Christmas Boat Parade!

Date             December 10, 2011
Day              165

Departure      No travel today                             

Arrival           Landings At Tarpon Springs, Tarpon Springs, FL
Miles             0.0  
Cumulative   3836.5

The day began somewhat rainy, so we decided to stay another day.  It actually was a very productive day.  We vacuumed, dusted, cleaned the blinds and discovered the shower wasn't draining.    We tried to clear the blockage using a "snake", no luck.  Then tried to use the water pressure from the hose and only succeeded in putting two inches of water in the shower!  We then tried to blow air through the drain hose, still no luck.  Bob hiked to a nearby Walgreen's and picked up some drain cleaner.  We poured in the cleaner, waited the appropriate time, again no luck!  We tried to use a snake to clear the drain, still no luck.   We manually cleared the water from the shower and again tried the air pressure, this time we made sure the 2nd drain hole was covered.  Eureka, success!   The next project was to get our Christmas gifts wrapped and boxed so we can ship them home (if we don't do it soon, they will never arrive in time for Christmas!).  Okay, all wrapped and boxed, now we just have to locate a UPS Store!  We were then treated to a Christmas boat parade, right here at the marina.  Every year boats are decorated by local boaters.  They assemble at the marina we are at and then head down the river to be judged.  Below is tonight's sunset, along with some of the entries.

This one won 3rd place

Milling about, waiting for the parade to start

Sightseeing in Tarpon Springs, FL

Date             December 8-9, 2011
Day              163-164

Departure      No travel Thursday or Friday                             

Arrival           Landings At Tarpon Springs, Tarpon Springs, FL
Miles             0.0  
Cumulative   3836.5

Here we are, safely tied to the dock in Tarpon Springs.

We enjoyed the sights of Tarpon Springs on Thursday and Friday.  Here is some of what we saw.

There were many, many stores along the waterfront selling the sponges that had been gathered from the Gulf.

One of the many sponge boats docked along the waterfront

The main street on the Greek waterfront, Dodecanese Street.  This picture was taken early in the day, before it got busy.

We enjoyed the aquarium in Tarpon Springs.  Here Lynda is feeding the sharks a bit of shrimp that had been skewered on a stick!

These birds, a snowy egret, a little blue heron and a great egret were waiting for the fisherman to dispose of the fish they were cleaning.

Hey, where'd my dinner go!

Maybe they put it over here.

Looks like I might have to go and get it myself!

Oh no, both Bob and Lynda have been "et" by the shark.  Who will bring the boat home?

The "Capt'n" at Capt'n Jack's Restaurant, located right next to our boat!

Another beautiful ending to a great day

Successful Crossing!

Date             December 6-7, 2011
Day              161-162

Departure      C-Quarters Marina, Carrabelle, FL 9:25 am (Tuesday)                              

Arrival           Landings At Tarpon Springs, Tarpon Springs, FL 9:20 am (Wednesday)
Miles              180.0  
Cumulative   3836.5

Bob was awoken at 6:15 am on 12-6-11 with the news that a group of four boats (Next Endeavor, Love Shack, Sea Angel and Sweet Surrender) were leaving at 8 am because the weather window was rapidly closing.  If we didn't leave today, then we may not be able to leave until late in the week.  Bob came and woke me and we proceeded to make plans to leave a bit later than the group as we needed to get fuel.  Because of the speed they would be traveling, we would be able to rendezvous with them later in the day. 
The forecast was for fairly calm seas and light winds for most of the day and lasting into the night.  The wind was to build, along with the seas the next morning.  We were ready to go at 9:25 am, so we cast off our lines and headed out on our journey with some apprehension; we had never traveled for longer than 8-10 hours and so far offshore (we would be about 70 miles from shore during the crossing).  The seas began to build as we went through the pass and remained at 4-6 feet for a good portion of the trip.

The last bit of land we will see until tomorrow morning

Finally, by late afternoon, we had caught up with Sea Angel (sailboat) and Sweet Surrender.  These are the two boats that we would stay close to for the remainder of the trip.

Sweet Surrender and Sea Angel

Sunset at sea and no land in sight!

One thing that was in our favor was that it was almost a full moon.  This would hopefully mean that we would have some bright moonlight on the water as we traveled during the night.  We were not let down!  During the night, Bob and I took turns taking naps.  At one point as I was driving, I was struck by the blackness of the sea.  The Gulf looked like a sea of black ink!  Even during the night, the dolphins joined us and played in our wake and kept us company as we motored along.

Moon reflecting on a sea of black ink

Hooray, it's morning!  Only a few more hours and the crossing will be behind us.

Sunrise at sea, no land in sight yet.

We stoped in Tarpon springs, rather than continue on to Clearwater.  Tarpon Springs is the next best thing to being in Greece.  The first Greek immigrants arrived to this city during the 1880's, when they were hired to work as divers in the growing sponge harvesting industry.  These people were unloading and sorting sponges as we drove by on the river.

There were many commercial sponge boats tied to the docks on both sides of the river.

As soon as we were docked, we immediately fell into bed to take a nap and catch up on some much needed sleep!  We will be staying in Tarpon Springs a couple of days to give us some time to relax and explore the town.

White City, FL to Carrabelle, FL

Date             December 5, 2011
Day              160

Departure      White City,  FL (Free Dock) 8 am                              

Arrival           C-Quarters Marina, Carrabelle, FL 2:10 pm 
Miles                50.0  
Cumulative   3656.5

Morning sunrise on the ICW before we get ready to head out.

I don't think I have ever seen so many buzzards at one time.  These guys didn't mind me getting close to take the picture.

We had a chose to stay in Apalachicola or Carrabelle.  We by-passed Apalachicola as Carrabelle would get us closer to our staging area for crossing the Gulf.

Dock at entrance to Apalachicola Municipal Marina

As we traveled across Apalachicola Bay we saw many oystermen harvesting oysters.  The person sitting down in the photo below was chopping the oysters out of the growth that had been pulled up by the rake.  You could hear the tap, tap, tapping of the hammer as we drove by.

We arrived in C-Quarters Marina and was invited to a dock party at 5:30 pm.  All the boaters were anxious to make the 170 mile crossing of the Gulf of Mexico and discussions centered around should we or shouldn't we go and if we go, what time.  As we left the gathering, it sounded like a group of boaters would be leaving around 10 am (Tuesday), travel slowly and arrive around 10 am (Wednesday) the following morning.  The next weather window after Tuesday would be Thursday or Friday.  We were undecided if we were going to leave and would finalize our plans in the morning.

Panama City, FL to White City, Fl

Date             December 4, 2011
Day              159

Departure      Panama City Marina, Panama City, FL 9:00 am                              

Arrival           White City,  FL (Free Dock) 2:10 pm 
Miles                35.2  
Cumulative   3606.5

Free dock at White City (Erika Lin and Loop Dreams)

We originally planned to stop at Port St. Joe for the night however, we made a last minute change and stopped at a free dock in White City.  There is a small park here that at one time was a Corps of Engineers facility.  There are several floating docks and a bulkhead to tie to.  There is a small open pavilion and water is available, but no electric; hopefully the temperature won't drop too low tonight!  We joined two other Loopers, Lifestyles II and Loop Dreams, along with three sailboats.  We all know a bargin when we see one!
Along the route today we were entertained a number of times by groups of dolphins.  They would follow alongside the boat, zigzagging back and forth in our wake and jumping through the surf.  One of them even jumped a good distance in the air and landed on his side two or three times.  They are great fun to watch, and I don't think I will ever get tired of watching them!
When we arrived at our destination, we had to shoo the pelicans from the dock.  They are so bold, they don't move until you are about 1 1/2 feet from them.  There is a fishing pier here and a woman had caught a few fish and had them in a plastic bag.  I heard her trying to shoo a pelican away and saw that he had stolen a fish from her bag.  He had it in his beak and then swallowed it down into his pouch!  He had just found himself a very easy meal!!
Ken and Barbara stopped in and together, we made plans for our travel tomorrow.  We are planning to go to Carrabelle tomorrow so that we can be in a good position to make the overnight crossing from Carrabelle to Clearwater (a distance of approx. 170 miles) when the weather allows.  Since are top speed is about 10-11 miles per hour, this will take us around 17 hours.   When we do go, we will probably leave around 9 pm, travel all night and arrive around 2 pm, the following afternoon.  Stay tuned for further updates!!

Still in Panama City - Christmas Parade!

Date             December 3, 2011
Day              158

Departure     No travel today                               

Arrival          Panama City Marina, Panama City, FL   
Miles                 0.0  
Cumulative   3571.3

For nearly sixty years, the Panama City Jaycees have hosted the annual Jaycees ‟ Christmas Parade in Downtown Panama City". Thousands of spectators line Harrison Avenue each year to watch the wonders unfold, and today is the day for the parade!  The floats began gathering just north of the marina early in the day and finishing touches were being made throughout the afternoon.

The gathering of floats, bands and parade participants was unbelievable.  There were so many groups, I couldn't keep count.  The parade began at 6:30 pm and continued to approximately 8!  Below are a few of the floats that participated.  A good time was had by all, young and old!

And here is tonight's sunset, taken from the back of our boat - what a view!!

Niceville, FL to Panama City, FL

Date             December 2, 2011

Day              157
Departure     Bluewater Bay Marina, Niceville, FL 7:10 am                               

Arrival          Panama City Marina, Panama City, FL  3:10 pm  
Miles                61.7  
Cumulative   3571.3

As the sun rose over the bay, we were casting off our lines and heading out for a longer than normal travel day.  The day was sunny and clear, but a cool wind kept a chill in the air.  The waters were smooth and calm, making for a good travel day.  Today was one of our longer days.  The changes in topography also made it a very interesting day.  The first 2-3 hours were spent crossing Choctawhatchee Bay which is approximately 45 miles long and 3 to 5 miles wide.  The winds were not strong so crossing this large body of water went smoothly.  We were treated to multiple visits of dolphins throughout the day.  I haven't been able to catch them jumping, but here are some shots of them under the bow as we motor along.

 We then entered the 25-mile unmarked and narrow portion of the ICW, often regarded as the 'Grand Canyon' because of the high sand banks. The sand dredged to make this portion of the waterway was piled on the shoreline and thus created the high sand banks.

We then passed under the West Bay Bridge and made our way into West Bay and our marina at Panama City. We were greeted on the dock by the crews of Lifestyles II and Loop Dreams.  After watching the sunset,

the six of us went to dinner at Bayou Joe's.  On the way there, we stopped to watch the annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony.  We were told by one of the locals, "This is the south you know, our Christmas tree is a Magnolia tree!"

Lights on the Magnolia tree

Local children singing Christmas carols

-

Bob and Lynda with you know who, Ho Ho Ho!

Out to dinner with Ken and Barbara and Mike and Dennisse.  Mike been to this restaurant years ago, but found it again with no problem!

Mike and Deninisse from Lifestyles II

We will stay in Panama City for two days, to do laundry, reprovision and visit the city.