December 2013 Recap

Dates: Dec 1-31, 2013

Saint Mary's, GA - The Florida ICW to Lake Worth - The Atlantic Ocean to Miami Beach

Sailing: 7 hrs

Motoring: 71.5 hrs (includes motor-sailing)

Mileage: 324 Nm (Nautical Miles)

Budget Amount:      $1590.00 US (All budgeting is in US funds)

Charts/Books:          $      32.00     

Boat Parts:               $    829.00     

Marinas:                   $     21.00

Diesel:                      $   166.00

Beer:                        $   241.00

Grocery:                   $ 1073.00

Restaurant:               $   173.00

Fees/Services:          $      93.00    (pump-outs, laundry, wifi, taxis, etc...)

Clothing/Shopping    $    732.00   

Misc:                       $   608.00     (Propane, hobbies, etc...)

Total:                      $  1590.00

Debit/Credit:            $ -2378.00

Anyone choking.... I know we were, and we knew it was coming. We'll go in order for lack of better method, so first up is:

Boat Parts - I couldn't believe it when we totaled this up, and had to go back to check. Mostly bits and pieces to finish jobs, a few engine parts, some new jugs, a light, some storage totes, and some small plumbing pieces. You know it, nothing is cheap on a boat. There are still a few more items to pick up before we leave the US. 

Beer - Ha, and you were probably thinking this should be much higher, after all there are 200 cans on the boat as part of the replenishment. And yes, we were just as surprised to see the number this low. Gotta love US beer prices. 

Grocery - Holy crudeous, (new word), but there is a lot of food on this boat right now. We probably have 15 lbs of cheese alone, in the fridge. And every nook and cranny has been stuffed with something. And there is still more to go.

Fees - Included a year subscription to DAN (Divers Assistance Network). They provide $100,000 evacuation insurance for members. And, apparently, they are very very good at what they do. Get hurt in a remote area, these guys will bring in the Navy Seals to extract you and get you to a hospital. Okay, not the Seals, but close. 

Clothing and shopping - Mostly Xmas presents for our lovely children, and our awesome grandbaby, but we did buy a few items for ourselves. Its not illegal to own something nice once in awhile. Problem is, when you live outdoors, the companies that make good clothes for the outdoors, don't give them away free; right Columbia and North Face! And lastly:

Misc - This has been pounded by a shopping spree at the dive shop, and a new Go Pro underwater camera. The camera wasn't cheap, or essential, but hopefully some nice underwater Bahamas video will make it worth while. The dive equipment included skins, (thin body suits), to protect us from the sun and coral while we dive. A new pole spear for hunting wabbit, or lobster and fish maybe.

Either way, we expected to be way over this month, and we expect to be way under for the next three months. We still have a bit of provisioning to do, and there is the $150 entrance fee to the Bahamas, so January might be tight, but Feb and Mar should be okay, baring any unfortunate circumstances. The good news is that because our budget is based solely on my pension, any monies that our investments bring in are superfluous, and we made more money on our investments than we gave up on our budget overages. Unfortunately, because we spent so much money in the spring during the refit, that our net worth is actually down slightly, but an amount that is rather insignificant. At this rate we should be able to cruise indefinitely. Or at least until we get sick of it.

I got rid of the "Lessons Learned", of previous month ends, and am opting for more of a general feeling of the month. This months focus was to get to somewhere where we could stage for the Bahamas, provision, and wait for a weather window. That's pretty much what has been happening, but at a much slower pace than we could have anticipated. When we left home we knew there would be times when we would have to sit still for awhile to recuperate from some physical ailment. Serena tends to really get layed up when she is broken, where as I still manage, just at reduced capability. No problem. What we didn't see coming was a common cold zapping two weeks out of our plans. Just goes to show that anything can happen, and all anyone can really do is just go with the flow.

We originally had this great idea that we would complete the ICW, from end to end, just once, to say we did it. We ended up giving up, right at the end, knowing that putting up with all those bridges would drive us insane. We'll not likely ever do that stretch in Vita, but we may stop in Fort Lauderdale next year, as we hear its a great place to provision. But more importantly, we are learning to go with the flow instead of making schedules or rules, for ourselves. 

A few words about provisioning. First of all, and I know that some people already know this, but there is a lot of people that believe that we boaters provision because of the lack of availability over in the Bahamas, and that's not entirely true. Its true, that some of the things that are available in the US, are not available in the Islands. But, the main reason is price. Its a lot more expensive to buy most things in the Bahamas than it is here. Certain items are really expensive, $17 for 24 beer here, $54 for 24 beer there. Doesn't take a genius to figure out that you should take as much beer as you expect to drink, if you have the space. But more importantly, if you find something you really like, at a price that is good, you should stock up with as much as you can reasonably carry. When we got to Miami, we couldn't get Serena's beer, so she is stuck drinking Bud Light. We can't find our kraft peanut butter, Serena's favorite chocolate shells, or Mr. Big chocolate bars. Also, any parts that you have to have flown in are subject to big delays, cost overages, and a rather hefty import fee, so if there is a chance you might need it, take it with you, if you have the space around all that beer.

That's it for this month. Next month I will try and do this again. The may change a little as I go. If anyone reading the blog would like to see anything in particular, let me know, I may be able to squeeze it in, especially if it seems like good info to pass on.

Now back to your regular blogging........