Celebrating Christmas in the Sunshine State

Merry Christmas

Beach at Cayo Coasta State Park

Trail in Cayo Cosata State Park

Upon leaving Bradenton, Florida we figured we had four days to travel 120 miles to reach Fort Myers in time to celebrate Christmas. At five miles an hour it would take us – well you can do the math. Plus, Peggy had her heart set on stopping at Cayo Coasta Island Sate Park, anchoring in Pelican Bay. With nine miles of beautiful beaches and acres of pine forests, oak-palm hammocks and mangrove swamps, this barrier island park is often referred to as Florida Gulf Coast paradise. Cayo Costa Island is accessible only by boat or ferry. It is possible to see manatees and pods of dolphins in the waters around the 2,426 acre park, as well as a spectacular assortment of birds and animal life. On the island, you can swim in the surf, enjoy the sandy beaches, hunt for sea shells and picnic in the shade of palm trees. The miles of nature trails that crisscross the island provide us plenty of opportunities for hiking and exploring. With so much to see and do, how could I resist stopping for a day!

Peggy Making Christmas Decorations

"Little Lara" Christmas Wreath

This is the first time in 35 years that we did not have children around to enjoy their excitement of opening presents, plus the warm, humid 80 degree weather made Christmas seem surreal. As the mercury rose to 87 degrees on Christmas Day this was the hottest Christmas ever in Fort Myers, according to the National Weather Service. The long days of motoring gave us plenty of time to get into the Christmas spirit. As we traveled down the Intracoastal Waterway we played Christmas music. In the evenings we watched Christmas movies. And, Peggy made Christmas decorations from a Christmas tree branch she found on the dock. We arrived in Fort Myers on Christmas Eve. After getting “Little Lara” settled into a slip we called family to let them know we were safe and to catch up on the holiday happenings in their homes.

We celebrated Christmas with just the two of us...quiet but very nice.  And later attended a dinner theater production of "It's a Wonderful Life".  The play was wonderful and the food was excellent!  

Downtown Fort Myers, Florida
Note the Palm Trees

Fort Myers is a gateway to the Southwest Florida region and a major tourist destination within Florida. The city is named after Colonel Abraham Myers. Fort Myers was one of the first forts built along the Caloosahatchee River as a base of operations against the Seminole Indians during the American Indian Wars. During the Seminole Wars, Fort Myers was a strategic location for its visibility and access to Atlantic waterways. After the Wars, Confederate blockade runners and cattle ranchers called Fort Myers home. These settlers prospered through trading with Seminole Indians and Union Soldiers. On February 21, 1866, Manuel A. Gonzalez and his five-year-old son, Manuel S. Gonzalez, became the first permanent settlers of Fort Myers. Gonzales had shipped supplies and carried mail during the war and settled his family near the abandoned Fort Myers to begin the town's first trading post. Gonzalez traded tobacco, beads, and gunpowder, and sold otter, bobcat, and gator hide, to the neighboring Seminole Indians. On August 12, 1885, the small town of Fort Myers—all 349 residents—was incorporated. By that time, it was the second largest town on Florida’s Gulf Coast south of Cedar Key.

Edison's Labratory

Ford's Model T Car

In 1885, inventor Thomas Alva Edison was cruising Florida’s
west coast and stopped to visit Fort Myers. He soon bought 13 acres along the Caloosahatchee River in town, and built a home and laboratory, "Seminole Lodge", as a winter retreat. After the Lodge was completed in 1886, Edison and his wife, Mina, spent many winters at their home in Fort Myers. It was in Fort Myers, Florida that Edison would do the majority of his research and planting of his exotic plants and trees. After testing 17,000 plant samples, Edison eventually discovered a rubber source in the plant Goldenrod (Solidago leavenworthii). Through Edison's efforts, the royal palms lining Riverside Avenue were imported and planted, and would become the reason for Fort Myers's "City of Palms" nickname. In 1916, automobile magnate Henry Ford purchased the home next door to Edison's which he called "the Mangoes". Ford, along with Harvey Firestone and Thomas Edison, were generally considered the three leaders in American industry at the time, and often worked and vacationed together.

We enjoyed our visit to the Edison/Ford winter estate with its museum and laboratory.  It was interesting learning about all the wonderful inventions that we take for granted every day. 

"Little Lara" Decorated in Christmas Lights

We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, wish you a Happy New Year and pray your coming weeks and months will be filled with joy and happiness. Until next time, fair winds.

It's All Greek to Me

After being blessed with a calm crossing of the Gulf of Mexico to the west coast of Florida, we decided to leave "Little Lara" in Tarpon Springs while we flew to Utah to visit our children and grandchildren for Thanksgiving.  It was quite a shock going from 85 degree sunny weather to snow and temperatures in the teens!  We had to borrow coats, gloves and an electric blanket from our kids! Nevertheless, we had a wonderful visit with our family and were grateful to be able to be there when our grandson was baptized. While there, we celebrated Thanksgiving, six family birthdays and enjoyed an early Christmas!  It was hard to say goodbye to our loved ones, but we reminded ourselves that we would see them again in three months.

After returning to Florida, and warmer weather, we spent time exploring Tarpon Springs. This area has a very strong Greek influence due to a great many sponge divers who immigrated to the area in the late 1800's.  This area now has the largest fleet of sponge diving boats in the world, and as you can imagine, boasts a thriving tourist industry.  We loved walking around town and seeing all the Greek stores, restaurants, bakeries and the sponge factories.  While shopping or eating great Greek food we would be surprised to hear Greek spoken here, even by the children.  And while here we discovered our new favorite dessert -- baklava topped chocolate cheesecake!

Greek Sponge Store 

Special thanks goes to Herb and Rita who gave us rides to the airport, church, the Ward Christmas party and a Stake Christmas concert.  They certainly made us feel at home. We also appreciate the guys at Anclote Harbor Marina who gave us rides to West Marine, the grocery store and even loaned us a truck!

Our other mode of transportation while in Tarpon Springs was the "Jolly Trolley", which we rode to explore the cities of Dunedin and Clearwater.  We happened to be in Dunedin for an arts and craft fair and also a jazz concert.  A great deal of fun and many interesting people.

After leaving Tarpon Springs we headed south, down the Intracoastal Waterway and anchored near Clearwater beach for a quiet night, with the aquarium on one side and the board walk a short distance away, on the other side of the island.  Over the next few days we were lucky in our experiences with the bridge tenders -- we didn't have to wait for the bridges to open, even though they are on a tight, restricted opening schedule.  We just happened to be at each bridge at the right time.

Tampa Bay and the "Sunshine Skyway Bridge"

Desoto Park Ranger

Desoto Park Ranger

After crossing Tampa Bay, we headed up the Manatee River to anchor near DeSoto National Memorial Park.  This was a great place because it was a calm, beautiful anchorage, with a small beach where we could leave the dinghy and explore the park.  As we walked through the nature trails we were surprised to come upon Conquistadors and Indians lurking in the dense woods!  The park's visitor center showed an interesting film about the discovery of this area by Hernando De Soto, and had a great display of artifacts from that time period, as well as a replica fort staffed with park rangers in period clothing. They did an archery and black powder musket demonstration as well as showed us other weaponry and armor.

Indians Running for their Lives

Due to a cold front weather forecast with predicted 20 – 25 mph winds, we moved  "Little Lara" to a different anchorage further up the river off McKay Point. There we had better protection from the wind and waves. 

                   

                                   Those Pesky Pelicans!

What we didn't anticipate was to be dive bombed by a pesky pelican searching for food!  He kept diving for fish so close to "Little Lara" that he splashed the boat, creating waves that rocked us more than the wind!


Twin Dolphin Marina in Bradenton was our next stop on the Manatee River, which turned out to be one of the nicest marinas we have stayed at yet -- also one of the most expensive.  It has nice facilities: floating docks, clean showers, swimming pool, nearby restaurants and even bikes we were able to check out to make a quick run to the grocery store.  While in Bradenton we were able to visit Birdie's (a close, special friend from Redding) sister, Aletha.  It was great spending time with Aletha. We appreciated getting to know her and were grateful for the ride to church and a fantastic meal afterwards.  We meet the best people!  Until next time...fair winds and gentle seas. 

Peggy, Aletha and "Little Lara"

"Mem'ries, Light the Corners of My Mind"

In our previous post ("From Here to There") we mentioned the 2001 family sailing trip we took with four of our children.  On that trip we sailed from Houston, TX along the Gulf coast, around Florida, up the eastern seaboard to New Bern, NC, crossed to the Bahamas, and back. At the time, we were living in Midland, TX.  The trip, unfortunately, was interrupted by the tragic events of 9/11. Upon returning home, The Midland Reporter Telegram, did an article on our trip.  Stephanie Sparkman wrote:

According to Leah Bowden, a senior at Lee High School, her parents, Jay and Peggy Bowden, decided several years ago they wanted to buy a sailboat and sail off, into the sunset, after they retired ... "They didn't want to wait that long to realize their dream." So, her parents talked about taking a year off to sail once Leah graduated from high school in June 2003. Leah, however, didn't like that idea. She was concerned she wouldn't be able to make the trip because she would be working to earn money for college. A family meeting was called and the decision was made to leave two years early so Leah could take part in the adventure.

The original plan was to live on the boat for a year. But, those plans changed as they were sailing under a bridge near Camp LeJeune, NC on Sept. 11 when, according to Bowden, "A man on a catamaran that was passing us yelled out, 'Turn on your radio! There's been a terrorist attack.' ... "We had a decision to make. Everything was being shut down, but no one was talking about the waterway. We kept hearing rumors, but never knew what was really going on. Some reports we heard said that all of the major ports had been shut down. We didn't know what was going on."  So, a family meeting was called, options were discussed, and the Little Wing sailed north to Newbern, NC, where the family left the boat and rented a car.

"We wanted to let the kids see as much history as they could, so we rented a car," Bowden added. "We didn't want to take any chances. To this day, there's still a discussion about whether we could have taken the boat further." We visited Williamsburg, Yorktown, Jamestown … "Next, we stopped in Washington, D.C. We toured the Washington Monument, the Capitol Building, Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Memorial, Korean War Memorial, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Arlington National Cemetery. We couldn't get very close to the Pentagon, it was all blocked off."

In upper New York state, they toured many of their church's historical sites, saw the Catskill Mountains where the trees were beginning to change colors, and, on Sept. 28, made it to New York City.  Although no one was allowed on lower Manhattan Island at the time, from different areas they could still see smoke rising from where the twin towers once stood. The family tried to tour the Empire State Building, but wasn't allowed in the building - security had just received the third bomb threat on the building since Sept. 11. 

The family decided to go home. They sailed back to Florida and were actually inside the locks on the Atlantic side of Florida's Okeechobee Waterway when the course was changed again. "The kids really wanted to go to the Bahamas," Bowden said.  So, they turned the boat around, hit the Atlantic and headed south … The Bowdens spent almost a month sailing and touring the Bahamas when a final decision had to be made. They could either continue south as part of their original plan or they could head home ...  Although the events of Sept. 11 caused them to change their plans, family members say they made the right choice by choosing to step out and take the adventure of a lifetime.  "We're much closer together as a result of the trip," Bowden said. "That was one of our goals. Peggy and I looked at the trip as being a gift that would be a life-long gift to our children. We hoped it would be an experience they would always look back on with fond memories." One of the greatest benefits of the trip was the family solidarity," said Mrs. Bowden. "We were pretty close before, but this just solidified everything."

Marissa, age 10, agreed. "I liked being on the boat with my family 24/7, getting family to be best friends because there's nobody else to talk to," she said. "It was definitely a rewarding experience," Leah added. "Everywhere we go, everyone tells us how lucky we are," she noted ...  "It was really neat to have a one-on-one relationship with the rest of the family," she added. "Before we left, my friends thought we were crazy but they kept telling me I'd at least come home with a good tan. I came back being best friends with my family - but I didn't have a tan. That's not what mattered."  What mattered was the time the family spent together, getting to know each other better and learning to depend upon each other.

To read the interview in its entirety go to: http://www.mrt.com/import/article_220c6df1-38b9-59b3-80b6-c0fd7240ec00.html

Thanks for letting us share our memories with you.  We hope all your memories are happy ones.  Fair winds.

From Here to There

Chart, divider, pencil and parallel ruler

It is pretty amazing how much has changed in the way we navigate now compared to our family sailing trip in 2001. Back then our daughter Leah (who was 15 at the time) and Peggy spent an hour every night planning the next day's route. This involved using a large paper chart, dividers, and parallel rulers. We plotted way points using latitude and longitude, determined the compass headings we should take to travel, taking into account any magnetic deviation plus the amount of set and drift (how much and which direction the current and wind would push us off course). We would actually utilize the math skills Leah learned in “boat school” to calculate time, speed and distance equations. We used “dead reckoning” (short for deduced reckoning) to figure out where we were. We had an early model GPS to double check our position so at least we didn't need a sextant!

"Little Lara's" electronic chart with plotted way points

Today, we are spoiled and we even feel a bit lazy, because it is so easy to navigate using electronic charts. On our IPAD we just touch the screen at the point on the chart we want to go and it automatically tells us the latitude and longitude, the compass heading, the time, distance, and how much diesel we will use! We still have on board paper charts and a GPS for backup, in case these electronics tools take a day off.

Guidebook

Hand held GPS

We have also invested in some guidebooks that are helpful in finding secluded anchorages as well as noting which marinas have showers and laundry (some don't!). The guidebooks also give some history about the towns along our route and points of interest to see and do in the areas we visit.

One of the other great tools we use to get from here to there safely is a

"Little Lara's" Radar

radar which shows any land masses nearby or scary things in the water that might go bump in the night. Also, we love our AIS (Automatic Identification System) which tells us what commercial ships are within a 10 mile range of "Little Lara" including the vessel's name, course, speed, bearing and its closest point of approach (ie how close it will come to our boat). This is a great tool when we are in shipping channels or in the waterway wondering if a double wide barge is coming towards us from around a blind bend.

"Little Lara's" VHF Marine Radio

To contact other boats or should we need to call for help, we have on board a VHF (Very High Frequency) marine radio, which has a range of about 25 miles.

EPIRB

Finally, in a worst case scenario – if we were sinking or dis-masted or lost our rudder and needed immediate rescue – we would use our EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon) which would send out a distress signal along with our GPS location to the Coast Guard over a satellite system. Though we strive to be safe and try to be prepared for every possible scenario, we always rely on the Lord through prayer to guide and direct us in our travels. We pray you too remain safe where ever you may be. Fair winds

Ship's Compass

Gulf Crossing

Intracoastal Waterway shown in red

Since leaving Baytown, TX on September 22, 2015 we have been traveling east on the Intracoastal Coastal Waterway along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico.  We reached Apalachicola, FL November 7, 2015 -- the end of the line, so to speak.  Along the way we have visited some great places: Port Arthur, TX; Lake Charles, LA; Houma, LA; Gulf Port, MS; Dauphin Island, AL; Ft Walton Beach, FL; Apalachicola, FL. Plus, we have met many fantastic people and made many great new friends like Archie & Nikki (Lake Charles), Sarah (Houma), Ray (Gulf Port), Margaret (Fort Walton Beach), Svend & Sharon (White City) and Pam (Apalachicola).

We really enjoyed visiting Apalachicola.  While there we went to the Seafood Festival where we had plenty of shrimp, oysters, and crabs.  The music was pretty good, too. We were fortunate to meet Pam who was kind enough to take us to Church and to give us a tour of some of the local sights including St George Island and Carabelle.

The Gulf of Mexico crossing

But, now it was decision time -- we could either "port hop" around Florida's "Big Bend", which would add an extra 140 miles and another week to our trip (we would not be traveling at night), or we could cut straight across the Gulf of Mexico: a 30 hour, overnight, offshore trip.  We decided to cut straight across to Tarpon Springs. Since going offshore would require us to be as much as 70 miles from the nearest land, we wanted a near perfect weather window for the trip.  This window arrived on November 11th according to the weather forecasters.  As we left Apalachicola we wondered if we had made the right decision to leave. We pulled up the anchor early, before sunrise.  There was no moon out.  It was overcast and foggy.  And, as we traveled down the channel we discovered the buoys were not lit.  At first it was very disorienting, but soon the fog lifted and we were able to spot the buoys using a flashlight. The sky lightened just before we reached the jetties at Government Cut and "Little Lara" was making a record 8.4 knots (9.7 mph) as we rode the outgoing tide.  Once in the Gulf of Mexico the sun came up and the skies continued to clear. It turned into a beautiful day as you can see from the video clip at the top of the blog.

 (Hint: you may not be able to play the two clips on this blog on your phone, but they can be seen on your computer.  Also click on any picture to enlarge it.)

Gulf of Mexico sunset

20" Little Tuna

Along the way we enjoyed the warm weather, caught a little tuna for dinner, saw a beautiful sunset, and marveled at the expansive night skies.  Out in the Gulf the day the water is so clear it takes on a spectacular iridescent blue color.At night the stars are so bright you feel you can reach up and touch them. Even the dolphins came to played in "Little Lara's" bow wave (see the video clip below).   It is days like these that we feel privileged and blessed to be out cruising. We wish you were here with us.

Water Hyacinths Galore

As we traveled through the Louisiana Intracoastal Waterway we decided to spend a night anchored in Charenton Drainage Canal.  The Waterway Guide indicated this canal was heavily used by commercial traffic.  When we arrived at the canal, we had to slowly wind our way through the water hyacinths.

Flowering Water Hyacinth

Night set in as the hyacinths
 begin creeping in

These are free-floating plants. They can grow to a height of 3 feet. Their dark green leaf blades are circular to elliptical in shape and are attached to a spongy, inflated petiole. Underneath the water they have a thick, heavily branched, dark fibrous root system. The water hyacinth has striking light blue to violet flowers. They are a very aggressive invader, native originally to South America.  As these plants grow they forms thick mats. It was these mats we encounter on our way into the canal.  Our first thought was there was no way this could be a busy canal. No one has been in this river all summer with all these plants floating around. We checked our AIS (a device that identifies all commercial vessels, providing usual information like speed, distance and direction) and found no commercial traffic within ten miles of us.  Never-the-less, as the sun set, lighting up the evening sky with the beautiful pinks, oranges, reds and purples, we put out white solar lights and turned on the anchor light to ensure “Little Lara” was well lit up.   Shortly thereafter, mats of water hyacinths began creeping in towards “Little Lara”, completely surrounding us within a matter of minutes.  It was like one of those scenes from a science fiction, alien, thriller movie without the music.

Tugboat with barges pass "Little Lara"

The water hyacinth was first introduced in the United States in 1884 at the World's Fair in New Orleans.  The plants were given away as a gift by visiting Japanese. Soon thereafter, they choking rivers, killing fish and stopping shipping in Louisiana and Florida's waterways. There have been many attempts over the years to eradicate the plant, but none worked.

Dusk at Charenton Drainage Canal

Once the sun set and before dusk set in, up the river came a tug pushing barges.  Now we were glad “Little Lara” was well lit.  We slept soundly that night, but the next morning revealed a world of swirling, creeping, dancing water hyacinths, which had completely surrounded and engulfed “Little Lara”.  It was weird to say the least.  Slowly, we motored our way around and through a thick mat of these plants hoping they wouldn't get sucked into our engine cooling system. Eventually we made our way back to the Intracoastal Waterway without problems.  We were once again making our way eastward.

Bridges, Bridges, Bridges, plus a few Locks

73 Foot Fixed Bridge

We crossed into Florida from Alabama on October 30, 2015. We stopped in Fort Walton Beach for Halloween (no trick-or-treaters) and to attend church. From here, our plans are to go to Apalachicola before we cross the Gulf of Mexico for Tampa, Florida. There we will leave “Little Lara” for a few

Pontoon Bridge

weeks while we go to visit family for the holidays. As we traveled

Lift Bridge

through the Intracoastal Waterway we have thus far sailed under 32 bridges and through five locks. There are different types of bridges: some fixed, some swing, some pontoon, some lift, and some bascule. The fixed bridges are the easiest to get under, the lowest being 45 feet and the tallest 150 feet. However, most of these bridges averaged 73 feet in height. Realize, “Little Lara's” mast height is 40 feet. Therefore, any bridge less than 40 feet in height we have to call the “Bridge Master” and request an opening. Each bridge opens differently depending on its design. Lift bridges are lifted up by massive cables attached to each end of the bridge. When closed, these bridges maybe 30-40 feet off the water allowing small craft to easily pass underneath without an opening. Swing bridges swing open, as do pontoon bridges, and when closed there is typically no clearance. Bascule bridges are the most interesting as the entire bridge is lifted from one end or both ends. Closed, these bridges may also be as low as 30-40 feet off the water. Though the winds, currents, and tides make it challenging to wait for a bridge opening, it is always fun to watch them open, allowing us to pass underneath. But, bridges are not as interesting as the locks.

Bascule Bridge

Harvey Lock
Note the two bridges before the lock

Jay "fending-off" tugboat "Miss B"

Since leaving Baytown we have passed through five locks: Calcasieu, Leland-Bowman, Bayou Beouf, Harvey and Industrial. We were held up at the Calcasieu Lock because they were doing maintenance on it, so we diverted to Lake Charles, Louisiana where we ended staying for over a week because we enjoyed the city and the people there so much. When we arrived at the Harvey Lock we also had to wait because the Harvey Railroad Bascule Bridge (immediately before the lock) was having electrical problems and refused to raise until an Electrician was called out to correct the issue. Meanwhile, we had to circle, do “lazy eights”, anything to maintain our position while the currents and winds swirled all around “Little Lara”. Eventually, we were able to enter the lock and were directed to tie up to the tugboat "Miss B" (we later had to scrub her paint off our boat!). The lock closed and the water level dropped until we were able to enter the mighty Mississippi River, where we traveled down stream at 8 knots with a nice 2.5 knot current pushing us along. After six miles we entered the Industrial Lock. There we were told by the "Lock Master" we would have to wait for five hours for the next available opening. As might be imagined, we could not use past tactics to maintain our position, so we tied up at a nearby dock. After 30 minutes the "Lock Master" radioed us that he was ready to take us through the lock. So off we went. Perhaps he was being kind for giving us conflicting information earlier, but he complemented us on the seamanship like manner in which we transversed the lock. He told us that most sailboats get caught in the current inside the lock turning unintended circles. “Little Lara” just motored through, tied up, and waited like a pro.

Peggy "fending-off" in the Industrial Lock

Hopefully, you will enjoy the two bridge videos below.

Until next time, Fair winds.