We Passed!

I am proud to tell you all that Beth and I both passed our Basic Keelboat test with flying colors! Yeah! And there was much rejoicing!!! We just got back from the Pink Elephant once again and, except for a very splashy dinghy ride on the way back to the cat, all is very, very well.  Mark remarked (pun intended) that we are very well advanced and above his normal students. I think he was talking to me, too.  Oh, here's a pic of the famous 'phant!

We are currently perched on the back of the boat in the cockpit so let me set the mood for you.

There is a crescent moon this evening that is shining a beautiful glimmering light aft of where we are sitting. The glow off the water is entrancing and, mixed with the gentle breeze blowing across boat, it makes for a truly enchanted evening. Maybe it's the passing of the first test. Maybe it's the fact that this experience is a first experience of something we have grown to love. Or, maybe it's a few too many beers and Hummers! Whatever the reason, it's a truly enchanted evening tonight!

(Here's a pic or two from our sunset dinghy ride back into Boca Grande)

Btw - Beth's favorite part of the trip may be driving the dinghy. All this money spent and of course she falls in love with a rubber raft with a 15hp engine. Anyway, beware if you see her doing this (above).

At sunset when we went back to the island for dinner, we saw some fireman out playing with their water cannon. Yeah, that's right - a water cannon.

Yes, ladies, it was impressive (and it does matter!)!

Ever since we dropped the hook here, we have been surrounded by dolphins. In the sailing world, dolphins are known as good luck charms and these pictures were taken during our test (and yes, now it's a running joke that I freak out and dash for the camera each time we see dolphins).

We slept pretty well last night so I think that helped our frame of mind. We opened the hatches and port holes and we had a really nice flow of air running thru the cabin - no AC required. Now, in the deeper summer months students get a free sauna with their cabin berth!

Well, I need to shut it down now. It's 10 pm and I want to relax and enjoy another hour of wonderfulness....

PS - it WASN'T a hawk that hit our car after all! It was actually an Osprey that hit our car!! Here's one who hasn't gone all kamikaze on anyone yet...

Test Time

Beth and I are about to sit down and take a multiple guess quiz. I will spare you the drama - Beth is going to smoke me!!!!! The only really tough thing is that we both have multiple bruises on our heads from the Bimini that covers the helm and bridge. Suffice it to say it is helping us with learning how to cuss like sailors out here.  Well, when in Rome, right?  Here are a few pics of the day's events. More later, I hope. No wifi but I have 3G.

We are currently anchored off of Boca Grande and it is ritzy! We took the dinghy ashore an explored the island....

Nice eh?

FYI - cheapest house we saw goes for 750k! But, at least they love elephants and a drink called a Hummer (but who doesn't, right?)...

Out here there are no gas stations so....

They do have lots of nice houses, shops and a couple of churches....

Little pink houses for you and me...

So, now on to the test. Mark says we talk, er, cuss like sailors so we should do well.  Life is a beach either way...

Speaking of Mark...

Mark and I matched today but we didn't plan to... :)

Day 2 - Living the Life

There's honestly nothing like an ice cold beer at the end of long day.  All three of us have popped the top and we toasted to our good fotune of being here in a scenic locale.  The weather today has been outstanding - high 80s with good wind in the morning and late afternoon.  Unfortunately, the wind in the afternoon was a header (blowing you back to the wrong direction off the bow) so we had to "motorsail" much of the afternoon.  Motorsailing is exactly what you'd think it would be - the main sail is up while the motor is running.  The obvious preference is to sail at all times but you do what you have to do to get to your destination when it's upwind. 

Currently, we are sipping some beverages and we have a hobo pack on the grill stuffed with, potatoes, garlic, onion, and a red pepper.  Here's a shot of the cooks:

The steaks will be hitting the grill shortly - it definitely doesn't suck to be out here right now!  "Here" is a place called Useppa Island, home to the insanely wealthy.  The only way to get to this island is by boat and, much like Fantasy Island, this one is private!  We "dropped the hook"  a few hundred yards from shore and I'm picking up a bit of a wifi connection from Cabbage Key.  It's not strong enough to do much but I can get to Google and, hopefully, update the site.  We've settled in here for the day as this is close to the sailing playground known as Port Charlotte Harbor - that's where we'll tack and jibe and play tomorrow....

Last night was a bit of a long night.  You'd think that the sounds of the waves gently crashing against the hull of the boat would be an intoxicating way to fall asleep - well, you'd be wrong!  The waves hit a hollow point in the hull and reverberated like crazy.  It made for a long night.  Your's truly eventually fell asleep - I guess I'm gifted like that.  Meanwhile, Beth had a long night and visted several spots on the cat hoping to find a quiet one - that particular mission was unsuccessful.  Thank God for caffeine and the rush of sailing, right?  :)

We saw several dolphins today and each sighting goes something like this:  Beth and Stephen - "Oh my God, it's dolphins, it's dolphins!!!!"  Mark's reply was always the same - yes, and we'll see a lot more of them as the week goes on.  This essentially meant, now if we can please get back to the tasks of sailing, that would be lovely (he's British so remember that).

So, honestly, that's pretty much the update for today.  Sailing won't be the death of me but this entry into the "head", aka bathroom, just might. The score stands at entry way 2, Stephen none. One was darn near a TKO as I'm pretty sure I was a wee bit concussed after that one...

We've  sailed or motorsailed 30 miles from the Pink Shell to Useppa Island so that's been the the focus of the day.  We dropped the anchor at around 5:30 or so and we'll stay here the night enjoying gentle breezes and scenic views.  Hope you all are doing well - we are still on the right side of the water so we consider that a huge success!!!!

Our bed: