North West Creek Marina

Thursday - April 29 - Left early to catch the current in Adams Creek. Worked out well. Arrived at NWC Marina by noon.
Now comes the work of off loading the boat and getting them home.
This is the end of our cruise. Thanks to all who followed.

Morehead City

Wednesday - Left Mile Hammock early to catch the 8 am bridge opening. Arrived in Morehead City by noon. Tied up to the Sanitary Fish Restaurant for the night. Nice place to get off the boat and shop at Ace Marine.
The morning can early with the off shore boats getting under way.

Mile Hammock

Tuesday - Arrived at this anchorage at 11am. We were tired from a poor night so we stopped and relaxed. Great place for a good night. We hoped there are no Marine Corp maneuvers planned.

Bridge Tender Marina

Monday - We wanted to get to Wrightsville Beach from Coquina. Usually, a good ride. This day the wind was strong and the Cape Fear River had an ebb tide. The south west wind caused less problems then a wind that had a longer fetch. It took some extra time to get through the river which made up waves about 3-4 foot. After this ride, we thought a marina was in order. Unfortunately, we chose Bridge Tender. Tide was running 3.4mph with a wind of 15 knots in the same direction. Our space was on the fuel dock very close to the bridge. Thank God for twin engines.
However, our day was to get better. Barbara had arrange to meet our friend Philis and the dock worked out great. Philis was so nice. She provided the complete meal at our boat. Originally, we planned to stay for a few days and that would have allow us to have dinner at Philis' home, but this have changed and we need to get home asap. The next morning, we caught the slack current and low wind conditions. Easy off and turn around, but it was 6:30am, earliest time we got started.

Osprey Marina

Friday - A nice day through the woods of the Waccamaw River to Osprey Marina for one overnight and some diesel fuel. Best price for fuel.
Saturday & Sunday - Coquina Yacht Club was the next stop for a few days. We had a nice visit with our son and his wife. Brian & Annette were good boat guest. Next time, we hope to take them on a little excursion.

Dewees Creek

Wednesday - Left Wapoo Creek for Dewees Creek to spend the night. Got fuel and water on the way. Short ride, changed engine oil and filters. Still had great TV.
Thursday - Arrived at Minim Creek early afternoon. Only 40 miles, easy day. This is the anchorage where we had a fight with the BUGS. This time we are better prepared. We had bug killer.

Wapoo Creek

Monday - Arrived in Charleston at Wapoo Creek, a favorite of ours. Barbara gets to shop at Earthfare and I get to go to Cold Stone Creamery for ICE CREAM. Some current at this anchorage, but good wind protection.
Tuesday - Shopped at Earthfare. Eat at earthfare. Then ICE CREAM at Cold Stone Creamery. Back at the boat, we cleaned and prepared for our son and his wife coming this weekend.

Factory Creek

Saturday - Did the laundry, took showers at the marina for $1 (good deal, shopped, had ICE CREAM and replenished our water supply. Then we moved to Factory Creek for a good night sleep. No boat traffic and wakes.
Sunday - Left for Tom Point Creek, where we anchored. This anchorage also had great TV reception. We were able to watch the finish of the golf tournament.

Beaufort, SC

Thursday - Arrived at the anchorage adjacent to the Downtown Marina. A very pleasant anchorage in certain wind conditions.
Friday - Took the dinghy to Factory Creek and were allowed to tie up to Lady's Island Marina. Short walk to Publix(again). There is an old gentlemen in Publix (part time) who can be a grumpy old man, but he is fun. This visit he wasn't very grumpy.
We remember a great appetizer at Plum's. Similar to Oyster's Rockefeller, their baked oysters are great. Just an appetizer and a drink and it's back to the boat for the main course.
Photos - Sailboat is Sporting Lee, Barbara in Beaufort and Barbara & Paul in Beaufort

Brunswick Landing Marina

Saturday - Free laundry and Masters. Does it get any better ?
Sunday - More Masters. How about Mickelson !!!
Monday - Kilkenney Marina - Had fresh bait shrimp for dinner and ICE CREAM for desert. Showers may need a longer time to discuss. However, we were safe in a strong wind.
Tuesday & Wednesday - Savannah - Anchored for two days in Turner Creek. Great protection for a north, northeast wind. Publix and Ace Hardware is very close. Savannah bus line stops close to Publix.

Cumberland Island, Ga

Friday - April 9 - Anchored in Ft. George River, adjacent to the Ft. George Plantation. Very good anchorage. Used two anchors for drill. Some local fisherman(drunks) encouraged us to go the wrong way(low water)but I THANKED them and went MY way (I think I am getting better). Very good night for sleeping and my new TV got Great reception. We were able to see the Masters. Tomorrow we should be out of Florida.
See photos of the Ft.George Plantation and a sunrise. And you thought I would be sleeping late !

April 6 - 8

Tuesday - Made good time so we went past Cocoa and arrived at Titusville at 4:30pm. Anchored outside the marina. Had a strange wave formation most of the night with the wind out of the south. We had waves on our beam, but they were hitting us, not rolling us. Whatever !!!
Wednesday - Arrived at Palm Coast Marina by 4 pm. Looking forward to a good Italian dinner.
Thursday - Great sleeping conditions. The boat was covered with yellow pollen. We washed and waxed the bridge, cleaned and polished the strata glass and tried to wash off the pollen from the decks. It just kept coming. We have yellow decks with white bridge.
Barbara did the laundry while I biked to publix. Had ICE CREAM and watched first round of the Masters. Our TV is great.
Oh yes ! We did go to the Italian Resturant for a good meal and veno.

Vero Beach

Monday - April 5 - Getting ready to head north. Saying good bye, taking on water, leaving the poop and checking on the mechinery.
Heading for Cocoa to anchor for the night.
We did get to view the space shuttle launch this morning at 6:21 AM. Needed a nap this afternoon.

Vero Beach

Friday - Happy Easter - We have been dealing with a repair on the generator. The heatexchanger needed to be replaced. It got old, like us, and needed a transplant (new heatexchanger). Lucky we saved along the way for a rainy day, worked hard to overcome another crap storm. We have HOPE and CHANGE. Hope that the generator works and change of luck.
Anyhow, we will be leaving Vero Beach, God Willing, Tuesday.
Will try to update more regularly.
We are into some good weather and maybe the weather fronts will diminish.
Stay tuned for the latest in cruising.

Peck Lake

Tuesday - Relocated to the fuel dock to fuel up and empty the holding tank. All our friends showed up to make sure we left. Ha Ha !
Headed to Peck Lake to walk the beach and just get off the dock. Peck Lake is on the west side of a barrier island. So the ocean is just east and the Lake is just west. See photos

Stuart 3/22/2010

Monday - Getting ready to leave Stuart. Laundry, check engine fluids, generator fluids, top off water tank and jugs. Dinner with friends on Monday night to say good bye. See photos

Still in Stuart

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday (3/11/2010)- One day rolls into the next. Much socializing, Dominos, pot luck dinners, shopping for food, shopping for parts for small projects and generally not getting much accomplished. Several new friends.
The ladies have made Wednesday their lunch day. There are up to 13 ladies at lunch. The men stay on their boats eating P B & J sandwiches.
See the latest photo of my only friend !

Stuart

Saturday - Laundry, shopping, ICE CREAM and pot luck supper summarized the day.
Sunday - Farmers market, then had friends over for a game of Dominos.
Monday - Started a project so to Radio Shack for parts, then to Lowe's and still need parts. Found another type of ice cream. Northern Italian ice cream called Gelato. Made from milk, lower fat and it's actually GOOD.

Sunset photos

This sunset is looking from our slip

Stuart

Monday - Still enjoying the win by US in the hockey game. This marina is loaded with Canadians and they watch the Olympics with enthusiasm. Curling is very popular and therefore the captains lounge is always showing it.
Tuesday & Wednesday - More of the same, very good weather, buses, shopping and etc.
Thursday - Another Met & Greet in the Captains Lounge. Ladies Hockey was the Olympic event. Unfortunately the US lost to Canada. One of the cruisers had to leave for Maryland. He needed to get back home to START vegetable plants. He was a postman. So we did not ask more.
Friday - Cold morning but it's good to be at the dock. I heard from a friend that we need to provide more photos, so here are some of the marina.

Stuart

Saturday - No buses on the weekend. Walked to Lola's Restaurant for some GREAT lunch. Warm enough to eat outside without our jackets, then to Publix for MORE provisions. Saturday night at the Marina is a supper get together. Barbara has befriended a gentlemen from Australia. He is an inspiration. No hands and no legs below the knees. He handles a 50foot trawler usually with one other person. He is on a journey to Mexico, then to the West Coast to see Alaska. When he stands up next to Barbara, she is 6 inches TALLER. Need to get a picture.
Sunday - Beautiful day. Street fair in Stuart. Had to go since it included a farmers market. More vegetables, some different foods and Air Plant info. These Air Plants grow without soil. They are nice. We have several all over the boat. They need a mist once a week and they are not to be in direct sunlight.
Here are some photos of Stuart.

Stuart

Wednesday - As a result of the Tuesday night get together, Barbara had a lunch date with seven other ladies of the dock. I went back to Publix to buy a special 2 for 1 vine sale. We are walking more.
Thursday - Took the bus southbound to check out the beach and the bus line. Walked on the Hutchinson Island beach at the Marriot. Will be a nice beach day once the weather warms up.
Friday - Checked out the bus line northbound. Shopped at Sam's Club and Walmart. When we can back to the marina, we inquired about a better location for the boat. They placed us in a much better slip. More protected from the passing boat traffic and further from the bridge. We are happy !!!

Sunset Bay Marina

Monday - Left early for Stuart. Cold night and a brisk morning. About a mile down the ICW, we lost steering on the bridge. Check, check, could not find a problem. Had steering below. The air pressure in the hydraulic steering system seemed low probably due to the cold. I pumped it up a little and check the bridge. Steering was back. While I was checking all this, the boat was on autopilot. Strange, autopilot worked, lower station worked, need to check level of fluid at Stuart.
No more problem. But it sure wakes you up when the boat doesn't do what your anticipating !!
Tuesday - Cold night, but we had power for the heater. Nice inside the boat. Got settled. Walked to Lola's for Fish Tacos, then to Publix. If your ever in Stuart you MUST go to LOLA'S. Tuesday's get together with other cruisers. Drink and snack. Met more nice people. Marina has nice large captain's lounge with wide screen LCD TV.

Vero Beach

Sunday - Our last day at Vero. Pay the bill, pumpout, ready the boat for an early start. Check, check, & check. Placed the dinghy on the deck and clean the bottom and the same with the motor.

Vero Beach

Friday - It wasn't going to be a nice day so we found the movie theater and saw John Travolta in From Paris with love. A good action movie for Travolta.

Saturday - Took another walk to the Beach. Found a good place to eat, The Pearl. Had an ICE CREAM. We had met a couple in Brunswick, before going home for the Holidays. They had a 8 week old standard Poodle, Bella. Ellen and Don came over for dinner and showed us a cd of their trip to Alaska. One month to get there, one month there and them one month to get home. They have a trawler on the West Coast and a sailboat on the East Coast. Well the CD was outstanding. He edited it with music in the background while he spoke of the journey. OUTSTANDING!!! How do I get this boat to the West Coast ???

Vero Beach

Thursday - Recieved our replacement kayak. Not warm enought to deal with inflating it. The problem we had with the original kayak was when we took it for the madin voyage. We were several hundred yards away from the boat when I noticed one side was soft. We moved along quickly to get back dry. We made it. After examining the hull, and talking with the manufacturer, it was not repairable. They suggested that we destroy the hull to avoid others having a problem.
The photos are of a get together at Vero Beach.

Vero Beach

Wednesday - Nice day. Did some laundry, shower and went shopping. Had to get ready to visit friends, Don & Ellen aboard S/V Sirius Endeavour. We met them at Brunswick Landing. They had a 8 week old standard poodle puppy, Bella. Don would bring Bella over for a visit (socializing her). We then met them in Vero. Bella was "fixed" recently and created a problem by licking her stiches. She is a very active puppy.
We are waiting for a replacement kayak, but the bad weather north may delay its delivery.
This photo shows the people I BEAT at DOMINOS. Strange that they did not talk to me.

Vero Beach

Sunday - Windy and warm. Went to Riverside Cafe to watch the big game with some new friends. Great game ! Took some pictures of the harbor and bridge.
Monday - Cold ! Had to crawl out of bed to heat up the boat so Barbara could get up to feed me. Warmed up quickly ! Another ride on the FREE bus to Sam's so our friends could shop. Good day.
Tuesday - Very nice day forcasted. We went to the beach for a walk and found another very nice place to eat lunch. We have attached some photos. Got back to the marina and found that the water main was busted. No wash today !

Vero Beach

Wednesday - Nice day, so we packed a lunch and headed to the beach. Still windy. After lunch we had a little ICE CREAM and caught the bus for the marina. Unfortunately, the bus wasn't going to the marina. They needed to make up time so they went back to the transfer. We changed our plans and went to Lowes to get a tool. Pot luck day at the marina. Met many nice people.
Thursday - Another nice day. Walked on the beach. Dressed too warm, mlooked for the shade. Laundry day.
Friday - Farmer's Market in town. Barbara MUST check out all of them. She found a vendor with "air flowers". She is hooked.

Saturday - Farmer's Market at Vero Beach. Found more "air flower" vendors. Flower/plant flea market at Vero Beach had very nice material. Barbara talked with State Extension people to learn more about growing these flowers.
Happy hour at the marina, we met more new people.

Vero Beach

Monday & Tuesday - Back to riding the FREE bus and settling into a routine. We had a pot luck dinner Tuesday, and while speaking with new friends, we were discussion problems along the ICW.
Going back to Friday, Jan. 29 - The Bridge Of Lions has been closed for continued work. We were told if you could get under 22 ft clearance, we could go under the fixed portion of the bridge. Bridge of Lions was easy to get under. West side of bridge opening almost parrallel to City Marina. I contacted City Marina for info before choosing the best route.
More problems at Matanzas. Three sailboats were aground when we got there. There were a number of drop bouys, we stayed outside the bouys toward the west shore. We were listening for sometime and one grounded sail boat was in 4 foot of water. I tried to pass but hit ground and needed to back off. The tide was rising and all were ok so we continued on.

Vero Beach

Sunday - Arrived at Vero early afternoon. Not many boats moored. We think it might have to do with a 25% increase the City Council imposed in a down economy. While some marinas are dropping prices, they have increased theirs. O'well, we will move on a little quicker.
They did promise a pump out boat, but we can't find it.

Cocoa Beach

Saturday - Anchored south and west of the bridge. Strong winds were not predicted, but not too bad. Up early the next day to get to Vero Beach.

New Smyrna Beach City Marina

Friday - Left Palm Coast at 8:30 am. Seems to be all we can do to leave that early. The City Marina is nice. Close to a bakery that we will check out early Saturday, then off to Cocoa Beach.

Palm Coast Marina

Thursday - Arrived at a very nice marina. Got there just in time to share happy hour with those staying for the winter. Started some wash and walked to an area with several resturants. Had coffee and desert in an Italian resturant where the conversations brought us back to Long Island. We want to revisit this reaturant to check out the food, maybe on the way back.

Plam Cove Marina

Wednesday - Left Brunswick, finally, for Jacksonville,FL. This marina is ok. Cold nights force us into a marina. The weather looks much better south of us.

Brunswick Landing Marina

Tuesday - Problem with a bridge, Bridge Of Lions, forces us to stay until we learn how to get around it. The channel is closed but we will be able to go under a fixed span west of the work. Met a very nice couple and had them over for dinner. Good night.

Brunswick Landing Marina

Friday Jan. 22 - Well , we are back in Brunswick, Ga to ready and stock Barbara's Joy for our trip south. We will keep the rental car till Monday and hopefully leave Tuesday.
Saturday - Shop, Shop, and more Shopping. The boat is sitting a little lower, just as Barbara likes it.
Sunday - Mechanical maintenance day, check everything we can and find a place for things we brought. Can't buy boose here on Sunday. Another thing I did not know.
Monday - Needed to return the car by noon, therefore, run around to get last minute stuff. Hope the winds die down by Tuesday morning.