So here we are, anchored in Destin, FL and the temperature is going down, down, down! The wind was blowing hard so we just kind of hunkered down and did whatever we could to keep warm. The "high" temperature inside the boat was 59! We are at anchor so had no access to heat. We did not leave the boat all day, I mean why would anyone want to get into a dinghy in this kind of weather? The forecasted low for the coming night was 39 and we hoped with the water being 77 degrees that the boat would stay at least a little bit warm. Thought we would just tough it out. I made a pot of chili and we drank hot chocolate and played a game of Scrabble. Then into bed we went with our books and our kitty. Threw 2 more blankets on the beds and just snuggled up.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 14
We woke up and it was 39 degrees in the boat! YIKES!!! OK - that's enough roughing it. Molly even refused to get out of bed and she was wearing a fur coat! She literally was under the covers and would not move. The weather was such that moving on was not a good idea but we had to find a slip for the night. WE NEED POWER! John called and called to try to find somewhere we could tie up that had power. We did find a restaurant that could accommodate us but they wanted $4/foot - with tax it would be $178!! Wow, we both just looked at each other and said we'd do again if that was what we had to pay. We haven't paid more than $2.00 per foot all trip and $4.00 was just crazy. John had a call into one more guy but we weren't optimistic about him calling back. At least the sun was shining and the day time temp was suppose to be in the upper 50's. We were just about to hop in the dinghy and get off the boat when the phone rang. It turned out to be our guardian angel, Steve. Apparently there was 1 slip in all of Destin harbor with enough depth for us and the man who could tell us where that was was on the phone! Within 15 minutes we were underway. We had to weave back through a narrow channel and were a bit nervous about the depth. Steve assured us it was 9', we saw 7' but just proceeded very slowly. Finally slip#E6 appeared to port and we drove right in.
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| VIEW FROM OUR DESTIN SLIP |
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| MIRABELLA YACHT CLUB |
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 15
Time to go! It's cold!! At least it was warm in the boat. We each put on several layers plus coats, hats and gloves. Motored out of the harbor which took almost 40 minutes. Then we raised the sails and were off. Destination: Panama City. Initially it was a bit rougher than we anticipated. We had given Molly Dramamine and we were sure glad we did! Even briefly discussed turning around but neither one of wanted to go back since there was really nothing to go back to. Once we got the sails adjusted we actually had decent sailing for awhile. Kind of the same thing as when we left Pensacola, fair winds and lots of jellyfish. The winds continued to diminish though and we ended up motor sailing, then just motoring as the wind pretty much died and the seas went turned to glass. So glad we didn't change the plan as we were so ready to get out of there.
We had talked to Sundowner and they were going to meet us at Panama City Marina. They left Blue Water Marina in Niceville and were heading down the ICW, basically they were paralleling us. They were travelling with another boat, Serenity and we listened to their chatter on the radio although we couldn't chime in as we were too far off shore. We all got into the marina about 4:00. We were just going to hang out at the marina but heard there was an ethnic festival in town, just a short walk away. Karen made a pot of Jambalaya and we went over to Sundowner for a quick bite and into town we go. The festival was winding down as it was chilly so we ended up at a little place called Millie's where there was a great acoustic musician. We stayed there for hours and it was almost like a private concert as there were few patrons other than ourselves. Stayed out later than we should have but we all sang the words to every song he played and had a lot of fun.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 16
Needless to say we slept in. Felt good to not have to go anywhere and be warm!! All we know is there is a Packer game today that we will actually be able to watch and we are psyched! Did some chores around the boat. We invited Sundowner for the game so I got busy making some football food. Heard that Estrellita was on their way to join us here and another Looper boat docked as well. John has been busy trying to plan our itinerary for the next week including the big crossing we will have to make soon. We need to cross about 150 miles from Carabelle to Tarpon Springs. It is quite a way offshore and will take at least 30 hours. Even the power boats need to make this leap so it is a passage that we are all thinking about. Power boats want smooth water and no wind, we want wind...to a degree. There are some boats already at Carabelle and we are watching their progress and anxiously awaiting word from those who have already made the crossing. One sailboat we have been in email communication with, EDEJ, said they were going to make the crossing and left at 3:00PM yesterday, no word from them yet. The forecast for tonight calls for some possible severe weather - hope they are OK. After enjoying a Packer win and little more TV time, we called it a night and headed for bed with our books.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 17
At 2:30AM we woke up to thunder and lightning. Got out of bed to check the radar (common practice for us) and found there was a tornado warning for our county. Oh my, there is really no where to go. I didn't think they had tornadoes in Florida. There is a marina building which houses the laundry, a ship store and bathrooms. Not sure if that would even be better than staying on board. John kept watching weather as I got dressed and got out Molly's carrier and another for Captain Jack thinking we may have to wake Sundowner and the other boats. The tornado went 8 miles north of us. We stayed on the boat and waited for the warnings to expire then back to bed. Woke at 8:00 to yet more bad weather. There was a black wall of clouds coming our way and sever thunderstorm warnings. We retied the boat and just put out more dock fenders when it started to pour and the winds picked up. It rained heavily for over an hour but thankfully the worst of it seemed to go around us yet again. It was 77 degrees so at least that was a plus. With the weather situation as it was, we evidently were not going anywhere today.
Got email from sailboat EDEJ and they made it to Tarpon Springs OK. Several other power boats who left around the same time as EDEJ shared their stories of a having a hairy and somewhat scary ride. Apparently it was a better night to be a sailboat than a power boat. Just glad all made it safely.
John went over to Sundowner to try to help fix a problem they were having and Karen and I went to town to do a little shopping. The temperature has been dropping all day and there are freeze warnings out here. Crazy weather!!! As I write, the wind is howling out of the NW at 15 to 20 and the boat is rocking. Have decided it is a night to take it easy, make a bowl of soup and just get caught up on the blog! Tomorrow promises to be chilly and then even colder at night, like 28 degrees so we are staying put here in Panama City. We know the weather is bad up North where most of you are reading this but take comfort in knowing you are not alone as it is not much better down here.
(Have had major internet sllooowwness tonight trying to get this post done so I didn't get many pics uploaded. Apparently all the other Loopers are on the internet too! Time to give up and just publish so we are up to date at least and you all know were are OK down here.)
Hope this finds everyone warm, snug and safe - PEACE TO ALL AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!!!
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