On December 13 we gave up the beach house and the rental car and moved back aboard the Irish Attitude. The sea trial called for a final tweak and the dinghy had to be loaded so our plan was to leave Destin on Friday.... The weather had other plans giving us one more day in port. Saturday brought more of the same. Mike and I were just beginning a walk when the weather changed, again! The winds died down the sun came out and at 1:30 p.m. we decided to leave Destin. Our new engine required a break in period of 25 hours. In this time the speed was to be varied or maintained for set periods of time. Luckily the area we were in made it easy follow the instructions. We were not going to go far this day and planned to anchor out but we did traverse Choctawhatee Bay 3 times! I am sure the tow we passed thought we were lost! We idled into a cove near a bridge on US 331. Four dolphins were flanking our beam. I tried repeatedly to get their picture but could not get a clear one. My phone camera has a delay and by the time I clicked, they were under again. I gave up and just enjoyed them. They continued to play in the water around us but did not come close once we had stopped. I don't know if it the engine noise or our motion that attracts them. I don't think I will ever get used to the site. A campground nearby provided the smell of campfires. Our day ended with a glorious sunset!
Sunday morning was foggy as forecasted, thick and heavy. It was 10 a.m. before we could pull out safely. We heard Bob from Karma on the VHF radio and found out they were only 15 minutes ahead of us. They had passed right by our cove in the fog and we never saw each other! The ICW is marked in statue miles on the charts and we were at about St M 250. The next 20 miles would be along a section called Florida's 'Grand Canyon'.
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| The 'Grand Canyon' |
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| 100' Dunes Line the Canyon |
The man-made canal ended and we entered West Bay then North Bay to St. Andrews Bay. We turned back west into Grand Lagoon. Bay Point Marina had excellent reviews on Active Captain and discounts for loopers! Our favorite kind of place! It's a gated condominium community with a restaurant, bank, post office and salon on site. No need to go into nearby Panama City Beach, but we did! We found Makin' Memories and Lady KK were staying for an extended period. Catmandu, True North (Tom and Patsy Conrad's) and Sea Biscuit had left their boats and returned home for the holidays. When Pigs Fly and Carried Away were in port. After dark, Proud Lady pulled in. A trip they wished they had waited a day to make as the weather had gotten rough on the bays and had them entering the shallow channel in the dark. 1-800-Tow-Boat! It's why we all have coverage! Thankfully no damage done. Monday, Mike and I took a taxi into the nearest Walmart for provisions and engine oil. No courtesy car available here, a minor drawback. Our new boat engine was not warming up as expected so Mike called Trevor at Legendary Marine on Monday. Trevor made arrangements for a service tech to come over from their Panama City marina to look at it on Tuesday. It turned out we had one to many thermostats on that engine. A quick fix. We ate at the restaurant on site Wednesday night. Thursday the girls; Joy, Ivy, Joyce and I shopped the outdoor mall and unique shops in the heart of Panama City Beach. Not many shoppers for the season! I purchased some mango salsa after trying 6 different ones. Yum! The Zone and Why Knot were tied up to the wall when we returned. It was getting to be quite a Looperfest! It was Karaoke night at the restaurant and we all went to see if what we heard was true. This is not your typical karaoke. A group of locals follow the karaoke 'player' around and the are talented! Not the off key, giggling groups you may have seen other places. A group of 7 people took turns entertaining us. If you closed your eyes you could imagine Nat King Cole or Karen Carpenter singing Christmas carols. Then 'Jerome' came in! What would he bring to the group. He was dressed in a suit, vest and all and resembled David Ruffin from The Temptations! (You will probably have to look that one up!) It was a fun night and we played, 'Name that Tune'. Bill from Proud Lady was very good!
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| Ross, (Bill Hiding), Joyce, Joy, Bill, Me, Mike and Laura at 30 Degrees |
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| All Was Calm in 'The Ditch' |
Most of the oysters enjoyed in the U.S. come from this bay! Apalachicola Bay is shallow and the marina was hard to spot. Confusing directions from the staff did not help. We pulled in along a face dock and tied up for the night. We had dinner aboard Carried Away. Delicious pork chops Joyce had been preparing all day long. It was hard to judge which was better, the company or the meal! In the morning Joyce and I took the golf cart over to the grocery store. It was freezing, literally! We picked up supplies for our Christmas dinner. The question was... would we be out of the panhandle by then?
We traveled to Carrabelle on Saturday, December 22 and fueled up when we arrived at C Quarters Marina. "Just pull her in sideways Captain", James said. Four guys were gathered at the dock to watch the show. Sorry to disappoint, Mike did an excellent job! The onlookers told me to switch on the bow thruster. I looked at them and filled my checks with air, puffed a few times and the just roared. 'You'll fit in here just fine!", they said. Once in, we had to get back out. No problem, throw out a line and we were guided pack out. This is an experience reserved for only gas engines! Diesel fuel was on the outside of the dock. Sea Hunt IV , friends of Carried Away were already docked. Lisa and Andre are from Sarnia, Onterio, traveling with their two sons, Luc and Pierre. What a life experience for these boys. The three of us planned to cross the gulf on Sunday, weather permitting. Michael and Mundy from Done Dreamin were in the next marina down, The Moorings. Their plan was to cross to Steinhatchee and visit other ports in 'the bend'. Another boat was going cross with them and they planned to leave at 4 a.m.! This is a shorter jaunt but still 62 miles. Our little group had an 8 p.m. meeting to discuss the outlook. Would the forecast be kind to us.....?
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| Gas Dock at C Quarters Marina |
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