Left the dock at sunrise to head out the river and back to the Gulf. We are 12 in all leaving the marina. Looks like a boat parade as we all wound our way down the channel.
At the last mark in the channel, we head almost due south. Later we will turn southeast and follow the way points we set up to take us past Suwannee River, Cedar Key and the Withalacoochee River to our stop in Crystal River. Here is Bill puzzling over the way points which we adjusted as we traveled.
We are off shore enough (5-10 miles) to avoid shallow water, but we can still see the shoreline. We could see the cooling towers of the Crystal river Pwer Plant easily 10 miles away.
Today the waves and wind were 1-2 foot and quickly diminished which made for a comfortable ride. The only issue was dodging crab traps. We had to be ever vigilante to look for the floating buoys that are attached to the traps. We had to take evasive maneuvers every now and then to avoid running one over. Kept us on our toes!
Later in the day the seas and wind died completely and we headed into the long channel that leads into Crystal River. Much of the channel is marsh with some pine trees, further in the channel the river opens up into King Lake which is were the anchorages and marinas are located. The closer we got to the lake the more development was along the shore, mostly homes on dredged canals. We tied up at Petes Pier Marina which was still under renovation from the hurricane last August but was able to accommodate us.
Both Bill and I were exhausted from a long day so we did some chores, checked weather and possible routes and had dinner and went to bed early.
Day 192-193. December 1-2. On to Caladesi Island. Miles 69 Total Miles. 6006
Woke early so we could leave at first light. We made the decision to move on versus stay in Crystal River as we had a good travel weather window to go further south.
So we shed our lines and headed out Crystal River and its channel to the Gulf. We left early to take advantage of the higher tide. Could use the extra two feet of water to get us safely over the "skinny" sections of the channel.
We made it safely out of the channel to the Gulf with lots of company watching us go by. We are traveling south with three other boats today. Always nice to have company.
As we entered the Gulf we were greeted by several dolphin who played in our bow and jumped in our wake. A wonderful welcoming committee! The winds are calm and the seas are flat. A perfect day to travel! Also have perfect temperatures starting out at 58 and going to 77 degrees on this bright sunny day.
So we settled in for the long run around the islands and marshes off Homosassa Springs. Then we turned further southeast to go past Hernando Beach, Hudson and New Port Richey.
While we were traveling we had eight groups of dolphins join us off and on as we cruised. They seem always happy to come and play and surf with us.
Our first sighting of land was the Anclote River Power Plant, near Tarpon Springs. A welcome sight!
One hour later, we entered the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway via St Joseph Sound which takes us between Tarpon Springs and Anclote Key with its abandoned light house.
We then passed the barrier islands of Three Rooker Key and Honeymoon Island and the city of Dunedin on the mainland.
As we went under the Honeymoon Island Bridge, we turned west into the channel that runs along the causeway and the turned south into the channel that leads to Caladesi Island.
After navigating the winding channel through the mangroves we tied up at the State Park Marina and settled in.
Just before sunset we walked the path to the beach and encountered most of the wildlife Caledesi has to offer- armadillos, gopher tortoises and all kinds of shore birds. We walked the beach and bill collected a few shells which he says he will make into a wind chime.
Returning to the boat, we had dinner and soon were in bed.
Day 193 December 2. Lay day in Caladesi Island
We slept late and had a lazy morning eventually getting around to a few chores.
We then at lunch at the snack shack on the island and hiked the nature trail. The trails leads you through the scrub palms and pine and oak forest of the island, ending in the old Scharrer homestead. Henry Scharrer homesteaded the island and lived there from 1894-1923. He sold vegetables and did odd jobs, later attracting visitors to come see the island, enjoy his wife's cooking and ferrying them back to the mainland. Ruins of the old homestead, as well as the ruins of the dock he used can still be seen on the island.
Instead of taking the trail back to the marina, we followed another trail that led us to the beach and we walked back to the marina via the beach. Of course, Bill found more shells he had to have!! And we also enjoyed the shore birds.
After our three mile hike, we rested and cleaned ourselves up and enjoyed the sunset.
We will sleep well again tonight!