Well, I promise that I won’t write everyday normally. But, things are interesting right now. Isn’t that an old curse “May you live in interesting times”? It certainly has been this year.

Yesterday morning, we arose early and started the engine as normal. But, it wouldn’t slow down and kept revving quite high. Mur dashed below and did something to stop the engine. And discovered that the throttle cable was broken, in fact when he got it out, it was rusted to bits. So, we tore apart the aft cabin, the cockpit locker and the steering pedestal. After about 4 hours all was in readiness and we headed out once again.

The rest of the day was uneventful and, with the sun shining, quite enjoyable.

At Daytona, we turned off of the ICW to anchor for the night. Then I found that I couldn’t shift the transmission into neutral. The shift lever was frozen! At first, we suspected the transmission which had been re-built recently. On further inspection, the cable connecting the gear shirt lever to the transmission was broken.

Two in one day! And we only had one spare. So, this morning we launched the dinghy and headed down the waterway to a marina with access to the local West Marine. They had the correct parts on the shelf. Back to the boat, take everything out of the aft cabin, empty the cockpit locker and tear apart the steering pedestal. Now the job can start. Mur is going to replace both cables as the one that he had installed in the morning had ridden around in our bilge for many years. It was already rusty.

So, eventually today we will get underway. Or maybe, if it is too late, we will wait until tomorrow. Hopefully not another interesting day.

Hugs to all,
Heather & Murray

PS the funny thing is that we are anchored in the same place where we landed when our damper plate broke two years ago. It was deja vous drifting in to anchor with no engine power.

Well, we got away from the marina as scheduled on Wednesday morning at 0800. We motored up the river into a cold breeze,not much above freezing. I know, we are whimps down here complaining about near freezing temps, but we were chilly.

Things were going well. I had gotten the computer up and running, and the GPS was interfaced with it, showing our position on the chart. The new chart bag kept everything organized in the cockpit. Mur tidied up the lines and fenders from the dock and we both took a breath of relief to be underway once more.

I made some nice hot oatmeal for breakfast and we kept boogying along. About 1000 hrs, Mur went below. While there he noticed some water on the floor and, like any good husband/sailor, he wiped it up. Then noticed more. He pulled the floorboard giving access to the bilge. Yikes, his finger got wet pulling it up! We have water almost up to the floor. We are sinking! He had turned the bilge pump off as it was running on his last trip below and sometimes it gets stuck on. In retrospect, it might have
been running with a little water although he did check and saw nothing unusual. He sprang into the cockpit, grabbed the manual bilge pump handle and said ” We’re sinking!”. I slowed the boat and took over the pump while Mur looked for the leak. He check all the thru-hulls and things were ok there. Now, empty the cockpit locker to get access to the engine. “Shut her down” he said tersely. He had found the leak. It was the stuffing box. The locking nut had backed all the way off and water was pouring
in. While he repaired the problem, I continued to pump. Soon, the water was all pumped out and we started the motor once again and put it in gear while Murray watched the stuffing box. Slowly I increased the revs while Murray watched. All was well.

What had happened? Well, in the workyard Murray had removed the old packing material from the stuffing box and put in fresh. To do that, he backed off the locking nut. This is always difficult to do and Murray remembered a friend saying that he just leaves his finger tight. This seemed like a good idea and that is how he left ours. And, it was fine at the start, while we putted along the dock. But eventually, it worked itself loose and allowed water to pour in around the prop shaft. So, needless
to say, our locking nut is now locked down tight.

That was enough excitement for that day. The rest was quite enjoyable and even warmed up. Murray put up the spare VHF antenna and hooked up my new ais system. This connects to my computer and shows, on the computer charting, the position and course of ships around us. It is a wonderful addition to our nav station and, since the radar is about dead, saved us spending another $4000US. This ais unit was only $189 plus the cost of a VHF antenna.

Today, Thanksgiving down here, we traveled with little other company and made good time. There is a turkey breast roasting in the oven to be enjoyed later. Because of the cold and because the boat’s system were mostly untested yet this year, we decided to stay inside on the ICW. So, it will take us a few days to get south at approx 50 to 60 miles traveled each day.

Take care and hugs to you all,
Heather & Murray

Hello all,

Well, the boat is stuffed with food and so is the fridge and freezer. The decks are scrubbed, the sails are on and the new sewing projects are installed.

Here you can see the new cockpit cushions and the weather cloths. The cushions seem a little too full at this moment, but they should lay flat soon. If not, we will trim a little off of the edges of the foam. Otherwise, the cushions seem to fit well and are more comfortable than the old closed-cell foam ones. Closed-cell foam floats and is found in most life jackets. So, we used that foam for our cushions. But, it is hard!! Not soft seating at all. The support post for the bimini passes through the weather cloth, neatly measured by Murray and also cut out of the fabric with his handy dandy soldering gun.

The new main hatch screen should keep most of the bugs at bay. I say most because of the ” no seeums” . They really are no seeums and sneak through the tiniest screening imaginable. We use screening that is like silk stockings, it is so fine. But, it doesn’t allow any air through either. On a hot, airless night it is the pits. Yeah, turn on the a/c right? No a/c aboard, sorry. But there are a couple of fans for such occasions.

You can see the screen in place under the dodger. It snaps in place and yet unsnaps easily to allow access to belowdecks.

So, about our plans. We will leave the marina tomorrow morning early. It will be cooold! Almost freezing. But, by 5 pm we should be anchored at Blount Island, near the entrance to the St John River. Thursday morning, we will head on down the river and into the Atlantic, if the weather stays clear. Within 36 hours we should be in at Ft Pierce and at anchor. If the weather turns against us, there are several ports where we can duck into smoother water.

Because it is unlikely that we will have a wireless connection when we leave the marina, make sure that you write to us at our winlink address. Just in case you forget, it is ve3zua@winlink.org and reaches us aboard through a slow radio connection. So, we request that you do not send photos or jokes to that address. If you have something that we really MUST see, send it to this address and we will get it eventually, whenever we have access to the internet.

Once we have had a chance to test the boat’s systems, we will watch for a window to cross over the Gulf Stream. But, we will keep you posted.

Hugs to all,
Heather & Murray

Windswept IV is launching on November 19th and here are some photos of preparation for that launch. Now we must finish the stocking of the boat. Plus clean the decks of a summer’s crud. Hope to get out of here by Wed, 26th.

Hello all,

Well, the car got fixed, sort of. There is still a problem with the alternator but it will be addressed in the spring. They had to order a part from Europe! That may take a day or two.

So, we left on Wednesday, Nov 5th after spending the night at Steve’s. It was just easier to leave from there as we wanted to turn off the water, drain the waterheater and generally winterize the house as if it might freeze. That shouldn’t happen but if the power is off for a few days, then there is no concern about pipes bursting etc.

The first day got us as far as Tennessee, near Pigeon Forge or Dollywood. Motels were inexpensive there which was a pleasant surprise. For less than $50 we had a very nice. clean room. In the morning we headed off early again. About 100 miles down the road, Murray said “I have a new warning light on the dash”. Upon checking the book, we discovered that it was a bulb failure. Then, just a few moments later, a warning light for the brakes flashed on. Then another, indicating a serious brake failure. We pulled off at the next exit. The brakes were working ok and the brake fluid level was just fine. But, both headlights were burned out. We debated whether to find bulbs now or keep going and try later. Now won out and, following directions, we found a store selling the correct replacement lights. Nearby was a grocery store with a good supply of boxed wine in 5 litre boxes ( not available in Florida where only 3 L is sold ). So, with only a half hour delay we headed out again. No extra warning lights showed on the dash.

We tried a different route down from Columbia, South Carolina that took us off of 95 and through small towns. I enjoyed it very much and there was much less truck traffic. But, it was slower traveling.

Staying near the boat that night was much more expensive than TN. In fact about $40 more! But, before 9 am, we were at the boat. In just one short hour, they lifted us into the workyard and life on the hard commenced.

As there had been 28 inches of rain this summer in the two hurricanes that went over this area, I had expected to see a lot of mildew in the cabin. But, there was very little! In fact she was in great shape. I will still wipe each locker out with vinegar and water before putting anything away.

The batteries were dead, so Murray got the cords out and plugged us in. The inverter/charger hummed away and the batteries were soon being charged. Murray checked fluid levels and added a lot of distilled water. When we climbed into bed that night, I noticed that the wall between the cockpit locker and the head ( bathroom ) was very warm. “No worries” Mur said ” there is a temperature sensor that shuts down the charging if the temp gets to high”. Well, that sensor didn’t work and we were lucky that the boat didn’t burn down with us in it. The batteries were almost melted in the morning and so hot by evening that Murray still couldn’t touch them. Needless to say, they will need replacing. We thought that the inverter/charger had failed somehow but, checking with another battery, it seems to function just fine. The other batteries must have shorted out.

So, work goes on. There is very little space on the dock so we will probably be on the hard for two weeks and do most of the work before launch. It will be a pain to carry all of our supplies up a ladder but there may be no choice in the matter. I will check with the office on Monday to see if we can schedule our launch for the 18th and see what they say. Even that is longer than normal. We have to take the transmission out and get it repaired but I am not sure if we will do it here on the hard or wait. Murray said that the easiest way to get the transmission out was to pull the engine. We have done that before and it is easier than it sounds. Our cockpit floor comes up and then the boom is right over the middle of the engine. Using halyards and pulleys, we lift it out. Of course, it isn’t quite as simple as that as all wiring and hoses must be disconnected first. Oh well, I’ll worry about that later.

That is all of the news from here. Write when you have time. Hugs to all,

Heather & Murray

Hello everyone,

I have been very delinquent this summer and have seldom written a group message. Ten lashes with a wet noodle! But, it has been a busy summer and I have been in contact with most of you individually by e-mail or phone.

Life here has been full of projects. We had new windows put into the whole house and then new furnace and air conditioning units. Those things depleted our pocketbooks but we still found a little cash to search for some furniture. Mostly we bought from garage sales or auctions where the prices were affordable. Between those events and the furniture that we got from Mom, the house looks comfortable and homey now. It still needs some decorating touches, but that can wait.

This past weekend, we purchased all of the flooring necessary to re-do the whole house! There will be hardwood everywhere except for the bathrooms, utility room and entry. Those areas will be vinyl. The hardwood is white oak with a gunstock stain. It will be lovely when we get it finished. Yes, I did say we. Murray and I ( mostly Murray ) will be tackling that job next summer. Probably after the wedding.

The wedding plans are coming along. Steve and Katherine seem to have it all well in hand. We must drop in to Moore’s Mens Wear, in London, and have Murray measured for his tux before we head south. But, I think that is the last of our jobs connected with the wedding before we head out. The rehearsal party is all arranged and will happen at the Lamplighter on May 15th. A pizza party! Appropriate for Steve as that is what he lived on for many years.

Jeremy & Cynthia are very busy right now as well. They will be moving to California on Oct 31st and living in Sunnyvale, CA. He will be working for the same company down there – Alcatel-Lucent. Their house here is listed to be sold as this move may be for several years. Skype will allow us to continue to see them and the grandkids and we wish them all of the best. Besides, it is a lovely part of the world and we have never been there before. Now we have a very good excuse.

The last few weeks have found me buried in our spare room. Murray took the sliding doors off of the closet, screwed them together and placed them on saw horses. That gave me a huge sewing table and I have been making new cockpit cushions for the boat. I made 90 feet of piping and thought that I would run out. But, it was just enough. Now, I only have one area to finish. The cushion that goes over the helm seat. It is actually three cushions attached together with lengths of cloth and having snaps ( also on cloth pieces ) to hold it in place. But, there are three zippers and three sets of sides to attach! Once we get it in place on the boat, I will send a photo. They do look smart, if I must say so myself. They are almost a navy blue, piped with white and the bottom of the cushion is a mesh (phifertex ) in navy to allow the foam to dry faster. I also want to make some weather cloths when we get back to the boat. I will make them out of the phifertex as well allowing us to see through them and the breeze to blow through as well. They will not really keep the splashes out but will give us some privacy for our cockpit showers. Although it has been 12 years without any privacy.

Murray has almost run out of jobs around our house and has been renting himself out to the neighbours. He installed laminate flooring a week or so ago and is blowing out the irrigation systems around us as well. These houses all came with lawn irrigation systems as the ground here is very sandy. To winterize these systems, pressurized air is blown through the pipes to blow out any water left inside. Otherwise they will freeze and burst.

And, we have had some hard frosts already. It is almost time for these snowbirds to fly south. Once the sewing is done, I will start to organize our clothes for the winter. Hopefully much less than we usually had to carry back and forth. The crawl space is already stocked with cans of red salmon and mushrooms to take down, plus homemade green and red pepper jelly ( from our own peppers! ). We find the salmon and mushrooms much cheaper here than in the US. Our neighbour will again be looking after the house and the mail for us and we will rent the garage again as well. The man that rents the garage also keeps the driveway plowed and has the walkway shoveled. Last year that was a significant amount of snow. Steve will stop by monthly to check for important mail. Most all of the bills are paid directly from our bank account, so all should go well, we hope.

Our plans are to be in Green Cove on Nov 4th, for the boat to be moved to the workyard. As usual, we will stay in the yard as short a time as possible. And, also as usual, there is not much room at the dock. So, our time in the water will be shortened. Probably, once we are stocked up, we will head out. So, if all goes well, we should be heading out of the marina by the week of Nov 25th. Then, boogie south quickly to get to a warmer part of Florida. And, watch for a weather window to cross the Gulf Stream. We will be watching over our shoulder though, as eight boats from our home harbour of Port Stanley are also out cruising this winter. Hopefully we can meet up with some of them.

So, that brings you up-to-date on all of our past doings and our future plans. Stay in touch with us when you can.

Hugs to all, Heather & Murray firmly ashore

Near the beginning of June, once we had completed our responsibilities as cat-sitters, we headed northward, to Killarney. I know, that was weeks ago! But, this living on land stuff is very busy and it is hard to find the time to just sit down and write.

Driving down Hwy 637, we spotted three deer and a small bear. Then we started to see the local critters – the staff and owners of the lodge. Everyone made us welcome, especially Maury and Annabelle.

Once we had settled in, we wandered down to the docks to meet the new dockmasters, Tom & Liz. They are also cruisers, on a slow circumnavigation, with their boat currently in Malta. They write a blog of their adventures for BoatUS. Eileen & Dave, the captains of Stormy Night, welcomed us back and shared some wine and stories with us before dinner.

Early in the morning, we met with Tom & Liz again and spent time going through some of the procedures that are not written in the manual – such as changing the prices on the gas pumps ( a common occurrence this year! ) and the location of breaker switches for the docks. They had a list of questions for us and we tried to answer each of them. The day flew by and Murray checked out the little boat after dinner. Arrangements were made to move it to Killarney Marine tomorrow and to place it on our utility trailer, which had a 3500 lb axle ( supposedly ).

I again spent most of the day on the docks, addressing questions and the procedure manual, while Murray dealt with Fandango. The move to the marina went well and then… they lowered it onto the trailer, which kept going down, down, down. This boat only weighs 2000 lbs. The trailer should hold it easily. Finally all was loaded to Murray’s satisfaction and we headed back to the parking lot to tie things securely.

Very early next morning, we headed out. The Volvo complained a little but pulled things along. We stopped in Washago and loaded Mom in, for a visit to our new place in Tillsonburg. As long as Murray kept the speed around 80 km, all went well. Above that speed, the car felt loosey-goosey. And, on the 401 he had to speed up occasionally.

But, we made it to Woodstock, where we stored Fandango at George’s place and, with a sigh of relief, the Volvo kicked up her heels on down to T’burg.

Mom had a busy week with us; going to aquasize classes, walking after dinner, shopping, boating with George & Barb, etc. But, she seemed to enjoy herself very much. The following Friday, Mom & I headed back to Washago, where everyone was delighted to see her back. I spent the night with her and drove home very early the next morning.

Then, we had a couple of days to get ready for our next adventure. But, that is another story. Hopefully, all is well with you. Write or phone when you get a chance.

Hugs to all, Heather & Murray

Hello everyone,

Windswept IV is buttoned up, de-bugged, emptied of extra stuff, covered with sunshade and stored for the hot summer months. Hopefully all of our preparation for the storage will result in a dry, mildew-free boat when we return in late October.

Green Cove Springs Marina was bustling, dealing with all of the part-time cruisers who pop in for a few weeks in spring, haul and store. Then we come back in the fall, fill the work yard for a month or two and depart again. But the crew there handles all of us without many hiccups. They figure out where to store all of these boat and how to retrieve them without moving others in order to do so. A good crew!

Once all was taken care of in Florida, we turned the Volvo northward and arrived in Ontario on April 21st, about a week or so earlier than usual. But, the house was calling me. Things to do, rooms to find furniture for etc. We bought a bed and moved in, without phone or TV! But that is a normal situation for us as we have no phone aboard and seldom can watch TV unless we are stateside. Approx 10 days later, the phone was connected, TV bought, hooked to satellite and I got the wireless up and running also. Yeah! Now I have instruction manuals everywhere as I learn how to run these new systems.Then, I will teach Murray.

Since our arrival back here six weeks ago, we have been keeping very busy: installing garage door opener, ceiling fans, exterior lights, digging out shrubs, planting new ones, finding furniture and tools at auction, visiting family and friends, going to garage sales, and basically just spending money! Man, it is worse than the boat. But, the bleeding has slowed down now and there are days when we don’t spend anything. Hopefully, there will be more of those to come.

Next week, we will travel to Killarney to visit friends at the Lodge, help train the new dockmasters and to retrieve our small sailboat. The decision was made not to launch it this summer, as we expect to continue to be kept busy here for much of the time. Next year we can launch and spend some time poking about in Fandango.

So, that is what has been happening here. A different summer to look forward to.

Heather & Murray

Hello all,

Well, Windswept IV is all put away again for another sailing season. It has been a busy 10 days since we arrived at the marina.

First we cleaned off the accumulated salt from our crossing and subsequent travels into the north wind. Gallons of water washed the decks, dive gear, anchor and chain, sails, dodger and bimini, halyards, lines etc etc. Murray was just in his element, playing in the water. Most of you have seen this phenomenon in person as water flies in all directions. He is dangerous to be around unless you are wearing a bathing suit!

Then we started to unload the boat, sorting through lockers of clothing, books, shells, utensils, tools etc to remove anything that doesn’t get used often and would be better stored at the house. We filled tubs with dressier clothes, shoes etc. Most things will not return, we hope. Meanwhile all surfaces were wiped down with a vinegar mixture to retard the growth of mildew during the hot, humid summer months.

Time was taken to drive some good friends, Ole and Sue Pederson, down to Stuart, FL to retrieve his truck. They had been headed to the Chesapeake when a family emergency brought them to Green Cove Springs. As dock space was limited, they rafted beside us for four nights before hauling out to storage. They spent another day working on the boat in storage to off-load all of their gear. It was a pair of tired people that said goodbye on Wed evening as they headed north towards Parry Sound.

Time also had to be taken to shop for house things. Since we have the trailer, it seemed silly not to fill it, right? You remember, it is a 5×10 landscape trailer and carries quite a lot.

The locker that was rented at the marina was also emptied and contents either sold, disposed of or added to the load. But, today it all came together. We were hauled out at about 9:30 and finished, showered and underway by 2 pm.

Tonight we are north of Columbia, NC on Hwy 77. Tomorrow we should arrive at Fred & Cindy’s place in Cayahoga Falls, OH just in time to have dinner with them. What a plan! Monday morning, not too early, we will continue on our way, arriving at Steve’s house in St Thomas in the late afternoon.

The first order of business is to purchase a bed and have it delivered to T’burg. Once that is in place, we will move into the house. When the telephone is installed, we will contact you all with the number.

Bottom line is ” watch out, they’re baaaack! ” Much love to you all and we look forward to seeing you soon, Heather & Murray

PS Tomorrow will be a difficult day. The Volvo wagon is loaded, with a roof box on top, also loaded. A trailer behind – heavy. Between here and Ohio are the West Virginian mountains. Today, driving in Florida and Georgia on flat ground, the Volvo consumed a noticeably increased amount of fuel. In the mountains……..?? So, Fred & Cindy, we may be later than usual arriving. We will call when we get close.

Hello everyone,

I promised a more complete report on our return journey to the US and, as we motor north in the ICW, finally have the time to fulfill my promise. Or maybe you see it as a threat.

Before dawn on March 28th, we hauled anchor and headed out from Meek’s Patch with High Stepper right behind us. Through the channel between Egg Island and Little Egg and out to deep water was the course plotted. More and more lights showed up as other vessels headed out as well. Most of those turned northward towards the Abaco Islands. High Stepper and us sailed off on a course of 305M and held that exact course almost all the way across.

The winds were light and up our butt so it was a motorsail as we maintained an average speed of 6.5 knots. When the wind piped up, we shut down the engine and when the wind died again, on came the diesel.

There was a beautiful green flash at sunset that seemed to hang in the sky longer than usual. Meals were served in the cockpit as we kept a close watch on vessels around us. During the night, we came close to Freeport. There must have been a backlog of ships waiting for port services as cargo ships littered our path. They all were lit up like Christmas trees which made it difficult to pick out the running lights to determine their direction. Most were stopped. It was very scarey to approach these behemoths and maneuver around them. At any one time we could count a dozen ships within our sight!

We took turns on watch so the other person could sleep for three hours at a stretch. Both of us managed to sleep and felt quite refreshed in the morning. When the sun peeked over the waves I watched for a green flash once more. But, although someone had assured me that they had seen it before, I was not so lucky.

Once we reached the currents of the Gulf Stream, we turned slightly more north to take full advantage of the increase in speed.

We motored into Ft Pierce at 1330 hrs on March 29th. Total distance traveled – 230 nautical miles. Time taken – 31.5 hours. That translates to an average speed of 7.3.

By the time we hooked up to a mooring in Vero Beach, it was 1500 hrs. High Stepper loaned us their cell phone to check in with Customs.

On Monday, we rented a car and headed back to Ft Pierce to Customs for our cruising permit for the next months. The officer was very unhappy with all of us. We were required to report within 24 hours, no longer the 48 hours of other years. As rental cars are not available on Sunday in Vero Beach, we could not report within the time frame and had made that known to the officer on the phone. But, it wasn’t good enough. A written warning was put on our file and, if it ever happens again, we are liable for a $5000 fine and confiscation of our vessel! Yikes!

So, if you are returning to the US aboard a private boat, make sure that you phone in and then appear at the Customs office within 24 hours.

The balance of our stay at Vero was very pleasant. Fred & Cindy Meyer stopped by and took us to visit with Jeff and Heather and their 4 year old daughter Jillian. Sitting around their pool, drinking goombay smashes in the afternoon was hard to take. Murray brought along some lobster tails and we barbequed a mixed grill of chicken, steak and lobster. Mmmmm. Jeff did some magic with a pot of oil and produced wonderful conch fritters. Heather made a lovely salad and strawberry cheesecake for dessert. We may ever need to eat again.

It was hard to pull away from Velcro Beach but we finally did. Bright and early today, Friday, we dropped the lines that tethered us to High Stepper and with tears in our eyes, headed off alone. It has been a very enjoyable time cruising with Doug & Connie and we have shared some wonderful experiences. But our paths separate here. They are flying to Boston for a few days to meet their newest granddaughter and we must head to the marina to haul out and drive north to see our family and friends ashore once more.

Our plans you ask? The weekend approaches and we will arrive in Titusville today and stay there until Monday before heading north again. By mid week, we should arrive at Green Cove Springs. Ten days or so after that, we will haul out and drive towards Ontario. But, we will keep you posted.

Hugs to all, Heather & Murray