To Miami

   Following our terrific visit with friends in New Smyrna Beach its time to head further south for Miami and warmer weather. Its been brisk in northern Florida with temperatures in the 40s-60s and strong winds. Its back to the Intra-Coastal Waterway south to Fort Pierce before we will head out to sea.     

   We stopped and anchored the first night off Cocoa Beach, just out of the ICW channel, with cold northerly winds at 15-20kts. Same conditions we have had for last couple weeks. The next day takes us to Vero Beach where we picked up a mooring ball for couple nights. Vero "Velcro" Beach is a convenient stopping point with inexpensive moorings and free shuttle bus to shops and the beach. Many cruisers spend the winter at Vero Beach. We replenished fresh items at Publix and picked up a back-up GPS at West Marine. Filled the fuel and water tanks and set off for Miami.


   Finally out of the "ditch" and out to sea at Fort Pierce. We had light northeasterly winds which were good for sailing at a slow 4-5kts. That was fine as it is 24hrs to Miami and we have no desire to arrive in the dark so we can take our time.

   Seas and winds are mild so a good chance to catch up on sleep on a lazy afternoon at sea.

   Nighttime sailing off southern Florida is a busy place. We had to avoid tugs and a large dredging vessel off Palm Beach and then 4 different cruise ships coming and going from Fort Lauderdale. The ships are well lit but its always confusing to determine when/where they are actually heading as this one loitered left of us to rendezvous with the Pilot Boat, then got underway across our bow to enter port with the pilot onboard. We stopped to let them proceed ahead of us.

   Finally, early morning and the Miami channel in sight. Time to take in the sails and restart the motor. Back to motoring up the channels. Was a good sail down from Fort Pierce with just a few nighttime stresses with traffic. No bad weather enroute.

   Still a few obstacles to deal with before we can get to our anchorage and kick back and take a rest. This fuel carrier is coming out of the channel we need to pass down since the main channel is closed with multiple cruise boats in port. He takes up most of the channel. Behind him the Fisher Island Ferry is shuttling back and forth which we also need to avoid. And there are private powerboats ahead and behind us, always in a hurry it seems.

  Clear channel ahead and we are proceeding through the Miami cargo port area to Biscayne Bay and our anchorage. We are ultimately heading for the bridge on the far left of the photo but the channel proceeds straight ahead all the way to the shoreline, then along the shoreline to the left alongside the buildings ahead.

   At last, the open waters of Biscayne Bay. This is a great cruising area with relatively sheltered waters from all sides. You can sail here nearly everyday with less than 2ft waves. The only issue is finding a place to anchor when strong northerly cold fronts come through - but there are places available. We are expecting standard easterly trade winds for the next several days so proceeding to the No-Name Harbor area to anchor close to shore.

Finally here - 31 days after leaving Dare Marina in Yorktown we are anchored just off the southerly tip of Key Biscayne outside No-Name Harbor, with warm breezes and no commitments. Time to enjoy our winter in Florida. 

   Time to take off the cockpit enclosure back and sides as the temperature is in the mid-70s and no rain in the forecast. The enclosure is essential for transiting from Virginia in January but we are finally in the warm Florida breezes of the Keys.

   Finally. The long trek is over and time to enjoy the rewards. Sunset over Biscayne Bay in 70degree weather. Time for a good night's sleep and well earned relaxation. Now if the power boaters would just stop zooming by and turn down their blaring stereos.....

Daytona Beach - Boatyard Repairs

   In January, on our way south through the Abermarle Sound, we discovered our port scupper hose was leaking water into the bilge. Checking with our Island Packet brethren, we received advice that Daytona Marina and Boatworks was a reputable place to have repairs made and was along our way. So, here we are finally in Daytona Beach.

   
Our plan was to anchor in the Halifax River outside the Boatworks until they could take us in the following Monday. But after seeing this view and looking at the weather forecasting brisk winds, we decided to pull into Halifax River Marina and stay there until the weather let up.

 
 Halifax River Marina was recommended by our nephew Johnathan who keeps his boat there - we checked it out to ensure all was well - which it was.

 
 Preparing for the boatyard to replace our scupper hoses (and exhaust hose at the same time since it was also dripping) we had to empty all the contents of the cockpit lazerettes and aft cabin. This was alot of gear to fill up the salon and front bedroom.

 
When we arrived at the boatyard, the mechanics were waiting for us and started work immediately. They had the scupper hoses out in a couple hours. I was really impressed since I had surveyed the task at hand and decided it was not one I wanted to tackle, hence my long delay in addressing the problem. They had to remove the autopilot to get to the starboard hose which was one of the main reasons I passed on the job. The hoses were in worse shape than I expected and should have been replaced a while ago - but its one of those quite difficult jobs that are easy to put off. The service from Daytona Boatworks was absolutely top-notch and they charged us the minimum fee. I was very happy with their job and glad I paid them rather than tackle this difficult job myself.

Unfortunately (or, as it turned out fortunately since it allowed us more time sightseeing), they were unable to obtain a replacement 12ft exhaust hose locally and had to order it from Ft Lauderdale, so we ended up having to stay in the boatyard for 2 days. Our friends from New Smyrna drove up and we had a wonderful reunion. Rivah was the hit at lunch at the Yellow Dog cafe.

 
 Rivah had a good time in Daytona at both the Yellow Dog and the Daytona Beach Dog Park.    But not all was uneventful. One time getting back onboard she jumped for the boat early surprising Sue who still had tight hold of the leash. Rivah was stopped mid-flight and fell in the river. Fortunately, there was a work raft alongside which she could swim to and we could lift her out. That earned her a good bath and scrubbing to get the salt water out.

   
 Later in the day the job was finished and it was time to continue on. But the tides were not cooperating. Our boat sits on the bottom at 3.2ft on our depth gauge (with a 1.5ft offset so actual depth of 4.7ft). So, our keel was sitting in almost a foot of soft silt.  At 10am the next morning we finally had water deep enough to get underway. Off for New Smyrna and more time with Carol and Tara.