Colder Janaury gave way to a warmer February and the FL kayaks are now cleaned up and ready for the season.
Century Club: mike pitchford
Sunday, February 6, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
After a handful of colder than normal days in January, February has returned to South Floridan winter normal. We got our on a friend’s boat for a cruise past Jupiter inlet and up the ICW to a quiet lunch anchorage.
Wednesday, February 2, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Lunch is on!
After a weather related postponed our trip, the members of the Jonathan’s landing Yacht Club made the run from Jupiter to Lake Francis (ICW MM 996) for a lunch time raft up. We had six boats and 21 folks spread among them.
Friday, January 28, 2022 to Saturday, January 29, 2022
Number of days:
2 days
We made a decision in early January to sell the Florida Condo and buy a bigger boat. The decision had bounced around a while but came to a head at the beginning of the new year. Florida real estate being what it is, we sold within 24 hours of listing. The new boat hunt was on!
We had long talked about what makes for a really good bugger boat and we had settled on a Back Cove 37 as the boat to beat. It met almost all our boat criteria. Unexpectedly one came to market in January. We thought we would have more time.
With the boat market being what it is we placed her under contract sight unseen (except the photos on Yacht World). We made the trip up to see her this weekend and spent lots of time on her, looking at details online and doing additional boat component research. Survey is next!
Saturday, January 15, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Our friends, Eric and Shelley, bought a new to them Back Cove 34 late last fall. We moved the boat to Florida for the winter, Jupiter. They are renting a condo for three months in Jupiter and plan to familiarize themselves with their new purchase over the winter. Our first outing was a three hour round trip up the ICW, just to start the process.
Saturday, January 8, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
on her lift in Jupiter, FL
We didn’t get to Florida until January 2nd. We took some time to open the condo and provision. The boat didn’t get any attention until Saturday. Only then did I get her uncovered and got to run the engine a bit to make sure she was also ready for the season.
Friday, December 3, 2021
Number of days:
1 day
Surely the most un-fun time in a boaters life is writing the check for maintenance. It is not that you don't want the boat maintained and ready at your whim. It is that good maintenance is either expensive or time consuming (or both).
Today I collected my FL runabout from the servicing dealer. My wallet is about $1200 lighter. But, I had a nice morning driving her back to her lift.
Friday, November 19, 2021
Number of days:
1 day
Our little FL runabout needed annual service (oil, all filters, lower end gear oil and water pump) to make her ready for the coming winter season. In many way this is not unlike spring commissioning on the Bay.
In what turned out to be driving rain ar one point, I drove the boat an hour and a half south to a boat ramp where the service folks loaded me on one of their trailers to take it to the shop.
Monday, November 1, 2021
Number of days:
1 day
dock under water
rescued dock furnature that had floated away
With cooler weather by the end of October cruising is usually over for us and winterization is underway. This last weekend in October we joined friends for a pandemic delayed long weekend in the VA mountains. While there we missed the highest water in Annapolis since Isabel in 2003.
Neighbors covered for us and the bats were ok on the dock. However, we did have a couple pieces of dock furniture float away as the water came close to two feet over the dock.
Whe we got back from the mountains I took the Key West runabout out looking for the errant dock furniture and found at least some of it.
Saturday, October 23, 2021 to Sunday, October 24, 2021
Number of days:
2 days
The last cruise of the Club's season has become known at the "Plan A/B Cruise". It has been a staple of the cruising calendar since 2012. It was designed to be one last easy overnight, to a close location, before folks put their boats up for the winter.
In this inaugural year, the cruise was dutifully planned for the last weekend in October. As fate would have it, Hurricane Sandy formed in the Carribean in late October and advanced north to become Superstorm Sandy, devastating the New York and New England coasts. On the way north the storm brushed by Annapolis and caused the cruise organizers to reconsider the planned anchorage nearby.
So, Plan B was born. Boats stayed at home. In lieu of the short overnight trip the cruise leaders hosted the would be cruisers at their home for a happy hour. In the years since the cruise has been planned with both boat cruise and land travel options, depending on the weather. In practice, except in the worst weather, cruisers have come both by land and by sea.
The 2021 installment offered very good weather. Ten boats and crews anchored in Rideout Creek, just north of Annapolis. A larger contingent arrive by car and 50+ spend a wonderful fall evening outside a members waterfront home.