Cuttyhunk

 The Elizabeth Islands lie between Martha's Vineyard and the southern coast of Massachusetts.  Cuttyhunk is the last in this chain of islands that stretch south and west from the base of Cape Cod. Cuttyhunk is derived from Pocutohhunkunnoh a Wampanoag word meaning Land's End or Point of Departure.

 

 

 

Below you can see a close up of Cuttyhunk. The Pond where we anchored is in the northern part of the island. You can see the narrow breachway that we tacked up straight into the wind to reach our anchorage. In the Southwestern corner of the island you can see West End Pond where the Gosnold monument is located. The land to the East is Nashawena across the infamous Canapitsit Channel.

 

Native Americans moved into this area around 10,000 years ago following the retreat of the glaciers from the last ice age. Speculation is that the Wampanoag Indians inhabited Pocutohhunkunnoh during the summer months, hunting, fishing and gathering shellfish, and then moved to a more sheltered location on the mainland for the winter.

 

In 1602 a group of European explorers arrived on board the Bark Concord led by the Englishman Bartholomew Gosnold. There were 32 men in the expedition 20 of whom were settlers and were planning to establish a permanent settlement. The rest would return to England and arrange for supplies to be sent out to the colonists.

 

Painting William Allen Wall courtesy of the New Bedford Whaling Museum

 

Gosnold met peacefully with the natives near present day New Bedford. The Europeans nevertheless felt threatened by the natives who greatly outnumbered them. Gosnold and the settlers selected a small island in the middle of a little pond on Cuttyhunk as the site of their encampment and proceeded to build a fort.

 



 

Painting by Albert Bierstadt courtesy of the New Bedford Whaling Museum

 

 

When not working on the fort the men gathered cedar logs and sassafras roots to sell back in England.

The twenty men who were suppose to stay got cold feet and when after six weeks the Concord was setting sail they asked to be taken back to England. Gosnold failed to establish a permanent settlement and Sir Walter Raleigh confiscated all of his sassafras, but Gosnold interacted peacefully with the natives and returned all of his expedition safely home.   I  was also planning an expedition to Cuttyhunk hoping for a pleasant visit and a safe return home.

 

The day of our departure Monday September 14, 2015. The weather forecast includes a small craft warning, winds West Southwest 15-20 knots with gusts to 25 knots, seas 4-6 feet. I thought about calling David and suggesting that we postpone our departure until Tuesday, but in the end I decided we would double reef and poke our noses outside the Harbor of Refuge and then make a final decision. Sally had decided to sit this trip out. My cousin David was interested in going so we teamed up for this trip to Cuttyhunk. Our plan was to leave Monday with food and water for 4 days. We would head for Cuttyhunk and then over to Menemsha on Martha's Vineyard and be back to Point Judith on Thursday.

 

We loaded up our gear. Raised sail and left Great Island about 9:30am.

 

 

 

 Conditions were so mild that I was feeling foolish for considering postponing the trip. I was even wondering if we should take a reef out of the sail.

Sally and Heidi drove down to the breachway to send us off. It was a beautiful day with the wind from the West around 10 knots. Temperature around 70 F. We were not in a race and I wanted this first trip of David's on Skorpa to be a safe one, so I decided to stick with the double reefs expecting that the wind and waves would build as we left the shelter of Point Judith Pond.

 

 

 

 

Click here for a video Sailing Off Point Judith in Route to Cuttyhunk 

 

As we were sailing off Narragansett the wind and waves continued to build. Wind 15 knots and the waves 2-3 feet. With two reefs we were making 5-6 knots. The forecast was still for small craft warnings and winds 15-20 knots with gusts to 25 knots. David was new to sailing Skorpa and getting used to the rigging, the tiller, and how a cat-ketch differs from a sloop takes some time. So we kept our reefs in.

 

 

 I just happened to be shooting some video when a dolphin swam across the screen. What an exciting wonderful few minutes we had. The video is pretty good but it doesn't let you see into the water very well. If you look closely you can see shapes beneath the water. I could see them quite well and it was incredible watching them swimming below and just in front of the bow and weaving back and forth.

 

 

Click here for video of Dolphins sailing with Skorpa

 

 

It is about 30 miles in a straight line from Point Judith to Cuttyhunk. Following the straight line we would spend a lot of time in the shipping channels and there would be no shelter available along the way. We chose to hug the coast a little adding maybe five miles to our route but giving us the option to anchor for lunch or for the night if we felt that was prudent. Third Beach near the mouth of the Sakonnet River is a nice anchorage sheltered from the south and west.

 

As we approached the southern end of Aquidneck Island and the Sakonnet River we decided to head towards Easton Beach(Second Beach). This seemed closer than going around Sachuest and up to Third Beach. I was still thinking about anchoring while we ate lunch and discussed our options. As we drew into the lee of The Breakers one of the mansions along Newport's Cliff Walk, David suggested that we heave to and eat lunch as we drifted instead of proceeding the rest of the way to Easton Beach and taking the time to anchor. Earlier in the summer David had come on a brief sail with me in Skorpa and he had been impressed with how easy it was to heave to. Loosen the mainsheet and snug up the mizzen sheet. The boat lies quietly pointed into the wind and drifting back slowly. It takes about 10 seconds.

 

We discussed the situation. We had about 18 miles to the outer harbor at Cuttyhunk. If everything were to go right we could be there around 4pm. I was not sure if we would be able to sail through the narrow breachway into the Pond. We may have to lower sails and row. There were no other options, either stay here at Easton Beach or perhaps move over to Third Beach or make it all the way to Cuttyhunk. The wind had built a little and we felt it had neared its peak. The waves would probably continue to build somewhat. Just before lunch the boat had been sailing faster 7-8 knots with the occasional surf in the lower teens. The boat felt under control so we decided to go for it.

 

 

Click here for video of Sailing from Sakonnet to Cuttyhunk

 

Looking back at the videos the waves appear about one half the size they appeared that day from the boat. The Block Island buoy reported wave heights of 6.5 feet Monday afternoon. So far I have not been able to access wave height data from The Buzzards Bay tower which was about two miles off our route. I do not have any video of the largest waves nor of the boat at its highest speed which maxed at 14.4 knots  while we were surfing on a wave. Not bad for carrying two reefs.

 

Click here for video of Sailing into Cuttyhunk Pond

 

 

As we sailed by the stern of one of the yachts in the basin, someone came out and gave us a round of applause. I am sure not many boats sail through that channel directly into the wind, and I would not recommend it during the summer season or when there is any amount of boat traffic.

 

 Cuttyhunk Pond was quiet and well protected from the wind and waves. We enjoyed the security, relief and sense of accomplishment for  awhile as evening settled in. I put some brown rice on the pressure cooker and David cut up onion, carrots and squash. Preparing a meal from scratch takes some extra effort and time but we both enjoy the ritual. When the ritual takes place in a quiet anchorage after a challenging passage with the sun setting, and the crescent moon and stars coming out it doesn't get much better.

 

 

That night the stars were visible bright and clear through the companionway and as Skorpa swung gently at her anchor it felt like we were motionless and the heavens rotated smoothly around us paused and then rotated steadily back.

 

We were both up early to enjoy the predawn stars of Orion and the planets Venus and Jupiter. The wind was blowing gently from the South Southwest. After breakfast we sailed a half mile across the Pond. We scanned the far shore looking for a place to beach the boat so we could go ashore to explore. We did not find any place suitable so we sailed up to the dinghy dock and I went in search of the harbor master. I learned from him that the grocery store was closed because the owners had gone for the day to the mainland on business. He graciously told me that since there were so few boats in the harbor it would be OK for me to leave my boat at the dinghy dock for a few hours while we explored the island.

 

 

 

 

While I was making sure Skorpa was secure at the dock David acquired a map of the island and we were off.

 

 

 

The buildings in the Village of Cuttyhunk are very well maintained. There was very little pedestrian or vehicular traffic and the vehicle of choice was the electric golf cart.

 

 

Above is the school house and nearby is the church.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As you progress up this strange stone wall lined avenue that was constructed for a never to be built mansion the views become more and more spectacular.

 

On the far side of Cuttyhunk Pond the peninsula referred to as Copicut Neck is visible and beyond in the distance is Penikese Island.

 

 

 

Just above the church steeple is Canapitsit, Wampanoag for the southern arm together with Copicut they form the narrow arms that surround Cuttyhunk Pond. In the distance is the next island in the chain the somewhat larger Nashawena.

 

 

 

When you get to the end of the Avenue you are at the top of Lookout Hill. There is not much here just the remains of some observation bunkers used by the military to watch for German U-boats during World War II and  some incredible views of The Elizabeth Islands, Martha's Vineyard, and the southern coast of Massachusetts and if you look carefully on a clear day a bit of the southern coast of Rhode Island.

 

Looking towards the west end of the island you can see West End Pond and this strange tower. Our map had it labeled as the Gosnold Monument. This got our curiousity  up and  we decided to extend our shore leave on Cuttyhunk.

 

There is a rustic path along the southern edge of the island that leads to the Gosnold Monument and the lighthouse ruins. Along the way we snacked on some apples from an old apple tree long left to its own devises.

 

 

 

 

 David consults the map as our rustic path narrows a bit.  West End Pond and the tower  are in the distance.

 

 

 Much of the island is undeveloped, but it is very different from the tree covered island the Wampanaog  knew.

 

 

 

 

 

It seemed a little strange to us that the Gosnold Monument is located on this tiny island in the middle of a little pond on the far side of Cuttyhunk Island but that is where in 1602 Gosnold and his men decided to build their encampment and where in 1902 the historical society decided to build their monument.

 

 

This cut connects West End Pond to Buzzard's Bay. The current was ebbing at a few knots and the water was 4 or 5 feet deep so we went no further. The ruins of the light house and the keepers house are in the background.

 

 

The winds were forecast to be light and primarily from the southwest. For this reason we had decided not to continue on to Menemsha as this would put us further from home. I still hoped to get an afternoon sail in. The plan was to sail around Nashawena. When we got back to the village we ate a quick lunch at the dock and raised sail. Below we are heading out the breachway with the wind behind us.

 

 

 

This is the southern side of Nashawena. There are farm buildings and cattle grazing on the island.

 

 

 

 

Here we are finishing our circumnavigation. We are approaching Cuttyhunk with Nashawena in the background. You may not see them very well in the photo, but there are large boulders strewn randomly across the islands. They are called glacier erratics and they were shipped here from New Hampshire by glaciers 10,000-15,000 years ago.  In fact the second largest erractic in Massachusetts is located on Penikese.

 

 

 We tacked back into the Pond with the wind again on our nose, but only at about 10 knots. We anchored in almost the same spot as last night and again watched the crescent moon follow the sun into the western horizon.

 

 

 

Facing East about 9  hours later Venus is leading the sun up across the horizon. The wind has shifted to the North East at about 5 knots.

 

 

We leave our quiet anchorage early to take advantage of the fair winds while they last. Forecast is for northeast wind 5 knots becoming south

 

 

 

Farewell to the Coast Guard house that watches over Cuttyhunk Pond.

 

 

David is giving a tip of his hat to Cuttyhunk and the Elizabeth Isles as we begin the homeward leg of our trip. Nashawena is on the left and Cuttyhunk on the right in the background.

We had some wonderful sailing for a few hours moderate winds and calm seas. Whenever I hear a NOAA forecast that goes Northeast winds 5 knots becoming South I know it can be a frustrating sailing day. When exactly will the northeast winds become southerly and how long, minutes or hours will this transition take? 

 

 

 

 

Around 10am our lovely north winds began to fade. We had made some progress but we had a long way to go to get to the Sakonnet River. Skorpa as you probably know carries auxiliary propulsion in the form of two oars. We could read or doze and just wait for the wind to change direction and pick back up or. David suggested we row for awhile and that we did. We were able  to move the boat at about 2.5 knots. We kept that up for about 2 hours when the wind slowly began to fill in from the south southwest. Nothing like a spell at the oars to make you appreciate the magic of sailing by the wind. With the light winds and calm seas we felt comfortable sailing in close to West Island which is a big rock that lies off Sakonnet Point.

 

Followed by Sakonnet Light.

 

 

 

We sailed into Sakonnet Harbor just to look it over. It is a snug little place but filled with boats at moorings. We headed off across the Sakonnet to Third Beach. There were a number of moored boats here as well but a lot more room. We sailed up past all the boats as I wanted to get as close as possible to the beach with the idea of going ashore for a walk. We were right on the edge of the Sachuest Wildlife Refuge. I kept bringing us closer and closer in, scanning the chart for rocks and watching the water when suddenly we seemed to be right on a huge rock. Only there should have been lots of scrapping and grinding noises but there were none. I called out to David ROCKS and I turned the boat out towards deeper water. He replied they are fish. That did not make any sense to me. It looked like a huge rock just a few inches beneath the surface covered with lumps of seaweed or oysters or something. David declared again that they were fish, thousands of fish. I brought the boat up into the wind and looked closely myself sure enough fish. No wonder they were not marked on the chart, no wonder there was no scraping sounds as we ran up on them.

 

 

 

 

 They were about four inches long, dark green on the top and silver on the their sides. Every once in awhile there would be an explosion and a couple of larger fish about 18 inches would jump clear of the water as the smaller fish scattered everywhere. We later learned these were  Menhaden the locals call them Pogies and they often form large schools. They are filter feeders and they are found in the bays this time of year and blue fish enjoy feasting on them.

 

We anchored and just sat back to watch the show. We were in the center of the action. Blue fish were tearing into the schools of menhaden and sea gulls were picking up the scraps. Several people came by on paddle boards and in kayaks and skiffs.

 

 

One fella rowed by in a skiff.  I asked him what he had caught and he told me a 29 inch blue fish. Another man rowed over because he recognized the cat ketch rig and asked if this was a Core Sound 20. I told him he was close this was the CS 20's bigger brother an EC22 all by the same designer, Graham Byrnes. We chatted for a while then he rowed off. It was a little like being in a park. Stuff was happening. A young boy was screaming and yelling and running up and down the beach. "There they are! There they are!" He would go out into the water up to his neck, casting and screaming. Later he put away his rod and got a net. He was so excited  he did not know what to do. I leaned over the side of the boat and holding my camera a few inches under water I took the photo above. A few times we spotted something floating in the water like a softball size clump of seaweed. The Pogies normally swimming side by side would steer clear of the obstruction leaving a perfectly circular opening maybe beachball size that remained entirely free of fish. I thought about slipping into the water with my mask to swim with the school.

 

 

 

 

 

Finally as the light faded the commotion on land and on the sea died down. We gave up on the idea of going ashore and settled down to fixing our dinner. Pasta e fagioli, pasta with beans. I thought about how excited, how unrestrained the young boy on the beach had been in his response to this dramatic display of nature's fecundity. My response tempered by age was more muted. It was no doubt a moving experience and a privilege to be witness to it. As large as the school of fish appeared in reality this is a tiny remnant of the schools that used to gather on these shores a few hundred or even one hundred years ago, before they were decimated by habitat destruction,  pollution, and overfishing. 

 

 

 

We had a relaxed morning. The forecast was for southwest winds 10-15 knots and we were only about 14 nautical miles from home. We would have a good deal of tacking to work our way up wind but with moderate winds and seas that should not be a problem. It would take some time especially since we had the currents running against us. This is a view of the mooring field at Third Beach. In the foreground is a Sea Sprite. The owner had recognized us as a Core Sound boat and had rowed over to chat with us the evening before.

 

 

Looking over a trimaran on our way out of Third Beach.

 

 

Tacking back out in front of Sachuest Point.

 

 

 

As we sailed across the mouth of Narragansett Bay I heard the Navy announce on 16 that they were conducting exercises within the torpedo exclusion zone. I was pretty sure but not certain that we were outside the zone. You can see the Naval vessel in the photo. I had the feeling there were some naval vessels we could not see operating in the area.

 

 

 

David takes us in as we sail before the wind into Point Judith Pond. Thanks David for all you did to help make a successful trip and thanks as well to Heidi and Sally our shore crew.  Well done everyone.

 

 







March to the Everglades

This book is taking a little effort to wade through, but it is full of fascinating information about the history of the Glades. Early parts of the book are beautifully poetic. I can remember Marjory describes the Pileated Woodpecker as having a head like a battle ax. If you have ever seen a Pileated up close you know how apt her description is. The later half of the book is a bit drawn out. The poetry disappears as if she tires of writing. Still a very good read and she covers a lot of ground. Well researched history and geology.



 Sally and I are planning a trip to the Everglades in March. Plan is to sail Skorpa from Chokoloskee south  perhaps as far as Ponce de Leon Bay, and then return of course. Maybe five days on the water. We hope to explore around the islands and work our way up Lostmans River, and Rogers River. This is our first trip to this area so we will have to take it one step at a time and stay flexible. We have scheduled our trip to coincide with the Everglades Challenge. This is a 300 mile small boat adventure race that runs from Tampa to Key Largo. http://watertribe.org/ I have followed this race online for many years and have considered entering the race. Our boat Skorpa is an EC22.  A boat Graham designed with this race in mind. Graham sailed his EC 22 Southern Skimmer to first place in Class 4 in 2007, 2008, and 2009. In fact I think he won his division every time he entered.

I have often debated with myself  whether it is better to explore the area at my own pace taking the time to explore the byways and the wildlife or to enter the Challenge. Though many Watertribers cruise the course, you can take up to six days to finish the challenge, if you want to be competitive you have to be willing to sail day and night in all kinds of weather. Sailing some of the same water at the same time as the racers will give lots of opportunities for what ifs.

I have been exploring how to use my Garmin GPS together with Google Earth to view maps of the areas we will visit. I create waypoints and routes on the GPS and then view them in GE. Sometime a route that looks good on the GPS charts has trees growing or sand in GE. I have adjusted the routes in a few places. In about two weeks we should find out which was more  accurate NOAA charts or GE or maybe they will both be off. The dark green is mostly Mangrove I believe. The routes in purple are two versions of Rabbit Key pass. I have read there are strong currents and lots of sharp oyster bars.
We will launch at Chokoloskee and plan to follow Rabbit Key Pass out to the Gulf to begin our trip.

We  arrived around 1pm Thursday March 5, 2015. We stopped at the Ranger Station and filled out a permit technically this was not required since we were staying on our boat, but the permit served as a float plan and would expedite a search and rescue in the event of our not returning per schedule.

The weather was warm with a 15 kt breeze from the south west. We went to work stepping the masts and rigging the boat. High tide was at 2pm and ideally we would leave as close to that as possible.

I remove all the rigging from the boat when trailering more than a few miles so all the halyards, sheets, topping lifts, tiller tamer, down hauls, snotter lines have to be threaded. Plus all our gear and supplies for six days at sea. I am slower than most, it took a couple of hours to have the boat ready for the ramp.

It was after 4pm when Sally reports that Skorpa was ready to set sail on her first adventure to the Everglades.

The tide was visibly lower and the current ebbing as we worked our way around Chokoloskee to the entrance to Rabbit Key Pass.

I decided to reef both sails even though the wind was likely to ease off because I wanted to limit our speed through the Pass to give me time to read the GPS and the land and water features for clues as to the best way through the Pass. There are at least two other ways out of Chokoloskee Bay to the Gulf. Both Indian Key Pass and Chokoloskee Pass are deeper and better marked than Rabbit Key Pass, but they are a little out of the way if you are heading south and not as much of a challenge.

Almost right off the bat I started getting in trouble. I remember remarking to Sally, ' That is some funny looking water' It reminded me of the riffles you see when canoeing down a river. Then we could see rocks all around us and the current dragging us toward them. I could see from the GPS that we were off my long researched route and there was no way back against the current to rejoin it. Horrifying grinding noises were coming from the bottom of the boat as we scraped over rocks and oysters. Finally putting my rusty river reading skills to work I could make out a shoot through the rocks and a path to what looked like deeper water.

 The rest of Rabbit Key Pass was easier and we were getting better at reading the water to find a safe passage. The sun was getting low as we passed Turtle Key and rounded Rabbbit Key and headed into the Gulf. We decided to head for my  nearest planned anchorage at Joe Kemp Key. This was still a few miles away and would mean sailing in the dark. Sally was not crazy about sailing in the dark, but I did not want to anchor in the Pass.

We dropped the hook in about a fathom of water just south of Joe Kemp Key. The mosquitoes were waiting for us so we retreated to the cabin and installed the screens on the hatch and doorway. We were both tired from the long day but we decided to cook Pasta e Fagioli for supper, rigatoni, pasta sauce and beans. It was a little effort at first but felt way better having a hot meal as Skorpa rocked gently in the moonlight our first night on the water.

 When the sun started to go down I had looked to change my sunglasses for regular glasses but I could not find them. Sally sailed us up to our anchorage as I could not see much that was more than twenty feet away. We could not find the glasses in any of our gear so we concluded that they must be in the truck back at Chokoloskee about 7 miles away. We discussed continuing without them as I only need them after dusk. We did not plan on sailing after dark but if the need should arrive I would be really handicapped. So.....

 Rabbit Key Pass take two.

 The tide was low but flooding instead of ebbing, big psychological plus.

These pilings mark the entrance to Rabbit Key Pass decorated with Royal Terns. We docked Skorpa at the Ted Smallwood Store and Museum. Sally enjoyed the coolness of the store while I walked across Chokoloskee to find my glasses and some ice cream. I found my glasses. The trading post dates back to the beginning of the last century.

It was a treat to approach the store by water much as the natives to the area did a century ago. We took our time hanging out at the store because we could not leave due to the still flooding tide and the southwest wind. We made our departure around 3pm. The tide was about 2 hours higher than our last trip out so we had no trouble. As we passed Turtle Key we were thrilled to see both dolphins and sea turtles. It was getting late and we had vowed not to come into anchorage again after sundown but I did not want to stay at the same anchorage twice so we headed for Duck Rock just east of Pavilion Key.

Off to the East the sky was dark with some potentially interesting cloud formations. We pushed on keeping a weather eye on them.

Happy to be at anchor.

My criteria for choosing an anchorage included a place deep enough so we would have a foot or two of water under us at low tide, sheltered from the predicted wind by land, easy to leave on our chosen route with likely wind direction, and clear of any likely fairways. Bonus points for scenery and freedom from the winged demons. Friday night the wind blew steadily and waves gently lapped at the boat we had few mosquitoes. In the morning winds were 10-15 kts from the NE. We left anchor under single reefed mizzen alone waiting to see what the wind would do later we raised the main with two reefs.

 We took the North entrance to Lostmans River. We had timed our arrival so the tide was near to high and flooding which was helpful as the channel is narrow. The wind was out of the east 10-15kts. Below is a view across First Bay looking to the east where the river narrows.

 

 

 

We sailed up the river for a mile or so and anchored for lunch. While we were in the cabin eating lunch and taking a break from the sun we heard some ominous creaking and groaning coming from the anchor line and deck cleats. This was followed by a loud sound of water rushing against the side of the boat and a strange feel to how the boat was laying to anchor. We rushed out on deck to find Skorpa turned sideways to the current of 5 to 6 knots. We could see the anchor line coming out from the center of the boat.  This was putting a tremendous strain on the anchor, anchor line and centerboard. After trying several approaches to freeing the anchor line. I noticed that the rudder was only partially raised and the current was pushing hard against it. Raising the rudder clear of the water disturbed the balance enough for us to be able to swing the boat off the center board. I promptly raised the board and made a note not to anchor in a tidal flow without having the rudder and center board fully raised.

 

 

 

Looking up the Lostmans River. Skorpa is laying at anchor with the current but against the wind.

Below is a view across First Bay to the mouth of Lostmans River.

 

 

I did not fancy anchoring near Lostmans River because of the shoals and currents so we headed north a little ways along the coast to Wood Key Cove. I was not careful about checking the water depth and state of the tide when we anchored and we were only left with about 6 inches of water under our keel at low tide.

 

 

 

Our cooked from scratch in our pressure cooker supper. Brown rice, onions, peppers, carrots, and veggie sausage.

Low tide was about 9am on Sunday morning so I decided to leave early before the water got any skinnier. I sailed off under mizzen only to a 10 kt breeze from the east. Later Sally came out to the cockpit and we hauled up the main with 2 reefs. The wind was now 15 kts with higher gusts. We made good progress along the coast staying just outside the shallow water. The wind continued to build until it was 20 kts or so with higher gusts. considering our remoteness and the possibility that the wind would continue to build we brought the main back down and sailed under single reefed mizzen only. The wind was veering to the south which would make our planned stop at Graveyard Creek a lee shore. So we stopped at Shark Point just north of Ponce De Leon Bay to have lunch and review our plans.



 The tide was high so we took the opportunity to swing the boat in towards land and give the crew a little shore leave.

The weather was looking uncertain with showers and shifting gusty winds. We discussed heading back towards the Harney River to gain some shelter from the south winds. In the end we decided to push on to Ponce De Leon Bay under reefed main and mizzen.

The Bay felt deserted and a little foreboding under the glowering skies, yet I felt a sense of elation venturing into remote unexplored territory. Sally told me this was primarily a guy thing.

We managed the showers and gusty winds with no problem and after awhile the sun peeked out.

We picked out a possible anchorage for the night then sailed up one of the dozen or so rivers that empty into Ponce De Leon Bay.

 Near Rabbit Key and Pavilion Key we saw kayakers, up Lostmans River we saw fisherman in small power boats, but here we saw no one. No sound but the wind, waves and tropical sounding bird calls coming from the mangroves. It felt like exploring up the Amazon. The river twisted and turned you could get lost in the maze of mangrove islands.

The winds were still gusting down the channel when we turned and headed back out to our anchorage in Ponce De Leon Bay.

You can see why some people remark of the Everglades " There is nothing to see." By standing on the cabin roof we were able to send text messages for the first time in a couple of days. When possible I would send a text to our son David so someone would have an idea of where we were and how we were doing. Beautiful sunrise Ponce De Leon Bay.

 Video of our Monday sail heading north back up the coast.

We heard from a couple of kayakers at Turkey Key that  the Waterrtibe Everglades Challenge had been cancelled due to adverse weather conditions. The Coast Guard was called on to perform 12 rescues in Tampa Bay.  We passed a Hobie Adventure Island sailing near Pavilion Key. Probably a Watertribe member who had decided to continue on after the race was cancelled.

Passing Pavilion Key and on to Rabbit Key Pass Click for Video


We arrived at Rabbit Key pass around noon on Tuesday. We could have continued on to Chokoloskee we would have had a favorable wind and tide. However that would have put us at the boat ramp mid afternoon with a lot of work yet to do to get the boat ready to travel and a three hour drive up to Gary's house at Lake Wales or a night spent anchored at Chokoloskee. We elected to spend the afternoon at one of our favorite spots Turtle Key and then anchor for the night out of the channel at nearby Lumber Key.

 

 Skorpa anchored off Turtle Key behind a Black Mangrove.

I set up the Bimini I had made especially for this trip. We had not used it because usually when we got to our anchorage we were too tired to do anything but climb into the cabin and put the screens up over the doorway and hatch. While we were at Turtle Key we saw more dolphins, sea turtles and a sailor heading out into the Gulf in his Hobie Adventure Island. A favorite craft of the Watertribe.

Sally wading ashore.

We waded partly around the island. The open beach is small and trekking through the interior would likely awake the swamp angels.

We were very interested in the Mangrove trees. They are specially adapted to exist in a saltwater environment. The Red Mangrove has special prop roots that drop down from horizontal branches that helps to stabilize the shoreline.

Prop roots.

Around 4pm we decided to head across the channel to Lumber Key so we could be at anchor before the Swamp Angels came out. Dolphins swam around our anchored boat. We could hear their breathing above the soft whine of the mosquitoes.



 Two days later when we pulled into Gary's driveway pleased that I had arrived promptly at 6pm as I had promised he casually showed me his wrist watch which read 7pm and wondered if I may have forgotten to adjust my watch for Daylight Savings Time which had started the previous Sunday. This oversight lead us to be an hour later than we thought as we attempted to time our morning passage up Rabbit Key Pass with the tide and current.

Rowing back to Chokoloskee  Click for Video

 

Sally enjoying our " We made It!" celebration at the lovely Havana Café in Chokoloskee.