We started our trip from Racine, Wisconsin to Mobile, Alabama with some trepidation about going through locks. After a lot of reading, we still had some lock anxiety. All that melted away after a few, and now we think we have a pretty good idea what we’re doing.
After going through more than 20 locks as high as 57 feet, we think we have it down. I hope this helps ease your anxiety.
Tom keeping the bow off the wall
Step One: Call the Lock Master. Never assume he knows your intentions. It’s best to call as far ahead as possible. If he’s busy with barge traffic, he’ll let you know and you can slow down or stop for lunch. Sometimes he’ll say “come on ahead, I’ll have it ready for you”. Either way you save time and fuel. Important: All crew on deck must wear personal flotation devices (PFD’s). I also recommend a Cubs hat.
While anchored a half mile from Lorelei we got a cool visit from a seaplane. They found a clear area and landed, then taxied into Lorelei’s cove. We were ready when they came out and shot a video of the takeoff.
Today, we replaced our “house” batteries. These batteries are to us, what the electric company is to “normal” folks. They store all the power from our solar panels, and supply ALL of our electricity for lights, information, entertainment, and even cold beer.
While anchored in Thursday Cove, Key Largo we decided to do some dinghy exploring in Jewfish Creek. We found a pretty cool mangrove lined canal, and heard something large moving just inland, but didn’t see it.
This video was later as we headed home to beat the setting the setting sun. It was a wonderful day of exploration, going places that boats don’t so often go, including Lake Surprise.
As you can see, we were cutting the timing very close as we headed into the waters of Barnes Sound to get home in Thursday Cove.
Ultimately, we reached the safety of Pearl Lee just before “skeeter o’clock” and were greeted with the beautiful view you see at the top of this post.
When on land we walk, or ride the bus. Occasionally, when we’re feeling rich, we take Uber. The real workhorses though, are our Mongoose bicycles. They fold up for easy transport and with aluminum frames only weigh about 23 pounds.
Low weight has negligible benefits when riding, but a few pounds can make a huge difference when moving them around while folded. Whether going up and down the companionway ladder or between deck and dinghy your body will thank you for buying light weight folding bikes.
Here’s a quick video of one being folded for a dinghy ride back to the boat.
We decided to visit the Florida Power and Light (FPL) Manatee viewing area while in West Palm Beach. It’s a wonderful facility and totally free to the public. Just be sure to go there in the winter, when manatees are attracted to the warm water from the power plant.
You can observe from ground level or go up to the second floor balcony. Go up, you’ll be glad you did. The angle allows much improved viewing. The gentle giants treat this area as their hot tub, so they hang tend to hang out here until they get warmed up.
As you can see there were several enjoying the warm water on the January day we were there.
In addition to the outdoor viewing area, they have educational displays inside, and even offer various seminars on related topics. It’s nice to see FPL giving back to the community in such a tangible way.
Spotted Ray at FPL
We even saw a spotted ray and some other fish enjoying the warmth. We can’t stress enough what a beautiful facility FPL has created here. All because they noticed that manatees congregated in the warm outflow.
All in all a nice way to spend a couple hours, or more if you’re so inclined. We really enjoyed our stay and would certainly recommend it if you’re in the area during southern Florida’s “winter”.
Note to photographers: Don’t forget your polarizing filter. I did, and ended up shooting most of these pictures through my polarized sunglasses. ~Tom
We did some snorkeling while in the Palm Beach area. First, I just snorkeled around the boat giving the bottom a good scrub. Pearl Lee was starting to develop a hula skirt! I also learned that with a wet suit on (more for protection than cold) I’ll need a weight belt to get below the surface.
We had some soft stuff and a few barnacles. We probably shouldn’t wait so long next time. All in all, a good learning experience.
Learning to snorkel
Kristi decided to go with a friend to the base of the Blue Heron bridge. We had heard some good things about it, so they drove up by car. She struggled at first, breathing with your face in the water is an unnatural act, but Eventually mastered it.
They found a sunken row boat, some shopping carts and other things. All presumably put there for fish habitat, but they didn’t see a lot of fish. Still they had fun, and made plans for the following day at Peanut Island.
Snorkeling at Peanut Island
We took the dinghy a mile and a half up Lake Worth Lagoon to Peanut Island. We found a very nice dinghy dock on the leeward (downwind) side of the island, nice and calm. Then we found out what a long walk it was with snorkel gear and picnic supplies.
At Peanut Island the water was clear and it was like swimming through an aquarium! We found colorful fish everywhere, as well as the odd barracuda, and others. Here’s a short video we made:
We’re new at snorkeling and underwater photography, so bear with us. We’ll get better at both. In the meantime, here are a couple more pictures we took. As always on our site, you can click the picture to see it better.
While in West Palm Beach we were adopted by a new crew mate. Sailor Jerry has been rapidly adjusting to boat us and boat life after spending his first several months in a shelter.
Jerry runs around the boat like he owns the place, killing the occasional bug. He’s only fallen off the boat once (or maybe he jumped), and didn’t seem to like it much.
Lately he seems to have decided to never walk or run when he can jump. We’ve been calling him Kramer because he makes very dramatic, physical, comedic entrances.
At least he’s a good lookout… When he wants to be. After all, he’s a cat.
Now that you’ve met, don’t be surprised when he shows up in our adventures from time to time.
Our old Norcold 6.5 cubic foot front load refrigerator was slowly on it’s way to the graveyard. Mind you, it was at least 10 years old, so it’s hard to blame Norcold. The 12v board burned out, so we were running it on an inverter. We couldn’t get parts for such an old model. We noticed the seals were leaking causing excessive frost build up. It was using at least double the power it should. We determined it was past due for a replacement.
Finding a Frugal Boater alternative
The new hotness! Coolness?
After looking at direct replacements from Norcold and others we found it hard to justify $1400 – $2500 for a 6.5 cubic foot refrigerator. It was time to get creative.
After lots of measuring and internet shopping we found that 9.9 cubic foot home refrigerators had a pretty standard form factor and would just barely fit the space we had. We spent a lot of time measuring, planning and calculating.
While this journey began years ago for us, most people will recognize September 17, 2016 as the beginning. That’s the day we cast off our docklines in Racine, WI for the last time.
Tom’s first boat
How did we get here? For me the dream started in childhood when a local man built a cruising boat in his back yard. I learned to sail and by the following weekend I had my own MaGregor 16 Catamaran (designed by Roger MacGregor), followed by a Hobie 18 (designed by Hobie Alter and Ted Turner), and eventually, after many turns and stumbles a Chrysler 26 (designed by Halsey Herreshoff)
How did those humble beginnings lead to quitting our jobs, moving aboard and cutting the dock lines? Here is how we did it:
Our Chrysler 26, Copacetic
I read and studied, dreamed for 30 years. We made our escape plan when we were still sailing Copacetic, our Chrysler 26. Together we made more plans, we studied and read all we could. We spent 10 days on her, which made us realize two things. It is possible for us to live on a sailboat, and we need a bigger boat.
Aboard our Columbia 9.6, Gin Rhumby
Next came Gin Rhumby, our Columbia Payne 9.6 (designed by Alan Payne). We did a lot of work and even more planning, but about the time we realized we’d made a mistake, we spent some time with our friend Jon on his 40 foot Bristol Sea Lion. That opened up our minds to some advantages of a larger boat. I’m not saying a 32 foot boat isn’t a fine liveaboard, but it has to be one built for cruising, and ours was really built for racing.
Our Endeavour 43, Pearl Lee
By pure luck, we found a great deal on an Endeavour 43
(designed by Robert Johnson) which we named Pearl Lee. You can start reading about our delivery trip from LaSalle, Ontario to Racine, WI here: Homecoming – Part 1. We have put a lot of work and money into her, but still feel she’s a great boat for us. For a list of some of what we’ve done getting her ready, look here: Moving Aboard or for general information about our equipment and living conditions aboard you can look here: Details, Details, Details
Kristi and Jake aboard Pearl Lee
As our date approached things went into high gear. We had a massive yard sale. We moved aboard July 1, 2016 so that preparing Pearl Lee could become a full time job. We had a goodbye party at the dock to say “see you later” to friends and family from Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin many of whom had never been aboard a boat like Pearl Lee. Of course the hardest part was saying “see you later” to Jake, but he’s a fine young man and will find his way as we did.
With lots of hugs, a few tears and a final send off from our friends at the marina we headed south to Chicago where we would enter the river system that would eventually take us to the Gulf of Mexico.
Stay tuned for the “rest of the story”. Next up: Our Route
