Panama City, Florida to Fort Myers Beach, Florida (December 12 - 25, 2005)

Checking the National Weather Service models Sunday revealed that we had a 2-3 day window starting Monday in which to make the passage across the Gulf to Tarpon Springs. At about 250 miles, it would take us fully two of those days so we decided to leave Panama City as early as possible on Monday.

Monday was a perfect day for sailing. With 10-15 knot winds out the Northwest, we would have a downwind sail for much of the day. The temperatures were supposed to climb into the 60s making it a bit chilly, but not bad for December.

As we prepared to leave, we saw other sailboats heading out. Looked like we were going to have company out there. At 8:30 AM everything was ready and we were leaving the dock. It took an hour to get to the mouth of the passage into the Gulf where we were able to raise the sails and for the first time in months be sailing again. It felt great to turn off the engine and cruise along with just the sound of the wind and waves. Seas were only in the 2-3 foot range making for a comfortable ride.

Most of the first day passed uneventfuly. Several times we saw dolphins and once three of them swam along side the boat for about 30 minutes. We wondered if God had programmed that behavior into them just to entertain sailors. During the afternoon it warmed up enough that we were able to enjoy getting out of our coats and sweaters for a bit. Soon, however, with a spectacular sunset evening began and it started getting cold.

With the cold, there was no question of our following our normal watch schedule in which Kathy does the first six hours and Kyle takes the last. Instead we took two hour watches so that no one had to bear the cold for too long. With the wind vane doing the steering, there was not much to do on watch other than to keep an eye out for other ships. It was a beautiful night with an abundance of stars.

At 3 AM Kyle took the last watch of the night. By now it was bitter cold so he took his sleeping bag on deck to try to keep warm. There seemed to be no shipping to speak of in this part of the Gulf so there was not much to watch for. The wind vane was keeping us on course and soon, cozy and warm in the sleeping bag, Kyle dozed off.

The wind vane steering system works by keeping the boat at a constant angle relative to the wind. It works wonderfully and we only have to touch the tiller of the boat on rare occasions while on passage. The only problem is that the person on watch has to keep an eye on the wind direction. If the wind shifts, the boat shifts course right along with it. Early on Tuesday morning, while Kyle slept, the wind shifted to the north taking the boat about 40 degrees off course.

Kyle was startled awake to the sound of someone calling on the VHF marine radio. He scrambled out of the sleeping bag, looked around and was surprised to see another sailboat just off the port side. The captain asked where we were headed and Kyle told him we were going to Tarpon Springs. The other captain wondered if we actually knew where Tarpon Springs was since we seemed to be headed more towards Key West. That was when Kyle realized that we were seriously off course.

Quickly Kyle brought Stap Isi around and once again headed for our destination. Now we were on a parallel course with the other boat and it was nice to have someone else in sight for part of the day. The other boat was taking a slightly more northerly course so during the day he kept getting farther and farther away until around noon his mast had disappeared completely from sight.

Now we had the wind off our beam (side) and this is one of the most efficient points of sail. Most of Tuesday we were making between 6 and 6.5 knots. The wind continued to build along with the seas so by Tuesday afternoon we had 4-6 foot seas and 15-20 knot winds. This is still good sailing although it is starting to get a bit too rough to do much inside below.

Our biggest problem now was that the higher than expected speeds would give us a landfall at Tarpon Springs some time between 1 and 3 AM. Hundreds of miles from land, one can relax a bit. Other than the occasional freighter there just is not much to encounter. But as we approach land the situation changes. Shipping traffic increases and one has to watch the charts carefully to keep well clear of shoals, islands, etc. Coming into a strange harbor at night adds an entire layer of complexity and potential danger to the equation. For that reason, we try never to make landfall at night. Kyle decided to continue on until we were about 20 miles off from shore, then just hang out until around dawn.

It was another bitter cold night so we took short watches and tried to keep warm. This would have been a perfect passage had it not been for the temps. Finally at about midnight we made the decision to change direction and head north for a few hours to parallel the coast. The wind was supposed to change direction to the northeast during the night so if we positioned ourselves to the northwest of Tarpon Springs, it would give us a nice sail in towards the harbor in the morning.

At 2 AM it was time to head southeast again towards Tarpon Springs. We were 30 miles off and at 5 knots we would be at the entrance buoy by about dawn. But when we came about we discovered that the wind had indeed shifted as expected - but all the way to the southeast. Our course towards Tarpon Springs was now directly upwind - not a good thing for a sailboat. It was time to start the engine.

We fired up the engine and brought the boat onto course. In just a few minutes, though, it was clear that the engine was not performing well. It was loosing power and was not able to maintain the normal level of RPM's. Kyle checked the bowl under the fuel filter and instead of containing nice clear diesel, it contained something that looked like muddy water.

Most boats have at least some gunk, sludge, or whatever in their fuel tanks. This stuff normally sits quietly on the bottom of the tank and does not disturb anything. Originally our fuel tank had been nice and clean but we had gotten some bad fuel in Mexico and had been experiencing filter problems ever since. The last couple of days, as the boat rocked and rolled on the waves, the fuel in the tank had sloshed around until the gunk was now completely emulsified in the fuel. This was choking the fuel filter and leading to the loss of power. It was time for a filter change.

It took about 30 minutes to make the change. Normally it is not much of a job but after two days with minimal sleep and in 5 foot seas it becomes a bit more of a challenge. Soon however the job was done. We started up the engine and were happy to see it return to its normal self.

Kathy went below to get some sleep and Kyle took the watch. The engine pushed us along at 5 knots with the wind vane keeping us on course. At about 5 AM, however, the engine began losing power again. That gunk in the fuel was making a mess of things. So once again we did a filter change (we are getting quite efficient at this by now) and once again the engine came back to life. By now however, the wind had shifted enough again that we were able shut off the engine and get the sails back up, keeping the fuel filter clean until we needed it right at the end.

With the delays caused by the wind shifts and the engine problems, there was no possibility of reaching Tarpon Springs in the night. Soon it was dawn and we began to see radio towers and other indications of land in the distance. At 9 AM the buoy marking the entrance into the channel came into view so we dropped the sails and prepared to motor in.

There is a small island called Anclote Key located just off the mainland at Tarpon Springs. Our intention was to get in and anchor there to rest before deciding where to go next. As we followed the channel around towards Anclote two other sailboats came into view anchored off Anclote. They were people we had met in Mobile who had left a few days before us.

Soon the anchor was set and holding well and we were able to relax. After some hot coffee we got things stowed and squared away and fell into our cots for some sleep. The remainder of the day would be spent resting and getting the boat cleaned and ready for the next leg.

The weather called for a front to come through on the 15th so we decided to sit tight where we were. Anclote Key has excellent holding for the anchor but it is not sheltered from south or north winds. During the day the winds were supposed to shift from 20 knots from the south to 20 knots from the north as the front passed. This would give us a good test of our ground tackle under less than ideal circumstances. We will most likely encounter worse anchoring situations further on so we wanted to discover any problems now.

Today was mainly spent on small boat projects and on watching the wind, waves, and anchor. We needed especially to watch to see if it dragged or if it stayed put. A small crab pot marker was located off our port side and that served as our reference mark. If it stayed put, it meant that the boat was staying put.

As evening approached, the front got closer. North of us there were severe storm warnings but at Tarpon Springs it was expected that all we would get would be some wind and rain. About dusk the wind began to shift and the rain began. A few distant rumbles of thunder were heard from the north.

With the wind shift we were now in the lee of Anclote Key. The sea settled right down and for the first part of the night it was fairly calm at the anchorage. Around midnight though the wind finally came around fully from the north and the seas began to pick up again. This was another test of how well the anchor would do. When the wind shifts it causes the boat to swing around and pull from a different direction. This will often cause an anchor to pull out (or trip). That is not necessarily a problem as long as the anchor resets promptly. Now we would get to see what our anchor would do.

Soon we were in 20 knots of north wind with 2 foot waves in the anchorage. We watched carefully through the night and were very happy to see that the anchor held perfectly. This is going to be a big comfort the next time we are in similar conditions.

Early Friday morning we had had enough of the rolling and wind and decided to head south to Clearwater. There was a marina there where Kyle might be able to get into the fuel tank and clean out the sludge. Until he got this fixed it was probably going to continue to cause problems. Our engine dying as we maneuvered into a harbor could be tragic.

In spite of the wind and waves in the anchorage we were able to get the anchor up and were soon on our way down the ICW. Clearwater was only about 15 miles south so we would be there by noon. The trip down the ICW was fairly uneventful, until the very end.

As we came under the Clearwater Beach Bridge we saw a small Coast Guard launch heading our direction. They passed us then came around and pulled up alongside. They wanted to know when the last time was that we had been boarded and inspected by the Coast Guard. We told them that we had never been boarded so they told us prepare to be boarded.

Under maritime law the Coast Guard (and just about any other law enforcement agency) can board and inspect a boat any time they want. We had expected to be boarded long before this and were not too concerned about it. The Coast Guard are extremely professional and are mainly checking to make sure that all the required safety gear is on board.

The launch pulled along side and two men stepped over. One checked our registration and identification while the other checked to make sure our flares were in date and that we had all the required life vests on board. It was all over in about 10 minutes. As they stepped back onto their launch we noticed that we were directly opposite the channel leading into the Clearwater Municipal Marina. Great timing.

The Clearwater Marina facility is excellent. They have showers, a restaurant, laundry, and there is a grocery store within a two mile walk. It has been two weeks since we last bought groceries so after showers our first priority was to reprovision. Then tomorrow Kyle will start work on the fuel tank.

Saturday morning Kathy went off to do laundry while Kyle started work on the fuel tank. Just getting to the fuel tank was the first thing. That entailed taking apart the cabinetry on the starboard side piece by piece until the cabinet top could be removed to reveal the tank. When the last piece was removed Kyle lifted the top hoping to find an access plate that would allow him to drain the tank and clean it out with a rag on a stick. He was disappointed to find that there was no access plate on the tank. That meant that we would have to spend the money to have a tank cleaning service come out and do it. Since it was a rainy Saturday, the odds of finding someone today was slim so we would probably have to stop along the way. It would definitely need to be done, however, before we could head out to the Gulf again.

After the cabinets were back together and the laundry was done, we walked to the grocery store to buy more provisions. Since we were on foot, we were limited in how much we could buy yesterday so today we would be getting the second load. It was nice to get off the boat and to see a bit of Florida. It would be nice to come back some time when we actually had more time to be tourists. But for now we needed to get the boat ready to begin our push towards Fort Myers Beach.

When we looked out this morning, it was hazy, almost foggy, and still. This was going to be a long run today so we got up early and moved the boat over to the fuel dock. Once we had finished refueling we slowly motored out into the channel and turned south. Most of the ICW was lined with homes, marinas, and restaurants. Some of the homes were absolutely fabulous. One of the things that impressed us during this leg was the concentration of wealth along the ICW. At one point we saw a modest home situated on a point of land on the ICW. A similar home might bring $60-70,000 back in Moline. When we got close enough to read the "For Sale" sign we were shocked to see a price of $2,950,000.

The ICW in this area runs between the mainland and the offshore barrier islands. Automobile access to those barrier islands is via draw bridges, most of which had only about 25 foot clearance - not enough for out 40 foot mast. Soon after leaving Clearwater we came to the first of these bridges. We called the bridge tender on the marine VHF radio and she told us to come ahead and that she would have the bridge open when we got there. As we kept motoring towards the bridge we could see the warning lights go on, then the barriers came down, horns sounded, but the bridge did not go up. It was really freaky the first few times to be driving a boat with a 40 foot mast full speed towards a bridge with a 25 foot clearance. In every case, though, about the time Kathy would start shouting "Back up, Back up!" the bridge would start opening and we would pass safely through. Towards the end, Kathy had even stopped shouting, much.

The day grew warmer and soon we were near Tampa Bay. We were hoping that the bay would be nice and smooth so as not to stir up the fuel tank again. So far the filter had not given any indication of clogging again so we were also hoping that the engine would continue running well until we could find someone to clean the tank. We turned off the ICW to take a short cut that paralleled the interstate 275 causeway. This was one of the more undeveloped areas of the trip - about five miles of low islands and water birds. At one point Kathy looked out at a flock of white birds feeding in a shallow area and saw some color. She grabbed the binoculars and exclaimed that it was a pink flamingo. Sure enough, there amidst the white birds was a single pink flamingo. We finally felt like we were truly in Florida.

After nine hours of motoring, we sighted Longboat Key. It was beginning to rain so this would be our anchorage for the night. There were three other boats already there so we motored slowly in and found a place. Soon the anchor was down and holding well. It had been a tiring day so we had a quick meal and turned in for the night.

Today was in many ways a repeat of yesterday. We motored south along the ICW, alternating between areas of beautiful residential development and areas of untouched beauty. A slow boat is a wonderful way to see this area.

Throughout the trip south it seemed that dolphins were becoming more plentiful. Every day we would see several and a couple of times we had them swimming alongside the boat. Today a pair of the biggest dolphins we had ever seen took up with the boat and swam along with us for about 30 minutes. They would disappear for a minute or two and then would surface alongside the cockpit of the boat, one on the starboard side and a few seconds later the other on the port side. They came up so close that we could easily have touched them. And because they had such a predictable pattern Kathy was able to get some good photos. She positioned herself on the port side with the camera and I would let her know when the starboard dolphin had surfaced. She was ready to take the picture when a few seconds later the port dolphin appeared. We just never get tired of seeing these amazing creatures.

At 1:30 PM we were at Venice where the city maintained a free dock. A free dock in Florida was a sight worth seeing so we decided to spend the night there. The water was a bit thin there with only about 5 feet depth where we tied up. Our boat draws 5 feet so we were probably touching bottom a bit. We checked the tide tables and determined that as long as we were underway at first light, there would be enough water to get off. Much later and we would run the risk of being grounded until the tide came back in again. We were the only people on the dock and had an enjoyable evening there. Our thanks to the fine people of Venice for providing such a place.

Bill Davidson, the man we would be meeting further on and who would be sailing his boat with us to Mexico, had called to say that he had found someone to clean our tank. It was a company picturesquely called "Sludge Suckers" and they worked out of the Punta Gorda area. We could be there today easily - especially with the early start we were getting.

Mid-morning Kyle called the guy who ran Sludge Suckers and made arrangements to have him clean our tank tomorrow morning at a place called Burnt Store Marina. Then he called Burnt Store Marina to make arrangements for a slip for the night. We were relieved to know that tomorrow our fuel tank problems would be over and that we would start the offshore portion of the trip with a clean tank.

The rest of the day we motored south and soon were into Charlotte Harbor. We turned northeast towards Burnt Store Marina. At 2:00 PM we came to the entrance channel to the marina and called the harbormaster for instructions. He gave us a slip number and warned us to stay in the center of the channel. Since it was only a couple hours after low tide the water was going to be a bit thin. He was right. The alarm on the depth meter started sounding and we grew concerned as the numbers when from 6 to 5 to 4.5 to 4.3. We draw five feet so we had to have been plowing a furrow through the mud but Stap Isi kept going and soon we were relieved to see the numbers start going back up a bit. Low tide was going to be at 1 PM tomorrow so we hoped to have the tank cleaned and be on our way well before that. Otherwise there would be no way to get out again until mid afternoon.

We were misled a bit by the name "Burnt Store Marina". To us that conjured up an image of a rustic weathered office on pilings with a few rough slips. A couple of dogs on the porch and a few pickup trucks with boat trailers parked under the trees to complete the scene. Just our kind of place. Well not exactly.

As we came into the yacht basin, yes, the yacht basin, it was immediately obvious that our image of the marina bore no resemblance to reality. We found ourselves surrounded by high end sailboats and motor boats. A 90 foot luxury yacht was tied up adjacent to the transient dock where we were met by a cadre of dock attendants decked out in "Burnt Store Marina" windbreakers and hats. They quickly and efficiently got us tied up and the power turned on. Everyone was very friendly and professional but as we looked around at the other boats, the huge marina complex, and the gated community of which the marina was a part, and then at our scruffy little Stap Isi, still bearing her scars from Katrina, we felt very definitely out of our element.

But it was still a marina and it would have showers, laundry facilities, fuel, and water. All the necessities. After nice hot showers Kathy was able to catch up on laundry. Kyle discovered that the marina had wireless internet access so he busied himself with downloading email and checking the long range weather forecasts.

The next morning we moved the boat around to the fuel dock. This was where the Sludge Sucker person would come and clean the tank. He arrived at 9:30 AM and began the process. Two hoses were snaked through the fill opening into the tank. One hose drew the fuel out into a series of filters that would remove the sludge and water. Another hose took the cleaned fuel back to the tank. The fuel going into the tank would agitate the fuel in the tank and hopefully bring up the sludge that was at the bottom. All of this took place at the rate of about 8 gallons a minute. We only had 10 gallons in the tank so the entire contents of the tank would be filtered about each minute. Russ, the owner of Sludge Suckers, soon had everything running and we watched the fuel coming into the primary water separator. Instead of being nice and clear it was quite cloudy. After 30 minutes or so we could see it clearing up. And after about an hour it was looking like it should. Russ left the machinery going for almost two hours to make sure that he got the tank as clean as possible. By the end we were sure that he had gotten everything that could be removed. It was a relief to finally have that done and to know that our fuel problems would be over at least for awhile.

By the time we were done and had topped off the tank, however, it was almost low tide so we decided to just wait another day at the marina rather than risk getting grounded in the channel. So we pulled back to our transient slip and got back to work on some projects.

We got up early again to take advantage of the 5:30 AM high tide and by 7 were motoring out of the marina. It was still cold (for Florida) with lows in the high 30s. The stiff north wind blowing down Charlotte Harbor made the first couple of hours of our trip pretty miserable. The wind was kicking up 3 foot waves and spray was blowing over the boat. The wind chill had to be in the 20s. It was a relief when we were finally able to turn south into the ICW again and begin motoring with the wind.

This was a fairly uneventful day as we motored south towards Fort Myers Beach. According to Bill, who had arrived in Fort Myers Beach on Wednesday, the city maintained moorings were quite reasonable with easy access to shopping. So as we followed the channel into the harbor area we kept our eyes out for the moorings and for Bill's boat. We had not seen Bill for a couple months and we looking forward to meeting up with him.

As we came under the Fort Myers Beach bridge, we saw the moorings and Bill's boat. We came around and picked up the line from the mooring just behind him and we soon were tied up securely. Bill was not home but within a few minutes he came motoring over in his dingy. He had been eating lunch at a restaurant nearby and had seen us coming in.

Bill offered to take Kyle over to the marina which was in charge of the moorings so while they were off taking care of the demands of official-dom Kathy got things squared away on the boat. It looked like we were going to be here for a few days. There is a weather system predicted to move over Florida on Christmas day so we were planning to be here at least until that front has past. Then we should have several days of good weather in which to start towards Mexico. It is possible that we might be delayed a bit longer. Bill has ordered a part for his engine and if it is not here on Friday it may be as late as Tuesday before he can get it due to the Christmas holiday. Today we will take Bill's dingy (easier than getting ours out and rowing)and go over to the grocery store for provisions and to get some goodies for Christmas dinner. It is nice in a way to be delayed enough to enjoy Christmas at anchor rather than off on the Gulf somewhere.