We didn’t let that severe weather keep us too long, thought we did moved from the Clearwater Beach anchorage over to the Bellaire Causeway anchorage on Sunday because the water was just too rough to be comfortable in front of the hotels. Since we were inside the barrier islands, Dan decided we could keep heading south as long as we kept a good weather eye out. Monday we got to Sarasota Bay, where we found a great anchorage with a view. Glorious sunset that night!
Tuesday we cruised to the Boca Grande bridge, just before Charlotte Harbor, and we turned into a little water cul-de-sac that was edged by large homes. It’s always weird to anchor in someone’s front yard like that, but it turned out to be one of our nicest anchorages in Florida. It was very quiet and fairly dark at night. During that day, Dan spent a some time tracking down help for a small fuel leak that had been plaguing us since Mobile. He had already narrowed the problem (in the injector line) and had been on the phone with Transatlantic Diesel, his go-to people for engine troubles. They had sent a package with small gaskets to Carrabelle, but Dan wanted a mechanic on standby before he started taking things apart, as he was worried that if something broke, we might need someone who could make a part and help him get it all back in working order. Dan is mighty handy with just about everything that needs doing, but he knows enough to look ahead at possible problems and to line up expert help if needed. After many calls to local friends and acquaintances for recommendations of boatyards and mechanics, he learned of Capt. Mike, the guy that “knows everything about Perkins engines.” Capt. Mike agreed to meet us at the marina in Punta Gorda on Wednesday.
A steady Northeast wind had been blowing. In this marina in Punta Gorda, winds from that direction steadily blew the water out of their basin. We couldn’t make it into the designated slip - we couldn’t even get down the designated channel without touching bottom. In fact, most of the boats in their slips were sitting on the bottom. The marina ended up putting us on their courtesy dock. I had promised to get out of the way, so I collected the laundry and left Dan to ready the engine room for inspection by Capt. Mike.
Well, Capt. Mike called to reschedule for Thursday, saying he’d be there “first thing.” Dan came to the boater’s lounge to let me know, and got to talking with the other boaters there. They reluctantly informed him that Capt. Mike-the-diesel-mechanic had a solid reputation for not showing up. And for drinking. To cheer Dan up and to celebrate his birthday, I took him out to dinner. Fisherman’s Village Marina has a mini-mall of shops and restaurants right at the dock, and we found a holiday-decorated outdoor restaurant with good food just steps away from the Willie Dawes. Afterwards we did a little browsing in the shops nearby, picking up a few last minute Christmas gifts to send home. We managed to get off his mind off Capt. Mike for a little while, but he still sat up late thinking about what to do.
Dan did what he always does. He got up early, he addressed the problem, and he solved it. Thursday morning he dived into the engine room, took apart the fuel injector and replaced the gaskets. Nothing was cracked and no other parts needed replacing, let alone custom-making, which had been his biggest fear. A few hours later we heard from Capt. Mike - he was going to be late - and Dan told him we didn’t need him after all.
The money we saved on mechanic fees we spent on staying at the marina a second night, for there was less water than we had the day before when we’d gone aground. We spent the morning walking to town and shipping off the last of our Christmas presents from the very busy post office. We passed this cute Charlie Brown tree outside the City Hall. When we got back to the boat, we got into the holiday spirit and decorated the salon.
We left the marina this morning (Friday, Dec 15.) They had warned us we couldn’t stay a third night, as they’d reserved our spot for another boat, and fortunately the tide was up enough to enable us to be able to leave and anchor out in Punta Gorda’s anchorage. We’re going to ride out the coming storm here, and when the wind shifts we’ll move across the harbor to an anchorage more protected from that direction.
This is how Tommie rides out rough weather.
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