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Today is the third anniversary of moving onto Tide Hiker! So we celebrated by arising before dawn and getting underway at first light. We needed to get to our target marina in Ft. lauderdale by lunch time. Some time after lunch we had an appointment to sign the closing docs on the sale of the house in Scottsdale.
Going outside or taking the ICW was a "toss-up". It was still a bit windy and so it might be a little rough offshore, but faster. But going via the ICW would involve passing under 5 lifting bridges, all but one with "opening restrictions".
We decided to go offshore and headed for the channel as the sun rose. It is no overstatement to say that the passage thru the channel was simply violent. It seemed to be a classic case of steady winds opposing the outbound tidal current. Fortunately we had everything pretty secure below, but there was still plenty of crashing and banging from below. But we made it thru and once we could make the turn North, matters settled down. Most importantly, we were able to put the whoopee bowl away, unused.
The 25 miles north were lumpy but fast, as we had pick up a 1 knot current - maybe the edge of the Gulf Stream. We arrived at the Ft Lauderdale light by about 10:30 and headed inland and up the New River. I find the ride up this river simply amazing. This country is so wealthy. Were secure at the dock by 11:30 AM.
The dock is another one of my favorite locations. We are right in the center of the business district (Like being in the Yarra on the South Bank, but without the railway station.) The river banks have been landscaped and made pedestrian friendly. Some people might say that Ft. lauderdale is the epicenter of the American private boating industry - and to see the procession of amazing private boats floating past our windows I believe them.
The "notary lady" arrived on time - in a tight skirt and stiletto heels. Getting her onto the boat was interesting. We executed the docs and she hurried off to FedEx. The actual closing is Friday.
We made dinner res reservations at a "fancy" (table cloths, stainless cutlery etc) French restaurant on Las Olas Blvd, about 1/2 mile walk. We wanted to make the right impression so Deidre put on a dress and I wore shoes. We both had the trout. It was good.
Friday March 13, 2015
Today we have a few jobs on the boat and a scheduled visit from the stabilizer service man. First thing I rode to a local auto store to buy oil for the windlass and popped into the bank. Changing the oil in the windlass gear box was simple enough, but I was surprised how much water drained out with the oil. Surprised enough to call the manufacturer - their reaction was some water was completely normal! So I flushed it with diesel and then filled it with new oil.
The stabilizer man ("Craig") seemed to think our stabilizers were fine, but needed some service. So he will meet us at the Rendezvous in Palm Beach next week to do the work.
Tonight we took a cab to a movie (:The Second Hotel Paradise") followed by pizza.
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| Tide Hiker from the 3rd Ave bridge |
Saturday March 14, 2015
Grocery shopping this morning. Then we grabbed our chairs and headed over to Las Olas for the St Patricks Day parade. We leave in the AM.
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