Lauderdale Yacht Club – Thursday, July 16, 2015

We were in our spot on the Lauderdale Yacht Club’s south wall, tied up and plugged in by noon.  But, before we could get fenders in place against the wall, it was raining.  We have local boaters option cards which make it a little easier to check in to the U.S. when arriving.  All we have to do is call a toll-free number and give them the information that they ask for.  We were cleared by Customs around 12:45 – which was about the same time that the thunder storm subsided.  Rick went into the office to get us checked in.  But showers continued until about 4:00.  Rick could get e-mail via the club’s Wi-Fi, but I could not.  Also, it appears that our router has quit working.  (That’s the thing that allows us to use more than one computer with one internet connection and use our wireless printer.)  It worked before the thunder and lightning but didn’t work after that, so Rick thinks it might have been hit by lightning although there is no obvious evidence of it.  We went into the club for supper.  Their main dining room was occupied by a group (with a lot of children) playing a game that they call YACHT.  The hostess told us that it is really BINGO, but they changed the name!  She took us back to their lower dining room which has glass on three sides and overlooks the pool patio where they have outside dining and the Intracoastal Waterway.  The food was good and we enjoyed the complimentary cookies (especially the macaroons) after dinner.  We left the Lauderdale Yacht Club around 8:30 the next morning.

The Bluffs Marina – Jupiter, Florida – Friday, July 17, 2015

Like yesterday’s extremely smooth ride from Bimini to Ft. Lauderdale, the Atlantic Ocean was once again as calm as a lake.  The only swells we encountered as we travelled up the coastline were wakes from other boats.  By traveling in the Atlantic rather than the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW), we figure we avoided nearly 15 bridges which would have to open for our 30’ height.  We came back in at the Palm Beach Inlet.  We went under the Blue Heron Bridge which connects Palm Beach to Singer Island; then we had to wait a few minutes for the Parker Bridge to open at 45 minutes past the hour.  It was only one mile to the next bridge, the PGA Blvd. Bridge, which opens on the hour by request only.  We waited about 10 minutes for that opening.  Then we continued north at a no-wake speed about 3 more miles to the Donald Ross Bridge which we were able to go under without an opening.  We had met a very nice couple, Bob and Mel, on the boat Istaboa, just before we left Compass Cay.  They encouraged us to stay in their slip at The Bluffs Marina in Jupiter.  So, after we passed under the Donald Ross Bridge, I gave the marina a call and was welcomed and given directions to their slip.  We were docked by 12:45.  Rick went to visit with the harbor master while I straightened up.  He said that he had a nice long chat with L. J.  You can learn more about The Bluffs Marina at www.thebluffsmarina.com

I did a lot of research on the Okeechobee Waterway which we will enter tomorrow heading west across the State of Florida.  It looks like we’ll be traveling about 50 miles and will have several bridges to deal with.   It started raining around 5 p.m. and continued until after 8 pm.  We ate supper on board. 

Indian River Marina, Saturday, July 18, 2015

We left The Bluffs Marina in Jupiter at 8:00 a.m. and traveled north on the ICW with the marker numbers descending.  There were some beautiful homes along the way with, what the chart book describes as, sculptured yards of emerald green.  Most of the homes were boarded up for hurricane season indicating that their owners have gone “up north” somewhere looking for cooler weather.  There were also a lot of “no-wake” zones and we slowed down often for small boats and many, many paddle boarders.  After ICW markers 1 & 2, we entered the St. Lucie Inlet, with floating markers, heading west into the Stuart area.  We entered the St. Lucie River at its markers 1 & 2 and proceeded west and then south.  We stopped at the Sailfish Marina (St. Lucie Marker #10) to fuel up at 10:20 a.m.  We were happy to have a choice of a Boat US members discount or cash discount on the fuel.  The cash discount was more.  We took on 212.99 gallons at 2.919/gal less 10 cent per gallon discount.  We then turned around and headed north for a short while before turning west.  We followed the waterway markers going under the new Roosevelt Bridge but having to wait for a train to cross before the old Roosevelt Bridge would open.  We arrived at the St. Lucie Lock (marker #50) at 12:20 thinking we would have to wait until 1:00 as they have restricted openings right now because the lake is lower than normal.  But, we were pleasantly surprised when the lockmaster said “come on in, but watch for the mating manatees!”  Of course, just as we started into the lock, it started to rain.  I didn’t have time to go get my rain gear from down below, so I went out on the front deck and held the line for the entire 25 minute shower.  Rick was lucky enough to stay on the top deck holding the aft line while under the hard top.  A few minutes after we got out of the lock, and I had changed my clothes, I called the Indian Town Marina.  The chart book says it is the last marina before Lake Okeechobee.  The lady that answered the phone said that they were closing in 3 minutes (1:00) but we could come on in and tie up to the main dock.  She asked if we would be there when they re-opened at 8:00 tomorrow and I replied, “We have to be because we have to pay you.”  She said if we decided to leave before 8, just give her a call and give her our credit card number.  It seems they are a very trusting marina.  We only had 10 more miles to go to get to the marina.  It had stopped raining, so Rick re-opened the top.  Naturally, it started raining again within five minutes, but it was a fairly light shower.  We pulled into the Indian Town Marina and were tied up before 2:00.  I did some laundry on the boat in the afternoon, but mostly we just rested.  Rick took a walk around the facility and said that they had a nice patio with grills as well as a screened-in area with a TV and a kitchen with a TV.  They also have showers.   Rick walked about ¾ mile to find a Burger King and a small meat market.  He said that there was an IGA grocery store about another ½ mile down the road.  We ate supper on the boat.  We checked out as soon as the office opened at 8 a.m.  They charged $1/foot dockage and $10/day electric.

River Forest Yachting Center near La Belle, Florida – Sunday, July 19, 2015

Before we left the Indian Town Marina, Rick noticed an alligator swimming in the marina.  Continuing west on the St. Lucie Canal portion of the Okeechobee Waterway, we saw both white and blue herons.  Along this wild portion of the waterway, you will finds a variety of plant life.  I saw Brazilian pepper trees and Australian pine trees (both of these are considered nuisance plants).  I also noticed oak and pine trees along with lots of sugar cane growing along the banks.  I can only assume that the sugar cane came to be there by blowing wind or helpful birds, but it seems to help stabilize the banks which are sandy soil and often more than six feet high.  We were invited into the Port Mayaca lock as soon as we hailed the lockmaster.  In some of the locks, the lockmaster will throw a fore and aft line down to you to hold while the water level changes.  In others, there are regularly spaced lines hanging down the wall for you to grab and hold on to.  This lock had lines hanging down both sides, so the lockmaster said it didn’t matter which side we held on to.  Be forewarned, if you are traveling through this lock system, the bottom end of these lines are very likely to splash muddy water on you and your boat!  The Port Mayaca lock opens into Lake Okeechobee.  There is a separately numbered set of markers to take you through the lake with the lower numbers at this east entrance.  Markers 1 through 5 are very close to this lock.  The next marker, on the direct route (#6) is approximately 7 miles further in a southwesterly direction.  Although you are going approximately 35 miles across open water, I could see a shoreline all of the time.  The wind definitely picks up over the lake, but since it was blowing under 10 mph from the southwest, it just made it a little choppy.  We were headed directly into the chop most of the time, so we had a relatively smooth ride.  Before reaching marker #7, Rick went to check the engines and discovered one of the hoses had sprung a leak.  We slowed down to about 4 knots and I drove while he went below and patched it.   From marker #7, we were able to see the rest of the markers, leading into the Clewiston area, with the bright sunlight shining on them.  The biggest problem for Rick after that, was not being able to see the shape (triangle or square) of the markers.  Thankfully, I could easily see the colors (triangles are red and squares are green), so if you’re planning to make this direct route crossing and you’re color blind, like Rick, you might want to consider taking along a mate!  As we were coming off of the lake, I called the River Forrest Marina near La Belle, to see if they had room for us tonight.  Much to my surprise, I got a recording saying that they were closed.  They did provide an “emergency” number, so I called that one.  I had to leave a message, but the facility manager quickly returned my call.  He said that they were indeed closed, but, like yesterday, we should just tie up to their dock and settle up in the morning.  I love these trusting people.  About three miles further than Clewiston, we went through the Moore Haven lock.  As soon as Rick called the lock master, he started opening our side of the lock.  We were through the lock in about 15 minutes.  We continued along the Caloosahatchee Canal portion of the waterway, with another set of markers which started with 1 and 2 just the other side of the Clewiston lock.  We arrived at the River Forrest Yacht Center (west – there is another one near Stuart) about 1:00.  There was a couple standing on the dock who helped us tie up.  They had just arrived on their boat which they were leaving on the floating dock to be transferred to dry storage.  After lunch, Rick called the St. Charles Yacht Club to see if we could stay there tomorrow night.  He had to leave a message.  Then he went on a quest to find a spare hose that he is sure that he has put somewhere on the boat.  He found the hose but said that it was too short.  So, we will just have to hope that we can purchase what we need here after they open tomorrow.  He received a return call from the St. Charles Yacht Club.  The dock master says they have room and that he will be there until 4 p.m.

On Monday morning, a mechanic came to the boat around 8:15.  Rick showed him the hose that needed to be replaced and he went back to his shop to find something that would work.  He returned about 8:45 to replace the hose.  At 9:00, the mechanic informed Rick of another problem we had.  The mechanic discover that the fuel line that was right next to the hose is also leaking.  He did not recommend that we go any further until that could be fixed.  Rick agreed, and the mechanic set off to go to town to buy the supplies he needed for the job.  He was back before 11:00 with all of the parts that had to be fabricated to fix the lines so that we could safely continue our travels.  By 11:15, the mechanic told Rick to “fire her up”.  He checked all of the connections and said that everything looked good.  We had to move to another dock to get a pump out before leaving the marina just before noon.  Many thanks to the folks at River Forrest Yachting Center www.riverforestyc.com  (west) between Moore Haven and La Belle, Florida.

St. Charles Yacht Club – Ft. Myers, Florida – Monday, July 20, 2015 –

Just around the bend, on the Caloosahatchee Canal portion of the Okeechobee Waterway, we came to the Ortona Lock.  It opens on demand, but apparently he had the other side open when we arrived and he had to let in 8 feet of water before he could open our side.  We idled for about 10 minutes at the arrival point before the gates on our end started opening.  We reached the La Belle Highway Bridge at 1:15, having traveled only about 9.5 miles.  We called for an opening of the W. P. Franklin lock about 2:30, but had to wait for east-bound boats to clear before we could enter.  This is the last lock we have to go through on the Okeechobee Waterway.  We still have about 21 more miles to go to get to the St. Charles Yacht Club.  We left the lock and got back up to speed at 2:55.  I called the dock master at St. Charles and he gave us a slip assignment (A-4) and told us that he’d see us in the morning.  After leaving the W. P. Franklin lock, we now entered the Caloosahatchee River portion of the Okeechobee Waterway and started once again with marker #2.  The channel to the St. Charles Yacht Club is just before you reach marker #89.  We arrived at St. Charles Yacht Club just after 4:30.  We tied up, suited up and hit the pool.  Boy did that feel good.  St. Charles Yacht Club, as are most yacht clubs in the Florida Council of Yacht Clubs, is closed on Monday.  So we ate supper on board.

Venice Yacht Club –   Tuesday, July 21, 2015

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At 9:50 we entered the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway with a new set of markers, starting with floating green #1 as we headed north.  These waters are more familiar to us.  We passed by the T’ween Waters Resort and Marina on Captiva Island, where we have spent many of my birthdays.  Then we passed the South Seas Plantation Resort.  We had not had our first boat for very long, when we were invited by Curt and Ann to join them and a bunch of friends (since high school) going to South Seas Plantation for Memorial Day weekend.  We were all in relatively small boats, most of them in fishing boats (ours was a 22 foot Sea Ray with a cuddy cabin), so they rented a bunch of condo’s and paired people up to share the boat ride down and the 2 bed-room condos.  We were paired with Ken and Jackie, who have since become dear friends.  Curt said that he paired us because we were the only four people in the group that did not smoke at the time.  Before we even got out of Terra Ceia Bay, where our neighborhood boat ramp was, Curt’s boat broke down.  We pulled him back to the boat ramp.  He loaded his boat up on his trailer and took it home and the four people who were to go on his boat, piled in with us.  Curt and Ann, Ken and Jackie, Donald and Kathy, and Rick and I are still talking about how much fun we had on that trip so many years ago.  At 11:40, we hailed the Gasparilla Causeway Bridge (aka Boca Grande Bridge) tender.  The bridge tender told us that they had 25 feet clearance under the new bridge, which is under construction, but that they would have to open the old bridge.  That would be done at noon.  So, we putted around for about 20 minutes waiting on that bridge to open.  Just before we went under the Boca Grande Bridge, we saw Uncle Henry’s Resort.  The first time we went there was with the Sea Ray cruise group.  We were in our 22 foot boat and had our young son with us, so we rented a room while everyone else stayed on their boats.  We got bicycles and rode into town to a pizza place for an early supper.  I thought I might die from the exertion coupled with the heat – but I am still here to tell the story.  When Rick was the BYC Power Fleet Captain, we were leading a group south, hopefully to Key West, to meet up with the BYC Sail Fleet.  We had planned a cook-out on the docks at Uncle Henry’s, but the “love bugs” were so bad that we had to cancel it.  These genetically engineered bugs (thanks U of F) were so thick that the white boats looked black the next morning! 

We arrived safely at the Venice Yacht Club just before 2:00 and were greeted on the end of the “T” dock by dock master Ted.  Rick went to check in and brought back the invoice with him.  Venice Yacht Club, like St. Charles and our own, Bradenton Yacht Club (BYC), are members of the Florida Council of Yacht Clubs.  Because they are all members of the same council, we receive reciprocity.  That is to say, no dockage is charged for our first night’s stay.  But, they charge $10 for the night’s use of electricity.  We went to the pool for about an hour and made a reservation in their informal “Cove Room” for dinner.  We thought this was an appropriate stop for us since the BYC Power Fleet gave us a “going away” party here on one of their “cruise-away” weekends in November, 2011.

Bradenton Yacht Club –   Wednesday – Monday, July 22, 2015 – July 27, 2015

We left the Venice Yacht Club at 8:25 and went through the Venice Jetties shortly thereafter out to the Gulf of Mexico.  The weather reports had indicated that the winds and sea were pretty calm, but after 6 days of traveling in practically dead calm water, the rollers in the Gulf were more than we wanted to deal with.  So, we came back into the GICW at Big Pass in Sarasota.  We went under the high-rise Ringling Bridge.  We were using some old charts that still showed this bridge as being a draw bridge with only 22 foot clearance!  We had to wait less than five minutes for the Cortez Bridge to open for us (it opens every 20 minutes) and we were able to go under the Manatee Avenue Bridge without it opening.  (With the antennae down, we need 23 feet of clearance due to the hard top we had installed last year.) We did that at 10:30 and were tied up on the wall at the Bradenton Yacht Club (of which we are members) just after 11:00.  We called our son and he came to get us so we could pick up our car which we left parked at his house.  After we got the car, we went to talk to the dock master at Riviera Dunes Marina.  After finishing at Riviera Dunes, we stopped at the grocery store to pick up some fresh things and then we cooled off in the BYC pool.  We met our friends, Bill and Ruth, for a bite to eat for supper. 

About 10:00 Friday morning, our friends, Ken and Jackie put their boat in the water and moved into our friends, Curt and Ann’s slip (their boat is out for repair).  We spent the rest of the day with Ken and Jackie and had dinner in the club with them and our friends Bill and Ruth. 

Saturday was Jackie’s 65^th birthday.  She is proud to say that she can now fish for free!  (In Florida, once you turn 65, you no longer have to get a fishing license.)  We started the day out with mimosas then went up to the tiki bar for lunch and stayed for the rest of the afternoon.  We were joined by other friends as the day went on. I prepared a steak dinner on the boat for us, Bill and Ruth and Ken and Jackie for her birthday.  A very good time was had by all. 

Sunday morning we awoke to clear skies and warm humid temperatures, so Ken, Jackie, Rick and I got in the pool for a couple of hours before the rains came again.  We had lunch by the pool, under cover, and then Rick and I went back to the boat.  About 4:30, Ken and Jackie came by with her daughter, Renee, and her husband Tommy to say that they were leaving.  We then drove over to JP and Kellie’s to join them for Sunday supper.  It was another very good day.

We awoke to sunshine Monday morning, but before we could finish our coffee, there were very dark clouds above and it started raining again.  On our trip across Florida, we were rained on in:  Ft. Lauderdale, Jupiter, the St. Lucie lock on the Okeechobee Waterway, Indian Town and now the last four days here at the Bradenton Yacht Club.  Even though the rain wasn’t heavy – just steady – there was a good bit of wind associated with it, so we a little later start moving the boat than we had planned.

Riviera Dunes Marina – Palmetto, Florida – Monday, July 27, 2015

We arrived, in the rain, and put into a temporary slip waiting for the slip that we will be leasing to be vacated within the next week or two.  We left Riviera Dunes on the 3^rd of November, 2011, and now as we return to it, we have put over 2,100 miles on the boat.  Obviously, the blog will change at this point.  We hope to join our yacht club on some of their monthly “cruise-aways” and I will certainly report on the places that we go on those trips.  I imagine that I will be updating the blog monthly from this point on.  We will continue “Livin’ On The Hook”.

Thanks for reading.

Birthday’s wishes go out to:

Curt, July 4; Savannah, July 9, Melissa and Mary, July 12;  Jackie, July 25; and Ethan, July 29^th.  We love you all.

Compass Cay, Exumas

Wednesday, July 1, 2015 (BD2-0272) – Germal and Loan were both here on the island taking care of things while Tucker was in Florida.  Ethan, one of Tucker’s grandsons, who lives on Black Point, has come to the island to work for the summer.  His two younger brothers are also here helping out.  Of course, Preston Rolle, Tucker’s brother, is still here working on the island.  And, Beef and another one of Tucker’s sons were here when we arrived yesterday.  They were both hired as guides for the day and had brought their clients here.  Around 9:00, Rick told me that they had asked him to take one of the island’s boats to go up to pick up Tucker at Black Point (so it looks like we’ve jumped into our normal routine with both feet.)  When Rick returned from picking up Tucker (after noon),  he said that Watermaker Air had too much for one morning flight and Tucker (with a lot of stuff for Compass) came in on the second flight.  Then, while they were being transported by golf cart from the airport to the government dock, a tire blew out on the golf cart and they had to wait quite a while for someone to come and rescue them.  On the boat ride back from Black Point, Tucker wanted to stop at Staniel Cay, to pick up some supplies for Compass.  (Most of us never pass up an opportunity to stop at Staniel to get fresh food.)  Rick said that 5 packages of hamburgers for Tucker were dropped off at Black Point from the freight boat yesterday.  Since that will only last for a couple of days, we had a couple or World Famous Tucker Burgers for lunch today.  I went out on the dock for early cocktails and the few couples that were there discussed having a pot luck supper.  When I asked Germal about it, he said that it would have to be tomorrow as he was leaving the island on Friday to go to Nassau for a little while.  Rick and Germal went out just before dark and got some conch for Rick to make fritters tomorrow.

Thursday (BD2-0273) –Rick started polishing the fuel in preparation for our journey back to Florida’s west coast.  Captain Andrew of the 4 C’s tour guide boat stopped by to say hello.  We had a well-attended pot luck supper – with no fish!  But there was plenty of meat dishes from which to choose.  One couple, from Brazil, brought four bottles of wine as their contribution – and a welcome contribution it was.  Rick made twice as many conch fritters as usual.  Below is just a small part of them.  We actually had some left over.  But the Rolle’s put them away for safe keeping.

The Rolle’s who own and run Compass Cay often tell visitors that Rick makes the best conch fritters of anyone they have ever known.  Many agree with them.  So, I have added his recipe below.

Ingredients:

• 4 large conchs cleaned
• 1 ¼ cups Bisquick Baking Mix
• 1 ¼ cups pancake mix (just add water type)
• ½ cup milk
• ½ cup water
• ½ bell pepper (any color you like)
• 1/2 onion
• 2 tablespoons Coleman’s dry mustard

Preparation:

1. Dice in 1/8 to ¼ in pieces the onion, pepper, and conch
2. Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. (Bisquick, pancake flour, mustard)
3. Add the milk and half of the water.
4. Mix by hand, with a large spatula, or spoon. The batter should be thick. If too thick add remaining water.
5. Add onion, pepper and conch. The conch should be wet and will loosen up the batter some, if too loose to form on a spoon, add more pancake batter, if too thick add more water.
6. Drop a spoonful at a time into the oil at 325-330 degrees.  Remove when golden.  Check one to be sure it is cooked through, if not, cook it a little longer, just don’t burn the sugar in the pancake batter. If they get too dark and are not cooked through, lower the cooking temperature.

Friday, July 3, 2015 (BD2-0274) – It rained hard mid-morning, but the shower did not last too long.  Rick continues to polish the fuel.  Tomorrow he will check the filters on the generator.  Germal left this morning and Loan is here to help his father run the marina.  Although it is not full to capacity, it is still pretty busy and Rick loves volunteering out on the docks. LeBron James and a couple other basketball players came in for the day.  In the afternoon, Rick made a reservation for us to stay at the Highbourne Cay marina on Monday, July 6.  We have decided to make shorter hops back to Florida than we had originally thought.  This will allow us to travel in the mornings, hopefully avoiding afternoon thundershowers, as well as giving Rick some time to rest.  And, it will also give us time to make sure everything is working on the boat before we cross the Gulfstream.  At this point, we are thinking that we will go to Highbourne Cay, Atlantis, Chub and Bimini before crossing over to Florida.  But, that could change with a drop of rain! 

Saturday, July 4, 2015 (BD2-0275) – Happy Birthday to America and our friend Curt M.  Tyler Perry visited the island with some of his friends today, and, of course, there were several of the tour boats from George Town here as well.  But, mostly it was just kids swimming with the sharks, snorkeling around the marina and generally having a good time. We ate some grouper that was given to us for supper and settled in waiting for fireworks.
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Sunday, July 5, 2015 (BD2-0276) – Rick checked out the generator first thing this morning and found that the battery was dead.  While down there, he changed the filters.  Then he charged the battery.  During the night, our stateroom air conditioner wasn’t putting out cold air, so he changed a breaker in it and that fixed that problem.  The 4 C’s tour group brought two boat loads of tourists around lunchtime and I went to say goodbye to Captain Andrew.  He told me that he will be visiting Florida for a week in November and hopes to be able to drive up to see us in Palmetto while he is there.  We are already looking forward to it.  In the afternoon, Preston took us over to Crescent Beach in the Kubota.  We walked out into the water and had a pleasant time.  The couple from the boat Flower Girl was there and she took our picture with Refrigerator Rock in the background.  We had a nice walk back over the island to return to the boat.

On Monday, we said goodbye to Preston and Loan Rolle.  Loan says he will be in the States in August and December and will try to come to see us during those trips.  Tucker left the island early this morning to fly to Nassau to take care of business.  I went into the Boater’s Grille and took pictures of our sign, one of Sea Clef’s signs and one of ATA Marie’s signs.  I have combined them in the picture below.  We count the owners and crew of both of these boats as good friends and are so glad that we got to meet them and so many others here at Compass Cay.

With saddened hearts, we left Compass Cay on our boat, for what will probably be the last time.  I expect that we may fly back from time to time.  And, we believe in miracles, so who knows – the boat may be back.  We send our love to all those associated with Compass Cay and will keep you in our hearts.

Highbourne Cay Marina

We arrived at Highbourne at approximately 2:00 on Monday, July 6, 2015 (BD2-0277) and stopped at the fuel dock before going to our slip.  Rick agreed to pay the fellow who pumped our fuel (186.8 @$4.64/Gallon) and tied us up to wash down the boat at a cost of $3/foot.   It had been a little stressful on the water for the first time since October, and it was very hot, so we both felt like it was well worth the money.   We went to the office to check in and paid $15 for Wi-Fi and $7.47 for a loaf of bread.  Then sat on their front porch eating an ice cream cone (what a treat!)  Next we went to the beach right by the marina office.  The water was refreshing, but we didn’t stay too long before we went back to the boat to rest a while.  We are in slip 7, right in between two other boats that came from Compass Cay this morning.

New Providence Island, Nassau, Atlantis Marina on Paradise Island, Tuesday & Wednesday, July 7 & 8, 2015 (BD2-0278 & BD2-0279)

We left Highbourne Cay around 10:00 Tuesday morning and hailed Nassau Harbour Control for permission to enter the harbor around 12:30.  We had to stand off at Atlantis for a while as they docked two other boats that had come from Highbourne (Dusty Seas & Flower Girl – both from Jupiter, Florida).  We were in our slip (Lucky #13) and checked in by 1:30.  We have decided to stay here for two nights.  The generator has quit working and Rick wants a chance to fix it while we are here.  In the afternoon we walked across the street from the marina to a liquor store to stock up.  We had an Italian meal at Anthony’s and then spent some time, and some money, in the casino.  But, thanks to Rick’s skill/luck at 3-card stud, we think we came out ahead.

On Wednesday morning, Rick found that we needed a new impeller in the generator.  By 11:30, he had replaced it and the generator started up just fine.  We’ll have to wait and see if it continues to run for a longer period of time when we leave here tomorrow.  We spent the afternoon at the water park.  We ate supper at Johnny Rockets in the marina village and then went back to the casino for another hour arriving back at the boat after 11:00 p.m. 

We left Atlantis about 9 am, but once we got out of Nassau Harbor, we realized that the conditions were too rough for us to proceed to Chub, so we returned around and came back into Nassau Harbor.  Unfortunately, Atlantis was full, so we had to find another place to stay.

Hurricane Hole Marina on Paradise Island, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, July 9-13,2015 (BD2-0280-BD2-0283)

We re-fueled (148.45 gallons at 4.16/gallon) at the Hurricane Hole fuel dock, and then proceeded to slip 54 and were tied up and checked in by 11:00 on Thursday.  After eating lunch at the Green Parrot Bar & Grille and cooling off in the pool, we hired a young man to wash down the boat ($2/ft.).  He did a good job.  We rested for a few hours in the afternoon.  We decided to eat a light supper on the boat and turn in early.

On Friday, we checked the local weather and found that the Central Bahamas had small craft advisories, with waves from 2-4 feet through Sunday, so we made arrangements to stay until Monday morning.  The generator still wasn’t working, after replacing the impeller.  Rick worked on the gas line and found it was clogged.  We are hoping this has fixed the problem with the generator.  We spent a couple of hours in the casino.  I did OK on the penny slots (I am a big spender, after all) coming back with as much as I started with in addition to paying for 5 drinks between us.  While there, we made a reservation at Olives’ Restaurant for this evening at 8:30.  Rick received an e-mail from an old navy bud today.  We were very glad to hear from JD and to learn that he is still married to Sherry and that they have two children.  We last saw them when they visited us in St. Petersburg at the end of 1982 or beginning of 1983, when our son, JP, was only two.

It was overcast on Saturday morning, but the winds had dropped a little.  We went over to the casino mid-afternoon, played the slots for about an hour and then went to their movie theater to see the free movie “Strange Magic”.  It is a Lucas film – so animated.  Even though it was PG, we still enjoyed the beautiful colors and artistry as well as the “popular in the ‘70s” music.  (I’ve always been a sucker for a musical.)  After the movie, we went to the restaurant called Chop Stix and had a very good, very filling dinner.  Then we walked back to the boat.

We had a pleasant surprise visit from our friend Rhiana on Sunday, July 12, 2015.  After she left, we went over to the water park.  We took a couple of turns around the river rapids without turning over once.  We got back to the boat after 5:00; ate a light supper on board; and prepared for an early departure in the morning.

Chub Cay Marina, Monday, July 13, 2015 (BD2-0284)

We left Hurricane Hole Marina just after 8 a.m. and arrived at Chub at 11:00 a.m.  It was a very pleasant 35 mile ride.  Unfortunately, the generator did not stay on again.  We were welcomed back by Kenny, the dock hand, who remembered us from our stay a year ago February.  Rick cleared more “gunk” out of the fuel line to the generator.  We spent some time in the pool.  I didn’t take any pictures, but many things on the island seemed to have been improved.  They are still working on the inside of the clubhouse, but it is looking very grand on the outside.  Although the tiles around the pool have not yet been repaired, the pool is clean and the view cannot be beat. We had a nice supper in the Harbour House Restaurant with Remedy as our waiter.  He has worked there over 30 years.

We had a big breakfast at the Harbour House while trying to determine if we should continue on today as the wind is blowing harder than we expected.  We decided to go ahead and left Chub just after 9 a.m.

Bimini Sands Marina, Tuesday and Wednesday, July 14/15, 2015 (BD2-0285-BD2-0286)

Some of you may wonder what these “BD” numbers are.  When a private boat comes into the waters of the Bahamas, they must pay for a cruising permit.  The permit is good for 365 days and can be renewed two times before the vessel must leave Bahamian waters for a short time.  So, the BD stands for Bahama Days.  We renewed our first permit two times before going back to Ft. Lauderdale last year.  We received a new permit (Permit #2) when we came to Bimini last October.  Therefore, Tuesday is the boat’s 285^th day on our 365-day permit.  The winds were blowing more than 10 mph, but we would have mostly following seas and tomorrow would be worse, so we decided to go ahead.  While not as calm as yesterday’s run, the ride was not too bad. The generator worked through the entire 6-hour trip!  We tied up in our slip around 3:30 after taking on 221.5 gallons of fuel.  We enjoyed some time in the infinity pool and then took one of the new resort busses down to Mackey’s Beach Bar for supper.

On Wednesday morning the wind was blowing and the seas were rough just outside the marina.  We watched the Weather Channel on TV to learn that South Florida was expecting a lot of rain today, so we will be here one more night.  All of the predictions for wind, waves and weather look good for crossing the Gulf Stream tomorrow.  Rick gave the boat a thorough cleaning as there was salt at every level and on every side.  I took the opportunity of an extra day in port to do some laundry.  Around 4:00, I called Rick up into the pilot house to look at a boat entering the marina.  It was called Wanderer and it was flying our Bradenton Yacht Club burgee.  Rick went over to their slip and met Greg and Barbara Allard.  We have mutual friends – Rick and Sydney Shaurette.  Rick is a past-commodore of the club.  Rick returned to the boat and told me who they were and that they had invited us over for cocktails at 6:00.  We certainly enjoyed our visit with them.  They had come from West End where their son was just married.  They are on their way back to Palmetto, but their boat has a deeper draft than ours, so they will have to go around the state, through the keys, while we are going through the Okeechobee Waterway, across the state from Stuart to Ft. Myers.  We went back to the Beach Bar for supper.

We left Bimini Sands Marina on Thursday, July 16, 2015, at 8:15 headed west across the Gulf Stream to Florida.  About an hour after we left Bimini, we ran into rain.  It was not a heavy rain and the seas were not too bad.  I abandoned Rick to the weather up top and retreated to the pilot house to work on this blog.  We were out of the rain in less than an hour and after that the water was very calm until Florida’s east coast.  We entered the waters of Port Everglades just about 11:30 heading up the ICW to the Lauderdale Yacht Club.

Friday, May 29, 2015 (BD2-0239) through Thursday, June 4, 2015 (BD2-0245)

Friday, May 29, 2015 – After arriving just after midnight and getting a few hours of sleep, we spent the morning going to various appointments; having lunch at the Bradenton Yacht Club, turning in the rental car; playing a little bit with Emma (our 21 month-old granddaughter); and then taking a nap; we ate supper with the family and went to bed early in anticipation of tomorrow. 

Saturday, May 30, 2015 – We made a quick stop at the grocery store to pick up what we thought we’d need for the weekend – crackers, cheese, wine, vodka, gin and tonic.  Then met our friends Ken and Jackie at the Bradenton Yacht Club to ride with them on their boat, Snowman, up to the Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel for a long weekend with them and our friends Bill and Ruth on Bandit.  We all arrived at the marina just after noon and, after us getting our room and the couples on their boats getting settled in, we all met at the hotel’s sports bar, Champions, for lunch.  We were to meet again around 6, but Rick got a migraine headache, so I called the others to cancel out on supper.  The picture below is from the hotel’s website http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/tpamc-tampa-marriott-waterside-hotel-and-marina/

Sunday, May 31, 2015 – We went down to the boats and found that the dock master (Tony) had sent us a welcome tray of fruit which we ate for a late breakfast.  Later we took a cab to Ybor City and had a wonderful lunch at the Columbia Restaurant.  We took the trolley back to the hotel and Jackie met Rick and me for a dip in the pool (which is on the third floor of the hotel).  Rick left me and Jackie in the pool and when I returned to the room, I discovered that he had another migraine.  So I went down to the boats to join the others for supper without Rick.  We went to a fairly new restaurant on the “Riverwalk” which is called Ulele.  I had a wonderful pork chop dinner.  We were spending this weekend together to celebrate both mine and Ruth’s birthday – June 1.  Someone must have told our server because we were presented with a birthday card with both of our names on it at the end of the dinner.

Monday, June 1, 2015 – Wonderful news.  The Tampa Bay Hockey Team, the Lightning, is in the Stanley Cup Playoffs!  And, their arena is right across the street from the hotel.  The first playoff game is here on Wednesday night.  Since Ken is on vacation all of this week, they have decided to stay here for the game.  We all walked over to the arena’s gift shop where Ruth and Jackie both bought Lightning T-shirts.  (Ken had already bought a shirt at the hotel gift shop.)  Ken checked on getting tickets and, of course they were sold out (for both the first and second home game.)  But, they have a wonderfully big patio in front of the arena where they show the game on a big screen TV, so they have decided to do that on Wednesday night.  From the arena, we decided to continue walking over to an area called Channelside.  This used to be a great place to go for food and other entertainment, but, unfortunately, several of the restaurants that we used to love there have closed.  We had a lite lunch at Hooters and then walked along the River Walk back to our hotel.  While Rick went to the pool, I went to the spa for a birthday massage.  When my massage was finished, I met Rick at the pool, but it was getting overcast so we went back to the room.  We had made reservations at a well-known steak house for our birthday dinner, but were concerned that we had not brought the appropriate apparel.  So, Ruth called and talked to them about it and the group decided to cancel those reservations and eat at the hotel’s restaurant instead.  We met the others in the lobby bar around 4:00.  When we told the bar tender that it was Ruth’s and my birthday, he gave us both a free drink.  Then we went out to the boats and discovered that they had delivered a fruit and cheese plate along with a bottle of sparkling wine and a bottle of white wine accompanied by 6 glasses for each.   This was also a gift from the dock master for our birthdays.  The six of us ended our evening together having a very nice, relaxed, casual supper at the Waterside Café.  At the end of the meal, Ruth and I went to look at some displayed deserts.  We decided to order one piece of cheesecake with six forks.  There was a gentleman there dressed in a suit who said that he would tell our server.  A few minutes later, the server came to the table with two pieces of the cheesecake and six spoons.  He told me that he had already ordered two pieces before I spoke to the manager.  The cheesecake had a fudgy chocolate bottom layer and a hard chocolate top layer.  When it was served to us, there was an extra piece of chocolate on top that said happy birthday.  This was another gift from the hotel and it was very good.

Tuesday, June 2, 2015 – We went to breakfast at the hotel’s restaurant with Bill and Ruth, while Ken and Jackie stayed on their boat.  Bill, Ruth and I had “to-die-for” eggs benedict while Rick chose the breakfast buffet.  We were ready to leave on Bandit around noon, but (it’s a boat) the generator was overheating.  So, Bill got down in the engine room and replaced the impeller on the water pump before we took off, in the rain, and returned to Palmetto. 

Wednesday, June 3, 2015 – I scheduled several doctor’s appointments for myself.  We went to the club for lunch then went to a marine surplus store to see if they have some bilge pumps that we need and to check on some prices for some friends. 

Thursday, June 4, 2015 – I went to see my family doctor then, I repacked for our next week in Ormond Beach.  We will leave in the morning and are looking forward to attending the Hoffmeister Family Reunion. 

Friday, June 5, 2015 – Thursday, June 11, 2015 (BD2-0246 – BD2-0252)

We left Palmetto just after noon on Friday and drove to the east coast of Florida to Ormond Beach for the Hoffmeister family reunion.  There were approximately 47 in attendance.

The reunion was organized by the three daughters of Phil Hoffmeister, Sr. (Rick’s grandfather).  Joan provided goody bags to each couple.  They included T-shirts, bottles of water, candy, sparklers, games, a kite and more.  The bag, alone, was a great treat – thanks Aunt Joan. 

The dinner that evening was provided by Aunt Tillie and her husband Jimmy Parker.  It was take-out from one of the family’s long-time favorite restaurants, Mario’s.  Thanks, Aunt Tillie and Uncle Jimmy.

On Saturday, we visited on the beach while some of the group surfed and some swam in the Atlantic Ocean.  Rick and I went for a walk on the beach, ending up at the grocery store where we bought some snacks.  We also spent some time enjoying the view.

Around 5:30 p.m., Joan took some family pictures as well as a group picture.

In our family picture, Mom is holding a picture of Eileen and I am holding a picture of JP, Vanessa, Emma and Kellie.  Eileen’s son, Mat, brought his “main squeeze” Lindsay with him from Knoxville to the reunion (they are on the right).  In addition to a cake, Saturday evening’s supper was BBQ from a local restaurant called Dustin’s and was provided by Aunt Mary and Uncle Scott.  Thanks Aunt Mary and Uncle Scott.

After supper, Aunt Helen showed us a picture of the Hoffmeister family which was taken in Germany

and Tillie passed out documentation on the family tree as well as hosting a family trivia game. 

Some of the family members had to leave on Sunday, June 7, 2015, to return to work on Monday, but about 16 of us went to supper at a popular local spot called Lulu’s and had a very nice meal.

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Mary and Scott and their family stopped by Mom’s house early Monday morning before leaving town.  Mary and Scott would eventually be travelling back to California.  Then Mat and Lindsay left to catch a flight from the Sanford Airport back to Knoxville.  We sure enjoyed our short visit with them.

Rick and I took over the guest space at Mom’s house to stay for a few more nights.   

Mom had a surprise visit from Rick and Judy Hoffmeister on Tuesday morning before they left to catch their flight back home to Pennsylvania.  My Rick and I spent most of the day relaxing.  He made some of his “famous” crab cakes for supper.

On Wednesday, we met my brother, Bill, his wife, Mary, and our niece, Melissa, for lunch at the Panera Bread in Port Orange for lunch.  Time was short, but enough for all of us to “catch up” with one another.  Rick was coming down with a cold, so the rest of the day was spent taking it easy at Mom’s.

Thursday was another day of rest.  But Rick told us that he had a tightness in his chest and had contacted Moffitt to see if he could get his appointment moved up from the end of the month.

Friday, June 12, 2015 – Thursday, June 18, 2015 (BD2-0253 – BD2-0259)

We left Mom’s just before noon on Friday and got to Palmetto in time for me to call and change a couple of my health appointments next week to accommodate the changes in Rick’s appointments at Moffitt.    We ate supper with JP and his family.  On Saturday, we went to Lowe’s to look for some electric outlet covers but had no luck find the size we needed.  After lunch at the Bradenton Yacht Club, we came home to rest before going back to the club to meet Ken and Jackie to watch the Tampa Bay Lightning hockey team play in the Stanley Cup finals.  On Sunday, June 14, 2015, we slept too late to go to church.  JP and Kellie took Emma to Emerson Point Park around noon.  While we were eating lunch at the Riverside Café, Ruth called to say that she and Bill were going to the Bradenton Yacht Club to watch the final weigh in for the Firefighters Charity Fishing Tournament of which their business was a sponsor.  Rick dropped me off at the house and met them over there for the afternoon.  We ate supper out and got home just before a good rain storm.  We spent all afternoon on Monday at the Moffitt Cancer Center as well as most of the day on Tuesday.  Wednesday found us at the eye doctor in the morning and Manatee Diagnostic Center in the afternoon.  Both of these appointments were required for me to remain in the best category for my health insurance, as was my annual check-up which was performed on Thursday morning.  Rick went to West Marine in the afternoon and we ended our day with another family supper.

Friday, June 19, 2015 – Thursday, June 25, 2015 (BD2-0260 – BD2-0266)

I went to the dentist on Friday afternoon and then we went to the Bradenton Yacht Club for the Year-end, High-end Wine Tasting.  As we were driving back in our neighborhood, we noticed that Curt and Ann’s lights were on, so we stopped there around 10:30 and visited with them until about midnight.

The Yacht Club’s pool has been closed for renovations since we’ve been back in town and it re-opened today.  So, Rick and I went and enjoyed the pool Saturday afternoon.

Sunday, June 21, 2015, was Father’s Day.  We left Palmetto about 9:30 and drove to the Ocala Forest to spend some time with my Dad.  We had made arrangements with my brother, Bill, to meet him and Mary there and for us to pick up BBQ lunch for all of us.  Bill has just taken a new job in Denver and they will be moving out there on July 5, so we were really glad to have the afternoon to spend together.  Dad has a birthday at the end of this month.  He will turn 85.  But, we will be on our way back to Compass Cay that day, so we celebrated both Father’s Day and birthday.  It was a very special day, because my brother, Rick, also joined us.  So, all three of his children were with him to celebrate Father’s Day and an early birthday.

Monday was our “make-up” Father’s Day with JP and his family.  We went to the grocery store early and then I put a pot roast in the crock pot to cook.   Rick got a new battery put into my waterproof watch while I watched Emma and JP went for a run.  He is training for a marathon in December.  We had a nice, family dinner with JP and his Dad both receiving gifts that they really appreciated.

Tuesday morning, I had a 9:00 appointment for a therapeutic massage (a birthday gift from JP and Kellie) and then I went shopping at Beall’s Department store looking for a large bag.  I had some money left over after buying my Teva brand water shoes.  I used that money to buy a large and very colorful bag.  It was sale priced at 40 percent off and then, because it was Senior Tuesday, I got an additional 15 percent off – making the bag cost almost exactly the same amount of money I had left from Rick’s Mother and brother for my birthday. 

Rick went with me to the Manatee County Employee Health Benefits office on Wednesday morning to meet with my diabetic counselor and then turn in the paperwork to continue my health insurance with them.  That evening, we had a lovely dinner with our friends Steve and Joy Fredrick which gave us time to catch up on our mutual adventures.  They have left their sail boat in Antigua this year where it will stay “on the hard” until they return in January.

On Thursday morning, the air conditioning repair man came by because JP said that there was no air blowing into the bedroom on the northwest corner of the house.  Geno found a problem where the vent connected through the ceiling and fixed it.  He also recommended that JP install a thermal board in the western facing windows of that room and the master bedroom to try to reduce the summer afternoon heat.  JP and Rick found the material and installed it in both bedrooms with west-facing windows.  Thursday night we met Bill, Ruth, Ken, Jackie, Rick and his wife, Linda,(owners of the restaurant) at the Riverside Café for a wonderful lobster dinner.  (We had given the Bahamian lobsters to the Bakers and they added some local lobsters for our feast.)

Friday, June 26, 2015 – Tuesday, June 30, 2015 (BD2-0267 – BD2-0271)

We drove over to the east coast of Florida on Friday to visit with Rick’s mother and brother in Ormond Beach, Florida, for the night.  She is recuperating after having some cancer removed from the top of her head.  The stitches are scheduled to come out on Tuesday.  We left their house on Saturday morning and drove south down I-95 to Vero Beach where we met Tucker (from Compass Cay) and his cousin Cedric for lunch before crossing back to the west coast and returning to Palmetto.  After going to church on Sunday, June 28, 2015, we went to the Sarasota airport to pick up our rental car.  We spent the afternoon at the Bradenton Yacht Club pool and had supper with the family before packing up the car – getting as much done as possible tonight rather than before 7 tomorrow.  We spent all morning Monday at the Moffitt Cancer Center.  Our last appointment was with the oncologist.  He told us to come back next month.  So, we left Tampa and drove, through rain, to Ft. Lauderdale, where we checked into a motel, went to get some supper, and then to bed early for our 7 a.m. flight in the morning.  We got to the Ft. Lauderdale Executive Airport and the Watermaker Air hanger about 6:15 on Tuesday morning.  As we were boarding, Rick asked the pilot, Nick, if he had flown through the storm yesterday.  He replied that he had not but he heard that the customs office at the Executive Airport was hit by lightning and the afternoon Watermaker flight had to land at the International Airport for the passengers to check into customs.  Nick said that he hoped that it would be fixed by the time he came back this afternoon.  We had a comfortable flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Black Point.  (The air strip on Staniel Cay is still closed – with no immediate plans to fix the potholes.)  Loan Rolle was at the government dock waiting for us with some of the guys from the Exuma Land and Sea Park.  It seems that one of the other passengers on our flight works at the park and they were coming to pick him up, so they gave Loan and us a ride back to Compass (which was a little bit bumpy).  We were very happy to be welcomed back home to Compass by a number of Rolle’s and some boaters that we knew as well.  Rick hung out on the docks while I put things away.  We both took afternoon naps and had an early supper.