Category Archives: Bradenton Beach, FL

May 3, 2020 · 9:34 am

A Journey Begun

Three years ago, today, May, 3, 2017, I set out from Ft. Lauderdale, FL., on my little Venture22 sailboat and eventually ended up anchored at the southern end of Anna Maria Island over on the Gulf side of the peninsula.

first day

 

The original destination was to be Breton Island, Louisiana, where I’d worked running a crew boat in the Kerr-McGee oil production field back in ’77/’78. I actually LIVED on the island for nearly a year…working 7 days on and 7 days at home.

Back then the island was about a half mile long and, perhaps, a quarter mile wide at its widest. But over the intervening years hurricanes had reduced it to a sand spit a couple of hundred yards long. I wanted to see it.

breton

I made it as far as Carrabelle in the eastern panhandle of the state.That’s where, 18 miles off the coast, on July 6, 2017, a Coast Guard-dispatched boat took me aboard their boat and dropped me off at the dock in Panacea, Florida where an ambulance was waiting to take me to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital suffering from total kidney shutdown due to severe dehydration. I spent 17 days at TMH and Health South, a rehab facility, until I’d regained enough strength before returning to the boat to continue my voyage. I decided to head south.

rescued

I made it to Bradenton Beach and Anna Maria Island where I’ve been ever since with one excursion, last year, to Cayo Costa to the south. About a 200 mile round trip.

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April 26, 2020 · 3:47 pm

FREE Books (Mine)

Recently a dear friend wrote and asked how I was progressing with my proposed book tentatively titled, “Four Feet of Less: A Gunkholer’s Guide to Florida’s West Coast.” Shamefacedly I had to confess, “Not very well.”

There are a number of reasons, and it’s hard to say which one carries most of the onus. So I’ll just say…I haven’t visited a lot of places I wanted to include in the a guide (Yet?). Last year I went to Cayo Costa, about 100 miles south. I was there for a couple of days and the water was taking on a strange, pinkish hue and my eyes started to burn as well as my lungs which isn’t good when you have serious COPD issues. It was Red Tide. So I pulled anchor and returned to Bradenton Beach. The tide followed me. In fact, at its worst it covered nearly 150 miles of Florida’s Gulf Coast and littered the littoral with thousands of dead fish.

I thought it would at least be a good time to get started with the writing. Then my beloved MacBook Air died! I’m an old guy living on a tiny 22-foot sailboat and subsisting entirely on Social Security. I didn’t have an extra $1,300 lying around to buy a replacement Mac. I thought about how I mainly used the Mac and it boiled down to emails and getting into arguments over politics with strangers online…So I sprung for an Acer Chromebook for less than $300. For the most part it does what I need it to do. The big BUT, though, is that instead of Microsoft Word, that I used to write my book “Adversity’s Wake,” I have to use Google Docs. Not nearly as good. And there has been a learning curve. It’s not easy to assemble and edit chapters. Move one thing and everything gets discombobulated resulting in extreme frustration so I move on to doing something else.

Here’s what I’ve decided to do since the gunkhole book is quite a ways from complete. This will take a little effort on your part, though.

I am offering my book “Adversity’s Wake” and the short story “Sailing Alone to Isla” FREE to anyone who wants them. BUT, you have to go and sign up with the site “SMASHWORDS.COM.” Don’t worry, they WON’T spam you or give your name to anyone else.

When you’ve registered, go to my page and select the two books. When you go to “check out” there is a space for entering a coupon number. Do that and when you complete your checkout you will NOT BE CHARGED for the books. This is a LIMITED TIME OFFER. After August 1 the price will go back to $4.99 for Adversity’s wake and 99¢ for Sailing Alone to Isla.

For Adversity’s Wake the Coupon Code is: QH93D (NOT case sensitive)
For Sailing Alone to Isla the code is: BB62U (NOT case sensitive)

There are different formats to choose from to read them. If you like them an HONEST review would be appreciated.

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Filed under Anna Maria Island, Bradenton Beach, FL, digital books, digital publishing, Dual-Language Books, Dual-language books: English/Spanish, e-publishing, ebook, indie authors, indie writers, self publishing, Uncategorized, writing

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April 24, 2020 · 8:46 am

Sunshine State My Aging White Pooper!

Gonna be a wet, nasty day anchored here at the south end of Anna Maria Island, FL. But that’s life on the hook in Florida. The MyRadar site is predicting 1 to 2 inches of rain today and 1-2 inches overnight. The challenge isn’t to stay safe. It’s to stay DRY and keep the dinghy bailed out.

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April 16, 2020 · 9:38 am

Yuck

I absolutely HATE days like this as I sit anchored at the south end of Anna Maria Island, Florida. Wind is out of the NNE gusting into the upper teens and low twenties. Heavily overcast. Overall there’s a 60% chance of rain and it’s been sixty percenting off and on so far this morning. But what I REALLY hate is that I’ve been up for a couple of hours (It’s now 9:30) and I just put on a sweat shirt. A bit earlier I donned the bottoms of my long johns. It’s the MIDDLE OF APRIL, DAMNIT!!!

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April 10, 2020 · 2:05 pm

Outside Comfort Zone

For the first time in a couple of weeks the winds are picking up. It was dead calm four hours ago but now it’s up to a point from the NNE here anchored at the southern end of Anna Maria Island, FL, where I’d start to struggle against it to get back the 125 yards from the dock to the boat. The forecast for tomorrow is calling for winds gusting up to 30 mph, Been there, survived that…

But I’m ready. Had to leave my comfort zone a couple of times this week. On Wednesday, since the weather was clear and calm, I took the #6 bus over to The Dark Side (mainland) and went to Wally World. I needed to buy a pair of slacks since I can’t wear jeans to my upcoming court date to fight the “No visible anchor light” extortion summons I received.

While I was there I stocked up on a half dozen Hormel “Compleats” dinners. I’m not much into prepared foods but with this mandated “Stay at Home” deal that cuts down on trips to the grocery store for fresh stuff. The Compleats aren’t too bad and they don’t have too many ingredients listed that are impossible to pronounce. Shelf life exceeds that of Twinkies which is something like four years after the sun is scheduled to go supernova and eliminate the solar system.

hormel-compleats

Nearly all processed food manufacturers believe that everyone in the known universe owns a microwave oven. Well, news item, people that live anchored on 22-foot sailboats DON’T! But the meals are packaged in plastic trays with a thick plastic lining on top. Put an inch or two of water in a pot big enough to take the package, bring the water to a boil, plop in the tray and let it boil away for eight to ten minutes. Another long life sorta food  are Ready Meals. They come in plastic bags and I do rather like the fiesta steak.

ready

Quite spice. Just drop into boiling water for awhile and same results. Synthetic food…Soylent Green is People!

I then did some involuntary sightseeing. I’m waiting at the DeSoto Station which is one of the termini for many of Manatee County Area Transportation’s bus lines, and reading a story on my iPad. I sense a bus entering the terminal and I glance up and see a green “6” on the sign. I get on. When the bus takes off it goes in an unexpected direction.

At first I think nothing of it because down at the intersection of Cortez where the bus would normally turn there’s a ton of construction going on. So I think perhaps the driver’s taking a different route to avoid that. Then, though, when she passes the logical place to join Cortez Road she keeps on going.

“Isn’t this the #6 bus?” I ask.
“No,” it’s the SixTEEN.”
Rats. I’m going to have to ride the whole route, and I wish I’d brought a sweater because it’s FREEZING on the bus…Fortunately with the virus situation they aren’t charging for the rides these days.

Now I’m looking at my “My Stop” app on my phone. The buses have transponders so you can follow a bus on its travels. It’s a race to see who gets to the terminal first…the bus I’m on or the #6 that I need to take me back out to the island. It’s neck-and-neck. The buses are only running once every hour and if I miss this one I have to hang around the terminal for another hour. Well, we beat the number six in by no more than three minutes so my sagging, aging ass was saved!

On Thursday I got a text message from CVS that my blood pressure med prescription was ready. So off I went. The usual trolley schedule of 20 minutes has been reduced for an hour. No big deal. My stop app says it starts off from the South Coquina stop below me on the hour. Went and got my meds then slipped over to Publix next door and really loaded up on groceries. Got some more prepared foods but also a whole fresh chicken which is in the pressure cooker right now. A couple of pork chops that will become sweet and sour stir fry and some ground beef that will be transformed into hamburger stroganoff. Weill be boat bound until Monday or Tuesday. That’s when my Enya carbon fibre ukulele is scheduled for delivery. I’ll go pick it up, make a quick dash into the Dollar Store and stock up on junk food and then I’ll be dug in for a couple or three weeks.

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Filed under Anna Maria Island, boats, Bradenton Beach, FL, Coquina Beach, Corona virus, Cruising Food, Uncategorized

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April 6, 2020 · 3:25 pm

Staying Sane While Quarantined

Since mentioning that I have taken up trying to learn how to play the ukulele and how it helps while away the time here at anchor off of Anna Maria Island, FL, a member of one of the Facebook boating groups I run keeps pestering me about not posting uke videos. There are a few reasons for that: primarily because my voice SUCKS. I can’t carry a note with a co-signer. Also, I don’t have decent equipment to do a recording, but, never the less, being in self quarantine and needing something to do, I used my iPad to record this. Volume for the voice is low, but I’m not going to go our and buy a mike.

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April 3, 2020 · 9:51 am

Staying Fit On A Small Boat

Multi-billionaire, David Geffen, recently stirred up a shit storm of outrage when he posted about self-isolating himself and the 45 members of the crew of his $519 million, 453 foot mega yacht in the Caribbean. Seems most of the world view him as an enormous jerk!

I bet that somewhere on his yacht he has a full-equipped gymnasium so he can stay in shape. But what about us folks that are self-isolating on a 22 foot boat anchored off of Anna Maria Island, FL? How do we keep our muscles from atrophying because of inactivity?

Up on deck if the boat’s not bouncing around too badly I can do pushups to keep the upper body toned. I DON’T, but I COULD if I wasn’t such a lazy SOB.

When the wind’s not real bad I paddle to shore in my dinghy which gives me some upper body workout and certainly gets my COPD clogged lungs a workout. Then, on shore, I can walk in the boat trailer parking lot for fitness.

Recently, though, when we went through a patch of windy weather where going ashore would have been on an emergency need only, I discovered that walking in place is just as effective as walking on a track; all you need is enough space to march, supportive shoes and comfortable clothing. Every time I stand up after reading or working on the computer for a while I will start my metronome for 5 minutes at a speed of 70 beats per minute. It get’s my breathing up and at the end of that time my right hip is bothering me as much as when I’m walking around on land. I do this EVERY TIME I stand up in the hatchway and that comes to a couple of dozen times a day.

The Y, of which I’m a member so I can use their gym and take hot showers, is closed for the foreseeable future, and while this isn’t as good as the gym David Geffen has access to I’m staying as fit as I can…92128254_819098755268908_1653492121820200960_n90839384_10206979444922657_6275735019537301504_o

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April 1, 2020 · 11:09 am

Just Another Night

Even without the Covfefe19 shelter in place directives this is a “don’t go ashore” morning here at the Coquina Beach North Boat Ramp on Anna Maria Island, FL.

The last week to 10 days have been unusual. Days on end with barely a ripple on the water and no rain. But that all changed last night just before midnight. The wind did a 180 and started blowing from the Northeast. And blow, indeed. Immediately the intensity of the waves lapping against the hull increased and a few minutes later the first fat drops of rain started rebounding off the cabin top. Where the boat’s motion had been solid, as though planted in the sandy bottom of the bay, now it was rocking up and down in the wavelets and the sound of the rain soon had me sound asleep.

A large, loud BANG on the side of the boat at around 04:30 had me instantly awake. The wind and waves had increased quite a bit. I generally keep the dinghy tied up on the starboard quarter (see pic) but the wave action had caused the fender at the bow to be flipped inside the dinghy and the two bare hulls were now slamming together.

The solution, of course was to turn it loose on its painter so it would bob, unfettered, astern. I took unfastened the painter from the cleat on the cabin top, careful not to let it fly away. Instantly the bow flew off downwind. But the stern didn’t. it looked as though it was caught under the propeller of the Mercury outboard. I pulled the bow back in and it seemed as though the stern came free from the Merc so I let the bow go, again, and the same thing happened. Remember, it’s about 4:30 in the morning and I’ve been roused out of a sound sleep just a couple of minutes ago so it took a third unsuccessful attempt before it dawned on me that the line from the dinghy’s transom was still fastened to the main boat.

Thankfully the rain had stopped but the temperature had plunged. Not winter cold front cold, but chilly. Working in the dark i tried to unfasten the line from the cleat but somehow the fender had gotten tangled up. And it’s my BEST fender, too, and I don’t want to lose it. I managed to get it unfastened and flipped into the dinghy. Back at the cabin top I let the line loose once again and the dinghy slipped back and rode easily astern.

The wind was really piping away. I tried to get a reading with my hand-held anemometer but couldn’t get the screen to light up. Looking at windfinder just now I see that the winds were recorded as gusting up to 28 mph. Now folks, I AM safe. I’ve explained my anchoring system. I’m in NO DANGER. Uncomfortable, perhaps, but SAFE.

It’s about 15 degrees colder now than the last week. Winds are gusting TOWARDS, but not HITTING, 20 mph. But the sun is shining and it’s just a good day to be on the water.91748595_203351307779291_7343569060187078656_n

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November 13, 2019 · 9:57 am

Winter’s Coming…

Temperature at Bradenton Beach, FL, in low 50F this morning. Really a shock climbing out of the sleeping bag at 6:30. Dug out the thermals and fleece-lined booties before cranking up the stove for my morning mug of espresso. Don’t think low 50s is cold? Just a couple of weeks ago we were dealing with heat index figures of 108F!

Just before 8 last night I stood up in the hatchway to secure the shade tarp into its “rain” configuration which, while acting as a dodger, also serves like a spoiler directing the wind up and over the Bimini top. JUST as I was doing this the wind did a 180 and swung around into the NNE and went from nearly dead calm to mid to upper teens in wind speed in a matter of seconds. Shortly after that the temperature began to drop and a stiff chop developed bouncing my little craft uncomfortably. So uncomfortably that I couldn’t fall asleep for several hours.

Sometime in the middle of the night I got up to do old man stuff and there, less than 200 feet away and nestled into the mangroves was this derelict. And I mean mangrove branches are touching the hull! There are several like this up in the big anchorage by the pier. People come in with boats they no longer want or can’t afford, drop a hook and abandon them. It’s a big problem. THIS ONE has been up there for over a year and a half!

In the light of morning you can see that the lower ends of the two anchor lines hanging from the bow are BOTH about 4 feet ABOVE the waterline which leads me to believe that they had been deliberately cut in the night.

It’s a good thing the boat didn’t hit me. If it had I’d have been forced to track down whomever cut the lines and kill them!!!

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October 16, 2019 · 4:41 pm

More of the Cruising Life

One nice thing about being retired is that there’s no big rush to get things accomplished ASAP. I’m under no deadlines as far as working on my boat, especially since no one’s paying me to do it.

I’ve needed to scrape the bottom of my dinghy for a while. When was the last time you went out and scraped junk off of the bottom of your car or pickup truck? All last week I watched a piece of seaweed that can best be described as looking like a leaf of very ripe lettuce grow larger and larger. Really nothing I could do about it then. There’s a tiny, postage-stamp bit of beach on the south side of the boat launch ramp, but it’s only usable at low tide, and the tides weren’t synced right last week. But today it was dead low at 0830 so I went in around 10 on a rising tide. There was enough of the “beach” left to put the things I keep in the dinghy, shopping cart, life jacket and throwable flotation required by the USCG, spare paddle, etc. on shore.Flipped it upside down and went to work with the scraper. For most people reading this it wouldn’t have taken you more than about 15 or 20 minutes to get the wildlife (barnacles) and vegetables off the bottom, but I’m working with about 40% lung capacity so several breaks to catch my breath extended the job to about an hour. It’s amazing how much easier it paddles with all that stuff gone.

As I wrote, recently, I need to replace the original outboard motor bracket that came with the boat. The last year with the old Honda 9.9 at more than 100 lbs rocking and rolling in the passing wakes bent the arms of the bracket so I couldn’t raise or lower it. I’d always had a problem with it and had resorted to a block and tackle arrangement to use it. Even then it was extremely difficult.

I described how I got the jackplate (as the brackets are sometimes called) off the transom, elsewhere. Of course the bolt holes of the new bracket aren’t the same as the old one. So last week I bought some epoxy stick. Break a bit off the stick and knead it until the color from the two parts blend into a solid color and then stuffed it into the old holes.

This afternoon I climbed into the dinghy with the bracket to which I’d attached some rope to tie to the stern railing to keep it from taking a swim.

The first hole was easy. I moved the bracket around until it looked good. . .i.e. there was enough room to operated the lift arm properly. . . and made sure it was about an inch away from one of the original holes and went at it with the 11/32 drill bitt. Of course it needs to be a bit bigger than the 5/16″ bolt so it can slide through the hole in the transom easily.

With that hole drilled I slipped one of the 5/16 bolts through to help hold the bracket in place so I could determine where the next three holes needed to be drilled. Using a smaller bitt I drilled into the center of the holes and then removed the bracket completely off the transom. Back to the 11/32 bitt I used the smaller holes as guides and drilled completely through the transom.

t was the middle of the afternoon when I finished this up and I didn’t feel like moving all the detritus necessary to climb into that 16-1/2″ entrance to where I’ll be accessing the bolts to tighten things up. I’ll get that done sometime in the next few days. No hurry.

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Filed under Boat Repair, boats, Bradenton Beach, FL, cruising, Living off the grid, Living on the hook, Minimalist Cruising, Outboard Motors, Uncategorized

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