Charleston, Georgetown and Myrtle Beach, SC

Anchored each night and passed Charleston, Georgetown and Myrtle Beach during the day. We pulled into Georgetown harbor and failed to see the "charm" of this town. The harbor was, quite frankly, a dump with many derelict or beached boats. The docks were dilapitated and the whole place was just run down. Not sure what the attraction is.

Photo: Where old buoys go to die (somewhere along the ICW).

The construction along the ICW on both sides of Myrtle Beach is incredible! Pretty soon they will have it looking like Ft Lauderdale. Condos and mansions have sprung up since we passed by here 6 months ago.

Waterway Stuff: What is a Range?

A little waterway education...

'Ranges' are two sets of either lights or visual aids (boards) used to enable a captain to line up the ship in the middle of the channel. They are most often used when there are strong cross-currents. Even with today's sophisticated electronic navigation, the ranges provide real-time accuracy and often will show a ships' drift more quickly than GPS. The ICW has many ranges, particularly in Georgia and South Carolina where the waterway is subject to large tidal swings and fast currents.

Photo: Range showing our boat to be "on the range" in the middle of the channel.

Photo: Range showing our boat to be slightly left of course.

You may have to 'double-click' the photos to see them full size.

Beaufort, SC

Anchored off Beaufort, SC with about thirty other boats. The current here is fierce! We just got back to the boat via dinghy when a thunderstorm hit with 50 mph winds and driving rain. Boats were swinging at anchor in all directions.

At 11:30 pm we were awakened by a voice calling to us. We awoke to discover a 40 ft trawler snuggled up next to us and the owner somewhat confused how he got there. His anchor (and boat) had dragged a couple of hundred yards until coming to rest next to Compass Rose. Once we got everything straightened out, it was back to bed (but hardly to sleep!). No pictures, unfortunately.

Beaufort (Bew-furt), SC and Beaufort (Bo-fort), NC are both named after Henry Somerset, the second Duke of Beaufort. For reasons lost in time, they are pronounced differently. This is the quintessential southern town with ante-bellum mansions and moss covered trees everywhere. A number of movies have been filmed here including The Great Santini, The Big Chill, and Forest Gump (shrimp boat scenes).

Savannah, GA

Took a taxi into Savannah from Turner Creek (Hogan's Marina). We only spent two hours there but saw enough restuarants and souvenier shops to hold us for a while. Also stopped by "The Lady and Sons" restuarant which is owned by Paula Deen of Food Network fame. There was a thirty minute wait so we just took the obligatory photo.
Photo: Paula Deen next to a picture of Pam

Departed the Savannah area for a short run to an anchorage a few hours north. When we awoke the next morning we were surprised to find a crab trap wrapped around the anchor line (or visa versa). The local waterman came along and helped undo the tangle. There were at least a dozen good size crabs inside. Photo: Crabs for breakfast.

April 23, 2006

Now, everyone knows what today is.... John's birthday!! This year was a little tamer than last year.
Photo: This is what 61 looks like!


Photo: Birthday cards from Carson & Cameron

Kingsley Plantation, FL

Anchored in the Ft. George River between Talbot Island and Ft. George Island. This is a fabulous anchorage! We are surrounded by nature. We have tree lined banks on one side of us and the Salt Marshes of Talbot Island on the other. The marshes are under water at high tide and completely visible at low. We paddled the dinghy ashore and walked the hard sand bar. It is very hard to take a photo of our surroundings that would depict the beauty of this anchorage.

Morning Visit to the Kingsley Plantation We took the dinghy over to The Kingsley Plantation, the oldest slave plantation house in Florida, built in 1813. We visited the main house, kitchen house, barn and ruins of 25 the original slave cabins. The buildings were constructed by enslaved workers who were skilled carpenters, tabby makers and brick layers. The structures were built 200 years ago. Tabby structures were created entirely from locally available materials. Oyster shells were burned and ground for lime. Sand and water were mixed in, and often whole shells were added to speed the hardening of the tabby and to increase the volume and durability. The preserve was a very graphic display of slavery and their daily life. This plantation is run by the National Parks Service and is part of the Timucuan Ecological & Historic Preserve. Kingsley Plantation slave quarters (the white coating is the restoration).

37th Anniversary

Thirty seven years ago at the Naval Aviation Chapel in Pensacola, FL this whole journey began! Celebrated with an anniversary dinner in St Augustine, FL. America's oldest city was much younger back in 1969!

Krogen Rendezvous, Stuart, FL

Stuart Krogen Rendezvous It was great to be back together again. We met lots of new Krogen owners. Both Friday and Saturday were filled with seminars and visits to other boats. It is always great to see what changes others have made to their boats. Lots of information was passed on by the veterans and will definitely be helpful along our way north. There was a BBQ Saturday night with a band and dancing was enjoyed by all. Pam had a great time taking advantage of not having to organize the events. She and another woman won the scavenger hunt and she took 3rd place for the best dessert dish brought to the pot luck with her ever popular coconut cake. On Saturday, all the First Mates got a hands-on opportunity at docking a Krogen 48. Using an aft spring line to a piling, the boat easily backed into the slip.

Lake Okeechobee

Photo: John's Mom 'driving' the boat

Continued across Florida on the Caloosahatchee/Okeechobee Waterway and through two sets of locks. Although the locks are 200’ long, the ‘lift’ is only 5 feet. The Waterway is pretty remote yet beautiful. The entire Okeechobee Waterway project was started in 1930 to manage the waters of central Florida Photo: the Okeechobee Waterway with trees devoid of foliage.

following two devastating hurricanes and floods. A network of rivers and canals drain the region into Lake Okeechobee during the summer rainy season. These are released during the winter dry season at a controlled rate. Lake Okeechobee is the second largest fresh water lake (700 sq miles) in the country. Since it is only on average 10 ft deep, it can get pretty nasty very quickly when the wind comes up.

We stopped in Clewiston, FL on the western edge of the lake and stayed at Bubba's Marina (actually "Roland and Mary Ann Martin's Marina"). Had a nice dinner in "town" at the Clewiston Inn. The waitress came to the marina and picked us up and drove us back. This area still has numerous sugar cane fields and mills.

Rialto Harbor Marina

We spent a delightful two days at Rialto Harbor Marina off the river. This is a very small (eight slips) family run marina/horse farm and a real gem. Although all the docks were full, most people had left their boat there for the summer. So, there were just us and another couple at the marina. Kind of like having your own resort complete with pool. Photo: other boats at Rialto Harbor.

Bus and Nifty Hamilton have run the marina for the last 23 years and recently constructed barns for their 6 horses. They also have 11 horse drawn carriages which they use in ‘carriage competitions’ (who knew?!). We can’t say enough about their hospitality. They even started the Webber grill for us to cook burgers.
Photo: Pam in the pool.

Ft Myers, FL

Departed Naples on a beautiful Sunday morning. John's Mom has joined us for this leg of the trip. We entered the Gulf of Mexico just as a cold front was dropping down through the area. The wind and seas were constantly on our beam which made for a very rough three hours. After going through the Sanibel bridge into San Carlos Bay, things calmed down a lot.

Ft Myers is about 9 miles up the Caloosahatchee River. We dropped anchor in a little cove across the river from the city. It was just Compass Rose and two other boats (plus the resident alligator).

The next morning we were somewhat surprised and dismayed when the engine starter motor wouldn't work. And there is no 'push starting' a boat. After a few phone calls it was determined that the engine start battery wasn't putting out enough 'juice'. Finally got the engine started by running the generator and recharging the start battery. Time to get a new battery...

Naples, FL

Left Gasparilla Island and cruised down Charlotte Harbor and San Carlos Bay back into the Gulf. We went past Cabbage Key where all good Parrotheads know is where Jimmy Buffett got the inspiration to write "Cheesburge in Paradise" (no, it wasn't in Key West!). After a one-night layover in Ft Myers Beach, we continued down to Naples to pick up John's mother.
Photo: the sleepy little town of Naples

Spent two very nice days in Naples with the boat at Naples City Dock. John's brother Ham and his wife Judy and son Adam arrived for a spring break vacation on Saturday and we all went to dinner.

Photo: John, Pam Judy, Mom & Ham (Adam took the photo)

Left Naples early Sunday morning for the trip back offshore towards Ft Myers. A low pressure area stalled over the region so the gulf was a sloppy mess. We had 4-6 foot seas first from astern, then abeam and then on the bow. We were all glad to cross under the Sanibel bridge into the protected waters of San Carlos Bay. From there is was up the Caloosahatchee River dto Ft Myers.

Photo: nomination for "Shack of the Week" (Naples, FL)

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3676/is_200404/ai_n9399196

Gasparilla Island, FL

Journeyed from Marco Island to the Captiva/Sanibel Island area and anchored in Pelican Bay off Costa Cayo. The next day we cruised just an hour north to Boca Grande on Gasparilla Island. What a gorgeous little town! The Gasparilla Inn and Cottages date from 1912 and even has its own 18 hole golf course. We anchored in a very narrow inlet and had to tie our stern to the mangroves to keep from swinging into the other boats. Boca Grande is a destination for the wealthy (and us!) but it is also very laid back and casual. Photo: Pam in the cockpit backed into the mangroves.

Photo: Gasparilla Inn & Cottages (love the golf carts!)



Sharing the waterway!!

Photo: Compass Rose anchored off Gasparilla Island

Marco Island, FL

Made the trip from the Little Shark River to Marco Island out in the Gulf of Mexico. We did verify that this boat can run over a crab/lobster pot and wrap the rope around the prop shaft! Pam noticed a sudden decrease in speed following a 'thump' and the remnants of three joined pots came out behind us. Had to stop the boat and John put on flippers and mask for a quick swim. Diving beneath the boat revealed what was left of the rope wrapped around the shaft. Fortunately, it 'unwound' easily. It's always something!
Photo: John surfacing from the deep with the offending rope.

Marco Island is the beginning of the high rises on the west coast. We anchored in Marco harbor for the night to another beautiful sunset, albeit behind the condos.
Photo: Sunset in Marco harbor

April 1, 2006 Leaving Marathon

Saturday, April 1, 2006 After spending four months in the Florida Keys it is time to continue our journey and start cruising north. We have spent the past week working on the boat. We made some repairs, had her hauled and cleaned. We said our goodbyes to the many Marathon friends we have made over the winter. Some we will see along the way north and in Annapolis this summer. Some we will not see again until we return to Marathon next winter.
Photo: Eight pairs of Crocs!!

We cast off at 9:15am and made our way to the Seven Mile Bridge. This is the first time we have been under the bridge having walked over it many times during the winter. We had a good cruise across the Florida Bay/Gulf of Mexico to the southern tip of Florida, Everglades National Park. We pulled into the Little Shark River at 3:45pm. Not bad-only a 61/2 hour day. We had heard that the river was a beautiful wooded cypress, pine, and hardwood tree lined shoreline, looking undisturbed since the Timucuan Indians lived here. Well this was not the case. When we pulled in it was obvious that Wilma had blown through here. The trees along the shores are still without foliage and the bark had been striped off of their trunks. Debris is still hanging from the tree limbs up as high as 12-15 feet. It is hard to understand why this hurricane had so little press. It must be that Floridians are just not whiners.
The sunset behind the bare trees, was very different from the Marathon sunsets. The mosquitoes came out in full force and were large enough to suck us dry.
Daylight Saving time sprung forward during the night which made for an early wakeup call and we were on our way by 7:30 am. That is early for us especially after months of sleeping in.
Photo: Little Shark River (note crab potes hanging from trees)

Photo: John blowing the conch shell at sunset.