Leaving Stuart...

 

Well, it had to happen sooner or later.  We finally left Stuart.  It gets hard dropping the comfort of the mooring leash after you've been in a spot for a while.  But as much as we like Stuart, we are really looking forward to some swimming in the pristine waters of the Bahamas.  So off we go.

 

So as a last photo of Stuart, I've selected one of my favorites.  Dave with lobster.  One of the benefits of having a car this season was we were able to go further afield.  So the New England Fish Market became a regular stop for us on our shopping tour.  Beyond the beautiful maine lobster, we enjoyed their crab cakes, scallops, shrimp, snapper, tuna and the list goes on and on.    We discovered a lot about fish this season and learned about what we like and what we don't.  We are hopeful that once in the Bahamas, the fish will be abundant.  Though we will need to catch and filet them before they can be enjoyed.  

 

We opted to go offshore despite the rainy weather that has been plaguing Florida.  The rain had beaten down the waves so while it was rainy on our first day out, the seas were comfortable.  A half dozen dolphin joined in our southerly pursuit and cruised along with us for a while. 

 

We came in at Lake Worth in the early afternoon and dropped the hook.  A neighboring boat complained that we were anchored too close and while we disagreed, we figured it was better to move than not.  It was a  good thing too because in the evening as the winds began to pick up to 25+ knots guess who dragged anchor.  Yep, you guessed it - the neighbor who had asked us to move dragged his hook about 80 feet when the winds picked up.  I guess it was nice of him to warn us.

 

Day 2 offshore was still dreary and rainy, but the winds had shifted a bit more east allowing rolly swells to build.  With the swells came a bit more wind and this enabled us to put the sails up for a while.  We cruised along past Boca Raton, Boynton Beach, and Hillsboro (pictured) before arriving at Ft. Lauderdale.

 

A bit of a blow is brewing so we will be hanging out in Ft. Lauderdale for a few days until the storm passes.

 

Stay tuned for more.

 

The Admiral