Tuesday, December 16, 2008, we finally got to cross the gulf to Steinhatchee. After 10 days in Carrabelle waiting for good weather for our crossing we were more than ready to get back to traveling. We enjoyed Carrabelle be we need to get on the way to Everglades City to see Jeff and Anne. We were up at 4:45 and on the water at 5:30. We have never traveled in darkness but we were able to follow our track back out as far as the pass out into the Gulf. We left early to allow plenty of light to get into Steinhatchee and to try to get out of the channel and into the Gulf before the fog set in. We made that but we did encounter some fog on the Gulf, not bad enough to cause concern but enough to make it interesting. The water was clam because the winds were light today but it still had quite a roll to it from all the unsettled weather. Shelly was sick most of the day and we thought Muriel might get sick for a while but she ate a little and felt better. It is great to be on the move again.
After we got situated in the marina we all walked around the marina area and looked around and then returned to the boats to share drinks on Blue Max and then we each went to our boats and dined on our boats. We probably missed some fun in Steinhatchee but we needed to get to bed. We planned to get out early again in the morning to beat the fog. Yea, right! The fog beat us by several hours. We waited until about 7:00 for the sun to provide some light and we left in the fog. We could barely make out the running lights on the boat behind us. We were the lead boat, which I enjoy. The fog lingered past mid-morning, at times so dense we barely had time to see the crab pots to avoid them. We ran our fog horn for some added safety to avoid other boats. One larger boat, about 50 feet, crossed out path just ahead of us. Shelly was first to see it and just as she pointed it out to me the fog horn sounded. I feel certain the boat had not seen us because when the fog horn sounded they instantly changed course. After the fog finally cleared we had another beautiful day with very light winds and smooth seas. We passed a few miles off shore from Cedar Key and it looked so pretty and inviting in the sun that we were temped to divert our course and anchor there tonight. Instead, we continued on to the trans-Florida barge canal. This is a canal which was started and abandoned in the ‘70’s. It is still very well marked and has plenty of water. It makes a beautiful anchorage which is very seldom used. The area is now a Florida State Park.
We started out of the anchorage about 7:30 in fog which seemed to lift as we entered open water, only to set back in with very dense fog. It did not last over an hour and cleared again. The rest of the day was very calm with a lot of haze. We arrived at the Tarpon Springs channel at about 3:00 pm. It takes a while to come up the channel to the town at idle speed. This is definitely a commercial, sponge, fishing village with a bit of money, and large homes, beginning to move in. As we were talking to the marina on the radio we heard from Phantom of the Aqua. We have not seen them since Grafton, Il. They spent a month in Panama City and just crossed the Gulf a couple of days ago. They walked over and we had a nice visit with them. They live in Fort Meyers so they are familiar with this coast and had some good suggestions for anchorages. We learned from them that Wanderin’ L&M bent a prop shaft when they hit something entering Crystal River. This is part of the reason we did not go in there. Going There crossed the Gulf with us and ran with us until yesterday when they left us to go into Crystal River. They said it was quite shallow but they got in OK.
The Municipal Marina here does not have good access to and from the boats so Eileene was unable to get on and off Blue Max. Bill went out and got take-out Greek dinners for them and they ate on the boat. We hated that they could not join us for dinner. We wandered around town a while and picked a place to eat. Muriel and Shelly bought some sponges and we wandered back to the boat. Bill and I will meet this morning to decide where we will try to get to today. We are uncertain how far to expect we can run due to many no wake zones and several bridges which we will have to get opened for us to pass.
After we got situated in the marina we all walked around the marina area and looked around and then returned to the boats to share drinks on Blue Max and then we each went to our boats and dined on our boats. We probably missed some fun in Steinhatchee but we needed to get to bed. We planned to get out early again in the morning to beat the fog. Yea, right! The fog beat us by several hours. We waited until about 7:00 for the sun to provide some light and we left in the fog. We could barely make out the running lights on the boat behind us. We were the lead boat, which I enjoy. The fog lingered past mid-morning, at times so dense we barely had time to see the crab pots to avoid them. We ran our fog horn for some added safety to avoid other boats. One larger boat, about 50 feet, crossed out path just ahead of us. Shelly was first to see it and just as she pointed it out to me the fog horn sounded. I feel certain the boat had not seen us because when the fog horn sounded they instantly changed course. After the fog finally cleared we had another beautiful day with very light winds and smooth seas. We passed a few miles off shore from Cedar Key and it looked so pretty and inviting in the sun that we were temped to divert our course and anchor there tonight. Instead, we continued on to the trans-Florida barge canal. This is a canal which was started and abandoned in the ‘70’s. It is still very well marked and has plenty of water. It makes a beautiful anchorage which is very seldom used. The area is now a Florida State Park.
We started out of the anchorage about 7:30 in fog which seemed to lift as we entered open water, only to set back in with very dense fog. It did not last over an hour and cleared again. The rest of the day was very calm with a lot of haze. We arrived at the Tarpon Springs channel at about 3:00 pm. It takes a while to come up the channel to the town at idle speed. This is definitely a commercial, sponge, fishing village with a bit of money, and large homes, beginning to move in. As we were talking to the marina on the radio we heard from Phantom of the Aqua. We have not seen them since Grafton, Il. They spent a month in Panama City and just crossed the Gulf a couple of days ago. They walked over and we had a nice visit with them. They live in Fort Meyers so they are familiar with this coast and had some good suggestions for anchorages. We learned from them that Wanderin’ L&M bent a prop shaft when they hit something entering Crystal River. This is part of the reason we did not go in there. Going There crossed the Gulf with us and ran with us until yesterday when they left us to go into Crystal River. They said it was quite shallow but they got in OK.
The Municipal Marina here does not have good access to and from the boats so Eileene was unable to get on and off Blue Max. Bill went out and got take-out Greek dinners for them and they ate on the boat. We hated that they could not join us for dinner. We wandered around town a while and picked a place to eat. Muriel and Shelly bought some sponges and we wandered back to the boat. Bill and I will meet this morning to decide where we will try to get to today. We are uncertain how far to expect we can run due to many no wake zones and several bridges which we will have to get opened for us to pass.
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