Gates 7450

2/25/2017

Great morning! Breakfast at the BucknKats cafe. Big portions served with good coffee and that touch of love you get at the ole mom and pop.

Meanwhile back on the boat the gremlins were at work. Ready to go everything tied down new dinghy harness hooked up looking 😊. I hadn’t run the generator for three days and the batteries had run low😿. So fire up generator and wait about 30 minutes. Grooving after that, engine purring. Here we go🤠 Cowboy.

What’s that whining squeal? Must be that loose belt I figured I could fix in Sanford at the dock. The belt being a Gates 7450- Dammit oye vey Gevalt.

Two and a half hours I’m on my way.

Later that day I’m dropping the hook at Hontoon Dead River.. beautiful.

2/26/2017

Great day on the Hontoon. Sunny 75 degrees breezy the whole shebang. I went over to the state park to inquire about volunteer work in exchange for free dockage. Looking good. I will meet the volunteer coordinator tomorrow. Probably be able to get my car here with a few breaks and a good long bus ride.

Keep those 🤞 Fingers  crossed.

Dr Brad standing by on 16

Tune for the day is My Lover’s Prayer by Otis Redding. Dig it

Another Top Ten

Well the rain has passed and left breezy clear skies,low humidity, and a need to get off the boat.

I took the dinghy over to Parramore’s Fantastic Fish Camp and bought a day pass. For a fiver I did laundry, took out the trash,filled up with four five gallon water, and took that long shower. Once more I hit a top rated – in top ten- shower room and well kept laundry.  I’ve been on a streak this trip. When you shower out of a bucket or in campgrounds and marinas over the years you get picky. I good day was had by all.

Dr Brad standing by on 16

Stay forever young

Today Rain Tomorrow Ibid.

Dr Brad standing by on 16

Jurassic River

Give me a river and I can’t help but navigate it to end. Jurassic is a name you can’t turn down. Actually it’s the Ocklawaha River. She’s a beaut!

That was my morning. The rain though she be coming in so I needed a hidey hole for a couple days. I set out about noon for Morrison Island. Figured an easy ride about 18 miles over Lake George. Well as you can guess the wind started coughing like a chest cold and got up to about 20 +. What happens in the middle of a blow in the middle of a lake? My main dinghy tow line frayed in uncomfortable seas.

 

Well with a lucky act of seamanship I retied the little guy and  only cussed up a small squall. I am now laying at Morrison Island.

Dr Brad standing by on 16

The song of the day is Just walk Away Rene by the Four Tops

the captain feels a little lonely today

The Day Started Like This

I left Deep Creek  about one hour after the above.

I cruised through Palatka making a mental note to return on the flip side. The river is looking more like a river than a lake. I pulled off the river into Marsh Creek that winds around to the Southwest of the main channel and it changed to gorgeous. This is a view of shore as I write this. Wish you could see the alligators.

I saw my first female Hooded Merganser. I like the birdwatching thing.

On the charts they warn you to watch out for the ferry at the second bend of the creek. Ferry? There are no roads. However;

You could do one of those wierd modeling shoots on that thing. Supposedly a local nurse lives aboard.

Osprey nest on the bridge;

So here I am;

Dr Brad standing by on 16 after a good day

Deep Creek

Yesterday I moved from my anchorage to the old navy base at Green Cove Springs. The place is now owned by the Reynolds family of you guessed it – Reynolds wrap tin foil. Mr Reynold was actually the head of Reynolds Aluminum and the foil is not tin.

The old navy base used to be a reserve or mothball base for more than 500 ships. Look it up it’s an interesting story that has a few twists and turns.

 

The base also has some interesting other residents beside the two yacht centers and other industrial sites.

Can you recognize the pointy object on the left. It’s from a famous NASA project. The ship was involved in the biggest treasure ever found. Look up Tommy G Thompson on google. The Truth is still better than fiction. The lift is the biggest I’ve ever seen.

Visited some friends Rod andPauline on their boat on the hard. They are having some keel work done. They gave me extensive information on the St Johns River. I hope to meet up with them later up the river. They fed me well and released me into the wild. They have traveled over 25000 miles on the Two by Two.

I am ensconced at Deep Creek on a lee shore. Tomorrow on to Palatka.

Dr Brad standing by on 16.

Hallowes Cove

Stopped near Green Cove Springs and anchored across the river in Hollowes Cove. Tomorrow I’ll go across to the old navy base that has been converted to private ship yard and marinas to see some friends. I hope to gain some information about possibly leaving my boat there this summer when I go north.

This anchorage is very secluded. No houses or distractions exist within ear shot. Gotta love the golden silence. Tonight there is a freeze warning for Jacksonville. Imagine that.

 

Dr Brad standing by on 16

Let’s Keep Day inValentine’s Day

I arrived yesterday at The Ortega River Marina. Great place great rates. One of my criteria for judging a marina is the quality of the restrooms and showers. A good laundry room just adds the gravy. In almost seven years this little place has hit the top three.

I stopped to get fresh veggies, do laundry and generally walk around at distances greater than 4 feet.

The trip in was about 18 miles of the St Johns with heavy current and some gusty winds. Tomorrow I’ll head out up River to check on a place to do some work on the old gal. This year I think she needs a new dress. I will paint the hull. The river has 163 miles of navigable water. I intend to do as much as I can.

 

Dr Brad standing by on 16

https://www.facebook.com/bradley.schuller.1/videos/1211180898969222/

Under the Bridge

This is my second day at Clapboard Creek. I am off the St Johns River about 3 miles in a very beautiful spot. The bridge I came under to get here is only 12 feet at high tide. I’m ten feet.

I’ve got a few fishing boats but no big wake machines. Tomorrow I’ll head toward the Ortega River for a couple days at dock. It’s the middle of the month and I need to get off the boat for some exercise and fresh vegetables.

This next marina is supposed to cost just a dollar per foot per day. I hope so, that will leave me laundry 💰.

I dropped a couple lines in today but the 🐟 took Sunday off.

Here is the old Goggle pic

Dr Brad standing by on 16