THE MIGRATION BEGINS...

We left St. Andrews Marina after a morning of last minute preparations at 1330.  The air temperature was cool, 69 degrees, which feels a lot cooler on the water.  We had to pull out the jeans from last season!  UGH!  Jeans and long sleeves is just not my idea of outdoor attire.  We anchored just inside the pass off Shell Island for the evening.  We pulled out the 12 Volt TV and spent the afternoon watching football.  We thought we would enjoy it now, as this would probably be the last time to catch TV for some time.  The weather was not favorable to go out in the gulf Saturday or Sunday. Football and cooking/baking at anchor is fun too!  I baked some awesome oatmeal cookies, packed with coconut, raisins, walnuts and broken pieces of Ed's hershey chocolate almond nuggets.  One to two of them is a filling snack.  I pressure cooked a whole chicken to avoid having to cook much while under way.
Weighed anchor at 0611 on Monday morning 10/5/15 under a half moon and in cool temperatures, 69-72 degrees.  We left just in time, as a fog was rolling in off the land.  We were lucky enough to leave that behind.  We got out into the gulf and were able to raise the main and the 110 jib for an awesome morning of sailing!  Winds were out of the North at 15-18 kts with gusts into the 20's. Seas were 3-5 feet off our starboard quarter. Ed tried the staysail, but it just stole the wind from the jib, so we kept the 2 sails flying the whole run over to Cape San Blas. The whole gulf coast from Panama City to Apalachicola has been plagued by Red Tide (an algae that affects fish and sea life's nervous system and kills them).  We could see so many dead fish floating by.  Very sad.

A close look reveals dead fish floating by

Goodbye, Panama City Pass

In the "ditch" (Gulf Canal)

Enjoying a cup of tea

The ICW, going East

We motored and motor sailed through the ICW to Lake Wimico, down the Jackson River to the Apalachicola River and out into Apalachicola Bay.  The winds were out of the Northeast. The sun was going down, but we kept on going. From that point on, we motorsailed east under the St. George Island bridge, through St. George Sound to Dog Island, off Carabelle. The air was chilly and we had occasional sprinkles.  We spent the whole time watching the chart plotter and spotting the markers with the spotlight.  Time went fast. We arrived at our anchorage at 2250, pretty tired.  We each had one stiff drink and went to bed!  We just spent 16 hours, going 90 miles. It's amazing how long it takes to go 90 miles in a sailboat!

The next leg of our migration south was the crossing to Anclote Key off Tarpon Springs.  We slept until 0730 Tuesday morning and weighed anchor at 1030 am.  I spent most of the morning in the galley preparing dinner to go in the thermos.  I made a yummy dish of yellow rice, black beans, shredded cheddar and canned tomatoes.  The weather was nice, but cool.  Still wearing jeans and multiple layers!  Not good!

We sailed under a blanket of clouds all day, never saw the sun!

The clear sky just above the horizon in the above picture was out to the east.  It really was like sailing under the clouds into the clear eastern sky.  As soon as daylight came, the sky was a beautiful blue and the air was warmer!
                                                

Capt Ed, in his safety harness and tether

Sunrise

Sunrise over the gulf

We reached Anclote Key 26 hours later, tired and beat up from heeling over and having to brace ourselves in the cockpit.  Manatee did great, though.  Not a single hiccup, motor sailed and even turned the engine off for an hour or so.  The wind was out of the Northeast the whole time, blowing at an average of 15-18 kts. with gusts to 25 kts.

Sunrise behind the power plant in Tarpon Springs

We anchored off Dutchman Key at noon on Wednesday.  Enjoyed a hot shower and relaxed in the cockpit with a glass of wine for me and a scotch for Ed.  Shrimp skewers on the BBQ and to bed early.  Ahhh, we are getting south!