Holding Down The Dock Lines

Our friend Steve is bringing his Valiant 40, Chandara, from Sarasota up to Maine by way of the Chesapeake and that task is always easier with crew vs. single-handing.  Baxter has gone to help and I am staying in Deltaville to take care of Terrapin and Kala.

Baxter flew out to Ft Lauderdale on Tuesday, where Steve picked him up and they drove down to Marathon (Steve had brought his boat over from Sarasota to Marathon over the weekend.)  Funny thing...guess who was in the mooring field at Boot Key Harbor - Logan and Gillian on Stella Blue!!  They were all able to get together and talk about boats, passages and weather.  Ahhh - the weather - always a challenge...it was pretty nasty for a couple days in S. Florida so Baxter and Steve (as well as Logan and Gillian's passage to the Bahamas) have been delayed but they are all set to leave today on the tail of the low that has recently passed.

Meanwhile, back at Zimmerman Marine, Kala and I have been working on sewing projects and staying busy with friends.  Kala makes friends everywhere we go, she tends to attract boys since she is so pretty.  Her newest BFF is Cody, whose dad runs Miss Diane Fishing Charters (on a very cool Dead Rise).  She also has a friend we like to call "Cookie Man" who runs Restin Easy Fishing Charters.  Don, aka Cookie Man, loves Kala and gives her the biggest treats I have ever seen.  He has even taught her to go up to every car that pulls in the parking lot and ask if they have a treat they'd like to give her (we need to "untrain" her of that.)

But it's not all sewing and furry friends - I also did an update on the chart plotter.  We were having an issue with the E7 having a course-up presentation vs. north up.  North-up drives me insane because if you are going south, the boat is upside down on the plotter...makes it challenging to be at the helm avoiding crab pots, watching your depth and figuring out which way you turn the wheel to go the direction you want.  Hopefully this software update will help.

Baxter created a route using Navionics app and they have 1,000 miles to sail door-to-door Marathon to Deltaville if they aren't stopped by another low - in the Gulf Stream that could go fast or it could go slow (if weather moves in from the north causing nasty conditions) but in any case, I expect they will be here around next Friday.  We are finding lots of projects to keep us busy and have the boat looking perfect before they get back.

Baxter's welcoming weather in FL on Tuesday PM.

Logan and Gillian, S/V Stella Blue!  You never know when your paths might cross with some fun people!!

E7 Chartplotter with the new software update.  Fingers crossed that Course-Up presentation works.

Newest hobby - sewing.  The first project, throw pillows.

Kala's newest BFF, Cody, and his dad's Dead Rise Fishing Charter, M/V Miss Diane

The planned route (using Navionics app) - riding the Gulf Stream north to the Chesapeake.

Steve aboard S/V Chandara.