This blog will chronicle our (Pat and Patty Anderson's) cruising adventures on
the Great Loop!
GETTING THERE (HERE)
We left Birch Bay, WA, on March 21, 2017, and arrived in Fort Denaud, FL, today, March 31, 2017. Today we are a short 17 miles away from the Ortona Lock Boat Ramp on the Okeechobee Waterway, where we will launch tomorrow. Our travels took us through Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. We "boaterhomed" at Camp Walmart each night except for an overnight visit with friends in Lakewood, Colorado, a night in a Motel 6 in Memphis, Tennessee, and another overnight visit with friends in Pensacola, Florida. Those nights in real beds with hot showers in the morning were real highlights of the journey!
Our travels were uneventful except for two blown tires. Each blown tire took a chunk of fender with it and a marker light. We now have four new Goodyear Endurance 10 ply load range E tires on the boat trailer. Repair of the fenders will have to wait until 2018!
We are traveling with our Lhasa Apso, Baxter, and our cat, Lucy. We were concerned about traveling with a cat and her litter box, but that has turned out to be a non-issue. The Breeze System litter box tucks neatly under the vee-berth, and there is virtually no odor. She is a very sweet and docile cat, and we are really glad we decided to bring our furry little friend with us!
Our travels were uneventful except for two blown tires. Each blown tire took a chunk of fender with it and a marker light. We now have four new Goodyear Endurance 10 ply load range E tires on the boat trailer. Repair of the fenders will have to wait until 2018!
We are traveling with our Lhasa Apso, Baxter, and our cat, Lucy. We were concerned about traveling with a cat and her litter box, but that has turned out to be a non-issue. The Breeze System litter box tucks neatly under the vee-berth, and there is virtually no odor. She is a very sweet and docile cat, and we are really glad we decided to bring our furry little friend with us!
WHERE WE ARE NOW
We are once again "boaterhoming" tonight but with a Boondockers Welcome (Google it) host. We are parked right alongside the Caloosahatchee River in our host's backyard about 50 feet from the riverbank. Our host, Larry, has provided a great spot in his backyard and an electrical connection (15 amp via an extension cord and our 30 amp to 15 amp adapter), When we complete the Loop, we will cruise by this very spot again. We had drinks with Larry, who also invited us in for a movie, but we decided we needed our rest, There was a nice sunset on the river his evening though!
TOMORROW
Tonight we are in Fort Denaud, FL, a short 17 miles from the Ortona Lock Boat Ramp on the Okeechobee Waterway where we will launch tomorrow.
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| Daydream and Truck on the Caloosahatchee |
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Pat and Patty on the river
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| Sunset on the Caloosahatchee |
TOMORROW
We will pull out of Larry's backyard after coffee and breakfast tomorrow, Saturday, April 1st, and tow the short distance to the Ortona Lock Boat Ramp, where we will launch Daydream and park the truck and trailer temporarily. We will immediately transit the Ortona Lock, and cruise the mile or so to the River Forest Yachting Center, where we will tie up. I will ride my folding bike back to the boat ramp to retrieve the truck and trailer and drive it to River Forest, where we will store it for the duration of our Loop, approximately eight months.This is all because there is no boat ramp at River Forest, and the lock is between the boat ramp and River Forest. We'll disconnect both batteries on the truck so they won't go dead while we are cruising!
We really don't know how long this will take tomorrow, but we don't want leave River Forest in the afternoon, so we will spend Saturday and Saturday night tied up at River Forest for a Sunday morning departure. We will get everything on board and secure, including our Sea Eagle inflatable kayak and our two folding bikes. We will replenish our water supply. We will make sure out Coastal Explorer navigation system is all connected correctly and working. Finally, we will decide where we want to spend Sunday night!
AND DAYDREAM BEGINS THE GREAT LOOP!
After we are away from River Forest Sunday morning, we will be, like all first time Loopers, on our own with some apprehension but confidence that we are as well prepared as we can be! We have our Skipper Bob guides and Active Captain on both Navimatics on the iPad and on Coastal Explorer on the navigtion computer. We will be running the America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association app that will show other cruisers where we are and show us where they are. We hope to soon meet other Loopers, but however that works out, we will, after five years of dreaming and a year of planning, finally be starting on Daydream's Loop!
We really don't know how long this will take tomorrow, but we don't want leave River Forest in the afternoon, so we will spend Saturday and Saturday night tied up at River Forest for a Sunday morning departure. We will get everything on board and secure, including our Sea Eagle inflatable kayak and our two folding bikes. We will replenish our water supply. We will make sure out Coastal Explorer navigation system is all connected correctly and working. Finally, we will decide where we want to spend Sunday night!
AND DAYDREAM BEGINS THE GREAT LOOP!
After we are away from River Forest Sunday morning, we will be, like all first time Loopers, on our own with some apprehension but confidence that we are as well prepared as we can be! We have our Skipper Bob guides and Active Captain on both Navimatics on the iPad and on Coastal Explorer on the navigtion computer. We will be running the America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association app that will show other cruisers where we are and show us where they are. We hope to soon meet other Loopers, but however that works out, we will, after five years of dreaming and a year of planning, finally be starting on Daydream's Loop!
