Secondly, we are having to decide where to store the boat while we spend this next year in Beijing, China. Yep, that's right- we'll be living in Beijing from August 2014-August 2015! It's an incredible opportunity, financially and otherwise, and too good to pass up. I will be teaching AP Psychology to some crazy smart Asian kids :) So, the Cap'n and I will continue living our adventuresome kind of life, just halfway across the world. This all means that Marquesa will need to be safely stored from May 2014 until sometime in the fall of 2015. The question is....WHERE???? We've kicked around trucking her back home, back to our pole barn. The elements are harsh down here- the heat, the humidity, the sun- the threat of hurricanes and tropical storms. Trucking her home would be about $3-4k, most likely. Then we'd have to truck her back somewhere to re-launch her in the fall of 2015.
That's a whole lot of B.O.A.T.S. when all is said and done. Decisions, decisions....
A new arrival here at Banana Bay was talking with Cap'n the other day about a marina/boatyard where they used to store their 51' sailboat in the off season. It's up north, between Jacksonville and St. Augustine, about 20 miles up river. They've not had a hurricane event there in over fifty years. The prices are reasonable; it's worth a look. So, in considering cruising options it makes more sense to stay 'closer' to Florida. So, though these latest plans are also written in sand, it looks like we will ride the Gulf stream a little further north, and hop out at West End, Bahamas to check in. From there, we'd sail further E/NE to the Abacos. The Abacos chain is about 120 miles long, and about 175 miles east of West Palm Beach, FL- perfect for exploring. The Abaco's are known for being a "Beach Bum's Heaven"- check it out. http://www.abacomapbahamas.com/abaco-islands.htm
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| This map shows West End being 82nm from Miami, plus the sail from Marathon up to there, and you have an overnight passage, for sure. We might want to take it in two legs and overnight it somewhere; we'll see. There's ALOT of boat traffic out of southern Florida- BIG BOATS- as in freighters, container ships and cruise ships. |
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| What's a girl to do after all that sweating? Got get an ice cream, of course! |
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| I then went back to Marquesa, peeled off my sweaty clothes, jumped in my bikini, and dove straight into the pool. The water temperature is perfect; and the sun was HOT (or did I already say that?!) I was poolside for an hour and a half when I got the call from my hubby to come get him.... |
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| He and Kenny went fishing today, and they had their best day of fishing yet this year. They slayed the mangrove snappers- on the Gulf side, no less- in about three feet of water! Crazy talk. They reached their limit and then some... |
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| The few that were returned to the sea to live another day- well, they didn't. Again, in just three feet of water, a big 9-10' bull shark (those are bad boys) cruised by Kenny's boat for a snack. Donnie said his head, back, dorsal fin and tail were all up out of the water! I told him he should have gotten a picture. He said it all happened so fast, he never had a chance. Looks like snapper is on the menu this next week when Mom and Ellie fly in on Monday! |
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| After Donnie cleaned all the fish, we brought the remains with us back to Banana Bay to feed the pelicans. They were very much appreciative of a free meal, and this Italian couple got a kick out of them fighting over the carcasses. They were lined up like kids in a classroom, just waiting their turn- cute :) |
Once Cap'n showered off the fish stink, we took the blue piglet to Brutus' for a burger and spicy fries for dinner. Donnie also had a bowl of conch chowder (no, thank you). We used our gift certificate that we purchased at the Salty's benefit last week. It was fabulous! I brought the rest of my burger home for lunch tomorrow :)
Oh! I almost forgot! I did the scariest thing today that I've done in a long time....seriously. When Donnie called for me to come pick him up at Kenny's after fishing, I thought I would surprise him and take the blue piglet. Well, the surprise was over when I had to call him to find out how to start the darn thing! I nearly crashed into our Malibu in the parking lot when I hit the gas. I putted (s-l-o-w-l-y) through the Banana Bay parking lot. I had second thoughts as I sat waiting to pull out across four lanes of traffic on to Highway 1. Understand, outside of a few short laps in the school parking lot, I have never driven something that can really move on two wheels. (My clown bike clearly does not count). I saw an opening in the traffic and decided to just gun it and hope for the best! I had about four miles and three traffic lights to navigate. I prayed for green lights all the way, as I was to wibbly-wobbly if I was going to slow down or had to stop. The good Lord provided my every need! By the time I went by the airport, I felt like I was really flying on that scoot! I looked down at the speedometer, several times, and it said "60". I KNEW I was flying!!!! But cars were going around me; some even honked? Wow, they must really be in a hurry, I thought. As I wibble-wobbled down Kenny's driveway and came to a stop, I couldn't believe I actually did it. I turned off the ignition, put down the kickstand, and looked at the speedometer one last time, so I could go bragging to my hubby about how fast I was flying on the blue piglet. I was looking at 60km- about 35 mph. Oh well, it still felt like flying to me! But, I probably won't repeat that trip again anytime soon. I handed the keys over to Cap'n for the return trip home, lol. G'nite, y'all!
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