It has been five months since the last post of our adventures on the Secret Egret. In that time we have learned a lot about the boat in a more structured way than the crash course we did while bringing her home from southwest Florida. In our last post we had just arrived in St. Augustine. We stayed for two nights and went back to work Monday, but we returned for the 4th of July weekend. The last leg of the trip from St. Augustine to Jacksonville was completed with Ashley’s mom and brother aboard. This was our first time with passengers and it was a very comfortable trip; the…

It almost doesn’t seem like we were just leaving the Titusville Marina yesterday. We traveled from there to Marineland for over 10 hours. It’s like it was all a blur. Yesterday, the 26th, we went through Mosquito Lagoon which is famous for its red fish so people come from all over to fish here. There is even a neat small business operation providing boat side bait service.   Most of the way on this trip was spent getting up to speed, and then having to slow down again. There were so many manatee zones and houses with docks, that we spent much of our time at idle speed. We felt…

We pulled anchor in Vero Beach yesterday and proceeded north. It is much quicker to pull anchor and go than leaving from the dock. Our night here was quite peaceful; no wake issues and no severe weather to keep us awake. After the sun went down there were no other boats passing and only the occasional car on the bridge that we couldn’t hear anyway. A very relaxing morning   We decided our next destination was going to be Titusville. About seven hours later, we saw a famous landmark emerging in the distance; the Vehicle Assembly Building. We would be taking the day off the next day to spend some…

June 23rd, this entry is brief. We left Stuart, FL from the Sunset Bay Marina at 8:25 AM. Before leaving we decided to get some diesel fuel just to be on the safe side as fuel gauges are rarely accurate on a boat; 50.21 gallons in the port tank, and 50.11 gallons starboard. As we were leaving, a boat cruising by called in for an opening at the Roosevelt Bridge. It was “Mary Ann.” Three times now, we have cruised through structures along with her. The first time was when we waited an hour and forty minutes at the Fort Denaud Swing Bridge, the second time was at the Ortona…

7:23 AM. We departed Moore Haven, FL without much effort. The side-tie on the canal there was perfect for an easy launch. Reed, our dock mate, had left at 7:00 AM. At 7:45, we exited the Moore Haven Lock. The wind made it a bit difficult, and “Secret Egret” insisted on sticking to the wall of the lock when we were trying to leave. That was a bit stressful, but as soon as we came out of it we saw an alligator for the first time on this trip. Its tail swayed back and forth as it swam about and we enjoyed watching it as we made our way around…

Ashley had to get up around 5am to go drop the one-way rental car off  so we could get an early start. We finally shoved off from Fort Myers, FL this morning at 7:55 AM. Fort Myers has been Secret Egret’s home for three weeks; during that time, we have visited her on those three weekends, and got to know Fort Myers a bit. We learned about the Edison and Ford Estates, ate at restaurants, went to the Art Walk, and hung out at an event for a firefighter that has cancer. Now, it was time to say goodbye to Fort Myers and make our way back to Jacksonville. We…

We took delivery of “Lone Duck” on May 31st; this was a slightly strange affair. Everything, except for the sea trial, was completed over the phone or by e-mail. Actually taking possession of the boat was anticlimactic. The boat was kept behind someones house on a private dock. We showed up to the boat in the early morning crept through the backyard and climbed on. No one was around and the keys were left for us in the deck box. We loaded our stuff, fired up the engine and pulled away thinking surely the cops would follow soon. The first step was to move the boat to a safe marina…

Ashley and I closed on this boat this week. Right now it is in St. James City, FL. After work tomorrow we are driving from Jacksonville to St. James so we can procure our adventure. Crazy! This picture shows part of the sea trial and survey that is done before a boat purchase. The guy is checking out the hull and prop of the boat. Everything looked good; only normal wear for a boat of this age. After this past year we’ve decided we want to do what we want as soon as we can…time’s a wastin’! Our five year plan turned into a one year plan at the last…