Thanksgiving in Florida

Forces combined for Thanksgiving dinner at Chris and Robin's condo in Sarasota. Jenny made 2 pumpkin pies, sweet potato muffins and a zucchini casserole. Sandy contributed a lemon meringue pie, stuffing and cranberry sauce, while Robin did the turkey, another stuffing and mashed potatoes. Oh yes, the guys did football on the TV. We ended the day as stuffed as the turkey was before the meal. Yummo!

Our liferaft was delivered to Tampa for recertification on Tuesday with a 2 week wait for an estimate. Hmmm...sounds as if Bobby is #1 on their list. Tom bets we will be here into the New Year.

Crossing the Gulf of Mexico

Bobby, Jenny, and her parents

We spent the 11 days at Holiday Harbor Marina at Perdido Key, Florida before heading across the Gulf of Mexico on a 50 hour passage.

Jenny's dad gave all of us a thorough tour of the Naval Aviation Museum at NAS Pensacola. He has flown over half the planes (multi-engine, prop and jets) in the museum, and landed/took-off from straight-deck and angled-deck carriers during his career. Just his luck of being in the Navy after WWII through the Vietnam War. Lots of information we never would have gotten from the museum tour guide. Thanks Dad!

Alan Syme of M/V Kaos came over from Mobile, Alabama to dine with all of us (a Watergate reunion) our last night at Peridido Key. He and Susann finished doing the Great Circle, and are ready to explore Florida.

Anyway, back to crossing the Gulf...the passage was mild with very little wind to sail. We pulled watches, enjoyed sunrises and sunsets, evaded fishing boats, and the "Magic Reunion caught bonita and mahi mahi. Burt (the cat) kept us company in the cockpit through the night watches curled up in our laps (secretly sucking the body heat from our bodies). Halfway across, we let Buddy's ashes go; he was a wonderful dog and companion for 14 years.

Bobby spent Saturday putting layers of Life Chaulk over leaks around the manual bilge backing plate at the stern thru-hull. No, he did not save our lives by keeping the "Star" from sinking, but he did wrestle the full-size Temperpedic mattress in the aft cabin to get to the leak. The auto bilge pump handled the seeping water from each wave. We will have to do a day haul-out to correctly mend the defect.

We arrived this morning to Regatta Pointe Marina up the Manatee River at Palmetto, Florida with Robin and Sandy greeting us at the fuel dock. Tom and Sandy (S/V Magic Reunion) will stay here at least a year with plans to explore the Tampa Bay area. Robin and Chris are waiting for their new catamaran (S/V Toucan Dream) to be completed in Sarasota. We will be here 3 weeks to a month to recertify our liferaft and do small chores and maintenance, as usual.

End of First Leg at Pensacola, Florida

Bill and Bobby

Within 2.5 hours, we are tied-up at Holiday Harbor Marina (first marina in Florida on the GIWW, and the first with water, fuel, electricity and a pump-out since we left Clear Lake, Texas). Bill Davis manages the place, and is a retired Army buddy of ours.

Jenny's parents are arriving Tuesday to attend at VA-25 Squadron Reunion at the Pensacola Naval Air Station this coming weekend. Another reason we are stopping over here.

Chris and Robin head out by car to return to the Sarasota as they have friends coming in for a visit. Chris will return o/a 13 Nov. Then we will head offshore to cross the Gulf of Mexico to Sarasota, Florida.

Burt (the cat) is enjoying being off the leash and free to come and go as he pleases.

Recommendations and considerations for the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway:
1. AIS was very valuable to see tows/ships and their names for contact on the VHF to arrange passing.

2. Most of the GIWW is narrow with no place to anchor out of the way if you have trouble. Traveling with another vessel provides the opportunity of a hip-tow to keep moving while the issue is worked out. Especially between Houston and New Orleans.

3. Have a 50 amp/250 volt splitter for shore power connections on the GIWW. Most docks and marinas are set up for this connector.

4. Even during the day, it helps to have 2 people on watch. Would only recommend traveling during daylight. Plan your day hops to anchor out or dock at night.

5. Fuel sources are still sparse, and pump-out stations are rare.

6. Skipper Bob's "Cruising the Gulf Coast" is the best guide for the GIWW.

Biloxi, Mississippi to Gulf Shores, Alabama

Departure time is 0548 to make as much use of the daylight as possible today. Sandy and Robin will drive to Pensacola, FL to wait for our arrival there. We head out the Biloxi Ship Channel and back into the GIWW. Up go the mainsails on both vessels, but not really any wind to help push us along. By mid-morning we have crossed into Alabama.

As we pass Dauphin Island off our starboard side, we notice the middle section is now underwater due to Hurricane Katrina (2005). Once we pass under the island's fixed bridge, we are in shallow Mobile Bay. The current and wind are moving in the same direction, so we only have small chop as we cross it's 23 mile width.

The scenery really changes once we leave Mobile Bay and enter Portage Creek. Cypress trees return to the banks and the water is clear but brown due to the tannic acid. This is the start of the GIWW where you can explore and gunkhole.

Our stop for the night is the marina right next to Lulu's restaurant (she is Jimmy Buffet's sister). Robin and Sandy make the 30 min drive over from Pensacola for drinks and dinner at Lulu's.

Biloxi, Mississippi

Shortly after pulling up anchor at Rabbit Island, we are motoring across the Mississippi Sound leaving Louisiana in our wake on our way to Biloxi, MS. Not enough wind to sail or motorsail. Chris plans the route cutting the corners of the GIWW track through the Sound to save time. We also have Monarch butterflies flying about us all day. Arrival at the Point Cadet Marina fuel dock is early afternoon, where we find Sandy and Robin have just made it by car themselves.

This is the first area we see the impact of Hurricane Katrina (2005). Vegetation has recovered, just about all the wreckage has been removed, but most marinas are closed, offices are in trailers, and there are quite a few gaps between building and homes.

Dinner is in Ocean Springs at a fantastic pizza place called the Mellow Mushroom. Chris is so insistent it was once called Moe's Mushroom he asks the wait staff if they changed the name recently, while Sandy and Jenny are reading the back of the menu that states 3 college buddies started the Mellow Mushroom back in 1974 - Chris, you are just wrong!

Tonight, we fall asleep to the snapping and popping sounds coming through the hull of oysters feeding. And yes, we remembered set the clock back for daylight savings time.

New Orleans to Rabbit Island

Locking through the "nice" Harvey Locks

A later start this morning as the bridge before the Harvey Locks doesn't open until 0830. We are under it at 0835, and easily in and out of the locks.

Now, we flying down Mississippi River with the current, and crossing over to the New Orleans side to hug the bank. An oil tanker overtakes us, leaving huge eddies swirling into whirlpools just feet off our starboard side that thankfully we are not sucked into.

Turning to port into the Inner Harbor Industrial Canal, we are told to tie-up to the right outside of the locks until the barge coming out clears the locks. Just after "Magic Reunion" ties-up in this small, shallow area and the "Star" rafts up to her, we are cleared to move into the Industrial Locks. So, now we have to wait for the barge to pass as the water is being sucked out from under us by the tug and pulling us into the dock. Then we have to turn around or back out of this small area one boat at a time with our heavy displacement boats with small engines and props (meaning this doesn't happen very quickly). Meanwhile, the lock officials are barking at us that the bridge right in front of the locks isn't going to stay up all day (they are use to commercial vessels with dual props and large engines that can move about quickly).

Once the "Star" enters the locks, Jenny wants to take the line on the bow first due to the tug in front of us creating backwash that will push our bow out into the middle of the locks. But no, the official dropping the line knows better and yells "stern first". Okay, we'll comply as you are giving us the lines, so back to the stern, get the line, and sure enough, there goes the bow. The official throws the line short and before Bobby is up at the bow to try and reach for it. The bow drifts out to the middle even more, but we are able to get the line on the 2d toss. Now the knowledgable official spouts off with how it's obvious we don't know what we are doing and that's why we couldn't even get the boats into the locks quickly to begin with. Then he proceeds back to "Magic Reunion" and yells "bow" as he drops their first line. Interesting... The line dropped to the stern is too short, so Tom finally ties his line into the lock line. Now Mr. Knowledgeable officical is back to explain in very simple terms that we will be lowered 2 feet, that's down, 2 feet down and you will need to let the line out. Yes, thank you, got that the first time.

But the Industrial Locks passage is not over, oh no. Upon exiting, we are told to tie-up to the pilings to starboard to await the next 2 bridges opening for our masts to clear. "Magic Reunion" rafts up and we spend over an hour constantly moving the fore and aft fenders between boat and pilings due to the lock backwash, prop wash and wake from other boats, and the current bouncing us all over the place. It is with glad hearts we depart the locks area when a bridge operator finally arrives to lift the first bridge.

By early afternoon, we are back into the GIWW. It is peaceful and there are fewer tows to deal with on this (east) side of New Orleans. Our destination is the east side of Rabbit Island to anchor for the night. It is easy to spot with a oil platform wreck at the west entrance and a long RR trestle bridge nearby to the east. Here we get quite a few flies inside the boats until we close up the companionways. Another lovely sunset and a nice anchorage.


New Orleans to our stern as we head to the hell of the Industrial Locks.

Houma to Boomtown Casino

It seems very strange to leave Troy standing on the dock as we depart this morning. We've enjoyed his company and listening to him play the guitar immensely. A rental car company is picking him up. He is driving back to Houston due to prearranged plans for the upcoming weekend, and maybe because Deana misses him a bunch. We make calls to confirm Troy got the rental car and made it back to his boat at Watergate.

Today, the waterway contains lots of water hyacinths and we spot a dolphin.

Tonight's tie-up is a Chris' Classy Cruising Dock Spot. It is free, and it should be. It is on a old metal wall with torn cables sticking out, on the south side of the intracoastal and next to the Boomtown Casino (1.5 miles west of the Harvey Locks). We are not bounced around by passing tows and it is fairly quiet. Just climb over the sand-filled fabric/wire box flood wall to let the casino security know you are docked outside, enjoy a meal inside and try your luck. Strategically, there is nothing closer to get you through New Orleans and the locks early the following day.