Apalachicola to Pensacola

After two days in Apalachicola it was time to move on. For the first few miles we fought a strong outgoing tide. Once the Apalachicola River turned North the tide switched and we had a nice shove from behind.

We passed through the Apalachicola RR Bridge which is normally open.

We also passed this fishing shack along the GICW.

And of course the token sunken boat.

No markers required. Just stay between the trees!

Just past White City we turned south toward Port St. Joe and their marina. A turn that we had never made in our previous times through this area.

Shortly after the turn we came upon these two vessels. I'm not sure what they were used for although based on the number of clothes hangers hanging on the top deck I'd say that diving was a part of their history.

Another couple of derelicts lined our way to Port St. Joe.

Five miles after we turned off the GICW we arrived at Port St. Joe Marina. A cute (Pam's word) little marina that every fall attracts the Looper crowd. After stopping here I can see why. A nice clean marina with a good restaurant and a town within walking distance that has the ameneties that a cruiser desires.
Our stay here proved once again what a small world the boating community is. We ran into two boats that we had crossed paths with at Legacy in the past. M/V Spiritus and M/V Emery El.

Port St. Joe Marina.

The view from our stern.

Pam with Eddie and Linda from M/V Spititus.

Needing to take advantage of the good weather we moved on the next day retracing the five miles to the GICW and continuing on to Panama City where we made a brief stop for fuel before traveling another 15 miles to an anchorage off of Choctwahatchie Bay. Fortunately the forecast was accurate and the wind dropped after sunset providing us with one of the best nights on the hook that we've had on this trip.

Back between the trees.

Waiting for work.

Past the port of Panama City.

Up again earlier than we're accustomed to since we changed time zones yesterday, we enjoyed a beautiful sunrise.

Sunrise at our anchorage off Choctwahatchie Bay.

We wondered what this dock was for since no house was visible?

At first I wondered what was wrong with the boat then I looked up to see what the noise was.

Fort Walton Beach and their free dock was our destination today. We arrived in time to check out the Indian festival taking place in the adjacent park and stroll around town. By now the wind had picked up from the Southeast providing our dock with a bit of chop. No worries though, the dock is built well. The only problem is the ignorant boaters who ignore the no wake zone that the dock resides in.

Part of the ceremony at the festival.

Tourist at the free dock.

Spotted this guy warning the bird not to do anything stupid!

The forecast for Monday was for increasing winds throughout the morning and severe weather on Tuesday and Wednesday. With that in mind we got out of Dodge early and headed to Pensacola where we planned on riding out the storms. As we travelled the breeze picked up and the fog set in reducing visibility to 1/2 mile. Fortunately the plotter and the radar were working and we made it into Palafox Pier Marina in Pensacola by 10 am.

This guy was taking advantage of the breeze to dry out.

We passed these soldiers running along the beach.

Looking behind us betrays the view over our bow.

Our early arrival enabled us to take a brief stroll around the downtown area before the weather set in. They've done a good job of restoring the older buildings and bringing in a variety of shops and businesses.

This corner featured 4 Airstream trailers made into small diners each offering a different variety of food.

Near to the marina was this oil rig being worked on.

Pam with the marina behind her.

Monday was primarily windy with a few showers late in the day. After midnight all hell broke loose. High winds, Non-stop rain, and endless lightning. At times being on Tourist was like being a contestant in a rodeo. The severe weather lasted all Tuesday and into Wednesday morning. In all they reported over 2 feet of rain had fallen causing flash flooding all over the area. 5" fell between 9 and 10 pm Tuesday alone. Supposedly this was more rainfall than in all of hurricane Ivan. Over 44,000 lightning strikes were recorded in one hour on Tuesday. And we lost power at the marina for nearly 20 hours. Unfortunately one woman lost her life due to the flooding.

Here are a few pics of the aftermath;

 

Waves outside the marina.

Pumping out the neighbors dinghy.

As I write this it's raining again but not with the intensity of last night. Hopefully by tomorrow the weather will improve and we can keep on moving on.