last post for a while

This is a picture of a fountain we saw while walking around North Palm Beach.
Okay, this is it!!! It looks like we will have a good weather window to leave tomorrow. We will leave at 1600. We plan on spending Christmas Eve crossing the Gulf Stream. Who could ask for a more exciting Christmas Eve? The weather here has been warm. Everything on the boat seems to be working fine. We are well provisioned and we can't think of anything else we need before we cross.

MERRY CHRISTMAS
&
HAPPY NEW YEAR
BOB & SUE
BUTORFLEOGE

Start Time: 0700
End Time:1200
Cruise From: ST. Lucie River in Stuart FL
Cruise To: Lake Worth
Weather/Sea Conditions: warm / partly cloudy

Captain's Log: Lots of bridges but an easy trip. We got here at noon and went into Lake Worth to get more supplies. We have the water line lower in the water again. Tomorrow we plan on going to Singer Island for the day. We will be getting our diving stuff tomorrow when we get to Singer Island. It is a five mile trip but it will put us close to the inlet. That is right, close to the inlet which means we will be going out and heading over to the Bahamas on Friday. After Friday we will not be posting daily captain's logs. We will be keeping the logs and when we get to a W-Fy place, we will post them. We have some underwater cameras and hope to get some real neat pictures of us diving the reefs. Keep watching this site because we don't know when we will be able to post.

Getting close

Start Time: 0900
End Time:1600
Cruise From: Vero Beach
Cruise To: ST. Lucie River in Stuart FL
Weather/Sea Conditions: Beautiful (warm) with an occasional cloud

Captain's Log: Motored to FT. Pierce to get fuel and water. We fueled up and got 28.25 gallons of fuel. With the boat US discount, we got the fuel $3.15. Not bad!!! The original price is $3.25 per gallon. We then motored to Stuart on the ST. Lucie River.
Tomorrow Lake Worth then wait for the weather window to head over to the Bahamas.

Start Time: 0715
End Time:1630
Cruise From:Titusville
Cruise To: Vero Beach
Weather/Sea Conditions: warm/cloudy and intermittent rain

Captain's Log: We could not leave until after 0715 due to the bridge restrictions. We had to be at the bridge at 0730. Very smooth trip. We were able to do a 70+ mile day.

WE MADE IT!!!

Now to get ready to cross over. We are waiting for a good weather window. It looks like Monday or Tuesday.

BAHAMAS HERE WE COME

click on the smiley face and watch the hands.

Titusville, FL

Date:12-13-07
Start Time: 0830
End Time:1415
Cruise From:Daytona / Port Orange, Seven seas marina
Cruise To: Titusville
Weather/Sea Conditions: great!!! Beautiful and warm

Captain's Log: At buoy "68A" outside Daytona, we bumped but came right off the shoal. We were in the middle of the channel but we needed to stay closer to the red. Daggertt Island is where "68A" is. Do not favor the middle or the green. Favor the R"68A". We saw numerous dolphins and 3 manatees. The reason we anchored so early in the day was, they were working on the swing bridge at Titusville and had it closed until 1530. This would not have given us enough time to get to the next anchorage.
Tomorrow we hope to be in Vero Beach! YEAH!!!

In Daytona , FL

Date:12-12-07
Start Time: 00900
End Time:1645
Cruise From: ST. Augustine, FL
Cruise To: Daytona / Port Orange, Seven seas marina
Weather/Sea Conditions: great!!! Could not have asked for better weather

Captain's Log: This part of the trip went great. We tried to anchor at Daytona Beach but the water was too low getting in to the anchorage. We are staying at the Seven Seas Marina. It was getting too late to try another anchorage. We needed fuel anyway. The cost for the dock is $0.80 per foot and $4.00 for the electric. We got fuel, 22.7 gallons. Bridge passing is real easy down here. They seem to try to accommodate the boats. We saw a lot of playful dolphins today.

ST. Augustine, FL

Well here we are in ST. Augustine Beach. We moved about 2 miles from North ST. Augustine to get close to the dinghy dock. We moved about 2 miles to get about 1/2 a mile from where we were. We dinghied into town and walked around town. Well we walked about 5 blocks from the marina to a true value hardware store. We needed a few small items and was able to get them there. For 10.00 dollars, we were able to use the dinghy dock, take showers and do laundry. The shower room was very clean. It felt good taking a long shower with out the worry of using too much water and with the knowledge that we were not going to run out of hot water. Tomorrow, we plan on going into the marina and get the laundry done. Anyone who has ever been to St. Augustine will recognize the fort in the picture. The Castillo de San Marcos.

Finally out of there

Date:12-09-07
Start Time: 0745
End Time:1730
Cruise From: Cumberland Island, GA
Cruise To: North St. Augustine Beach
Weather/Sea Conditions:Beautiful/warm/sunny 69degrees
Captain's Log: We finally got out of there. It was a nice place to be fogged in. We had a wonderful adventure today. The McCormick bridge was very slow to open. There were strong currents. At 2900 rpms, we could only do 4.3 knots against the current. Going through the bridge was very tricky. We made it with very little room for the current to move us. Other than that, it was a very comfortable trip. We saw dolphins and eagles. Oh yea, and a whole bunch of pelicans. We got fuel and water at Fernandina beach. We also saw David's boat "the answer my friend" and the boat seemed to be in great shape. It was afloat on the anchor.

Armadillo and horses.

We did not get out of here yet. The fog was just too thick. We took a dinghy ride to Cumberland Island. We took a walk and got some pictures of the animals we saw. Hopefully the fog will not be here tomorrow. The horses are wild horses and can be traced back to the Spanish breed left here way back when.

stuck here

We are still fogged in! The fog is so thick that you can barely see from one end of the boat to the other. It is 1130 and it is still foggy. Hopefully we will be able to leave tomorrow. The fog did not stop the shrimp fishermen. Sue took this picture while there was enough visibility to take the picture. We tried to catch the shrimp using our casting net but the current was so strong, the net closed before it got 1/2 way down in the water. No shrimp for the captains today.

fog, fog and more fog

Date:12-07-07
Start Time:
End Time:
Cruise From: Cumberland Island, Georgia
Cruise To:
Weather/Sea Conditions: Foggy


Captain's Log: It was too foggy to leave today. We waited for the fog to lift but when it was still foggy at noon, we decided to stay put.

Georgia's ICW has to many shoaling areas!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Date:12-06-07
Start Time: 0645
End Time:1605
Cruise From:New Teakettle Creek, Georgia
Cruise To: Cumberland Island, Georgia
Weather/Sea Conditions: Windy /waves were choppy It was warm in the cockpit.

Captain's Log: Little mud river is only 5.0 feet at low tide. We left as soon as we could see the day markers. Hopefully this will give us a little water under us. High tide was at @0530. Jekyll creek was shallow but we went slow and made it with very little water under us. (VERY LITTLE) At Delaroache creek we attempted to anchor. The chart shows 10' to 15' feet. It was only 3.4 feet. As we tried to get out of the creek, the wind kept blowing us on the shoals. Sue opened the cockpit windows to let the wind pass through us. This enabled us to get some control of the boat and we got out of there. While passing R "60" We hit bottom again. The whole area is shoaled to less than 5' . Sue opened the cockpit up again and we were able to get out of the problem. Another boat was hard aground and on anchor waiting for the tide to come up. We are anchored in 26' of water. We let 200' of chain and about 6' of rode. Tomorrow; Florida. We are at s/m 711 and Florida is at s/m 716.

feeling our way through Georgia

Date:12-05-07
Start Time: 0645
End Time:1645
Cruise From: Herb River, GA
Cruise To: New Teakettle Creek, Georgia
Weather/Sea Conditions: 10 To 13 Knot winds with gusts to 18. Sunny with a temperature in the cockpit of 68 degrees

Captain's Log: WE left early so we could catch high tide at Hell's Gate. We got caught at Skidway Narrow Bridge. Had to wait one hour for an opening. Needles to say, we got to Hell's Gate at low tide. It shoals to 5 feet. Now there is a spot that is 5.3 feet. It was a little tricky but we got through. Bouy number "167" G near Teakettle Creek is missing. There were quite a few close/tight spots in this area! We see a lot of dolphins swimming around the boat. While we are at anchor this evening, we saw a bunch of dolphins playing around the boat. It was real kewl!!!!!

We made it to Georgia

We saw a lot of these cute creatures !!!

Date:12-04-07
Start Time: 0715
End Time:1530
Cruise From:Beaufort, SC
Cruise To: Herb River, GA
Weather/Sea Conditions:
Started out cloudy, turned sunny around noon. It was breezy and cool but at the end of the day it was 68 degrees in the cockpit.

Captain's Log: When we got to Fields Cut it was m-low tide. We dropped the anchor and waited for about 1 1/2 hours, until the tide came up three feet. (note: they have a 6 to 8 foot tide) The cut went real smooth. It was a little tricky crossing the Savannah River. Thankfully we were close to high tide. Two big tankers came by when we started to cross. This was our welcome to Georgia moment. All in all, it was a great passage!!!

staying put

WE are getting fuel in this picture. We just got a chance to scan it. We were in Oriental Harbor NC. See if you can find the boat!

With the forecast of 30 knot winds, we decided to stay on anchor. We moved the boat away from all the other boats. We set the anchor at 200 feet in 20 feet of water. This way we won't hit anybody. It looks like we will leave early tomorrow at day break.

December 02, 2007

There is a long story behind this picture. Short story: We walked until we could walk no more. We got lost and took a cab back to the boat.
Date:12-01-07
Start Time: 0745
End Time:1600
Cruise From: Church Creek, SC m/m 487
Cruise To: Beaufort, SC
Weather: Over cast but nice. It gets a little warm with the windows closed

Captain's Log:We came across a few shoaling places. It got a little tight in a few spots. We marked the chart with yellow highlighter! We don't want to forget these spots. Going to dinghy in to Beaufort once the boat settles in it's anchorage. The boat ran like a champ. We did a 48 mile day.

December 01, 2007

Is this a beautiful sunset or what?
Taken at Awendaw Creek

Date:12-01-07
Start Time: 0745
End Time:1600
Cruise From:Awendaw Creek , SC
Cruise To: Church Creek, SC m/m 487
Weather/Sea Conditions: Sunny, warm 80 Degrees in the cockpit. 68 degrees outside the cockpit
Captain's Log: There were a few tight spots but no problems. Whenever we come to an inlet, the water level shoals. We have to be very careful in these areas. It was a very pleasant day. It got so hot in the cockpit that we had to open the windows. We saw more dolphins.

11-30-07

Date:11-30-07
Start Time: 0830
End Time:1400
Cruise From: Georgetown, SC
Cruise To: Awendaw Creek, SC off of buoy r"48"
Weather/Sea Conditions: It started out cloudy, then turned to sunny Mid to upper 60's
Captain's Log: When it got sunny, it got "Hot" in the cockpit. The chart plotter and vhf went out while traveling. We got the system back on line. We could not find the plug for the back-up chart plotter. We finally found it. We won't make that mistake again! We used the paper charts and the back-up hand held VHF. We turned the radar and chart plotter and radar off at the switch. When we turned it back on, everything started to work. We saw a bunch of Dolphins while traveling. All in all, we could not have asked for a better day.

11-29-07

Date:11-29-07
Start Time: 0830
End Time:1400
Cruise From: Bucksport Plantation Marina, SC
Cruise To: Georgetown, SC
Weather/Sea Conditions:Cloudy/cool temperatures were 65 + with no winds
Captain's Log: Sue saw two alligators and a family of snappers.

NO SWIMMING TODAY

This was a real relaxing trip. We had good deep water. All we had to do was stay in the middle. 24 to 38= feet of water.NOTE: Bucksport has great sausage sandwiches. We got here in Georgetown and
took a dinghy ride into town.

Date:11-28-07
Start Time: 0630
End Time:1300
Cruise From: Shallette, NC
Cruise To: Bucksport, SC
Weather/Sea Conditions:Beautiful


Captain's Log:The trip went great!!! We got off the anchor with no problems at all. We got into a rhythm. The water was smooth and it felt like we were driving the boat into the woods. There are cypress trees so close you could almost reach out and touch them on both sides of the boat at the same time. We are staying at the Bucksport marina for the night. At 80 cents per foot plus 5.oo for electric. This should give the boat's system a rest. We got fuel today. We are both feeling great and enjoying this adventure. We can not wait to see what is around the corner.

11-27-07

Date:11-27-07
Start Time: 0830
End Time:1630
Cruise From: Wrightsville Beach, NC
Cruise To:Shallette NC
Weather/Sea Conditions:Great Weather! Warm and sunny with just a little breeze


Captain's Log:It was a little tricky anchoring in 6 feet of water at low tide. We have 100 feet of chain out. Our stern is close to the channel but we can't get in any further. Probably won't sleep good tonight. Moving the boat today was a lot easier even though there were a lot of shoals. We slowed down a lot and aimed for the buoys, then wiggled around until we got a max. depth. We could not post last night because we did not have a connection. Will post tomorrow.

11-22-07 through 11-26-07

11-22
With high winds we decided to stay here at Wrightsville Beach. We are looking at strong currents from one side and strong winds hitting us also. We worked on the generator. A piece of debris floated into the through haul and lodged in the through haul. We are staying here until Saturday. We are waiting for West Marine to open on Friday.
11-23
We went into town to get parts for the generator, it will not start. We will stay until the generator is fixed. and this cold front goes through.Hopefully we will leave on Sunday.
11-24
Note: The fuel filters were "BLACK" with dirt! We changed the filters but there is too much air in the line. We got an electric fuel pump. We will install it tomorrow as it is late and after walking for more than two miles plus a taxi ride into Wilmington,NC, we are tired. There was a parade of boats go through here. hundreds of boats came in and anchored around us. What a mess. Take the fourth of July at Concord Point light house and multiply the boats by 5, then reduce the anchorage. There is only enough safe anchorage for maybe 30 boats here. The parade was beautiful and the fireworks were great. A couple boats almost hit us and one pushed our dinghy around but other than that we did okay in the mess. None of the pictures turned out.
11-25
Everything is working fine! (knock on wood) the generator is working great and we changed the fuel filters for the main engine. We will leave tomorrow.
11=26
High winds and extreme heavy thunderstorms equals: staying put until tomorrow. It feels like Wrightsville beach has a firm hold on us. According to the weather forecast, we will leave tomorrow one half hour before high tide. That is, around 0800.

November 21

The fog cleared and off we went at 0700. We motored to new inlet marina. We got diesel and a few provisions. Just as we left the marina, we noticed the water under the boat disappearing. I headed to the green buoy thinking that was where the deeper water was. We ran aground. Called U. S. boats. After about a half hour, we were on our merry way with my pride a little bruised. Just after we went aground, I looked over to the port side of the boat and there were seagulls walking. (thanks Captain Steve) Sue saw them but did not want to say anything until I mentioned it. We had a few one hour bridges and the Figure Eight Bridge that was closed from 1300 until 1600. We got there at about 1330. We went at idle speed and then waited. At the next bridge, it was another 1 hour bridge. We got smart and got behind a tug boat pushing a barge. They opened the bridge so that he would not have to slow down. Just past the bridge we went into Wrightsville Beach. We stayed over night. This morning our anchor alarm went off. We were awakened just before we hit a bridge. The anchor alarm was the saving grace for the day/night. It seems that the trip line for the anchor got tangled in our rudder and when the tide came in, it lifted the anchor. Nothing bad happened and we did not hit anything so, I guess like they say: No harm, No foul. The wind was busting over 20 knots and we are looking at some rough currents so we decided to say another day and let this front pass. We got a piece of debris caught in the generator through haul. We fixed that and just relaxed for the day. We are going to stay here tomorrow and go into town to get some needed things from West Marine. This will let this front get through and hopefully we can be on our way once again. We are both safe and sound. It was a nice day spending it here in Wrightsville Beach.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL

We don't plan on leaving here until Saturday. Looks like Driven and his group just might catch us before Florida.

November 20

We have traveled to The Camp LeJeune North Carolina . When we got up this morning it was too foggy to leave so we spent the day on the hook and did not try to leave in that soup. Some boats tried and in a couple hours they came back. That is the ones that did not run aground. We will leave tomorrow if it is not foggy. We have had a wonderful trip and saw a lot of neat things. We were not able to post before now. We are going to up date our captain's log when we get things together and can do the blog. This is an example of some of the views we were able to see.

Date:11-15-07
Start Time: 0720
End Time:1200
Cruise From: Buck Island on the Virginia Cut
Cruise To:Elizabeth City, NC
Weather/Sea Conditions:Windy/cold and turned into cold nasty hard rain


Captain's Log: When we left Buck Island we had to decide wether to go across the Albemarle Sound or head up the Pasquotank River to Elizabeth City. After going into 4 to 5 ft. waves, the decision was real easy. This storm is going to leave the weather wet and windy for a while so we plan on sitting it out here in Elizabeth City. There are a few modifications we are going to do to the boat while sitting here. Between the rough water we had in the Chesapeake Bay then on the Albemarle Sound, we decided we need to re-think some things about the boat. We are going to adjust the anchor also. The way we have it set up is a little difficult to use the anchor. The bruce anchor hits the CQR when bringing it back on board. The snubbers get tangled with the CQR when high winds pull on the anchor chain. The chain that holds the CQR in place is in the way when we dock the boat. As we cruise, we learn! The bad weather has not dampened our spirits. We are loving the cruise.

day five

Date:11-14-07
Start Time: 0800
End Time:1620
Cruise From:Hospital Point Norfolk, VA
Cruise To:Buck Island, NC
Weather/Sea Conditions:beautiful


Captain's Log: We anchored off Hospital Point in Norfolk VA. The unique thing about this is; Hospital Point is where I was born back in 1951. It took 56 years to make a complete circle. (anyway) We had a great time cruising from Hospital Point. We went through numerous bridges and one lock. It was very interesting. We played with the big boys to day. Check out the size of this boat that we saw in the ICW.

day four

Date:11-13-07
Start Time: 0700
End Time:1700
Cruise From:Great Wicomico, VA
Cruise To:Hospital Point, Norfolk, VA
Weather/Sea Conditions:
Rain in the morning for a few minutes. It became sunny and warm. The seas were a little choppy.


Captain's Log: We were lucky that we did not have to hit the waves head on. We hit them at a slight angle and did not bounce around like we did yesterday. After the sun came out it was a beautiful, sunny, warm and relaxing trip to Norfolk, VA. While traveling the open water, a kodak moment did not appear.
Tomorrow is supposed to be another beautiful and warm day. Thursday's outlook is for rain with high winds. We are considering going to Elizabeth City and let the storm get out of our way. We are not positive about heading to Elizabeth City, it all depends on what happens going down the Virginia Cut. The Dismal Swamp is closed so we can't go that way.

Date:11-12-07
Start Time: 0700
End Time:1620
Cruise From:Solomons Island
Cruise To:Great Wicomico, VA
Weather/Sea Conditions:
Rain in the morning, turning cloudy until 1430 with heavy seas

Captain's Log: It was raining when we left Solomons. Once we got into the bay, the rain stopped. The wind was coming out of the south and the tide was going out. This created HUGE waves. Occasionally the waves broke on our dodger! Water was everywhere in the cockpit. At about 1100 hrs. the engine lost power. We put the head sail out and sailed north while sue climbed into the engine compartment and changed the fuel filter. (raycor) Once dne we put the head sail away and motored to Reedville, VA. on the great Wicomico River. The resturant was closed so we went back out o the river and anchored in a protective cove.

Day two

This is a picture we took of the Thomas Point Lighthouse. We took the picture south of Annapolis, Maryland. We left Annapolis at 0700 in the morning. We traveled to Solomons Island, Maryland. We got to Solomons at 1400. We Fueled up and decided to anchor here for the night. The weather was great. It was sunny and warm in the cockpit of the boat. We raised the main sail and let the head sail out. Keeping true to our luck, the wind died down and we put the head sail away. We decided to leave the main sail up even there was no wind so we could at least look like a sailboat and not a motor boat with a big stick in the middle of it.

day one the adventure begins

Well we are finally off on our adventure. We left Havre de Grace Maryland at 1054. We motored all the way to Annapolis Maryland. We got in Annapolis at 1630. It was a cold trip but we made great speed. We ran at 3000 rpms. The tide was going out so we stayed around 8 knots and occasionally saw 9 knots. The weather was cold, breezy and overcast. The water was choppy but with all the weight we have in food supplies, we did not bounce around very much. We are looking forward to getting south so we can find some warmer weather.

three days to go

With the on vent of some nasty weather prognosticated for Friday, it was determined that we wait until Saturday. We plan on sailing to Annapolis for our first night. We have taken on 17 gallons of gas for the dinghy motor and 40 gallons of Diesel fuel. The fuel was secured to the topside of the boat. Saturday come what may is the date of departure.

Just about ready

Date:October 28, 2007
Start Time:
End Time:
Cruise From:
Cruise To:
Weather/Sea Conditions:Sunny and bright
Captain's Log: Well, it has been a week since we started this Blog site. We have the boat just about ready for our adventure. On Tuesday or Wednesday we plan on getting our food supplies for the long cruise. The rain this past week has set our timing back a little. We still plan on leaving either Thursday or Saturday. The weather is getting colder so we won't take too much longer heading south. We hope to get to Annapolis Maryland on our first day out. Both Sue and I are getting real excited about heading out.

Getting a good look at the river

Date:11-6-07
Start Time: 0900
End Time:1500
Cruise From:Georgetown
Cruise To:Baltimore
Weather/Sea Conditions:
Sunny and bright

Captain's Log:
having a good day on the water

A day on the Lioness

Date:October 16,2007

Start Time:1100

End Time:1700

Cruise From:Georgetown on the sasafrass
Cruise To:inter habor baltimore MD

Weather/Sea Conditions: The weather was just beautiful and the seas were calm

Captain's Log: Captain Sue was showing her sailing,motoring skills while driving the lioness.

Re-Fit of the Butorfleoge

The work is just about done on the hull.



Splash down!