Eagle Ray jumping in Palm Cay marina

A rare posting by Martin! While enjoying happy hour on the flybridge we noticed two spotted eagle rays swimming in the marina. A rare enough sight as it is but then one of them jumped!

Amazingly, Paul was filming them. So we get to share the video with you all!

Sarasota

Blossom in her slip at Longboat Key Club Moorings, the marina and grounds are beautiful 

And whoosh – two weeks have passed! Ultimately we had a very lovely visit in Sarasota though we were a bit disappointed that we didn’t get to do all we had hoped. I ended up getting sick with the cough/cold that’s been going around. It started the day we arrived and I just started to feel “myself” yesterday! Then we had some not-so-nice weather (including a tornado touching down 4 miles away). Fortunately, however, our time in Sarasota was also punctuated with several wonderful get-togethers with friends and family which ultimately resulted in a fabulous stay!

Swans on the golf course lake

We started off with a bang – hunkering down in anticipation of the storm to come the evening of our arrival.  Martin and I were both practically comatose on Nightquil but we were both up at 3am which seemed to be the peak of the storm. With our fender boards down and extra lines we didn’t experience much movement at all. We were well protected by the Key. The next day we learned that a tornado had touched down just south of us on Siesta Key, travelled inland and killed two people. It was a tragic storm.

Our first few days we stayed in, cozy with the nasty weather outside, trying to fend off the virus. Our first outings were with Joe & Holly, our friends who had told us about Longboat Key Moorings. We were so happy that we were able to get together with them before they headed back north. One evening they invited us aboard Scamper (their gorgeous Fleming) for cocktails. Then we went to a restaurant down at St. Armand’s square, the big social/retail area just south of the marina. We enjoyed fabulous food and company!  Martin was able to get out and enjoy a game of golf with Joe too. He had a blast and was pleasantly surprised with his game, especially given that he hadn’t played in about 30 years! We’re looking forward to seeing them again, maybe up north on the east coast next year.

We also got to spend a lot of time with family while were here. We enjoyed a lovely dinner with Martin’s family, Penelope, Syd & Brenda the first we arrived down at St. Armand’s Circle. The following week, Penelope’s sister Sally and her friend Chris were visiting, as were my Dad & step-Mom. Penelope graciously hosted us all one evening. She prepared a marvelous dinner and we enjoyed sharing the evening with our two families. The next day Martin’s family came over to Blossom for tea and we got a great picture of the four cousins!

Penelope, Sally, Brenda & Martin

We plan to rent a car in St. Pete’s for a week or two so we’ll be driving down to Sarasota soon to visit with them again!

We also had a great visit with my Dad & step Mom, Annette, who came to visit us for us for three days. Ironically, all four of us had had the same bug this month so we all took it a bit easy! We did get out and about a bit though and we went to see the Ringling Museum, Mote Laboratory and St. Armand’s Circle while they were here. The three days flew by!

At Ca’ D’Zan (Ringling’s house at the museum)

A small part of the huge circus model

Osprey

Lunch time for the resident manatees and turtle at Mote Laboratory

Enjoying a cocktail on a cool evening on the fly bridge

Another highlight of our trip was getting to know new friends, Don & Nancy. They’re local to the area and took us out to lunch at the Sarasota Yacht Club – which is gorgeous! We were happy to have them over one evening and then check out the club restaurant here, Portofino. Don is a very experienced boater and has a wealth of local knowledge.  He talked with Martin about the tight pass north of here at Jewfish Key (we’ll be going through there on our way to St. Pete’s on Monday) and told us how to get into the inlet here at Sarasota.  Our last day in Sarasota was a memorable one thanks to Don & Nancy. They picked us up on their center console with friends Mike & Sandy. We had an awesome tour of the bay, docked at a restaurant, Mar Vista, on the north side of Longboat Key for lunch, then visited their beautiful N55, Odyssey. Don is an amazing craftsman and has done some professional grade work on their boat. Poor Martin, I took pictures - his “honey do” list got a bit longer that day J It was such a fun day and so nice to leave Sarasota on such a high note. I have a few photos from the day but no pics of the gorgeous ladies. I need to get better about taking people photos! They’re sorely lacking from our time in Sarasota.

Martin, Ron & Mike

Cruising up the bay

My favorite bird, cormorant on a mooring ball

Pelican row, can you see them all?  Oh oh the smell, the smell that surrounds them! (ick)

One of the few outings we had on our own was on a Saturday, when the winds happened to be blowing a sustained 30+ knots, and I had cabin fever. We decided to get out and about so we Ubered into town to check out the farmer’s market. Then we walked back across the Ringling Bridge to St. Armands Key. Unfortunately, there were some victims of the high winds.

Boat ashore on the east side of the bay

Boat ashore on the west side of the bay

The wind was howling, check out those trees!

There was a third sailboat that grounded in the middle of the bay on a shoal. They were pulling her off 2 weeks later as we passed by with Don, Nancy, Mike & Sandy.

Success, she was pulled of the shoal!

Although we spent two weeks in Sarasota, I’m sorry to say that we didn’t really get to know the area as I had hoped we would. We have several activities still on our “to-do” list so we’re simply going to have to visit again!

And now it’s Monday, and February, and we’re off to St. Petersburg, Florida. I really enjoyed our time there last year and I’m looking forward to getting to know it better. Both Martin and I are feeling better and we’re looking forward to exploring and reconnecting with friends here. On to our next adventure!

Boat Business:

• Flag up. We forgot to take in our flag during one of the windy storms and an eye loop bent. Martin fixed it up and it’s back flying on our stern.
• 9k Gen. After much consulting with Northern Lights guru, Bob Senter, (he’s fantastic!) we have a tech coming out to help trouble shoot it next Thursday. Seems we might have a couple things going on there. Will post when we know what’s going on…
• New headsets. Rick & Michelle recommended Sena headsets (one of our Eartecs died) so we got a pair and gave them a try on our way to St. Pete’s. They’re cordless and wrap around the back of your head – very comfortable and loud. We like them a lot (thanks guys J
• We have very firm plans for the Bahamas in May with multiple guests coming into Nassau, so I went ahead and reserved slips at the marinas there for pick-ups and drop-offs. It’s still a ways away but I feel good knowing we have everything all set up.

Visiting in Charleston

Isn't she lovely?

A month in Charleston, how lucky are we?!  It’s been a very full and fun month visiting with lots of family. We have absolutely loved our slip at the Charleston Maritime Center. Out on the end we had gorgeous views of the bay, bridge, and dolphins on their daily wanderings. We also had great people watching as tourists loaded and unloaded from the water taxis and tour boats. Huge car carriers and freighters slowly navigated the bay all day. We were also across from the fuel dock so we'd watch pleasure boats, ferries, mail boats and even the shrimp boats fueling up.

Shrimp boat taking on fuel and ice

View from the docks (photo by Makenzie)

Blossom docked at the Charleston Maritime Center

That said, we haven’t been very good tourists because I’m a wimp and I can’t take the heat! But we’ve had lots of social time and I’ve gotten a lot of quilting done.

On one of our first walks out and about we happened by the Emanual African Methodist Episcopal Church which is just down the road from the marina. It was sobering and heartbreaking to see the church, the thousands of flowers and people paying respect to the victims of such a hateful, cruel crime. 

After we had settled, my Mom drove down to visit us for a few days. We enjoyed the view and the breeze from the fly bridge every evening.  When I saw my Mom in May we talked about a new table topper for the salon. I told her what I’d like and this is what she brought down with her – how beautiful is that?

I love my new table topper – coy & cherry blossoms – perfect J

On the recommendation of a cruising friend (thanks Charlotte!) we visited the amazing Callie’s Hot Little Biscuits one day for breakfast – the.most.amazing.biscuits.ever. (in the narrowest store ever!) We also went to the aquarium which is just a short walk from the marina. The highlight was a brief “4D” movie, Coastal Predators (amazing footage of the great sardine run filmed by the BBC). It’s 3D with the addition of the water spraying and chairs bumping – pretty cool.

Calie’s Hot Little Biscuits

Lick-your-lips tasty!

Martin and Frog at the aquarium

Mom and I went down to see the Angel Oak one afternoon too (thanks Kayleigh for suggestion!) It’s a Live Oak, believed to be around 1500 years old. It’s magnificent.

Angel Oak

My Mom and the Angel Oak

Our next visitors were Martin’s mum, Carole, and her partner, Michael. We spent the first few days relaxing (they had a long trip from the UK) and enjoying our ocean view.

Michael relaxing on the aft deck

Once they had recovered from their travels, Carole and Michael were mad tourists – heading out every day to explore the city.  We spent afternoons and evenings together on Blossom, barbecuing and enjoying the cooler evening temperatures.

Of course we had to explore some of the many wonderful restaurants – we were able to go to Circa 1886, Halls Chop House, the Carolina Ale House and Fig. All were great, but Fig stole the show (though it’s loud!)  We went to the Pure Theatre one evening to see the play, Bad Jews. The acting was excellent but we were all a bit shocked.  It was billed as a comedy but was actually a quite serious play. 

On a slightly cooler day we all went up to Boone Hall Plantation in Mt. Pleasant, one of the oldest working plantations in the country. We toured the gorgeous house, enjoyed the coach tour around the property and learned a great deal from the Slave Street exhibit, “Black History in America”.

Michael and Carole on the avenue

Martin and me (with a map)

Martin taking a rest

A heron hiding in the marsh, love the Spanish moss dripping off the trees

Slave quilts

My cousins also came to visit from upstate New York over a long weekend. Amy, Jeff, Kelsey, their friend Renee and her daughter Makenzie came down to visit with their daughter Kayleigh who lives nearby. We had a fantastic time hanging out with them. On Sunday, we had a barbecue with everyone aboard. Our biggest party to date – we were happy to find that Blossom was plenty big enough to accommodate a 10 person barbecue!

Selfie Stick photo - woo hoo! Counter clockwise: Michael, me, Makenzie, Kelsey, Renee, Amy, Carole.

Martin (yes, there were many tvs at the Carolina Ale House!), Jeff, Renee & Amy

Carole & Michael

The girls! Kayleigh, Kelsey & Makenzie

That evening we broke out the molkky game and Michael crushed the competition with an impressive win!

Excellent photo of the molkky field (photo by Makenzie)

Playing molkky

Jeff flexing into his throw

Martin & Michael strategizing (photo by Makenzie)

Things got racy later in the evening when we broke out Cards Against Humanity. There was much laughter and a lot of giggling.

Reading the card

Reacting to the card  J

Two weeks flew by and suddenly it was time to say goodbye. We had a wonderful visit with Carole & Michael and were thrilled to introduce them to Blossom!

Carole enjoying the view from the fly bridge

Our plans were to start heading south as soon as possible once our guests had all headed home. (I have a nagging voice in my head reminding me that every day brings us closer to peak hurricane season.) We’ve ended up needing to delay our departure, however, due to weather. This gave us time to get our satellite phone worked out (see below) and a few days to head north and visit my Mom in Myrtle Beach (where the next blog post with pick up!)

How's this for a cool pic of our Blossom sign? (Thank you Makenzie!) 

Boat Business:  We’ve managed to get a bit done on Blossom during our stay here as well.

• Wash. Blossom got a professional wash and looked her shiny best for our guests. The indoor cleaning woman didn’t come, but that was okay, she was still pretty sparkly from her June deep clean.
• Pilot House Canvas Screens. These get extremely dirty and the forward port canvas has been getting mildew as well. The ac vent come out right next to the window creating condensation on the window.  Over time and in hot humid weather, this breeds mildew. We did some scrubbing and mildew treatments and they’re looking much better now.
• Black water overboard pump. We got our new pump and hired someone to come help install it. Let’s hope that the end of that for a while at least!
• Diesel. We moved across the way, took on 1200 gallons of fuel and pumped out.
• KVH Satellite Phone. What an ordeal!  We go the unit back from KVH and worked for 2 days.  Martin called and they agreed to send a tech out to the boat along with a brand new unit. It took a day of installing, upgrading software and connecting the new unit to our account, but we now have our satellite phone up and working again – yay!
• Support Strut. We received a support strut for the exhaust elbow on the main engine. There have been a few instances of the turbo being pulled off engines like ours (a John Deere 6090) by the weight of the exhaust elbow and riser. The solution is a strut attached to the engine block and elbow that supports the weight. It hasn't been installed yet, but is on the list!