Trip to Naked Pizza in South Beach, December 29

The 29th was beautifully sunny and warm and finally, was the perfect day to try some sailing, but Gay had to be at the South Beach Naked Pizza store for an afternoon conference call.  It was Ken's first chance to see a Naked Pizza store and to try the pizza.  He enjoyed the trip and served as camera man for a video to capture the operation.  Vince, the main man in Miami, was a gracious and helpful guide as we used skype to hold a conference call with the Fresca Foods guys in Louisville, Colorado. 

After the meeting, Gay and Ken drove back from SoBe to Fort Lauderdale along the coast (instead of the Interstate) and got to see the areas from land that they usually only see from the boat.  Having both devoured a Naked Pizza (Gay gluten free and Ken regular crust) mid-afternoon they skipped dinner and just relaxed and watched tv.  Ken liked the pizza and was pleasantly surprised to find that such a great tasting fast food could actually have health benefits!

We did bring back a Naked Pizza and froze it so Will can try it when he returns.  For those of you still eating unnaked pizza, Naked Pizzas are all natural with no freaky chemicals.  The crust is made up of 10 grains (called the Ancestral Blend) and fortified with probiotics and prebiotics to make it simply, the world's healthiest pizza.  But you would never know it because it tastes so good!

December 20 - 28 Fort Pierce to Ft Lauderdale, Christmas

On the 20th, Patina stayed in the ICW because of the small craft advisory.  In the afternoon, they saw manatees in the ICW, with one in particular coming close to the port bow.  Patina by-passed the North Palm Beach Marina where we spent a couple of the weeks in the spring. The total lunar eclipse was visible that evening.  On the 21st at about 4:30 Patina went under her 15th bridge for the day and docked in Fort Lauderdale at Bahia Mar Marina late in the afternoon on the 21st.

Ken decided to end the trip there for the holidays.  Will and Charlie headed for home on the 23rd and Gay arrived on the 23rd.  After a fabulous dinner on the porch of Coconuts (walking distance from the marina), the Burkes turned in.  The 24th involved lots of provisioning (Whole Foods and Publix and West Marine and the French Bakery) and cleaning to get the boat ready for the late evening arrival of Tynan.  Tynan had never seen the boat and had some adjusting to get his 6'4" frame accustomed to the forward berth and head.  Tynan's head took more than one hit as he adjusted.

On the 25th, Gay's sister, Bobette, and her husband Ken joined us for a late day Christmas dinner of barbequed pork chops, asparagus, tomato-basil mozzarella salad and chocolate dipped strawberries.  Not our traditional Christmas meal but it seem appropriate for the setting.  This was Gay's first chance to use the grill and it worked very well.  We ate dinner in the cockpit and had a great evening.  Christmas day turned out to be Tynan's only nice weather day.   The weather turned cold and very windy at the same time that the freezer seemed to break.  A trip for dry ice and coolers allowed us to save most of the expensive food (and caused us to need to jettison the less expensive things like condiments and frozen waffles).  On the 26th, Bobette and Ken came back over and we went to a very chilly dinner at Coconuts (not as pleasant as the prior one).  The 27th was cold and windy as well.  Beth and Scott, friends from Melbourne came over and brought their Argentinian exchange student, Vicky.  The weather put a damper on the day but we did walk along the beach and head into town for a nice late lunch at Timpano.  It was great to catch up with them again and to meet Vicky.

There was gigantic blizzard from the mid-Atlantic up through New England.  Thousands of flights were cancelled and travelers stranded.

Tynan flew out of Fort Lauderdale on the 28th and naturally, the good weather returned.  His flight was delayed about 1.5 hours because of the snafus associated with the blizzard, but luckily, he got on his way.  Miraculously the freezer started working again so we were able to get back to "normal" or as normal as you can get in a slip that is not your home port.  Tynan did not get a chance to get out on the water, so we are hoping that his next trip will be better!

Locks at Caanaveral Barge Canal and Update December 19, 2010

After heading out to the ocean at St. Augustine, Patina stayed in the ocean passing Daytona Beach and then re-entered the ICW by transiting the locks at Caanaveral Barge Canal.  It was raining hard at 9:43 am on the 18th and by  2:30 pm they tied up in Melbourne because the fog made the ICW too dangerous to continue.  On the 19th, by around 11 am, the fog had reduced enough for them to get back underway to go the 30 miles to Fort Pierce.  Tied up and reprovisioned at Fort Pierce as of 5:30 pm on the 19th.

Out the Saint Augustine inlet

Patina is once again outside the ICW and in the ocean!  They just headed out the St. Augustine Fl inlet and are hoping to stay out as long as weather allows.  Right now they think maybe a 24 hour weather window.  At least the temps have moderated and the sailing should be much more pleasant.

60 Degrees!!

Patina is anchored this evening (Thursday December 16) in the ICW outside Jacksonville Florida.  They spent last night in a slip on Jekyll Island.  Gave them a chance to have the heat on all night!  They can run the heat pumps off the generators when they are on the hook, but they only run for 4 hours without refueling, so plugging in for the night game them a full night of warmth.  And today, the temp hit 60 degrees.  What a change.

Cold! Cold! Cold!

Around 2 pm on the 14th they passed the infamous Kilkenny Creek (Ken and Gay spent a night there on their way up the ditch last spring--there is a blog post detailing the scary place).  Don't know if the guys heard the dueling banjos on this trip since it was so cold and during the day!

They anchored for the night on Tuesday December 14 near Sapolo Sound in Georgia.  I bet they are hoping to make Fernandina but likely won't get quite there with the short days.  Still predicting low 20's overnight.  This leg of the trip requires them to cross over two large sounds that, in the past, were pretty challenging when the wind was blowing.

Leaving Thunderbolt on Tuesday the 14th

Still on the ICW.  Still too cold for words.  Isn't this supposed to be fun?  Gale conditions on the ICW at least for the morning.

Working Patina's way down the ICW. Sunday Dec 12 - Monday Dec 13

With the weather prohibiting another off-shore leg, Patina started working her way down the ICW south of Charleston.  Sunday the 12th, they made their way 68 miles down the ditch to Beaufort SC and anchored near Lady's Island bridge.  They are trying out the generators to run the heat pump with winds predicted to be between 20 and 30 knots for the night.  Will was able to get the outboard motor (dinghy) running.

Monday, December 13 was cold and very windy.  Winds were 30 knots on their nose crossing Port Royal Sound.  Hoping to hit Savannah by dark, but the bridge timing will be the arbiter.

Satellite Check-In from Charleston Harbor

Just a few minutes ago, the satellite check-in showed the boat in Charleston Harbor.  They made good time!

Moving right along!!!!

Latest check in from the satellite shows them off the coast between Carolina Beach and Bald Head Island!
Latitude:33.93148


Longitude:-77.49841

GPS location Date/Time:12/09/2010 17:29:30 EST

Into the ocean!

Patina spent the night on the hook in Beaufort.  One of the few systems not tested thoroughly before departure was the outboard on the dinghy.  And guess what?  It would not start.  So the guys had to row in, get a cab and find all the necessary supplies to get her shipshape.  They are back underway this morning and as of 9:30 Eastern time heading into the ocean (directly off Atlantic Beach).

Ken's major comment was that it was very cold.

Finally, Patina is on her way!

After numerous weather delays, Patina is finally out on the ocean and heading south.   Message from the boat around 2:30 Eastern Time was:


Sailor: SPOT Check OK. We are sailing along well and all is fine. No Worries


34.7026 latitude, -76.67868 longitude

Thanks to Jenn, for the map:

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=111005914988519291926.000496e9d19ea37e401e5&t=h&z=10

Bon Voyage!  May you have fair winds and following seas!