Sailing PILAR to Everglades? Refugee Boat - Grounding & Gaters - Port of the Islands - Naples FL

Sailing PILAR to Everglades? Refugee Boat - Grounding & Gaters - Port of the Islands - Naples FL

After waiting out the Gale and fixing our radar and VHF, we finally set sail again on Tuesday afternoon. Out St Mary's inlet, headed South! We had planned to stop in West Palm Beach to see my daughter for a day, but the 3 day delay due to the Gale changed that plan for us. We waved as we went by around dinnertime, sailed by Miami around midnight, and turned the corner to sail along the Keys.

Blue Skies, Blue Water greeted us so we flew our pirate parasailor. Then, right at dusk, what do our wondering eyes does appear, but a wrecked homemade boat drifting not 10 feet from our path. Lucky we were on the foredeck and saw it so we could change course. No sign of life - just a wood hull, styrofoam, tarps - all broken up. We called Coast Guard to have them come and scuttle the boat so no one else would run into it.

We reached the turn at Key West in the wee hours of the morning. Still dark, the eager watch crew turned down the wrong channel! So, we had to back it up and lost about an hour:-( Sunrise on our last day turned out a bit cloudy in the Gulf waters with no sailable wind. So, motoring was our choice for the last 8 hours of our trip.

Down the Fakahatchee Pass we went, running aground 3 times (low tide). We were told we had to come in at high tide, but timing just didn't work out that way. So, we waited about 3 hours before we could proceed. We reached Port of the Islands Marina in the dark, and slowly inched in to our new dock slip. Happy to be in our new home, but exhausted, we ate our last meal onboard and slept like babies! The next day was boat washing, fixing a few things, exploring the marina and the surrounding waters - oh, and saying hi to a few alligators.

TIMELINE:
0:00 Finally Sailing Again! down the Florida East Coast
1:41 First catch - a shoe?
4:47 ParaSailor time - along the Keys
5:46 Sailing in the Gulf
6:16 We made it to Fakahatchee Pass
10:56 Running aground and being stuck for 3 hours at Marker 35
14:00 NightTime approach to Port of the Islands Marina
14:58 Amal
17:13 Port of the Islands marina tour
18:39 Gaters in the Dock Water, Pythons in the Area.

LINKS:
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VIDEO SHORTS - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz8Z8h1MloaOcbszDZomQLhRz9PeLVL2G

ALL EPISODES - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz8Z8h1MloaPq2o05r6wnJqaqyeABUKiu

LONG VOYAGES - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz8Z8h1MloaMVYY-0QB1x8dgRkA9laYnD

Blue Dot Voyages is a Sailing Adventure Company. On our Leopard48 Sailing Catamaran PILAR, we sail, fish, snorkel, scuba, and we offer travel advice on our blog and vlog. We offer charter trips when we can. Watch our videos and live vicariously through us!

Master Captain: Stephen Bell
First Officer: Dawn Bell

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