Bradenton

Stats Saturday / Sunday 11/10/19:  Total days - 61, Travel days 36,  Miles today - 26, Total mile - 2168

We left St Petersburg in 20 mph wind with 30 mph gusts.  We had to cross Tampa Bay, but only had about 25 miles to go.  Thought I would just take it easy and cruise slow at 10 mph.  As we got out into Tampa Bay, the waves were white capping about 3-4 foot.  There were not any swells, and yes there is a difference.  It was not quite as rough as the crossing as the waves were on our stern.  We ended up running the bay at about 20 mph as this was smoother than rocking and rolling with the waves.  We probably would have just stayed at St Pete, but we wanted to get across to meet up with Alyssa, Marcia's niece.  Also, the wind on Sunday looked just as bad.

Leaving St Petersburg

 Skyway bridge

 Container ship coming in.

 Although windy, it was a nice day, coming into Bradenton.

We arrived at Riviera Dunes Marina late morning.  We fueled up and then had to back into our slip against the wind.  Was kind of nervous as I did not want to hit any of the yachts in the marina.  Got in OK and then washed the boat - AGAIN.  Alyssa came by and we watched the end of the Penn State game.  Not a good outcome, but the bloody marys were good.

After the game we hung out on the boat for a while and then walked up to the restaurant for dinner.  Dinner was very good, and since it was Alyssa's birthday on Friday, we got a free slice of key lime pie.  We did not embarrass her and sing happy birthday.  It cooled off, like into the 60's so we sat at the fire pit and had a couple of drinks.  We retired to the boat, and Alyssa slept in the guest stateroom.  

Yep, got into the bourbon.

We cooked up bacon and eggs for breakfast, then we lowered the dinghy into the water.  We cruised around for awhile even though it was windy and choppy.  We ended up stopping at Caddy's for some appetizers, and I decided to have a Bud Light - or two.  Alyssa pulled a fast one and sneaked off and payed the check.  Yep, she pulled a Dave Witherby.  We did use Matt and Sarah's speaker that they got us when we left.  It worked very good, and was louder than I thought it would be.  Thanks again!

Back at the boat we said goodbye to Alyssa.  We thoroughly  enjoyed visiting with her and were glad she was able to spend the night and day with us..  It had been about 11 years since I had seen her last.  I did some chart plotting that will cover the next few days then did some light waxing on the back of the boat.  The diesel soot and salt water just take their toll.  

Lucy did not seem to mind that Alyssa was here.

 Cluck Norris seemed pretty happy to have a new friend as well.

St Petersburg, FL

Stats Thursday / Friday 11/08/19:  Total days - 59, Travel days 35,  Miles today - 55, Total mile - 2142

We left Tarpon Springs in sunny 80 degree weather.  First time in a while that I was sweating at 8:00 in the morning.  Was a nice run over to Tampa Bay.  It was only 55 miles, but a lot of it was at idle speed as we came down the GICW through Clearwater and Treasure Island.  There were quite a few bridges that we had to go under.  We had to have 2 of them lifted.  The others were showing 24 feet at the center.  With the antennas down we were able to get under them without having to have them lifted.  The water and houses are really nice here.  Can't take pictures of them all.  

Leaving Tarpon Springs

 On the GICW

 First bridge that we had to call and have lifted.

 Coming into Clearwater

 Marina at Clearwater

  

 We made it through this bridge without having it lifted.

 Skyway Bridge coming into Tampa Bay.

 St. Petersburg Skyline

 Marina (Harbourage) at St. Petersburg.

We decided to rent a car at St. Petersburg to drive around and check out the area.  Enterprise was only a 1/2 mile away, so we walked down around 4:00 to get the car.  Small office, and as I walked in I noticed that there were not many cars in the lot.  We had reserved an economy car as it was the cheapest.  When we got into the office, there were not any economy cars available, so we got an Audi Q7 suv.  It was a nice surprise.  We went into downtown to eat dinner on the water.  Very nice nice area and dinner was great.

Marcia got the lobster tail, and I had the seafood chili and seafood linguine (with shrimp, mussels, scallops and fish).  Yes! we are eating again. 

We walked around town after dinner.  Doubt we walked it all off.

Since we had the car, we drove around St Pete today (Friday) and saw some of the area.  We were hungry for lunch and ate Beef O'Gradys.  It was not as nice as the one in Punta Gorda, if that is possible.  We did stop into the St. Petersburg Yacht Club to check it out.  VERY nice, but I have not opened the email with the cost yet.  I am guessing it is a tad more expensive than Four Seasons.  We did a quick stop at Publix for a few groceries and then back to the boat.  We returned the Audi and then did some chores on the boat.

Hoping for good weather as we cross Tampa Bay heading for Bradenton tomorrow.

WE CROSSED - Tarpon Springs

Stats Wednesday 11/06/19:  Total days - 57, Travel days 34,  Miles today - 170, Total mile - 2086

So the weather predictions did not change, so we headed out before sunrise to cross the Gulf to Tarpon Springs.  We were told that it would be "unpleasant but doable".  We now know what unpleasant means.  When we got into the gulf, we were in 2-3 foot waves.  Does not sound like much, but trust me, it was rough.  Marcia planned well.  We had a cooler on the bridge with drinks, sandwiches, and snacks.  It was so rough that you could not move from one seat to the other without falling or hanging on to something very tight.  After about 15 minutes, 2 boats that were behind us radioed that they were turning back.  We stayed the course as we were trusting that it would get better later in the day.  We passed a couple of boats that were headed out with us, and did not see another boat for over 6 hours.

Not long into the trip, my bilge pump light was going on.  1st thing that popped into my head was that my exhaust repair came off.  Had to put the boat in neutral and make my way down to the engine room.  Good news was that all is OK.  The bilge pump kicked on occasionally  and then not for long.  I think that we were taking waves and water was coming in through the engine room vents.  After that, every time we hit a bigger wave a siren would go off for 2 seconds or so.  After several big ones, it kicked on and stayed on.  Back in neutral I went on the search for what it could be.  Turns out it was a carbon monoxide detector in the cabin.  Turned it off and was relieved it was not something mechanical.  After that it was 7 hours of waves, no land, no boats, etc...   Boat ran well and the waves started to drop after about 2 hours.  The last 3 hours the waves were  1 foot or less, so weather was accurate for a change.  About 30 miles out we started to see the crab pot markers.  Managed to avoid them all.  

We arrived at Tarpon Springs and made our way up the river to Turtle Cove.  The boat was covered in salt and diesel soot.  I had to wash the back just so we could get on and off the boat with getting our hands black with everything we touched.  We ate dinner on the boat.  We were both exhausted, so I did not have it in me for a celebratory drink and cigar.  We collapsed at 8:30.   

After a good nights sleep, we did some chores on the boat (and repairs).  Anchor light came loose, washer moved, ceiling panel fell, hanging shelf in closet broke, cabinet contents were a mess, a few screws on the dinghy mount were loose, etc... you get the idea.  We walked around Tarpon Springs (The sponge capital of the world).  Feels like we are finally in Florida with a sunny 80 degree day.  We ended up having dinner with another Looper here.  Yes, seafood again.  We are back at the boat now and I am having my cigar and beer on the bridge typing this.  Marcia is doing yet another load of laundry.   

We have a few relaxing days planned over the next week as we make our way down to Mark's in Punta Gorda.  Not a lot of pictures from the crossing as it was hard enough  to just stay seated.  

Leaving out of Carabelle

 Sunrise heading out in a light rain.

Gulf is starting to calm down.

Halfway mark.

 Our view for most of the day.  Obviously it was later in the day when the Gulf calmed down.  You can see a crab pot about 11:00

Crab pot as you got closer.  The buoy is attached to a rope that is attached to a crab pot.  You don't want to run over these as they will get caught up in your props.  They are pretty thick as you come into Tarpon Springs.

 Coming into Tarpon Springs

 Vikings everywhere.  I need to get one of these next time I cross.

Anchor light after the crossing.  Was an easy fix to straighten and tighten some screws. 

 Tarpon Springs

 Sponge boat at Tarpon

They do have some weird fish down here.

 For the record, this is Jambalaya, not Gumbo.  Was very good! 

Onto St. Petersburg tomorrow for a couple of days and then to Bradenton to visit with Marcia's niece Alyssa for a couple of days .  Thanks to everyone who texted and called to be sure we were OK.  Hoping to relax and enjoy the next couple of weeks.  Oh yeah, for all of you in Cincinnati and north, enjoy the snow!!