Hurry Up and Wait

I am wondering if anyone is still wondering what Tranquility is up to.  I am not very diligent with updates this time around, but will try to briefly get you up to speed.

Ron did stay aboard all the way to Portsmouth, VA, just across the river from Norfolk at the southern end of the Chesapeake Bay.  He found a fairly significant record collection in Charleston, SC and a number of vintage stereo components, which filled his rental car twice and then were brought aboard Tranquility.  There were about 900 records in 7 boxes, each weighing approximately 70 pounds.

The 10 or 11 stereo components added over 100 more pounds.

Tranquility, like many boats, lists slightly, to the port side.  We put all the records on the starboard side in my cabin and the list was gone.  The stereo components were spread out in the salon and the forward cabin.  I don't think we could have taken much more.

We stayed at the Charleston City Marina, along with several much larger boats.

Here's Tranquility with the new dingy.

And then there was this mega yacht.

On the roof of the top deck there is a cradle for Themis' dingy.  Its not there because they had brought it down and tied it up to the dock.

No matter how big your boat, someone has one bigger.  We did a web search on Themis and its only #199 on the list of mega yachts in the US.

The trip up to Portsmouth did not have anymore exciting moments, like the anchor breaking free, but we did get kicked out of a private graduation party in Charleston that we had wandered into, but not before we had a couple of free drinks.  At least Ron tipped the bartender.

Unlike last year, the weather was rough at times.  We had rain on several days and encountered some pretty rough seas on the open water of both the Pamilco and Albermarle Sounds.  These are easy to forget though when you are able to capture some of the scenery.

Just a short way into the Albermarle Sound the ICW splits into two route options.  Last year, Denise and I took the "Virginia Cut" route.  The other option is the "Dismal Swamp".  It takes two days to go the Dismal Swamp because there are two bridges and two locks that open on a specific schedule with the latest opening at 3:30 in the afternoon.  Denise and I didn't have the extra day, but Ron and I did this year, so thats the way we went.

This canal opened in 1805 and is the longest continuously operating canal in the US.   Its very narrow with a 6 MPH speed limit.  The folage is dense and lush.

We arrived to the Salt Creek Marina in Portsmouth on Monday night the 21st of May and after re-wiring a bilge pump we were ready to drive home on the 22nd.  The 10' truck Ron had rented from Budget was a bit of an overkill, but it was the cheapest option we could fine.  And it gave him an option to shop for records on the way home, which he did, and found another 500 at two stops along the way.

From June 1st to June 9 I went on the annual Minnesota fishing trip and then returned alone to Portsmouth on the 10th.  A little more bilge pump work and I shoved off on the 11th, heading for Baltimore.  The original plan was for me to meet my nephew Jason in Baltimore and he was going to  cruise up to New York Harbour with me, but a softball injury put him in a leg cast and he had to cancel.  A friend of Ron's makes a monthly trip by car to Washington DC and offered him a lift, so he took Jason's place and we planned on meeting up in Baltimore.

My three days on the Chesapeake Bay alone were not as pleasant as they were last year with Denise aboard.  Strong winds for three straight days had seas at 4' plus, mostly hitting me on the bow.  On the first day my port engine alarm came on after cruising for a few hours.  A quick investigation revealed a broken belt, so I went in to an anchorage on just the starboard engine.  I replaced the belt, but it was already 4 PM, so I stayed in the quiet bay for the night.  On raising the anchor the next morning, I felt a bit of a snap and the windlass that retrieves the anchor line stopped working.  I had to pull it up the anchor by hand.  The winds were still howling the next morning, but after a little debate I headed back into the big bay and encountered 4 foot seas again.  At one point, I hit a particularly large wave and was thrown back into my seat, the force of which broke the helm chair right at the base, me and the chair went over backwards.  No damage to me, but I couldn't use the seat the rest of the day.  Another anchorage that night and this time I didn't head back out first thing in the morning.  There were three sailboats and another trawler in the same anchorage with me and no one else was leaving.  Winds were still strong from the north.  Then about 11 AM the trawler hauled anchor and left.  I thought about it for awhile and finally around noon took off too.  Seas were still 3 to 4 feet for the first couple of hours and then started settling down to around 2 feet and I made it up to Solomons, MD.

I remembered from last year that there is a Navy Weapons Station across the river from Solomons and unlike last year there was a fair amount of activity with fighter jets and other aircraft taking off and landing.

On day three, winds were a little less, but still from the north and seas were down to 3 feet.  I was heading to either Annapolis or Baltimore, I hadn't decided yet.  I thought I was feeling a little vibration from one of the engines or props.  After the two days of being thrown around in the rough seas I couldn't tell if it was normal or not.  I pressed on.  I was constantly dodging crab pots and at one point hit something in the water.  Looking back I spotted what appeared to be the end of  a log or stump in the water.  I didn't notice anything different right away, but eventually went below for something and when I stuck my head in the back cabin, I heard a rattle of some kind.  It was hard to tell which side it was coming from, but when I took the port engine out of gear, it went away.  I didn't know exactly what it was, but I shut the port engine down, kept going, and called a boat yard in Annapolis, about 30 miles away.  Running on only one engine, I was barely able to maintain 6 MPH, but finally got into Annapolis in the late afternoon.  Of course these things always seem to happen on Friday's.  On Saturday morning a diver came by and went below the boat.  After awhile, he came up and reported a severly banged up prop on the port side.  He also thought he could feel a little movement on the shaft that was not present on the starboard side.  The yard does not do repairs on Saturdays, so I was going to have to wait until Monday morning to have the boat pulled from the water.

That weekend was the 200th anniversary of the war of 1812 and a weekend celebration was going in Baltimore, including an airshow with the Blue Angels.  Ron and I went to Baltimore to the heart of the celebration at Fort McHenry.

It was here where Francis Scott Key was inspired to write the Star Spangled Banner after US forces defended the fort and the city of Baltimore.

On Monday Tranquility was pulled from the water.

The bottom was power washed.

Props were pulled to be sent out for re-conditioning and in the process of pulling the port prop they found that it was loose, which is the probable cause of the rattling sound I was hearing.  The strut that holds the propeller shaft was also slightly loose on the port side.   I was planning on reconditioning the props over this next winter because the boat will be out of the water in Milwaukee.  The only bad thing about doing it now is the time lost, we're still hoping the props are back tomorrow (the 22nd) and we can leave tomorrow afternoon.

Ron did find a few records while here, but other than that it was a pretty lazy week in Annapolis.

The boatyard is directly across from downtown.  Like Charleston, there are big boats here too.

If all goes as planned from here, Ron and I will make New York Harbour by next Monday or Tuesday, he has a flight home on Wednesday and then I will be alone again until hopefully getting Denise back on board in early July.  I am still planning to make Kenosha by late July.

Anchors Away

I know its been awhile, so here's an update on Tranquility Travels 2012.  Until two nights ago, not a lot of excitement and I'll get to that after catching you up on the last couple of weeks.

First though, backing up to when Denise was still on the boat:  The strong winds that were forecast did materialize and we "suffered" through a couple of days of bumpy seas.  Most notably as we made our way through Fort Myers on the Caloosahatchee River, taking 3 and 4 foot waves directly on the port beam for a couple of hours.  Finally, though, we got to the narrow part of the river and things calmed down dramatically and we found the same anchorage that Tom and I used last year just east of Fort Meyers. 

The first lock going east was on a restricted schedule due to low water in Lake Okeechobee and we arrived with several other boats for the 9 AM opening.  The last lock on the west side of the lake was operating a little differently.  Because of the recent heavy rain, there was just a slight change in the water level in the lock.  Instead of going in and grabbing lines, we just idled through without stopping.  There was just a little stronger current coming at us.

It did get a little more exciting as we made our way down the rim canal towards Clewiston.  Denise spotted the first aligator, just sunning its self on the bank.   This was different from last year, where we usually saw them in the water.  Unfortunately, we still didn't have my camera, but we did get some pics with Denise's phone, which I will try to post at a later date.  We saw several and all seemed quite large, 8 to 10 feet.  Later, Denise did some internet research and learned that gators can get to 800 pounds and 12 to 14 feet in length.  Their only predator is man.

The lake Okeechobee crossing was the worst of the three I've done to date.  We thought by leaving early in the morning we'd be ahead of the worst of the winds, but it didn't work out that way.  For 3 and a half hours we were rocked by 3 and 4 foot waves, mostly hitting us off the port side front quarter.  It was not pleasant.  But we did make it all the way to Stuart, on the Florida east coast, and it took the whole day for Denise to fully recover from the crossing.   We got a mooring ball in Stuart, which Denise manuvered us to while I grabbed on the first try.  I launched the new dingy and went to shore, borrowed a bike from the marina and rode a mile to a grocery store for a few provisions.  From Stuart, it was another three days up to the intersection of the ICW and the St Johns River. 

We did have, a now minor, incident when we tried to get another mooring ball in St Augusine, FL.  The wind was blowing pretty good and we went around the mooring ball a few times trying to catch the line.  In one attempt, I got our line through the mooring ball line, but somehow got myself between the line from the boat and the boat.  The wind was blowing us backwards and the line pinned me against the inside portion of the bow.  Denise got the boat in forward, I think just before I was going to have both legs broken.  I only ended up with fairly severe rope burns across the back of both legs.  Those pictures are also on Denise's phone.

The intersection of the ICW and the St John's River is 25 miles east of Jacksonville, FL.  This time we went up the St Johns to the west side of Jacksonville and docked at "The Marina at Osprey Landing", a very nice facility where we left Tranquility for a few days.  Denise flew home and I drove down to Ft Meyers and picked up a car to drive back to Illinois.  I left most of my profit from driving the car to Illinois in Florida in the form of a $244 speeding ticket.

I was only home for a few days and am now back on Tranqulity with my brother Ron.  He's not sure how long he is staying and liked to tell his friends that he only had a one way ticket.  He might be with me all the way to Norfolk, but it is somewhat dependent on how successful he is at finding record collections to buy. 
While home I did get a replacement camera and will now have pictures to post.

Ron and I planned to start cruising again on Monday, May 7th and kicked it off with steaks from a local Jacksonville meat market the night before.

The 25 miles back to the ICW took us first through downtown Jacksonville,

Jacksonville is a major shipping port and also has a cruise ship terminal.

With all the commercial activity, the Coast Guard was very visible.

They're not kidding around, each of the two man crew has his own machine gun.

We stopped the first night at Fernandina Beach, FL and the second night at the same anchorage on the Frederica River in Georgia,  the same spot where Densie and I anchored last year.  Our night there this year, though, was a little more exciting than last year.

It started out ok as Ron whipped up his special pico de gallo, which I call pinko de gallo.  You may recall this was a staple last summer when Ron and Mark were aboard.

Of course, margarita's go well with this and the chipotle chicken Ron prepared.  They were so good, one pitcher of marg's wasn't enough.  We enjoyed dinner and a few marg's and sat outside, watching dolphins and waiting for the tide to change so we knew the boat had room to swing all the way around without hitting the bank.  All seemed good when we turned the lights out.

About 3 AM things got a little exciting.  I will try to tell the story the way Ron told Denise on the phone yesterday.

Ron says he was sleeping soundly, enjoying his dream (something about the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders) when he heard what he thought was the salon door opening.  For those of you who have been on board, you know what that sound is.  A wood door sliding on an aluminum rail.  This woke him and he thought maybe I had gone out on deck.  We had talked about going out if we woke up during the night to look at the stars.  He called out the hatch in the front cabin.

"DON?"  No answer.

"DON ROLOFF?"  No answer.

Then he hears the door sound again and thinks its the door closing ant that someone has come onboard.

Rather than confronting the intruding Captain Ahab, he calls my phone.  I hear it, but stumble around in my cabin and can't find it in time.  Remember the margarita's. 

It rings again and by now I have found it and I hear, "SOMEBODY IS ON THE  BOAT"!!  I say, "I don't think so".  At the same time I am looking out the cabin window and notice the bank of the river seems to be going by at a very rapid pace.  Remember the margarita's.

We're still on the phone, Ron yells, "GET THE F*** UP"!!  By now, I realize the bank is going by because we ARE moving.  I yell, "WE'RE MOVING"!! 

It took me a couple of attempts to get my shorts on, but I did and was into the salon at the same time as Ron.  By now I had determined that the anchor had given way and we were gliding down the river at the same speed as the current, which was fast.  I had also seen that we were on a direct collision course with a very large and very nice boat tied to a dock. 

I yell to Ron, who is now on deck, "DON'T LET US HIT THAT BOAT"!!  At this point we are sliding down the side of another dock and Ron does the only thing he can think of, that is, trying to grab a dock post that is going by.  At the same time I start the port engine and immediately put it in forward.  The combination of this and Ron grabbing at the dock post slowed our reverse motion and with no exaggeration, we stopped short of a stern to stern collision with the other boat by less than 2 feet.

Whew!  We had gone down river more than quarter mile and the whole event took place in less than 5 minutes.

Upon further review, I think this is what happened.  We had anchored when the tide was going out and very near the low tide point.  While we were there, we had gone through slack tide and the tide was coming in again when we went to bed.  The tide here is 9 feet.  During the night we were raised 9 feet higher than when we got there and I had not accounted for that in how much anchor line we had out.  9 feet would theoretically call for another 50+ feet of anchor line to properly hold.  As soon as we were at high tide it broke free and then the tide started going out again.  The current was so strong, the anchor couldn't get another hold.  Its not real unusual to drag the anchor a few feet during the night when there is wind or current, but this wasn't dragging, we were moving at the same speed as the current.   The sounds Ron heard that sounded like the door opening and closing was the boat scraping the side of the dock before the one with the boat on it.

This could have been a disaster in more ways than just crashing into and damaging someone else's boat and mine.  My insurance expired at midnight that night and my new insurance was supposedly in place, but the signed application and payment were not yet in the mail.  I was assured that I had coverage, but I'm just not convinced it wouldn't have been a problem if I submitted a major claim three hours into the new policy.

Another lesson learned.

We're in Thunderbolt, just outside of Savannah, GA and Ron is trying to buy records and has talked to several potential sellers, but nothing is firm yet and we may or may not be leaving here today.

Deja Vu

On April 20 Denise I left Madeira Beach again to start the trip north.  I guess it isn't really considered our second loop because our plan is to get to Kenosha and winter Tranquility up north next year and then have her for the whole summer of 2013 in Kenosha or nearby.  I have a few ideas for what may happen after that, but nothing is for sure just yet.  So maybe we'll call this a half loop.

It was a little like deja vu, because we anchored the first night in Englewood, FL, basically the same spot as last year.  The trip to Englewood was different though as we took a direct route in the Gulf from John's Pass to the Venice inlet, where we picked up the ICW again for the final 15 miles down to Englewood.  We were watching the weather closely as the forecast was for scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon, but we were able to get anchored, grill steaks and button up for the night before the rains came.  The Gulf started out fairly comfortable, but winds from the southwest had the seas to a consistent 3 feet for a few hours before we tucked back into the ICW.

I won't have any pictures to post for awhile, because I dropped and broke my camera while at home the last two weeks.  It is in for repair and again I'm happy to have bought the 2 year protection plan.  Hopefully, I'll have it back soon.  I had promised Nanc to take a picture of an Osprey atop a channel marker so that she can paint it.  Unfortunately, I passed a perfect one yesterday, with a mother and two offspring in their nest on a marker that also had a light on it.

We got underway this morning with heavy clouds and a forecast for rain starting this afternoon and the possibility of severe storms.  It was forecasted to start by 2 PM.  We went just 7 miles and stopped for fuel at Cape Haze Marina in Cape Haze, FL.  I had done some internet price shopping and this was the cheapest around.  Following taking on fuel we headed back onto the ICW and after just a few minutes started questioning the wisdom of continuing on as the winds had picked up and the skies ahead looked ominus.  We called back to the marina and made the decision to head back and sit this one out.  At 1:55, it started raining.  The storms our supposed to be waning as the day goes on and by mid morning tomorrow the sun could be out again, although its supposed to continue to be windy for the next couple of days.  We'll need moderate to light winds to have a good crossing of Lake Okeechobee, which could happen as early as Monday.

I'll be blogging again on this trip, although maybe not quite as often.  I have found and added a new feature, which should send you an email when a new blog has been published.  If you know of anyone who is interested, send me their email address and I'll add it.

Crossing Our Wake, "THE Crossing", A Year in Review

When "Loopers" get back to where they started, its called "crossing your wake".  Denise and I did that on March 17, 2012 in Madeira Beach, FL.  Eleven and a half months ago, on April 6, 2011 we left the bay where friends Geo and Nanc stay on their boat and when we returned they were there, even hoisting a congratulatory sign.

It was a nice surprise and made the finish a little more fun.  As you can see, while Denise was taking pictures of them, Geo was taking pictures of us.

Note the dirty bow, a water stain that comes from the tanins in the water.  After 6680 miles, Tranquility needs a good scrubbing. 

The finish line has been in sight for quite awhile ever since I arrived in Carrabelle, FL, in the pan handle, back on November 11.  It was there that I decided to leave her for the holidays and early winter.  I watched the weather throughout that period and good weather windows for crossing the Gulf were few and far between.  I was back in Carrabelle on March 5 and determined a suitable weather window was forecasted beginning on the 8th.  Geo made plans for transport up to Carrabelle and arrived late in the morning on the 8th.  Based on forecasts, we made plans to leave the Carrabelle harbor that afternoon and anchor behind Dog Island, just 5 miles away.  As recommended by a prominent Loop weather prognasticator, we went out into the Gulf through a series of bouys to create a GPS track that we could follow in the dark early morning hours of our planned departure the following day.

We were already 4 to 5 miles into the Gulf when I considered not going back to Dog Island, but continuing on.  It was 4:30 in the afternoon and seas were a little bumpy, but we concluded seas were in the forecasted 2 to 3 foot range and were probably as bad as we could expect overnight and into the following day.  The decision hinged on my being able to go to sleep at that momemt, so that I could be up by 11 PM to take the overnight shift.  With that, I said to Geo I was going down and if he didn't see me by 5:30, it was because I was sleeping and he should keep going.

I think I did sleep, what I call airplane sleep, where you are sort of aware of your surroundings, but are not really awake.  In any case, I arose when my alarm came on at 10 PM.  Geo had a couple of cocktails and went to bed at midnight.

The overnight wasn't too bad, with a full moon, the sea was fairly well lit and visibility was very good.  At one point I spotted lights in the distance and after awhile determined they were coming closer and eventually a sailboat passed on the port side about 200 yards off heading in the opposite direction.  Other than that, I did not see another vessel until well after the sun was up.  Surprisingly, Geo was not up until 7 AM, which allowed me for an hour and a half nap.

With daylight, came much calmer seas and as Clearwater Beach came into view, we decided to shift coarse 10 degrees more to the south and head straight to John's Pass at the south edge of Madeira Beach.  By 1:30 Friday afternoon on March 9th we were tied up at ABC Marina.  This concluded a 194 mile, 22 and 1/2 hour cruise.

I also got to Madeira Beach in time to have cocktail hour with my sister-in-law Sue, husband Mark and a few of their holigan friends from Massachusetts.

Denise arrived on March 12th and we spent the week basically getting ready to head north again in mid April.  Plans are to get Tranquility to Kenosha in July, where we can enjoy it only an hour and a half from home.  It was on the 17th that we left the marina and cruised back over to the bay at Geo and Nanc's to officially cross our wake.

That was also St Patrick's Day and we took the opportunity to celebrate Nanc's birthday, 3 weeks early.

This concludes the Great Loop, at least the first one.  Looking back on the year, I must acknowledge several people who became 1st Mates, Crew or just Passengers.

My 1st, First Mate is, of course, Denise.  To the surprise to many, especially herself, Denise survived, or as she likes to say, endurred a total of 2235 miles, or one third of the entire cruise.  While there were moments along the way, like "get me to shore NOW!", I knew she was handling it ok when she came back after two trips home early on and again to do some of the Illinois, Mississippi and Ohio Rivers.  I tried to tell her several times how well I thought she was doing, but she wouldn't talk about it for fear of jinxing herself.

Geo is probably the one person who without, I couldn't have even imagined doing this trip.  Our history goes back to 2001 and it was on my first trip with him going down the ICW in Georgia that I first spotted a trawler.  I didn't know that was what they were called, but it looked like a good way to cruise.  As they say, the rest is history.

Geo joined me for two of the more daunting legs of the cruise, the crossing of Lake Michigan and the recent crossing of the Gulf.  Neither of these turned out to be daunting at all, but it was comforting to have Geo aboard, just in case.  He also was along for one of the major side trips, that being the trip up the Tennessee River to Knoxville and then stayed aboard all the way down the rivers of Mississippi and Alabama.  In all, Geo was a first mate for 1682 miles, or 25%.

Somewhat surprisingly, my brother Ron travelled 1019 miles.  This is surprising because he suffers from some motion sickness and neither of us was sure how he would handle any rough seas.  He first joined in Albany, NY and easily survived the Erie Canal and then one calm day on Lake Erie.  He was aboard again for a couple of days on Lake Michigan and then again for a week on Kentucky Lake and the Tennessee River.  For 449 of Ron's miles, another friend of ours, Mark, was aboard.  During those miles Ron was a passenger and head chef.  When not preparing meals, pico de gallo, or margarita's, he was throwing rocks at signs along the Erie Canal and Mark was first mate.

In all, Mark was aboard for 552 miles and even captain for several miles on Lake Erie while I took a rare nap.

Tom, another good friend was aboard early on for 433 miles and solved a few nagging problems that arose just as Denise and I were departing Madeira Beach.  He also installed the stereo.  Tom, being a life time boater, took over the helm on many occassions.  He also got out the fishing pole on every chance.

 
Friends Mike and Patricia and their dog Scruffy Joe were along for 389 miles on a side trip up the Cumberland River to Nashville and beyond.  They set a new standard for fine dining with daily creations, including great hors dourves and even breakfast one rainy morning in Nashville.

Last, but not least, is my nephew Jason, who joined for the 154 mile trip from Kenosha, WI to Ottawa, IL.  Jason may have the record for the earliest happy hour at 10:30 AM, beating Ron by nearly an hour.

Also along for the 54 mile leg from Joliet, IL to Ottawa was Jason's friend Amanda.

And then there was me alone on three stretches.  Lakes Erie and Huron, a short stretch on the Illinois River from Ottawa to Peoria, IL and finally along the Florida Panhandle from Pensacola to Carrabelle for a 3 leg total of 594 miles.

Maybe you'll find interesting a few stats from the trip.

Total miles: 6680 miles
Total travel days: 111
Average miles per day: 60.18
Average speed: 8.6 MPH
Diesel fuel consumed: 2540 gallons
Average fuel efficiency: 2.63 MPG
Locks traversed: 79

It was a great trip.  Stay tuned for more adventures, planned starting date of April 20.

January 2012 Update

I think I suggested Tranquility would be moving again in January, but with the end of the month now here, I can tell you that won't be the case.  The boat is still at C-Quarters Marina in Carrabelle, FL and I have been by a couple of times to check on her and have decided to leave her there until early March.  I have booked a flight, so I am fairly certain I will move on across the Big Bend of the Gulf and back to Madeira Beach or near there, hopefully by about March 12, at least that's when Denise will be arriving in Clearwater Beach looking first in the marina and then out to the Gulf, if I'm not already there.

Geo is trying to arrange transportation up to Carrabelle to do the 15 to 20 hour crossing with me sometime around March 6.  The exact day for crossing is still very much weather dependent.  I have monitored daily weather updates since November and while there have been a few suitable crossing days, it apparently has not been a normal winter and the good days were few and far between.  Hopefully, by March it will be better.  I will probably spend the rest of March getting Tranquility ready to go again.

I haven't finalized plans, but we have decided we'd like to have Tranquility close to home for a month or two this summer and found Kenosha, WI to be a good spot, with a nice marina and only 90 minutes away.  So, the plan is to head back up the east coast, probably starting in mid April and shoot for a mid to late July arrival in Kenosha.

Postings will not be as frequent, but I will try for at least weekly updates.  Stay tuned.