2012-03-06 How quickly we forget …..

Firstly – HAPPY EASTER to everyone who reads our blogs!!

A few days ago it was a beautiful day – hot, sunny, cloudless and windless. So we thought we’d take Amadink for a little ride up the ICW and have lunch at a waterside restaurant just beyond the next bridge.

So we started with a short trip to have a look at the Tiki bar just south of us. We had had dinner there when we first arrived in Riviera Beach and really enjoyed it. Unfortunately there was no place for dinghies to tie up to so we moved on.

Back we went, past New Port Cove Marine Center where we are currently tied up and headed further north. Mary had inquired from the office about waterside bars and restaurants and was told that there was one just past the next bridge. Northwards we continued. Never mind that the next bridge was nowhere in sight!!! We’ll just get to the next bend/next small islet/next rock outcropping and then see. Well, after what seemed a long time there was still no bridge in sight!!!

Naturally, being in a protected marina on the protected ICW waters we hadn’t bothered to look at the charts an neither had we looked at the weather report!!

By the time we turned around, never having even seen the bridge, the wind had piped up considerably. I know that I had looked at Windfinder the day before and the report was for 10 knot winds.

I knew that the wind that we were now experiencing was way in excess of 10k coming from the south!!! The tide was also ebbing!! So we had a wind against tide effect. Now, those of you that have been reading this blog regularly will know that I have detailed the effects of wind against tide. Suffice it to say that we got WET returning back to our marina.

We did stop off in the lee of Peanut Island for a couple of hours where we dried off and baked in the sun and actually had a great time!

Returning to Amanzi we found that the next bridge was about 3 1/2 miles north of us and the wind report recorded 20, gusting 25, knots while windefinder was still forecasting 10-14!!!! Story of our whole trip!!

Since then we have been lazing around – cleaning the boat and getting some boat chores done.

We can’t believe that we’ll be winging our way home to New Zealand in 8 days time!!

Then it’ll be our youngest daughter, Shannon’s wedding. Guess I’ll have to prepare some kind of father of the bride speech in the next few days :)

Hard at work sanding chairs and tables
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Hard at work sanding chairs and tables
It's amazing what the Bahamas sun di to the woodwork!
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It's amazing what the Bahamas sun di to the woodwork!
New Port Cove Marina - where we're currently moored
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New Port Cove Marina - where we're currently moored
Tiki Bar - no place to tie up dinghy :(
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Tiki Bar - no place to tie up dinghy :(
Interesting tug boat
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Interesting tug boat
Relaxing on Peanut Island
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Relaxing on Peanut Island
Without the wind -  a perfect day
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Without the wind - a perfect day
But see the wind-generated waves inside the marina
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But see the wind-generated waves inside the marina
Posted in Going home | 3 Comments

2 April 2012 – A side trip off the ICW

On Thursday we decided it would be quite nice to have a bit of a break from the boat and do some land based sight seeing. So we hired a car and on Friday morning (after running a couple of errands) we headed north to Titusville.

As it was almost April 1st we thought it might be fun to keep Spot running on our travels. So for those of you who’ve been following us, you may have noticed that we seemed to be travelling over the land and ending each day at a land based location – this was our best attempt at an April Fools joke. :-)

Anyway our first errand on Friday was to go Walmart and try and get our vehicle GPS replaced. We’d bought it in Walmart in Baltimore at the beginning of October but it was no longer working – it’s been safely stored in a drawer since then but perhaps somehow the sea air got to it!

No luck though – it was out of the warranty period – and as our second errand involved getting a new sim card for the ipad, which was also no longer working, we made a snappy choice and bought another Tom Tom. At least now we could get to where we were planning to go!

The next stop was at an amazing mall – The Gardens Mall. It was huge, with lots of flowers and water features. Of course it also had all the big names like Louis Vuitton. Another first for us was that it even had the Easter Bunny in a lovely butterfly garden and you could have photos taken with him/her- just like Father Christmas at home. I resisted though, just settling for a photo of the bunny. :-)

We arrived at Titusville in the late afternoon and checked in to our hotel – all very nice with a convenient Denny’s on the premises.

These two nights were to be the first nights that Lance & I have slept in a bed, that doesn’t go up and down and sideways, since we moved onto Amanzi in early October. We were looking forward to some very restful sleep – no weather to worry about and no water to be heard lapping around the boat.

Estelle and Alastair were also looking forward to their bed – no climbing over each other to get in or out! :-)

The Easter Bunny's garden
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The Easter Bunny's garden
Happy Easter!
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Happy Easter!
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I'm not sure Lance - are you tall enough for the Shuttle launch simulator?
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I'm not sure Lance - are you tall enough for the Shuttle launch simulator?
The vehicle assembly plant at KSC - it is HUGE!
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The vehicle assembly plant at KSC - it is HUGE!
An engine from a Shuttle - Wow where would you even begin?
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An engine from a Shuttle - Wow where would you even begin?
Lunar landing module - "The Eagle has landed!"
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Lunar landing module - "The Eagle has landed!"
Apollo capsule
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Apollo capsule
Mission Control - the actual consoles used in the Apollo missions
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Mission Control - the actual consoles used in the Apollo missions
Yours truly touching a Moon Rock - for real!
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Yours truly touching a Moon Rock - for real!
One of the launch pads
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One of the launch pads
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Lance dwarfed by the Saturn rocket
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Lance dwarfed by the Saturn rocket
Estelle & Alastair - ready for the air boat tour
All set for our air boat ride
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All set for our air boat ride
Fishermen in the lily pond
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Fishermen in the lily pond
A gorgeous water lily
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A gorgeous water lily
Heading through the greenery
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Heading through the greenery
It was very loud - ear muffs were provided!
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It was very loud - ear muffs were provided!
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A small alligator hiding in the reeds
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A small alligator hiding in the reeds
Estelle & Alastair enjoying the boat ride
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Estelle & Alastair enjoying the boat ride
Where's all the water - the lily pond was very dense
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Where's all the water - the lily pond was very dense
A storm shelter on the banks of the river
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A storm shelter on the banks of the river
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DSC00033-760
Cocoa Beach
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Cocoa Beach
A perfect day at Cocoa Beach
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A perfect day at Cocoa Beach

The Kennedy Space Center was fantastic – we enjoyed every minute of it and could probably have spent a lot longer than one day there. For me it has always been the Apollo program which stands out for me – I guess I was a very impressionable young girl back in 1969 when we listened to the first moon landing over the radio. Back in those days we had no TV in the very small town in Zimbabwe where we lived.

Yesterday we headed for Cocoa Beach and had a drink there in the beachfront bar. It was a perfect day.

As you can tell we just can’t stay too long away from the water and we then went to the upper reaches of the St Johns River and went for a air boat ride. It was excellent and we all enjoyed it very much. Mind you I’m not sure about what must be worse – doing a donut in an air boat in the alligator infested waters or doing a donut in front of the rocks on the jet boat rides that we get in New Zealand! (I’ve never been game enough to do that!)

We saw lots of alligators peeking out of the water and quite a bit of bird life. We even stopped to chat with some local fishermen out in the middle of the lily pond and they were more than happy to show off their catches to us.

Last night it was back to Riviera Beach and Amanzi. The weather has been perfect and very hot – the marina we’re in has a boat club and all 62 of its boats were out yesterday although they were apparently all caught in a big squall.

And oh yes – you’re probably wondering – did we sleep better on dry land? Unfortunately no – not really – it may be a while before we settle back in to a normal sleeping pattern. :-)

 

Posted in Admiral's Comments, Going home | Comments Off

2012-03-27 Still Chillin’ in West Palm Beach area

Not really much to say except that we are still hanging around here. Boat has been cleaned of all the salt – nice to have an endless supply of fresh water with high pressure! The dingy has been scrubbed clean – amazing how dirty it got even though we intermittently gave it a reasonable clean. Still have to polish some of the stainless stanchions.

Got our immigration and customs sorted as well as registration of the arrival of a foreign registered boat.

Also been to the grocery store and stocked up on some essentials – beer, soft drink etc :)

For the next few days we will continue to hang around here, doing a bit of sight-seeing and stuff before we continue north up the ICW to Fernandina Beach.

Posted in Going home | Comments Off

2012-03-25 Back, back, back in the US of A

Yep, we’re back! Had a great crossing from Bimini yesterday. Wind was about 6-8 knots; sea state about 1-2 feet, all on the starboard quarter, ie perfect conditions. Mind you we did wait a week for the weather window!!!

We spent our last couple of days in Bimini soaking up the sun at the pool at the Big Game club, enjoying a great “last supper” at the club. Started off by great cocktails, naturally and a great meal.

Sometimes, the best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry!!

Yesterday, on arrival, like a good little boy, I phoned in our details to the US CBP (Customs and Border Protection) and was given the standard 24 hours for all of us to present ourselves in person to the nearest customs and immigration. This office is just a short taxi ride from our marina – 10 minutes maximum. Half the reason we came to Lake Worth was for the convenience of the location and hence the ease of sorting things out.

But, as I said, the best laid plans…. True to form the customs/immigration office close by is closed on Saturdays and Sundays :( So we have to take a taxi to the airport to check in. Man!!!!!!!

Bimini - fairly deserted!!
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Bimini - fairly deserted!!
Amanzi - waiting for the weather window!
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Amanzi - waiting for the weather window!
Bimini Blue Water Marina
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Bimini Blue Water Marina
Pool at Big Game Club
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Pool at Big Game Club
Soaking up some sun!
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Soaking up some sun!
Chilling out!
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Chilling out!
Hot!!!
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Hot!!!
At dinner - last night in the Bahamas
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At dinner - last night in the Bahamas
At dinner - last night in the Bahamas
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At dinner - last night in the Bahamas
At dinner - last night in the Bahamas
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At dinner - last night in the Bahamas
At dinner - last night in the Bahamas
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At dinner - last night in the Bahamas
Pre-dinner cocktails
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Pre-dinner cocktails
Sunrise over Bimini as we leave
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Sunrise over Bimini as we leave
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P3246848-760
Heading across the Gulf Stream - Bahamian flag still flying
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Heading across the Gulf Stream - Bahamian flag still flying
BLue waters of the Gulf Stream
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BLue waters of the Gulf Stream
Sargasso weed in the Gulf Stream
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Sargasso weed in the Gulf Stream
Florida in the distance
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Florida in the distance
Yellow quarantine flag as we approach the USA
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Yellow quarantine flag as we approach the USA
West Palm Beach
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West Palm Beach
Just a small x-section of the boats on Peanut Island!!!!
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Just a small x-section of the boats on Peanut Island!!!!
Dinner at the Tiki Bar :)
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Dinner at the Tiki Bar :)
Tiki bar
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Tiki bar
Waiting for dinner
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Waiting for dinner
Restaurant was packed - Saturday night and live music
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Restaurant was packed - Saturday night and live music
Relaxed at last
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Relaxed at last

Today, it’s hot here but clouding over with a 40% chance of thunderstorms!!

Posted in Going home | 1 Comment

2012-03-22 Ah well, there’s always lobster….

So, we’re still stuck in Bimini, waiting to cross to West Palm Beach. Sadly we are still waiting for Aeolus** to smile upon us. It appears that he will be sending fair winds from tomorrow and we will probably be heading to the US on Saturday. The last few days it has been blowing around 18 knots consistently from the E/NE – unfavorably for the trip.

We spend our time wandering around Alicetown, going to the beach, talking to other cruisers and eating lobster!

Yesterday we met an Australian couple, Carol and Terry, who are from the western side of Australia. They sold their home and bought a boat in Annapolis last year and have spent till now, fitting it out and traveling down the ICW and finally made it across the Gulf stream a few days ago. Sold him my Hawaiian sling as I have no further use for it!!

Wandering along the western beach of Bimini we came across another wreck – guess this is what happens if you don’t pay attention!! On the western side, the beach and sea are still idyllic as it is protected from the wind. So we keep working on our sun tans!!

In the meantime we buy, yes buy, lobsters from a local fishing boat at $30 for a dozen!! Cheaper than going out and diving for them myself!! So we have lobster salad, lobster in bread rolls, lobster fettuchini, lobster……

Lobster, lobster....
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Lobster, lobster....
Freezer full of lobster
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Freezer full of lobster
Western side of Bimini
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Western side of Bimini
Shipwreck!
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Shipwreck!
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Sad state of decay
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Sad state of decay

Ah well, it’s a hard life….

** Aeolus – Greek God of the Winds

 

Posted in D - Bahamas | Comments Off