To read our past cruising adventures, please link to http://www.sailblogs.com/member/diva-di/ .
Welcome to the Cruising Adventures of Diva Di
Making the switch from SailBlogs.
Overall Impressions –
Overall, we really enjoyed our cruise. The goals were met:
1. Visit 8 different clubs in our Florida Council of Yacht Club to complete our 13 log signatures for 2023.
2. Introduce some new club members/friends (DeVere and Carole) to FCYC cruising and get to know them better.
3. Enjoy a relaxing time in comfort most of the time.
I think back to the many adventurous times we had on the water in over 30,000 nautical miles and miss some of it, but I am not ashamed to say that we are both much more into the pleasure aspect of pleasure boating now. We have some cruising friends in New England who just gave up sailing when the man turned 90. We will certainly be done boating long before that.
I was grateful that we had no boat failures other than a clogged water hose that was easily remedied. We enjoyed mostly good weather, although the temperatures would not have been conducive to comfortable anchoring most of the time. Those days are coming as winter approaches here in southwest Florida.
Statistics
Days out – 15
Anchored – 2
Marina – 2
Yacht Club (paid) – 3
Free YC stays – 8
Miles travelled – 239.7 nautical miles
Engine hours – 33.1
Costs – [With yacht clubs, we won’t know the cost for at least 6 weeks when the bills get transferred intra-club and we see a statement, but with all the free nights, it will not be too bad.]
Water/pump-out – 0
Provisions – $417
Laundry – $0
Fuel – $330 (estimated)
Fees – $0
Dockage – TBD
Moorings – $0
Meals out – TBD
Entertainment – TBD
Repairs – $0
Transportation – $0
Miscellaneous – $0
Day 15 – Punta Gorda, FL (home)
Day 15 – Fri 13 Oct 2023
Docked – Punta Gorda, FL (home)
It was nice to wake up and get the generator and A/C working again right away. Diane got up early enough that we could leave before 0800 and the ride was a delight. We enjoyed a light wind and tiny waves over our shoulders the entire 2.2 hours.
Our friend and neighbor arrived home from being away to find her home A/C did not work, so she stayed at our place for several days. We let her know we were coming home a few days earlier than planned, but that she did not have to leave. It turns out that her problem was fixed late the evening before, so she was just leaving as we arrived and docked.
As is typical, Diane had readied all our stuff to be taken off the boat within minutes of finishing the tie-up and getting the power connected. Inside, we each attacked our portion of the chores and she already had laundry started within a half hour. There was a ribbon-cutting ceremony at our club for the new dock that afternoon, but we were too tired to even think about it.
One more post tomorrow for this cruise. Thanks for following along.
Day 14 – Gasparilla Island, FL
Day 14 – Thu 12 Oct 2023
Anchored – Gasparilla Island, FL
Bud was eager for his morning treat and a nice walk, despite the growing wind strength. Diane slept past 0800 and said she slept well for a change. For many reasons, I made the decision to head south today and anchor a few hours short of home. The forecast was for much wind and rain at the Field Club, and not as much farther south.
The ride was very comfortable for the first 4 hours with waves less than a half-foot in the protected waters. The wind gust rattled the Bimini frame occasionally, but overall, it was nice. We saw no rain at all, by the way.
We stopped for fuel as we were low, and our home club’s fuel pumps have not been connected yet. As we continued south, the wave action was worse (but only up to 1-foot) owing to the mostly open water and the wind direction not being quite as forecast. My plan was to anchor in a spot that should have been free of wave action, but the winds were much more out of the south than southwest, so we rolled a bit in the beginning.
Many people would have just continued home since it was only 1430 and home was a little over 2 hours away. And in hindsight, we certainly should have, too. I tried to rig an anchor bridle to hold the bows more into the waves, and it worked to a noticeable degree.
Next, I surrendered to the fact that Diane was correct, the temperature and humidity were far too high for the wind speed to compensate, and it was miserably hot and muggy inside the boat. She could have handled it, but not me.
I decided that we would do what so many other boaters we know now do, close all the boat openings, turn on the generator for as many hours as it takes, and run the air conditioning. We did that from about 1600 to 1930. At that time, the boat was plenty cool and dehumidified, and I wanted quiet as the big squall line approached the coast.
Anchored within 200 yards of the golf course outside the “city” of Boca Grande, where billionaires come to play from time to time, I could only get a meager 4G signal on Verizon. It was not good enough for any worthwhile connectivity. I tried restarting the laptop and phone and nothing improved. It was strange, to be sure.
Much later, I finally got enough connectivity to watch the squall on my phone’s RADAR app and all the really nasty parts missed us by a mile or more. We did get some heavy rain and a short blast of higher gusts, but we were fortunate.
Once the effects of the storm had passed and we were in nearly calm conditions, I turned the generator and A/C for another hour or so to get the boat chilled prior to bed and then shut down everything again. It was still warmer than I like in the berth, but once 0500 rolled around, I got up and cooled things down again.
That sure was a lot of unnecessary messing around, generator fuel burn, and anxiety that we could have avoided by just going that extra 2 hours to home. Oh, well.
Day 13 – Sarasota, FL (Field Club)
Day 13 – Wed 11 Oct 2023
Docked – Sarasota, FL (Field Club)
After a very restful overnight, I was up even before Bud started his alarm clock duties. He wolfed down his morning wet food but had no immediate interest in going out once I put the harness on. Later, just before sunrise, he decided he had better take the opportunity, so we went.
With the weather forecasts calling for high winds and frequent rain, it would be much more comfortable for us to move from here to the Field Club a day early. At 0900, I was able to change our arrival to later today and confirmed that there would be no penalty for canceling our second day here.
After getting a bag of ice, we shoved off 15 minutes later and had a very nice ride south on the Intracoastal Waterway for 3.5 hours. The Field Club is a very nice facility, with a gorgeous, old building and expansive lap pool, plus tennis and a great marina. We got settled and went immediately to the pool. Diane enjoyed a lounger and a great book, and I read in the pool by the wall.
We conversed with a longtime member about his club, and it was interesting. For example, many years back the club was experiencing diminishing membership due to deaths, people moving back up north to be with the family, etc. The commodore at the time suggested announcing that initiation fees would go up from $10,000 to $20,000 the following year. That apparently brought in a flood of new members trying to beat the increase. Pretty smart marketing.
Another boating couple (from Carlouel YC) arrived, and Diane initiated the introductions. They were on their way back home from an aborted attempt to visit the Bahamas due to bad weather. Due to their working lives, they could only devote 17 days maximum to the cruise. That is a very optimistic goal.
After eating a salad and penne pasta with homemade meat sauce onboard, we got together with other couple for a short while at Happy Hour, but just before they were set to walk the three-fifths of a mile to a local steakhouse, it started raining rather heavily. We got soaked just going the 100 feet to our boat.
Back onboard and drying out, we both relaxed and called it an early night. The current plan is to move south in the wind and occasional rain to a comfortable anchorage off Gasparilla Island. That would put us home early on Fri, two days earlier than planned.
Day 12 – Palmetto, FL (Bradenton YC)
Day 12 – Tue 10 Oct 2023
Docked – Palmetto, FL (Bradenton YC)
Bud did not care to go out for his morning walk for unknown reasons. That was OK by me.
We had a lazy early morning and a call to the dockmaster at Bradenton Yacht Club allowed us to leave just after 0900 for the 30-minute run. Bud was on the flybridge as usual, but he jumped off the boat immediately upon arrival and dashed under the gazebo adjacent to our place on the long wall. Once we had the boat secure enough, Diane made it her mission to retrieve him, but that was folly.
Left to his own devices, he explored the grounds a little bit, just out of her reach, and then scampered back under the gazebo. Not too long afterwards, he left his hidey hole and jumped back aboard, no doubt feeling good about his impulsive adventure.
I got ready for the pool, and it was chilly, even for me. They do make a big deal about their heated pool on the website, but maybe they just forgot to turn on the heater after the recent cold snap. Diane came up to read on a lounger while I read in the pool.
We shared an order of chicken wings poolside for lunch and continued our sessions of relaxation and reading all afternoon. I was napping aboard when Diane came back in with Bud without his harness. She had opened the door to hang a bathing suit off our stern bench and he dashed out again to disappear under the gazebo. She finally got him back inside.
Near 1730, we set out for a short walk and were greeted by a seeming onslaught of cars coming into the club. Later, I asked what was going on and someone said it was “Two-fer Tuesday” with special meal and beer pricing.
Tomorrow, we hope to borrow some bicycles and ride around Snead Island. On Thu, we plan to move south to the Field Club in South Sarasota and should be fighting a strong southwesterly wind.
Day 11 – Bradenton, Fl (Twin Dolphin Marina)
Day 11 – Mon 9 Oct 2023
Docked – Bradenton, Fl (Twin Dolphin Marina)
With the evenings cooling down into the 60F range, it is easier to stay comfortable in the berth. Bud is still trying to get me up near 0430, but at least he will go away for a short stint, like a feline snooze alarm.
We have been docking with the port side of the boat against the dock the entire cruise until getting here. Each time he exits our door, he goes to the port side to jump off and appears surprised that there is only water. I had to coax him to the starboard side to jump off the boat onto the dock.
At 0500, there was no one on the street, so he was OK up there. A car came by, and he turned around, so we wound up at the locked gate to the pool and bathrooms where no pets are allowed. He desperately wanted to go through that gate (he would fit) and I had to be careful he did not slip out of his harness. Eventually, I got him back to our dock and the boat.
At 0900 I went to the marina office to borrow one of their loaner bicycles. I made sure to take a lock since I was going inside a Publix grocery store to shop. Libbie advised me that going straight over the bridge adjacent to the marina would get me to a Publix faster and probably safer from heavy traffic than the one on this side of the river.
I missed the easy and superior entrance to the pedestrian/bike lane, waited an extra 5 minutes to cross two busy streets, and wound up on the bridge shoulder with my back to the roaring traffic. The bike’s tires were half flat, and I could not adjust the seat (way too low), so I could not make it up the incline and had to walk. A tire shop on the other side of the bridge offered to add air and that made a huge improvement.
It was no different than any other city where impatient drivers make for dangerous conditions, especially for bicyclists and pedestrians. I got to Publix OK and found what I needed, filling the small backpack to the max. The ride home was much better since I was in the proper, safer lane, although one driver pulled in front of me across the sidewalk and then stopped. I missed hitting him by inches.
With the air temperature on the cool side, I cooked up the food for a future meal or two. We then left to explore the beautiful Riverwalk that extends about 1.3 miles from the marina to the east. It was well used during the time we were there.
I spent time at the pool, which was on the chilly side, but acceptable to me. The cloud cover kept expanding, so I went back to our boat after only an hour. Supper later was not very healthy, but delicious – a juicy cheeseburger with grilled onions and peppers, and a large portion of steamed Broccoli.
We both read for a long while and then sat with Bud on the flybridge as the sun set and the evening cooled even more. Diane was toasty enough in her flannel nightie. We both read more before bed. This is a boring trip in many ways, but we are relaxing and enjoying our time, so it is all good.
Day 10 – Bradenton, Fl (Twin Dolphin Marina)
Day 10 – Sun 8 Oct 2023
Docked – Bradenton, Fl (Twin Dolphin Marina)
After a comfortable rest, it was a somewhat cool early morning for Bud’s walk around the property. He still tried to go everywhere he shouldn’t, which is his M.O.
We got underway at 0800 and headed mostly south with a north wind. It kept the small waves astern of us but let the diesel exhaust odor linger more than I expected. For once, we had a tidal current that was helping us most of the time so it appeared we might reach the marina before their 1300 arrival time, for which they penalize you $50.
We discussed lunch options and Diane thought hot dogs with my special sauerkraut (sauteed onion slivers, cooked apples, and caraway seeds) sounded good. I agreed and we anchored in a spot on the north side of our bay crossing for 40 minutes for me to prepare it. It has been many years since we anchored for a lunch break, and it was nice.
Underway in the narrow channel, we had to endure numerous small craft zipping by us at high speed, mostly passing us from astern, which is better. Finally, we reached the open bay and had another ship conflict in the same spot as before. It was not hard to avoid the ship and we soon reached the mouth of the Manatee River where we had to fight the ebbing tide until reaching the marina.
They generally expect you to have no help at the dock, which was fine for us. After tying up, we plugged in the electrical cord and got no power. It took a bit of fussing and a visit by the marina staff to find that the circuit breaker tripped in the dock’s main panel. They have the newer breakers demanded by code which are not “friendly” to some equipment on older boats.
After disabling the ground wire on our boat’s galvanic isolator, all was well. At that time, Tom came over from F dock to welcome us. We agreed on 1630 as time for us to visit with them, so I got us checked in, took a nice shower, hit the pool for a short while, then cooked the shrimp, and we headed over. Diane enjoyed her tome alone with Bud.
They recently traded in their PDQ 34 (like ours) for a PDQ 41, which is huge by comparison. We got a tour of their lovely new-to-them boat and then sat on the expansive flybridge with drinks and snacks. We have only been together a handful of times in perhaps 5 or 6 years, but they are terrific people and very easy to be with. Teresa served a delicious chili in the main saloon and then we walked back to Diva Di and called it a night.
Bud was eager for a trip off the boat, but you exit the dock through a locked gate right on the waterfront promenade and it was still too full of people for his liking. We will remain here another day and night and then move a short distance to the Bradenton Yacht Club on Tue.
Day 9 – Clearwater, FL (Clearwater YC)
Day 9 – Sat 7 Oct 2023
Docked – Clearwater, FL (Clearwater YC)
[It was a mostly cloudy day and taking photos never occurred to me, today.]
Bud’s alarm clock must be off because he thinks 0430 is now 0500. We had a nice walk on the property, but he loves to try to go underneath all the boat racks, sheds, trailered boats, and anything that would allow him to escape the harness. I was able to avoid any major issues and got him back aboard after a half hour.
We went a whole week without having to defrost the refrigerator, but all it takes are a few food or beverage items that are not tightly sealed and the moisture winds up as heavy frost on the evaporator plate. My abbreviated method takes about one minute of actual work after turning off the power for 90 minutes, so it is not a burden.
At 0900, we walked the short distance to the Island Market where, surprisingly, we scored a tomato, bell pepper, and some deli meat. Their sister store had a replacement rum bottle (“Why is the rum always gone?” Said Capt. Jack Sparrow). The best part was by using a $50 bill in each store and asking nicely, we came away with badly needed $5 and $10 bills for dockhand tips. Somehow our stash on the boat was not replenished.
I was at the pool by 1030 and a few members joined me before too long. It was a great group, and we enjoyed a lot of fun conversation. I left to get a little lunch onboard and when I headed back Diane was walking down the dock towards our boat with a large paper towel seemingly soaked in blood. She had skinned her shin the other day and it opened again when hit it while she stepped on someone’s new boat by invitation.
She put a bandage on it but several hours later the bandage came off and she had blood all over our boat, too. It took a very heavy gauze pad and lots of tape pressure to keep it from bleeding further.
The fun gang at the pool apparently decided not to come back after their break and I had the place all to myself for a few hours after lunch. I went back to Diva Di until supper time – pan-seared salmon and a large salad. Having started the “party” just before noon, we wisely elected to stay aboard after supper and make it another early bedtime.
Tomorrow, we have a longish run south, across Tampa Bay, and into the Manatee River to stay for two nights at the Twin Dolphin marina.
Day 8 – Clearwater, FL (Clearwater YC)
Day 8 – Fri 6 Oct 2023
Docked – Clearwater, FL (Clearwater YC)
It was a very comfortable night, but Bud was highly insistent on getting me up just before 0500. We had a nice walk in the light breeze and he stayed on lead the entire time. I even had no trouble pointing him back towards the boat and he went without complaint.
The boat was filthy from bird droppings and some stains that I can’t identify and have no clue how they got there. Without access to a good water source, I used a bucket to get the most egregious stuff off the deck and waited until arrival at the Clearwater Yacht Club.
The 2.9 nm ride was slow and pretty, with a mix of low mangrove islets and high-rise condos. There are plenty of places to run aground it you are not careful, but the channels are well marked.
The water pressure at our dock was terrific, so after settling in, I could do a decent job of cleaning the boat. After that, it was straight to the showers and pool. Another surprise for us was the complete remodeling of the lower floor of the clubhouse. Fortunately, the baths and showers were available.
The pool was delightful, and we had it all to ourselves until a lovely woman joined us. She owns the small hotel and marina next door and is a member. We had conversations on numerous interesting topics. We were joined by a marina tenant of hers who just bought a power catamaran, so he and I had a lot to discuss, especially since they want to do some extensive cruising in the next few years.
Onboard Diva Di, we had a delicious salad for lunch because we planned to order some unhealthy food from the club for an early supper. The chicken wings, calamari, and BLT were pretty good, and we took a bit back with us. Diane stayed to socialize at the Tiki Bar for a bit, but I had been socializing nonstop since 1000, so I needed a break.
After the light of the day faded, I though Bud would enjoy a walk, but was not interested. Diane and I wisely avoided going back to the bar and stayed aboard to read until a very early bedtime. We will be here another full day and night and then move south to the Twin Dolphin marina in Bradenton. They are now at $4.25 per foot of boat length. Wow, how marina costs have skyrocketed in the past several years!
If we just wanted to pass the time and enjoy life aboard for those two days, there are plenty of places to anchor. We had not visited the south shore of the Manatee River and its lovely riverwalk in over a decade, so we decided to give it a try.
Day 7 – Clearwater, FL (Carlouel YC)
Day 7 – Thu 5 Oct 2023
Docked – Clearwater, FL (Carlouel YC)
Well, you knew Bud was going to have a grand adventure at some point, right? I got him in harness at 0530 and he jumped off the side of the boat to the floating dock. I had to use the transom steps and cannot hold the lead at that point, so I usually toss it down to the dock and pick it up a few moments later.
The lead got fouled on the dock cleat and he took only several seconds to pull out of the harness (cats can turn to liquid when they want to). What followed was me trying to casually chase him in the dark, but he made it a game and always stayed a few steps ahead of me. It was a pretty and tortuous path through all the foliage and walkways until several hundred yards later, we encountered the property fence.
Bud slipped right between the bars and since the fence gate was padlocked shut, I could not follow. I have been in this situation before and the only thing to do is go back to the boat with the confidence that he will find his way back before too long. About 20 minutes later I walked up to use the shoreside facilities and found him on the dock walking towards the boat as I returned. I am sure he wishes he could have that freedom at every stop.
About 0900, I said hello to the 4 boat visitors near us and was handed a morning cocktail of pear juice, a strip of cooked bacon, and some alcohol (probably vodka). It was unexpected and surprisingly tasty. We had a great time sharing stories and they were eager to hit the beach at low tide, as Diane had previously suggested.
Diane arranged for beach chairs and an umbrella, and we went over at 1030, near low tide. The shelling was the best we have done in many years and we came back with many new treasures. Our new friends were similarly thrilled.
After a simple, healthy lunch aboard, I spent several hours in the pool reading while Diane went back to the beach. After a long nap, we ate chili and Broccoli for supper.
I took Bud out at dusk and started a chat with a nice couple who turned out to be new members. One of their friends arrived, whom I had met the previous day, and we all had a terrific time getting to know each other for an hour or more.
It was soon time for us to call it a night after a very enjoyable day. Tomorrow, we move early to the Clearwater Yacht Club just a half hour south of us.
divadiblog 