Haganes – Beyond Tampa.  –  Aug. 2012. 

 

 

From the journal –

 

We are making frighteningly good progress. Better than I want. I don’t want to arrive in Tampa too early. At this stage 7.7kts will get us there in 36 hrs – 0630hrs Tuesday and we’re doing 11kts! Slowed down to 290rpm and still doing over 10kts. Oh well, I guess we can anchor out. Emailed PTB (Powers That Be) for arrival procedures and docking directions. We were told to wait outside ‘sea’ buoy , 12 miles off the entrance to Tampa, for entry instructions in the morning.

 

As Murphy directs, our last night out produces squalls and rolling sea. Dark as the inside of a black cow, rain, lightning and a lumpy beam sea. Rolling along at 5.5 kts trying spin it out ‘cause it’s too rough to anchor and we’ll arrive at ‘sea’  buoy around 1230hrs.

 

So we did, and we waited.

 

In the morning at 0800hrs were told by those further down the chain of command within the owners organisation briefed to prepare for our arrival, that USCG & Customs had to check us on their computers first and would give us a time to come in probably around midday. Meantime we are to stay west of the 12 mile limit and wait.

 

1000hrs – “we’re working on it”.

 

We meantime are doing slow windward leewards, 10 miles up and 10 miles back trying to avoid unnecessary rolling and everyone, it appeared, trying to avoid unnecessary conversation. During the morning I had time to reflect on the fact that had USCG and Customs been given the required notice of arrival they would probably have had time to get their national security agencies on to checking us out several days prior to this.

 

1200hrs I sent – ‘it is difficult at times like these to convince oneself of the old adage that “no news is good news”’. They came back with no it’s not. They want us to stay out here 96 hrs. The company is appealing for an exception to be made.

 

Meantime Tropical Depression #7 has been named as “Tropical Storm Isaac” and continues moving this way from the Windward Islands of the Caribbean. They are appealing for us to be allowed in.

 

1700hrs we were told that the company’s appeal for clemency, compassion, understanding, leniency and common sense was dismissed outright and we were instructed to wait out beyond the 12 mile limit for approval to enter, subject to safety inspection, a further 96 hours ‘and your time starts now’.

 

Having discussed Freeport Bahamas as an alternative port with the owners during the day, I set a course for Freeport forthwith. Although we were told we would be allowed to have a boat reprovision us the next day, waiting around another 18-24 hrs with Isaac shuffling this way didn’t make a lot of sense to me. 18 hours on the other end could make a big difference with a hurricane nipping at our heels.

 

 

 

A decent horizon to horizon line squall approaches from the west. The amount of rain it brought was unbelievable.

 

Once we got south of the Florida Keys, we were out into the Gulf Stream. We sailed up the straights of Florida at 12.5 kts with 2 knots plus of current behind us. Very lumpy but good ground speed. A lot of barge and shipping traffic. Ever vigilant for Cubans on truck inner tubes with no nav lights!

 

Caught this cracker king mackerel coming between Dry Tortoga and the Florida Keys

 

1^st Mate Ray with another.

 

 

 

Arrived Freeport 1600hrs Thursday. We tied up at Bradford Marine dock, had a visit from a friendly customs and immigration delegation, and finally we’d arrived – somewhere at least.