Knowing the current heading out the Ft.Pierce Inlet would only get
worse as the morning progressed, we we dropped the mooring at 0545.
It might be referred to as 0'dark hundred, as the dawn hadn't
progressed enough to provide much light as we got underway. With
the chart plotter things are easier than they used to be, since the
ICW has both a magenta line and is shown in white (more than 12'),
as opposed to some shade of blue indicating shallow water. We could
just spot the unlit marks as we approached, and most turns have a
lighted buoy to aim toward. As suspected, even with an early start,
we saw current up to 2.5kts as we headed out the inlet. It was
easier than some years when we've buried the bow in standing waves
thanks to wind against current. This year we battened down the
hatches ahead of time, just in case.
The wind forecast was pretty accurate, 15-20kts WNW with gusts,
plenty of wind, at for once at a good angle. We ran out part of the
jib as we headed out the inlet and sailed almost to the Lake Worth
Inlet before restarting the engine. Conditions were great since we
sailed within a couple of miles of the shore so the wind waves
didn't build. There was a good 4-6' swell from the NE, but with a
8-10 second period was more of a rocking motion, that made for easy
sailing.
Once clear of the inlet, we had current with us and Leonard was
concerned we'd arrive at lake Worth at maximum ebb. Not to worry,
it switched as the day progressed and the wind laid back a bit in
the afternoon slowing our speed further, so unrolled the whole
jib. It seemed every time I looked at the 'time to waypoint' on
the chart plotter after lunch, it read 3 hours to go as our speed
varied. I was all for arriving before dusk. Luckily the wind held,
blowing harder every so often to keep us moving. We turned into the
channel a bit after 1700 along with a sailboat coming from the S,
and the current was about as close to slack as it gets.
We watched a freighter as we approached the Lake Worth big ship
anchorage as it rocked fore and aft in the swell - Leonard timed it
at 12 seconds from bow up to bow up (the bow bulb coming about 1/2
way out of the water before getting buried again). I don't ever
remember seeing that obvious a motion in an anchored freighter in
the past.
We headed in with the lowering sun glare shinning directly out the
inlet, making it difficult to see. Since the other sailboat was
bigger and motoring faster, we let them pass, and saw the pilot boat
out bound headed toward us. As it passed, a woman went to the stern
to warn us of an obstruction in the channel, an outbound freighter
that had blended perfectly into the shore background in the glare.
We'd been concentrating on finding the day mark off the main channel
where we turn into the anchorage. We were well clear of the
freighter, but also glad for the heads up!
By 1730 we had the anchor down and called it a day, just a few
minutes shy of a 12 hour day. It had been a fairly easy sail and
we'd seen several other sail boats offshore taking advantage of the
wind and somewhat protected waters. We're hoping for a repeat
Friday when we head down to Ft.Lauderdale. Dealing with occasional
wind gusts offshore is much easier than dodging shoals, timing
bridges and dealing with traffic. We plan to spend the weekend at
Cooley's Landing, up the New River, in the center of town and avoid
the weekend traffic. It will be a chance to restock the larder
before hopefully hopping over to Bimini, hopefully next week.
While doing the laundry in Fernandina Beach I read an interesting
article about Lake Worth in an old fishing magazine. Lake Worth was
a fresh water lake until our European ancestors arrived, filled with
a variety of fish and widely used by Native Americans. One of the
first settlers decided he needed a way to ship his crop, so he made
a cut into the Atlantic, causing untold damage to the fresh water
ecology of the lake. He left soon thereafter for greener pastures,
but the cut remained. Over the years Mother Nature did her best to
adapt to the changes and the 'lake' evolved into a spawning area for
the ocean. The surrounding land became 'prime' real estate over the
years, with over fishing and development degrading the water quality
until it became a 'dead area' unable to sustain a viable fish
population.
One of the early environmentalists (and a fisherman) decided to try
to help improve the water quality to see if nature could heal itself
with a bit of help. With a lot of volunteers, 1800 mangrove plants
were individually hand planted along the shores to help filter and
stabilize the banks. Over the years, the fish population rebounded
in spite of the dense development, both residential and commercial,
on the shores. Peanut Island, formed from dredge spoils, has been
in the process of being lowered more recently, to help sustain the
ecosystem (apparently it was unnaturally high , causing additional
runoff problems). The Lake Worth Inlet is a Class A inlet, and has
one of the easier and shorter channels along the Florida coast.
2/26/16 - 2/28/16 To and at 26 07.035N, 80 08.948W
52.0NM Slip 25, Cooley's Landing Marina Ft Lauderdale
We waited until dawn before pulling the anchor at Lake Worth to head
on our way S, and by 0700, both sails were up and drawing as the
morning breeze filled in. It was an off again, on again type day,
requiring a bit of help from the iron jib when the wind went light.
Ideally we would have liked to arrived up the New River by 1200, but
knew that couldn't happen since it was 45 - 50NM. We settled for
arriving by mid afternoon, before the bridge restrictions between
1630 - 1800 began. Although we wouldn't be able to get into our
slip due to the current, we could tie up at the free park floating
dock, about 1/4NM down river, while we waited.
As always, transiting the New River was exciting. given the bridges,
twists and turns lined with docked mega yachts, and boat traffic. I
spent much of the trip up river rigging dock lines and fenders. We
followed Dakota II, a Sabre 38, and were followed by a mega yacht.
There aren't many places to pass on the river, so after sitting on
our stern for a bit, the yacht backed off. Usually the bridges are
quick to open, but for some reason Andrews Bridge, the 2nd of 3, was
very slow and we didn't hear the bridge tender respond to any
calls. Andrews lifts the entire span from the S bank, so we folks
with masts like to hug the N bank to get the best clearance.
I'd talked to the dock master to get our slip assignment and was
told to stop on the park dock with a big trawler also waiting for
slack water. All the park docks had a boat on them, so we aimed to
tie up behind a runabout on the next dock ahead of the trawler. As
we approached the dock, the combination of the wake from the mega
yacht passing us and a current swirl (the river curves here) caught
Leonard by surprise, and we just slipped past the trawler by
inches. Much closer than we we like!
Once tied up, we walked to Cooley's to check out our slip and sign
in with the dock master. It appeared our best option would be to
wait until after 1800 to clear the 7th Ave Bridge. We spoke with
the trawler who didn't need the bridge to open, and planned to move
around 1730, low tide (however, low tide doesn't mean the current
has switched). He was just starting the "Loop", having purchase the
boat in Ft. Meyers and heading up the Atlantic coast. He was single
handing most of the trip, one sister was with him for this first
portion and another would join him in Norfolk. A Carver 44' is a
lot of boat for 1 person! When we saw him cast off, we made a bee
line to the marina to catch his lines. He did a good job (bow
thrusters really help). His sister said it was only his 5th time
docking.
The current was still flowing at 1800, so we waited until 1825 and
even then the current was still running downstream - we wanted to be
in our slip before dark. The folks from the trawler came to help,
as did the 3 guys from the boat in the next slip, a Beneteau 42 from
Nova Scotia. My toss of the mid ship line wasn't dead on, but got
to the dock. Unfortunately, the guy missed it, so with a bit of
current still flowing, our docking wasn't the most graceful. It was
an end slip, and wider than most - easy if the line had been
caught. With a bit of help and some work, we managed to get tied up
without touching any pilings or the dock.
Fort Lauderdale always has something happening, and this year was no
exception. The Annual Blues and Music Festival was in the process
of setting up while we waited at the park docks, and we heard the
first group before we moved (we also heard them at the marina). The
concert hall next to the park was celebrating a 25th anniversary
with a concert Saturday night, and was also fenced off for
pre-concert activities. On a walk, we found a jazz festival
underway in another park along the waterfront. Sunday was Farmer's
Market day on Las Olas - as always, lots to see and do which is why
a number of boats spend the winter at Cooley's.
 |
| Sailboat mosaic on the 7th Ave Bridge next to our slip at Cooley's Landing |
Our slip was close to the bridge, giving us a front row seat for
watching the boat traffic and the bridge operate. It was noisy
when the bridge closed, involving several jerks, clanks and bangs as
the spans locked in place. Surprisingly, neither the traffic noise
(speed and tread on the tires make varying sounds, almost musical)
nor the bridge operating kept us awake. I woke up around 0600,
surprised by the lack of noise, brief, but absolute.
 |
Don't see many of these on the road, a McLaren -
one of the 'over the top' cars we saw walking to the beach |
 |
| Looking N along the ICW from the Las Olas Bridge |
 |
Fort Lauderdale beach on a Saturday afternoon
|
This year our timing was off this year and the Chupacks, friends
from Cape Coral, weren't be able to join us. So Saturday, after
making a trip to Publix, we went for a walk. We checked out both
music festivals along the Riverwalk, headed over to Las Olas, and
walked to the beach, some 4 miles, a bit further than we
anticipated, but it was a beautiful day for a hike, sunny and in the
70's. The beach was packed and we decided Cooley's Landing was
preferable to the city marina by the Las Olas bridge, or the nearby
city moorings along the ICW - it's more convenient to everything.
The finale to the day was at 2200, fireworks for the music festival
launched from the park docks. Another long, full day!
 |
| Pembroke Corgi sporting a visor at the Ft. Lauderdale Farmer's Market |
 |
Bees gathering nectar at a shaving brush tree
|
Sunday we went to a bakery for a loaf of fennel/raisin bread (yum!)
before heading to the Farmer's Market to stock up on fresh veggies.
The market was nice, much smaller and with less produce than
Burlington - unlike at home, none of the vendors grow their own
produce, but get it from local farmers. A stop at a nearby auto
parts store to pick up oil for the outboard, also provided us with
a replacement for our water hose. Leonard has been complaining
about the unintentional showers caused by various pin holes in our
old fabric roll up hose. Now he has no excuse not to wash the
decks.
During the afternoon the dock master stopped by to say a young
couple recognized Antares from the lake and were looking for us. We
eventually connected, it was Bev and Sam aboard Perigee, an O'Day
34, who spent time at the LCYC dock last spring when they began the
'Loop'. Sounded like they had an interesting journey, and are now
in the process of selling the boat and returning to life, with jobs
and grad school on the horizon. They won't quite close the 'Loop' -
they're located up the Hudson River beyond Albany, and think the
boat is more likely to sell further S.
 |
| You can never have too many horses (can you see the fuel gauges sweep toward E) |
With plans to head down to Miami Monday, we made use of the marina
pump out system, a do it yourself unit with connections at each
dock. A bit awkward, but it did the job and didn't require us to
move, a real plus since slack water only occurs twice daily doesn't
last long. We topped off the water tanks, cleaned the cabin, rinsed
the salt off the hull and did laundry. With the 'fridge packed (2
more trips to Publix, fortunately only 1/2 mile away), and
everything done, we walked to Briny's, a pub on the Riverwalk, for
dinner, I can only imagine how packed the Riverwalk would be if all
the shops and restaurants were still open. Other than the various
boat tour operators, Briny's is the only place still operating in
the complex, and they were packed. On our first stop, all the
stores in the large complex were occupied and the Riverwalk was a
major tourist attraction. The recent recession has emptied the
storefronts over the past few trips, although the walkway is still
usually filled with a mix of tourists and locals. Both banks of the
river are lined with visiting yachts, part of the city's marina
complex, so there's plenty to see.
2/29/2016 To 25 40.607N, 80 09.746W 35.5 NM No Name
Harbor, Key Biscayne
With slack water around 0930 Monday morning, we cast off and headed
for Miami. The trip down river was interesting - The RR bridge,
usually open, was closed briefly for a short freight train. Two tow
tugs, several water taxis and a big yacht joined us as we negotiated
the bridges. The tugs were picking up a mega yacht at the junction
of the ICW and the river whose tender was a small sport fish, almost
as big as Antares. A bigger sport fish had run aground on the shoal
just off the channel, and we watched a tow boat approach to pull
it off.
 |
Two tugs heading out to pick up a yacht -
the RR bridge is just opening with Andrews Bridge closing beyond |
 |
| Pagoda at an estate on the S bank of the New River |
 |
| Tarpon Bend on the New River |
 |
Tug attaching a line for a tow upriver, another tug was at the astern -
their tender is in the foreground |
 |
Sea Tow pulling a sport fish off the shoal at the New River junction
|
By 1045, we were headed S along the coast under full sail, the E
wind having filled in for the morning. We weren't in a hurry since
it was a fairly short distance so we motored less than 30 minutes to
keep moving when the wind went light. The entrance into Miami was
easy with only the occasional boat racing past - weekends would be
another story. After quick stop at Miami Beach Marina to top off
the fuel tank, the captain decided to go to No Name Harbor on Key
Biscayne to wait for a weather window to hop to the Bahamas. After
sailing down Biscayne Bay, the anchor was set by 1710, another day
with some good sailing. By dark, 15 boats were anchored in the
harbor with us, and 6 outside, so I suspect we may have company when
we cross to the Bahamas. This year we'll try departing from the
Florida Channel, the cut S of Key Biscayne rather than returning to
Miami. Tuesday night looks like a good time to head to Bimini,
arriving at the Grand Bahama Bank around dawn and hopefully sailing
most of the way across before stopping for the night (it's a BIG
bank), and eventually clearing customs at Nassau - about 160NM.
With a bit of luck, the weather window will allow us to head for the
Exumas before the next front arrives.
 |
| Looking back at Miami as we head for Biscayne Bay |
 |
| Sunset from No Name Harbor |
An interesting note. Most of the beaches along the coast have been
refurbished, or what ever term locals use for replacing sand on the
beaches that has been removed by nature, to attract tourists. From
my prospective while it provides a walk-able beach, the dredging
process breaks up any shells and makes for a 'boring' beach walk
with little to see. The process appears to be ongoing and unending,
not unlike painting one side of a house every year. An article in
one of the Fort Lauderdale tourist brochures put the price tag at
$10M/mile (there are a lot of miles of beach) which provided a 10
fold increase in tourist revenue. Interesting, but I wonder how
they did the math - was there a dramatic drop in visits, or is part
of the increase due to a better economy and more Baby Boomers
retiring (there does seem to be more boaters this year)? Owning
ocean front property looks less and less attractive between
insurance issues, rising sea levels and storm induced erosion.
 |
Enhancing the beach involves a lot of big equipment -
back hoes, bulldozers and lots of dredge pipe |
Lynnea
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