2025-11-16 Friends and fluid leaks.

Sunday, we upped anchor and left Eau Gallie and headed south down the ICW to Vero Beach.  Vero Beach has the nickname Velcro beach because everything is so convenient and easy, you tend to stay longer than not.

Our friends on What If also headed to Vero, and got in before us.  In Vero, rafting of boats is normal as there are limited moorings, and they will raft two deep on catamarans, and sometimes 3 with monohulls.   The office told us we would need to raft, and since our friends Monica and Jason on Breathe were here as well, we opted to raft up with them.   

Breathe and Charm rafted together

Monica and Jason have been here a while, and had a vehicle available to them, so Sunday afternoon we jumped in the car with them and What If and headed to town to run some errands.   Hardware and groceries were on the agenda. 

Monday was back in the car for more errands with Breathe.  Stopped and saw the peacock in Fort Pierce.   

White Ibis and one of the Peacocks.

Went out for a nice lunch at a Mexican restaurant.   That afternoon, we helped Jason rebuild a couple of raw water pumps for his engine.  Monday evening we all went over to What If for happy hour or two.  Always enjoyable to spend time with friends.

Ed, Cathy, Kris, Dean, Monica and Jason.   Fun evening

Tuesday was a chilly morning, so we stayed inside where we had our little electric heater going.  Luckily, it was sunny, so the inside of the boat warmed up nicely.  Dean worked in the head and replaced our leaking macerator pump with a spare we had onboard.   Kris made a dessert, that turned out badly, and stuck to the bottom of the pan, so we scraped it out, in crumbles and ate it with a fork.   We were going to take the desert to a Manta get together in the afternoon, but that did not work out.   We did go to the Manta get together, had pizza and treats and it was great to visit with everyone.  Vero Beach marina has a small lounge we were able to use, which worked out great, as it was still a bit chilly outside. 

What If, Skoolz Out, Charm, Scott and Tina who used to own Sangaris, Breathe, Emanual IV, and Clark who used to own Sojourn

We also found a leak in our salt water wash down pump, which also powers our heads, and a leak in our freshwater supply line to the hot water heater.   Dean replaced a hose on the salt water pump, and Wednesday we headed to town to get a new supply line for the freshwater pump.   All these pumps were in our Vberth area.  These trips to town take a bit of time, the bus is free, but to get to Home Depot we have to take the small bus to the transfer station, then the big bus to the Home Depot area.   The buses come by once an hour, so a three-hour trip minimum.

After the fixes, the Vberth was finally all cleaned and dry again – Until – later that night, found that not just the hose on the salt water was leaking, but now leaking elsewhere.  

Kris cleaning up the water leaks - again

Our friends on Sojourn arrived in Vero on Wednesday, and Wednesday night we went with them over to What If, where Cathy and Ed hosted us for a nice dinner.  This is their last season cruising, so What If will be going up for sale, and they are purchasing a home.  Exciting for them, and we are happy for them, but we will miss seeing them on the water.   We will just have to stop by their house on the land.

On What If for nice dinner

Thursday, our new salt water pump arrived and Dean installed that.   Thinking all was good now, we put all the items back into our dry Vberth storage area.  Our new jib had arrived, so we also put that up.  We also had the end of the camberspar rebuilt and installed that as well.   The jib looks great now, and no issues, so we are finally a full sailboat again.   We also installed the new parts for the engine coolant drain - busy day of projects.

New Camberspar end

Sail installed and looks good

Friday morning, Kris ran the engine a bit for hot water and to charge up the batteries.   Later in the day our replacement spare Macerator pump arrived, so she crawled up in the Vberth to put it away and found water in the Vberth again.   WTF?    We searched and searched, but could not find the source of the water.   Then Kris had a thought, and turned on the engine again to heat water, and sure enough, the tank was leaking, but only when heating.  So we are under the Vero Beach Velcro curse – with one more thing to fix before we leave.   We ordered a new hot water tank.

Friday we headed back into town to get some line to make lazy jacks for our new jib.   The old one did not need them, but the new one is slippery and harder to control when we take it down.  That evening we had another Manta get together, as Sojourn was not there for the first one, and neither was Tracy from Phoenix Rising who arrived on Friday.  Had a happy hour outside as it had warmed up a bit.  Good conversations and snacks.

Alex from Moonraker, Tracy from Phoenix Rising, Pat from Galileo, Duane and Karen from Sojourn, Alf from Bilancia, and us.

Saturday, we helped Tracy rebuild a raw water pump – we are getting good at this.   

Rebuilding the water pump 

Dean went up the mast, and installed the new lazy jacks.   Kris took off the jib cover to start working on modifying it, as it doesn’t fit the new jib quite right.

We will be here until our new hot water tank comes in, and we can get it installed.

 

2025-11-9 Warmer weather, but still moving south. Met up with friends

Sunday we left the free dock, and headed down the ICW to St. Augustine.  There are quite large expansive homes along the way.   I always wonder how many people actually live in them.

Large and fancy homes

Always wonder what they did to earn so much money

New construction going on

When we came into St. Augustine, we had a sandpiper land on our boat.   We figured it would fly off when we anchored, but it didn't.  In fact, it came into the cockpit.   We gave it some water and a bit of wheat bread - which was probably a mistake, as it drank the water almost immediately, and ate the bread, then proceeded to leave 8 watery poops all over the boat and cockpit in the next hour as it explored its new territory.   Hence, we named him "Sir Poopsalot" 

     He was a bold one, even pecked on Deans toes.

Sir Poopsalot eyeing Deans toes

After cleaning up the poop, we took the dinghy to the free dock at Vilano Beach, across the bay from St. Augustine, and walked the short two blocks or so to the Publix.   Loaded our backpacks and bags with groceries and headed back.  Vilano Beach is a very small but cutesy touristy spot, lots of retro 60s style buildings.

Public pier where we tied the dink up

Still a little chilly, but not bad

Nice to see this old motel being renovated.  Bunnies on the sign, and pink flamingo inset into the walls by each door.

Vilano Beach - cloudy and windy

Back on the boat, Sir Poopalot was still around.   We left out the water, and all the bread was gone, but he hung out all day on the boat, leaving us fewer, but still too many presents we had to clean up before they stained the deck.

Monday and Tuesday were boat days.  Wind was blowing 12 to 15, and it was chilly in the wind outside, so we just sat at anchor and relaxed.   Dean made cinnamon rolls.  Kris played computer games.   We did a few odd projects – Kris looked at a water pump that was no longer working well to see if we could rebuild.  Dean changed a seal on the raw water pump on the starboard engine. 

Kris working on the motor

If you don't get a photo quickly of the cinnamon rolls, they may not be many left to photo.   Dean was not as happy as Kris with the rolls, as they were mostly wheat flour this time, so did not puff up much.  Kris loved them

Sir Poopsalot visited us a couple of times, coming to the door to beg for food, but we did not succumb to his cuteness and he gave up finally.

Wednesday we were off again, but a short trip, only 13 miles, and two bridges to open to Matanzas Inlet.  We knew the next leg of the ICW would be too long for us to do in one day, as there were a couple of bridges to open, and we wanted to stop for fuel so we split it up into two days.  At Matanzas Inlet anchorage, there is the Fort Matanzas National Monument.   We have never been, so this was our chance.   We could not go inside, as with the government shutdown, the fort is technically closed.  But we walked around it and saw the cannons.   It is very small, compared to most forts we have seen.

The current rips through the anchorage at 3 to 4 knots, so we definitely swung to the current, not the winds, which were light.

You can see it is not a large fort

Up top, required cannons and nice view of Charm anchored in the back

Thursday we headed down the ICW, and stopped at Palm Cove Marina for fuel.   Since we have been doing the ICW, we have burned through more fuel than usual, and they were offering a $1 off per gallon special if you mentioned the Waterway guide.  Great price on fuel, so we filled the tank, and then headed further south to anchor near Daytona Beach.   That evening, our friends on Sojourn and What If also came into Daytona Beach.

What If looking good, Ed on the bow ready to drop anchor while Cathy's at the helm

Sojourn coming into anchor, Duane and the bow and Karen at the helm

Friday we were middle of the pack of the 3 Mantas heading south.  What If led the way, with Sojourn in the back.   Very windless day, and easy motoring.  We anchored just North of the NASA Causeway bridge.  We made our Friday pizza, and had What If and Sojourn over for dinner.  Nice evening with good conversations – but forgot to take a photo.

Saturday What If and us headed south again, and we will meet up with Sojourn again further south.  We stopped in Eau Gallie with What If.  We went for a nice walk through the town of Eau Gallie downtown, and stopped and got parts at the Ace Hardware.  Lots of murals for a small area we walked.

Mural on the side of the library

Small funky Ace Hardware

Relaxed rest of day on Saturday,   had an Egret land on the boat for a while.  Do we have a sign-up or something saying we are bird friendly?

After dinner, Kris finally could not ignore the odor she felt was increasing from the head.   A quick exploration and found that there was a hose leading from the macerator we use to pump overboard that was leaking.   Was not too much leakage, but enough, no poop leakage is allowed on Charm.   So Saturday night was a couple of hours of cleaning.   We will fix the hose once we purchase a new one in Vero Beach.  No pictures of cleaning poopy water leakage included to protect our viewers from sudden indigestion.💩

2025-11-02 Moving south, and a couple of nights at the dock due to chilly weather.

Sunday, we left Toogoodoo Creek and continued down the ICW.   It is not our preferred way to travel – on the ICW, as we burn diesel which costs money, and you have to constantly adjust course frequently as the waterway is rarely straight.  On the other hand, it is interesting scenery at times, and you have some reduction in the winds, and mostly flat water.  Since is it blowing 15 to 25 knots offshore, with gusts to 35, we decided to stay on the ICW.    

Sailing class out on the water on a chilly day near Beaufort, SC

It is interesting to note all the rivers, cuts and streams we travel down that made up the 56 miles we went on Sunday.  We traveled the Toogoodoo Creek, North Edisto River, Dawho River, North Creek, Watts Cut, South Edisto River, Fenwick Cut, Ashepoo River, Ashepoo Coosaw Cutoff, Rock Creek, Coosaw River, Brickyard Creek, Beaufort River, Port Royal Sound, Chechessee River, Skull Creek, Calibogue Sound, and lastly May River where we anchored for the night.   

We had uneventful motoring, except that during the day, Kris had noticed the port engine running a bit hotter than normal.

Monday was better than expected.  Was supposed to get over an inch of rain, but we avoided most of it.  I gray cloudy day of motoring, but with motoring we have heat, which is great as it is chilly. 

Dean dressed for the cold

Left South Carolina and entered Georgia.  Kris checked the port engine, as we only run one engine a day, and alternate back and forth between port and starboard.   The coolant and impellers looked good, so that will take some further investigation on why it's running hot.

Tuesday more motoring through Georgia.  Mostly cloudy again, and windy and chilly, so the little electric motor was on inside, heating up the boat.   Some of the ICW in Georgia is more shallow, and not as wide.  We encountered a barge in just such a section, which made it tight quarters for passing.

A bit of a tight squeeze 

Wednesday more motoring through Georgia.  We do one hour on, and one hour off shifts all day while motoring.  In the afternoon, Kris noticed the port engine was getting too hot, so she shut it off, and turned on starboard.    We had made the decision to get a marina for Wednesday night to Saturday, as the lows were in the 40s, and Kris did not want to be that cold.   In preparation for coming into the marina, we usually turn on both engines, but we could not get water to pump through the port one.   Multiple tries but no luck.  So we came in to Fernandina Harbor marina on one engine.  No issues, but dockhands to help and very light winds.  The marina also gave us a nice goody bag - they should for the price they charge.

Several attempts to try to get water through made the engine very hot, usually only around 80 degrees Celsius

At the dock we had heat, and had turned the heat to 60 overnight and had a pleasant night.  Dean got up first and turned the heat up, which immediately blew a breaker on the dock.  He put on warm clothes and went out and flipped the breaker, and then back in and it blew again.  So we switched over to our little portable electric heaters to take the chill off instead of the large boat heat pump.

After breakfast, Kris worked on the port engine issue, and took off the impeller cover to discover that there was not much left to our little impeller.  No wonder it wasn’t pumping water.   But had to check all the hoses, and drain some coolant to check everything, as finding all the little rubber bits and getting them out of the system is needed.  But alas, only found one small piece.  The rest must have disintegrated and moved through the system.  

Impeller and cover a bit worse for wear

We took off our camber spar, and Dean removed the end of it by drilling out the rivets.   We walked into town close to noon, and mailed our camberspar end to Coletech in Pennsylvania for a rebuild, and then to Tasty’s for lunch.   Back on the boat, Kris finished up the port engine work, putting on a new impeller and new cover, and the engine pumped water just fine.  We will see if that solves the overheating issue.

The end of our camberspar, looking a bit worn

Nice old post office in Fernandina 

At Tasty's for lunch - Happy Halloween

Our lunch, complete with Halloween candy

Next project was finding out why our heat pump would trip the dock breaker all the time.   Talked to the marina, and they said the dock pedestals would trip at a 30 milliamp stray current.  So Kris started exploring, and most importantly talked to our friend Ed from What If, who is a pro on air conditioning and refrigeration, including heat pump stuff.   No resolution found by end of day, but some issues eliminated.   Will have to keep using our little electric heaters for now.

Friday we headed into town and took our old jib into a store called Sea Bags.  We had taken our old mainsail into the same store in Newport, RI, and gotten a large duffel bag in exchange.  This time we got several smaller bags.    

After that, it was ice cream time, even though it was still chilly, it tasted good, and sitting in the sun was nice and warm.    Friday night, back in for pizza for dinner.

Lots of folks out wandering downtown, as a football game was coming up against the Gators and the Bulldogs.

Fernandina has a nice downtown, touristy, but very understated and enjoyable.  Nice mix of old buildings and small businesses.

Old town hall and fountain

Nice old house

Castle looking church

Back to the marina, where we got some Amazon packages, and worked some more on our A/C heat unit.   Once again, Ed from What If provided great help, and we were able to determine that our 20-year-old unit is giving up, and will need replaced.

Anchor and chain outside the marina.  Our chain is not as rusty as that

Looking at Fernandina Harbor Marina

Saturday we headed out late, and made it to the free dock near Jacksonville.  4 other boats there, and we were invited for happy hour on the large motor yacht behind us. 

Went for a short walk around the area to stretch our legs and saw a couple of storks.

Don't remember seeing this variety of stork before

Not sure how fast we will move south now, as the weather is warmer, so it might be time to slow down a bit.