By 8 am we had pulled the anchors and were cruising down the 30-mile long Choctawhatchee Bay, still in the panhandle of Florida.
We’ve had interrupted sleep the last two nights as our generator has
been stalling.
Last night at 2 am,
Mike changed yet another fuel filter on the thing.
Brenda got out of bed as well—something literally
didn’t smell right.
Despite generator and engine hiccups and finding the source
of odors that shouldn’t be, Mike hums a tune to himself as he goes to and fro between the
three bilge areas (where most things get fixed): (1) the engine room; (2) the
generator area; and (3) where the air conditioner and pumps are accessed.
His years of farming with his dad and Uncle Dale and cousin Duane-- as well
as his experience with our truck-washing business--
have prepared him well for this trip. And
Brenda is grateful for it!
In the past two days, “Velsignet” has traveled over 120
miles. Each morning, we wake up greeted
by Florida’s heat and humidity (even the water temperatures are warm: 89+ degrees!) and are relieved by the thunderstorms that release their pent-up energy
and temporary cooler winds. A couple
of nights ago, we decided to try sleeping without air conditioning. We opened up the windows and fell asleep to a gentle breeze throughout the bedroom and galley. By midnight, Brenda awoke to “stuffiness”. The breeze had died. She felt the boat closing in on her! It was a full day before her headache and occasional
nausea subsided. (Okay, okay. Maybe it was the bottle of red wine we drank
the night before to celebrate a successful crossing of the Gulf…but an entire day
of hangover? Doubtful!)
Tonight we are docked at Quiet Water Beach Pier at Pensacola Beach. It has a sugar-sand beach and swimming area that we were happy to take advantage of. Besides lots of people enjoying the beach, swimming area and the many eating establishments, the Santa Rosa Bay is buzzing with jet skis, parasailing, and recreational boats. I am reminded that this is the high tourist season, as Mike’s parents, Marlys and Glen, describe their winter months spent at Orange Beach/Gulf Shores as during the area's low season. We are excited thinking about tomorrow as we will be cruising near Orange Beach and Gulf Shores. Next February, our neighbors Candy and Doug have plans to spend time there, too. From what we’ve seen and experienced so far, we couldn’t be happier for all of them!
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This photo is for granddaughters Iris and Rose.
These are brown pelicans and salt-water extreme divers! |
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| This monitors water depth (reads 21.0 feet) and water temperature (yes, you're reading it correctly: almost 90 degrees!). |
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| An example of the homes seen along our route today. |
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| This was taken near Fort Walton Beach. |
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| The Santa Rosa Bay is lined with sugar-white sand. This is not far from Panama City. |
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| An afternoon thunderstorm brews and is approaching us. |
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| The thunderstorm brought heavy rains...and an hour or so of cooler winds! |
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Here we are docked to the Quiet Water Beach Pier. After a swim, Mike will go to West Marine for parts,
then it'll be dinner out tonight at a local restaurant! |
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| Quiet Water Beach and swimming area. It's kind of a "cheesy" touristy place, but for us today, we're okay with it! |
You probably went by Destin, FL, where we spent time with Brent’s family a few years ago. The beach sand is white and so fine - a fun place!
ReplyDeleteThis area is looking familiar.
ReplyDeleteBeen there! Sounds like you two are getting use to the boat. We just got back from the Gunflint trail and the bugs were ferocious!
ReplyDelete