Well, we started out this morning hoping to get to Peanut Island anchorage in Palm Beach, FL but we began smelling something hot, like rubber and then the alternator belt began squealing. So, we dropped the hook in a small lake off the "ditch" (ICW) and I tightened the belt and added a little silicone spray. We got underway again and everything seemed to be fine. Then, a little later the squeal started again and we began to notice the engine temperature rising. Thinking the belt may have been stretched, we dropped the hook, again, off the side off the ditch and I proceeded to put a new belt on. We also cleaned the sea water intake to the engine and the found the motor was low on water. After filling the engine water, we found the temperature was fine but I couldn't get the belt squeal to quit. So, we contacted a nearby marina with a diesel mechanic and made arrangements to have it looked at tomorrow morning. We also feel we have a small exhaust leak and plan to have that looked into as well.

After we arrived at the marina, we struck a conversation with a fellow cleaning some fish and he graciously shared a couple of Trigger fish fillets, which we had for dinner tonight  Delicious!!!! I did learn he is a 21 year veteran with the Palm Beach County Sheriff's  department and is a canine handler. I don't know what our society would do without these civil servants who protect and defend us.

Unfortunately, we have no pictures to post today, but we did travel through some beautiful FL cities. I'm still amazed at the money that is down here.

April 19, 2013:

We arrived in Ft. Lauderdale, after visiting Tom's Mother, Sister and her family in Ft Myers for a couple of days. We met the boat's previous owners, Joe & Pat Turner, who turned out to be a really great couple. They showed us the boat and helped us get situated on board. They also opened their home to us and made us feel like part of their family while we got everything stowed and worked out a few minor kinks. Joe allowed me to help him fix a few things that needed attention and we settled in on board.

April 25. 2013:

We finally had an opportunity to take her out. Joe, Pat, Nancy and Tom cruised from Joe and Pat's home dock to Key Biscayne Bay. We had to go under several draw bridges but about 7 hours later we were anchored in a most beautiful place overlooking the skyline of Miami.. We had a great dinner that evening, a peaceful nights sleep and then we had a chance to put the sails up the next morning and go for a ride. She's a really smooth sail and we had a great ride. Returned to Joe and Pat's dock after anchoring for a while in lake Sylvia and taking the dinghy into a nearby water front restaurant for and great meal.

April 28, 2013:

After a couple of more days provisioning the boat and getting ready, we left our good new friends, Joe and Pat, at 4:00PM and headed out on our own. We cruised 1/12 hours back to Lake Sylvia and dropped the hook. We enjoyed a couple of cold brews and then started dinner of fresh salmon, roasted potatoes and spinach. Of course, little white wine topped off the meal. We enjoyed a beautiful sunset, updated the blog and now it's bedtime. Tomorrow, if the weather is good and the winds are mild, we will go out through Port Everglades and hoist the main sheet for a run up the outside to just above Palm Beach at an anchorage called peanut Island. Then, on May 1, we hope to be on a mooring ball in the Vero Beach Municipal Marina for a couple of days. After that, on northward.

This should have been posted two weeks ago, but we didn't have a name for the boat and wanted the name to be in the blog name so here is an old post first.

April 10, 2013
Some time before the new year began, Tom O'Dell and I began thinking that we needed to have a great adventure while we are able:  I'm 67 and he's 66 and we are beginning to have some of the aches and pains of old age. 

A boating trip up the east coast rose to the top of the heap of ideas of "what should we do first."   Tom has owned and operated fishing boats and houseboats while I've owned and operated a couple of small sailboats. And we both love to travel.  The idea of traveling up the intracoastal waterway from Florida to perhaps Maine would take us to places where we can fish, sail, and relax while enjoying natural surroundings. Between these activities we can make stops at towns and cities that offer opportunities for sampling local foods, bicycling, and as many "must see" attractions as we will take the time for.
 
When we learned that sailboats are the most economical way to do tours by water, whether we put up the sails or not, we began learning about the sizes and sorts of sailboats that would be affordable and suitable.   About a month ago, we came across a lovely and well-cared for Catalina 34 owned by a couple in Fort Lauderdale.   You can see her here:

 

 

 

We have bought her, but haven't seen her!   We have been corresponding with the owners, who we feel are fast becoming friends. They have owned the boat since 1994 and have sailed her several months a year over to the Bahamas from their home.  During their ownership they have outfitted her with every convenience:  solar panels and wind generator so she has power for most needs short of air conditioning (she has A/C when we will be at a dock and plugged in), an extra-protective cockpit cover (bimini) that lowers the temperature there by 10 degrees over being in the sun, a hand-crafted-galley (kitchen) shelf that holds dishes and glasses firmly while under way but makes them readily available when needed, and a dinghy and strong motor (15 hp) on a davit (apparatus that lets us lower dinghy into the water) so that we can easily explore our surroundings, fish, or run errands.

They are being helpful in answering our most specific questions about what to have shipped to us and have volunteered to take us on a short cruise (two or three days) down to Key Biscayne or the upper keys) so we can learn as much as possible.