We finally left South Shore Harbor and New Orleans on Saturday afternoon, the 9th. Since then, we've been sailing east, sometimes fast in boisterous winds, sometimes slowly in warm whispering breezes, and sometimes with the mind-numbing drone of the motor. We anchored somewhere new every night until we arrived here yesterday.
We're tied up now at Pensacola Yacht Club. We'll spend 2 or 3 days here tending to boat projects. Steve and Pam Vague flew in yesterday, and will sail south with us, hopefully to Key West.
This has been a winter cruise. The days are cold: 28 F when we anchored off the beach at Gulfport. And the nights are long: nearly fourteen hours from sunset to sunrise. Maribeth has made outstanding meals. We enjoyed a fabulous evening at Jack and Margie Grace's house. Thom and Susan Garrison were there also. They have been traveling this same route aboard Resolute. We shared an anchorage with them at Horn Island, and we've been in regular contact all week.
We're getting to know La Peregrina. She has some idiosyncrasies: we discovered the water heater doesn't work, the autopilot has bothersome habits, the main house battery is old and lethargic, and there's a wire we wiggle to keep the refrigerator working. But she's strong, and she tries her best to do all we ask of her.
There is way, way too much stuff on this boat. The ladies have taken to hanging nets from the ceiling to store groceries. So much is stashed under the table, there is no room for legs. And no place to sit for all the pillows. I thought we had learned this lesson on the Camino: Less is better.
We'll finish some chores, somehow stuff more provisions on board, fill all the tanks, pour over weather reports, and finally raise sails again soon. We'll let you know how it goes.
Let us know when you can come join us! We miss you.
No comments:
Post a Comment