Merry Christmas

 

Wishing all a happy and joyous holiday season!
Rick & Pam
M/V Tourist

Home for Christmas

Just when we were getting into a daily routine at Legacy it was time to head back to Illinois for Christmas. But not before catching one more sunset over the Caloosahatchie.

Legacy Sunset

Friday November 30th we were up at O dark 30 and off to the airport. Fortunately the flights were on time and smooth getting us into Moline right on time. The temps were in the high 50's as we stepped outside the terminal. Not bad for this time of year. The biggest adjustment for me will be wearing long pants, socks, & shoes instead of shorts & flip-flops.

Once we arrived home it was evident that our house has changed over the past few months. Every below counter cabinet door and walk through door now has a child proof lock on it! Child proof? How do these things work? I have to use the head!

Help!

Of course Oscar & Ellie were there to meet us. Both very mobile with Oscar running all over the place while his little sister pulls herself along the floor trying to keep up.

Double Trouble!

Saturday December 1st.     Happy 2nd Birthday Franklin (Oscar)!

A gathering of family helped celebrate the birthday with food, cake, and plenty of new toys!

2nd Birthday Party

Over all since we've been home the weather has been good allowing us to get out and see friends and take care of some of the chores around the house. We've been able to catch one of grandson Luke's wrestling meets and grandson Drew's Christmas concert while here.

Luke! Get Up!

Drew's Concert (4th from right, 3rd row down)

Then reality came to Illinois. SNOW! COLD!
OK. So I'm whining. We only got 2 inches of snow and the temp is still in the upper 20's. I did have to shovel the drive though!

White Christmas?

Pam has been in her glory being GramPam. Watching the kids, changing diapers and singing silly songs. By the end of the day she's pooped! She'll be ready for a vacation by the time we return to Tourist! They give you kids when you're young for a reason.

Nap Time. But for which one?

We did find time to get the tree up and a couple of outdoor decorations. So far the kids have left the tree alone. We'll see what happens when we get a few presents under the it.

Rick. Come over here and fix the cross!


Have a great holiday season!

Settleing in to Legacy Life

11/26/12 Cyber Monday     Well here we are in Ft. Myers in our usual slip and I can already feel the tentacles reaching for the bottom to hold Tourist in place. It may take awhile to get back into "marina mode" after being on the go since March. To help us adjust we've been busy tackling some of the jobs that get put aside while on the move.

Pam decided to reorganize her shoe compartment. Only a few of the many!

Then while having the carpets cleaned we took the carpet runners to a commercial laundromat to clean them.

Always an experience.

Had the Cummins guys in to do a valve adjustment.

Not much overhead room.

Of course while doing the adjustment they discovered a couple of potential problems that will need addressing in the future. $$$$$  I will add that the folks from Calusa Certified Marine treated us fair on this one. They were doing warranty work on the boat beside us so they did not charge us for travel time & miles, and they only charged us for the 4 hours it is supposed to take for the job. Not the 6 that they actually spent.

Slowly the annual boats are returning to Legacy along with a few new names filling spots that have been vacated by others. Always fun to see who or what drifted in with the tide.

Kasey's Choice returning for the winter.

I've been catching up on the waxing, getting estimates for a new dinghy cover, and replacing spares that we used during our travels. One of the more frustrating jobs that I vowed to accomplish once we landed back in Legacy was to get our cable TV input working again. It's been out for over a year and I've made various half-hearted attempts to fix it since then to no avail. This time it's gonna work!

I started by replacing the antenna booster switch which also routes the input signal from antenna or dock input sources. Out with the old, in with the new. Connect the wires. Insert the fuse. Hmmmm  The indicator light isn't on. Dig out the voltage tester and find less than 1 volt coming into the fuse holder. WTF! Meanwhile Donnie from Kasey's Choice shows up. Now it's officially a full blown project!
We get the schematics out to trace the wire routing and this one is conveniently left out of the book. Nothing!
Panels come off. Cabinets are emptied. Stereo, DVD player, CD changers all come out and we still can't find the wires. Tugging on them produces nothing since the wires are all bundled in a plastic conduit. Finally as we are trying to get the TV out to look behind it we discovered a fuse at the electrical panel that doesn't look like the others. It's connected to the aft lighting breaker. That can't have anything to do with the power source for the booster. At Donnie's suggestion we pulled the fuse and tested it. DEAD! Still skeptical we replaced it and checked the voltage at the fuse closest to the booster. Would you believe we now have 12 volts!   %$##*&^%$.   All this time and effort because of one wire run that doesn't show in the wiring diagrams. We now have cable TV. There's still nothing worthwhile on it! And I've learned a little more about Tourist.

Thanksgiving started with Pam's Bloody Mary's on the dock. Brunch at the Edison. An afternoon nap. Skyping with the families back home and concluded with cocktails and desert at Marty & Yvonne's condo next door. a good day in our book!

Thanksgiving Bloody's on the dock.

Brunch at the Edison with Bill & Mary.

Legacy Harbour has a couple of picnic tables in front of the office, one of which is used as a give away table.
A "One man's junk is another man's treasure" sort of thing. Sometimes something good appears. Sometimes nothing good appears. All of the time it's entertaining to watch people sort through the articles. (I'm guilty too!)

The Legacy Scavenger Table.

Shortly after we arrived back in Legacy Pam put an AM/FM/Cassette player on the table. It still worked fine from the 110 volt side but the batteries wouldn't stay in place to use it as a portable. Over the course of two days we watched as it disappeared and returned 3 times, only to be taken away again. I understand that it is now in the fitness room playing playing old Barry Manilow songs.

Saturday evening following dinner with Marty & Yvonne at a Thai Restaurant we headed downtown to watch a Beatles Tribute Band that was scheduled to perform. Only one problem. We stuck our heads in the door of the Cigar Bar and found Bill, Mary, Rick, & Sarah. They said they had just returned from the stage area and that they were still playing Christmas music so we settled in for a drink. Of course one led to two and so on. We did eventually wander down the street and got to hear the last few songs before they called it a night. They were good!

Beatles Tribute Band.

I snapped a few shots of downtown while walking back to Tourist.

Ft. Myers downtown at night.

Thanksgiving

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

from the crew of

M/V TOURIST

Ft. Myers, We're Here!

11/11/12 Sunday     Yesterday we covered 90.8 miles from Indiantown to Franklin Lock including passing through 3 locks and 1 bridge that we needed opened. By the time we arrived at the campground/marina we were pooped. Needless to say nothing else got accomplished the rest of the day.

Today of course was laundry day for Pam which consisted of a hike to the other end of the campground and doing load after load of laundry in the 1 washer and 1 dryer. The facility is clean as is the entire campground and where else can you watch mother nature and the boat traffic around the lock while doing laundry?
We both like this spot because it is clean, quiet (they lock the gates at 10 pm), scenic, and reasonable. You're surrounded by nature but don't feel like you're isolated in the middle of nowhere.

Laundry House

11/12/12 Monday     We were the only boat here last night enabling Pam to run around naked with the shades up without fear of a neighbor peeking in! OK. Maybe that's a bit of a stretch! She kept the shades down.
More cleaning projects today like polish the rails and clean the isinglass on the bridge all while being interrupted by the natural beauty around us.

Lookin out our back door.

Bird convention

Campground docks

11/13/12 Tuesday     We departed the dock at 9 am and slipped around the corner and entered the lock. By 9:30 we were through the lock and heading for Ft. Myers and Legacy Harbour where we'll be camping for the next few months. The surroundings are now all familiar to us as we cruise towards our winter home.

Power Plant

Ft. Myers Skyline

By 11 am we're turning into Legacy and are greeted by Lana on the VHF with a welcome back and "I'll meet you at your slip". The wind was kind today making me look like a pro as we backed into the slip without bouncing off of a piling or the dock. Lines were secured and the greetings began. It feels like home! Is it too early for docktails?

Legacy Harbour & High Point Towers

Tourist in her slip

11/14/12 Wednesday     The project for today was to get the car out of storage. Armed with jumper cables and a few tools Pam and Sarah dropped me off at the storage facility to work on the car while they went shopping. Hmmmm. What's wrong with this picture?

Ready to Roll

Luck was on my side today because once I uncovered the car and hooked up the battery it fired right off. Cool! Additionally it looked just as clean as when I parked it. I emptied the water from the Damp Rid container that I'd left inside the car and took off for a ride to put a charge back in the battery.

Now that that's done I guess it's time to start tackling the list of projects that's been accumulating over the course of our travels. The fun never stops!

St. Augustine and Beyond

11/6/12 Tuesday     Time to leave St. Augustine, but not before taking on some fuel. At Rivers Edge Marina the fuel comes directly from the truck. The trick is to get close enough so the hose from the truck reaches the boat. If the boat is on "A" Dock no problem. We were on "B" Dock. Problem! The hose came up about 15' short of the boat. Solution. Move the boat to the pump-out dock closer to shore. Seems like a lot of hassle to get fuel doesn't it? Not if the fuel is 30 cents a gallon cheaper than the next cheapest marina in the area.
We filled up in the rain, paid, and departed.

We always like to stay in St. Augustine just because of the proximity to the Fountain of Youth. Both Pam & I feel younger after a night or two in town!

Our course today took us past the Palm Coast Sea Ray plant, birthplace of Tourist.

Sea Ray Palm Coast tucked back in the trees.

Continuing on we went past Daytona Beach and on to Rockhouse Creek just north of New Smyrna Beach. A beautiful anchorage with a view of the Atlantic through Ponce Inlet but protected from the ocean by several bars. Even though the wind was out of the northwest between 15 & 20 mph we didn't notice. We were treated to a beautiful evening sky as the sun went down.

Rockhouse Creek Anchorage

11/7/12 Wednesday     We slept in today and didn't get going until 8:20. Of course we pulled out and immediately got in the southbound parade of boats headed to the first obstacle of the day. A bridge that most of them needed opened. We didn't! The wait was only going to be 5 minutes so being the nice guy that I am (Pam made me!) I waited in line and then passed them after we went through the bridge.

Of course the bridges require radio contact between boat & bridge which is often times either interesting or annoying. In this case annoying fits. Let me back up a few days and say that we have heard and passed one of the boats on and off since we left Port Royal Landing. One person is driving and the other mans the radio and never seems to monitor the vhf channel the bridges operate on until they're on top of the bridge thus missing any instructions the bridge tender has given requiring him to repeat. In addition this person has one of those annoying voices that drives me NUTS! Every bridge we've gone through with them or heard them go through is the same story and the same voice. Don't judge me. If you've run the ICW you know what I'm talking about.

Along the way we passed a few more boats, some moving, some that will never move again.

On the bottom

Through Mosquito Lagoon and into the Haulover Canal where we saw several manatee while we idled through. Elusive little buggers. Try as she might, Pam couldn't get any of them to pose for a picture!

Haulover Canal

On past Titusville and Cocoa, Kennedy Space Center and on to our anchorage near Melbourne. All day the wind has been blowing so we looked for a place with some protection. Once we arrived  it wasn't as protected as we would have liked but still better than being out in the open. Let's see how we sleep.

Vehicle Assembly Building @ Kennedy Space Center

11/8/12 Thursday     Well, we made it through the night. The first few hours we were able to sleep in the master berth then the tide changed and our cabin sounded like someone was outside the bow of the boat beating on it with a rubber mallet. Not the best sleeping conditions. As we've done before we retreated to the salon where we have a pull out sofa and the noise level is much less. Hurry up daylight!

Our anchorage near the Mathers Bridge.

When you're trying to sleep and can't it seems like forever until it's time to get up. Finally the time came. On went the generator then the heat and finally the coffee! The wind is still blowing out of the north and the temperature at 6:30 am is 48 degrees. Brrrrrr! I thought we were in Florida. Once Tourist and crew were ready to go I called the Mathers bridge to request an opening. A positive response from the bridge tender and we were off. Through the bridge and around Dragon Point (named for a statue of a dragon that stood there for many years) and back into the ICW.

Remains of Dragon @ Dragon Point

A pretty uneventful day. We passed 3 sailboats whose captains looked like they were dressed for snow skiing. Went by my parents old condo complex. Passed Vero Beach or Velcro Beach as it's referred to in the cruising community with it's large American flag waving proudly. And on into Harbortown Marina at Ft. Pierce. After topping off the fuel tank and pumping out we put Tourist in a slip and went into the restaurant to get the cheeseburger that both Pam & I have been craving for the past week. Yumm! We weren't disappointed. The rest of the day was spent hosing the salt off the boat and other cleaning projects.

Vero Beach Flag

Harbortown Marina

11/9/12 Friday     Off and running by 8:20 this morning being pushed by a 15 mph north wind. Past the Ft. Pierce Inlet that was our entry point back into the U.S. from the Bahamas last Spring. On past the City Marina where they are building a new breakwater around it.

Building a breakwater

And on to Stuart.
Our original thought was to stay in either the Manatee Pocket area or downtown Stuart on a mooring ball for a night or two. Remembering back to the last time we tried anchoring in the pocket and finding very shallow water that wasn't already occupied by other boats negated that idea. That is until I remembered something on the Looper Forum about Stuart Yacht Sales offering a free slip to members of AGLCA when passing through. I made the call and was told there was one slip available at this time that we could use. Great! "Now what are the dimensions of your boat?"
When I told them the dimensions there was a pause. Tourist is 15'3" wide and the slip is 15'4" plus we'd have to back in. I couldn't even use the pointy end of the boat to pry the pilings apart! Just a little too tight for comfort.

Entrance to Manatee Pocket

After some deliberation we graciously declined the offer and bypassed Manatee Pocket. On to the mooring field downtown. Through the Roosevelt Bridge and just past Sunset Bay Marina lies the field. Occupied mostly by sailboats and with the wind out of the north and increasing it looked a little lumpy. We took a pass through the field and thought that in addition to the wave action the balls were too close together for our comfort. Boating is supposed to be a non contact sport!
At this point we decided to skip Stuart completely and head west into the St. Lucie Canal. We passed through the St. Lucie Lock and entered the canal.

St. Lucie Lock

In the back of my mind I had been thinking about someday staying at Indiantown Marina. I think today is the day! A quick call confirmed that they had space available which we said we'd take. Our arrival was around 3:30 pm.
Indiantown is one of those places that if you're going too fast you'll scoot right past it. The opening to their harbor isn't much wider than Tourist and once inside you must make a 90 degree right turn. Of course there are boats tied to the bulkhead immediately in front of you as you start the turn. I'm sure I scared the bejesus out of one woman who was watching us since Tourist just doesn't move slow even at idle speed.
The basin is tight once inside but enough room to spin around in which is what we had to do to back into our slip. Two of the marina staff popped out of nowhere to help us in making it not much of a spectator sport which is a good thing!
Laid back friendly is the best way to describe the atmosphere at Indiantown. You get the feeling that there is no sense of urgency here. After check in we strolled around the yard looking at the many boats stored here. Some being readied for the cruising season and some that will never touch water again.

Entrance to Indiantown

On the hard @ Indiantown

Along our walk I thought Pam was going to jump into my arms when I pointed out an Armadillo just a few feet away from her. Pam went into "Pamic" mode and tried to somehow become invisible. Meanwhile the armadillo had the same reaction and scurried under a boat. Crisis averted! Then we saw a bull staring at us as we walked along. This time though no "Pamic" from Pam. There was a barb wire fence separating us so all was good. We could talk to the bull without fear of being trampled.

Scary Armadillo

Nice Bull!

After that heart pumping experience we returned to Tourist to settle in  for the night.

11/10/12 Saturday     7 am found us pulling out of Indiantown headed for the Port Mayaca Lock and Lake Okeechobee.

Port Mayaca Lock


We were able to lock through with little delay and onto the lake we went. With a strong northeast wind the lake's waves were hitting us from the side causing Tourist to roll from side to side. This could be a long ride.....or it could be a short one. Throttle up and get on top of the waves. We skipped across Lake O at 26 mph clearing the cobwebs out of the engines and making our ride more comfortable. In no time at all we were across the lake and slowing down as we approached Clewiston and the rim route to Moore Haven.

Clewiston Lock gates in closed position. We turned right.

About half way between Clewiston and Moore Haven we met M/V Mon Ami. Mon Ami is Donnie's (M/V Kasey's Choice) brother Brian's boat. Brian was headed to Stuart for a few days.

M/V Mon Ami

We continued through Moore Haven Lock and Ortona Lock. Past Glades Boat Storage facility and through the Ft. Denaud Bridge where the bridge tender has to walk to the center of the bridge to open it.

Glades Boat Storage

Fort Denaud Bridge (you can see the bridge tender walking just above the left fenders.)

Our day ended when we pulled in to the campground at the Franklin Lock run by the Corps of Engineers. A quiet, clean little place that has power, water, and a view for $24 a night! What a deal!