Happy Days

This is our home today, Sunday, January 24, 2021. Ahhhhhhh...it’s beautiful here in Cayo Costa!

However, much has happened since the last post.

As mentioned previously, our new shafts arrived on January 5th and it was immediately apparent that the starboard side would need alignment work before the shaft could be installed. Luckily, the port side presented no such problems (we thought).  One of the challenges with this shaft replacement was that we changed shaft size.  For numerous reasons, we decided to upgrade from a 50 mm shaft to a 2 inch shaft.  The size difference is only 1/32 of an inch, but everything needed to be changed or bored to ensure a good fit.  

On January 12 all work was completed and we prepared to be launched the next morning.  As customary, the operator only lowered the boat far enough into the water to check for leaks.  Yikes...lift her up!  There were numerous leaks around the thru hull bolts holding the strut, and the starboard shaft thru hull bolts (just to clarify...none of the thru hull jobs Keith and I completed leaked!).  Since the temperature was so cold, it was decided the sealant should cure overnight...so we slept in this cradle.  With fingers crossed we attempted another launch on Thursday. Yikes...lift her up!  Again, numerous leaks, and another night in the cradle...UGH!!!

After serious frustration and a lot of ‘do over’ we were successfully launched on Friday, January 15, with a sea trial scheduled for Monday.  Since we were looking at a great weather window, to cross the northeast part of the Gulf of Mexico, overnight on Tuesday we didn’t want any surprises on Monday, so Keith and I decided to take her out on Sunday.  I was at the helm while Keith was below watching everything, and before we left the mouth of the river he told me to turn around, because the port shaft was overheating.

Eric, the owner of MS Dockside Marine, spent most of the day on Monday working to correct the problem with our port shaft.  Eric is a very nice, diligent, and hard working guy, but clearly has trouble hiring good help.  He personally made sure all problems were corrected, and presented a fair and reasonable bill.  In the end, we are happy with the work done there, but it was a difficult road to get to this point. 

AND...everyone had to drop everything on Monday afternoon when a boat caught on fire...

This sailboat was tied to the dock when we arrived, and had two people living onboard (luckily, they were not onboard at the time of the fire). However, a few weeks ago they experience a leak and had to be pulled from the water.  This boat was blocked on land a few hundred feet from where our boat spent eight weeks.  Everyone from the boat yard grabbed hoses and fire extinguishers in an attempt to put the fire out.  When they tried to open the hatch (door) three cats ran out, but the oxygen made the flames worse so they closed it and attempted to fight the fire through the portholes.

Just as the fire started to grow a fire truck and one volunteer fire fighter arrived.  He recruited the help from everyone in the yard to drag the hose to the hydrant and get it hooked up, while he focused the 300 gallons in his truck on the blaze.  Unfortunately, the hose was packed incorrectly and the end they were handed was the wrong end, so a quick switcharoo had to take place before the water was flowing.  Apparently, the water came on just in the nick of time, because the 300 gallons had just run out and the fire was growing again.

Also, as they were filling this boat with water the weight was clearly straining the jack stands so people were running around reinforcing the supports.  Once that was completed, they started drilling holes in the bottom of the boat to let water out.  In the end, the fire was contained without spreading to any other vessels, which was incredibly lucky.  Unfortunately, the lost animal count was quite high...1 dog and 10 cats perished in the blaze.

Tuesday’s forecast held and we are OUT OF HERE!

We left Carrabelle at 3:30 on Tuesday afternoon for an 18 hour crossing.  I had helm duty from 6-9pm so I got to see the last of the sun, out the starboard pilot house window, at 6:24 pm.  It was already very dark out the port side window.  We were lucky to have wonderful weather through the night with waves less than 1 foot for the majority of the trip.

I was also at the helm to see the first light at 6:55 on Wednesday morning.  This view is such a relief after a very dark night at sea.  Keith and I take three hour shift at the helm.  My duty times were 6-9pm, 12-3am, 6-9am so I was lucky to see the sunset and the sunrise.  We had the anchor down in Tarpon Springs, and I was heading for a nap at 10:00am.  Those overnights wear me out!  Keith seems to handle lack of sleep much better than me!

The next day we anchored in Cortez, FL (about 10 miles north of Sarasota).  I was very sad to pass Tampa without visiting my dad, but after all of the last minute problems with the boat launch, that required people to spend a significant amount of time on our boat, I couldn’t take the chance of carrying the virus to my dad.  We all agreed it would be best to wait until everyone is vaccinated. 😢

In Cortez, we missed the chance to visit this fish market when we passed in May, but this time we anchored in time to launch the Whaler and purchase some amazing seafood.

Sorry this picture is blurry, but I wanted to share the showroom in this type of wholesale fish house.  You have to look through the boxes of ice to find the fish you want.  They only sell whole fish and shrimp in 5 lb. increments.  We left with a beautiful red grouper and 5 lbs. of jumbo shrimp...YUM!!

Another beautiful day in the Gulf of Mexico as we head to Cayo Costa.  Sorry if you get tired of seeing dolphins, but I never get tired of seeing them, and this picture captures the amazingly clear water.

Cayo Costa is an island just west of Cape Coral that is a State Park.  This anchorage offers great protection, a dinghy dock, and a fabulous trail/road for easy access to the beach. It is only a .7 mile walk, but they also have a tram.  Our charts show very shallow water in this anchorage so we would have passed it by if it weren’t for our friends Eddie and Gail.  During their recent visit they were able to follow a ferry boat into the anchorage and sent us their track.  Keith was able to overlay their track on our Aqua Maps chart, and we followed their track to safely navigate the hazardous entrance.  There are a LOT of boats here, but it is a large basin.

A little fishing in the mangroves secured dinner last night.

This is our happy place...we plan to stay for a few more days!