snack (aka fish!)



This particular heron found success - it's a little hard to see this, but he is perched atop an old dock piling and working to move the fish around in his beak so he can get it in the perfect position before he swallows it!  YUK.



A gecko (not selling insurance) enjoys the sun.



Sunset again - Master Plan is dead center in this photo.



Looking back at the marina at sunset.  Master Plan is one of the smaller boats here!



When we were walking along the dock this evening, we saw a ton of fish swimming near the surface - not sure what type of fish they were, but it was really kind of cool to see.

So we are still figuring out our plans for a trip over the holidays - we're pretty sure we'll go across the Ogeechobee Waterway and hang out on the West coast for a while, but it's all weather dependent.  We'll see and we'll keep you posted!

Thanks so much for your love and support - lots of love, Jen & Paul

Today's Quote:

It's your life--but only if you make it so.

~ Eleanor Roosevelt

Stuart! We Have Arrived!

Good morning friends, family, and followers! 

Paul and I are settling in at Sunset Bay Marina in Stuart and are so happy to be back!  A lot of friends who were here last year are still here and it's great to see everyone again.  We really love this marina - the facilities are so beautiful, the staff is super friendly, and we so enjoy the area.  Also - our good friends from last year's trip - Don and Susan from Nova Scotia are here - probably for a week - waiting for a good weather window to cross to the Bahamas where they will spend the winter.  It is such fun to see them too!

When last I posted, we were en route to Titusville from St. Augustine.  We did indeed see the NASA rocket launch that morning and I was able to grab a few photos - we were about 70 miles north of where it launched.

Off it goes to Mars! 

Even some birds were watching with us!



In the middle of the photo, you can see the smoke trail left behind.

 The ICW in Florida is always beautiful - as we headed towards Titusville, we enjoyed some cool sites along the way:


This area is known as the Palm Coast - beautiful residential area.



This house is definitely in the holiday spirit!  WOW!

 


Some pelicans hanging out on the "no wake" sign.

We arrived in Titusville just before sunset - we ran a total of 100 miles - a long day.  This is the town that is closest to Cape Canaveral - they just built a brand new mooring field, so we grabbed a mooring and enjoyed the sunset and evening.  We made some dinner and relaxed.

On Sunday morning, we woke up to clouds and some light showers and untied the mooring and started heading south again towards Vero Beach - this day would be shorter - only 70 miles.  By mid-morning the clouds had cleared and it ended up being a beautiful sunny day.  Lots of dolphins along the way and sunshine.  

The Ponte Vedra Lighthouse - this is a popular area to go "outside" - out into the ocean -  because the inlet is so big, the currents and tides here are very strong.

We arrived to Vero Beach in mid-afternoon on Sunday.  We had heard amazing things about this marina and area, but we were a little disappointed with the marina facilities.  We had a mooring reservation and they wanted to raft us up with two sailboats - definitely not what we had in mind.  So we found our own mooring and decided to stay for just one night.  Fortunately, there was a great sports bar that was a 1-minute dinghy ride away with great food - so we enjoyed dinner and a few beers while we watched the Patriots solidly defeat the Eagles - YAY!

Originally our reservation at Sunset Bay started on December 1st, but luckily, it was ready - so we called Sunday afternoon and got the green light to arrive on Monday.  We only had 40 miles to go and on Monday morning, we got up early and off we went!  The weather was a little iffy - passing showers, etc., but we both remembered how beautifully blue the water gets as you get closer to Stuart.  Even with clouds, it was still pretty awesome! 

To get to Stuart, you leave the ICW and head 8 miles up the St. Lucie River - which is also the start of the Ogeechobee Waterway - which cuts across Florida.  This part of the trip is really beautiful - lots of gorgeous homes along the water and very scenic.  As we headed up the River, we passed a HUGE Yacht - Compass Rose - 161 feet long, 39 feet wide - pictured below.

We passed Compass Rose on the St. Lucie River about 1-2 miles from Sunset Bay - you can see the weather was a little iffy with the line of clouds against the blue sky.  Fortunately, by the time we arrived to the marina, the sun was out again!

So we arrived at noon-time, gave our boat a pump out, then Paul expertly docked the boat at our new slip for this year - C40.  We love it and it's great to be back.

Over the weekend, our friend Melissa sent us a few pictures of Master Plan in action - which is so great since it's impossible for me to do this while ON the boat!  John and Melissa are the friends we spent last Monday night with at Jekyll Island - so when we passed them - we took photos of them and they took photos of us!  

Jen on the bow with her camera in hand (what a surprise) and the Captain making a quick appearance for the photo op!



Another shot - doesn't this remind you of the "King of theWorld" moment in the Titanic movie?  I guess there are some subtle differences - Master Plan is slightly smaller and (hopefully) will never sink and Kate Winslet has nothing on me!  However, my outfit is slightly more casual than hers . . .

So - life is good and we are enjoying the Florida sunshine and getting back into our routine here.  We are here more than 3 weeks earlier than last year, which is awfully nice.  Hard to believe December starts tomorrow!

Wishing everyone a great week and lots of happy days - we send our love, Jen & Paul

Today's Quote:
But friendship is precious, not only in the shade, but in the sunshine of life, and thanks to a benevolent arrangement the greater part of life is sunshine. - Thomas Jefferson

Continuing South

Good morning dear friends and family - I hope everyone enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving surrounded  by loved ones and yummy food.  Paul and I are very thankful for YOU - so thanks so much for being such great friends and so supportive.

We arrived in St. Augustine on Wednesday afternoon and decided to stay for 3 nights.  Upon arrival, we "fed the bitch" and settled into our slip.  It is now Saturday morning and we are on our way south. Our goal today is to reach Titusville (near Cape Canaveral), which would be a total of 100 miles - so we left just before sunrise and so far, so good.  The tides are with us and we're making good time.

St. Augustine is a really cool city.  Last year, we stayed one Sunday night in mid-December and it was FREEZING - about 30 degrees - so it was great to be back in fairer temperatures and also have more time to explore the area.  We enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner at the Casa Monica Hotel which is a cool historic hotel right in the heart of downtown - they had a lovely buffet and we enjoyed it very much.  We ate early, then walked around the city - we visited the Castillo de San Marcos - a really cool fort built in the 1600's by the Spanish and now managed by the National Park Service.  Here are some photos:

Captain Paul on the gun deck with St. Augustine inlet behind him.

The detail on the cannons were amazing - designed and built by the Spanish.  As the years went on and they ran out of money, the designs got much simpler - the basic black style that you're used to seeing in a cannon!

The entire fort is made of Coquina (pronounced Coe Kee Nah) which is solid packed sand and sea shells.  The top of the walls were 9' feet thick and the base was 18' feet thick - making the fort virtually impossible to knock down with cannon balls.

The view from the Gun Deck of the InterCoastal Waterway.

We spent the afternoon relaxing on the boat - it was very windy on Thursday - we napped, read, watched TV, etc - just what we needed!  On Friday, we were very productive - we went food shopping, did laundry, and also did some more sightseeing.  St. Augustine is the oldest American city - established in 1565 by the Spanish - and also a big playground for Henry Flagler - thus incredible architecture.

This historic Presbyterian Church was incredible - sorry for the sideways view - turn right please!

Another view from the side - the detail is incredible.

Unfortunately we arrived 15 minutes after they closed the inside for tours - the stained glass was amazing.  Turn right please!

Flagler College is right in the heart of town - this historic building once was a hotel back in the day. 

Inside looking up at the dome.

The mosaic detail on the outside was so cool.

The St. Augustine Municipal Marina has nice facilities and we met some really nice people while there. 

They have a pirate ship - The Black Raven - that goes out several times a day - this was taken from the bow of Master Plan as she passed through the Bridge of Lions.

Before the next boat arrived, a father with 3 sons were fishing in a small boat right next to our dock - they were catching Sheepshead fish one after the other - he was very nice and posed for me! 

Our other neighbors were a very nice family from Orlando - "Boomer" the watch dog - was keeping guard on the top deck!

This sign cracked me up for a few reasons - first the name of the Pub - the Giggling Gator is super silly and then I love it when they Open and Close.  Again, sorry for the sideways view - please tilt your head to the right!

We bid farewell to St. Augustine early this morning and caught a lovely sunrise soon after we left the marina..

There is a rocket launch scheduled this morning at 10:02 AM at Cape Canaveral; we anticipate we'll be about 60-70 miles north of it at that point, so will hopefully be able to see it as we're cruising along. 

So thanks again for following along - we appreciate your love and support and will be in touch again soon!  Lots of love, Jen & Paul

Today's Quote:

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.

~ William Arthur Ward