Nikki s Panhandle Cruise (Carrabelle to Apalachicola)

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1 Nikki s Panhandle Cruise (Carrabelle to Apalachicola) Day 6, May 22, St. Marks to Carrabelle We pulled out of St. Marks shortly after sunrise, headed down river and entered the open water of the Gulf an hour and a half later. There was a decent breeze, so we set the main and Genoa close hauled to make out first mark to the south west. It took a couple of tacks to clear the first buoy, but once rounded, we were able to ease sheets and took off on a brisk reach toward the southern end of South Shoal where the water was almost crystal clear and current ripped. There, we fell off onto a broad reach to clear the eastern end Sean has lunch and drags his feet. of Dog Reef and St. George Sound. We set the chute and by Bruce Bingham The sailing was great, but by late afternoon, we were being headed and had to sheet in flat. At day s end, we had to make a few tacks to lay the channel entrance. Coast Guard basin at Carrabelle Carrabelle s north shore took off like a freight train with the rail occasionally kissing the water. The Gulf was fairly smooth with a gentle swell, and Nikki moved well on an increasing southerly breeze. We were occasionally surrounded by frisky porpoises that had Sean scampering from one side of the boat to the other in order to get more dolphin Nikk s chute shots. After Dog Island reef, we had to douse the chute and set the Genoa to sail a WSW course to Carrabelle Channel 11.5 miles away. We set up the steering vane. Occasionally, we were rail down, and on one 30 heel, the loosely secured spinnaker slipped over the side and began to trail astern. I was able to grab it and pull it aboard from the cockpit, and Sean make quick work of stowing it safely on the foredeck. Carrabelle s shrimp fleet The Carrabelle Channel was clearly marked and straight forward. It s lined with newly built condos, the Coast Guard facility and ship docks, a few waterside restaurants, and the shrimp-boat fleet and marinas. At 1950, we dropped anchor on the south side of the harbor near several other sailboats and made dinner. Since the wind had died at sunset, I hung the spinnaker from the masthead so it would dry during the night. We turned in early and exhausted. Nikki at Carrabelle

2 Day 7, May 23, Carrabelle to Dog Island and back Early Sunday morning, I repacked the spinnaker while Sean slept. He fixed breakfast once his feet were on the deck while I made a small repair to the spinnaker furling sock. We went ashore for an hour in hope of finding a small length of chain need for the self-steering wind vane without success. We also found the only grocery and hardware stores closed. We d return on Monday. Since we had the whole day absolutely free, we decided to sail over to Dog Island that protects the mainland shore from rough Gulf seas. At 1320, we weighed anchor and motored out of the harbor. The closest beach is only three miles south of the Carrabelle-harbor entrance, and the wind was fresh although right on the nose. We set the main and Genoa and began the short beat at about 4 knots. Within an hour we were maneuvering around a very shallow point into a protected basin that could be clearly seen by the water color. We dropped our anchor in about eight-feet of water. Sean was determined to swim ashore with his underwater camera. He grabbed snorkel, mast, and fins, he plunged over the side. I was concerned them. When you pick up a shell with a hermit crab, they back inside as soon as they are disturbed, leaving only the tips of their claws exposed. The shells ranged from 1-1/2 to 4. Sean and I lifted the Trinka onto the beach, and then began walking bare-footed in the pristine sand. There were very few people in site for miles, but there were about a dozen wooden stilt beach houses. Some were very large and designed to accommodate perhaps up to six couples for a weekend stay. Dog Island beach houses Sean jumps ship in search of treasure and rare shells. about possible sharks at the edge of the drop as well as a strong current that would hamper Sean s progress to the beach, so I rowed the Trinka along next to him. He was more under water than above. His swim to the beach took about a half hour because he was taking lots of photo and video of the bottom. When I arrived ashore, I discovered lots of shells that were inhabited by hermit crabs. Actually, every shell had a crab inside, and there were hundreds of Sean found a live conch that was about a foot long. When he picked it up from the water, it spit at him. I saw lots of (regular) crabs near the edge of the extremely clear water. We walked about eight miles along both the sound and Gulf side of Dog Island. By the time Conch for dinner, maybe? we returned to the dinghy, our ankles hurt. There were threatening clouds approaching, so we decided

3 Majestic sand dunes on Dog Island to skedaddle lest we be caught exposed to northerly winds and waves on the sandy lee shore. Again, Sean decided to swim while I rowed the Trinka. At 1900, we weighed anchor and headed back to Carrabelle harbor under power. We were surrounded by squalls and thunderstorms that produced a beautiful rainbow and dramatic skies. We got in and dropped the hook just as a soft rain began to fall. It lasted only ten minutes, and the storms passed. Explorer Sean A Dog Island crab The south east end of Dog Island with the Carabelle Inlet just visible A squall over St. Georges Sound Ness

4 Day 8-9, May 24-25, Carrabelle to Apalachicola Before heading out, Sean and I went ashore to do some shopping, pick up a short length of small chain for the steering vane, and visited The Rope Man, a shop that only sells rope. The cruise from Carrabelle to Apalachicola was a simple matter of buoy hopping and connecting the dots on the charts. All sailing was entirely inside the narrow sounds St. Georges and Apalachicola) between the mainland and sandy barrier islands to the south. Auto pilot or wind-vane steering did most of the work while I sanded the port toe rail and Sean stood watch (not over me but on the progress of the ship). The Rope Man of Carrabelle Sean on Nikki s foredeck... Apalachicola entrance dead ahead A beautiful Columbia 50 from Henderson, New York docked in Carrabelle Shrimper Captain Allen... a fountain of Apalachicola history and knowledge An impeccably restored old Hunter 27 in Carrabelle The entire transit was sailed with full main and Genoa on reaches with a very nice southerly breeze. The last leg was dead downwind with the Genoa poled to weather. It was really nice. We dropped out anchor a half mile across the channel from the town s waterfront very close to shallow marshes in a swift current. Sean and I rowed ashore near mid afternoon and walked around town. We encountered a local fourth-generation shrimper named Allen who imparted his local knowledge about the local waters as well as

5 the Apalachicola history. He also told us where to find everything and how to get there. We took lot of pics. My primary visual interests in Apalachicola were the beautiful, impeccably restored, historical wooden Victorian homes surrounded by fabulous landscaping. I have lots to show you. We stopped and talked to Estella Banta, the manager of the Coombs House Inn, who invited us in to see this awesome building that dates back to 1905 and was originally the home of James Coombs, the inventor of the ice making machine and the refrigerator. We spent 40 minutes there. The Coombs House Inn The Coombs House Inn gazebo We walked many streets that first afternoon and ventured to the City Marina before sunset and spoke to a local yachtsman who knew everything there was to know about local boating. Sean fell in love with a rugged wooden gaff-rigged ketch that pulled at his heart strings. At sunset, we returned to Nikki and spent an uneventful night swaying to the tide. The second day in Apalachicola was about touring and photo-taking again. Everything gets restored around town and the craftsmanship is fabulous. One historic home, The Flatauer House built in 1908, is now a bank and insurance Coombs House Inn parlor Sean and I were stunned by the trust of total strangers and the grace and hospitality of Ms. Banta, the Manager, who invited us into this breathtaking and historic old home. Coombs House Inn staircase office. On old movie theater is been totally rebuilt from the ground up and is back in business exactly as it was 100 years ago. The Flatauer House

6 Sean and I entered one interesting building and climbed the stairs to the second floor to a music shop and studio where we found Carol Harris playing a guitar. It turned out that she was the daughter of the model, Alice Jean, who posed for the famous 1930s Coca Cola calendars and magazine advertisements. good food, and hospitality, that it is at the top of our list of places to visit again. Here s the daughter, Carol... One of the first Panhandle shrimp boats Good food is everywhere. and... here s her mom, Alice Jean (in 1936)! We were told that Apalachicola has only a 4,000 population, but we discovered so much history, beauty, Local shrimper St. Patrick s Roman Catholic Church in the basilica style of architecture The Gibson Inn... the epitome of grace and old style After an oriental lunch and some grocery shopping, Sean and I returned to Nikki, pulled the hook, and began heading up the Apalachicola River to our next destination, Panama City. Sean set up his camera so it would take a continuous video as we entered the cypress forests of northern Florida.