Avary Island

     Having had a quiet restful night at the wharf in Lake Arthur (Windows open, cool breeze, temp. 70 deg.) we headed out at the crack of dawn to a grey sullen day.  Since we had left an electronic trail in our map plotter on the way in, we could confidently cruise at 1200rpm making 9 knots without undue concern for obstructions on the way down the Mermenteau River.  Winds ranged from 10 to 15 knots but as expected increased to 20 to 25 knots by the time we were to anchor in Petite Anse, just off Avary Island.  We had plans to dingy up to the only Tabasco Sauce maker in the country and tour the plant but we had some degree of difficulty anchoring in the suggested Active captain spot near the ICW.  Deciding to go further inland to get away from the wind, we wound up at the mouth of the Cargill Salt mine.....many attempts,  many fouled anchors and 3 hours later we returned to the original anchorage as the winds had settled to 15 knots. The problem was a clay bottom.  Every time we tried a set we would break free and the tip of the anchor would be fouled with thick hard clay. We would have to spend 15 minutes to clean it before we could try another set.  Two hours later we returned to our original anchorage where we remained secure for the rest of the night.Nevertheless, we remained secure all night near the ICW .
    Of course going to bed without repairing something would be out of the question, so Tom and I repaired the sensor for the forward port fuel tank.  We knew we were full of fuel but the guage constantly read empty.  it was jJust a poor ground on the sensor, but we had to drill out a broken screw and replace it to fix the thing properly.
      By the time we got it fixed the girls had spaghetti with meat sauce and garlic bread ready.  A few cubra libras later ...good night.

                                            Anchor finally set as the sun set over the marsh.