Isla Mujeres towards Fort Lauderdale End of Day 5

These Blog entries are edited versions of the messages we sent back as we completed the passage.  They were sent by radio using a laptop that controls a modem and the HF/SSB radio, using the SailMail system.  We sent the messages daily to my daughter Charlotte and she then forwarded them on to a list of family members.

0745hrs (EDT, GMT -4) 17 May 2020

Dear All,

Since midnight we have only run the engine for an hour and half.  The rest of the time we sailed and it was good sailing too with the wind on our beam.  For part of that time we had a bit of a boost from the Gulf Stream, even seeing a maximum of 9.5 knots at one stage.  So much so that I had to slow BV down so that we didn't arrive off the entrance to Fort Lauderdale too soon.

Miami

The sail up the Florida coast was interesting with the bright city lights of Miami off to our port side and a dramatic lightning display way off in the distance to our starboard side over the Bahamas

Dawn looking out towards the Bahamas…

… and towards the Florida coastline

A rather grey sky for our early morning approach through Bar Cut, the entrance to Port Everglades, Fort Lauderdale

We just made it in time for the 0730hrs opening of the Stranahan River bridge

In hindsight slowing BV down was a mistake and we only just made it through the entrance and up to the SE 17^th Street bascule bridge across the Stranahan River a minute before the 0730hrs lift!  A few minutes beyond the bridge is Richie and Susan Goldstein's house.  They have very kindly allowed us to moor BV on one of their 2 docks whilst we make our final preparations and wait for a good weather window to set off towards Guernsey.

So now that we have arrived, our priority is to complete the arrivals paperwork with the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) office.  That's partly done using a smartphone app (the CBP ROAM app) followed up by a trip to the CBP office to get our passports stamped and the boat documentation completed.  If we can get all of that admin done today, Sunday, that will be a bonus, leaving us free on Monday and Tuesday to refuel, top up our in-use propane tank and to buy in some fresh food.  Right now there is a possibility that we might be on our way again starting our transatlantic crossing as early as Wednesday.

Love to all,

Reg and Nicky 

Passage statistics:
Position at 0745hrs 17 May: N26 06 W80 07
Position at midnight 17 May: n/a
Midday to 0745hrs distance: 130 nautical miles (average 6.6 knots)
Midnight to 0745hrs distance: 49.2 nautical miles (average 6.3 knots)
Total miles covered:  559 nautical miles
Approximate distance to go (GPS route to Fort Lauderdale): 0 nautical miles

End of Day 5  Isla Mujeres, Mexico, towards Fort Lauderdale, USA

Isla Mujeres towards Fort Lauderdale End of Day 4

These Blog entries are edited versions of the messages we sent back as we completed the passage.  They were sent by radio using a laptop that controls a modem and the HF/SSB radio, using the SailMail system.  We sent the messages daily to my daughter Charlotte and she then forwarded them on to a list of family members.

2359hrs (CDT, GMT -5) 16 May 2020

Dear All,

Motoring along at dawn

At midnight last night we switched to engine power.  The wind had gradually dropped to less than we really needed to sail and the Gulf Stream was pushing us towards a rather unpleasant dark cloud complete with frequent flashes of lightning.  With the engine running we could steer directly to our waypoint off the Florida Keys and avoid the storm clouds.

Glassy seas

Sadly, except for a brief 35 minute period just now, the engine has been running ever since.  It was to be expected from the forecast but perhaps not that there is absolutely no wind at all.  The sea became glassy as we made our way around the southern tip of Florida and there has barely been a breath of wind as we have motored north towards Fort Lauderdale.  We still have 50 miles to run and so, assuming all continues as it is, we should be arriving at around 0530hrs later today.  That's before dawn so we'll probably slow up bit or wait outside until daylight to enter harbour.

Squalls at sunset; fortunately, a long way off

The other great excitement came first thing this morning when we switched time zones. So, we are now running on Florida time, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), which is the same as Atlantic Standard Time.  We split the loss of the hour over a quick breakfast between our watches so we only lost half an hour's sleep each.  We'll need to get used to that procedure as we head east across the Atlantic but at least we can safely say that we won't end up jet-lagged!

Love to all,

Reg and Nicky 

Passage statistics:
Position at midday 16 May: N24 15 W81 20
Position at midnight 16 May: N25 18 W80 03
Midday to midday distance (23 hours because of the time change): 139 nautical miles (average 6 knots)
Midnight to midnight distance (23 hours because of the time change): 148 nautical miles (average 6.4 knots)
Total miles covered:  510 nautical miles
Approximate distance to go (GPS route to Fort Lauderdale): 50 nautical miles

End of Day 4  Isla Mujeres, Mexico, towards Fort Lauderdale, USA

Isla Mujeres towards Fort Lauderdale End of Day 3

These Blog entries are edited versions of the messages we sent back as we completed the passage.  They were sent by radio using a laptop that controls a modem and the HF/SSB radio, using the SailMail system.  We sent the messages daily to my daughter Charlotte and she then forwarded them on to a list of family members.

2359hrs (CDT, GMT -5) 15 May 2020

Dear All,

Much smoother seas today – nice!

BV sailing between 2 large rain squalls

We had much more comfortable sailing today because the seas had reduced slightly but we are still having to beat into wind to make headway east through the Florida Straits; it's a frustrating bit of water to sail through!  The wind remains directly from where we want to get to and the Gulf Stream isn't helping as much as we hoped it would.  But at least we are sailing.  Yachts that set off after us have been advised that the wind will drop and that they will need to motor through pretty much the whole of the straits.  It's slow progress east for us tacking backwards and forwards but being further north we should be able to sail for longer.  That said, at some stage soon we will need to switch the engine on and will likely need to motor the rest of the way to Fort Lauderdale.

We are still managing to dodge the odd rain squall or 2 and it's not completely clear yet what is going on with the potential tropical low forming over Cuba, so we'll need to monitor that closely as best we can.  SSB communications were not great today.

Aside from that, here's not a lot to report; slow progress roughly in the right direction sums the day up.

Love to all,

Reg and Nicky 

Passage statistics:
Position at midday 15 May: N23 59 W83 57
Position at midnight 15 May: N23 42 W82 44
Midday to midday distance: 157 nautical miles (average 6.5 knots)
Midnight to midnight distance: 151 nautical miles (average 6.3 knots)
Total miles covered: 362  nautical miles
Approximate distance to go (GPS route to Fort Lauderdale): 230 nautical miles

End of Day 3  Isla Mujeres, Mexico, towards Fort Lauderdale, USA

Isla Mujeres towards Fort Lauderdale End of Day 2

These Blog entries are edited versions of the messages we sent back as we completed the passage.  They were sent by radio using a laptop that controls a modem and the HF/SSB radio, using the SailMail system.  We sent the messages daily to my daughter Charlotte and she then forwarded them on to a list of family members.

2359hrs (CDT, GMT -5) 14 May 2020

Dear All,

We stayed on Nicky's northerly tack through the night and all of today, Thursday 14 May.  And a combination of the north-flowing Gulf Stream and the wind veering a little more to the east-southeast, meant that we pretty much reached the recommended 23 30N 85 15W waypoint.  The question thereafter being how best to play the wind and the current to beat east towards Key West/Miami/Fort Lauderdale.

In the end we decided to continue to ride the Gulf Stream up to the northeast and to tack somewhere around latitude 24 30N. Somewhere in and around here the Gulf Stream turns to flow southeast, before later flowing due east.  We're not exactly sure what heading or track we will achieve when we tack but if we're lucky we'll be able to ride the stream back down to where it turns east and at that point we will either try short tacking along the stream or, if there are too many big ships in the fastest part of the stream, will short tack eastwards on its northern side.  And then, of course, there's the question of whether or not the wind will veer more northerly as currently forecast or run out entirely (as forecast for late Sat or Sun).

The other 'interesting' weather situation developing at the moment is a rotating low pressure region, likely to become the first tropical low of the season.  It's currently developing over Varadero in Cuba and is forecast to move northeast to the northern Bahamas over the weekend before heading northeast out into the Atlantic.  Not that the northern Bahamas really need to see another tropical rotating storm just yet, after the destruction and deaths wreaked by Dorian last September.

Love to all,

Reg and Nicky 

Passage statistics:
Position at midday 14 May: N23 08 W85 33
Position at midnight 14 May: N24 18 W85 56
1415hrs to midday distance: 133 nautical miles (average 6.1 knots)
Midnight to midnight distance: 153 nautical miles (average 6.4 knots)
Total miles covered:  218 nautical miles
Approximate distance to go (GPS route to Fort Lauderdale): 336 nautical miles

End of Day 2  Isla Mujeres, Mexico, towards Fort Lauderdale, USA

Isla Mujeres towards Fort Lauderdale End of Day 1

These Blog entries are edited versions of the messages we sent back as we completed the passage.  They were sent by radio using a laptop that controls a modem and the HF/SSB radio, using the SailMail system.  We sent the messages daily to my daughter Charlotte and she then forwarded them on to a list of family members.

2359hrs (CDT, GMT -5) 13 May 2020

Dear All,

Day 1 of the passage from Isla Mujeres in Mexico was a very long day.  We checked the GRiB files and listened to the weather forecast at 0800 the wind would be south of east at somewhere between 15 and 20kts but there would be squalls coming off Cuba.  On balance though, it seemed right to us to make the move onwards.  We'd be beating for most of the time and the seas might be rather large and unpleasant in the Gulf Stream when it curved to the run east, but if we left it another day, or worse two, we'd be motoring the whole way.  As it was, we thought we'd be doing a fair amount of motoring.

Nicky took Carla from Moody Mistress into the Port Captain's dock at about 0930, to complete the exit paperwork from him prior to the appointment with Immigration at the palapa at the root of the dock.  They anticipated a relatively quick turn-around, but no.  The Port Captain informed them that they hadn't actually completed the check-in the previous day, just the Health and Immigration processes.  So there followed a two and a half hour form filling and waiting exercise as the Port Captain cleared both vessels in and out at the same time.  Happily, the officer they dealt with did not insist on the originals and FIVE copies of all the documents (passport, boat registration, zarpe from last port etc) for checking in and a further TWO sets of the same documents for check out.  However, he did insist on a written statement from each of them as to why the yachts had arrived in Isla Mujeres rather than Key West in contravention of the zarpe (exit paperwork) issued by Roatan.  Then they needed to pay the Port Captain's clearance in and out, necessitating a walk to the bank (the wrong bank to start with) where there was the faff of paying in US Dollars and getting change in Pesos.  Followed by a walk back to the Port Captain to pick up the now completed paperwork before returning to Immigration (conveniently located next to the bank!) for stamps in passports etc.  But they got the job done, and more efficiently in terms of use of time than if we had properly completed our check in the previous day.

Old engine oil in the bildge – a clean up job
we could do without!

Meanwhile, I prepared BV for sea, only to discover a bilge full of oil.  Nightmare!!  Further investigation proved that the engine had not blown up, as I had immediately assumed was the issue, rather one of the bottles of used engine oil left over from when we completed the oil change in West End Roatan (there was no suitable waste oil dump, so we kept the oil on board) had sprung a leak.  I did a reasonable clean-up job but there's plenty more to go, including a fair quantity still in the bilge, sloshing around with Bilgex now.

Leaving Isla Mujeres

Leaving Isla Mujeres

The day's curve-ball dealt with, I completed most of the rest of the pre-departure tasks but there were still a few that only Nicky could deal with and by this stage we both also needed to eat some lunch, so we didn't actually get underway until about 1415, a good couple of hours later than we had hoped.

BV final sailing nicely.  But there were some towering cumulus clouds to keep an eye on because there would be squalls underneath them

The Gulf Stream gave us a big push up the coast
and at one stage our speed over the ground was 9 Knots!!

The first 3 hours of the passage were under motor in virtually nil-wind conditions but then the wind filled in from the south-southeast at about 15kts so with a reef in the main, the staysail and full genoa, we headed off as close to the wind as we could.  In an ideal world we knew we should head for about 23 30N 85 15W as the Gulf Stream runs north to about that point and then east from there.  Routing via that point would give us maximum help from the current.  But with the wind forecast to go easterly, Key West and Fort Lauderdale are both located well upwind of Isla Mujeres.  So rather than sail off wind a bit and then have to make up an additional 100nm beating, even with the benefit of the current, we reckoned we would be better to head up and point almost directly on the as the crow flies track.

It's a moot point really, as within a couple of hours the wind had backed and we couldn't lay the 23 30N 85 15W waypoint let alone our waypoint in the Florida Keys.  But we had a good shove from the Gulf Stream and so were making about 7.5kts over the ground for a boatspeed of around 6kts.

Towering cumulus clouds, the tops picked out by the setting sun

We had dinner in daylight.  We haven't done that underway for a while, which was definitely a benefit of the time change in Mexico, and then Nicky got her head down.  She'd only been asleep for about 90mins when I needed to wake her.  A huge thunder cell was looming over us and I needed help to reduce sail and then, when the torrential rain hit, to make sense of the instruments which I could hardly see through my fogged up glasses.  With the radar going we could see the extent of the cell and decided that tacking onto a southeast heading would help us clear it sooner; we really didn't want to go underneath it if as all possible!  The north-flowing Gulf Stream reduced our speed over the ground a bit but gave us a good easterly course and eventually, about 3hrs after I called Nicky up, we cleared the storm and I had the opportunity to dry off and get some sleep.  Meanwhile, Nicky tacked us back onto a more northerly course as the easterly course was aiming us directly at another big storm.  We stayed on that tack through the rest of the night.

Love to all,

Reg and Nicky

Passage statistics:
Position at 1415hrs 13 May: Isla Mujeres
Position at midnight 13 May: N21 53 W86 08
Midday to midday distance: n/a nautical miles (average n/a knots)1415hrs to midnight distance: 59 nautical miles (average 6.0 knots)Total miles covered:  59 nautical miles
Approximate distance to go (GPS route to Fort Lauderdale): 448 nautical miles

End of Day 1  Isla Mujeres, Mexico, towards Fort Lauderdale, USA