From NASCAR to NASA

From Palm Coast we made the short trip to Daytona Beach. The winds continued to blow so flags looked like they were starched, and the temperature still felt like we were north of the Mason-Dixon line. We stayed one night at Caribbean Jack’s, a restaurant and marina. The highlight of our stay in Daytona was cheeseburgers at Caribbean Jack’s.

Each evening we look at several weather websites for their forecasts. The consensus for our next travel day was 13 mph winds from the north. Our travels would take us through the Mosquito Lagoon. John looked forward to transiting the area again. While bringing our boat home from Miami two years ago, he raved about the clear waters with large fish, turtles, dolphins and manatees.

We pulled away from the dock in Daytona Beach on Friday morning at 0900. Winds blew 12 knots, as expected. As the day progressed, the winds grew. By the time we reached Mosquito Lagoon the winds had strengthened to 28 knots. The waters were quite choppy. While the views were still beautiful, we saw no fish. Turning into the Haulover Canal and passing under the bridge were real sport in all the wind and current. John handled the boat like it was no big deal. I’m glad I did not have to be at the helm!

We arrived in Titusville at 1500. Winds were still 28-30 knots from the north. We had heard several people on the radio who were docking at the Titusville Municipal Marina. Listening to their challenges helped us decide to throw out our anchor instead. Anchoring was uneventful and soon we were settled in place. The Titusville anchorage is just outside the marina with a lovely view of the space shuttle assembly building in the distance. The only unfortunate part was that the anchorage is not protected in any direction, especially not from north or east winds. Consequently, the boat surfed in two to three foot waves. Typically, we let out seven feet of anchor rode (chain) for every foot of water depth. We were in seven feet of water. Under normal circumstances we would let out about 50 feet of rode. That day we let out 100 feet, because the winds and waves were so strong. We wanted to give the anchor every chance to hold and not drag along the bottom.

With the anchor in place, I reclined in the cockpit like Cleopatra on her royal barge and enjoyed a glass of pinot noir while watching the sunset. Pink, orange, and red filled the clouds. With dishes washed and put away after a delicious dinner of a steak and vegetable stir-fry, we settled in to read. Suddenly, we heard a TTHHHWUMMPP at the bow. We rushed up the companion way to see what hit us, thinking another boat came too close. It turned out to be a manatee – perhaps a manatee with a headache. My thoughts went to the mangled front end of our corvette years ago after we hit a deer. I checked the bilge to ensure we were not taking on water. Island Packet (our boat brand) makes a very strong hull. The boat seemed fine.

That night, I slept like a baby – a hungry, colicky baby. John got up about every two hours to make sure the anchor was holding. It held like it was welded to the bottom.

The next morning, the winds still howled at over 20 knots. We decided to swing on the anchor that day and depart for Melbourne on Sunday. We scoured the inside of the boat and caught up on communications with family members.

On Sunday morning, we started the engine at 0800. I took the helm and John went forward to wash the anchor and rode as it emerged from the water. I was concerned that the anchor would be dug in so strongly that we would have trouble extricating it. My job is to move the boat while pressing a button in the cockpit that causes the windlass to bring up the anchor. John tells me which direction to move the bow so the anchor comes straight up. And, he uses the hose on the bow to wash the mud off the chain as it leaves the water. Well, that’s what normally happens. On that day, the windlass went on strike. Thank goodness we have redundant systems. John Rahm, human windlass was on the job. As he pulled up the first twenty feet of heavy chain, I could hear him muttering about 50 feet being enough and what made him think we needed 100 feet out. It wasn’t long before I heard him say, “Okay, the anchor is free, drive on” and the 60-pound CQR anchor became visible over the water. Frankly, I thought the whole process went much