Lantana-Ft lauderdale-Miami

We had a beautiful evening at anchor in Lantana. It was calm, quiet, warmer, and we were the only boat there. We did keep the heater on during the night though. It was predicted to be in the high 30's but never made it that far.

Tuesday morning we pulled anchor by 8:15 and were on our way. The ICW trip to Ft Lauderdale only had about 12 lift bridges to go through. We actually timed them well and only got stuck at one bridge for a half hour waiting for the next opening. We seemed to be ahead of the crowd of boats heading south. We thought we had seen large houses so far but travelling through Boca Raton and Ft Lauderdale all we could say was WOW!!!! Houses and mega yachts just got bigger and bigger as we moved further south. Kinvara pulled into Las Olas Municipal marina (no anchorages in Ft Lauderdale) by 1PM. Liz and Jane quickly got the water taxi for a 2 mile ride down river to hit the Bluewater Book Store to get a cruising guide for the Bahamas and one last trip to Publix grocery store. peter was busy on the phone with customs & Immigration to make an appt in Miami to apply for a Local Boater registration card. This allows us to phone in when we return to the US for clearance instead of appearing at the office. Our appointment was made for 1PM Wednesday so it was an early night to get up and head to Miami the next morning.

Kinvara was underway by 7AM to make the first lift bridge opening at 7:15. We then motored 2 miles downriver for the next bridge opening at 7:30AM. As we passed through and began to head out the ocean channel a large Bahamas cruise ship was docking. Talk about Karma. We started to get excited about the reality of finally getting there!!! Today we had to go the ocean route for 20NM because there is a 56' fixed bridge in the ICW which we can't get under. Conditions were good. North winds 10-15k and following seas of 3-5 feet. It was a little rolly after doing the ICW for so long but we needed to get our sea legs back. We pulled into Miami Beach Marina (think South Beach) by 11AM. peter and Jane left at 12:30 in a taxi to get their customs card and Liz left to do laundry and walk around. Little Pretzel stayed at home and slept the afternoon away. So now it's after dinner and Peter is copying some of our important documents for back up, we have the quarantine flag ready to fly (Bahamas courtesy flag waiting also), fueled & watered up. Every inch of space is full of food supplies, chips, crackers, beer, Coke, and anything else people told us to bring. The freezer is full to the top with meats for about 70 meals for 2 people. We will hit the bed early, be up at 6AM, and head out of Miami Harbor toward Bimini Island. the wind is switching east (On our nose) but the waves are calming down and it's our best weather window until next week. We will be able to blog only when we can get a wireless connection (no wireless air cards there!) but you can always check the blog for our GPS location under "Where is Kinvara". Hopefully our next blog will be from the Bahamas.

Ft Pierce to Lantana mile 1031

We got an early start today at 7.30. It was not as cold as previous days so our spirits were much higher. We hope to make it to Ft. Lauderdale, mile 1064, by early Tuesday so the further we get today the shorter the distance tomorrow. Once again we had N, NW following wind gusting to 20 at times and for most of the day following seas. We set the jib early and within the hour we also set the main, which combined with the engine, pushed us at 9+ mph for most of the day. Some of the areas we passed were beyond belief. The houses were incredible and in some places the boats were equally incredible. Of course Palm Beach and West Palm Beach were the most incredible. All you can say is WOW over and over again.
We arrived in Lantana and set anchor by 5 0'clock. Chicken on the grill with potatoes and veg. for dinner after a nine hour 67sm day was just what the doctor ordered. It is nice to realize that we only have 33sm to go to Ft. Lauderdale tomorrow. We hope to be there before noon time to take care of some business and to pick up some books for the Bahamas. We are hoping that we will not have to use the heater for too many more nights, The weather forecast predicts warmer days ahead. I talk to Dave and Trudy every night at 8 on the SSB and they keep our spirits up with reports of sun and fun. We can't wait to join them in the next few weeks.
Ft. Lauderdale tomorrow and the adventure continues.

Melbourne to Ft Pierce Florida

After having a very nice dinner at the dockside tiki bar & grill last night we settled down to a very cold night. Liz Murphy (Peter's cousin) retired with pillows packed against the hull for insulation in her forward bunk and a hot water bottle for extra warmth. She was very surprised to find that we had one. (standard equipment in our house) The wind was blowing all night and we woke at 3:30-4:00AM, noticing the heat had gone off. Peter was up, turned it back on, and cranked the temp to the top. It ran continuously until Jane got up at 6AM. Last night the record for coldest night was broken with the wind chill this morning at 22'F.
We left the dock by 8:30AM, heading south, leaving our destination up to the day's progress. We had the north wind behind us so our jib went out and we travelled most of the day at 9.2mph over ground. It was still cold in the cockpit but the sun helped to make it more tolerable. We passed some magnificent homes along Vero Beach.











Eleven miles later we called it quits in Ft Pierce. Peter got a local to take him to top up our propane and then he and Liz walked to West Marine and the grocery store. Dave & Trudie, if you read this, we have coffee and wheat thins to bring to you. That will give you an excuse to slow down and find us in the Exumas!!!

Behind our boat is another little island that serves as a rookery for the sea birds. We saw the same thing in New Smyna Beach but did not get a picture. It's fascinating watching the birds circle this place for an hour before nesting for the night. It's quiet too!! Leaving early tomorrow for Lake Worth. Our plan is to get to Ft Lauderdale by Tuesday. It's 100 miles from here. Not as cold tonight so we are hoping for warmer days ahead!!

Canaveral to Melbourne

Christa McAuliffe Bridge crosses into NASA...named after the teacher in space who died in the Challenger explosion. Christa was a year ahead of Jane in her high school and her college. This bridge spans the Canaveral Barge Canal between the ICW and the ocean.

Kinvara got underway today at 9:30AM, passed through a lift bridge, a lock, and 1 more lift bridge before entering the ICW south again. Once there the north winds were behind us so it was easier. However we were dressed in many layers, rain gear, and cockpit enclosure closed but still cold. We could see our breath so we knew it was colder than any day we had moving south. The further we got the colder we got until we were so cold we could not contemplate another 2-3 hours. So after 4.5 hours and 26 miles we pulled into Melbourne Harbor Marina, plugged in, and turned on the heat. After sandwiches and soup for lunch we settled down for the power nap. Peter's cousin, Liz Murphy, and Jane took a walk through historic Melbourne for an hour or two. A computer check of weather showed the temperature to be 36' at 2:30. It will be around 28' overnight. Florida has had a cold spell for a week. Plants and palm trees are dying as well as animals...turtles, armadillos, manatees, etc. We hope to leave in the morning by 7:30 and move as far as we can. There are only 2 lift bridges to move through. It is suppose to be sunny so we will have more warmth inside our cockpit enclosure. Don't know where we will end up so check in tomorrow.

Peter and cousin Liz staying warm.

Pretzel's "igloo".

Preparations

It's countdown time. Only 4 days until we plan to push off the dock again. Peter has been busy taking care of boat insurance, fixing our pool leak, and paperwork for the Bahamas. Jane has been making lists and menus for provisioning. She spent the morning at the supermarket and the afternoon organizing supplies on the dining room table. Tomorrow is BJ's Day to get meat for the freezer. We are bringing enough for 70 dinners so we will have to eat out and catch some fish along the way. We have 3 people on the boat for 4 weeks and 5 people during one of those weeks. We are still expecting some deliveries of medicine, cruising guides, and Irish brown bread mix so if they don't arrive by Friday then we may have to delay leaving.

Our dining room table made a good lay out for supplies. Our freezer is full to the top with meats and Jane gave up one clothes locker for chips & snacks. We have been told by friends already there that they are hard to come by and if you get them a bag of chips can be $6. Beer is also expensive so we are going to learn to drink rum...pain killers baby!!! If Pretzel gets too demanding we might give her a sip as well.

A new decade

Happy New Year

So today is January 1, a new decade, and we are preparing for our next trip to the Bahamas. Peter's cousin, Elizabeth, arrives Tuesday and we will head to the boat on Friday the 8th. Hope to be on our way to Miami on Saturday the 9th. and crossing to the Bahamas during the next week. We will update our blog during the week as we provision, check systems, and get ready for departure.

Our New year was spent in Florida with friends at a street party in our
development, dancing, eating, and having fun! We even had a ball drop at midnight!

We had a wonderful trip to Colorado and spending Christmas with Sarah and Natalie.

We visited Vail, Breckenridge, Keystone, and Arapaho ski areas and took a ride to Loveland Pass which marks the Continental Divide through the rocky Mountains. It is a beautiful area but pretty darn cold. We're glad to be sailing to warmer weather.

Trip complete.....for now!

Well our trip south is over for now. Thanks to everyone who checked in every now & again and commented or emailed us along the way. It was really nice to have that contact. It helped to keep us grounded. We had some wonderful stand out experiences and made many friends along the way. Hopefully we will see them at some point in time again.

We are taking a much needed break for 4-5 weeks to spend Christmas with family and friends. We fly to Colorado Dec. 23 to have Christmas with our girls, returning for NY Eve in Florida. After that we will start planning and provisioning for our next trip Southeast to the Bahamas.

So.......check back in with us in January to see what our progress is.

Hope your Christmas and holidays are happy and your New Year is prosperous.

Peter, Jane, & Pretzel