We left Serenity Blue at Bluewater Bay Marina in Niceville FL while we went home for a couple weeks to take care of doctor appointments, replenish our meds and the such, as we are senior citizens and those sort of things play into our schedule of life these days.
Upon return to Niceville on February 12 we were invited once again by the Harbor Hosts Jack and Patty aboard ‘Nearly Perfect’ to attend docktails (a gathering of Loopers for socializing, sharing of snacks and stories of the day, usually on the dock or aboard the host’s boat). There were three other Looper boats in attendance with us, Inshallah, Spinning Dreams and Paradise Falls. We all agreed to travel together to Carrabelle and hopefully make the ‘jump’ to the west coast of Florida as a flotilla.
Cormorants & Pelicans 
L J Schooners
Serenity Blue was provisioned and made ready but again the weather was not cooperating so we all decided to stay until Saturday February 15 when it was predicted to be more tolerable. Paradise Falls took off on their own on Friday, Inshallah, Spinning Dreams and Serenity Blue left as planned on the 15th. Bound for Pearl Bayou in Panama City to anchor for the night.
The anchorage was perfect, well protected and calm. Spinning Dreams and Serenity Blue rafted together at the back end of the cove while Inshallah stayed near the entrance.
We were having difficulties with the steering system from the primary helm on the flybridge. This system had been worked on back in Mobile and seemed to be fine until now. While anchored in Pearl Bayou we checked it out and didn’t see anything apparently wrong. The next morning as we depart Pearl Bayou for our next destination, Apalachicola, the steering was so bad we could not hold a straight line, so we moved to the lower helm where the steering was just fine. The lower helm is our secondary position and does not have all the navigational instruments as the primary helm.
The trip from Pearl Bayou to Apalachicola was in a lot of rain, more tows than we’ve seen since the Ten-Tom but not all bad as the lower helm is also next to the galley where the coffee pot was easily accessed; and the head (toilet).
We arrived Scipio Creek Marina in Apalachicola, FL around 4:30pm and were secure in a side tie slip next to the restaurant just before the heavy rains began. While motoring all day thinking about the steering problem it occurred to me the work performed on the steering system may not have been all that complete. The steering system is hydraulic and air in the lines will render the system inoperable. Did they bleed the lines? We had the necessary fluids and tools to fix the situation but the work required opening the cockpit floor hatch (outside) to access the steering cylinder and it was raining cats and dogs. SO, we opted to try to fix it in the morning while our buddy boats depart for Carrabelle. If we could fix the problem before noon, we could still make Carrabelle before dark.
Next morning we awoke to heavy fog, no rain, so we jumped at the opportunity to work on bleeding the hydraulics. The lines were full of air, no wonder the steering was so loose! Our buddy boats couldn’t leave due to the fog and by the time it lifted, we were ready to go also. The steering worked better than ever. Praise the Lord!
It is said that Apalachicola today is reminiscent of Key West back in the day when Earnest Hemingway called Key West his home; rustic, primitive but charming. From what we did get to see of Apalachicola, they could be right.
It was a bit lumpy/bumpy, some rain and light fog on our trip to Carrabelle, despite all we arrived mid afternoon to clearing skys and warming temperatures. Spinning Dreams and Serenity Blue took berths at The Moorings while Inshallah and Paradise Falls stayed at C-Quarters. Once we were all secure, it was time to take a stroll and check out the town.
The section of Florida from Apalachicola and Carrabelle around the Big Bend to Steinhatchee is often known as the “Forgotten Coast”. It is remote, laid back and very peaceful, as if time has stood still. We expected to be in the area longer while waiting for a crossing weather window, however our opportunity came up shortly after arrival. We enjoyed our short stay.
For the past week we had been monitoring all our weather sources, Marv’s Weather Service, Chris Parker marine meteorologist with whom we contracted to help select the best crossing weather window and various others such as Passagemaker and Windy. We had a feeling from what we were hearing that a decent crossing was possible the week of February 17. This was beginning to take shape when Chris Parker e-mailed us on Monday afternoon, and said it looks like the best window would be Tuesday afternoon, overnight, arriving Wednesday morning.
The crossing or ‘jump’ as its often called by Loopers, is a 177 mile journey across open water, Gulf of Mexico, from Carrabelle to Anclote Key inlet at Tarpon Springs. The waters from Anclote Key out 30 miles into the Gulf is also the primary stone crab fishing zone where the crab pots are everywhere. Hitting a crab pot is bad. The tether from the ball buoy to the trap will wrap around the propeller shaft and render the engine useless until one hires a diver to clear it. At our cruise speed of 10 mph we cannot cross the Gulf entirely in daylight this time of year. So we plan our arrival to some point 30 miles off Anclote Key a few hours after sunrise so we can see to avoid the crab pots, but not too early as we are heading East into the rising sun which creates a glare on the water hiding the crab pots. Back up the travel time and in this case we need to depart Carrabelle at 5pm.
On Tuesday morning we get our confirmation from Chris Parker that Tuesday night is the best time to go, for the foreseeable future. At noon we gather together with Spinning Dreams, Inshallah and Paradise Falls to discuss our strategy. The Forecast calls for light winds 5-10 mph, waves less than a foot to 1.5 feet, some light fog on arrival Wednesday morning with a passing shower when we dock on the other side of the ‘jump’around 10:30 Wednesday morning.
Inshallah and Paradise Falls decide to take a course slightly north of the target buoy R2, while Spinning Dreams and Serenity Blue decide to take the direct route to R2. There is approximately 25 degrees difference in the two routes and we should have VHF radio contact with each other for most if not all night.
The photo above is a screen shot of our actual track. The red/yellow line across the Gulf is our actual track from Carrabelle on the left to Dunedin on the right. The next solid red line above that is the tract Inshallah and Paradise Falls followed. The other red lines above that are alternate Rim Routes.
In preparation for much anticipated crossing, which also brings much fear and trepidation to most Loopers, the girls make a pass through the local grocery store to stock up on night snacks, energy drinks and the fried chicken from a local resident which we are told is the best.
Inshallah and Paradise Falls depart at 4 pm as their distance to travel will be longer, Spinning Dreams and Serenity Blue depart to 5 pm. Before we get out of town, we are engulfed in dense fog which slows our progress to the sea buoy at Dog Island. At that point we are in open water and the fog has lifted. So far the predicted conditions are close to expected but the waves are more lumpy/bumpy than expected. Maggie decides its too much rolling so she heads for the saloon, never to emerge until we arrive in Dunedin. Seasickness is a terrible thing, just ask her.
We had decided on a watch schedule before we left the dock; Greg on 4 hours, Maggie on 1 hour until we reach the crab pot zone then we would both be on watch together. Well, that was the plan but now with Maggie incapacitated it will be a long night at the helm for Greg.
With Spinning Dreams a half mile ahead of Serenity Blue I lock in my auto pilot and radar and keep an eye on the instruments and his aft night navigation light. Jim on Spinning Dreams and I decide to call each other every hour on the hour to check on each other and just chat a bit to help us stay awake as neither of our mates are taking their watch as scheduled.
Around 11pm Spinning Dreams nav light disappears, he is still visible on my radar. Fog, dense fog! We check in with each other and decide to slow the pace a bit and I keep the blip that is his boat on radar at the half mile ring on the screen.
At 1:00am I hear a call on channel 16, it is calling out a 48′ trawler at such and such latitude and longitude. I check our position and its not us but is in the direction of our other buddy boats, Inshallah and Paradise Falls. It is the coast guard calling from an aircraft overhead. It is Inshallah he is calling and informs us they are looking for a 50′ trawler with 2 adults and 4 dogs aboard. The boat in question had departed Panama City on Feb. 13, filed a float plan and never arrived to their destination. The coast guard was expecting we might have seen them. Inshallah informed the CG there is nothing on our radar and we can’t see in the fog. The CG checks in with Spinning Dreams and Serenity Blue and we respond same. (A week after we arrived to Dunedin we heard the CG was still looking for this boat, not a good sign, we are hoping they stopped somewhere unscheduled and just forgot to close their float plan.)
The fog finally cleared about 3:30am and a sliver of moon cast a reflection on the waters ahead of us. The sky was ablaze with stars, constellations, it was spectacular.
The weather forecast was mostly correct, they missed the dense fog and the seas where 1.5 – 2.0 feet which is not bad however they were on the beam which made it uncomfortable as it rolled the boat side to side. The occasional 3’+ wave would roll by in the dark and really pitch the boat, then it would settle down.
Needless to say, the chicken did not get eaten. It was energy drinks (Coke Energy, not bad) and chocolate to keep me wake and alert. Once we cleared the dense fog, Jim on Spinning Dreams and I decided to throttle back to idle and go below to do an engine room check. All was good, checked on Maggie who was not so good, the fury mates seem to be doing fine as they mostly slept and lastly made a pass through the galley for more chocolate and energy drinks.
We started looking for the sun to make an appearance around 6am, then 6:30 am and finally it started to show some light at 7am; time always seems to take longer when one’s anticipation is greatest. The miles to go and time to destination on the chart plotter finally showing encouraging numbers that we were getting close. But now we have to deal with the thousands of crab pots; spot them and dodge them. Just what I wanted to do after being at the helm all night; 14 hours so far.
The seas calmed to less than 1′ and sky was overcast with some light fog and drizzle. We made it through the fields of crab pots without incident and to the R2 sea buoy and back into the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. From this point it was an easy run south to Marker 1 Marina in Dunedin, FL.
We tied up at the dock in light rain. Checked in with the marina office and proceeded to immediately look for that fried chicken waiting in the frig. It was 10:45 am, I had been at the helm for 17+ hours and that chicken was the best thing ever. Took a shower and then a nap. Maggie was feeling some better. Woke up around 4pm, and met Jim & Marilyn on Spinning Dreams to walk up the street to Frenchy’s Outpost for a fresh caught grouper meal and back to boat for a full night of rest. We made it!
Reflections on the crossing. While the crossing is the most challenging section of the Great Loop, as most of us are coastal mariners, this requires a trek across open waters away from the coast and the access to rapid rescue if needed. Maggie and I knew we are never alone and as we set out on that afternoon we knew the indwelling Holy Spirit was with us. Although we had a healthy respect for what we were about to do, we were also at total peace about doing it. We did all we could to prepare Serenity Blue mechanically, we had a plan in place if something drastic were to happen and we had to abandon ship, we had our dinghy ready to deploy and a ‘ditch bag’ containing everything we would need including a registered EPIRB to notify the Coast Guard we need rescue and sustain us while waiting for rescue. Lastly we were reminded of Psalms 91:11-12 “For He orders His angels to protect you wherever you go. They will steady you with their hands to keep you from stumbling against the rocks on your path.”
#28. No Christian has ever been called to “go it alone” in his or her walk of faith.