Pura Vida Loop

It was 86.3 beautiful miles to marathon yacht club, stone crab traps thick and waiting to foul your running gear. This leg was fairly rocky, south east swell once we passed Cape Sable and got into Florida Bay. It stayed rough until we were within 3 miles of the Keys. Arriving into Marathon Key from the Gulf of Mexico is a shallow shelf. MYC is one of my favorite marinas, they have a great monthly rate for florida yacht club members. We rented our slip for a month planning to spend three weeks here and one week driving up to Palm Beach to have a vacation with my family and visit President Trump at Mar-A-Lago for a dinner party.

While we were here we decided to list our dinghy and davit for sale in hopes to buy our friend Jack Stringfields 16′ Carolina skiff to tow and give us a better safer larger dinghy to get to and from shore. Our hopes are to anchor more, have more privacy and save some money in the expensive areas

We did sell the dinghy to owners of a great restaurant called Seven Fish in Key West. They wanted to pull it with their main ship trawler. We enjoyed a delicious meal when we were in Key West courtesy of the new dinghy owners.

Boot Key Harbor is on the Atlantic side of Marathon, almost directly across from the yacht club. Boot Key harbor is home to 300-400 boats at any given time. About 275 of those slips are owned by Monroe county and are pretty reasonable to lease. They have an expansive wash facility for the moored boaters. It’s very entertaining and fun to visit. There is an abandoned radio station in the middle of Boot Key that used to host Cuba radio and is very cool. We ventured back in here and met “BugMan” the resident caretaker. He is in charge of kicking squatters off the island who take advantage of it. Every Wednesday morning you can hear boot key news on channel 68. They give daily/weekly news and talk about group boat trips, weather, and services offered.

Home depot, Publix, keys fisheries and dozens of great restaurants are bike riding distance. I wish we had odometers on our bikes to see the miles add up. We rode to Sombrero Beach a few times, the only real beach on marathon key.

to anchor in boot key harbor your boat has to have a running engine, that is probably why you see stuff like that.

goodland was a great spot to spend three nights on the hook, we conserved our fresh water, ate well, put some hours on the generator and lived comfortably here. I am excited to come back! Thanks to Ted and Sarah on the Manatee for telling us about this spot.

leaving Goodland is as shallow as coming in, stay in the channel and check your active captain comments, stay east of COON KEY while coming or going and you should see no less than 5′. Panther Key is only a short 11.5 mile run today.

Welcome to the Cape Romano Ten Thousand Islands Aquatic Preserve, Panther Key is close by and is a very remote and scenic anchorage with miles and miles of shoreline to walk. we anchored by Panther Key North by the redfish icon on the chart, I fished this area with shrimp off The dinghy and didn’t have any luck and the bugs came out at sunset so we stayed inside for the night. the beach walk before sunset was great tho and its nice to have a short day so you can get anchored and do some exploring before sunset. the days sure get short in the wintertime. This is our last night at anchor before we arrive in the keys.

January 9, 2020

Cape Coral to the Marco River and into Goodland was a great first day back on the waterways after being docked for almost a month.  This was about a 55 mile day from dock to anchorage.  We had a 2-3’ following sea which made for a smooth and relaxing ride.  We chose to go to Goodland because our friend Jack Stringfield had told me all about the anchorages in this area and the hundreds of miles of dinghy routes.  We had about a 40 mile jog in the gulf before turning into Marco island and getting on the river that takes us south to Goodland.  The Marco river is shallow.  It Is charted at 4’ on a normal low tide.  We entered just as the tide was coming up from an extreme low because of the almost full moon.  We passed a Tow Boat US boat and I radioed to him to get some local knowledge.  He told me we were already past the difficult part and to keep going by the chart.  I found it reliable to use the satellite areal to see the shoaling from the currents here.  They have a huge tide change sometimes 3’ or more.  I saw 4’ a few times on our depth sounders and stirred up some mud but it was super fluffy and the Pura Vida didn’t seem to mind it.  Coming into Goodland was a great start to the 10,000 islands.  This is a remote town south east of Marco island.  Fishing and live aboard boats are all you will find here.  We anchored just past the Calusa Island Yacht Club in Blue Hill Bay.  Calusa is not a member of the FCYC so we chose to anchor here and dinghy in.  we will wait out some high winds while here and cross Florida bay to Marathon Yacht Club on Sunday.  So far we have dinghied the mangroves to Cape Romano.  There are remains of a really cool old “Dome home” that was built in the 1980’s.  It was a few hundred yards from the gulf when built. Now it lies at least a hundred yards offshore.  The fast moving tidal currents here caused this erosion.  It has now been out to sea for almost 10 years.  I find it amazing how much of the domes remain after being at the mercy of the gulf.  We have a lot of exploring left that we want to do here one day including Flamingo, Everglade City, and the 90 mile Buttonwood canal that takes you into the inner everglades where the salt water and fresh water ecosystems collide.

We noticed a marker down in the water and notified USCG St. Pete who had jurisdiction of this area.  There were lots of dolphins as always and Donzi acted scared of them.  Kind of silly that he’s afraid of them.  As we neared Cape Coral there were tons of weekend boaters.  We enjoyed checking out all the different boats and some of the crazy Christmas decorations people put up.  We are looking forward to having a warm Christmas holiday here in Cape Coral docked behind our good friend Georges house.  He is in the Bahamas and was so nice to let us stay here for a month and utilize the pool and hot tub.  We have been enjoying getting to know the neighborhood and have made many great home cooked meals.  I’ve already checked off several projects on my Pura Vida list and am excited to have her in the best shape she’s ever been in.

Henry Ford and Thomas Edison both had winter homes near Cape Coral in Ft Myers.  We enjoyed touring their homes located on a beautiful piece of property overlooking the Caloosa River.  We got our back canvas enclosure created and built while we were there.  That completed the top project.  We have really been enjoying the new and improved pilot house.

December 4^th

Venice Yacht Club was awesome! The cruise from Sarasota to Venice was a beautiful 18.4 miles.  Venice is one of my favorites so far.  Right across the street from the beach.  You can even hear the waves from the marina.  Dock master Myles is very accommodating and friendly.  Donzi loved walking all over this town.  Adeline’s Nana and Granddad used to live here and she recalled eating at the Crows Nest restaurant a few times.  It’s located right on the inlet.  We biked to Ace Hardware for some Christmas light accessories we plan to string on our new ladder.  We are en route to Useppa Island club now.  37 miles south of Venice.  For about 15 miles we were on a narrow man made part of the ICW with a bike path on either side the whole way.  There are lots of manatees and not much marine traffic.  Week day ICW runs are the best.  Stand by.

We arrived to Useppa Island Club Wednesday afternoon around 2 PM.  We docked at the main dock in front of the dock office.  Our friend George got us two nights here under his membership.  This is a 150 acre island that is like being back in the 1920s.  There are no cars here it’s only walking or using a golf cart.  This place is stunning.  The tropical foliage is amazing, the homes are beautiful and the grounds have been upkept to the tee.  It feels like we have the whole island to ourselves.  We enjoyed a nice walk all the way around the whole island one morning.  We saw a lot of interesting things and could really appreciate the quiet way of life here.  Only about a handful of residents reside here full time and we were lucky to meet some of them.  There is no police to worry about here, no noise and no drama-just classic island time at its finest.  The Caloosa Indians used to inhabit here.  Tomorrow we are headed to Cabbage key which is right across the ICW just .8 miles away.

We checked out of Useppa Island late so that we could enjoy the museum the morning of our departure (Friday).  We eased on over to Cabbage Key smoothly and got a great spot just below the famous restaurant here.  This island is beautiful like Useppa but more of a woodsy feel and a little less tropical.  We enjoyed a nice walk and climb up to the top of the water tower which offered incredible views.  Dinner was something we were very much looking forward to because I remembered how good it was on my first time coming through here.  Supposedly this is where Jimmy Buffett wrote “Cheeseburger in Paradise.” The restaurant is also famous for their stone crab claws.  We were a little disappointed to find out they were all sold out of those but the smoked salmon appetizer we got instead was very satisfying so we quickly got over that.  The next morning we got up and headed towards Cape Coral (Saturday).

July 17 – Nov 25^th

17 weeks in Apalachicola.  Small once cotton town turned oyster town, now tourist town and a few oysters.  After returning from our honeymoon we spent about a week getting moved onto the boat.  Our first stop was Destin Harbor where we docked at Adeline’s friends the Sherrod’s dock.  We had a great first night away from Pensacola and enjoyed a nice Mexican meal at La Paz.  Second stop was Panama City, we chose to anchor here because the town is still in tatters a year after hurricane Michael.  We anchored at Bonita Bay aka Pearl Bayou which is a nice protected anchorage right before Tyndall AFB on the south side of east bay at MM 295.  From here we had a nice run into Apalachicola the next afternoon.  Coming into Apalachicola we saw a water spout over the bay.  We were able to get fueled up and docked before the late afternoon storm came.  We spent the four months in Apalachicola at a great marina called Scipio Creek Marina right off the Apalachicola river up Scipio creek.  This is the only place that sells fuel from Panama City to Carrabelle.  We saw many boats come and go while docked here.  We became friends with the owner Trey and all the staff here are great knowledgeable and friendly people.  There is also a great restaurant on site called Half Shell Dockside where we enjoyed many delicious meals and live music.

We planned to get a custom pilot house enclosure built on our flybridge while in Apalachicola.  This month-long job ended up taking 4 months and a week!  I always dreamed of piloting the Pura Vida and looking out actual glass windows and not the flimsy, blurry and over-priced Strata glass most yacht enclosures use.  Adeline my lovely wife was so patient during this construction project that took far too long.  She kept me calm when things were stressful during the build.   I was so glad to design and have a dream enclosure built on our beloved Pura Vida.  This was exciting every step of the way for me but being held back so long was trying on the nerves and we were more ready than ever to begin our adventures.  We spent many days on St. George Island, Cape San Blas, Port St. Joe, Mexico Beach, Tate’s Hell state forest, Eastpoint and Wakulla Springs.  The forgotten coast wasn’t so forgotten anymore.  I’m blessed my parents brought me and my sister down here so many times growing up so that I could have these memories from when I was younger and notice all of the changes that have occurred over the years.

I feel very protected and safe piloting from the flybridge now, it is completely weather tight and as comfortable in the cold as it is in the heat.  Visibility from the 44” tall windows is excellent and way better than before.  It’s like we have an extra weather proof room on the boat now.  We started off by mocking up the whole enclosure with thin wood to figure out the dimensions for the hard top that we wanted to build.  Once the top was built we set it into place on temporary supports so we could build the walls and then set the top onto the walls.  The walls have an inner and outer skin with framing in the middle to support the roof.  We started with the outer skin.  Next we made our framing to hold the roof.  We then fiber glassed it all together and fiber glassed the inner walls to the structure for a super solid one piece look.  After the walls were done we lowered the roof a 1/2” to rest on its new walls.  From here we installed windows, custom built a ladder and radar riser, installed my antennas, primed and painted everything, wired my roof top A/C, ran all my wires and finished it off with a nice headliner with a teak trim.  No one in Apalachicola does canvass enclosures so once we get to Cape Coral I will have Scotties marine canvas company fit a tinted back curtain to the pilot house to finish off the project!  The front windows have a slight forward lean to them.  I love this look because you don’t get any glare on the glass and rain won’t hit the glass unless it’s a blowing rain.  You will notice every commercial boat will have windows like this and the commercial guys know how to do it because they go out on the water day after day in every type of weather.

We left Apalachicola Monday at 4pm est. November 25^th, we literally were putting the last screw in the headliner as we left the dock.  We had decided Adeline would drive as long as she could letting me take a nap after dinner and I would wake up and relieve her the rest of the night after she got tired.  This crossing was supposed to be amazing weather 1.5’ waves max which should have been a following sea.  90 miles into the 183 mile crossing Adeline wakes me up telling me she can’t stay awake.  As soon as she lays down to get some sleep the 1.5’ waves grew larger and larger until they were 5-6’ and hitting us on our port quarter.  Not a nice ride. And the wind had picked up to 17-18 out of the east.  Weather reports were still relaying a 5mph ENE wind reading that was way wrong.  For 8 hours we were at the mercy of the gulf.

The Pura Vida pitched and rolled giving the new enclosure a run for its quality.  It was hard to move around the boat. No matter what I did whether I changed the speed or the direction, nothing would give us a better ride.  Once we got about 15 miles from land it started to finally calm down and when we were 7 miles out we were back to a smooth ride.  Once we were entering the pass the excitement of making it to the west coast quickly surpassed the thoughts of our miserable overnight crossing.  We arrived in Clearwater Tuesday- 19 hours after leaving Apalachicola.  Clearwater Yacht Club was a perfect first stop with a heated pool, outside bar and they are dog friendly.  Pura Vida was covered with 80lbs of salt so I got her rinsed down and we took a nap until dinnertime.  Melanie and Russ, Adeline’s parents stopped in Clearwater to see us on their way to Longboat Key.

After two nights in Clearwater we motored 58 miles to Longboat Key.  Most of this part of the ICW was narrow with gorgeous real estate to feast your eyes on.  The water was clear leaving the sandbars visible to the eye.  Ran the motors up to 2250RPM for the first time since adding the pilot house.  She laid right down on plane with the extra weight of the pilot house actually helping.  Melanie and Russ treated us to 3 nights at a super fancy marina called Longboat Key Club Moorings.  It is in a gated neighborhood with a beautiful golf course, 291 slips, pools, hot tubs, spa, private beach and many places to get a bite to eat.  Adeline’s family was staying directly across the street from the marina on the beach so we could walk over easily.  There is a Publix next to the marina which was great for stocking up.  This marina was like resort living!

We left Longboat on the 1^st  and traveled 8.3 miles south to Sarasota YC.  Another really cool west coast yacht club with the fanciest club house I have ever seen.  There is a big rookery next door so lots of cool big birds are all around but when the wind changes direction it’s a bad smell.  It is a short bike ride to St. Armand’s Key a small key with tons and tons of food and cool stores to check out.  We are sitting out some high winds today in port.  It has been a really fun week having left Apalachicola.  Venice YC, Useppa Island, Cabbage key and then Cape Coral are our next four stops.  In Cape Coral I will dive into my long list of repairs before we head to the Keys and Bahamas.  We are so thankful to be living this life of travel as newlyweds and are eager to explore, learn and grow together.  Living aboard Pura Vida we feel like we are experiencing the true beauty that this life has to offer.

Ditto Landing is a great marina at MM334. They have lots of walking and biking trails and great docks. The overnight dockage is free if you get 80 gallons of fuel or more. This is pretty much the only marina in Huntsville and is a great stop. It’s good for taking advantage of the free slip and the perfect place to stretch your legs. While we were staying here Adeline’s brother Matthew drove down from Nashville for the night and brought us dinner! We had a great time grilling out and catching up!

 

Ditto to goose landing anchorage MM377 was 43.5 beautiful miles with only one lock, Guntersville L&D. We started to see more hills on this stretch. Guntersville Lake is extremely beautiful, deep with relatively clear water. We loved seeing all the interesting homes on the lake. The only action on the lake was a bunch of bass fisherman. There was some neat wildlife including bald eagles hanging out on the floating logs. Our anchorage for the night was at MM377 through a narrow 6’ deep channel to a 13’ deep basin in front of The Docks Restaurant. We took the dinghy in for dinner and realized it was part of a big golf course that was pretty cool. There was a great musician playing that we enjoyed talking to who actually used to live in Pensacola! We even met a couple who remembered seeing our boat at Ditto Harbor from their home in Huntsville! We plan to stop and have dinner with them on our way back through Huntsville. It’s such a small world and people are so friendly when you’re out on an adventure.

Goose Landing to Chattanooga MM464 was 85 breath taking miles with one lock Nickajack L&D. Waking up at the Goose Landing anchorage was beautiful but we were totally socked in with fog until around 10am! Once we got going it was smooth cruising. We passed a handful of southbound loopers. Erwin marine is your best option for boat slips in Chattanooga. They run 5 dock sites all in the same one mile of riverfront. We chose the commercial dock that only has one transient slip and two tour boats that share the dock. We liked this because it was more private compared to the other docks. This was my first time in Chattanooga and I thoroughly had a great time! There is so much to do within walking distance. There are friendly people, an active riverfront and beautiful natural wonders to enjoy and explore. Ruby falls, Lookout Mountain, Rock City, Forest Ave Bridge and many more things to see. This will definitely be a place I would like to go again next fall and hopefully will be able to go even further on into Knoxville.

MM377 anchorage

American Queen ferry, we saw this boat from Florence to Chattanooga

looper boats

After enjoying Grand Harbor Marina, Adeline and I headed to Florence, AL. We stayed at Florence Harbor Marina, MM256. This is a great marina right before the Wilson Lock. They have a restaurant that is part of the floating docks, a three mile long bike path along the river which goes through a neat little RV park, and a courtesy vehicle. Florence is a quaint town with all types of local food and sites to see. Across the river on the southern side is Muscle Shoals. This is an area filled with music history with several famous music studios that we were lucky enough to tour and learn some history from. The music that came from this area is rich in soul and funk. You can’t tell if the singers were black or white because of the soul they put into every lyric and beat. We have been listening to the CDs we bought here and both agree it is perfect music for cruising the Tennessee River.

            The first lock after Florence Wilson L&D was closed during the day due to repairs so we left around 6 PM and headed through the first lock at sunset. We decided to keep going the 20 miles and make it through the second lock Wheeler L&D.   This was a new opportunity to be driving the rivers at night. I paid close attention to my navigation systems and radar and used my ARC spotlight when buoys were in sight. We made it smoothly through the two locks, luckily this night wasn’t as cold as the night before.  We anchored at Joe Wheeler State Park. This was a quiet anchorage and it was nice to be back with nature after staying at marinas. The anchorage was one from Active Captain called MM275.8 which was the first little cove past the Wilson lock. Depth was 18 feet 100’ from the bank ¾ of the way back with plenty of swing room. Today we are headed to Huntsville, AL. The weather is nice and cool yet beautiful. Enjoy the pictures and we will be standing by ch. 16

the Yamaha piano freebird was recorded on, plus many more

When hurricane Maria was bearing down on Florida in early September, Adeline and I decided to take Pura Vida up to Demopolis, Alabama. This kept us out of harms way during this active hurricane season. We rented a slip for a month and decided when we went back up to bring her home we would first cruise up to Pickwick Lake and then enter the Tennessee river to do some sight seeing. What a great way to see the leaves changing color. Today is our first day on the Tennessee. I must say it’s beautiful. The temp is 60 and it feels refreshing out. We stayed two nights at one of my favorite marinas, Grand Harbor on Pickwick Lake mm450. We met some cool people there and also enjoyed some good food. We stocked up on provisions and completed a service on my hard working engines and generator. Life is a blessing and I couldn’t think of anywhere I would rather be. Tonight we will be stopping at Florence Harbor Marina. We plan to check out the famous Muscle Shoals music studio! God bless you all and thanks for being a part of the journey.