WELL WHAT A SWELL TIME THE WEATHER WAS PERFIC I WAS IN THE SAIL ONLY SECTION WITH THE TUCKERS BUILDING BOATS AND HAVING FUN SEEING OLD FRIENDS AND READING STORIES TO THE TUCKERS KIDS ABOARD NOW WE ARE BACK IN PARADICE THE FLA KEYS SAILING AND REACHERING FOR THE NEW BOOKS THANKS TO ALL GOD BLESS ANOTHER YEAR FRANK AND NORA PAPY
MON THIS STORM DID SOME BAD DAMMAGE TO ALOT OF THE MARKERS SO IF YOU ARE CRUISING CONTACT THE COAST GUARD FOR THE LATEST INFO . LOTS OF FLOTSUM AND JETSUM AROUND ALSO THE KETCH SINBAD REPORTED TREES AND BUG HUNKS OFF MANGROVE ISLANDS OFF PLANTATION KEY WE HAD 112 KN WINDS SO SAIL WITH A YEATHER EYE OPEN AND CALL 305 8522326 I CAN GIVE YOU WHAT NEWS I HAVE FAIR WIND S F M PAPY SLOOP SKY BIRD
latest up date on reta we had winda of 70 and 80 knots a lot of private dockd rewe nocked down but had no efect on comercal operations / katrina / the big wind had the power to up right the ;/speal grove ; the artificial reef ship 500 ft long she had been on her side now she is sitting up right / mon dats de power fo a huricane/ she is in about 100 ft of water well thats the latest news from the keys F M P
book for the rest of florida to help crusers i tell em florida cruising directory is the best one evens covers the bahams gina smith keeps it up to date in her check out trips for each edition and like me she keeps the price low for the famaly cruisers this blog is for 3 request i got from boat show fair winds writen from cockpit of the ….sky bird…anchored off b. pine key….fair winds… nora papy ….mate
well mon if you hearin up round walkers cay in de northern abacos dont wast your tine they silll not got there docks fixed from the last hurricane….. notes for bimini the main chanel thats runs along south bimini in to alice town harbor is sholed up in front of the condos where the chanel comes out for there harbor last we heard at low tide only 4 to 5 ft……….chub cay check they are closing de harbor for to dig it out to 12 ft to get all dem grand big yachys in say they will still have de fuel dock open…….and its still 300 to clear a boat over 35 ft das it for now see you in george town fair winds ….sky bird……morgan 34
marathon … dock side marina has been sold su you cant tie up your dinge ut there any more …. .littli palm island is charging 300.oo to dock over night to keep the rif raf out ….call for latesr rates for dock space in key west….. 25 more bouyes have been added around fleming key ……..fair winds
my little grand daughter 2 came to visit su in the florida keys when they got here after the long ride when she got out of the car,she took my hand and walked me down to look at the ocean we stood there for about 5 minints i did not know what to do i was so amased it was one of the great days of my life, that night befor she went to bed she looked out the window and said nite nite ocean the next day we went saling she loved it and we got some great pictures i used one of morgan and i at the helm on the back fo my latest sailing book how blessed we are doing what you love with the ones you love on the beautiful blue sea,
We caught a lolt of nice fish yesterday, adn a bad storm came up so we came in. Wind came up to 40 miles per hour. It was nice to get over to the Lorelei for a rum and coke. Frank & Nora Papy.
As a semi-retired writer/sailor (which means 3 books gives us enough dough to be semi retired after 35 years of sailing) me and the old lady still get a kick out of our old Morgan 34 sloop. Where the boat is docked is 5 minutes from the house, means we can be out in Hawk’s Channel in 20 minutes and in the Gulf Stream in an hour sailing and in blue water with calypso music on the box and 2 rigged Ballyhoo trailing off the stern on 100 lb test line. We are going for food and its hard to slow down under sail. Some of my contermporaries say “Don’t you get bored with the same routine?” Well, there ain’t nothing routine when you are doing something you love and have passion for and the setting’s the same.
Down island, Bahamas, Keys, I’ve sailed them all - clean water, good wind, plenty of fish, sandy beaches, palm trees, ladies in small bathing suits, good food, drinks, and music. Sometimes on a charter I would wake up at dawn and wonder where I was- Keys, Bahamas or Virgins. Well, we settled in America’s out islands.
BUZZZ! Grab the other rod Nora - we got two dolphin on the line at the same time! We have come in with 10 to 15 lbs of filets on a good day. If the fishing isn’t that good we will come back in through Snake Creek into Florida Bay and anchor off Plantation Beach, a great spot with palms & the whole magilla. This sailing destination is just one and a half hours from our dock. How can you beat that? In fact, I had a charter at this beach about 5 years ago. With the boat anchored off, we were sitting there on the beach after coming in on the dinghy, and the charterers said 2 years before they had chartered in Tahiti, and how this scene was so much the same with out the trouble, expense and 20 hour flight!
On the weekends, after a nice sail, we will some times stop at the sand bar off Holiday Isle and join in on the festivities - swimming, picnicking, dancing, and the party mood put on by local boaters. Or we might go into the dock at Holiday Isle for a late lunch and a dip in the pool as my wife bops me over the head for checking out the bikini ladies and biker chicks. Then we head back out on the boat under full sail, heeled over 15 degrees, making 6 knots with another hour to go.
With the feeling of the power of the sails, the hypnotic motion of the waves in tune to a little classical music, my wife sitting next to me, I hate to get back to the dock, but then its back to the AC, the dish with 500+ channels, the computer. But the next morning, up at 6, check the marine weather, 10 to 15 kts clear, and its over the boat and get everything ready in the car. I still get that extra shot of adrenaline or whatever it is! Alright! another day sail off Islamorada!
Living aboard and chartering sailboats for thirty years, I find myself fascinated with everything nautical. I can go to a junk shop or yard sale and spot anything connected with boats or the sea before you can say “Bob is your uncle.”
Being the two-year-old that I am, I compare this to the finest diploma from MIT. Thank God my wife and daughter love sailing. We find being on the water creates an awareness like to nother and I have tried it all. Racing cars, motorcycles, flying and jumping out of a perfectly good airplane. Being on baord a sailing vessel, it’s a peaceful awareness. But, you must be open to the slightest impressions to take the porper action or you could lose your vessel or the lives of your crew and yourself. That’s the rub. It requires the greatest effort, therefore creates the greatest reward. Adventure, passion and madness. We crow like a rooster at the sunrise, and how like a wolf at the moon, listen to music and dance whenever possible.
To do something you really love doing and have passion for is truly one of the great pleasures of life. Job security - zero, health insurance - zero, retirement - zero. Like my good friend Captain Dennis says, “it’s not a job, it’s a lifestyle.”