Rough Start to the New Year!

It has been 6 long weeks since my last post, and during that time we have only traveled about 175 miles.  Our original plan was to visit my Dad in the Tampa area during the first week of January…visit our friend Stephanie, in Ft. Myers, sometime during the second week of January, and be anchored in Key Largo by January 20, ready to head to the Bahamas. As they say in the cruising world, ‘plans are written in the sand at low tide’…and our plan/schedule got washed away!  Our problems didn’t start until the second week of January, so let me back up and finish out 2022 before getting into 2023.

In mid-December we anchored in Clearwater, and took the bus to Tarpon Springs for the day.  At that time we were still traveling with Tara and Allan on Follow Your Arrow, and the four of us had a great time exploring Tarpon Springs.

We were lucky to visit on a day when one of the last sponge boats, for the season, was unloading their catch.

This fisherman was kind enough to take a break and explain to us the amount of work that goes into processing the sponges, before they are ready for market.  Apparently, diving down and cutting the sponges off the bottom is the easy part!  The sponges have to be kept wet, covered with burlap, and squeezed out several times each day.  This boat had a big tumbler to help with the process, but most boats do all the work by hand.

After our sponge education, we visited the distillery for yet another lesson…

This class included hands on experimentation😮. Between this place and a wine tasting room we happened upon…it’s a good thing we were taking the bus!

The blimp flew over Clearwater beach for several hours.

Some pelicans are so lazy😂

This little sea urchin was clinging to our anchor chair. During previous snorkel experiences, we have witnessed sea urchins hiding under a variety of shells.  This little guy didn’t want to let go of his shells, or our anchor chain.

By the time I got him dislodged from the chain he dropped most of his shells…sorry, he’ll have to start his collection again.

We frequently see strange things in our travels, but this was unbelievable!  The ‘captain’ (I am using that term loosely) of this thrill ride boat ran aground on a (clearly charted) sandbar…at a very high rate of speed!  Luckily, there didn’t seem to be injuries, but they weren’t getting off that sandbar anytime soon!

During a regularly scheduled oil change, Keith found some metal filing fragments in the oil.  He decided the best course of action would be to remove the head, on our starboard engine, to evaluate to condition of the cylinders.  Luckily, Tara and Allan were still close enough to lend a helping hand, and I am super thankful to be the one taking this picture instead of the one trying to help Keith lift the 140 lb head off the engine. THANK YOU, ALLAN!!!  Also, there was no sign of wear in the cylinders…so the jury is still out on where the fragments originated.  We will be watching future oil changes closely, and sending oil samples out for analysis.

Christmas was a quiet affair where we enjoyed our normal traditions.

‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ on the big screen.

And now it’s time to head to Tampa.

The number of concrete piling in the bridge construction project was mind boggling!

This is one way to re-float sunken boats. A diver places pillow straps under the haul, then when they inflate the pillows the boat is lifted off the bottom. Once the boat is above the surface, pumps remove the water.

Picture of the week…

Second place

Our plan worked out perfectly, and we were able to visit my Dad for a week.  We anchored the boat 3 miles from his house, and were able to take our bikes upriver, in the Alma Joy, to a park/boat ramp that was only 1.5 miles from his house.  It was easy for us to visit every day!

We visited an amazing strawberry farm.

The panniers on our bikes came in handy.

We said our goodbyes, and left on the afternoon of Sunday, Jan 8 to head for Sarasota. 

We reserved a mooring ball ( we got ball #1) for two days, and planned to head to Ft. Myers on the 12th.

However, by Monday evening, I had a sore throat and headache.

Tuesday morning I tested positive for Covid…UGH!!!  I’m never getting off my boat again!

Long story short…we both tested positive, me first, and Keith two days later. He was sick for all of 13 hours, and I was sick for 13+ days (that isn’t much of an exaggeration).  We left the mooring ball and anchored in a well protected cove until I tested negative (13 days after first symptoms). Luckily, my Dad did not get sick!

We finally made it to visit Stephanie, and just left Ft. Myers this morning…but I will include our Ft. Myers adventures in the next post.