This may take awhile. I've been cruising and anchoring out and staying at marinas and visiting friends. I couldn't tell you about it because for some reason my email account became disabled. And, when the email account is disabled so is the blog. I was pretty upset and after some phone calls and some emails, it finally got resolved. I hope that doesn't happen again.
One story I want to tell is about the passage through Haulover Canal. There is a bridge over the canal and it is a drawbridge (AKA a bascule bridge). The bridge raises on both sides but this bridge is undergoing repairs on the north draw, so it is down. The south side is up. As I'm approaching the bridge I hear a boat called Wind Spirit questioning his ability to pass safely. He is a catamaran and is about 25 feet wide. The canal is narrow and he has to hug the south side to get through the open side of the bridge. I called the bridge tender to inform him that I too was passing through. I also asked him to inform Wind Spirit that I would give him a starboard-to-starboard pass. I heard the bridge tender ask Wind Spirit if he copied my message. The captain of Wind Spirit came back with a bit of a diatribe about international law requiring port-to-port passage. I radioed back that since he had to be on the south side to pass the bridge and since the height of my boat was of no consequence in passing under the north side, he could just stay on course and not have to maneuver in the narrow channel. A moment later, he came back and said, "Oh, right. Right! Thank you."
So, that was the day that I was making for Mosquito Lagoon (fortunately just a name, not a condition). My friend Stan, whom I would later visit, sent me an email informing me that a Falcon 9 launch was on the schedule for that night.
I got on anchor in the lagoon just about half an hour before the launch. I grabbed my camera, a glass of wine, and my tablet and climbed onto the bow of the boat. I was a couple of miles north of the launch site. Oh, and I had passed the NASA Vehicle Assembly Buildings on my way to the lagoon. Here is a video of the launch.
Just before getting to the anchorage on Mosquito Lagoon, I spotted a large brush fire on the mainland side of the waterway. The southeast has been hit hard by the drought. There have been huge fires in Alabama, Florida, and elsewhere. Fortunately, the skies were clear, i.e. no smoke, the following morning.
One story I want to tell is about the passage through Haulover Canal. There is a bridge over the canal and it is a drawbridge (AKA a bascule bridge). The bridge raises on both sides but this bridge is undergoing repairs on the north draw, so it is down. The south side is up. As I'm approaching the bridge I hear a boat called Wind Spirit questioning his ability to pass safely. He is a catamaran and is about 25 feet wide. The canal is narrow and he has to hug the south side to get through the open side of the bridge. I called the bridge tender to inform him that I too was passing through. I also asked him to inform Wind Spirit that I would give him a starboard-to-starboard pass. I heard the bridge tender ask Wind Spirit if he copied my message. The captain of Wind Spirit came back with a bit of a diatribe about international law requiring port-to-port passage. I radioed back that since he had to be on the south side to pass the bridge and since the height of my boat was of no consequence in passing under the north side, he could just stay on course and not have to maneuver in the narrow channel. A moment later, he came back and said, "Oh, right. Right! Thank you."
So, that was the day that I was making for Mosquito Lagoon (fortunately just a name, not a condition). My friend Stan, whom I would later visit, sent me an email informing me that a Falcon 9 launch was on the schedule for that night.
I got on anchor in the lagoon just about half an hour before the launch. I grabbed my camera, a glass of wine, and my tablet and climbed onto the bow of the boat. I was a couple of miles north of the launch site. Oh, and I had passed the NASA Vehicle Assembly Buildings on my way to the lagoon. Here is a video of the launch.
Just before getting to the anchorage on Mosquito Lagoon, I spotted a large brush fire on the mainland side of the waterway. The southeast has been hit hard by the drought. There have been huge fires in Alabama, Florida, and elsewhere. Fortunately, the skies were clear, i.e. no smoke, the following morning.
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