Florida Or Bust

[DaveB]

Gazmn,
If you launch at Homestead Bayfront Marina you can pick up 50 lb block Ice at the marina @ $5 each.
Put a couple of them in a 72 quart 5 day cooler and you are good for at least 6-7 days.
I usually put a a 52 quart 5 day cooler under the sette box with block ice and use cube ice to fill voids and don't use it until the rest of coolers need it. I have a 72 quart cooler 5 day up in Vberth along with a 42 quart reg. cooler and a 12 can cooler for day beer.
Bring snacks like the $1.25 cracker and tuna or chicken premade found at Walmart or $1 stores.
My last 5 day cruise in Key Largo I used 2 gal. fuel but bring both 6 gal. just in case.
Coleman propane skillet works excellent with no mess.
Have two anchors aboard, chain min. 25 ft. for each rode.
Make sure you hit Alabama Jacks for good sea food.
Dave

[Gazmn]

Thanks for the support John. I'm hoping for slow and steady on the commute down. I'll only be getting about 13mpg trailering and it$ more expen$ive being die$el

Regarding the 90, while I'm glad I have it and appreciate it, I don't honestly think I'm getting all I can out of it... I don't know if it's the setup, a computer glitch or what. I plan on crying on the shoulder of a BRP/ E-tec rep @ the boat show. My problem was I didn't have the time to concentrate on getting my speed issues resolved. Most guys with larger engines are getting anywhere from 5 - 15 MPH more than I am. Delevi got me thinking again with this post:

Re: Anyone with experience with 90 hp on Macgregor
by delevi on Wed Jan 14, 2009 12:43 pm

I'm with jahemk . Gaz, don't concede. Something is absolutely not right. You're not getting all the horses you paid for. There is no way your 90 should preform the same as my 50. No way, no how. I don't care how much crap you have on board. Consider this: I have an extra 150 lbs with the ballasted keel. Also bottom painted. Net performance hit (under 1 mph.) Also consider a ballasted boat vs. non ballasted. Net difference in speed with 50 hp (3 mph.) In my guestimation, you should be able to hit 25 mph at WOT, fully loaded boat with ballast in. BTW, you should be able to spin at least a 14x13 prop, maybe higher. If they're making you pitch down, it's clear the engine isn't running like it should.

LD TRIPPLE REEFED

So I'll see what I can do again this year.

[Gazmn]

& Thanks Dave for all your input.

Re: marinas, I'm going to drive to Key Largo first [God willing] I'll have a 1br apt w/ dock space. I'm hoping there's a place close to launch there, after prepping the boat.

Prepping is a funny word because I'm SO Not Ready for this. It could take as much as a week to fix or do some "projects" I have in store. Am having electrical issues that I hope are no more complicated than a grounding issue but...
My nav lights aren't working. While I have the flashlight with the green & red side I attach to the bowpulpit, I'd really like to correct this. That and my batteries seem to get sucked down too easily when I put the big boys on like radar and my GPS.

Regarding Ice stops, I have an engle refrig in my rear dinette seat which is repowered by 80 watts on two Uni-Solar panels and I have a Honda Generator. I'll have 2 smaller 40Qt 5 day coolers and I'm thinking about using dry ice or ice Blocks.

Question, will I need AC down there in February or is it okay without it

[DaveB]

Gazmn, You are going elect. needs, no need for Generator, Aircondition or the engle Ref. during Feb.
If you have two house 27 or larger it will power your elect. needs without the above for a week.
I came back after 5 days in the keys with 12.3 volts left in my twin group 30 batteries running 200 watt sterio,TV-vido cd,(Watched 6 cdmovies plus TV) and all my elect. needs without it hooking up to my Honda 50 alt.
Have no-seem's screens for front and rear hatch and 100 % deet found at Walmart for bugs. A coil burning down below helps.
fan or two in cabin does the sleeping great.
Inverter 75-150 watts pluged into a ciggrette lighter is great for your 120 volt elect. needs.
I do 5 day trips at least 3-5 times a year and one of those is in the keys during mid July. I usually get a slip for $30 a day at Pennikamp and use a cockpit companionway hatch 5000 btu to air the boat and plug in at dock.
Dave

& Thanks Dave for all your input.

[Gazmn]

Thanks [Again] Dave,

Sometimes I read & scheme too much...
I got all this STUFF for all of the great dreams that I have. I think that Doing, as in taking several trips a year, helps you economize and sieze the opportunity while enjoying the simple things in life.

I dreamed about cruising through many a winter's night & then I bid on Ebay through many a winter's nite -Losing money, rather throwing money at dreams when I should have planned and then siezed a free moment.

Well, it's 10 days to departure. I'll try not to buy anymore things and make do with the too much I already have

[hfmckevitt]

HI from Ft Myers Florida, If you are looking for good winter sailing Ft Myers is the best on the west coast. There are several free ramps right out to the Gulf or to the back bays and rivers.
There are many small islands to explore or camp out on. All with in good range of safe harbors.
Good Luck.
Henry

[Gazmn]

Thanks for the info Henry.
Ft Meyers was my first choice but I got distracted by the Boat Show. If you're there now, how's the weather? That was my other concern. There was a 20 degree difference between there and the Keys. That's why I committed to further South - that and The Boat Show

[Gazmn]

Well I made it! After 2 1/2 days traveling,I arrived on Monday, February 2nd. I brought the rain and a weeklong cold snap with me

Thank God for the 1 BR. I'm off of Tarpon Bay and the wind and chop kick up each evening. It was in the 40's the past few nights and only reached about the 60's during the day. Fine work weather though, got a lot done while on the hard.

I put in new Nav lights a la Duane Dunn, added port and starboard screened portlights Mod entry to follow and changed out my CB line. I was down there working anyway patching a couple of nasties I got around the CB housing from a hard grounding [ this past summer - I let it dry out on the trailer].

Just got it in the water behind the house yesterday. Still have cleaning, mast raising and trailer storage to contend with.

Will keep updating
-Gaz

[pokerrick1]

my wife is an angry schoolteacher. [B/c I'm retred and she's not ]

I'm sorry to hear that you are a retread, but I'm glad she's not

Rick

[Ron]

If you come up to Miami for the Boat Show a nice place to keep your boat is the Coconut Grove Sail Club. They have daily rentals, and from the marina you can walk to all the shops.

[K9Kampers]

my wife is an angry schoolteacher. [B/c I'm retred and she's not ]

I'm sorry to hear that you are a retread, but I'm glad she's not

Rick

Is this what you meant?...

From the Eyes of a Child

After Christmas, a teacher asked her young pupils how they spent their holiday away from school. One child wrote the following:

We always used to spend the holidays with Grandma and Grandpa. They used to live in a big brick house but Grandpa got retarded and they moved to Arizona. Now they live in a tin box and have rocks painted green to looklike grass.

They ride around on their bicycles and wear name tags because they don't know who they are anymore. They go to a building called awrecked center, but they must have got it fixed because it is all okay now.

They do exercises there, but they don't do them very well. There is a swimming pool too, but in it, they all jump up and down with hats on.

At their gate, there is a doll house with a little old man sitting in it. He watches all day so nobody can escape. Sometimes they sneak out! They go cruising in their golf carts.

Nobody there cooks, they just eat out. And,they eat the same thing every night - something called 'early birds.'

Some of the people can't get out past the man in the doll house. The ones who do get out, bring food back to the wrecked center and call it pot luck.

My Grandma says that Grandpa worked all his life to earn his retardment and says I shouldwork hard so I can be retarded someday too.

When I earn my retardment, I want to be the man in the doll house. Then I will let people out so they can visit their grandchildren.
(Barbara Halpern)

[Gazmn]

ROFL

[Divecoz]

Gazmn how did you do ? How was your trip? I just got back from Port Charlotte 13 weeks and was there for that cold rainy weather YOU BROUGHT! Thank Goodness You admit because everyone down there was blaming me....

[DaveB]

I canceled the trip to Cayo Costa with the WCTSS last weekend. I was to sail the 28 nm. trip to Cayo Costa from Cape Coral Yacht basin but when I got the latest weather winds 20 Knots gusting to 28 knots and my return trip with rain all day I canceled.
Today winds 25 knots gusting to 35. It has been a very windy spring in SW FL. but went out this past weekend for 2 days and nice wind.
Dave

Gazmn how did you do ? How was your trip? I just got back from Port Charlotte 13 weeks and was there for that cold rainy weather YOU BROUGHT! Thank Goodness You admit because everyone down there was blaming me....

[TAW02]

Mr. DaveB;

Sir, I don't blame you one bit. I live in Saint Cloud (central Florida) and the winds have been quite wicked here.!

The lake I moore my boat on is white capping now and has been for the last week.

Big T