Greetings from the Dutch Dreamer.
It has been an eventful journey thus far. Greg has unfortunately spent the majority of his time in the engine room, and doing what he does best, fixing stuff. I thank God every day for his abilities to do so! On the positive side, we need things to break while we are still in the U.S. and can readily get parts. Our ship has been sitting awhile and needed a good shakedown cruise to get the bugs out. I have been chronicling our voyage daily, so here it is:
Day 1: Monday, December 29
We left Cooper River Marina at 10:20 a.m. We lost refrigeration sometime during the afternoon. This is a huge concern as our freezer is packed with probably $1,000 worth of meat. We decided when we got to Amelia Island, our next stop, we would call around and try and find someone who could repair it. Later in the evening, the engine started to run poorly, and at 1:30 a.m. the engine quit. We put up the jib, main and mizzen sails to continue our course while Greg worked away in the engine room. At 6:30 a.m. we regained engine power.
Day 2: Tuesday, December 30
We arrived at Amelia Island around 10:00. We were in the ICW (Intracoastal Waterway) trying to get hold of a refrigeration guy when we ran aground at 11:30 in the Amelia River. We called Towboat US (we bought insurance before we left Charleston), who were unable to free us as the tide was going out. Greg and Dylan left in the dinghy to get ice. At around 3:00 p.m. the boat suddenly tilted to port as we were completely on dry ground. Greg dug a trench along the bottom of the hull with his spade (and I was wondering why the hell he brought a spade along!) to assist us in ungrounding when the tide came back in. We waited for high tide at 10:34 that night. Of course sitting at a 28 degree angle we had to turn all of our systems off. At about 11:00 p.m., Greg got the generator running, the engine running, and we got off the sandbar. We motored to an anchorage up the river near the town of Fernandina where we spent the night.
Day 3: Wednesday, December 31
We lined up the refrigeration guy from Jacksonville and motored along the ICW to Jacksonville to the Beach Marina where we docked at about noon. The refrigeration guy came on board, and worked with Greg. The culprit turned out to be a bad salt water pump, which needs to be replaced. He and Greg “McGivored” things to get the refrigeration running until we can get the new pump. As it was New Year’s Eve, we had some much needed drinks, a nice dinner on the boat, of bacon wrapped filets, scallops and stuffed potatoes. Greg, myself and the boys stayed up until midnight to bring in the New Year with champagne, and then we hit the hay.
Day 4: Thursday, January 1
We woke up to power problems, our forward head not flushing, dim lights. (Did I mention that our aft head was also plugged so we were without a toilet on the boat? Luckily, there were bathrooms with showers in a building at the Marina). Turns out the shore power wasn’t up to what the settings on the trace inverter system wanted to take, so Greg changed them to accept lower power. Then the fuel pump on the generator went, so Greg had to go to West Marine (which was miraculously open on New Year’s Day!) to pick up the proper fittings to replace it. He also bought two brand new batteries for the boat, as the batteries were completely drained. We paid for another day at the dock and made plans to leave in the morning.
Day 5: Friday, January 2
We left the Jacksonville dock at 8:15 a.m., motoring along the ICW. We came out of the ICW at St. Augustine at about noon. Seas were one to two feet with south 20 knot winds. We were headed for our next destination to make port at Fort Pierce sometime during the day Saturday and planned to overnight there but the seas were so calm and the engine running blissfully well (with Greg draining water out of the Racor fuel system every two hours), we decided to keep going to Ft. Lauderdale.
Day 6: Saturday, January 3
It was a long night for Greg and Steve. They took turns standing watch in 4 hour shifts during the night. During the day the boys and I help out a bit so they can sleep. Very smooth seas this afternoon, beautiful and sunny, as we motor sailed along the Florida coastline. The winds picked up at dusk and we put up the jib, main and mizzen sails. At 8:00 p.m. the guys decided to do two hour shifts until we reached Ft. Lauderdale early the next morning. The seas were rough and with four to five foot waves we moved into shore a bit as we were fighting the current from the Gulf Stream. We were rocked around pretty good, but our good ole ship held up well. During one of Greg’s shift’s at night, the chart plotter decided to go blank, so Greg got Steve up, and they managed to reboot it to get it up and running again. A few tense moments for sure! We are all bruised and bashed up, especially Greg and I. I managed to fall down the galley stairs and sprain my big toe, so it is black and blue and sore, and my right forearm looks practically camoflauged for the bruises. Oh well, as we say on the boat "suck it up!".
Day 7: Sunday, January 4
We arrived in Ft. Lauderdale at 2:00 this morning. We pulled into the first Marina we saw as everyone was exhausted after the long journey. We tied up by the fuel docks at 4:30 and set our alarm for 6:00 as no one was around. We got up at 6:00, and after looking around decided the service sucked, and we left to find a different Marina closer to town. We motored down the waterways, drinking our coffee and marvelling at the sights. It was like being in Venice. Beautiful homes with green lawns, palm trees and swimming pools lined the waterways. We arrived at the city marina at about 8:00, and found a slip. We had to go through about 4 draw bridges. It was very challenging getting into our tiny slip with the tide coming in and the current but we managed. It is a great spot, showers and laundry facilities. We walked along the boardwalk this morning where they had tables set up, people selling various wares, food vendors and bands playing. It was completely amazing! I cannot believe we have made it this far. It is hot, humid and sunny. We had lunch at a great Irish pub along the shore and walked back to our boat for a nap. I then did laundry and in the evening we sat on deck admiring the sunset, watching boats go by in the waterway and had a cocktail. We ordered pizza from Papa John's, and told the boys to enjoy it, as it would be their last for at least two years! We called Greg's parents, and my Dad to let them know we arrived here safe and sound. Tomorrow morning we are going to find a new pump for the refrigeration system, top up on supplies at Walmart and hopefully head out to the Bahamas tomorrow night. It’s nice to have a break, and be parked at the Marina, with only a slight breeze. We will email again from the Bahamas. Hope you all had a great holiday season. We think of you all and miss you very much! It sure is nice to be the ones in the warmer climate for a change!
Love from the Dutch Dreamers
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