Sailing Adventures On Sanctuary

Monday, November 26, 2012

To Marco Island

We covered 40 miles today, November 26. There was almost no wind so it was a motorboat ride the entire way. Thank goodness we only burn about .65 gallons an hour or the cruising kitty would be getting very hungry. We have never been to Marco Island and had read good things about it. We arrived early enough to get out and ride the bikes around a bit. It seems like the whole place is a series of canals dug to ensure maximum waterfront property. The people we met were friendly, especially at the Italian restaurant, Davide. The name was appealing and the food was excellent. David changed the fuel filter and I said encouraging words-not a bad arrangement for me but I am grateful that he is willing and able to do the maintenance. I can help, but he is the brains. I keep him fed and the beer cold, it's the least I can do. Tomorrow we head to Indian Key then Little Shark River and then to Marathon. It is very remote from here south so it may be a while before I can post again. We are looking forward to seeing some new territory. We've bypassed the Thousand Islands due to shallow water but we feel confident in the great amounts of good intel from our friend Bill who made the trip in the Spring. His boat draws 5 feet so if he can get to some of these spots we can too.

On to Fort Meyers

We left around 10am from the Bradenton area with plans to do an overnight trip in the gulf to the St. Charles Yacht Club in Fort Myers. This overnighter was completely different than our first one this tirp. The wind was out of the north and blew us down the coast at a good clip. We were able to sail for about 18 hours then the wind petered out and it became a motorboat ride. The waves were very low so not a bad ride at all. For some reason, neither of us had much luck sleeping on our off watch time so we were fairly beat when we arrived at the club. After a bit of lunch, however, we tackled a myriad of housekeeping chores. I thoroughly cleaned the interior including the fridge and stove. David did the same for the exterior, including the ports (windows). We also managed to get all our laundry done as well. Still not totally exhausted, we cleaned up and dressed up planning to treat ourselves to happy hour in the club bar only to find the club closed!! Oh well, we stayed gussied up and ate turkey sandwiches and watched the last episodes of Parks and Recreation on Nexflix. I really love this wi-fi extender.

front of St. Charles YC

David on the spreaders-note the knotted rope he used to climb up to the top. I was helping boost him up on a halyard but he did most of the work.

club cabana, houses nice showers, laundry and meeting room

the name reminded us of Mary and Eric in Australia

channel into the club

St. Columkille

Sunset on the houses next to the club marina

this gigantic house has been under construction for years-it is directly across from the marina. We rode past it and saw 11 garage stalls-truly amazing in scope

We managed to sleep soundly and wake up refreshed Sunday morning. We again gussied up and rode our bikes to St. Columkille for Mass. It is a beautifully designed church that makes the most of natural light. The priest gave a meaningful yet humorous sermon so it was easy to pay attention. It is getting warmer as we head farther south so riding in the early morning wasn't too bad. We came back to the club and paid bills, filled out logs, etc until it was time for brunch. Yes, the club was open and we enjoyed a great meal. Ironically, the only other diners while we were there were also visitors from other clubs. I guess all the locals are off on holiday. David decided he wanted to adjust the wind vane at the top of the mast. I think he just wanted to show his prowess at climbing but the job was done. Unfortunately he had more practise than he planned on. Once he was down, he noticed a bulb laying on the deck. Turned out to be our foredeck light and the base was damaged. Out comes the spare, back up the mast goes David and then all was finished! Finally, an afternoon of riding the bikes to buy a few things then ride around the neighborhood. Most of the houses in this enclave are beautifully built and landscaped. We saw very few people out which seemed strange. I guess they were enjoying their castles.

Bradenton

The Twin Dolphin Marina-site of a tremendous Thanksgiving dinner

We feel very blessed and fortunate to have been able to share our holiday with Jane and Kent. Everything turned out even better than expected. If we hadn't been sitting on boats, you would imagine the meal was prepared in a regular kitchen, not a mere three feet square. I took my measuring tape with me to make sure the turkey would fit in the oven. I'm sure we looked odd measuring each turkey until we found one that had the proper dimensions. I bought a throw-away baking pan but a lot of liquid still managed to spill out the sides. It did make the cabin smell good, though. The bird was big enough to feed the four of us and still have leftovers to share. Jane made fresh cranberry sauce using Gran Marnier. Pretty spectacular stuff. Cornbread stuffing and mashed sweet potatoes and a fresh green salad filled us to popping status. Of course, after some visiting and time went by, pecan pie was added to the delightful mix. It was not a long visit as we feel the need to get south and get ready to catch a good weather window to cross the gulf stream and finally reach the Bahamas. Although is has been done thousands of times before, it's still a new adventure to us.

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Manatee River and Bradenton

First, we wish all our family, friends and anyone reading the blog a very Happy Thanksgiving.
We departed Treasure Island and had a great sail across the mouth of Tampa Bay. The winds were strong but consistent and manageable. We anchored in the Manatee River behind Snead Island. It was blustery but the wind shifted as predicted and the waves settled down. Very scenic spot. We joined Jane and Kent at the Two Dolphins marina on the Bradenton side of the river. We've never visited over on this side, always Palmetto so we're looking forward to a little exploring later. I'm baking a small turkey as I type but I have to stay close by to monitor the flame. We're not sure how much propane is left in the tank so I update the blog and keep an eye out. Just as I typed this, we ran out so I'm glad I was watching. Jane and I are dividing up the food. Fortunately she can make gravy and Publix provided the pecan pie. We'll round out the dinner with mashed sweet potatoes and fresh salad.
Tomorrow we will leave in mid-morning for an overnight trip to Fort Myers. We'll go to Mass and catch up on laundry then continue heading south.