This posting is about our 2020 passages to our winter home in Marathon. No need to mention my health situation except to say I will soon get a maintenance injection of Retuxin in the hopes of maintaining my current remission. That's it. Only mention. Immunotherapy, not chemo. Everything else is about our trip to the Florida Keys.
We left Annapolis after a week on a City mooring. We had someone come out to the boat to measure our boom for a new sail cover and then we left town. We only went a few miles to anchor up the Rhode River because we left much later than our normal time. But, but, but, what about isolation and Covid? Believe me, we are well aware of the need to protect ourselves. Me especially. Our visitor wore a mask as did we. He only was on deck, not even coming into the cockpit. I was a little close to him in the dinghy. We do the best we can.
After we restarted south we went to the Solomons area. After fueling we went a little farther up Mill Creek than we usually do. The spot we wanted had three boats and our usual spot wasn't ideal for the predicted wind direction and speed. It was a nice, protected spot. Maybe we'll go there in the future, too. We had a dilemma while in the Solomons. It was predicted to be Small Craft Warnings the next day but not until 1100. This meant we could probably get south of the warning area before the warnings started. Probably. The warning area was the Potomac River and north on the Chesapeake Bay. That was three hours south of our anchorage and started four hours after our normal departure. A little close. It was going to be mostly calm before the warning started. Should we leave in the good conditions and hope to get south of the impacted area before it got bad? Should we stay put because the next day would have lighter winds and from a much better direction? Trust the forecast for wind arrival? Tempt fate by not going when it's nice? Will we get future bad weather because we didn't go in the early morning good conditions? Tempt fate by going into known afternoon risky conditions when it is quite nice in the morning and for half the passage? What to do??? Any guesses?
We stayed put. Did a couple of minor projects and sat in beautiful, calm conditions. The wind did pick up quite a bit later in the morning. The trees were swaying semi-violently but we would have almost out of the area when the wind started. Oh, well. Getting old. Making choices based on comfort.
When we left the next day Small Craft Advisories had been extended but started at Drum Pt. and north. We were at Drum Pt. Leaving the Solomons area was a little rolly with seas up to two feet on the beam. Not terrible and once we got out in the Bay and turned south all was fine. Seas were on the stern and faded through the day. Crossing the Potomac River was okay. We've had it bad there. Not this day. We ended up in Jackson Creek, Deltaville, VA. in our usual spot. Then we went south out of the Chesapeake. Conditions were pretty calm and when we entered Hampton Roads we had a lot of military traffic including a small aircraft carrier, a LHD: the USS Bataan. Plenty of traffic was on the VHF and we had several overhead passes of surveillance aircraft as we passed the Naval Base. We tied up in Portsmouth at the High Street Landing free dock. Someone came by to hand us the rules and tell us when we could ignore them. Nice. On our walk most were masked and very friendly. Only one (well dressed) couple asked us for money. We passed.
We left a little later than normal because of bridge opening schedules and still were held up by railroad traffic at the Gilmerton (road) Lift Bridge. We made (a little late) it to the 0930 locking at Great Bridge, Chesapeake. VA. After fueling at AYB we tied up at the free south Battlefield Park dock. Rain was forecast for at least two days but it was light at the times we walked to the grocery store. When I needed to go up the mast to take down our navigation lights (anchor and tricolor) and our Windex, we did it early on the second day before the rain started. While at the dock we met a friend of Sue and Al (Gelato) and chatted with him quite a while. We also chatted with another catamaran couple and offered appreciated advice. I note the appreciation because I'm not all that used to it. We also went to the Battlefield Museum that is in the Park. It was a long time coming and this was the first time we found it open. It was an interesting history tour in a very small museum. Only took us about 45 minutes to go through it. And we read everything. And chatted with the docent. We had previously read all the signs in the park about the battle and knew a fair amount about it but it was still worth the $5 admission fee. The battle in 1775 changed the course of the Revolutionary War before it really got started.
There was a chance we'd have to stay three nights at Great Bridge but the predicted thunderstorms were delayed. We got underway and got to an isolated anchorage (Broad Creek) a little north of Albemarle Sound before the sky turned black. The storms missed us and it stayed warm enough to swim and shower. At night it got very weird. I got up for a pit stop and heard strange noises outside. It was like the whirring of the wind generator (no wind) or a pump running. I went out to check it out and quickly dived back inside. The were a few mosquitoes and at least a million (no exaggeration) midges. The underside of the cockpit hardtop was black with bugs. The under-canvass forward shelf was inundated. It was really gross. And a little scary. A few of the little bastards got in the boat but quickly got swatted. The next morning proved to even more gross. I sprayed and the ones not already dead soon were. The cleanup took hours. People on the VHF and Facebook were talking about the experiences they had with the bugs. Boats several miles around us had similar experiences. If we had a million bugs (easily), how many were there to invade the other boats, too? I will remember the sound forever. 
The next day crossing Albemarle Sound and going down the Alligator River was uneventful (that's good) if slightly choppier than forecast. After a Belhaven stop, the Pamlico and Neuse crossing was the same: uneventful and slightly choppier than forecast. We'll take it. We've had horrid days here. Cedar Creek off of Adams Creek was pretty and restful. Our only change in routine was a brief stop along the way at the R. E. Mayo docks for shrimp. Delish!
From Cedar Creek we went to Mile Hammock, the anchorage basin at Camp Le Jeune. We paused for fuel at Casper's Marina. The marine base was quiet. Until about 9pm when several helicopter or Osprey landings were made. Very noisy but that is to be expected. It did not last as long as some others have in the past. Then we passed by Wrightsville Beach and headed to Carolina Beach and a municipal mooring. $20/night. Got a little rain shower but really got lucky because the sky turned black a few times with storms coming very close but just missing us. We stayed two nights and did some minor grocery shopping. We also went to the beach. After that stop we left and headed down the Cape Fear River. It was only a little choppy with waves on the stern but it was very slow as we were going against the flooding current. We did not head out into the ocean as we have a few times in the past. We turned right at Southport and continued down the ICW. We had no problems at the usual trouble spots because we got to those areas near high tide. We anchored in a formerly usual spot just into South Carolina, Calabash Creek. The next morning we crossed the ICW and went out of Little River Inlet into the ocean. It was supposed to be fairly light winds with small seas on the stern. Well, on the stern was accurate. It got up to six foot on the stern with winds shifty on the stern so we had to furl the genoa. It kept wanting to gybe. It wasn't an uncomfortable passage but required an upperbody workout to go in a reasonably straight line. The passage into the Winyah Bay channel was a bit exciting for thirty minutes or so, then it was just slow. Against the ebbing current. We anchored in a spot often used by us near the ICW.
The next day we went to the ICW again. It was foggy and there were dredges working right at the beginning of the canal. The rest of the day went okay as the tide was rising so the shallows were not very. We stopped for fuel at Isle of Palms Marina and continued on through Charleston. We just made it through the Wapoo Creek bascule bridge before it closed for the day and Elliot Cut's adverse current slowed us down to 3.0kts. before we stopped at a new-to-us anchorage in the Stono River above the fixed bridge.
After that we continued south through South Carolina, something we've usually managed to avoid. This time we were hitting the tricky shallow spots at or near high tide so it wasn't too stressful. Carol didn't like this passage that much. Boring. I did not agree. You have to pay attention to the route and there are those usually tricky spots to keep you alert. I saw an eagle in the morning and later in the day it rained. Heavy at times but not awful. We got to Beaufort (Bew-fert), SC a little after 1500, missing the bridge opening. The bridgetender did not tell us there could be a 1530 opening so we went into Factory Creek to anchor. We used to come here a lot. We saw Fleetwing a fellow Waterway Guide contributor at a the local marina. The next day we had to wait for the first bridge opening at 0900. This meant a late (for us) start. Except for no rain it was much like the previous day. We got to the shallow, tricky areas at or near high tide so had no issues. Crossed the Savannah River into Georgia, another something we'd rather avoid... Georgia. We got fuel at Thunderbolt Marina, a place we used to love but has gone down in hospitality and competence, and then we anchored again up the Herb River. Saw and said hello to My Time Too for the third time on this trip south. We followed him out of the Herb River in the morning and down the ICW. Most of Georgia has stayed reasonably deep and although we started at low tide we were fine and of course the tide kept rising through the day. Even Hell Gate was pretty easy. We waited outside it for a large northbound power vessel and then cruised through. It is still narrow if deeper than in the past. We anchored in the Crescent River once again. We seem to hit this spot if we have to take the ICW route through Georgia. We don't always stop here because we do not always take the ICW and northbound we stop somewhere else. Hurricane Epsilon's waves kept us out of the ocean even though it is very far away and not affecting our weather. At this point Hurricane Zeta was brewing near Cuba and we were worried about possible trouble ahead.
From Crescent River we had an interesting day. Fog alerts were posted but it was clear where we were. When we started. After 30 minutes or so it got down to near zero visibility. We could see the front of the boat so it wasn't the worst fog we'd ever been in but it was a good try. We had to go through the Mud River about an hour from low tide in a few hundred feet of visibility. Not a good idea. We made it seeing just under 10 feet of water. Not too bad. For Georgia. Major dredging was done in the last year or so which means water depths are mostly better. Jekyll Creek, another bad spot recently dredged, had a rising tide so even though it was an hour past low we had more comfort. This photo shows what happens when you don't pay close attention. 
We made it to our anchoring spot off Cumberland Island, GA. Saw a few of the wild horses as we were coming in. Saw a docked submarine at the dock at Kings Bay Naval Base. 
We went offshore out of St Marys River Inlet. It was a bit rough bashing into the waves heading out but the current was ebbing so it was fast. When we turned south it wasn't too bad. Not great but okay. We avoided the shallows of the Amellia area and all the weekend local boats that were out. Heard from friends that the local boats made their ICW passage to St. Augustine annoying. At St Auggie we got a municipal mooring and stayed two nights. Laundry, fuel, water, showers and dinner out were on the agenda. Chatted with friends on Peppromenon but didn't visit good friends who are local. One is on their boat and reasonably isolated like us, the other is more possibly contaminated by Florida. Sorry B & J.
From St Augustine there were no major issues. We stopped for fuel in Daytona and anchored in our usual spot near New Smyrna, G'45'. This is opposite the yacht club and walking distance from a hospital. How do we know where the hospital is? Scroll back 5 or 6 years in this blog archive. The next day was a bit boring. We were going into a fairly strong breeze which slowed us down a bit and gave us some small chop but mostly it was only hot and humid and not really an issue. The bridges were not an issue including the ones that need to be opened. We saw quite a few Osprey which is good but towards the end of our passage we started getting followed by a large number of terns. They were close and swooping in our wake but didn't seem to be scooping up any fish brought to the surface. Just strange behavior we hadn't seen before. We stopped at Eau Gallie, Dragon Point. We leave early every morning, at first light usually, so we pass by boats that passed us the day before. They are still sleeping or the crew is preparing their breakfasts for them. Must be nice. Our trip to Fort Pierce was no exception, we were passed by boats that had passed us in the past. It was also a repeat of the headwinds slowing us down with hot and humid conditions cooking us. A few more clouds than the day before kept us from burning up. The day was longer/slower than in recent years due to current and the Ft. Pierce (Banty) bascule bridge schedule. Also as we approached the Ft. Pierce fixed bridge a barge slowly pulled in front of us and filled the channel. We had to wait for it to come to a rest against the fenders of the bridge then try to creep by in the remaining horizontal space. Oh, we also have to be sure our mast will clear under the bridge. We knew it was near low tide so we believed we would clear and had to ignore that issue as we dealt with maybe 5 feet of clearance on each side of our 24 foot beam. What fun! Anyway we did not hit the bridge side, the barge or the overhead. Lucky again.
The next day we were up early as we usually are and headed out the Ft. Pierce Inlet. We were against the current so our exit was a little slow but it was not rough. Carol Guay was ashore at the Inlet and waved and took pictures. 
Good to see her even though we could not visit this year. When we turned south in the ocean the waves were behind and reasonably small. We had the genoa out for a couple hours but sailing did not help us much. When the wind starting shifting on our stern we had to furl. We tried again later in the day for another two hours with the same result. It got choppier as we neared the Lake Worth Inlet and it got slower as the Gulf Stream comes closest to the shore here. We were a mile or so offshore and the Stream is more than 5 miles away but somehow it pulls the water along and slows down low powered craft.
The only other places the current had a major influence on us was after Miami and before Fowey Rocks. After that the Keys turn farther west and away from the Stream. Overnight was fairly calm with small waves (under one foot) on the stern. Our biggest concerns were the thunderstorms. Earlier in the day isolated storms passed around us just giving us a little rain for a short period of time. At night it can be more scary but we got lucky again. We could see the darker areas around us indicating rain and could see the lightning behind us or to the west. It was quite beautiful and the near full moon was popping through the gaps in the clouds to illuminate the towering cumulus clouds. It was very clear (if not raining) and sharp atmospherically. We could see very far in the dark and in great detail. Doesn't happen like that much. Morning found us off Matecumbe Key still in the Florida Straits. With daylight we turn and continue west in the Hawk Channel. We tend not to use Hawk Channel at night because there are hard objects to hit and there are thousands of crab pot floats to try and catch our props. We got to our Marathon City Marina mooring ball about 1315 which was a little later in the day than we were expecting.
The current slowdowns the previous day could not be made up with times of good current. It was a long day which followed a long night which had followed a longer day. Carol thinks we are getting too old for these long passages with limited quality sleep. Could be. We made our decision to go offshore hoping the conditions would be decent (they were) and because the forecast for the Keys and south Florida is awful. Terrible. Not very good. Any passages in the coming week (ICW or ocean) were going to be treacherous with winds at gale strength. Not good. We will be reasonably safe and secure on our rental mooring. We will see.
Good to see her even though we could not visit this year. When we turned south in the ocean the waves were behind and reasonably small. We had the genoa out for a couple hours but sailing did not help us much. When the wind starting shifting on our stern we had to furl. We tried again later in the day for another two hours with the same result. It got choppier as we neared the Lake Worth Inlet and it got slower as the Gulf Stream comes closest to the shore here. We were a mile or so offshore and the Stream is more than 5 miles away but somehow it pulls the water along and slows down low powered craft.
The only other places the current had a major influence on us was after Miami and before Fowey Rocks. After that the Keys turn farther west and away from the Stream. Overnight was fairly calm with small waves (under one foot) on the stern. Our biggest concerns were the thunderstorms. Earlier in the day isolated storms passed around us just giving us a little rain for a short period of time. At night it can be more scary but we got lucky again. We could see the darker areas around us indicating rain and could see the lightning behind us or to the west. It was quite beautiful and the near full moon was popping through the gaps in the clouds to illuminate the towering cumulus clouds. It was very clear (if not raining) and sharp atmospherically. We could see very far in the dark and in great detail. Doesn't happen like that much. Morning found us off Matecumbe Key still in the Florida Straits. With daylight we turn and continue west in the Hawk Channel. We tend not to use Hawk Channel at night because there are hard objects to hit and there are thousands of crab pot floats to try and catch our props. We got to our Marathon City Marina mooring ball about 1315 which was a little later in the day than we were expecting.
The current slowdowns the previous day could not be made up with times of good current. It was a long day which followed a long night which had followed a longer day. Carol thinks we are getting too old for these long passages with limited quality sleep. Could be. We made our decision to go offshore hoping the conditions would be decent (they were) and because the forecast for the Keys and south Florida is awful. Terrible. Not very good. Any passages in the coming week (ICW or ocean) were going to be treacherous with winds at gale strength. Not good. We will be reasonably safe and secure on our rental mooring. We will see.
So that completes our southbound passage for the fall of 2020. It was fairly quick with few stops and as much isolation as is possible. Here in Marathon we will not participate in any social events (most are already canceled) and the marina's mask guidelines are as they should be. We will just have to see about their enforcement. I will probably be a tour guide at Crane Point again but only if I can be sure my groups must wear their masks 😷.
We will stay here nearly four months unless something drastic occurs. Hey, it's 2020, who knows what new crap will happen? Storms? Kicking out non-residents? Locusts? Meteors? Shark attack? Crocodile attack? We have one of each of the last two so that possibility is not zero. Locusts are unlikely but we do have stinkbugs which are worse.
Next blog entry is probably not until just before we leave here. Unless something drastic DOES happen.
