My best wishes to Lydia and Skip for eventually getting this in the
past and toward years of cruising. We got hit by lighting shortly
after embarking. Fried almost all the epensive new electronics, even
the Lectra/San and fridge. Not as tramatic nor as expensive, but we
certainly condidered buying a motorhome or a house in the desert. So I
know a little bit how you guys are feeling.

Re getting to Marathon. Did the hurricane(s) change things a bunch? We
did a follow-the-coast run down from Anchlote Key (Tarpon Springs) to
Marathon. Basically kept in about 20-ft of water along the coast and
anchoring out at the end of the day. Just didn't seem worth it to try
to make it to some pass or the other, then take all the time to run in
and find a spot. Nor to do the 24-hour watch bit. (We learned long ago
that if you're on a schedule, write said schedule down, then take it
on deck, rip it up vigoriously and toss it overboard.) Some of the
time, with very strong Easterly winds, it would have taken all night
to get it. We always figured if you're out there all day in the muck,
why not stay all night at anchor in the same stuff? Kind of the
reverse of the shrimp boats that anchor all day, then drag at night.

Made the run from Cape Sable to the light at Sawyer Bank, then right
there into Marathon. This with a 6-ft draft.

Many moons later did the same run in reverse, coming into the Gulf at
the 7-mile bridge, then to Sawyer and to Cape Sable. Incidently, I
wouldn't make that part of it at night unless you want to aquire
dozens of crab or lobster pots.

Did have an interesting experience just as we started to round up to
anchor off Cape Sable. The winds had been strong, I forget the
numbers, but we made the run from Marathon under working jib and
mizzen at hull speed plus. Just as we were fixing to get ready to
anhor we got hit by what must have been a microburst! All of a sudden
an ear-busting ROAR and the boat almost laid down. The jib literally
shattered into thousands, or at least hundreds, of pieces. Almost
before we realized what was going on it was over. We spent some
moments "discussing" this in loud shouts to be heard over the ringing
and temproary deafness.

Do NOT. I repeat DO NOT ever believe the NOAA weather forcasts and
even current conditions. Not anywhere in the Gulf of Mexico in the
winter and shortly before and after winter. Well in FL, AL, MS and LA
anyway. I don't know about TX. Expect everything from 5-kts and almost
calm to 65-kts and huge seas in any given 24-hour period.

I used to do the wait-for-hurricane-season-to-end bit. Not no mo'. I
do believe NOAA re tropical storms and hurricanes. That they do good!
It's a lot less trouble to keep an ear peeled and head for a hurricane
hole, but a heck of a lot more time is spent cruising in ideal
conditions rather than fighting the elements most of the time. Again
I'm speaking Gulf of Mexico.

Rick