'Free State' Fitting Out

[don123]

Same here - I can give you all sorts of info on great anchorages and places you'd want to spend a day or two between where you are now and New Orleans - If you have the time, I'll buy you a beer when you come through Biloxi

Don

[smacksman]

Thanks guys. Everywhere I go now is new to me.

I bought an old chart book that goes west to Cape San Blas and I planned to buy the next book on the way.
I have just over three weeks of my holiday left so to achieve my goal, New Orleans or close to, I won't have a lot of time to stop. I also fancy a look south of Naples to wild country there for a couple of days.

By rough reckoning I have 8 days in the canals plus 3 hopping from Tarpon Springs to Crystal River to Steinhatchee to Carrabelle. Plus the great unknown - waiting for a weather window.

Once I find out where Biloxi is (haha) I'd love to meet up. all info on points of interest and where to stay most welcome.

I have come to the decision that much as I hate it, I will have to sell Free State at the end of my adventure. I had hoped to keep her ashore till the end of the hurricane season and come back for another holiday but circumstances have changed. This may well be my ICW/Loop swansong. The more I've seen the more I've been impressed by the foresight of Congress in the late 1800's to propose the construction of the waterway from New England to the Mexico border (with a few sea passages). A true wonder of the World.

[Vic K]

If you have three weeks left and you are knocking on the door of Fort Meyers (weather permitting) you could make it to the Texas Gulf Coast. Once you pass Fort Meyers you can start coast hopping outside. Good fishing. There will be a choice of anchorages available to you.
You are about to enter a boaters playground. Although hurricanes have knocked the heck out to the islands in the Mississippi Sound and changed their appearance this is not a place to just run through. The area around Panama City,and places like Pensacola, Mobile Bay, Biloxi, Gulfport, etc you will enjoy.

Once to New Orleans you are six days to Galveston Texas via the ICW. Barge traffic picks up considerably and the mosquitoes get larger, meaner and more aggressive. Places to safely stop for the night are few and far between. If you don't know where you're going you can get in big trouble. The ICW from New Orleans to Galveston is not a place to run in the dark even with a good radar. And it's definitely not a place to have a breakdown.

In three weeks you can have a great time from where you are to New Orleans. Great people, good food and a area that God (in all her wisdom) made for boats and boaters. Enjoy.

Vic

[smacksman]

I anchored in Hurricane Bay, Fort Myers Beach last night. Very peaceful. Left early and well on the way to Naples when I noticed the temperature up to 200F. Plenty of sea room so shut down the engine to investigate.
No water out the transom. OK - start at the beginning. Turn the sea cock off - remove hose - open cock - plenty of water. Check my new raw water strainer - bit of weed but basically clean. Next, remove inlet hose to heat exchanger and run engine - water comes out but not a lot. Remove HE outlet hose - dry. OK, maybe heat exchanger blocked. Remove end caps, bend a wire coat hanger straight and rod through - bit mucky but not bad. Some tubes would not rod right through - don't know why. The spare parts manual doesn't help.
At this point the second idiot roars past within yards and the wash has me nearly out of the boat.
Run engine and still no water through heat exchanger.
Very odd.
Although water came through before the heat exchanger not a lot. Remove outlet hose from pump - run engine - no water! What! The impeller is three weeks old! Remove the cover plate making sure not to drop the tiny screws as we bounce about in the Gulf. The impeller is decimated! Only two and a half vanes left! In over 50 years of boating and engine maintenance I have never seen an impeller this damaged.



I removed the hose to the oil cooler expecting to find it filled with bits but managed to fish out just two chunks. Where is the rest?

Compared to other impellers I've come across this design seems very flimsy.
This brand new impeller lasted 105 hours in three weeks.
The vanes seem to have been nibbled away, not just sheared off.

My theory.

A bit breaks off but doesn't go down the pipe straight away but remains spinning in the impeller chipping away at the other vanes. The bits are small enough for them to pass through the heat exchangers.

Any other ideas?

After two hours bouncing about we set off again and made it to Naples and met some of the rudest boaters yet. 30kn in the harbour just feet away from me - one after another. Worse than Miami and that is saying something. Ironically there was a sheriff in his boat watching and doing sweet fa. Anchored up a creek away from the madding crowd and can't wait to get out of this hell hole.



..

[smacksman]

Left Naples backwaters after a peaceful night. Switched on the Lowrance Elite 5M GPS Map as usual and only the splash screen comes up and no buttons work - not even the off button. Nothing in the users manual to help. Phoned Lowrance support number and a robot told me they don't support at weekends. I expect I will have to press this button for 5 secs, then another for 2 secs, say two Hail Mary's and say Shalom to boot it up! It was bought in March this year and worked faultlessly up to now.

So I'm in the Gulf heading north. I have charts and a compass, dividers and a ruler so navigation is basic and ok. I know where I left and when and I can approximate boat speed relative to engine revs. I know high/low water times and forecast from vhf WX channel 2.

Then I remembered I had a usb GPS dongle I could plug into my laptop. It worked and gave me Lat/Long. Then I downloaded OpenCPN charting software and got it talking to my GPS dongle. By the time I was approaching the entrance to Charlotte Harbour I had downloaded NOOA vector charts and it was up and running.

Coastguard came up with warning to all shipping - thunderstorm due in Charlotte Harbour, 30kn squalls, seek shelter. OK, I can see the storm but where to go in this huge harbour. I decided to anchor in the middle just off the dredged ICW channel. Sat to 50 foot of chain and had a beer as the storm blew through. Three young guys drove up in a boat to offer help and I thanked them very much for their concern. How different from Naples.

[glk34]

It does look like a well done repair on the oil cooler air nipple. Doesn't take much work around here (with taxes etc) the get to $98.

Chris
"Iron Jack"
A25

[smacksman]

@glk34 - I agree with that - it adds up. My only gripe was that the quote for the work was $45. A new one was abour $125 I was told. If I knew it was going to be $90 I would have gone for a new one. One never knows till after the event.

Phoned Lowrance support on Monday (they don't do support weekends) and I was 48th in the queue. Left my phone number and they did call back - just as I was about to negotiate a low bridge. For those who have a similar problem of a Lowrance Elite 5 not booting, the answer is to start with the power off, then press and hold the 'page' button then press and hold the 'light/power' button till a beep is heard. Then release all buttons and wait and pray (this is where the hail marys come in). If it doesn't work the do the whole rigmarole again but using the +- /MOB keys in stead. This then worked for me. I said to the man it was a pity Lowrance didn't put this in their User Manual. Yes, he said, many hundreds have said the same. What a rubbish way of doing business. Continuing to sell a product with a known fault and not adding the workaround to the manual.

Had a nasty stonking today in the Gulf of Mexico. Heading from outside Tarpon Springs (I keep getting it mixed up with Tampa and calling it Tampon Springs) towards Cedar Keys. The wind picked up to NW 15 knots as we headed just W of N into a horrid short, lumpy chop. After about 10 hours plugging into this I checked the day tank and it was under 1/4 full so started the transfer pump to top up the day tank from the main tank.

After a while the level in the day tank was the same. Stopped the engine to be able to hear the transfer pump and it was grunting and not pumping. It would pump in short bursts then stop.
So assess the situation. About 20 miles offshore, thunderstorms building. Six hours of daylight. At least 4 hours from destination and about 3 hours fuel left in the day tank. I have a 5 gal can for emergencies but I have 50 gal + still in the main tank.

So change the fuel filter while leaping up and down in the Gulf chop. Pump works a treat and then starts to slow and then stop. Check the filter bowl and it is black again. So, dirty fuel caused by the sediment being churned up in the tank by the violent motion of the boat.

Start to motor to destination on auto-pilot running the transfer pump for a counted 20 seconds (you can't hear the pump over the engine) then a wait for a couple of minutes then pump to a count of 20. Repeat again and again. After two hours the tank level was maintained so then I was convinced there was enough fuel to get to Cedar Keys and crashed our way into the chop.
Good little sea boat the Albin 27. Took the thrashing well. Better than the skipper who ended up with a lot of bruises!

[Sprig1]

Hi Smacksman I have been meaning to ask you. How hard would it be to do in Europe what you have done here that is buying a boat and traveling around. Hope you made it to shore. Thanks Chris

[don123]

You can jump straight from the Cedar Keys to Apalachicola, skipping Steinhatchee and Carrabelle - I've done that several times. Aim for Government Cut in the island. Plan to spend a day or two exploring the town of Apalachicola . . . . it's a wonderful place. From there, the ICW is all 'inside' all the way to Mobile Bay

Don

[Nancy]

>>(I keep getting it mixed up with Tampa and calling it Tampon Springs)<<

LOL! I'm sure you're not the first!

Sounds like a miserable day with the waves and the ornery fuel pump. Glad it ended well.

[smacksman]

@sprig1 Much easier than here but more expensive. There is no licence for watercraft or sailors in the UK. If you are stupid enough you have every right to kill yourself! Expect to pay 4 to 5 times the price for old boats in reasonable seaworthy condition. Gas is $9 a gallon. But the scenery, the heritige, the history is priceless. I hope the people would love you too as I have found wherever I've been in the States. Check ebay.co.uk. When I'm back there next month I will help anyone all I can.

@don123 I was planning to look at that but my fuel problem has limited me to about 85 miles. Also the wind has been 10 to 15kn NW and I have been having a lumpy ride going north. Free State has been dropping into 2 foot holes with a huge crash that shakes the whole boat and speed is down to 4kn which makes for a long day. 2ft waves doesn't sound a lot but it is the steepness and confusion of the waves that make a horrid ride. See my post today.

@ Nancy - Poor people who live there. I bet they get a lot of ribbing! haha.
Not satisfied with a horrid day yesterday I did more of the same today! I should act my age but I can't.

Left Cedar Key and headed north. By 8.30am I was shipping it green over the bows. Just too much for the boat and me. NW gusting near 20kn I guess. Decided to give Suwanee River a look for shelter. Found shelter behind the reef but no water. Ran aground a few times in the middle of the marked channel.

By the time I'd got back into the Gulf the wind had moderated. If I eased into the chop at 4 to 5kn then I reckoned I could make Stienhatchee by dark and the entrance is straight and lit.

So it was a day of crashing our way north again like yesterday. Poor Free State shuddered from stem to stern as we dropped into holes and sometimes the spray went clear over the deckhouse top. Quite impressive how she collected herself and ploughed on.

Do they have flying fish in the Gulf? I'm sure I saw a fish fly many yards across our bows.

There are not many places where you sail in International Waters beyond the three mile limit just to find more than 6 feet of water!

The forecast is for more wind at the weekend so if I don't get across by Saturday I will have to wait a long time.

The highlight of the day was surfing into Stienhatchee with Free State's broad stern caching the breaking waves and surfing us in at 9kn plus.

Not a single boat seen out there all day. Must be telling me something.

Forecast looks good for a Friday night crossing. Watch this space!

[Vic K]

Yes there are flying fish in the Gulf. With a north wind you get a nasty chop. In addition the north wind draws/pushes water out of shore areas. If you also have a full moon and a out bound tide at the same time water gets thinner yet.
If you leave Apalachicola via the ICW be sure to check the tide schedule. You join the river to get to the ICW. If you have an outbound tide you can be fighting a heavy current for awhile. With a full month and north wind it will only get worst. Common sense prevails.
Get a trigger fish sandwich in Apalch.
Good luck, have fun.
Vic

[don123]

Yes, many flying fish in the Gulf - We've had several land on the boat during passages. They can actually 'fly' 50 or 60 feet under optimal conditions

You gotta be at least 12 miles offshore before you're in anything other than US waters, but in places, the Gulf is pretty shallow even out that far

You know what they say is the single most dangerous thing on any boat?? A schedule! Hang back until you get a good weather window for your crossing

Glad to hear the boat is performing so well . . . . other than the fuel issues

Fair winds and calm seas,

Don

[smacksman]

@CaptViv Thanks for the advice - noted.

@don123 So the three mile arcs marked on the charts denote some other event then. I agree about the danger of schedules. I'm hanging back right now as the forecast is 3 to 6 foot waves over the weekend.

The forecast looked good for Friday night with E15kn on Saturday building SE15 to 20kn on Sunday waves 3 to 6 feet. As 3 foot waves make it very uncomfortable I certainly don't want 6 footers.

I worked out several speed/distance variables and decided a 4.30pm start from Stienhatchee would see us off Dog Island at dawn ready to tackle the entrance and unlit marks into Carrabelle and be ahead of the freshening weekend weather.

The sea was pretty flat and we bowled along in fine style at over 7 knots well ahead of schedule. I use the addage that it is easier to slow down than speed up.
Watched the sun go down without a cloud on the horizon. Not often I've seen that. No 'green flash' at the moment the top of the sun vanished. Is that a myth?

Not one boat was seen all night. Stunning starry night away from light pollution.

Even with reducing revs along the way we still ended up with two hours to kill and 5 miles to go to Dog Island. For the first time for ages the wind picked up at dawn and it was cloudy so a late pre-dawn. For weeks past it has been calm and cloudless at 5am.


Dropped anchor in Carrabelle at 7;50am in 8 feet with a 2 ft. range and turned in for a couple of hours. Now the wind is gusting 15kn+ I guess, so it will be pretty bumpy in St. Georges Sound.

Made it across the 'armpit' with plenty of fuel left in the day tank.

[Jay Knoll]

Smack, are you doing this single handed?