January 30 - February 1, 2014 - The Grand Finale - Our Gold Looper Burgee

Appropriately, it was cloudy and rainy as we began the last leg of our journey.  We had two stops left before earning our Gold Looper status.  One was an anchorage at Lake Worth in Palm Beach, and the other was a stop at Harbour Isle Marina at Fort Pierce.

In route we passed mile after mile of residential homes, hotels, and restaurants on the water.  The numerous bridge openings slowed our progress, and the anchorages were few and far between.  We squeezed into a spot at Lake Worth and then noticed a loud noise.  It sounded like a jet plane taking off overhead, but we learned on the news that the Florida Power and Light facility across the water from us was running a steam test.  What's more, the testing was to continue over the next couple of days - no worries, we planned to be out of  there at first light.

Also on the news that night we heard the story of a sunken boat that we had seen earlier that day.  Apparently it had happened a couple of weeks earlier during the flooding at Delray Beach.  The locals were now complaining that it was leaking oil in an area of manatees.

Sayonara, Ft. Lauderdale

Our anchorage at Lake Worth

Florida Power and Light facility

 

As we pulled out of Palm Springs we speculated on if one of the mega yachts across the way was Tiger Wood's yacht Privacy.  There was no rain as we pulled out, but the forecast didn't look good.  Throughout the day we dodged manatee, coconuts, and derelict boats.

 

As we motored through Jupiter, I remembered Fazio Golf Designer's office was on the ICW.  I called in and spoke to Matt and Andy on the phone.  Andy was amazed to hear of our journey around the loop bringing us back full circle now.  Andy and I worked together for over 10 years at Fazio's office in Hendersonville. 

Mega yacht haven

 Manatee are very hard to spot

especially if you're zipping along at a fast pace. 

Even at trawler speed you have to keep an

eye out for the sworls they make on top of the water

to even know they are in the area.

 





Some cool pontoon boats

Jupiter inlet lighthouse

 

We were delighted to pull into Harbour Isle Marina at Fort Pierce. Our broker, Curtis Stokes, recommended it as a good place to show boats for sale. We went ahead and secured a spot for SeaGlide; so, we could return here after getting our gold burgee.

As we approached Fort Pierce,

this dolphin appeared to lead the way.

 

We picked out a spot to serve as

SeaGlide's new home.

 

Jeff drove the F250 down from Asheville,

 and we rented a car so we could park the truck here awaiting our arrival.

 



Before heading to Vero for the Gold we took some time

to check out the beach.

 

We pulled out to make the short trek to Vero Beach

 



 The trip wouldn't be complete without

our dolphin escort

 A couple of hours later,

we saw Vero Beach, and our day mark goal ahead.

 



Once past this mark we had done it! We completed the loop!!

We were in high celebration mode when the local Sheriff

called out to us.  At first we were in shock thinking,

holy crap, we have traveled over 6,000 miles without

being pulled over and now this?!

Once we pulled over to him, he just said "Hey, are y'all the folks

finishing the loop? Congrats!!"

SeaGlide's (aka Cloud Nine's) previous owners had put

the Sheriff up to it.  They were on the dock awaiting

our arrival and getting in a good chuckle.

Awesome folks, SeaGlide's previous owners,

Donnie and Pam, were there to take photos

and welcome us back home.

Some things at Vero never chanage

SeaGlide happy to be home once more,

and no worse for all the wear we put on her.

The celebration began as Amos dined down on shrimp

and we had a toast with the same cups we toasted

with when we pulled out of Myrtle Beach.

Our treasured John Deere cup from Jeff's dad and

my grandmother's handmade coffee cup.

Jeff raised the gold burgee,

and we were both over the moon with our accomplishment.

 

Here are Donnie and Pam's photos of SeaGlide coming home:

 

 





We had the Moore's aboard as they had not seen SeaGlide since they sold her to us over a year and a half earlier.  We then went out for a celebratory dinner - we've always enjoyed their company.

 

The next morning we took our time departing and made our way back to Fort Pierce where we planned to start readying SeaGlide for the boat show at the Trawlerfest later in the month.  It was there she was to make her debut on the marketing scene. 

 

Once back in Fort Pierce we fell in love with the area.  They have lots going on in town, the people are friendly, the weather perfect, and the marina was wonderful.

 

We worked hard unpacking and cleaning SeaGlide.  We hired some help to polish her up and then we gave her a good wax job.  She was looking her best when the broker called and said he would like to bring some folks over to take a look.  He stated that they weren't in the market yet, but were thinking of getting a bigger boat once they sold theirs.  We told him sure bring them over any time.  Our thinking was that we could use their comments to fix SeaGlide and get her up to par before we left for the boat show. 

 

Much to our surprise, they were aboard for a couple of hours and as we all sat in the salon, they asked what had to happen for SeaGlide to not go to the boat show.  Jeff and I looked at each other in shock!  What?! They wanted to buy the boat just that quickly?  We had planned for her to be on the market at least through the summer as we planned to use her as our beach house. 

 

Try as they might, the surveys, etc couldn't get completed before time to leave for the boat show.  We thought that we might as well go, as we had already paid for our space and it wouldn't hurt to have backup offers should this first offer fall through.  Plus, we weren't quite ready to let her go - we had planned this final trip and were anxious to fly the gold burgee proud.

 

We pulled out of Harbour Isle Marina and anchored out at North Lake Worth anchorage.  From there it was a short jaunt to Lake Park Marina where Trawlerfest was being held.

 

We had a great time at Trawlerfest - we saw some old friends and made some new ones.  SeaGlide had an excellent showing, and we had several people interested in her if our initial offer fell through.  We couldn't believe our luck!

 

On March 2 we pulled out of Lake Park in route back to Harbour Isle.  As we reached Stuart, FL, our old buddies Inch N Along pulled into the ICW just ahead of us.  They too were in route to Harbour Isle, and we looked so forward to seeing them again and catching up.  Also, we had an appointment with both the engine surveyor and the structural surveyor as soon as we returned.  That was on a Tuesday and by that Friday, the deal was done!  We gave Curtis a hard time for doing his job a little too well! 

 

We were happy for the new owners and spent time with them helping to orient them to the boat.  We also helped them move her over to her new home and had a celebratory dinner.  And just that fast, we were loaded up and headed back to the mountains.  There wasn't time to regret our decision - it was obviously just meant to be.

 

SeaGlide is still out there in the Florida waters.  She is now known as Trawler Buff, and her new owners are Buff and Deana.  If you see her, give her a wave - she is one awesome water craft!

 

 

January 18-30, 2014 - Miami and the Florida East Coast

Our last night in the Keys turned out to be quite restless as the predicted winds of 5-10 mph were actually 16+. Waves continually slammed into the hull making sleep difficult - not to mention our constant wakeages to check our position. Of course, we should have never doubted our Captain's ability to set an anchor. We didn't move an inch all night.

Sunrise the next morning was spectacular as the dolphin escorted us back into the main channel. We passed through more "particularlly sensitive areas" early on which were very shallow. We timed our departure with the tide, however, once again the wind and full moon were working against us as far as water depths were concerned.

We wriggled our way through the mangroves around Key Largo and passed the bridge to the Keys at Cross Key. We had planned to spend another night on the hook in a protected anchorage, however, none were available due to shallow water. We decided to press on through Biscayne Bay and into Miami. In route we passed Stiltsville and the Cape Florida lighthouse.

Once through the busy entrance to Miami we found our spot directly across from the big city lights - Marine Stadium anchorage. The stadium is mostly abandoned now. It used to serve as seating for marine stunt shows. Now it has been turned into a park that folks use to stage races, etc. The water in front of the stadium is now a primo anchorage and mooring field, and we were lucky enough to find a spot in the back. So, off the bow was the big city and all its action, while off the stern it looked like we were out in the middle of nowheresville. Man what a spot!

Another beautiful sunrise

The full moon still high in the sky

The mangroves through Key Largo

Cross Keys bridge to the Keys

Cool hotel, Gilberts, on the water

Shallow bottom

Key Biscayne

Miami looming in the distance

Cape Florida lighthouse

Stiltsville

Finally getting closer to the hustle

and bustle of the big city

 

We tucked into an anchorage behind this mooring field

and enjoyed the views from the bow (above)

and the stern (below)

 

As we had been going at it pretty hard, we decided to stay in this spot a couple of days and catch up on our rest.  Neither of us had much of a desire to go into the city, but enjoyed watching the excitement around us.

 

We pulled up the anchor on Jan 20 and headed for the Hall of Fame Marina at Ft. Lauderdale.  From there we planned for Jeff to travel to Myrtle Beach for his yearly golf tournament with the boys.  From there he would get a ride back to Asheville to get the pickup truck and drive back to Ft. Lauderdale so we could plan to start unpacking the boat.

 

Well rested, as the sun arose we were anxious to get underway.  It was somewhat surreal watching this big city wake up from the waterfront.

 

 

Gorgeous view from the stern as the sun rises

 



Even Amos was anxious to get underway

As the sun rises the city is awash with color

Slowly the traffic resumes both on land and on water

 

We made our way through the busy waterway and the gorgeous water especially after the Broad Causeway Bridge. There were areas of severe shoaling especially at Baker's Haulover. And then we were in a continuous residential area from North Miami to Hollywood/Dania. Now instead of dodging crab pots, we were dodging coconuts in the water.

Try as I might, I just couldn't capture the beauty of the water here

Coconuts

The channel gets skinny

 especially as tour boats don't leave you much room to negotiate

Coming into Ft. Lauderdale, there was lots more traffic on the water - barges and cruise ships were everywhere.  Not to mention all the traffic coming in from the inlet (those smart folks that took the outside route via the Atlantic).

 

 

The inlet was hopping

and boat traffic was everywhere

Finally by the time we tracked down our slip,

we were exhausted from sensory overload

The Hall of Fame Marina, Ft. Lauderdale

 

After so many days onboard, we were anxious to sink our toes in the sand so we struck out in search of the beach.  What a welcome sight. 

View off our bow

 

While Jeff was gone, I putzed around town a bit, got in my beach time, and started packing up SeaGlide.  However, by the time Jeff got back, I had determined that Ft. Lauderdale just isn't my kind of town, and I was anxious to leave.  As much as I dreaded finishing the trip, I was as ready as I would ever be.