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Delivery Log:

March 2, 2010 – we begin our journey: Climb aboard the Silver Meteor for our trip down to Key Largo to pick up our Maine Cat – currently named Widespread Panic. Great service as a redcap comes to our aid with our multitude of luggage. We needed to bring bedding and kitchen supplies for our trip north. We enjoy a nice sandwich and settle in for a nap. Washington DC involves a short layover as we switch from electric to diesel engine power.

March 3, 2010 – we reach Jacksonville around 8 a.m. – and are shunted to a siding for about an hour as we wait for the northbound Miami to New York train. Lots of construction forces slower travel through Florida. After reaching Orlando we decide to try the dining car for a light lunch. Very cramped accommodations – we have a grilled cheese for Debbie, a cheeseburger for Howard. Share a table with two folks who are on their way to Miami from Orlando to provide event security for the Doral Classic PGA tournament the following week. We arrive in Miami on schedule at 6:30. Billy Cromer was kind enough to drive over from Arcadia to pick us up. Miami train station is in a very iffy area of town. We managed to get lost as we tried to find our way back to either I-95 or the Florida turnpike. Finally found I-95 south and located the Fairway Inn in Florida City. We had stayed there when we drove down for the survey in January. Found it reasonably priced and clean. Surprise this time – rate had almost doubled and was almost full due to Homestead racing weekend. Settled in for the evening.

March 4, 2010 – up early, grabbed breakfast with Billy at Dennys then headed to the boatyard to begin a list of provisions needed. Manatee Bay Marina proceeded to put Widespread Panic into the water. Climbed aboard with some of our luggage and began the inventory. Around noon, we made a run up to Walmart and flew through – picking up some basic provisions and 4 gas cans for the long ocean portion of the journey. Made a fast trip back to unload. While in transit, Debbie was attending conference calls for the project. Around 3, returned to the hotel to work, while Billy and Howard headed up to Ft. Lauderdale to pick up Captain Ralph. Called Howard after checking flight schedule – Ralph is due in ½ hour early! Howard and Billy have gotten off I-95 (GPS error!) and are looking for the airport. In due time Howard locates Captain Ralph and beings the trip back to the Fairway Inn. Ralph and Billy have generously agreed to share accommodations due to the crowd at the Inn. Enjoy a wonderful dinner and a nice bottle of wine at the Mutineer Restaurant.

March 5, 2010 – While Howard & Ralph begin going over the boat, Billy takes Debbie shopping. Fortunately, he needs to make a stop in Key Largo also to thank the owner of Half Breed Cycles for a kindness to a friend. Billy drops Debbie off at the Publix to do some grocery shopping. Debbie ducks into K-Mart for the needed cordless drill. After a full cart of groceries at Publix is loaded into Billy’s car, we head to West Marine. At West Marine, we pick up two inflatable life vests, new fire extinguishers and some other gear. Howard & Ralph call in for some added parts, and we’re off back to the boat to stow the cold groceries in the fridge. Next trip out is to fill the jerry cans with gas and for some fuel for the workers. Stop at a local diner and pick up some nice sandwiches to take back. Fill the onboard gas tanks and head back out for more gas and some propane for the onboard stove. This trip we finally locate the elusive propane store and gain a fillup minutes before closing. Complete provinisioning and plan for an early departure the next morning. We settle up with the marina – about 50% more than we expected --- normal with a boat! All-in-all she seems to be in good shape and Ralph is happy with conditions for the cruise. We decide to head out to pick up some dinner. We had seen a greek restaurant next to the West Marine, and tried there – but they were not allowing any more seatings – surprising since it was only 8 p.m. Just next door was a fresh fish restaurant. Billy and Ralph enjoyed calamari and Howard and Debbie shared a fish and chips plate. Wonderful dinner. We all turned in for a good night’s sleep on the boat after toasting the Widespread Panic with a bottle of Asti.

March 6, 2010 – We decide to grab some breakfast before leaving. We head back to the diner that we visited for sandwiches on Friday. Waited a few minutes since they opened at 7 a.m. Enjoyed some great breakfast food and good conversation. Stopped one more time at Publix for the forgotten horseradish and onions. After a quick shower we headed out to Card Sound for our trip north. Sailed across Biscayne Bay and up to Miami. Weather was not cooperating – strong winds out of the north and high swells kept us inside the ICW. Sailing through a city is a new experience --- many huge houses and boats abound. Dark overtook us and in Hollywood realized we could not find a good anchorage. Logerhead Marina was off one of the inlets and we pulled in to see if there was room. Could not reach office by phone (6 p.m.) so pulled to the dock. We were told the office was closed – so we tied up to a concrete bulkhead – very bad tieup location, but it was getting dark. We sat amongst 80-100 foot yachts --- the little 30-foot Maine Cat looked very pretty though. We were on a public square and several people stopped to compliment her on how pretty she is. After opening a bottle of wine to celebrate a gentleman drove up in a golf cart. Rico informed us he needed $30 for 4 hours of dockage. Ralph and Howard explained we would like a place for the night – how much? Rico said he’d call his boss. Later he stopped by to say Barry was on his way to talk to us. About a half-hour later Rico and Barry showed up again in the golf cart and took Howard & Ralph to the marina office. In a few minutes Ralph was back --- needed more money. $153 – cash only!! But – it was dark and we needed a place to dock. Worst marina accommodations we’ve ever had, and certainly the most costly. Right on the sidewalk with kids skateboarding by all night – no showers (broken), bathroom was locked! Note to never go to Logerhead again! Fitful sleep – kept checking to make sure we weren’t hitting or coming up under the concrete pier!

March 7, 2010 – Up at 6 – made coffee and got out of town! Left glady, Logerhead Marina at dawn. Glad to leave this one behind us! Headed north through a myriad of drawbridges through Hollywood, Deerfield Beach, West Palm, etc. Wanted to make anchorage at Peck Lake. Spent the day racing from one bridge opening to another --- one bridgetender was kind enough to hold the bridge for an extra 90 seconds so we could pass. Most bridges only open every half hour, either on the 15 & 45 minute or hour and half-past, so missing an opening really slows things down. Making the openings in a sailboat requires running pretty well full out --- about 7 knots for Widespread Panic. Our luck turned with the West Palm bridge operator. We were within sight of the bridge at 2:55 and called for the next opening. He informed us we were still more than 200 yards away and wouldn’t make it in time. We kept steaming and he came on the radio to state that we were going to miss the 3 p.m. He would not open the bridge! So – we cooled our heels for a half hour, making circles and trying to tread water as we waited. At 3:29, the bridge opened and we were on our way. Guess his watch was a little fast! We had planned on making Peck Lake, but at Lake Worth we missed another opening – it was 5:30 and we realized we would not make another 10 miles before dark. Found a wonderful anchorage --- about 25 boats, sail and power anchored out. Gorgeous night – we used the outdoor grill for the first time – making steaks and enjoying a bottle of Howard’s 2000 Red Zinfandel. Our first anchoring --- learned to make a mooring bridle and she held fast. Slept better than I had in weeks.

March 8, 2010 -- Sound sleep from 8:30 to 5:30. Woke to fresh coffee from Captain Ralph. We pulled anchor in the dark and felt our way back out of the harbor to the bridge. Caught the 6:15 a.m. opening as the sun came up. Debbie joined a couple of conference calls as we made good progress. Stopped for refueling and lunch at Harbour Marine in Fort Pierce about 1:30 p.m.. Took a quick break to enjoy lunch at the marina restaurant. Wonderful fish and chips, Howard had a good Reuben and Ralph had a juicy cheeseburger. Refueled, we headed off for our next anchorage. As darkness fell, we decided to anchor rather than pressing forward. Outside another marina in Melbourne, Hiram Harbour, we found another good anchorage. Even though we’re not doing a lot of physical labor – we are really tired by 8 or 9 p.m. Enjoyed a good dinner of salad and tortellini then turned in. About 2:30 – the anchor alarm beeped 5 times (only Debbie heard it) – which caused a little alarm – we had swung around our anchor, but hadn’t moved. Calm winds and cool temperatures.

March 9, 2010 – Took off at daybreak again – pulled anchor at 6:15 a.m. Staying inside again – there are still small craft advisories out on the ocean. Good progress though today – mostly fixed bridges. Sailed along with a pod of dolphin – many seen during the day. Around 1 passed the NASA space center – Managed to clear the two drawbridges before the restricted time passed – both bridges open on request except for rush hour times. If we had missed the window, we would have had to wait till after rush hour (6 p.m.) – Decided to find a marine for the night – we would all enjoy a shower and need to refuel and take on freshwater. It looks like the weather is finally improving – winds should be southerly beginning tomorrow. We should be able to move ‘outside’ and make some more headway. While this has been enjoyable ---- need to get back to work next week. I’d rather not have to fly home mid-way! Ah --- an abrupt stop to our forward progress. The Max E Brewer bridge (or Titusville swing bridge or Rt 482 bridge) outside of Titusville is broken! With only 9 feet of clearance – we certainly cannot pass! There’s a traffic jam of power and sailboats needing to go northbound. As we were approaching, heard a radio transmission saying they were just bolting down the new motor for the drawbridge. Stopped at 1:30 – used the time to put up the screacher to be ready for a good day of ocean sailing tomorrow. Great news – at 1:40 received radio transmission – the bridge will be manually opened to clear the traffic backed up. At 2:00 we cleared the bridge and watched as 2 guys manually closed the bridge. A new fixed bridge is under construction so in the next couple of years this will be one less bridge schedule to work around. If a boater arrives at rush hour, the bridge does not open, and he may have a 2-hour delay. Timing is everything! We’ve been passing and being passed by a gorgeous powerboat, the Tattinger. Nice folks – very courteous with the pass. Found a marina at Ponce de Leon Inlet – Inlet Harbor --- arrived after dark – tough channel in – great courteous staff. Great waterside bar with live music and good food, hot showers!! Hopefully weather will turn tomorrow so we can put some miles behind us. Strong winds out of the north have kept us inside too long. If the winds turn tomorrow, we’ll head out to the ocean and sail in shifts – 24 hours to catch up on our schedule.

March 10, 2010 – Left Ponce de Leon inlet around 9 a.m. to the ocean! Beautiful day – smooth ocean – but not much wind. Motored all day with sail assistance. Put up the screacher around noon, and motor sailed till 4. Howard & Debbie took the watch until midnight – winds got up to 14 knots moving us along at over 9 knots – good progress. At midnight, when Ralph took over, we turned the engines off for a time --- but winds dropped back down and had to restart. Sunset – first night on the ocean

March 11, 2010 – Still in the ocean – off Georgia, Howard & Debbie took the 8 to midnight shift and again at 4 a.m. Beautiful night sailing – good breezes. Around 8 a.m. as Ralph took over, a light rain had started. By noon when Howard & Debbie took over watch, the wind had turned to directly off the bow – heavy winds over 20 knots apparent slowed us to a crawl, and sea heights had risen to about 5 feet or more. We woke Ralph around 3 to discuss coming in for the night rather than sailing overnight. After a bit of discussion, decided to head in to Port Royal, South Carolina. It took over 3 hours to make our way in the inlet with waves crashing over the bow! Rain so hard we moved slowly marker to marker fighting the headwinds all the way. Found the Port Royal Marina just past the fixed bridge and put in for the night. No one in the marina office, but found the restaurant open. We headed up for some warm food.

March 12, 2010 - Got a good night’s sleep, and found the marina office friendly – clean restrooms – nice hot shower and even a laundry. We put a load of laundry in and showered while Captain Ralph headed in town to get some medical attention for an earache. Howard & Debbie hiked into the Piggly Wiggly for restock the provisions for the extended cruise. Loaded up, refueled, and headed for the swing bridge in Beaufort around 12:30. Reached the swing bridge just in time for the 1 pm opening. Maybe a good sign for today’s cruise. Talked to our dog-sitter and Debbie’s work to alert them that we would no way be home on Monday. Debbie is still working remotely as long as we are on the ICW we have cell phone reception, and when we pull into a marina, we do have wifi access to sync up the email. Planning on getting to Charleston and maybe heading back out to the ocean for the trip to Morehead City, NC. Then on to Norfolk and up the bay. Probably another week to get home. Around 4 p.m. weather started to turn. Predicted severe thunderstorms with 60 mph winds in places. Fog began rolling in, so Captain Ralph had read about a Seafood place where you could dock for $25. Headed there – narrow passage through some marshy areas – came upon B&B Seafood’s floating dock. Four local folks were working on the dock behind a shrimp boat --- welcomed us and helped bring us in for a gentle landing. Wasn’t shrimp season – so couldn’t get any fresh shrimp, but very welcoming port. Invited us to stay the next day for a parade and big party. Community of 50 was expecting 600 people for their early St. Patty’s day celebration. We had a large lunch, so just munched onboard. One of the guys had just been given a new semi-automatic gun. Periodically he was shooting out over the marsh – a little startling at times! Turned in early for a good night’s sleep – heavy rain around midnight and some distant thunder, but the high winds never materialized. We had put in the strike shield just in case.

March 13, 2010 – Left B&B Seafood dock by 6. Made the noon opening at the Wahoo Bridge --- River currents had us drifting at over 8 mph in neutral --- strong currents here and in the canal leading to the river. Made it to Charleston around noon. Weather forecasts don’t look good for going outside today – a shame because we could shave a couple of days off the trip. Looks like near-coastal is showing 6-8 foot waves, further offshore 12-14 foot swells. Winds were predicted to be 10-15 knots near shore, but we’re showing 20 in the Charleston Bay! Decide to stay inside for another day. Just saw a sailboat nearly capsize with a strong gust! Better to play it safe today. We’ll have another 6 hours to steam north. With the winds off our back now, sails wouldn’t be as helpful – but once we make the turn up the river, we may be able to help our progress with the sails up. Ran through a dredging operation just south of McClellan South Carolina. Tugboat operator was good enough to lead us through. Dusk was coming quickly, so we decided to turn in to another seafood working dock. Great folks, Dwane and Bill helped us with our lines and recommended a good restaurant in town. Walked in to TJ Graham’s restaurant – a local, small town restaurant – wonderful seafood and deserts. Nice walk back through town. No alligators spotted, though Captain Ralph swears there were ‘flocks of alligators’ there last time he stayed at the dock. The area has become much more developed with many new modern houses with beautiful docks along the Jester River.

March 14, 2010 – Awoke extra early (daylight savings time has arrived) – but couldn’t leave until dawn. Stayed ‘inside’ once again – heavy winds from the north (right on our nose – not much help in sailing!). Travelled through Myrtle Beach, S.C. Crossed only 2 swing bridges – both on demand, so didn’t lose much time there. The last bridge is a ‘pontoon’ bridge – first bridge in North Carolina. Had the sails up for a good part of the day to help us along – at times we were over 9 mph --- wa-hoo says Captain Ralph! Captain Ralph had called ahead to a marina – mile marker 337 --- we’ve travelled 800 miles from Key Largo – 337 left to get to Norfolk, then just up the Chesepeake Bay to get home. The pontoon bridge is being replaced by a 65-foot fixed bridge now under construction – but – due to construction the pontoon bridge only opens on the hour. We wait for a half hour to get through. Interesting bridge – on a float – and run by cables – have to wait for the bridge operator to rotate the bridge, then release the cable so that you can pass. Looks like a one-lane bridge --- probably one of the last of its kind. Settled into the marina a few miles north just as darkness fell. Grilled on the back deck and turned in. Heading out at daybreak to meet up with a friend of Captain Ralph who will loan us an oil extractor to change the oil in the engines – we’ve been over 100 hours, and an oil change is recommended before we progress further north. Looks like the winds are going to continue to be strong out of the north so it looks like we’ll be inside again tomorrow.

March 15, 2010 – Left Ocean Isle Marina at 6 a.m. steaming towards Wrightsville Beach for an oil change. Staying inside. 10 a.m. weather report, though is saying winds out of the northwest, 10 to 15 knots today, increasing to 20 tonight. Captain Ralph charts a potential course northeast out of the Wrightsville Beach Inlet – just in case the weather holds. Conference calls again today for Debbie – 9 with the team, 10 with the leads. We enter Cape Fear Inlet and some heavier large ship traffic. As we turn back into the ICW, Debbie takes the helm for the first extended time with Howard guiding from marker to marker. At 1, another team conference call. As the 1 p.m. call wraps up, we pull up to the fuel dock at Wrightsville Beach and meet Ralph’s friend Dave with the oil extractor. We grab lunch and get to know Dave – great friend. Take the opportunity to take on 52 gallons of fuel! Panic is thirsty! Also take the opportunity to fax some of the documentation needed for the State of Florida. Talk to Sailing Associates to make sure the paperwork is in order. A sailing vessel pulls up at the dock behind us, hailing from Hockessin, DE Howard makes their acquaintance – they dock at Sailing Associates! Small world! Captain Ralph changes the engine oil, and head out to the ocean at 4 p.m. We plan an overnight cruise to Morehead City, NC. Should take a day or so off the voyage. We should arrive at the entrance to the inlet around 2 or 3 a.m. Light breezes off the port side, we can run using one engine with the sails and keep up 7 knots. Howard & Debbie take over watch for the 8-12 shift as the sun sets. We’re following the coastline, just a few miles offshore, so the lights will be another guide tonight. About 9:20 winds shift to off the bow and gain strength – 25 knots apparent – we struggle to take down the jib. Speed has dropped to 3.5 knots. Captain Ralph comes up to stow the main. We start the second engine and pick up some speed for a while. Seas get really rough for the next 4 or so hours – lots of rocking and waves washing up over the bows. Glad for the dry cockpit – some water on the floor but all-in-all at least we’re out of the wind and dry. Captain Ralph takes over at midnight. At 2 a.m. Debbie is awakened by a phone call – up for the remainder of the night as we plow through rough seas.

March 16, 2010 – Reach Morehead City inlet around 4 a.m. --- follow a pretty complicated path in – at least seas are calmer inside. Cross under the bridge around 5 – but too dark to see any markers. We decide to tie up at a marina for an hour or so while the sun comes up. Make a hearty breakfast for the tired sailors. 7 a.m. we head back out. Reach the Neuse River around 10 – bouncy seas – wind still off our nose, but we seem to have the current with us – we’re making close to 7 mph. About 10 as the Neuse widens, the wind picks up to almost 30 knots – right on the nose. Bad chop, we take waves over the cockpit roof as we motor through. Finally make a turn and get the wind off our nose – still bumpy but much improved. Find some relief as we take a cut through to the Pamlico River – but find the same conditions here. Heavy chop, wind right on the nose. Cloudy and cold – a miserable day! Finally take refuge in the Pungo River at Dowry Creek Marina. The sun comes out and we meet some nice folks. But – we’ve crossed mile marker 135. Started at mile 1135 in Key Largo on March 6 – 1000 statute miles in 11 days. We have 135 miles to Norfolk, VA, then about 170 back to the Sassafras. Hopefully will be home by Friday. Met some great folks at this marina – had cocktails at the clubhouse, then Linda insisted on our taking their seafood gumbo back to the boat for dinner – was wonderful! Great hospitality – was planning on cooking and not only met some great people but had some wonderful food to share. Hopefully we’ll see them on the Sassafras on their travels.

March 17, 2010 – Cast off at 7 a.m. from the Dowry Creek Marina, headed north on the Pungo River towards the Alligator River-Pungo River Canal. The canal is notorious for debris – even in the middle of the channel you can have submerged trees and logs. We dodged a few. About mid-canal came upon a barge. Pulled to the side amongst some stumps to let her pass. Not a very wide canal to pass! Looks like the winds are a little calmer today – at least in the morning. About 10:30 exited the canal unscathed. When Captain Ralph was originally delivering our boat to Florida (then known as Multiple Choice), they hit a submerged tree and damaged the rudder. Hoping to make some good progress today – aiming to get to the 50-mile marker tonight. About 10:35 several F-18 fighter jet circled overhead a couple of times - pretty low – dipping their wings as they passed. Alligator River a little choppy as winds increased to 15 knots off the nose again. Albermele Sound uncharisterically smooth sailing! Winds 11 knots off the nose, of course – Howard and Captain Ralph remarked that we could use our wind-direction indicator as a compass – always pointing the way to go! Pulled in to Coinjock Marina – just past mile marker 50. Captain Ralph has been talking about the prime rib at the Coinjock Restaurant all day! Looking forward to a nice dinner and a good night’s sleep. Ready for the last leg of our trip home – should see the Chesapeake Bay tomorrow afternoon. Depending on the wind we might actually get to sail. If conditions are good, we’ll plan on sailing all night, otherwise we’ll be looking for an anchorage.

March 18, 2010 – Dropped our lines at Coinjock at 6:45 heading north. Entered Virginia, marker 63 at 8:45. Made the North Landing Bridge (mile marker 20) with only seconds to spare --- ran through at full throttle with the 10:30 a.m. opening. We were moving right along until we reached the bridges at mile marker 5.8. The railroad bridge had been stuck since the morning. When we passed the North Landing Bridge, the bridge operator let us know that the bridge would be closed until 2 p.m. We had no worries, as we had to stop for fuel, and make it through the Great Bridge and Great Bridge Lock. We stopped for fuel right around noon, but the Great Bridge Bridge and Lock only open on the hour. So after fueling up, we tied up across the river to wait for the 1 p.m. opening. Fired up the grill and had some burgers and dogs before the bridge and lock opening at 1. We were really moving – until we hit the railroad bridge at mile marker 5.8. Just after 2, the bridge was still down. We circled with Whisper (a ketch) and Nightengale (a trawler we had been travelling with) – for over an hour and a half. A tug and barge were waiting on the other side. Finally, the railroad bridge started opening and we got through. This bridge was the last of the openers we had to clear --- but the over 1 ½ hour delay had put a crimp in our sail plan. We had hoped to begin up the bay tonight, but ended up stopping at Port Comfort Marina, Hampton, VA. Plan to head out by 3 a.m. A nice shower felt good and we’ll relax tonight to be ready for two long days to finish out the trip. Predictions are for southerly winds beginning tomorrow – so we should be able to finally sail!

March 19, 2010 – We take off at 4 a.m. Very dark. Meet a ship coming in from the Bay Bridge Tunnel cut. Cross another as we head for the northbound shipping channel. It begins to get light around 6:15 – just a hint but better than the total blackness (just a sliver of a moon – but the stars are gorgeous!) We progress north – the predicted wind shift hasn’t happened by 2 p.m. when we finally cross into Maryland. We have the mainsail up to help, but the wind stays just off our nose. The day warms up though – a rare early spring/late winter day – if the winds would just shift now. We really wanted to be farther up the bay by now so that the Saturday portion would not be another long day. We have virtually no wind all day, the bright side is, the bay is smooth as glass, the down side is we’re under power again. We decide to try to make it to the bay bridge. There is an anchorage just off the Thomas Point Light that looks good. Debbie goes down to take a quick nap around 9 – we expect to pull in and drop the hook between 10 and 11. About 10, 3 ships and 3 tugs converge on the shipping channel --- seemingly all at once and all from different angles. We spend a half hour dodging the big boats. One tug just seems to stay off our beam no matter what course we steer. We decide to go to the other side of him. Makes him a little nervous, but finally get out of his way. About 11:30 we drop the hook in a beautiful, sheltered cove, just in sight of the bay bridge on the horizon. Between the current and a little breeze, it’s a little bouncy, but we caught a good anchor and we fall asleep quickly. We’re still getting used to the different sounds and movement of the cat – it is different from the monohull we used to sail.

March 20, 2010 – Bittersweet day – so glad to be home, but we’ll miss our new friend Ralph. Ralph woke us around 5 with fresh coffee. Woke up as we checked out the engines and got them warmed up. We pulled the anchor just before 6 – daylight is just beginning to show over the eastern horizon. Sunrise starts just as we pass under the Bay Bridge. We’re just 30 nautical miles from the mouth of our home river, the Sassafras. We should be at our dock around noon. Another pretty day, the bay is flat and glassy – but not a breath of wind. We had hoped to sail in – maybe as the day warms up, some of the predicted southerly breezes will finally show up. They’ve been predicted so many times on this trip and never really shown up! We arrive at the mouth of the Sassafras around 10:30 – home waters! Tons of debris in the bay – spent most of the morning dodging branches and some large logs! We pull into Sailing Associates around 11:30 so that the brokerage we used can see a Maine Cat. Around noon we take our last drawbridge – the route 213 bridge in Georgetown and cruise around the point to our dock. Spend some time working out logistics of how to tie up – but she’s home now! Now for a name . . .

Our dogs join us sailing – we’ve looked at them many times to tell them what a ‘ruff life’ they have ..... Seemed like a perfect name – never thought we’d be so lucky to have such a beautiful boat – such a ‘ruff life’!