|
The Adventures of the Salty Turtle |
||
|
|
 |
 |
|
Steve & Nancy Schrimsher |
||
|
Our first boating adventure with the Salty Turtle was to cruise what is called America's Great Loop. We left Ft. Myers, Florida on October 11, 2006, and finished the Loop in Ft. Myers on December 1, 2007. You can read and see more about it in our Great Loop Blog. Our current plans are to spend the winter of 2008 in the Bahamas catching up on some boat projects that we had let go while doing the Loop. Our camper and jeep are in North Carolina, so we plan to pick them up in April and spend the summer camping out west and also spend some time in Idaho. We'll leave the vehicles in Idaho and fly back to the boat sometime in the fall. Then, we'll spend the next several months getting the Salty Turtle ready to head south to Mexico, Belize and the Rio Dulce in Guatemala in May, 2009. So that’s the plan, subject to change, since long range planning for us is what we’re doing tomorrow!. We feel very fortunate to have the good health and opportunity to embark on this adventure! We hope that our travels inspire others to "live their dream". Check back here regularly to follow our progress. Cheers, Steve & Nancy Schrimsher |
||||||||||||||||||
|
Where Are We Now?
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
Marathon to the Bahamas December 1, 2007 – Jan. 6, 2008
Our original plan was to dock in Ft. Lauderdale for a couple of weeks while we visited family and friends. Mother Nature had a different idea (sunny skies, but lots of wind), so we “parked” the boat in Marathon Key at Sombrero Dockside Marina and commuted by rental car. This alternate plan gave Steve lots of driving time (2 to 3 hours each way to Miami and Ft. Lauderdale), but it was fun getting to know Marathon better. Very laid back. Lots of character boats and “free spirit” residents. Three fun experiences while in Marathon were the Turtle Hospital, Christmas boat parade, and a day trip to Key West. The Turtle Hospital is a non-profit outfit that tries to help injured and sick sea turtles, plus educate the public through daily tours. We enjoyed checking out the turtles, although it was sad to see the sick ones. We thought that
the boat parade was exceptional for such a small harbor. At least a
dozen decorated boats passed our bow as we watched from the foredeck.
Lots of colorful lights, snowmen and Santas. And then there was the
svelte blonde in the flesh colored body stocking, posing on “Neptune’s
Love Palace”. This live sea nymph created quite a ruckus in the local
newspaper, but we were actually relieved to see that the Keys haven’t
totally succumbed to political correctness. It is part of their charm.
The second week, we did a whirlwind tour visiting family and friends. THIS IS THE PART WHERE WE BRAG ABOUT OUR KIDS. Our son-in-law Donny Parra graduated from FIU with honors (major in computer science), so we were proud to attend his graduation and participate in the celebratory festivities! Another day, our daughter Stephanie arranged for Steve to tour the Trump Tower in Ft. Lauderdale she is helping to build. Steve was duly impressed. Stephanie has a great position with Stiles Corporation as assistant project manager on this huge project. Go girl! Jean Anderson generously allowed us to stay at the Anderson Hilton (her house!) to save us some miles on the car. She has helped us on numerous occasions while we are visiting by boat and we always have fun spending time with Jean. Sandwiched in between fun visits with Stephanie, I flew to Ohio for a Christmas visit to my parents (who are doing well). My folks keep praying that someday I’ll be “normal”, but reluctantly try to accept my wanderlust spirit. To help ease their concerns, my good friend Treinnia (who I have known since Kindergarten!) has been a HUGE help to me. Treinnia prints photos and updates from our adventures and then her Dad hand delivers them to my parents (along with treats from his garden in the summer time). Thank you, Treinnia, John, and Goldie for all your help and support!
The day after my return from Ohio, the winds calmed and we cast off our lines to head to the Bahamas. We anchored the first night off Key Largo, spent the second night at Harbor Town Marina in Hollywood, FL and then crossed to West End on Grand Bahama Island on Christmas Day. The boat performed beautifully and the seas become calmer the further we went. It was an easy crossing and what a great Christmas gift! From West End we went to Great Sale Cay. Steve was suspicious that there might be a crab trap line wrapped around the shaft and he was right. It wasn’t doing serious damage, but he knows the boat well enough to recognize when it’s not performing at peak potential. Wiley was fascinated to watch over the side and try to figure out what Steve was doing down there! From Great Sale we went to Green Turtle Cay. The Green Turtle Club has a terrific plan where you can apply money you spend at their restaurant toward the dockage bill. Our kind of place! We spent several days there, but then moved on to Hopetown where our long time Bahamian friends were saving turkey dinner for our arrival. The fireworks display in Hopetown was spectacular on New Year’s Eve (only a few hundred feet from our boat!). We had a terrific belated Christmas/New Year’s celebration at Truman and Lyn Major’s house on January 6th . It was worth the wait! So now we are situated in Hopetown harbor in the Abacos on Elbow Cay. It feels like coming home. Truman was kind enough to give us our old mooring (which we used for our sailboat “Lazy S” for several years, even through TWO hurricanes!). We have a list of chores to get done, including varnishing, polishing, installing a single-side band radio, and most importantly, sewing a new bimini top and isinglass enclosure for the flybridge. Some work, but lots of long walks, dinghy rides, and reading, too. Life is good! |
||||||||||||||||||
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."
Mark Twain