Sunny skies and temperatures in the 70’s made for lots of beach and exploration time in the Fort Myers area. We visited as far north as Punta Gorda and south to North Naples. Moving west we took day trips to Pine Island, Sanibel and Captiva.
Read More »Fort Myers – Continued
Home for a holiday weekend visit!
Our intention is to spend the month in Florida in Fort Myers. It will be a quick month with plans to head home for a weekend and then the boys are meeting here to celebrate Christmas. We will leave Three Sons to celebrate Christmas at the Westin Resort across the Caloosahatchee River. Since we will be here for an extended stay and have never been to this area, we rented a car to allow for more exploring. In reflection, a lesson learned is always rent a car with Android Auto or Apple Car Play. Ugh, the stress and tension, between the driver and passenger, (and a few bad words) when trying to drive in an unknown area and giving oral directions.
Read More »Fort Myers, FL – Part 1
One of our “really want to do’s” on this trip was to take the Okeechobee Waterway (OCWW) across the state of Florida. We constantly look for new and different adventures and sights. The ICW is a great place to cruise, but a chance to turn off and experience a different waterway was right up our alley. Before we planned this trip, we never imagined that one could navigate the entire Florida peninsula. In three days, for a total of 112 miles, we traveled from the Atlantic to the Gulf, the East Coast to the West Coast of Florida.
Read More »Lake Okeechobee Waterway
Our plan is to meet the boys in Cape Coral for Christmas. This location provided a ‘doable’ drive for Jacob and an convenient airport for easy travel for Zach and Cory. Knowing the Westin of Cape Coral had a marina in front of it, win – win for a spot to park the boat. Well, Cape Coral and Ft. Myers is still recovering from Hurricane Ian so a spot to park the boat became problematic and extremely expensive.
Read More »Titusville to St. Lucie, FL
While Three Sons was docked in Titusville, FL, we flew to Dallas to meet Jacob and Pepper Mae for Thanksgiving. Dallas was a 3 hour drive for Jacob and a direct flight for us so it seemed to be a easy place to meet. After lots of research, we chose to pick up a catered Thanksgiving dinner and eat in the hotel. Sloan’s Corner did a wonderful, delicious Thanksgiving Take Away with all the fixings and dessert.
Read More »Dallas
Our short cruise to Titusville was quite enjoyable. The weather was perfect and the route was filled with wildlife and beautiful scenery. Our travels took us through Haulover Canal, which is a one mile, man made canal that connects Mosquito Lagoon to Indian River.
Read More »Titusville, FLA broken hose and an amazing anchorage.
The seasons and weather are changing. We needed to get some miles behind us, so we decided to sprint to the sunshine and warmer temperatures. We cruised 167 nautical miles from Savannah, GA to Fernandina Beach, FL in 3 days. Fernandina Beach is the northernmost city in Florida, just off the coast of Amelia Island. Once again, we skipped some destinations in Georgia that were on our list to see, but we will catch them on the way north. On the ICW at MM 714, we cruised across the Amelia River and into Florida. Cruising the ICW changes radically from Georgia to Florida moving from long, open sounds and wide rives then transforming into a series of creeks and rivers connected by narrow land cuts. The tidal range in Georgia is 6- 8 feet. This is due to the shape of the coastline in North Carolina and Florida pushing water. In Florida, we are back to normal tides. The landscape also changes from open marshes with little development to planned neighborhoods and canals where the ICW is lined with houses, mostly huge and stunning but all almost touching each other.
Read More »Florida!
We have been cruising a little over 8 weeks, leaving Westport, MA on Sunday, September 17th. on Thursday, November 16th, Three Sons picked up a mooring ball at Fernandina Beach off of Amelia Island, the northmost town in Florida. Thankfully, it has been a peaceful, uneventful journey that has been filled with new adventures, amazing sunsets and sunrise, tons of dolphins sightings and days of exploring new places.
Our Stats
Read More »Data – 61 Days
During our last visit to Charleston, we fell in love with the city and all it has to offer. So, this year we decided to stay a week and play the role of tourists. Also the timing was perfect to queue up for Tracy to fly home for the annual fall ‘Lane Girls Weekend’ and Zach to fly down to cruise with Bob.
Read More »Charleston, SC
Today was a travel day, no big plans just put on a few miles to get closer to Charleston. The weather was bright and sunny, but cold and windy. Forecast called for 15-18 knot winds with stronger gusts, borderline no-go day, but we expected to be protected inside the ICW for most of the ride. We bundled up for a cold ride and set out at 8:30, so that we could get some help releasing the lines at the dock. About an hour into the ride, we realized the forecast was a little off on the wind prediction or the gusts were a whole lot steadier. Not really a problem except for the
Read More »Drama on the ICW
Since it was not going to be a beach day, Three Sons docked on the west side of the ICW at Holden Beach Marina. Not much on this side except of Provision Company (PROCO) Seafood Restaurant which we had heard good things about. We went for a long bike ride exploring the neighborhoods on this side and stopped at Food Lion for some more produce.
Read More »Holden Beach, NC
We were unsure of our next destination, but after looking at the weather, we decided a beach stop was the right course. In order to maximize beach time, we took a quick run to Carolina Beach and picked up a mooring ball. Once again, we are traveling on the ICW which has and many stops and attractions along the way, including historic towns, scenic waterways, and beautiful beaches. However, because the waterway is a man-made and maintained waterway, it does require careful navigation and attention to water levels, depth, and channel markers. This segment was one that need particular attention. We had to time the opening of two bridges and transit in between.
Read More »Carolina Beach, NC
Not a typical stop, but we made a point to pull into Hamstead to visit the new residents of North Carolina Ken and Pam! We had a wonderful visit with some very gracious host. They picked us up, gave us a tour of their new community and cooked us a delicious dinner. Their new community and home are beyond beautiful! We enjoyed their company and meeting their new neighbor, Greg. Pam even sent us off with homemade banana bread for breakfast. Not sure if they know what they started, but Hampstead will now be a regular stop!
Read More »Hampstead, NC
Our time in Belhaven was productive, exciting and fun but, we were ready to get back on the water. Since we removed parts, replaced hoses and repaired pieces of the engine, we a little hesitant pulling off the dock. Like always, we had a few plans for where we would stop. The engines were happy, the waters calm and the weather bright and sunny, so we ended up going for a long ride and dropping the hook in Beaufort, NC.
Read More »Beaufort, NC
Three Sons got a face lift! She has been good to us and deserved some spa days, so we had a planned stop in Belhaven, NC. She was hauled out and we lived “on the hard” for 16 days while she was pampered. It was the first time she was hoisted using a travel lift and the whole process was interesting to watch.
Read More »Belhaven, NC
Three Sons has crossed the sound twice and our third trip was definitely the worse! The Albemarle Sound is the largest freshwater sound in North America. Originally this water way served as an essential transportation route for the first colonists. The Albemarle Sound is 60 miles long and 15 miles across at its widest point covering an area of 450 square miles.
Read More »Peace and Quiet while Cruising and Anchoring
Our last cruise in the Chesapeake Bay was once again, just beautiful! However, flat seas and easy riding came to a screeching halt as we entered Norfolk Harbor. Navigating through Norfolk Harbor requires dodging huge barges, making sense of all the ATON’s and staying out of the channel all while while enjoying the sights of Navy ship and submarines parked.
Read More »Entering the ICW – MM1
Leaving Kent Narrows, and heading South, we needed to deal with currents, shallows and time the opening of Bridge 50 – 301 Bridge. All went well, and we cruised under the bridge to a beautiful sunrise. To say the Chesapeake Bay was still would be an understatement. The bay was like glass and the weather was bright and sunny.
Read More »Yorktown, VA