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Introduction
On June 14th, my friend Dave Brannigan and I left the St.
Petersburg, FL municipal marina on his Catalina 28 sailboat for a 4 day
cruise out of Tampa Bay to points south.
We were not sure just how far the weather or the boat would let us
go so we had several alternative stopping points researched.
Dave and I met when he had a Catalina 22 similar to mine on Lake
Norman. We sailed together several times there, both on his boat and
mine. David has since moved up to a Catalina 28 which he keeps in a
slip in St. Petersburg.
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Monday, June 13th
Charlotte to St. Petersburg
After leaving Charlotte early in the morning,
we arrived in St. Petersburg in the late afternoon.
After moving the provisions from the car to the boat, which
is permanently berthed at the St. Petersburg municipal marina, we
found a place to eat and then settled in on the boat for the
evening. I had discovered on earlier boat trips that marinas seem to
always be hot and sticky and this was no exception. |
Nixie at the Marina
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| There was not much breeze for relief but we
managed to sleep most of the night. I
was camped out in the rear berth under the cockpit and David was up front
in the V-berth. |
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St. Petersburg Marina
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Tuesday, June 14th
St. Petersburg Municipal Marina to the Manatee
River
We hit Starbucks for some breakfast and then a few
boat supply places for some last minute provisions.
We left the marina (27° 46.154´N-82° 37.842´W) around
11:45 AM headed for an anchorage on the Manatee River, outside of
the Skyway Bridge and east of Ana Maria Island. |
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| As we headed down Tampa Bay, thunderstorms were forming in
many locations around us. About halfway down to the bridge we could
see heavy rain back up in St. Pete.
So we started looking for places to duck into if the weather
got really bad and decided to head for an anchorage near the
causeway that leads to the bridge from the northwest.
But as we neared the bridge, the weather began to clear so
with full sails up we headed for the channel. |
Captain David
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| It was a great thrill to go under the bridge and realize you
were in the Gulf of Mexico, even if not quite out in the main body
yet. After passing under the bridge and
steering around some spoil areas we set a course for the entrance to
the Manatee River. Once at the
entrance marker, the pass
into the river is quite long, a little over 3 nautical miles.
We motored up the pass, as the channel is quite narrow.
About 5:00 PM we dropped anchor in a quiet bay on the north
side of the river (27° 31.749´N- 82° 38.217´W).
There were about 5 or 6 other boats in the area but none very
close to us. |
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Skyway Bridge from the Bay
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First Mate
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| After a toast to the sea gods for providing
safe passage (his beer and my Pina Coloda), we fired up the stove in the
galley and David warmed up some pulled pork that his wife Sheryl had
prepared for us. After cleaning
up the boat, we talked over the day’s events, how fortunate we felt to
be able to do this and the following day’s
plans until quite late into the night.
Since there was a good breeze at anchor and since David had
purchased a wind scoop for the front hatch that morning, there was a
solid breeze blowing through the boat and we both slept
like babies. |
Manatee River
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The Route
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Wednesday, June 15th
Manatee River to Sarasota Bay
Our plan for the day was to head out into the Gulf
and see how far south we could get before we had to worry about
thunderstorms. There were 4
options to get back inside, Longboat Pass which would take us behind
Longboat Key, New Pass into Sarasota Bay, Big Sarasota Pass also into
Sarasota Bay and the Venus Inlet into Venus, the latter being 39 nm from
our entrance into the Gulf. We
didn’t hold out much hope of getting that far but we agreed that 2:00 PM was
our decision time and we would see where we were then. |
| We left the anchorage about 10:00 AM and retraced our
path out of the Manatee River and then headed for the tip of Ana
Maria Island and the Passage Key Inlet.
The pass has very
shallow water on either side and a shoal that extends out into the
Gulf for over a mile. We
would need to head straight out far enough to clear that before
turning south down the coast. We
found the channel to be almost 20 feet deep but very narrow.
There were sand bars on both sides and it felt as if you
could almost jump out of the boat onto them.
The winds were light in the morning so we could progress
slowly. Then we finally
made the corner and realized we were out in the Gulf and really
“doin’ it”. |
Passage Key Inlet
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GPS Tracks
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GPS Tracks
My little handheld GPS ran low on battery power so some of the
tracks were lost but this picture shows the path from the Manatee
River down to Sarasota and back. Note the long zig zags going
down as we were gybing occasionally to keep the wind away from dead
behind (that may cause unexpected things to happen). On the
way back the lines are mostly straight as we motor-sailed most of
the way due to light winds or winds on the nose. You can see
out one vain attempt at sailing with the almost 180 degree tacks
heading upwind. |
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The winds were from the north or northwest and
kept building throughout the day. We
gybed every so often to keep from heading straight downwind so as to
reduce the chance of an accidental gybe if the wind shifted.
That brought us from ½ mile offshore to about 3 miles depending
upon the shape of the coast and where we decided to turn. We did not want to get any further out than that in case the
weather turned bad. By 2:00
PM the winds were up to 15 knots or more and we were on a hell of a sleigh
ride. The seas were up to 4
feet or so and went sliding under our stern, sometimes surfing us along
for a few seconds. The
autopilot got really confused in these seas so we took turns at the wheel
keeping us pointed in the right direction.
It was a fun afternoon! We
decided to go into Sarasota Bay by way of New Pass in order to have time
to find a place to spend the night and because the winds continued to
build. We started the engine
and turned into the wind to drop the sails.
Now we really had a ride. The
boat was riding up those 4-foot swells and smashing down into the trough
with a dramatic splash sending spray in all directions.
Of course the main did not want to come down properly so David put
on his life jacket and headed for the mast to get it down.
I wish I had a picture of that, one arm clinging to the mast and
the other clawing at the sail and struggling with the sail ties.
Once secured, we turned back downwind and headed up the channel. |
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New Pass Inlet
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New Pass is another very narrow and curvy channel. David
kept one eye glued to the depth sounder and I to the water in front
of us but we made it in without a hitch. The
Catalina 28, winged keel only draws 3 feet 9 inches so it is good
for passes like that. Once
inside we called up the bridge keeper on the VHS radio and requested
passage into the bay. This bridge is on a timed schedule so we had to kill a few
minutes but were soon in the bay looking for a place to park.
The cruise guides were not much help here.
The Sarasota Sailing Squadron was nearby but the guide said
it had few facilities. |
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| We decided to stop anyhow to see if we could stay there or if
anyone there could recommend a place.
It turns out that they welcomed transients, had showers and some
light refreshments (like beer) and only charged $20 a night for the berth.
So we quickly tied up the boat and headed for a cold beer and
shower. This was a big
mistake as we were to learn later.After getting cleaned up, we got some ice to
re-stock the cooler and went back to the boat to warm up some more of that
pulled pork. We were setting
in the cockpit, making calls home and eating when we noticed this huge
black cloud building in the bay. Instead
of making sure the boat was really tied down, we went below to get out of
the rain that had begun to fall. Second
big mistake. As the wind
started to build we heard noises from outside and realized the wind had
shifted and was now pushing the boat up into the dock.
The bow pulpit was smashing on the dock and the mainsail was
flapping, trying to undo the few sail ties we had put in during that
earlier wild ride upwind.
Now the wind is shrieking, must have been 50 knots or more and we
are struggling to get another line on the boat to get it pulled off the
dock and get some more ties in the main.
We finally got it tied down and exhausted, went back below to ride
it out. We could still hear
smashing noises on deck but convinced that the boat would not get any
holes in it we stayed put. After
the storm we surveyed the damage. The
bow pulpit was bent but not too badly, the front navigation light was
smashed and the canvas on the bimini top had torn and freed up one of the
bows. It fell down to the
deck, which was the noise we heard when we were down below. We spent a couple of hours after that talking over what we
should have done. We vowed
that from then on, the first order of business was to secure the boat,
before showers, before coldies, before anything.
We also felt really lucky that we did not get caught out in the
Gulf or even at anchor when that storm hit.
We discussed what we might have done in either case but agreed that
being at the dock was the best of the cases.
I guess the sea gods wanted to teach us a lesson but didn’t want
us to sink just yet. Finally,
exhausted, we hit the sack around 11:00 PM. |
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Thurs, June 16th
Sarasota Bay to Manatee River
We got a reasonably early start on Thursday morning
to head back toward home. Since
the bimini was torn from the blow the night before we collapsed it and
lashed it up out of the way. After
waiting for the bridge to open at 9:20 we headed back out through New Pass
to the Gulf. The winds were
very light so we motored for a while but as they picked up a bit we
hoisted the sails and were beating north at 2 to 3 knots.
The wind was from the NW so we were as close hauled as we could
get. It was not long before
we decided we needed to find a way to redeploy the bimini as the sun was
getting pretty hot. As we
tried to open it up, we found the bows had crossed over each other and
become stuck. |
Greg on the Foredeck
(will all his teeth)
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So I was facing
aft, trying to lift up the boom to clear the bimini bows and David was
pushing on the bows to get them unstuck.
They did come unstuck, very suddenly and the front one swung
forward and bounced right off my front teeth.
I was spitting fragments while trying to get everything back under
control. Inspection found
that my right front tooth was gone and the one next to it chipped.
Since both are caps, I was not in any pain and I must have been
smiling when it happened, as my lips were not injured.
After looking around I found the missing cap on the cockpit sole so
I stuck it in my pocket and we kept on sailing. |
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| The wind kept moving further on the nose so we started
up the engine again and motor-sailed back toward the Passage Key
Inlet off Ana Marie Island. Since
we were now much more cautious sailors than we were the day before,
and since the tide was about a foot lower than when we came out, we
picked our way back in through the pass.
Starting one mile off shore David followed his depth sounder
contour lines and proceeded very slowly so that that mile took over
an hour. But we
didn’t hit anything. Once
past the sandy beaches and shoals of the pass we again headed for
the entrance marker to the channel leading to the Manatee River
anchorage. |
Passage Key Inlet from the Gulf
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Manatee River Channel
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By now the sky
was beginning to darken again so down came the sails and we even put the
cover on the main to make sure it stayed put this time.
Sure enough, the wind picked up and started to blow like stink just
as we were leaving the channel. The
boat heeled about 20 degrees and this was with no sails up! But it soon passed and before long we were back to nearly the same
spot we were two nights earlier (27° 31.749´N 82° 38.097´W).
We checked the other boats to see how they were swinging on their
anchor line and found it odd that two boats were pointing in opposite
directions and neither was pointing into the wind.
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| But we still decided to head up, stop the boat and drop the anchor,
which we did. Instead of
falling back on the rode as expected, the boat swung around so that the
anchor was heading behind it. After
some time it finally settled down and we realized the current was close to
2 knots in the river and it was overpowering the wind.
No problem! The little CQR anchor did a great job in adjusting to
changing directions of pull and I let out lots of scope which helped too.
We memorized a couple of ranges on shore so we could check if we
were dragging, like the right chimney on the big house lines up with the
end of the pier etc. |
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Manatee River Sunset
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Finally the weather calmed down and it was time for a
well-deserved cold drink and a meal.
I decided to try my Hormel, ready to eat roast beef with
mashed potatoes and gravy. This
thing requires no refrigeration and can be cooked either in a
microwave or boiling water. Since
we did not have a nuker, I used the boiling water method.
It was really quite good and a handy item for a boat with no
refrigerator. I
took a nice picture of the sunset as we relaxed in the
cockpit. After a game of Sail Trivia (which I must say I won)
we finally hit the sack. |
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| The wind scoop didn’t work so good this night as the
current held the boat off the wind but it still was reasonably comfortable
and we slept well. |
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Friday, June 17th
Manatee River to St. Petersburg Municipal Marina
We were a bit sad to leave the peace and quiet of the
Manatee since we knew it would not be long before the trip would be over.
But I had one more minor mishap to endure first.
While enjoying my bagel and cream cheese breakfast I felt a crunch
and found another damn cap had come off.
This time a molar, nowhere near where I got bashed.
Oh well. Just put it
in my pocket with the other one. Hopefully
the dentist can sort it all out when I get home.
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| We wanted to get out reasonably early to
hopefully avoid the afternoon thunderstorms that seemed to be the
order of the day. So at
9:00 we hoisted the anchor and headed out of the river, through the
channel back into the bay. The
wind was light from the NW, of course that is nearly the direction
we had to go so we were close hauled again.
Up ahead we could see the magnificent Skyway Bridge again and
it seemed much closer than the 5 miles or so it was away.
We sailed along peacefully for quite a while but we were only
making about 2.5 knots. A
quick calculation showed we would not be back until late afternoon
at that rate so the engine got cranked up again. |
Skyway Bridge from a Distance
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| We furled the main and ran on jib and engine. That combination gave us about 4.5 knots and was a nice easy,
no hassle way to go. Once
again we sailed under the Skyway Bridge.
It is still hard to believe how huge it is.
Once back in Tampa Bay we again saw storms starting to build and it
was only 11:30 in the morning. We
kept the jib up until we could see a white line on the surface of the
water to our west. It
was either big wind or big rain and it was headed our way.
So we rolled up the jib (an easy job compared to furling the main
since the jib is on a roller furler).
Soon the rain hit but there was not much wind with it.
It dumped buckets of rain for about an hour and visibility was low
but the rain was actually refreshing and not a problem.
At 3:00 PM we pulled into the marina and stopped at the fuel dock
to top off the diesel. The
total trip took under 7 gallons and we motored at least 12 hours so around
0.6 gallons an hour. Not bad. |
| We soon had Nixie back in her slip and the hard work of
offloading her began. My past
experience had told me that it is always hotter in the marina than on the
water so I had taken the time on our way up the bay to pack up most of my
stuff. It was a good decision
as the hardest part of the trip was getting all the stuff off the boat and
back in the car. And it was
clear that I had brought a lot more stuff than I needed, clothes I
hadn’t worn, food I hadn’t eaten etc. etc. |
| After getting back to David and Sheryl’s place we ordered
pizza and had the neighbors over for pizza and beer and rum and whatever.
It was nice to meet them all and we had a good time telling all
about our trip, even if I did look like a real redneck sailor with a
couple of missing teeth. |
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Epilog
The trip home seemed short, as David’s mp3 player
must have had every tune on it from 56 through 76.
There were bebop tunes, rock tunes, jazz tunes and most everything
else (except country and rap, he has hang-ups about those).
The music, lots of coffee and a couple of bags of M&M's kept us
going until we arrived back in Charlotte around 11:30 PM. Many
thanks to David for inviting me along on this adventure.
It was loads of fun in spite of the problems and we are both much
better sailors for it. I’d
leave again next week if I could ;<) |
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The Boat
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| David's boat "Nixie" is a 1991 version of the
Catalina 28. This boat is no longer in production but there are many
still sailing. |
| Here are some pictures of a sister boat similar to David's. |
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Settee and fold down table
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View aft showing galley, rear bunk, companionway
& head
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Navigation/Communication Station
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| This page updated: 12 October, 2011 |
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