Yahoooooo! We are in Florida! There were a few days when we were doubting
if and when that was going to happen.
Sunday we enjoyed a nice sail down the ICW from Lulu’s Marina to
Pensacola. Along the way, are many
beautiful white sand beaches (for which this area is famous), LOVELY
homes/condos and our little dolphins playing in the water. AND the best part of all, was that Florida
welcomed us with 70 degree weather….what’s not to like?
The marina
we stayed at was right in the midst of the historic downtown area of
Pensacola. We walked downtown for dinner
that evening, and the restored buildings were amazing. The next morning I checked out the waterfront
where I read many facts concerning the city of Pensacola. It is known as “The City of Five Flags”. The flags of Spain, France, England, the
Confederacy and the US have flown over the city. Heading out of the city, on Santa Rosa
Island, is Fort Pickens built in 1834. This
fort has been used by the military through WW II. One of the former officer’s quarters was used
to hold Apache prisoners, including Geronimo.
My picture (included below) isn’t too good, but I found these little
known facts very interesting.
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| Pensacola Marina - Very Nice Place |
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| Fort Pickens |
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| Statue at Pensacola Marina |
Monday
morning, we decided the weather was excellent for an overnight sail to Panama
City. (We did consult with “the weatherman” and he said “GO”) Before we shoved off, we had company! When Steve grew up in Vinton, IA, his
favorite playmate was Lloyd Patterson who now lives in Pensacola. Steve and Lloyd’s fathers were both Iowa
Highway Patrolmen, so they have a long background together. Lloyd stopped by the marina and we had a
great time “catching up”!
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| Steve and Lloyd |
Around 12:30
PM on Monday, we left the marina headed for Panama City. I might add, this was going to be MY first
overnight sail without other sailors aboard.
I am good at cooking, cleaning, and chatting J, but standing “watch” is a whole level
above those tasks. Steve assured me that
it was going to be easy since there just aren’t too many other ships, boats,
vessels or whatever out in this part of the Gulf and I guess I believed him! We have all the latest and greatest gadgets
that can tell you what is going on in the water for miles around the boat. Good news is we made it around 7:00 AM. Poor Steve did not get a lot of sleep, but we
were happy to be here. We got to see the
sun go down and a beautiful sunrise through our tired little eyes.
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| Sunset Over the Gulf |
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| Sunrise the Next Morning |
When Steve
called for reservations at the marina, the dock master told us to pull up next
to the pirate ship…okay??? This marina
specializes in all sorts of boat tours from seeing the dolphins, snorkeling to
a sail on a LARGE pirate ship. So we are presently in the shadow of this large
vessel. Today was spent resting,
cleaning, laundry and walking to the closest grocery store. We need provisions since tomorrow we are leaving
on a two day and two night trip to the Tampa Bay area. This is where we want to leave Kathryn while
we head north for Christmas. So, another
“cruise” awaits us. You probably won’t
hear from us until we arrive in Tampa, because out at sea is often too rough
for computer writing. Until then, enjoy
all of the December activities of the season.
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| Kathryn and the Pirate Ship |
