Cruising the St John’s River

Yesterday we went upstream hunting alligator and manatee.  The St John’s River is one of those which run backwards, south to north.  (I was constantly confused thinking we were going north when Rob would say “upriver”. ) It was a gloriously warm and sunny Sunday and not only did we see lots of gators but several manatee (once we learned what to look for).  The manatee make “footprints” in the water with their fins… little flat circles along the surface.  But many times you’ll see that footprint and they will be too deep to see (or the sun isn’t right).  The river here is called “black water” for a reason: the tannins from all the trees and swamp leach into the water and you couldn’t see your own hand if its submerged.  Luckily, the manatees have a lighter skin color that will stand out in the sun if they are close enough to the surface.  They almost look pink or lavender under that black tannin water.

The other river animals were out sunning themselves as well, including the human variety.  We had hoped to visit Blue Springs State Park but it was way too crowded to beach the boat; as was the lively restaurant and resort area we were planning for lunch.  Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches had to suffice for our lunch instead of the lobster bisque that is their specialty dish.  The pod of C-Dories and their hungry skippers headed back to the docks and quickly pulled together another pot luck barbeque.

We did see several gators, of varying sizes, and many turtles…but they are sure hard to spot sunning themselves on logs!  We also saw an amazing number of bird species, including a bald eagle (or perhaps an osprey; we could just make out the white head), a wood stork, many different colors of cranes.  And for the last few nights we’ve seen an armadillo hanging around the barbeque area.

The C-Brats event was over on Sunday morning, but many people stayed on Sunday night and three of us are staying Monday as well.  We really like it here and it’s the perfect time of the year… warm and sunny but no mosquito problem yet.  We figure Blue Springs will be less crowded on Monday and we’re told it’s a “don’t miss”.  The springs stay warm all winter and the manatees like to gather there during the winter as do several other species of fish.  The clear spring fills the river at a rate of xxx gallons per mday.  When the manatees move out in the warmer weather, it is the local swimming hole.  I’m still not sure I’d want to swim there!

I have spotted the perfect pair of trees to hang my hammock from and life is good.

 Ok, I call it literary license... Rob calls it exaggeration.  It looked smaller the second day.  This non-poisonous water snake lives under the ramp at the end of the dock.

 This guy was about 5 ft long and the locals here said he was just a "little guy"... he lounges a few feet from our boat dock.

 A bald eagle or maybe an osprey?

 This guys feathers were an iridescent midnight blue

 We loved the narrow sections where you are surrounded with canopies of this spanish moss.

 A Wood Stork... the only stork in North American

 Mertle the Turtle

Manatee at Blue Springs, courtesy of another C-Brat

Hontoon Island State Park, DeLand FL

C-Dories Gather at Hontoon Island State Park

Freedom was launched today for the first day of our cruise at Holly Bluff Marina at which point we cross a narrow river to dock at Hontoon Island State Park… maybe a 10 minute boat ride… does that count as “cruising”?  The area reminds us of Korth’s Pirate's Lair in the Sacramento River Delta EXCEPT for one important difference:

Needless to say, we won't be swimming here!  Not to mention that at the end of the dock is a HUGE water snake... possibly 4 inches in diameter.  (Rob says I'm exaggerating but I'll take a picture tomorrow and you can decide for yourselves.. Rob promises that he'll send the picture if I end up as snake food).  The ranger says that its not poisonous...but that doesn't mean he isn't hungry! There are also bears here in the park, and flying overhead: dozens of vultures!  The park personnel have been fabulous to our group of 16 C-Dories (so far... a few more will join us tomorrow)... They set up long tables and chairs for our pot luck cookout tonight and provided wood for our big campfire... and stopped by multiple times to tell us about the island, wildlife etc.  You'd think we are the only people here at the park but there are regular campers too.

The afternoon was warm and sunny: and we gathered on the docks to chat.  One person sunbathing in a bathing suit on top of her boat!  It got so warm that I had to change outfits twice and then, when the sun went down, it got very very cold and another outfit was required.   (TMI?)   Then, of course, there was the required touring of the boats to see everyone's customizations.   All the husbands are being sent home with detailed honey-do lists.  

Dinner was all-american fare: hamburgers, hotdogs etc.  We talked to many people about our cruise and enlisted suggestions for launch sites etc.  We'll do more of that this weekend as this group is full of very experienced cruisers who have been everywhere on these boats, including Alaska and the Bahamas.

After our potluck, we gathered around the campfire to play a game: inventing sentences using as many boat names as we could.  One person composed a whole story... which, if I get a copy of it, I will include here as an edit.  Then the favorite topic of conversation was to describe our "favorite" upgrade/customization to our boats, to ask "how to" questions, and recommend equipment, repair places, and fun places to cruise around here.  

Tomorrow we will "caravan" 16 boats around the island and hope to see some of the wildlife the ranger told us about including bald eagles, manatees, osprey, and of course, alligators.

Hontoon Island C-Brat Gathering by Joyce on "Out 2 C"
C-Brats live a fairy tale life as shown by this tale: 

Once upon a time, MOLLY BROWN sought the FREEDOM of being a water TRAVELER. She decided to buy a C-Dory and when friends tried to discourage her, she simply replied, "But Y KNOT?" 

She bought a COMFEY DORY and immediately went OUT 2 C to TUG AROUND as she started her ODESSEY. 

Her travels were so wide and famous, she even earned the audience of the OCKLAWAHA QUEEN. 

One day, a mysterious beast, the PEGSTAN, found her fishing and looking sad. "What's wrong?", he asked. She moaned, "All these fish are making me feel CARPY." The beast scolded, "Get over your BLUES CRUISER and continue your SEAFARI. 

She responded, "WILL C" and then brightened saying,"I C WAY more beautiful BLUE DAYS ahead. I'll have DESSERT 1st and live happily ever after as a C-Brat."

Apalachicola and St Georges Island FL

We have technically started the loop; although we haven’t been cruising.  We spent the past few nights in Apalachicola FL which is on the Intercoastal Waterway (“ICW”) but the boat was being serviced for the big cruise. So we rode bikes, sunbathed and shopped (not that we really needed more things to put on the boat). There is a C-Dory dealer here and, since he is highly thought of by the “C-Brats”, we had some work done… it was only slightly out of our way as we were originally headed for Savannah GA to start.   As it turns out we were able to enjoy the first really warm day since Tuscan AZ and spend it on a gorgeously pristine and almost deserted beach… at St George’s Island State Park. 

They call this area the “Forgotten Coast” and I think its aptly named as there weren’t many tourists in town or at the beach.  We spoke to some locals during our stay and learned that the biggest industry is still seafood, and tourism is only second, which is why the area is still unspoiled.  As one person put it “We like what we don’t have”… in otherwords, we’re glad we don’t have a Walmart and chain restaurants and high rise hotels on our beach.  There is actually a local ordinance against those kinds of high rises and so there are no real resorts.  Many lovely beach homes though, on some of the prettiest beaches I’ve ever seen… and I’ve been to some gorgeous tropical places.  Another reason I think its “forgotten” is that it is really hard to get here…  no big freeways, no close airports (except a small local one).    But, trust me, if you want to “get away from it all”, this is a place to consider.

You can definitely tell that oysters and shrimp are the big business here from every menu in town… but also because there are many side streets and parking lots actually paved in oyster shells!  Also, oyster shells are used in some places as a landscape groundcover.  Also used is dry sea grass.  I’m not sure either of those is great looking ground cover but it adds to the charm.

We stayed at a lovely old OLD hotel, built 1907, in the middle of town.  Had I known about the beach, I might have rented a nice house for a “real” vacation.  Still it was fun;  I met someone from my hometown in Michigan and actually found someone we knew in common… It’s a small world after all.

On that note, I’ve only ever been to Florida once, and that was to go to Disneyworld in the 1970’s… but, unfortunately, we just don’t have time.  Tomorrow we are headed for Hontoon State Park on the St John’s River in Florida for a C-Brats gathering.  This wasn’t in our original itinerary but when we saw it was planned we adjusted.  14 boats are meeting for 3 or 4 days… cruising and camping, potlucks and campfires, lions and tigers… I mean…manatees and alligators…Oh My!

The weather is supposed to be nice this weekend but certainly not as nice as we’d originally hoped… this is the winter of the “Polar Vortex” and we’re glad we’re not REALLY starting the Loop cruise until May.  Our goal for this leg was to simply get the boat to the East Coast and do some sightseeing in Savannah and Charleston.   

The Gibson Hotel (formerly the Franklin Hotel) circa 1907

Enjoying miles of pristine beach at St George Island State Park

Apalachicola FL

The Cons of Trailerable Cruising

Besides the obvious space issues, there are three big "cons" to trailerable cruising.  The first involves where to stay as you are traveling... parking in towns, or even driving through cities with a boat on a trailer can be difficult.  The second is where to store the boat on the trailer when you want to do a bit of sightseeing.   The third involves where to store the vehicle and trailer when you are out cruising to a new location far distant to where you have launched and how to get back to the vehicle after you've reached that new location.


After a few weeks on the road, traveling to the east coast, we've developed some techniques to help us avoid problems with the first two issues.  We still don't know how we'll solve the third, but we'll let you know as we progress through each leg of the trip.


Google Earth has been a godsend as before we decide whether to stop anywhere, we can view the satellite view of the parking lot which answers some questions right away.  Also, having a smart phone has made it easy to call ahead to ask about parking the boat at a motel.  And we have various apps that will rate accomodations (and marinas and launch ramps) that have proven to be very useful.


We've found that roadside motels that accommodate truckers are better for us than the nicer, high rise hotels we might use on another type of vacation.  This isn't just about parking, but because we can ask for rooms near where the boat is parked and maybe even be able to look out to check on it.  Remember, the boat and the car are packed full of "stuff" that might attract theft. 


Still, leaving the boat on a trailer parked at a motel during the day when you are off sightseeing is worrisome.  So, if we are going to a town where we'd like to sightsee,  we are staying at b&b's on the outskirts of a city (homes where we've confirmed parking), vacation rental homes on the outskirts (www.vrbo.com), or campgrounds (this is called boaterhoming).    Leaving your boat at someone's home or at a campground where there are other campers to watch out for it just feels safer.


If there is an attraction we want to see along the way, we check out the satellite view on Google to see if there happens to be bus parking for the site.  We were able to do this to go see a wonderful mission in Tuscan quite easily.  We haven't figured out how to see an attraction without bus parking while enroute... we instead find an RV park for the night and then drive on to that attraction.


On the subject of RV parks, the reaction has been rather amusing.  While we've read about other people boaterhoming, we seem to have been the first at the parks we've visited.  We attract many "visitors" who stop by to comment... and Rob usually jokes that they must not have heard about the flood that is coming.  The big concern to the RV park is to assure them that you have all the same facilities as a camping trailer would (at least a tent trailer), and that you have a way to capture any overflow from the sink (should you use it for washing dishes etc). (On a boat this grey water flows into the lake/ocean/river and not into a holding tank).  We haven't had anyone say "no" to us camping in a boat; but we also haven't tried state or federal park campsites yet either.  We don't necessarily need electric power as we have the generator should we need it; so we could actually camp at a more primitive campground at some point.  In fact, we could possibly "boondock" somewhere like real RV'ers do (just park someplace and spend the night). 


The most unique place we've stayed was listed under b&b's but we learned it is called a "Farm Stay".  Basically, it is a b&b, located on a farm... sometimes these are actual resorts like a dude ranch.  In our case it was a working organic farm where they also had RV sites.  The RV sites, however were being used by "workcampers".  We learned that almost every RV park, and seasonal resorts will provide free RV space to workers who are help out in various ways: tending the store, managing a property... in this case, servicing tractors, washing and packing produce etc. At another RV park, one of the workcampers operated the observatory and conducted stargazing lectures 3 nights per week.

Freedom goes to church...San Xavier del Bac Mission

Freedom goes camping

Freedom looks amused... at a farm stay in Arizona... she's having an adventure too!

Choosing Our Boat

Speaking of books and blogs, everyone devotes a chapter about the reasons they chose their particular boat. In the case of a "trailerable trawler", there is also the decision of a tow vehicle (unless of course you already own one).  We had always been sailboat owners; first owning trailerable sailboats; eventually graduating to a 34ft keel Hunter which had all the creature comforts. After several years, though, of sailing San Francisco Bay and the Sacramento River Delta,we longed to take to the road again and buy another trailerable boat.  We decided to try a power boat because it would be more useful in areas we hoped to boat in the future: Lake Powell, the Pacific Northwest, and areas on the Great Loop....it also would provide more livable space than a trailerable centerboard sailboat.

In the  book, Upside of Downsizing to a Trailerable Trawler by Jim and Lisa Favors,  the authors had a large Trawler which they took on the Great Loop, selling their house, storing their belongings and cruising for a year.   They then went back to their hometown and re-established their home with the idea of buying  a trailerable boat the next time around.  Why?  Because they wanted to do short trips by car to places they probably couldn't reach with a bigger boat.  For them, since they were from the Great Lakes, they wanted to see the West... as well as make trips to lakes or rivers they could reach more quickly by car.  
In their book, they discuss their choice of both boat and vehicle; considering all the same candidates we looked at.  Their choice was a 27 ft Ranger Tug which is a gorgeous boat with loads of creature comforts.  But it is a huge boat on the trailer, and needs a very powerful pickup truck to tow it.  We seriously considered its little brother, a 25 ft Ranger Tug, until we helped someone tow theirs down the street to launch.  We realized, then, that we wanted a smaller boat that we could go anywhere with...on the water or the road.  We enjoyed beaching our little sailboats; and we also knew that areas on the ICW were very shallow.  We also really didn't want to buy a pickup but preferred an SUV.  Based on the weight we could tow, we reduced the list of possible boats to a C-Dory 22 or a C-Dory Venture 23 (Cape Cruiser).  They look about the same, have the same layout...the cockpit (which I think of as the porch) is a foot bigger; and there is a little more headroom and a slightly different hull shape in the Venture 23.  There is a link to the specs and the layout at the bottom of this page.

This decision meant making many compromises.  For me, the boat seemed "utilitarian"... basic fiberglass walls (not lined with headliner or wood veneer).. so not 'homey" and very noisy.  Being a small boat, it also bangs around alot when underway...so not built for comfort.  And speaking of comfort; there is no separate head (only a porta potti), no hot water, and no shower.  That means more visits to marinas and less "anchoring out".  To add living space, our cockpit has a bimini and camper enclosure... so we effectively add a room at night and additional privacy if needed.

The boat is divided into 3 sections: The V Berth is 6'4" ft long and about 8ft wide (at the widest), the pilot house is 6'6'" by about 7'.5" wide and the cockpit is 5" x about 7"5" wide.  I calculate that to be living in about 86 sq ft plus a somewhat claustrophobic cubby hole for our bed.

Another big reason we chose the C-Dory was a very active owners community on C-Brats.com.  There are many gatherings organized around the country during the year...and a rich "library" of posts about every conceivable question, problem or enhancement of these boats.  The Brats are very knowledgeable boaters, fishermen and cruisers and always eager to help out. We've been to one outing (at Lake Powell) and are planning to attend a few along the way during our adventure on the loop.

As you will see, there are other cons to cruising with a trailerable boat versus a "real" trawler.  I'll discuss those on the next post.

River-Horse

Before any vacation, I like to read novels, biographies and histories of the areas we plan to visit... and, in the case of our cruise, we've also read many blogs and memoirs of other people cruising the great loop... and small boat cruising in general.  There are too many books to list them all, but there is one I MUST tell you about... because it is about a C-Dory 22 (basically our same boat).  River-Horse:A Voyage Across America by William Least Heat-Moon tells the story of his adventure from New York harbor, up the Hudson, through the Erie Canal...up the Missouri... and ultimately entering the Pacific in Oregon.  Portaging over dry land only a few times.  The writer is a little pretentious... make that VERY pretentious... he thinks he is Shakespeare or Byron or whatever.  At times it is tough to read (I've only gotten as far as the Missouri), but it gives a clear picture of what it can be like cruising on a tight schedule, through boring patches of river, through treacherous waterways and weather.  It basically exemplifies for me what NOT to do on our cruise (or in a travel memoir)!  It is interesting, though, to see how "bare bones" his boat was outfitted... and how often he and his first mate/friend/co-pilot didn't sleep or cook on the boat!  Staying at B&Bs, Inns; and eating at local eateries did allow him to write about the many interesting people he met in small river towns along the way.  IMHO, you don't learn alot about a place sitting in a marina or anchoring out.  (That's going to be my rationale when explaining to Rob why we MUST sleep in a real bed on a frequent basis)

Our goal is also to meet interesting new people: locals and other cruisers; and see new places...particularly small towns with interesting histories.  We'll probably talk a bit about the challenges we face as small boat cruisers...and the challenge of spending so much time together in such a small boat! We hope you'll enjoy our stories and learn something new as we explore small town America.

Getting ready for our big adventure

We've decided to "just do it".  We're going to do OUR version of "The Great Loop Cruise", which means we'll be boating OR DRIVING counterclockwise from Florida to NYC, up the Hudson, through the Erie Canal, and then come back south.. maybe "turning right" towards home.. or maybe going through the "Tenn Tom" (Kentucky/Tennessee tributaries off the Mississippi, or spend more time in Florida next winter).  (Rob is calling this "The Loopette Route")

Our boat is very small ("Freedom", a 23ft Venture by C-Dory) so don't think badly of us if we decide to drive some of this.  We only want to do "fun" boating, not brave the Atlantic or Great Lakes or Mississippi.  (I have also a signed contract that says we can stop at a B&B or motel at least once a week).

We've been busy making lists and checking them twice because we take off in less than 2 weeks.  It will be a long drive from Nevada but we'll be stopping to visit relatives on the way which will be fun and a nice break from driving. We expect our first real cruising to begin around the Savannah GA and Charleston area.  After that we'll come back home (leaving boat and car there) to return again in a month or two.   Our next leg will be from Charleston up to Washington DC area.  After that, we're not entirely sure how we'll get to NYC and the Hudson but we hope to be doing that this summer and early fall.  Basically we plan to be gone for a month or so, home about 6 weeks, rinse and repeat as necessary.

As much as we enjoy boating, this is an opportunity for us to see some of the land based sights in the Eastern states... for Rob to see Civil War sights and a way for me to complete my "bucket list goal" of visiting all of the 50 states.  I only have about 10 states to go. I think we can knock off several on this trip but it may mean a side trip or two off our route to do so:  Besides South Carolina and Delaware, I hope to hit Kansas and Vermont.. and maybe West Virginia.

We take off mid February, and there won't be meaningful posts until around March 1..For the time being (until we're done cruising), we're keeping this blog private.. for obvious security reasons, but we hope it will prove useful to future "Loopers" once we are home.

Hope you enjoy the blog!
Mary