Tropic Daze Spring Cruise 2004
You may jump to any of the following articles and pages, or continue to scroll through this adventure:
Great Cruising areas that we have found
This is a collection of emails (with some additions) sent to our friends during our trip.
Throughout this article, you can click on the thumbnail pictures to enlarge them.
In 2003, we sailed our newly acquired 42' catamaran to the Keys for a shakedown cruise. We got familiar with her systems and made upgrades and changes as we sailed the Keys. The 2003 shakedown cruise was in preparation for a return to the Bahamas in 2004
Cruising South – Every Year is Different
After a much delayed departure from Tampa Bay, we are finally heading to the Keys. Our cruise has not followed the plan, but as they said in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean”, “They are not really rules (plans), they are more like guidelines”. Our planned week of boat preparation and provisioning turned into almost 3 weeks. We did depart after about 2 weeks in a perfect weather window, but only made it out of the harbor channel when we tested the new propellers and found that they had way too much pitch and would not let the engines run properly. Back to the Marina, pull the props and have them reworked. After getting the props back and tested, we departed in questionable weather.
The forecast was 15 to 20 knots out of the northwest with 5’ to 7’ seas and small craft warnings. Our plan was to sail down Tampa Bay and out into the Gulf of Mexico, then south to Venice, FL (about 60 miles). Plan ‘B’ was to sail down Tampa Bay and about 5 miles short of the Gulf, turn south and enter the Intracoastal Waterway winds of 25 knots and above, with big seas being forecast, so we decided to delay a day and explore Venice on bikes. We heard there was a shark tooth festival at a nearby beach, so be biked over to that. Didn’t know there were that many sharks teeth in the world.
The second night the wind blew a steady 25 knots, small craft warnings were issued, and seas grew angry. We decided to continue down the ICW to the Pelican Bay anchorage on Cayo Costa. It was to be a short trip, about 30 miles, so we didn’t leave till 8 AM. The ICW winds around Venice and is crossed by 3 draw bridges. We called the first bridge and the bridge operator said “Bring it up Captain and I’ll open it for you.” The horns go off, the red lights flash on the bridge, traffic stops and after a time delay, the inbound traffic arms lower. After the departing traffic is off the bridge the other arm closes. Then the bridge starts to rise. Due to construction on this bridge only one span raised, so we had to hug the wall, but we cleared. The next bridge was only a half mile away. Construction barges were lined up on the bank narrowing the channel. We called the bridge and the operator said “Bring it on.” The horns sounded, bells rang, red light flashed as we approached the bridge. I was watching the bridge when the traffic arm came down and a cement truck, apparently racing the bridge, couldn’t make it and slammed on his brakes. He couldn’t stop before he splintered the traffic arm and sent parts flying. But he stopped before the portion of the bridge that opens. The VHF radio came alive with the bridge operator shouting “Abort Opening, Abort Opening!” Here we go again in a narrow channel with the wind and current pushing us into a bridge which couldn’t open because the cement truck damaged the opening circuits. Full reverse and slowly we got the boat stopped and started backing up the narrow channel. We finally got the boat back to a wide spot where we could turn around and face the wind and current. To make a long story short, we went back through the first bridge to get into a wider part of the ICW, pulled out of the channel and dropped anchor. We waited over 4 hours and we still had no ETA for having the bridge fixed. We returned to the Crow’s Nest Marina to try again tomorrow.
Second time was a charm. Both
bridge tenders remembered us and said that there were no cement trucks in
sight. We motored down the ICW, through Gasparilla Sound and across Charlotte
Harbor to beautiful Pelican Bay. Pelican Bay is sheltered by Cayo Costa, a
barrier island that is a nature preserve. If you have read the account of
our “Adventures in the Tunnel of Love” during our 2000 cruise, that
was on Cayo Costa. It is a great place to visit.
The next day we sailed off shore to Marco Island. Much to our surprise, Coconut Island where we have anchored the year before, was almost gone. It had been flattened and cut in two by the wind and waves. We motored up the river to Marco Island's Factory Bay. We took on fuel and anchored in the bay for the night. We left Marco before sunrise for a 100 mile run down the Gulf of Mexico and across Florida Bay. A hundred miles doesn’t sound like much, at home that is a run to Dallas and back, we do it all the time. But in a sailboat, a hundred miles is a big deal. In our previous sailboat, Windancer, a hundred miles would take 20 hours. We made it in 12 hours in Tropic Daze, averaging about 8 knots. Out in the Gulf, fifty miles from anywhere, you might think that there isn’t much to look (ICW) which runs between the mainland and the chain of barrier islands.
We
departed our slip at 7 am and sailed down Tampa Bay in a beautiful gentle breeze
out of the northeast. What a great day, nothing like the forecast. We sailed
down the Bay for 2 hours, under the Sunshine Skyway Bridge and on to our
decision point. The ICW or Gulf of Mexico? As we discussed the decision,
the wind started to build to 10 knots, then 15, then 20, then higher and the
direction switched to the northwest. In no time, the Bay water turned angry with
solid white caps. Well, that wasn’t a tough decision, and we turned south
entering the ICW. The ICW follows channels and bays and is protected by the
barrier islands from the heavy seas, but not the heavy winds. This stretch of
the ICW is crossed by 7 draw bridges, most of which open on a 20 minute
schedule.
Adventures in the Intra-Costal Waterway (ICW)
The trip down the ICW took us past stretches of mangrove islands and natural beauty, then stretches of million dollar homes. We wound our way south contacting each bridge and requesting an opening. According to our cruising guide, the draw bridge in Sarasota is scheduled to be replaced by a fixed 65’ bridge in 2005. When we arrive, the draw bridge is gone and the new bridge is in use. Our mast is listed as 65’ high, so a 65’ bridge is a concern depending on the stage of the tide. Bridges typically display a tide board which sticks out of the water with heights marked on it. You read the height listed where the board meets the water to determine the current available bridge height. A new bridge and no tide board yet. Boy, 65’ looks low as your mast approaches the bridge. At the last instant, you know the mast is going to hit the bridge, but by then you can’t stop. It cleared; we didn’t even touch the flexible marine radio antenna on the top of the mast. We have had our antenna tick across the under structure of bridges and 65’ communications cables crossing channels. No sweat, this time, which is easy to say, after the fact.
We continued south through more beautiful scenery. It is spring break, so dozens and dozens of vacationers rent boats and are cruising up and down the ICW. As we approached the Blackburn Point swing bridge, the ICW narrows and the current from the outgoing tide was carrying us swiftly toward the bridge. We requested an opening, then the bridge tender walked to the center of the bridge and started it rotating. Instead of raising like a draw bridge, swing bridges rotate on a center pivot, typically opening two channels, one for up bound and one for down bound. This channel was so narrow that only one opening was usable, and Tropic Daze is almost 23 feet wide. Two groups of vacationers in rental boats were waiting to pass on the other side. They didn’t realize that they are low enough to go under the bridge when it is closed and secondly, that the boats being pushed by the current have the right-of-way. So they meander their way into the opening while we fight the current with both engines in reverse at almost full throttle. We steer the boat with the 2 throttles while we wait for them to clear the opening. A great exercise for increasing the heart rate while practicing tight quarters maneuvering. No boat contact. We chock up another experience and adventure in the ICW.
We arrived at the Crow’s Nest Marina in Venice, FL for an overnight stay, but small craft warnings continued and at. Just keep your eyes open and Mother nature will put on a show.
Without warning a fifty foot patch of water would erupt as small fish jumped for their lives trying to evade large game fish. The big game fish herd the smaller fish into a tight group and then attack. The water is alive with activity and we aren’t the only ones to take note, the birds start to circle and from 20 to 50 feet in the air, they dive at top speed into the school. They put on quite a show.
We saw more dolphins than we could count. I saw four sea turtles; most would take one good look at the boat and then dive. The most spectacular was a spotted eagle ray with a four foot wing span and a head bigger than a football. Eagle rays jump out of the water, I don’t know why, they just do. This eagle ray came straight at us and did a double jump not 20 feet in front of the boat.
It was a good trip and now we are in Marathon in the Florida Key, kicking back and planning our next move; well they will be more like guidelines for the rest of our trip.
One thing I didn't mention was that we did have one bit of excitement while crossing Florida Bay. I (Bob) sprained my right ankle, fractured one of the bones in my lower right arm, and broke a piece of bone off the tip of my elbow. We were six hours into our 10 hour trip to the Keys and the wind was just off our nose, not providing enough power to get us into the Keys and through the channels before dark, so we were motor sailing. Both engines were loafing along at about 2000 RPM and we were doing about 8 knots. Suddenly we got an engine warning horn and light on the starboard engine. I pulled the fuel shut off, which is how you shut down a marine diesel engine, but the RPM gauge remained at 2000 RPMs. Run away engine? Fire in the engine compartment? What is going on? I needed to get to the engine ASAP. I dashed thru the doorway into the saloon, which has a 14” step down and I caught my heel on the top of the step. I twisted my ankle and fell head long into the saloon, obviously hitting my arm and elbow somewhere in the process. I hobbled down into the starboard hull and opened the engine compartment to find the engine shut down and pieces of the alternator/cooling belt laying everywhere. The tachometer runs off of the alternator and when the belt let go, the tachometer stayed at its last reading of 2000 RPM, which made us think that the engine was still running after we pulled the fuel shutoff. With the belt gone, no coolant was flowing through the engine, so we got an over temperature warning, which started the whole sequence.
After about 10 minutes, I had the belt replaced and the engine restarted. No damage done to the engine and I thought I had just banged myself up a little. I finally sought medical advice after three weeks of limited improvement in Marathon. I told the doctor that it hurt if I bumped my elbow. The X-rays showed a mending fracture and a broken chip at the tip of my elbow. No cast, no sling, just words of medical wisdom, “Don’t bump it any more”. It hasn’t stopped me from doing much. It only hurts if the wind blows. (joke)
Sue and I
have entered a
boat induced altered state of mind, known as a Tropic Daze. Our plan was
to get to the Keys, kick back and wait for a weather window in which to
cross the Gulf Stream to the Bahamas. We plan to enter the Bahamas at Cat Cay
and then spend two days crossing the Grand Bahama Banks before arriving at
Nassau. A couple of days messing about in Nassau and uploading Coconut Rum, and
we will head south to the Exuma island chain. From there on we have no
itinerary or definite plans, but will let the wind and weather dictate our
travels. There are a thousand islands and cays to explore in the Bahamas,
so Sue and I have plenty to choose from.
The “Winds of March” should stay in March.
It has been over a month since our last email and we would love to fill you in on all of our new adventures and unique ports of call, unfortunately Mother Nature has had other plans. It has been a record breaking year for south Florida weather.
March must have come in like a lamb, because it went out like a lion and the north and east winds kept a blow’n, all the way thru April and into May. The average wind in the Keys during April is 7 knots, this year it averaged 17 knots. Now we are in May and the average is running between 19 and 20 knots all day long, every day. The wind itself isn’t the problem, we need the wind to power our sails, but the direction and consistently high velocity causes very high seas and dangerous conditions. Small craft warnings have been posted almost every day.
Restless cruisers hunker down in the Keys waiting for an elusive weather window, with milder wind and sea conditions, in which to cross to the Bahamas. Crossing the Gulf Stream to the Bahamas in anything smaller than a 100’ vessel has been reserved for the ignorant and foolhardy in the present conditions. Some cruisers have been waiting in Marathon for favorable weather for more than two months. Cruisers wanting to return from the Bahamas are trapped there by the same nasty sea conditions in the Gulf Stream. For the last four to five months the average wind has been from 15 to 25 knots out of the northeast, which is blowing against the Gulf Stream’s current and natural waves. This makes the waves steep faced, closely spaced, and treacherous.
The locals say that this has been the windiest winter in memory and the record books back them up. The wind started blowing hard last fall and hasn’t quit yet. Typically November is the start of the annual cruiser migration to the Bahamas. A favorite destination is Elizabeth Harbor off of Georgetown in the southern Exumas. Elizabeth Harbor is a huge harbor and typically holds 400 to 500 cruising vessels during the height of the winter season. At times, the winter cruiser population outnumbers the local population. This year, due to the high winds and poor sea conditions, many cruisers have been unable to get to the Bahamans and according to one report, less than a hundred cruisers made it to Elizabeth Harbor.
In the Keys, charter fishing boats, fishing guides, and snorkeling excursions are hardest hit by the wind and sea conditions. At what would normally be the big spring tourist and fishing season, it is almost impossible to get out beyond the reef to fish with seas running 7 and 8 feet and snorkeling is treacherous due to the five and six foot seas breaking over the reefs.
All of this may sound like a bummer vacation, but it isn’t. Cruisers have learned to take what Mother Nature provides and make the best of whatever you have and whatever there is to do. We have been taking advantage of our captivity in the Keys by meeting other cruisers and learning about their favorite spots and their adventures. Sue goes kayaking in the mangrove swamps a couple times a week. We bicycle around the islands, averaging 5 to 10 miles a day. We have only been fishing and snorkeling once.
Because, when we aren’t cruising, Tropic Daze sits in Tampa Bay and we are in Texas; we don’t get to do all the boat projects that we would like to see completed. Sitting in Marathon’s Boot Key Harbor is a great place to take on project after project. Yes, we would love to be cruising the Bahamas, but if we can’t do that, kicking back in the Keys and working on the boat is a great pastime. A quote from “Wind in the Willows” says it best, “Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing - absolute nothing- half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.”. We have been designing and fabricating new sun screens for our windows and hatches, cloth covers for our helm seat, BBQ, etc. We have designed and are fabricating a cover for our ten and a half foot dinghy, to protect it from UV during storage. Plumbing projects, electrical project, redoing the striping on the boat, waxing the hulls, replacing the anchor windless and chain, painting, varnishing, periodic engine maintenance, to mention a few. All are work, but with satisfying results.
It isn’t all work, the layback life style of the middle Keys is contagious. We have live music every night on the dock a hundred feet off our stern. There are lots of new and interesting cruisers to meet and swap stories with.
We still have a month till our
return to Texas and hope that conditions will improve. We plan to be in Key
West to meet family for Memorial Day. Soon after, we will start our trek
north, up the west coast of Florida, to Tampa Bay and put Tropic Daze to bed
until next spring. Sue says that next year is “Bahamas or Bust”, no matter how
long it takes. Next year we will leave Texas a couple of months later and miss
the winds of March and April.
Heading home
With our time in the Keys at an end, it was time to head north. To avoid the Shark River, we planned a single 90 mile jump from the north side of the Keys to Marco. To avoid leaving Key West in the middle of the night and navigating out the Northwest Channel in the dark, and to make the trip north as short as possible, we left at noon the day before and sailed up Northwest Channel then a few miles west to Cottrell Reef and spend the night there.
At the first hint of twilight we fired up the twin Perkins diesels. With Sue at the helm, I pulled the anchor, releasing our hold on the bottom; we turned north and departed Cottrell Reef. The winds varied from the south and southeast at 10 knots, which makes our 90 mile trip north to Marco Island a down wind run.
Marco Island is the southern most city on the west coast of Florida, on the edge of the Everglades. Between the Florida Keys and the Florida mainland is Florida Bay, a large body of shallow water, typically 4 to 10 feet deep and 40 miles across. When the wind comes up, large shallow bays like this become very choppy and uncomfortable. From Florida Bay, the next 50 miles parallel the Everglades and an area known as Ten Thousand Islands. There are only two small remote communities buried in this swampy shoreline.
While traversing these 90 miles along the west coast of Florida, there is only one anchorage of note to break up the trip, the Shark River. No sane people live there, there are no settlements. Note, that I did not say ‘good anchorage’, as it is only good in cold weather, when there are no mosquitoes. Previously, in a monohull like Windancer, we would plan our hops based on 5 to 6 miles per hour, so 90 miles could be an 18 hour trip. Too long to depart an anchorage at first light and arrive at the next anchorage with good light, unless we sailed through the night. Over night sailing, standing two hour watches while the other person tries to sleep, are not our favorite thing for a couple of reasons. The main reason goes back to a memorable quote from Captain Ron, “If it’s going to happen, it will happen out there”; well we have concluded that “If it’s going to happen, it will happen out there at night”. In the black of night, storms are much more ominous and rough seas are far worse with big waves that you can’t see coming until they hit you and the spray flies over and through the cockpit. Yes, we still sail at night when we must, but we prefer day sails.
This 90 mile stretch of Florida presents a problem at 5 knots, sail through the night or face the mosquitoes. We did anchor two miles off the mouth of the Shark River once during mosquito season, thinking two miles was well out of range of any mosquito. Wrong! These were the thickest and most tenacious mosquitoes we had ever encountered. Nothing, but nothing, would repel them or keep them out. It has to be a real emergency before we do that again.
The good news is that in Tropic Daze, with her additional length (42’ vs. 33’) and being a catamaran vs. a monohull, it is much faster under sail with a good breeze. With her twin Perkins diesels, she is fast even when the wind doesn’t cooperate. We often average 8 knots or more with good wind, or when motor sailing. On Tropic Daze, we planned to make the 90 mile crossing in 12 hours, thus we departed the Keys at 5am and expected to be going up the Marco River by 5pm, if all went well.
All did go well. The wind didn’t cooperate as much as we needed to make the entrance to the Marco River with good light to see and avoid the ever changing shoals, so we motorsailed. We slowed the boat a few times as we caught and landed three King Mackerel, but other than that, we averaged about 8 knots.
We arrived at the entrance to the Marco River at about 4pm and dropped our sails. Sue motored up the river, while I navigated us around the shallows and into the Marco Island Yacht Club. We spent the next day bicycling around and explored Marco Island.
It is a small world. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant on the river and ran into some good friends, Jeff and Tracy Turner, from Reno, Nevada. We had not seen them in a half a dozen years. We had worked closely with them at E-Systems in Greenville, Texas. They were vacationing on Marco Island. We spent some enjoyable time together.
The next day we left at first light for another long hop up the west coast to Boca Grande Pass and an anchorage behind Cayo Costa, which is a barrier island only accessible by boat. We had another good day, but with light winds and 90 miles to go, we motorsailed under mainsail and spinnaker. We made it into Pelican Bay, set the anchor, and had time to kick back. Sue took her kayak out for a spin in the mangrove swamps, while I did boat stuff.
After a good meal, a pleasant evening relaxing in the cockpit, and a good nights sleep; we were ready for the last big jump, Pelican Bay to Tampa Bay and our slip in Bahia Beach Marina. It was our longest jump with light to no wind, so again we motored and used our sails when we could. After 13 hours of motorsailing, we reached our slip at 7 pm with a little light to spare.
We had made it from the Keys to our slip in Tampa Bay in just three day sails. That is about half the time it took on Windancer.
All in all it was another great trip. Mother Nature didn’t provide a weather window with south or west winds for any of the waiting cruisers to cross to the Bahamas, but what a terrible fate, trapped in the Florida Keys for a month and a half.
Next year provides another chance for an adventure in the Bahamas. We have talked about going further south, beyond Georgetown and the Exumas, on to Rum Cay, Long Island, Crooked Island, and the Jumentos. Will next year be the year? Will Mother Nature cooperate, or will we hang out in the Keys and the Exumas and entertain guests?
Join us next year for warm breezes, white sand and crystal water, as the adventure continues.