Got the last of our chores done in time for Robert and Linda to pick us up for a few last “must do’s” in Destin.  Robert and Linda were kind enough to carry us to Walmart, mail, groceries and lunch at AJ’s.  But our first stop had to be at the beached sailboat on Marimar Beach.  As the story goes……..the sailboat “Phantom of the Aqua”, whose home port is the US Virgin Islands, was caught in one of the recent hurricanes.  The owner of Phantom had to be rescued 200 miles offshore, out in the Gulf by a US Coast Guard helicopter.  Thinking the boat was sinking, he abandoned it only to find it weeks later, washed up on the beach at Destin.

    

    

We had lunch at AJ’s Seafood & Oyster Bar where we took advantage of every bit of heat we could find – it was drafty in there but the food was great!    

After lunch, we picked up Karen’s mail from Diane’s and made a quick provision run to Winn Dixie.  Running out of daylight hours, and to save time, we separated the grocery store into 4 quadrants…..Ron had the far left, Linda the near left, Karen the near right and Robert the far right…..we had a small grocery list and each had to pick up two items in record time (in their prospective quadrant) and meet at the check out counter in record time as well…..We had very little daylight left and had to be ready for an early morning departure from the dock—-and it was COLD AND WINDY!!!

Early the next morning, Rob and Lin joined us for our next section of the loop, Destin to Panama City.  As Robert helped with the lines and Ron got us under way, we crossed the bay and eased into the Intracoastal Waterway.  It was a quiet and peaceful voyage (no other boats).

         

     

…….UNTIL…….we entered St. Andrews Bay, where we were joined by a school of playful dolphins.  The dozen or so dolphins ran with us – and also swam in our wake for quite a while (look closely at the second picture).  Wild dolphin are commonly seen in the waters of St. Andrews Bay.

    

Shell Island is a barrier island running between the Gulf of Mexico and St. Andrews Bay and is home to an abundance of naturally occurring sand dunes, sea oats, sugar-white beaches and wildlife. The only access to Shell Island is by boat, and the waters surrounding the island are home to a vast array of fascinating sea life, including one of the largest concentrations of Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins to be found anywhere in the United States.

Ultimately we arrived at Bay Point Marina in Panama City (a looper favorite) where we were greeted by a friendly staff showing off highly unusual icicles from the docks.  Regardless of how far south we go, it remains rather chilly!

    

We were once again dwarfed by the large boats and impressed by the beautiful sunsets in Florida (you see us sandwiched between the two 100+ ft boats on the dock).

    

Due to weather delays in “The Crossing”  (crossing the Gulf – a day or two crossing – according to your speed – with no land in sight)…..we chose to sit in Panama City and wait for a warmer day to travel.  The weather is below freezing at night and breezy and chilly during the day.  Tomorrow promises to be warmer and we plan to get an early start to Apalachicola, Florida.  We spent the day charting out our next few weeks, reading, walking the docks, filling and emptying tanks – getting ready to travel.  To our surprise, there are several Tennessee boats docked here, one from Franklin, Tennessee and another actually from Nashville.  There are several other “looper” boats here, although they have been abandoned for the holidays.  One of our favorite pass-times is walking the docks looking at boats.  Boat names are always an interesting subject.

        

We walked to a recommended restaurant, “The Tide” and had more gumbo and fish tacos.  We never tire of fresh seafood, oysters, or gumbo.  We have had so many varieties of gumbo since leaving Nashville, none bad – all different!  (Ron says none as good as Karen’s)……

    

Today marks 7 states, 66 days on the boat and 26 marinas since we left Nashville.  We have collected over 100 looper boat cards.  We are still married, still like each other, and still moving forward!  No “cabin fever” so far.  Each hour of each day is a new adventure and we feel blessed to have this opportunity.

Got an early start out of Panama City, low tide was upon us and we had to get out of Dodge before we beached.  You can see how low the water is, as just feet away from our boat is now land that was covered by water only a few hours ago.  YIKES!

…….as in previous posts, we see beached sailboats along the way, some with more intriguing stories than others.  This hurricane season was brutal to Florida.

    

This winter weather here in Florida is also brutal.  For the last two days our power cable was frozen.  Still got power to the boat, but when we were ready to get under way, the power cord was frozen and the cable master would not reel it in ….duct tape to the rescue!!!  We had to apply duct tape around the intake receptacle to prevent the back-splash of water from entering our electrical system…..so far so good…..by mid afternoon it warms up enough to power it in…..just a little bit of useless information………

And again, we had dolphin swimming around the boat and in our wake.  We have had dolphin sightings nearly every travel day since we arrived in Texas in November and it is always a pleasant surprise to have them swimming along side of us!  The scenery along the Florida Intracoastal is different, with both vegetation (sawgrass) and rural residential.

            

We were delighted to enter Apalachicola, a quaint little town in Florida.  We walked the streets while the sun was still up, it was chilly but warm enough to be outside.  The town is dotted with dozens of little shops, restaurants and museums.  Apalachicola claims to be the oyster capital of the world.  The guest register at our marina has been there for 37 years and we were surprised to see at the top of the page – Albert and Cindy, a couple we met on the Tenn-Tom waterway a month earlier.  They have now made their way to Key West aboard a vintage 1960 wooden 50 foot Chris Craft, “MissMarianne”.

        

We ate at the local recommended “Boss Oyster House”.  Food, oysters, shrimp and gumbo were all excellent!  There we met our new best friends, Deb and David, and Allen and Robin – from Kentucky Lake.  They are traveling by motor home and travel trailer and doing by land exactly what we are doing by water.  We all enjoyed the fresh “and famous” Apalachicola oysters for dinner.

    

We walked back to the boat and crashed at 7:30 p.m. (another example of “boater’s midnight”…..)

We try to make a “rough” travel plan for a few weeks out.  We try to make a “as close to accurate” travel plan for a few days out.  Based on weather forecasts, tides, winds and rain – some days like today we have trouble deciding whether to go or stay.  After much deliberation (Ron calls it waffling), we decided to stay in Apalachicola one more day.  Ron walked the little town to see if he could find a local sports bar where we would be able to watch the Titans take on Kansas City in the playoffs.  We don’t always get good reception on the boat and in some places they have never even heard of the Tennessee Titans, much less have them televised.  This was our big determination for today as to whether to travel or stay put.

    

Ron did not find a Sports Bar but he did find The Rosette Spoonbill Lounge willing to put the game on for us in their karaoke room.  We had the entire room to ourselves.  They did not serve food so Ron walked back to the boat to get popcorn and chips.  Notice the coffee filters he brought to use as our “chip basket”.  Ron has never been accused of being domestic!

        

Titans won!  22-21 – and moving on in the playoffs!  Woo Hoo!

I asked Ron if he had any thoughts for today…….after our “pinball” start getting out of the slip – he said, “What comes to mind is “SumeBeach”. We were forwards, backwards, sideways, and bouncing off all 6 pilings in the slip – and that was just the first 5 minutes!  We were in the NO FUN  ZONE  today.  We left for Carrabelle this morning in 18 MPH winds.  It was either leave or be stuck there several days due to the incoming weather.  The tide was going out, rain was in the forecast for tomorrow and the high winds were gusting.  Spray from the waves splashing 15 feet over our windshield and isinglass enclosure kept us focused on our navigation to say the least.  Crossing St. George Sound is somewhat like running in the gulf.

Seeing NO boats some days and a boat or two other days leaves us wondering if we are truly blessed to have the opportunity to actually do this – – – OR – – – absolutely crazy FOR doing this.

    

Once in the protected mouth of the Carrabelle River things quietened down substantially.  We were told Carrabelle was a drinking town with a fishing problem.  We found it delightful.  Unfortunately, you see the impact of the hurricanes here with abandoned boats, but overall it is a very quaint village.

    

At the end of the day, secure in a slip at C-Quarter Marina, the Carrabelle, Florida sunset was a welcome sight.  At least there are other boats here and we are all waiting for a weather window to cross the gulf in calm waters.        

Photos at the end of a trying day answer the question – are we blessed or crazy…….

    

We are truly blessed…….

Having a free day, we took a stroll down the Carrabelle River.  We are told the manatee sometimes come this far north but we didn’t see any on this chilly and windy day.  We walked the docks of other marinas and found a floating home in the harbor (behind Karen).

    

    

We met new boater friends Janice and Chris aboard “Sweet Relief” a 42 ft Hatteras and we reconnected with Doris and John on their sailboat, “About Time”.  We met Doris and John when they dinghied in to Bobby’s Fish Camp on the Tenn-Tom mid-November last year.  It’s always exciting to meet up again with fellow boaters we have met along the way.

We all went to Pirate’s Cove for dinner and to watch the college football championship game.  Being that we are boaters with no vehicles, the owner of the restaurant was kind enough to pick us up at the marina and shuttle us back after dinner.  Food was great!

    

……….SPOILER ALERT – Alabama won in overtime!

While waiting on a weather window to travel, we walked the little town of Carrabelle, Florida.  Carrabelle (considered the gateway to the gulf) is the best jumping off spot in the Florida Panhandle before crossing the gulf to more southern ports.  Carrabelle is a naturalist’s paradise and a walkable community.  It felt like a walk back in time.

    

Carrabelle also boasts having the world’s smallest police station situated on Highway 98.  On March 10, 1963, Carrabelle’s police phone rang in the outside highway booth so that Chief Albin Westberg could answer calls and watch for speeders.  It has also been featured on a variety of television shows.

   

We stopped by the visitor’s center and visited the history museum as well.  Carrabelle, a once bustling port, was incorporated in 1893 but technology and a more modern culture has left Carrabelle in it’s wake.

    

And FINALLY, Karen was able to capture a photo of dolphins “out” of the water. (Yes, this is a joke)….and we also saw sea turtles!!!

    

So far on our trip we have seen lots of pelicans – that fly as soon as we think about getting close enough to photograph them.  We found “Jack the Attack Pelican”.  Instead of flying – he was aggressive toward us and even snapped at Karen a time or two as she got too close taking pictures.

        

We had been told not to miss the bottle house and light house!  A local artist, a retired Professor of Art at the University of Tennessee, built the bottle house in 2012.  It is made up of over 6,000 glass bottles.

    

The refraction of the light coming through the colored bottles made for an interesting array of lighting.  The floor is a realistic mural of a koi pond.

    

We found the Loch Ness monster in a pond at a little city park and Ron was adopted by a stray puppy for the remainder of our walk.

    

Back at C-Quarter Marina, we spent a few hours with fellow loopers studying maps, charts and weather apps in preparation for the 170 mile gulf crossing to warmer climates…….

The “crossing” is one of the few unprotected (open water) voyages loopers have to make to complete the journey.

After dinner we joined other loopers on the porch to exchange more looping stories and everyone’s plans to move forward…..

    

We got up early and had a hearty breakfast at “The Fisherman’s Wife” – yes – she is really a fisherman’s wife!  Karen enjoyed a few hours of sunshine while feeding the little friends at the dock.

    

Ron, with Rick and XO Susan, aboard “Ginger Lee”, consulted with Captain Kim (yes, she is a certified Captain and dockmaster) about the weather window for our crossing.  James, the marina’s caretaker for over 20 years, also had valuable knowledge to share.  “DON’T GO!”    “DON’T GO!”

    

Later in the afternoon, we broke lines and headed out to anchor in the harbor off of Dog Island.  Here we could get an early start and avoid some morning fog (we thought!).  This gave us a six mile lead on the crossing.

    

Along with four other “buddy boats” (Wine Speed, Sweet Relief, Ginger Lee and Blue Ayes), we dropped anchors at Dog Island for a restless night on the hook (anchored).

    

Despite a cloudy sky, we still got glimpses of the multitude of stars at night in St. George Bay.  Our anchor held…..and all was good……

    

The crossing is one of the more anticipated events of doing the loop.  Because there is no intracoastal waterway made up of barrier islands or canals between Carrabelle down to Tarpon Springs (the Florida Big Bend), you are in open unprotected waters.  Therefore, you are “crossing” the Gulf of Mexico rather than hugging the coastline around.

Terms come to mind such as – “scary”, “adventurous”, “exciting”, “crazy”……….and will change as to whether you are on glassy seas with no wind – as opposed to choppy seas with dense fog………you get the picture.  We were “anxious” but not “scared”.

Most looper boats travel at around 8-10 miles per hour so it takes two days to cross the gulf, which includes traveling overnight.  So – you are out in the gulf, no land in sight, pitch black dark, chugging along in your boat – all night long…..scary?

We are on what some people call a “go fast” boat.  Go fast boats are sometimes snubbed, but it allows us to make our crossing in daylight hours and therefore removing much of the scary factor.  We can travel anywhere between 10 to 30 miles per hour so we can cross in daylight “if” all goes well – which it seldom ever does when you’re looking at so many changing conditions – tides, wind, current, rain, fog, obstructions (crab pots) etc.

Our anchor held all night – always a good thing…..and we were ready to start our gulf crossing.  Second picture is us, taken by Jim on Blue Ayes, anchored not too far away.

    

…….We awoke to our worst fears – pure fog, choppy waters and 2 foot swells.  “Gulp” , no turning back – we were committed!  If we don’t make the crossing today, it could be another week before we get another weather window to cross…..we get restless to travel after a few days in port.  It was a slow start for the first few hours but as we moved on the chop and swells subsided.

    

This was our view of the Gulf for eight hours.  After about the first six hours of intense lookout, our eyes started playing tricks on us.  We were seeing things that were not really out there.  If you look closely you can see two of our buddy boats.  We could follow them on radar when they were not visible.

   

Navigationally, we basically followed a straight line from buoy #2 to buoy #4 (170 miles).

    

Once again, the pure moister in the air produced what we call “a cloud rainbow”….an appreciated change of scenery!

    

While nearing our destination and dodging crab pots, one of our engine alarms went off.  We shut it down and slowly made our way into port (between the reds and greens – as you see in the fog) on ONE ENGINE.

    

Santa was not the only one exhausted after that trip!  Upon arrival at Turtle Cove Marina (on the Anclote River in Tarpon Springs, Florida), we were greeted by Herb the Harbor Host.  Herb completed the loop last year and enjoys meeting fellow loopers who pass his way.  He also greeted us with cinnamon streusel cakes for tomorrow’s breakfast!  More about Herb later!

    

We will worry about the engine issue tomorrow……………

Having had a decent night’s rest, it was time to address the engine issue.  Why did the engine alarm go off?  Speculation was that we had hit a crab pot line and it might be wrapped around a propeller.  Meet Lee and Maddie aboard Dixie Belle.  Maddie had recently purchased her GoPro Camcorder and she was looking for opportunities to try it out.  And here we are – needing a look at our props.  Maddie was able to capture a good video of what was going on underneath our boat and we saw no crab pot lines!  Not sure if that is good news as we still need to  find the cause of the engine alarm.

        

A little bit about Lee and Maddie………….Lee is from Guntersville, Alabama.  Lee is doing the Great Loop and his eighth grade grand-daughter Maddie is going with him!  Just the two of them on a beautiful trawler named “Dixie Belle”.  Maddie is home-schooling herself and “is” going to be a marine biologist (not “wants to be”, but “is going to be”).

Ron did a thorough investigation (fluids, filters, strainers, raycors, pod drives) and found all okay.  After finally getting up the nerve, Ron started the engines.  With little fan-fair, both engines ran fine.  We did schedule a Volvo technician to bless Ron’s findings.

After that bit of relief, we joined our buddy boat Captains and First Mates, and Herb the Harbor Host for some fresh Florida wild caught seafood at Rusty Bellies.  You see Mr. Rusty in the picture below.

    

In front are Jim & Regina from “Blue Ayes”, next you see Ron and Herb, then Karen, and far right are Chris & Janice from “Sweet Relief”.  Rusty Bellies is a popular waterfront grill named after gulf grouper fishing.  A “Rusty Bellie” is the nickname given to the large male gag grouper.  A “Rusty Bellie” generally ranges between twenty and sixty pounds, and is typically caught by the true at heart fisher-person!