departure tomorrow...

...we hope.  However, the weather could change those plans in a hurry.  If there is any wind out of the North, NE/NW, we will stay tucked in at Banana Bay.  Momma has no desire to get seasick, and slamming into waves in the Gulfstream in the dead of night does not sound like the adventure I signed up for!   If we were to leave at 3pm Sunday, we should arrive before noon on Monday.  We have reservations at Bimini Sands Resort and Marina for Monday evening.  We can clear Customs there.  If you want to check out where our first stop is in Bimini, click on this link: www.biminisands.com  It looks like a nice place to grab a shower, sit by the pool and get some R & R before the next 80 mile crossing to Chub Cay.  I hope to have a WiFi connection when we stop at marinas or go into town somewhere.  Do not worry if you don't hear from us for awhile...no news is good news....that means we're just having way too much fun!  We have filed our sailplan with Customs and Immigration, and the EPIRB is registered.  Y'all know how anal I can be, trust me, no stone has been left unturned in the safety department :)  You love me anyhow,  lol.

We were up and at 'em early this morning to get to
Big Pine Key flea market.  Donnie got himself a
pair of crocs :)  He has a knack for blowing out
his flipflops (without stepping on a pop top).

I enjoyed picking up the last provisions- fresh fruits
and veggies :)  I had a heckuva time finding green
tomatoes that were just starting to turn.  I wrapped them
in newspaper and stowed them away for later in the trip.

My fruit hammock is stuffed to the brim with apples, oranges, lemons,
tangerines, and a bunch of bananas that were green just this morning. I also
bought fresh spinach, broccoli, snow peas, a sack of onions, potatoes,
carrots, celery, green and red peppers.  I'm ready to start cooking!

I swear, Willis is a dog in cat's clothing.  He comes
running out of the 'garden' (or mangroves) to greet
us when he hears the car pull in the lot.  Cracks me up!

We filled the Jeep, the dinghy gas cans, and topped off the deisel jerry can on our way back to Marathon.  We savored our last McDouble, fries and sweet tea for awhile, too.  There were just a couple of things left to get at the grocery; chicken gizzards (for bait, not to eat!) and Cuban bread, and then we each set about our own chores when we got back to the boat.

Donnie pulled the dinghy and gave it a thorough scrubbin'. It needed it.

I unloaded and packed two more cases of water onto the boat.  That makes 9 cases of bottled water, 6 gallon jugs of water (to wash my hair with, lol), 100 gallons in the three tanks on board, and another 20 gallons in 4 five gallon jerry jugs on the deck.  I will wash dishes in salt water, and rinse them in fresh water to conserve.  Water is a premium over in the Bahamas, it some places, as much as $1.00/gallon.  I'm not taking any chances :)  I've got five flavors of Mio syrups, too, when plain water simply won't do :)  My students would be shocked to know that there is not one diet Mt. Dew anywhere on board, lol.

I also rearranged and repacked the car, delivering the extra cat food and litter to Kenny and Fran.  They are coming to Banana Bay at about 11am tomorrow.  Hopefully, our work will all essentially be done, and we can relax a bit by the pool.  They will be taking Willis T back to their condo for the first two weeks of the trip, then they will leave him with Dan & Biddi the last two weeks of the trip.

Willis' world is about to flip upside down.  You can see he's getting ready :)

I gave the boat a final scrubbing inside, cleaned the head, all the counters, swept the floors and such.  I sorted through Willis' toys and treats, and his favorite- the brush- (that dern cat goes crazy over getting brushed :) and scrubbed his cat carrier.  I then 'built' a box of sorts, on the port side of the salon behind the settee so I can take my herb garden with me.  I love to cook, and I especially love to cook heart healthy, so I had to figure a way to bring them with me.  (I realize the contradiction to the McDouble and fries we had earlier in the day...it was a weak moment for both of us, what can I say.) I will load my garden onto the boat in the morning. I am giving Biddi my tomato plant and flowers to enjoy while we're gone.

Donnie met with Larry, the dockmaster, and signed our contract for next year.  It's exciting to know we get to come back to the place we love so much for another sailing season.  It just motivates us to go home and work like h**l, so we have the privilege to do it all again come late December 2012.  That is only nine months away :)  After that, he did a repair to our roller furling on the jibsail.  It's been giving us fits in furling it.  The line seems to jam up about halfway, unless you go forward to release the halyard just a bit.  If we need to reduce sail in a hurry, I don't want either of us out on deck jacking around with the dang thing.  I fed it into the furler while Cap'n pulled the halyard up.  Once the jib was raised, the wind picked up (naturally), making an awful ruckus until it all was safely rolled in.  The good news is it rolled in without a hitch, so it seems to be better.  Danny then helped Donnie and I to load the dinghy onto the bow deck.  The dinghy will ride up front only until we cross the Gulfstream.  Once we get to Bimini Sands Marina, we'll take it down, and tow it behind Marquesa.  We've never had it flip on us while towing it, but we didn't want to take any chances crossing the Gulfstream (safety first!). 

Donnie then dove under Marquesa and scraped along the waterline one last time.  I wonder why we're riding so low in the water?  The next time we bottom paint Marquesa, we have to raise the waterline by at least an inch, if not a little more.  We are loaded for bear, no doubt.  I only hope Plan Sea (Matt & Karie's boat) is equally loaded down.  We don't want them to sail off and leave us :/  While Cap'n was in the water, he swam around Danny's boat one last time for a look see and to clean his intakes.

Once I was done cleaning and 'nesting' down below, I went to town
to get the "Number Two Toe".  I got lime green gel(ly) toes, lol- for Elle.

We went to Biddi and the Beast to watch the NCAA Final Four game.
Dan and Biddi are from Louisville, but are rabid UK Wildcat fans.

It was a nail biter when Louisville tied it up with about three minutes
to go...it drove Danny to drink!

We met some new friends, Jeff and Misty, who stay on their 37' sailboat
 in Boot Key Harbor.  They are also from Louisville, and were rooting for
Louisville to win.  The Wildcats pulled out the victory. 

Jeff did turn us on to a weather router website, that will chart your course for you and steer you clear of bad weather.  I looked them up tonight, and plan to call in the morning to see what their fee is.  Right now, it's looking as if the wind could be turning out of the north by midnight tomorrow night- and that puts us directly into the Gulfstream.  If that's the case, we'll table our departure until the weather improves.  We'll know more in the morning, for now, it's time to call it a night.  G'nite, y'all!

wrapping it up

Donnie left for a final fishing trip with Kenny, Bryan and Polly today.  He was the winner-loser, and Polly had a wonderful time bragging over being the winner-winner, with two really large yellowtail.  Lots of folks have complained that it was been a 'down' season this year, unless you are really willing to go offshore.  We're looking to try our luck fishing in the Bahamas.  I'm hoping we hook into something good in the Gulfstream.  The Yeti will be packed with ice just waiting for a fresh catch!

While Donnie was gone, I ghetto stitched the dodger, hoping we can get one last trip out of it.  I plan to leave it with the sailmaker down here for her to stitch us a new one for next season.  I stabbed myself no less than three times, twice in the abdomen, if you can believe that.  I was tugging and pulling for all it was worth with a pair of pliers.  I did a bloodletting on the canvas, and said a few choice words in the process.  There is nothing that makes me angrier than getting hurt.  Wait.  That's not true.  Being freezing cold and having my fingers go numb also makes me really angry.  That is why we live on a sailboat in Florida during the winter months- it's a life insurance policy on our marriage.  Otherwise, I'm not fit to live with, lol.  Believe it or not,  my fingers have been numb a few times down here, too.  But, I digress...

So, back to the sewing repair job...it's done, and now Donnie needs to tighten the sides where it clips on, and hopefully it will hold.  We prefer to sail with the dodger down as we have better visibility, but if we get into some waves, especially pounding into them, the dodger provides some much needed protection.  I know one thing, I am asking for a sailing sewing kit for Christmas.  After breaking two needles today, and stabbing myself repeatedly (once even with the needle nose pliers) I was upset with myself for not having the right equipment to begin with.  You need the right tools and equipment to do the job right- that is Mrs. Fix Its motto, anyhow.  Donnie would rather figure another way around the problem.  Its that ying-yang thing, I suppose.  I know if I had one of those palm thingy-ma-bobbers like they had at West Marine, I would have held on to a little more of my blood and would not have had to repent afterwards!

After that project, and dousing my body with neosporin in some much needed places, I filled our water jerry jugs.  I added a few drops of bleach to hopefully keep any critters from growing.  I got a set of small bungees for Donnie to lash them onto the deck, which he did when he got home.  We definitely are starting to look like cruisers- deisel jugs, water jugs, and a wind generator usually are a pretty good indication that the owners are full time liveaboards.  We're not there yet, but at least we can dress the part! 

I also did two loads of laundry, did some more sorting and packing, withdrew some more cash for the trip, paid some more bills online, and spoke to the front desk at the resort about holding our mail until we return.  After Donnie took care of the water jugs, he unpacked the dinghy and rinsed everything off.  Tomorrow we'll  haul it out, scrape the bottom (it has grown a mossy beard), and store it on deck.  We'll look like the Beverly Hillbillies before all is said and done!

In the morning we are heading to Big Pine for the Farmer's Market, and to pick up a few last minute items.  On the way back, we'll top off the propane tank, one deisel jug, and the gas cans for the dinghy. We'll also start icing the Yeti down to cool it before we purchase block ice.  We're getting together with Dan & Biddi tomorrow evening to watch the ball games, and then Sunday will be our last church service here, and hopefully a leisurely afternoon at the pool before we depart.  As soon as I know a definite departure date and time, I'll let y'all  know.  Here's a few pics from today...

Willis was a big help today with packing, sewing, laundry and such.

I nearly stepped on this guy coming back with my laundry- I was
not expecting him by our cockpit. Oh yeah, the neighbors heard me.

While I was doing laundry, I missed all of the excitement at the marina.  Larry,
the dockmaster, shot a lionfish with his pole spear from the dock.  The lionfish
is very venomous and invasive fish that is dangerous to divers and fishermen.
NOAA has given the orders to 'shoot to kill' lionfish even in protected
sanctuaries as they are destroying the colorful marine life on reefs.  They are
now seen in waters as far north as North Carolina, and as far east as Barbados.
Believe it or not, if you cut their venomous fins and tentacles, they are a delicious
white fish, supposedly as good to eat as grouper.  Yeah, right. I think I'll pass.

The Angler Drive gang all went out for pizza tonight at the Hurricane.
It was a farewell dinner for Ken and Lucille who leave for Long Island
tomorrow morning.  L to T is Bryan & Polly, (did you know she caught
the biggest yellowtail today?!), Cap'n Donnie (who did not catch any fish
that were keepers) myself, Fran & Kenny, and Lucille and Ken.  Good times :)

We were sharing the "how we met" stories.  Ken was embarassing
Lucille here with their story.  I am not convinced we got the whole story, lol.

Kenny was telling their story, of how he met Fran on a cruise ship. 
Something had Fran embarassed, though I don't think we got the whole
story there, either!  Or it could have been Bryan belting out the theme
from "The Love Boat." Either way, it was pretty funny :)

Donnie saved his last dance for Ken...I didn't quite understand why he
was holding his tackle box while they do-si-do'd, but who am I to ask?!
Ken and Lucille, y'all be safe going home, and we can't wait to do
it all again next year :)   We love you guys!  G'nite y'all.

no more lists, PTL!

The lists upon lists upon lists that we have been making are all done, done, and done!  Craziness- we are THAT close to living out this dream of ours fifteen years in the making.  Two boats left Banana Bay at 7:30am this morning, joining five other boats from Boot Key Harbor in their own boat parade to the Bahamas. 

We are very nearly ready to shove off.  We need to top off the tanks (propane, deisel, and water) buy the fresh produce at the Big Pine Flea Market on Saturday morning, clean and stow the dinghy Saturday afternoon, then deliver some plants to Diane and a Willis to Kenny and Fran on Sunday, and we are also ready to go.   I checked on passageweather.com today (feel free to go have a look see for yourselves).  We have a great weather window all through this weekend, Monday and into Tuesday. 

On Monday, it looks like a beam reach to the Bahamas on a nearly calm Gulfstream. Wouldn't that just be ideal?!  We are anxiously awaiting Matt & Karie's return from the mainland so we can firm up our departure time.  We are not opposed to sailing straight through to Bimini.  We figure that we'll be so jacked with excitement and andrenaline, that we won't sleep if we anchor out, lol.  I feel like a little kid counting down the days until Christmas.

I filed our sail plan with Customs and Immigration today.  I also sorted through the numerous copies of all of our important documents.  I put a set of copies in the ditch bag, just in case.  I ran a few errands in town, and took care of some banking business. This evening Donnie moved around our GPS chartplotter on the binnacle for better viewing.  Mid morning til mid-afternoon he was busy waxing the starboard side of the boat...

...that is, when he wasn't stopped by people roaming the docks
and asking questions! They are usually curious about our homeport.
We have the boat registered at Charleston, SC, where we set sail from last year.
It is also where we spent our honeymoon, and where Carissa was stationed
with the USAF for three years.  However, it is Willis that usually stops traffic,
"Did you see there's a cat on that sailboat?!"
Cap'n Donnie enjoys telling our story several times a day- he's excited, too.

The furry beast has been hanging close to the boat these days,
maybe he senses something is up.  He's so ridiculous. He already had
his spot in the bed claimed by the time I went to bed last night.

And this is what I woke up to this morning, literally.  I opened
my eyes, and then reached for my camera.  I do love these boys.
Kenny, are you taking notes?!

When I called them both for breakfast, one of
them had to give me lip.  Dern cat.

And this is where I found him this afternoon when we got back from the pool.
That is one long, furry cat.  He's awfully sweet.  God love him.

Cap'n grilled porkchops for dinner, and I made our favorite mixed grill-
potatoes, onion, garlic, green pepper, zuchinni and rosemary.
I also found mango applesauce at the store!  I love all things mango :)

We enjoyed another gorgeous sunset :)

I do not take this view for granted.  I thank God daily, several times
a day, for having the opportunity to live on a sailboat, and to
share this with the love of my life.  I know how blessed I am.

Tomorrow Donnie is planning on his last fishing trip with Kenny.  I will do laundry, scrub the cat carrier, deliver our bikes, and attempt to mend the dodger (though I think it is a lost cause!)  A new dodger, and perhaps a new jib sail, will be on the lists for next year.  This year's list is all TO DONE!

goodbyes abound

It's that time of year, when snowbirds start migrating back north yet again. Tomorrow, my inlaws, Mac and Jean, will be leaving for Indiana.  Two boats from Banana Bay are also casting off at 7:30am for the Bahamas. There are five of them traveling together, and it looks to be a really good weather window through Tuesday.  On Saturday, Ken and Lucille will be leaving for New York.  By Monday, we also hope to be leaving with Matt & Karie. It's funny how quickly friendships forge down here.  Goodbyes only feel temporary as you know sometime, somewhere, you will meet up again :)

Willis is saying to Kenny (on right), "It's okay, Kenny, I will give you lots
of love and you will give me lots of belly rubs in just a few days.  I
must show a little love to Ken (on his lap) before he leaves on Saturday.
No need to be jealous, I'm only telling him goodbye."  Momma did not
start the security paperwork in time for Willis T to go to the Bahamas, so he
is sharing the love with Kenny & Fran, and Dan & Biddi.  Next year
he will be travelling with us, for sure.

We had a picnic today for our final get together.  Afterwards, it was
a fierce game of dominoes.  Our guests of honor finished in fine style-
Jean was the winner-winner, and Lucille was the winner-loser.
I call for a rematch next year!

We grilled the tuna that Ken caught on Monday.  It
was really good.  I made the leftovers into grilled
tuna salad this evening, with fresh dill and garlic
chives from my herb garden- lunch tomorrow!

Since Paps is leaving tomorrow morning, and taking his barbering kit with
him, Donnie went for a buzz cut.  He'll have four weeks of sun and fun
in the Bahamas for it to grow out- no worries :)

So in addition to the refrigerator issue (which was fixed, yay!), we
discovered the bilge was not coming on automatically.  It's a good
thing Cap'n decided to have a look before we sunk the boat- yikes!
After dinner, he decided to change the float switch.  We don't
want bilge issues anytime, anywhere- no sirree, Bob.

You're a good man, Charlie Brown, lol!

closing in...

...on our departure to the Bahamas!  This morning, Donnie tended to a few boat projects before we left for Key West to get our ID cards with Customs and Border Protection.  We received our decal for Marquesa the end of last week.

Donnie replaced our mainsheet- thanks to Matt for sewing the eye for us :)

He also mounted our Yeti cooler to the deck...this became significant later.

Our appointment with Customs was at the Key West Int'l airport. As we
walked past baggage claim, this fella was looking longingly into the
window- he was waiting for his mail order bride from Guatemala.

After a little finger printing, and picture taking, we got our cards!

We stopped at Mangrove Mama's for some amazing chicken quesadillas :)

Today the 'weather balloon' was low in the sky with its cameras
trained to our neighbors to the South.

We ran several errands this afternoon on our way home- West Marine,
Daffy's, Walgreen's and Publix for groceries.  Wouldn't you know,
as I'm unloading the groceries, the refrigerator had been OUT all day,
AGAIN.  I unloaded the freezer that was nearly all thawed out, and took
it to Kenny and Fran's freezer. I then loaded up with ice, and moved
everything else into the Yeti and our drinks cooler. Mr. Fix It went to
work on the wiring again- the dive gear knocked the connections loose.

While I was fixing dinner, I looked out to see the sun setting-
Stop everything!  Gotta go have a look!

The sun was 'melting' into the ocean; it was
looking promising for a green flash.



The water was flat, the sky was clear at the
horizon...and though I didn't capture it, we had
a green flash! That's two nights in a row :)

What a beautiful evening sky... God is good.

The beautiful moment of the sunset was lost, as we turned to walk back to
our boat...Willy T was making a deposit in Mayor Dan's Paradise Pointe
front yard. When the Mayor is away, the cat will play- not nicely. Dern cat.
G'nite, y'all!

score!

This morning I left with Stephanie to take her to the Key West Airport, and Donnie left with Kenny for a day of fishing.  The fishing has been few and far between this year.  It seems to have been unusually windy, with small craft advisories happening far too often.  It's left Kenny in a bit of depression (sad face).  It blew hard out of the N/NW all night long.  In fact, it was good that Donnie had put out extra lines to keep us from banging the dock all night long.  Luckily for the guys, the Atlantic side is to the south, and the sea conditions continued to improve as the day wore on.

The weary fisherman returned about 5:30pm...well?  How did they do?

Score one for the tuna!  Nice job, Ken!

Scored some nice yellowtail snapper :)

Ken scored a realllyyy nice mangrove snapper- love at that smile!

Ken is giving Cap'n Donnie a lesson in cleaning a tuna and cutting steaks.

Donnie was happily cleaning the snapper :)  He also
caught some nice porgies, grunts, and then undersized
yellowtail, rock hinds, and a remora- which means
a shark was somewhere in the area.  They fished
in deeper water today, 65-85 feet. 

While the guys were cleaning up the boat, Sugar was
giving Ken (yep, another Ken!) lots of sugar- silly pup!

The snowbird season is quickly coming to a close.  Lots of folks have left already, and last weekend it looked like a boat parade making their way east to the Bahamas and beyond.  Two more boats left from Banana Bay on Sunday.  I can't wait to join in that parade myself.  There are several boats from here that are looking to leave around the first of April, as soon as we get the right weather window.  It's exciting stuff, and also a little daunting, trying to get everything situated.  We are planning a picnic and final pool party/dominoes game for this Wednesday as my in-laws leave for Indiana on Thursday, and Ken & Lucille (Fran's sister and brother-in-law) head for home on Saturday.
Things are quickly winding down already. Tomorrow Donnie & I have to go back to Key West to meet with Customs and Immigration to secure the proper paperwork and cruising permits for the Bahamas.  That will bring our plans one step closer :)

After I dropped off Stephanie, I picked up Willis' Frontline treatment on the way home, and got the grocery sale ads for this week.  I'm down to the last of the provisioning, and really don't want to buy fresh produce and such until the last possible minute.  We did bite the bullet and purchased a Yeti cooler, the Cadillac of coolers.  It will hold ice for seven days, and we needed a fish cooler, for all of the fish we plan to catch!  While I poured over the grocery ads making my lists, I did five loads of laundry, basically washing everything on the boat that wasn't nailed down.  While I am planning for this trip across the Gulfstream, I also have to be thinking about storing all of the extra linens, bedding and such that was used during the season here. I vacuum sealed all the extra stuff and carried it to the Jeep to store while we will be gone.  The Marquesa/McDaniel B & B is offically closed to guests; the owners are leaving on vacation!