Marco Island to Marathon, Florida

Because of strong headwinds coming from the South, we opted to journey down the West Coast of Florida rather than the 100 mile open seas trip directly to Key West. Even with this, we were confronted with 3 to 4 foot seas, sometimes the waves would crash over the bow, drenching the bikes we mounted on the railings (even though covered). But the boat performed flawlessly. It's made to take this. We were a little weary after 4 hours of pounding waves, however.

Glad we went this way for another reason. We got to see Everglades City, a small quaint town nestled in the heart of the Everglades 6 miles up the Barron river. The town's main industry appears to be crabbing and air boat excursions. We tied along the docks at the Everglades Rod and Gun Club, a beautiful old majestic building which has been reopened recently. The entire interior looks like a piece of fine furniture, a true work of art.

Then, further down the coastline we anchored in the Little Shark River. It had a very remote feeling. No phone access, just us and nature in the dark along with some mysterious sounds. Several times in the night I heard what sounded like a large animal exhaling from somewhere on shore. Or was that an alligator in the water? Marlene, of course, made sure I kept the doors on the boat locked. (by the way, she won't know I heard those sounds till she reads this blog)

Today Saturday, April 5, we continued south to Marathon, Florida, dodging crab pots all the way. Marathon is part of the 100 mile string of islands called the Florida Keys. I've rented a car to drive the 50 miles to Key West. We'll be at Glad Tidings Assembly of God there tomorrow.

Marlene Joy has one more birthday party

We were treated to a great dinner at Snook Inn on Marco Island by Kent, Lisa and Kirsten along with Kent's folks, his brother, Clay and wife, and Stan and Judy Anderson who recently relocated to Southern Georgia from Sacramento. Lisa (Marlene's cousin) surprised us all with dessert back on the boat, all 11 of us. It was Pina Colada ice cream in pineapple halves with a candle in each one. (Soon I will post pictures from my camera to this site to make this more interesting)

The Journey Begins -- Ft. Myers to Marco Island

On April 1, 2008 at 11:00am we left from the Ft. Myers Yacht Basin Marina with full tanks (600 gallons of diesel) to cruise the 65 miles to Marco Island. Our goal was to reach Marco in time for dinner with relatives Kent and Lisa Anderson and their daughter Kirstin, who will be entering the University of Florida this fall.



I estimated about 7 hours for the journey and we made it in 6, despite some pretty heavy waves as we challenged head-on winds in the 15 knot range. We had about 3 hours of the trip where the waves were crashing over the bow -- but the Grand Banks is made for this and performed flawlessly.



On the technical side FYI, the Grand Banks 42 Motoryacht is powered by twin Caterpillar 3208 V-8 diesel engines. We have a 3 cylinder 8KW generator for AC power when not at a marina. There are two helm stations, both fully equipped with Garmin Chartplotters and Raytheon Autopilots. I got a chance to use the autopilot almost all of the cruise to Marco Island. I set the bearing on the Garmin to a point on the map (called a waypoint) and marked it. The Garmin then posts a line to follow. I could have just stayed on that line by using the steering wheel. But since the Garmin is linked to the autopilot, I just push the Track button on the autopilot and it automatically follows the line on the map, hands off! (I know most of you boaters reading this are aware of this but a lot of my friends in Minnesota need to be brought up to date on open sea boating navigation)

It was Miller Time last Sunday.....

......That is, we had 8 Millers on board with us: Scott, Dawn and their 4 boys along with Dave and Peg Miller, Scott's mom and dad. They came to give us a send off and we took a little cruise up and down the Calasahoochee River to check things out before the Adventure begins. Dave and Peg are getting serious about the Loop as well. Wouldn't be surprised to be reading their blog in a few months as they begin their journey.

First "First Generation" Interview

As noted earlier, one of the purposes of our trip is to gather information about first generation believers. Good news! I met and interviewed a person yesterday. It was a great interview and just confirms to me that God is directing our path to do this research. By the way, if you are reading this blog and want to know more about what I'm talking about, please find a local church that sponsors an Alpha program. This is an interdenominational program that starts at the beginning -- especially tailored to educate adults in understanding the basics of Christianity.

The Trip before the TRIP

Before the Big Journey, we drove from Prior Lake, Mn. to Ft. Myers starting Monday morning March 23 and arriving 3 days later, pulling a U-Haul trailer with the Jeep. Here are some thoughts on that trip.

• A great send-off by Rory and Becca as we left. Bacon, Eggs, the works! They will be living in our home till May.
• Why we have a fuel shortage? Traveling the 1750 miles diagonally through the Eastern US, most cars were at 75 MPH or above. Trucks were about the same, maybe some slower through Illinois where the limit for them is 55. Somehow people aren't getting the message that fuel consumption is highly correlated to speed. Diesel is now over $4.00 in most places.
• The best part, no problems getting here and arriving in 70 degree weather!

So this week we have been doing the things one does when planning to be on a boat for most of the next 9 months. It's been about 4 days now and Marlene has the place looking like a comfortable home. Pictures of family everywhere (our greatest earthly treasure) and the aft cabin looks like something out of Boat Beautiful. Provisioning and last minute maintenance has taken more time than anticipated - but we're still on schedule to leave Monday -- or Tuesday at the latest.

On track for cast off March 31, 2008

As predicted last year, we are back on track to begin our Great Loop journey March 31, 2008.

Because of the low water levels in Lake Ochechobee in Florida, we will not be able to cross the center of Florida as many have done in order to get to the East coast. Our boat needs at least 4.5 feet of draft. Some parts of the channel are less, so we will be going down to the tip of Florida, stopping over at Naples, Marco Island, Key West and Marathon. I've heard so many things about the beauty of this area, so the expanded journey is fine with us.

We are excited about doing this adventure for several reasons. But two are prominent.

1. Till now we have spent very little time getting to know about the Eastern part of the US as well as the Great Lakes. There is so much history to learn and beautiful scenery to see.
2. Both Marlene and I are beneficiaries of parents who raised us in Godly homes. But we realize that many people came to discover a relationship with Christ later in life, and without the benefit of Godly parents like we had. These people are my heros. Like my parents, they are taking a path that is or was very difficult, even though very rewarding. So along our water journey, we want to know more of the stories behind these first generation believers -- why they made that important and life changing decision and how they are doing in their faith. How we go about gathering these interviews will be posted later.