Our morning sunrise from the boat in

Middle River, MD

The start of our day !

The only picture I took today !

Well we are back and are already in the "rat race" world with everyone else.  We picked up one car at the Middle River Yacht Club, picked up another one at Stacy's in the northern part of Harford County.  Filled  the tank on one of the cars, Bob went to see his parents, I went to my hair dresser which was a no-go she was already gone for the day. Drove I-95 like I hadn't taken a break from it at all; got a storage unit and unloaded some stuff from the boat and both of the vehicles and now home doing our last blog for this trip. Tomorrow is going to be a very, very, very busy day :(

2012-2013 Storymaker Key West Trip Stats

# of Days Gone

157  Days

(Nov 6, 2012 – April 15, 2013)

Total Miles Traveled

3100+ Miles

Engine Hours (each engine)

473

some of this time was idling charging the batteries

(this is equivalent distance to driving a car

at 60 mph for 400 hours which would be over  

25,000 miles - 60 mph x 400 hours)

Gallons of Diesel Fuel Used

460 gallons

Longest Distance in One Day

84 miles

Shortest Distance in One Day

13 miles

Time from Middle River to Key West

34 Days

Time from Key West to Middle River

39 Days

Number of Days of Really Crappy Weather

12 Days

Lowest Temperature We Saw

31 Degrees

Solomons Island, MD (November 7, 2012)

Highest Temperature

87 Degrees

Daytona Beach (March 27, 2013)

Highest Wind

60 Knots

Bridges That Opened for Us in One Day

18 Bridges

Boat Fires

1

Times Hit the Bottom

2

Dragged Anchor

3

Anchors Bent

2

Lost the Dinghy

1

Highest Current Traveled In

5 Knots

Fastest Speed Recorded

12.1 Knots

Slowest Speed Recorded

3.7 Knots

Average Speed

7 Knots

Times Long Pants Worn in Florida

0

 

Books Read

5

Number of Hours We Watched TV

12

Movies Watched

7

Number of Animals Seen

Dolphin

Hundreds

Waterfowl

Gazillions

Turtles One Day in North Carolina

20

Alligators

1

Key Deer

25+

Regular Deer

1

Lobsters Seen in the Water

30?

Lobsters Seen on Our Plate

5

  

Cities/Towns Explored

Annapolis, MD

Beaufort, SC

Daytona Beach, FL

Fernandina Beach, FL

Key West, FL

Solomons Island, FL

South Beach Miami, FL

St. Augustine, FL

Number of Days

At Anchor

57

At Docks (all free)

5

At Mooring Balls

96

At Marinas

0

On Land Hauled Out

1

Lessons Learned!

Five weeks is a long time to get anywhere

We must be healthy and strong to really enjoy

the trip, adventure, and experiences

  

Simple plow anchors in a variety

of bottom conditions just stink

Things just absolutely have to be put -back

in place when you are finished with it

We must pick up and clean daily

or things get underfoot

My wife is an excellent cook!

We must bring in everything from outside at night

It seems like it always rains when you don't

All non-stainless steel metal has to be cleaned

or lubricated weekly or monthly

Things and conditions can change very rapidly

and a sense of urgency is of the utmost importance

You cannot rely completely on the GPS Chartplotter

Trust, but verify - it was incorrect .01% of the time

but that could lead you aground

Slow down for any areas that may have shoaled

The boat handles well in 8 to 10 foot seas in the ocean

It is better to run aground at 2 knots than 7 knots

Pay full attention when near markers, bridges, shoaled

areas, other boats, and shore - no "heavy" conversations,

cell phone use, or doing one other major task at the

same time

Fix, attend to, any item that even appears that it

may pose a problem underway

The Captain is responsible for the ship, her crew,

and anything that goes wrong

The Admiral is always right

I am a better yachtsman for the trip

And Many Thanks To:

All our family and friends for following our blog

and who came from Maryland, Illinois, Colorado,

and Pennsylvania to see us in Key West

Bill & Mo for storing our car

and to Bill for fixing the car

TWICE

Stacy for storing our car, motorcycle,

and boxes of crapola

Jon and Jen for storing Bob while he came

back in February for his Motorcycle Safety

Seminar and to work for 2 weeks

Thanks to David Biss for giving Bob

the chance to work for 2 weeks in February

to replenish the cruising kitty

Derek & Shelly for storing our deck steps, and

other goodies

A very special thanks to Gordon Vipperman and Debbie

for their hospitality In Big Pine Key, FL (Gordon) and

in Daytona Beach, FL (Gordon & Debbie) for letting

us use Gordon's truck to resupply, many dinners,

a free dock in Daytona Beach, happy hours, letting

us play with their dogs and birds, and showing us around

Daytona Beach for St. Paddy's Day

Gus and Bonita for giving us the perfect Key West bicycle

Gary and Jayne for being our new friends

and travelling from Key West to Annapolis with us

And my beautiful wife for doing the blog so diligently

Every Day's a Gift!

Thank You God for Another Healthy,

Exciting, Adventurous Trip Filled

With Family and Friends

Bahamas

Winter

2013-2014