Adventures of Dragon Lady

It has been a very anxiety- provoking day!  We need a certain part to repair our engine so we can make the last leg of our journey to Key West ( just one day and 40 miles).  We had to phone the boat yard in Oriental to try to track down this part.  Finally this afternoon they found it and are having it sent here ASAP.  But we don’t know exactly when it will be delivered with a weekend coming up.  Then we need the diesel mechanic to schedule us in next week.  Did I mention that we have had unfavorable weather and Monday and Tuesday look like a good weather window if our engine is fixed ( fingers crossed).  And also Bryce has a full caseload of patients scheduled starting next Tuesday- he needs to know whether he needs to cancel them.  Ugh!  Very stressful!  The fun of cruising! It's been said that the definition of cruising is repairing your boat in exotic places.

So close…and yet so far!   The boat mechanic came back again this afternoon and fixed our generator (needed a new clean filter) and found the fresh water leak that has been bugging us for weeks- yay!  Then he put new filters on the main engine and was nearly done when a fitting broke- we don’t have a replacement part and he will try to find one in the next several days.  So even if we get a good weather window to leave here, we may be stuck without a working engine!  Did I mention that the weather stinks- for south Florida- only 69 degrees today and very blustery winds.  Yes, we are so close- and yet so far!

Sometimes there are miracles; sometimes prayers get answered.  We have had a spat of bad luck on this trip; almost every day something would stop working or break down.  Yesterday when the windless and washdown for the anchor stopped working, I could tell that Bryce was depressed.  He is a good man and a wonderful hubby, but not a Mr. Fixit.  He has limited skills when it comes to repairs.  I went to bed last night with a heavy heart, feeling so sorry for him.  This morning when I was walking Suzy I met a couple who live here full-time on their boat.  As Suzy and their dog played, I asked them who did work on their boat ( and explained our situation).  They recommended a fellow named Chris.  I got his card from the office and gave him a call, fingers crossed that he could come while we were here.  Wow!  I was blown away that he used to work on boats at another boat yard in Oriental, NC; he knew where we keep Dragon Lady ( in Pecan G...

We pulled an all-nighter!  That’s right!  We could see on the weather forecast that conditions were going to deteriorate starting tomorrow .  If we anchored in Rodriguez Key today like we usually do, we would be stuck on anchor for 4-5 days! Ugh!  So we decided to leave Biscayne Bay at 1:00 a.m. and travel all night to Marathon.  We were lucky Safe Harbor Marina had a spot for us and we may stay here through at least part of the weekend ( yes! 5-6 days!). Grass for Suzy and shops and restaurants for mom and dad!  Got here at 2:00 p.m. and crashed!  Now where to go for dinner!  Ah! Decisions! Decisions!

What a ride!  We left Bahia Mar marina about 6:30 and passed through our last bridge that opened at 7:00 .  We immediately put up our main and mizzenmast sails and went out the channel into the ocean.  It was nasty; 3 foot waves and a stiff breeze made for a very, very bumpy ride!  Thank heaven we have an inside steering station for Bryce!  We arrived at our anchorage in Biscayne Bay about 12:30 and set the hook.  There is a lot of boat traffic around us;  people fishing; jet skies; paddle boarders; and other sailboats like us.  Probably because it is Sunday of a holiday weekend.  Did I mention that it is also summertime hot!

What a hot and humid day!   We left our anchorage at 6:30 and passed by many, many luxurious mansions.  Who makes all that money?!  We arrived at the Bahia Mar Marina at 10:30 , picked up diesel, and tied up at our slip.  Suzy couldn’t believe there was grass!  So long potty pads!  We went to lunch at Bubba Gumps cafe and enjoyed their gumbo and beer.  This afternoon I did one more load of laundry while relaxing in the rooftop heated pool- never had this much fun doing laundry before!  Now we will head back to town for dinner across from the beach.   

Today was another frustrating day; about 15 bridges that had to open for us, some on the hour and half hour,  some on the quarter to or quarter after hour.  It was rush, rush, then wait, wait!  We saw some enormous mansions with beautiful landscaped yards, and we saw Trump’s Mar-a-Lago; sorry, Donald, but there are nicer homes than yours!  Speaking of presidents, one of the bridges we went through was the George Bush Bridge!  It was a presidential day!  At 12:30 we dropped our anchor in Lake Boca Raton just as the rain came- it has been so hot and humid the last several days that the rain is a welcome relief.  And Dragon Lady really needed a bath!

Happy Thanksgiving!  We left our anchorage at 6:45 and continued down the ICW.  The homes on the banks were enormous with rolling green lawns and pools, docks, and yachts that made our boat look like a dinghy!  We had 6 bridges that opened on schedules, so it was race to each bridge, then wait for the bridge tender to open it, then race to the next one, etc.  No fun!  We arrived to our anchorage at 11:00 and threw down a hook.  By noon I had Thanksgiving dinner prepared: chicken thighs in gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, cranberry sauce and a tossed salad.  Unfortunately I forgot to buy a naughty dessert when we were at Publix a few days ago!  Oh well, calories saved!

We left Vero at 6:30 and spent all morning in the Indian River heading south, going through 5 high rise bridges and one that opens only on the hour or half hour.  We are pretty fast for a sailboat and passed several others going the same direction.  At 12:30 we dropped a hook here in Peck Lake near Stuart and Jupiter Island.  This is right off the ICW and we have had lots of wakes all afternoon.  A walkway to the dunes and beach is only a few hundred yards away;  with the 84 degree temps today it feels like summer and lots of small power boaters are enjoying that beach!

We are chickens!  Last night the wind really picked up and was whistling through the rigging.  At 4:00 a.m. I could sense that Bryce was listening to it also; I reached over and said I didn’t think we should leave and I could tell he seemed relieved.  So today we didn’t do much; I did laundry and Bryce caught up on some boat tasks.  Tonight we plan to eat again at the Riverside Cafe and watch the sun set.  Tomorrow we will be up and leave early for a 60 mile journey down the Indian River to an anchorage. On one of our walks today we couldn’t help remarking about these strange trees growing everywhere near the marina.

Blue skies and summer-like temps!  It feels like Florida!  We left at 6:45 at first light.  The Indian River was wide and calm- nary a breeze!  Lots of dolphins rode our bow wave this morning- at times we had 5 or 6 next to the boat.  I never tire of watching them- and I assume they don’t tire of watching us either.  We got to Vero Beach City Marina at 10:30 and tied up.  This afternoon we took the free shuttle bus to Publix for groceries and bottled water (and wine).  When we arrived back to our dock the water level had risen a good 12 inches and it was a real challenge to climb aboard for me (I am 5’ 1)!  Now for dinner tonight at our favorite restaurant about a 10 minute walk from here - the Riverside Cafe.

Woo-hoo!  Blue skies and sunshine!  It is finally warm (80 degrees) and it feels like Florida!  We broke out the shorts and t-shirts!  We left Titusville at 6:45 and went under 6 high rise bridges.  The Indian River was pretty wide and all the Sunday boaters were out to enjoy the weather, which at times created wake. Dolphins followed us part of the way and looked up at us curiously. Susie got a chance to see them as well. We arrived at Melbourne Marina at 12:30 .  Bryce checked our oil and transmission fluid, then we went into town for a brew.  This town seems to have more bars than restaurants and other shops-rather amazing!  We found one that had outdoor seating so Suzy could be included too. It was a wonderful dive with all sorts of characters that would have fit in quite well into some sitcom.

We left Daytona at 6:45 just as the skies began to lighten.  We had clouds and fog most of the way, but when we entered the Indian River Lagoon the sun decided to finally appear.  We tied up at the Titusville Marina at 1:30 - the wind was really blowing at this time so docking was not easy, even with help from marina staff.  I spent the next 2 hours doing laundry while Bryce filled our water tanks and other boat jobs.  Then we looked at weather and future marina reservations and decided we were just too optimistic about making Vero Beach tomorrow ( over 70 miles away).  So I had to call marinas and make adjustments to our schedule.  We travel at about 7 knots / hour unless the current is going with us ( about half the time).  We realized if we leave at 8:00 tomorrow morning when marina staff can help us untie our dock lines, we would get there after dark- not good! So our entire itinerary had to be moved ahead- ugh!  Then we walked into town to r...

What a day!  We left St. Augustine at 7:00 in pouring rain and it never stopped until we got to Halifax Harbor Marina in Daytona at 2:00 .  We were tempted to build an ark, but we already have a boat!  We went under 7 high rise bridges and through 3 that opened on request.  One of the bridge tenders said Bryce looked like the Gorton’s fisherman with his yellow slicker and hat!  Tomorrow we head to Titusville and the “space coast”.

We were supposed to head to Daytona today but we could see on the radar that they were going to be creamed with wind and rain this noon, just as we would be docking.  So we spent the morning revising our itinerary for the next week, then going into Old Town to peruse the shops and have lunch at a lovely Mexican restaurant.  Tomorrow we will try once more to get to Daytona.

What a day!  We started out at 6:45 under rainy skies with a fair amount of wind.  We were making good time until we came to the 2nd high rise bridge over Sister Creek- the water level indicated 62 feet of passage (all high rise bridges are cleared for 65 feet mean high water).  We were at the top of high tide and we think our boat needs at least 63 feet to the top of the mast.  We wasted about an hour doing lazy circles until the water receded about a foot.  We then proceeded through and upped the RPM’s to try to make up for lost time.  We knew we had about 8 more bridges to pass through and about 50 more miles to travel.  And the last bridge into St. Augustine only opens on the hour and half hour (but doesn’t open at 5:00 because of commuter traffic).  Boy, did we boogie!  We made the 4:00 bridge opening with 5 minutes to spare! Whew!  Now for a brew and some dinner in town! Here are some scenes along the way- enormous houses! ...

It was quite an exhausting trip from Jekyll to here- just 4 hours of big waves over the bow, confusing seas and tides,  a lot of wind, and a very rough ride.  The worst part was St. Catherine’s Sound in GA where the wind opposed the tide which made for a difficult passage.  But we have a great captain and he handled it very well.  So after we tied up at Fernandina Harbor Marina and had a refreshing nap to soothe our bodies, we went into town for a celebratory beer at a very old and quaint pub.  Tomorrow is a very long day as we head out to St. Augustine.

Another blah day- chilly and no sun!  We did laundry, filled our water tanks and took a long walk with Suzy.  I do love the Spanish moss on the trees!  No alligators seen this time- just as well.  The power went off at the marina sometime last night; everyone is using their generators to power lights, microwave, TV, water heaters, etc.  The marina has no idea what caused the outage since the rest of the island is ok.  Probably won’t be fixed before we leave tomorrow morning.  Onward to Florida !

It’s been cold and cloudy all day.  I feel like I keep writing this every day- where is the sun and warmth?  We are much farther south than Oriental!  This was a do-nothing day- we took the golf cart to lunch at Tortuga Jack’s for some Mexican food.  We had eaten here spring of ‘22 and the food was just as good as I remembered (fish tacos and a big burrito).  This is on the ocean side of the island but the beach did not look inviting today . One more day here in Jekyll and we head out to Florida on Tuesday.

Yes, we are still here!  The weather deteriorated as the day progressed (just as the weather gods predicted); it started gray and cool and gradually got downright cold and windy.  Then our Keurig machine died at breakfast, making Bryce a very unhappy boy!  We borrowed the marina golf cart to go into the village, but there are no stores on the island that sell coffee makers.  Poor Bryce!   I don’t know how he is going to get through the next few days !  The weather is not predicted to improve until Tuesday, so we made marina reservations for Fernandina on Tuesday, St. Augustine on Wednesday, and Daytona on Thursday.  Fingers crossed!

We pulled up our anchor at 6:30 just as the sky was turning pink.  Not much to see, just wide and narrow water, sometimes very deep and other times skinny (7-8 feet).  We arrived at Jekyll Harbor Marina at noon, tied up and got diesel, and took Suzy out for a stroll on the grass!  This afternoon we took the marina golf cart into the village to a very pricey, upscale market- what would have cost me $100 at Harris Teeter cost us $250!  Oh well, we did have to stock up the fridge, freezer and pantry.  Now to dinner at the Riverhouse restaurant on the marina property- last time we ate here it was great!

We left our anchorage at 7:00 and spent the day motoring through lots of large bodies of water: St. Catherine’s Sound, Sapelo Sound, and lots of small rivers and tributaries.  Occasionally we saw big homes with docks on the waterway, but mainly it was trees and marsh grass.  At 2:30 we dropped a hook in Crescent River.  It was pleasantly warm all afternoon but clouds have moved in and it is cooler than yesterday. We saw very few boats on the water today , but we did pass two sailboats from Canada- I guess they are also trying to escape a cold winter in Florida!

Yahoo!  We are now in Georgia!  We left the marina at 8:30 under sunny skies.  The waterway meandered, sometimes wide but often narrow, with depths from 10 feet to over 30 feet.  There was not much to see- the occasional large house with a dock on the river, but more often just marsh grass.  We passed Savannah around noon and got to our anchorage at 2:15 .  Poor Suzy will have to use a potty pad the next couple of days!

Finally we got some nice warm weather!  Sunny and about 80 degrees today .  It was a day to do chores (like laundry), relax, and enjoy the great outdoors.  We walked around this lovely town, poked into shops, and ate lunch outside at the same restaurant we enjoyed 2 years ago.  Tomorrow we head to Georgia and swing on a hook for the next two nights; certainly not Suzy’s favorite thing (“where’s the grass, mom”)!

There are great tidal shifts in the low country and this morning the bottom of low tide was at 8:00 .  We usually leave around 7:00 but we knew that we would come aground in several low areas if we left so early.  Therefore we pulled up our anchor at 10:45 and had no trouble with the rising tide- in fact, we had a favorable current most of the way and arrived at Safe Harbor Marina in Beaufort at about 2:00 .  Suzy loved seeing grass again!  The day warmed up and the temperature reached 75 degrees- Wow!  Warmth at last! I had a little accident this afternoon- I tripped getting off the boat and now have a boo-boo on my ankle and elbow- first time in 20 years!  But I didn’t break anything- thanks to taking calcium and minerals every day. We went to dinner at a lovely Italian restaurant in town- eggplant parmesean for me and chicken parmesean for Bryce.  Tomorrow morning I need to do at least one load of laundry- amazing how it piles up! ...

I am so tired of being cold every morning- we both put on about 5 layers of clothing (turtle neck, flannel shirt, sweater, vest, windbreaker,  and hat).  The temperature was 58 this morning but the wind was icy cold off the water.  By noon we were in a narrow river, the trees cut some of the wind, and the sun began to warm us up.  There wasn’t much in the way of scenery today - a few houses scattered here and there, but mainly just marsh grass.  We did see Fort Sumpter in the distance and the bridges to Charleston, but we just kept moving on.  By 2:00 we dropped a hook in a desolate area off the South Edisto River in 15 feet of water.  I forgot just how quiet it is on anchor!  We spent the afternoon reading and snoozing.  Suzy will miss the grass!