Going to Miami
Amberisle2
Valt & Sandy
Thu 24 Jan 2013 02:32
|
25.46.0N 80.05.W
Jan. 14
Leaving Stuart, we made it as far as West Palm Beach,
some 38nm south on the ICW. The outside route was too rough. Of
course, the inner route is much like a river. Narrow, shallow in
spots. There is also more traffic and in some places we must follow a
carefully marked path, connecting the dots between buoys. It is much more
tedious and requires a sharp eye. Comparatively, running the outside is
easy. Our next stop was another 50 miles away in a cove near Florida
International University. It had been a long, tiring day. We had to
wait for bridge openings at 8 bridges. Not counting the others we could
fit under without opening. Timing was everything.
Next mission was to find diesel fuel. It was more
expensive here, and the price variations were big. One guy wanted $4.04
plus 7% tax, the next wanted $4.80 plus tax. We finally called a fuel
bunkering service who met us as an abandoned dock and charged us $3.58 including
tax. Guess he had a lot less overhead. We took on 388 gallons,
wanting to be as full as possible before leaving for the Bahamas. The fuel
there is over $5.00.
Fueling complete, we headed for one of our favorite
anchorages in Miami: just off the mansion of the guy who invented
Viagra. The house is lovely, and there are no wake signs. From there
we launched the dink and spent several days walking South Beach, shopping, and
more. We even rented a truck and drove into Miami to buy another solar
panel. A number of boaters we knew from the Bahamas were here, also
awaiting a good weather day to travel. We spent some time visiting and
catching up. The days grew warmer everyday, we enjoyed the sun.
Watching the weather carefully, we decided Monday Jan.
21 would be the day to cross the Gulf Stream over to the Bahamas. So we
hoisted the dinghy, stocked it with extra gas and water, laid out the ditch bag
and our float coats, battened the hatches and prepared for an early morning
departure.
It was time to go!
|