So far our plan of leaving early in the morning (daylight when possible) and being in a marina or anchored by 2 or 3 in the afternoon has worked admirably for being secure when the thunderstorms roll through. We had an easy cruise down the ICW from Vero Beach turning inland at Stuart, Fl and heading across the Okeechobee waterway.
For those not familiar with the geography this waterway is a cut through the middle of Florida, thus avoiding having to go all the way down to Key West on the east coast and back up the west coast to Fort Myers. Well marked with little current and few obstructions, it is a joy to travel. One can leisurely watch the boat's coarse and take time to admire the beautiful architecture and landscaping of the homes lining the banks.
Dotted with marinas and no significant tide, it is easier to estimate where we will be in the early afternoon and thus easier to pick out a marina. Since our next challenge was to get across Lake Ocheechobee before any significant winds or thunderstorms came up, we stopped at Indian Town Marina located about 10 miles east of the Port Mayaca Lock. This would be our entry to the lake which is described as "Can get very rough. Think of a puddle of water with wind blowing over it!" The lake level is controlled to a depth of 12.5 feet via the locks at each side. If the water goes below this level than they drop the opening of the locks from "on demand" to a schedule of 4 times daily. The boats just have to wait. In fact they are apparently working on the Ortona lock and we were informed it is only open from 7:00 to 7:30/ 12:00 to 12:30 and 4:00 to 5:00. This could slow us down but at least we are in relatively protected waters.
Port Mayaka Lock
Our start into Lake Ocheechobee was significant. Just as Beth took over the helm, the starboard propeller tinged off of an obstruction. It was listed as possibly no longer being there on Active Captain but it was and we touched it. There didn't appear to be any vibration when I increased the boat speed but before doing our crossing to Carrabelle, this would need to be checked.
We got across the lake before the wind came up, locked through at Moore Haven, watched numerous alligators move out of the way and landed at River Forest Yachting Center at La Belle.
It was a tight entry but when I saw boats larger than mine at the docks I knew we could get in and there was enough room once in, that I could spin the boat around and easily drift into the the cement dock. Once tied up we quickly got the power on and the air conditioners going but the lounge area just doesn't cool off without the help of the rear air conditioner. This will be the first thing I fix when we get to Port St. Joe.
Trying to cool off!
The owners immediately informed us that there was another Hurricane (Erica) headed our way with increased winds possibly by Monday. They would be making a decision about starting to haul out 13 boats and yes they had 4 more spots if we decided to stay. After looking at the projected path on the Boat US Hurricane tracking website, it is just not clear if the storm will go out to sea toward Bermuda, go up the east coast, or get into the gulf and go up the west coast.
After some intense discussion Beth and I came up with a plan. First, we will have the boat hauled out here in the morning to have the bottom pressure washed and the props checked. Next, we have plotted our course from here to Clearwater with stops at Fort Myers, Venice, and Desoto Park near Tampa Bay. The municipal marina in Clearwater has indicated that they have slips that can accommodate us and although they can't pull the boat out of the water they can secure it in the slip should "Erica" come our way.
There is a High Pressure predicted to settle in the area this weekend and the jet stream is south, so I predict (Ha! Ha!) that the storm will get pushed off the east coast. Nevertheless, we can leave the boat in Clearwater, rent a car to go to Port St. Joe and get our second set of props or get out of the way of the storm, if need be. This will at least put us in position for our crossing to Carrabelle.
Already we are agonizing about "The Crossing". Neither of us really want to do a night crossing, not only because we can't see what is in the water but also because of the thunderstorms which start in the afternoon and sometimes persist into the night. It would be safer, I think to do this crossing as quickly as possible during daylight hours. This would mean hopscotching up the coast to Steinhatchee which is only 60 miles from the entry to Carrabelle, running the boat on the top end(13 to 15 knots), and leaving at daybreak to make the crossing in about 4 hours which would put us into port before the winds and thunderstorms start up. The problem is that this area is very shallow with lots of obstructions (ie. it is recommended to only go up the Steinhatchee river at high tide and a south west wind if you draw over 4 ft of water. Of course, we draw 4.5 feet and we had our starboard motor heat up when we made the run from Boston to Cape Cod at full throttle! (which had much colder water!) The alternative is to do the night crossing at trawler speed. This is going to take some planning and a good weather window.
As the venerable Bob Bitchin so aptly put it, "The difference between an ordeal and an adventure, is attitude!"
What would you do?
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