Thursday, April 10, 2014 – 9 PM – Leg 7/Days 10 & 11 of The Great Loop – 46.7 Miles

The off day was spent working on the boat at a blistering puttering speed. The mess was cleaned from the last few days, the oil was changed, the laundry was laundered and after that, a nap and playing on the computer updating Facebook and catching up on the email was in order. All the new charts were downloaded for the next few legs and a quick double check of all the upcoming routes and there you go, Bob's your uncle.

So far the channel markers have lined up with where they are expected with only a few exceptions being been different from what was originally plotted years ago. Those areas have mostly been near inlets and really not too far off the expected path anyway. Even the tides have not had adverse effects. By staying within the channel markers of the ICW everything proceeds along without trouble. The boat's draft is only 4 feet at full weight, so not a whole lot deeper than a runabout. But it is still best to keep an eye on the tide tables and depth gauge anyway, especially when traveling through low tides.

A little time was taken to venture over to Joyland Amusement Park to ride the Sand Blaster roller coaster. This is the roller coaster that I road as a teenager at Legend City in the 70's. Back then, its name started as 'The Mouse Trap' and was later renamed to 'The Sidewinder'. Here at this park it is called 'Twister'. It is interesting how after this many years I remembered every twist and turn and how at the top from the start it sometimes felt like you were hanging over the edge as you went around that first turn before the big drop. It was a pretty hard ride even in my youth, at this age, the rocking and rolling were really banging on the old bones. But after 4 rides and a few bruises, as I left my eyes were a bit misty for the memories. Once back onboard, some time was spent looking at all the Legend City pics that have been found online over the years and reminisced about years long gone. At times, my youth really was wonderful.

The second day was spent anchored out instead of at the marina. Everything had been done at the marina and there was no good reason to pay the money when the services were no longer required. Everyone has just been so helpful to this novice when calling ahead on the radio, asking for suggested anchorage, and just about any other silly questions I ask.

Departed without any problems early this morning and other than the Tomoka Basin, it's been no worse than tubing down a river. Shortly after statute mile 800 everything just stopped in the way of civilization; it went from lots of docks with boathouses to nothing in a very short span. By the way, some of those boat houses cost more than my boat. The depth must be very shallow near shore because most of them are out quite far over the water.

There was a little excitement around 11 as I heard this low rumble. It turns out a rocket was blasting off from the Cape and looking over it was streaming smoke way up into the sky. After some research, it was some top-secret payload. It was nice to see something that reminded me of my youth when we were going to the moon. It brought back a lot of memories and a real desire to see us as a whole planet take up the gauntlet and get back to the moon and on to Mars.

As I mozied along with less civilization, I envisioned myself as Humphrey Bogart riding down the river in African Queen. I think I'll pull that movie out and watch it tonight. I know it's ridiculous, but I have about 1500 movies on my little cloud drive. I admit it, I'm a movie addict.

I had been told about a place called Hurricane Patty's that was supposed to have great food. So the decision was made to cut the scheduled leg a little short and stop and get dinner there. They weren't kidding, the food was FANTASTIC! Afterwards, a mooring spot down was located a little bit from there and here I sit; full, fat, and feeling fantastic. I plan on traveling a good amount tomorrow and getting that 8th leg in, then call it quits for the weekend. The decision has not been made whether to moor out or stay in a slip, but mooring out is sounding better and better every day.

Got a little taste of the openness that will be encountered along the way today and determined that I love the peaceful life. Father, let all my loved ones feel that same peace tonight in your arms.