Wahoo! The propane line has been strung and the
oven/burners are back in business. I
have been dying to do a bit of cooking and am off and running. It is the Christmas season so I made several
batches of black, sticky gingerbread. One
pan for Chris but the rest were distributed to the boat pros working on the
boat as well as marina office staff and neighbor cruisers. Everyone seemed pretty pleased and a couple
of folks even asked for the recipe.
The
boat projects sound straightforward when listed in a spreadsheet; however,
implementation can be anything but routine.
Take the installation of the new batteries. Each battery weighs approximately 200
pounds…and we have seven. Getting them
aboard and nuzzled into their precise cubbyholes below decks was a bit of
professional wrestler meets yoga guru…not always a pretty picture. Eegads, knuckles are bloody and muscles are
strained by the end of each day. We take
diversion when we can mostly in the form of Patriots football or Duke
basketball. Thankfully, the nearby
Slackers Bar and Grill carries all the games on their dozens of
screens…complete with great burgers, fried cheese curds (the owner is from
Wisconsin), blackened chicken quesadilla and sumptuous gyros (http://www.yelp.com/biz/slackers-bar-and-grill-fort-lauderdale). But don’t forget a heavy fleece because the
interior is kept about the same temperature as a meat locker…bbbrrr.
Boat
work is coming down to the wire and we need to get going. My sister, brother-in-law and nephew arrive
in a few days from Kansas City and we don’t want to show them the glories of an
industrial boat yard…even if it is south Florida. Final items are ticked off like filling the
fuel tanks. The boat is topped up with
diesel from the bright yellow Petterson fuel barge that simply pulls alongside
and “anchors” to the sea floor – how easy was that?! And the price was right at $1.95/gallon. Additionally, we found a great patio set at
Lowe’s Hardware for our new top deck “room.”
Kevin and crew of Enclosures Unlimited did an amazing job making the
window panels which can be closed or open depending on the conditions of the
day. All work pros have been solid to
work with on all projects.
Our
umbrella contractor was Luu Marine with whom we have had a particularly great
experience. We whole-heartedly recommend
them for any job as well as the sub-contractors they recommended (http://www.luumarine.com/). Please do not hesitate to contact us for
specific reviews. Their high quality in
the initial job was great as well as no hesitation in perfecting any issues
realized after-the-fact. Every person we
met was friendly and helpful. Heck, we
even joined in a few of their Friday after work parties held in the shed of the
boat yard. It is a United Nations affair
with Central and South Americans, Americans from across the country and South
East Asians. Jorge mans the grill and it
is a meat lovers dream…Tam’s marinated beef, clams, shrimp…all is delicious and
they are a great group to hang out with.
Thanks guys – you are first rate!
The
calendar keeps moving and it was December 21st. - we were off the
docks at slack tide and down the New River.
We passed through the four bridges and were onto an anchorage in North
Lake just off of the ICW. Phew – it
feels great to be swinging on the hook.
Next stop – Miami! A half-day hop
had us anchored in Sunset Lake with one day to spare before Jana, Josh and
Garrett arrived on December 24th.
It might be a hot 85degrees in Florida at Christmas but there is plenty
of holiday cheer – exhibit A is a santa hat clad Grecian statue along the ICW
(tee, hee, hee). We were greeted by
squadrons of pelicans and graceful dolphin.
This is cruising.
It
was a festive welcome dinner aboard of steaks on the grill with baked potatoes
and the gorgeous Miami skyline for a backdrop.
It is always great to be with family during the holidays! Thanks for making the journey.
Weather
forecasts look good for some explorations of South Florida by boat; however,
first we took some time to walk around South Beach (Dec 25). The gentle sand and grass promenade along the
ocean felt like Venice Beach in Los Angeles but the luxurious cheek-to-jowl
high rise condos and hotels told us we were in Florida. Christmas dinner was aboard with my baked
pork and Chris’ flavorful mashed potatoes.
Adding to the festivities were Christmas crackers and the silliness
enclosed in each one (including the paper crowns).
The
weather forecast was holding so off we went along the ICW and the edge of Miami
(Dec 26). Along the way we threw out
some fishing line and we crept close to view Stiltsville. Stiltsville is located one mile south of Cape
Florida in Biscayne Bay. It’s a small
grouping of seven remaining houses built on stilts. The history and future of the structures is part
campsite, part bootlegging, part gambling and part fishing all wrapped up in
legal wrangling between owners, government and the Parks Service. Who knows how the story will end?! However, Hollywood and authors have had fun
with the place highlighting the locale in three Carl Hiassen books, Miami Vice
TV shows and several feature movies.
By
early afternoon we had anchored at Coon Point of Elliott Key in 8 feet of
water. Uninhabited Elliott Key is the
northernmost of the true Florida Keys.
The Atlantic Ocean is on one side and Biscayne Bay is on the other. But what lies ashore?! Let’s check it out. A shore party departed and promptly ended
after about 7.6 seconds of landing when the biting bugs discovered us and we
high tailed it out of reach back at the boat.
Plenty of afternoon remained so we jumped off the boat and swam in the
waters that are only accessible by boat.
Post dinner poker has become a tradition with stakes low enough that all
have fun. This was our furthest point
south and, slowly, back north we went.
Re-anchored
in Sunset Lake and we had a party aboard Barefeet with Bill and Louise who were
in the anchorage on their way to the Bahamas (Dec 27). Chris provided shuttle service and proudly
showed off our new dinghy nav light (as a hat) but soon to be installed on the
cover of the dinghy motor.
We
had burgers and fun and waved so long the next morning as we moved further
north. Schedules became a bit jumbled
for us at this point because Chris and I needed to return to Boston for a
Memorial Service honoring Chris’ grandmother who passed at the age of 102
years. I called more than two dozen
marinas from the upper keys to Fort Lauderdale and even Pompano looking for
last minute dock space over New Year’s.
Needless to say my conversations usually began with, “Don’t laugh
but…” We were on several waiting lists
but finally got confirmed space in Royale Palm Marina south of Fort Lauderdale
in Dania Beach.
With
our dock space confirmed we finalized our itinerary with a stop back in North
Lake and wrapped up our last night with Jana, Josh and Garrett at Royale
Palm. As the sole boat traveling north
along the ICW it was clear that the party was back in Miami – probably the
reason it was so hard to find dock space.
Back in familiar territory we showed off a few of our favorite
haunts. We stopped at Jimbo’s Sandbar in
Dania Beach via dinghy for oyster shooters and their amazing won ton nachos (http://jimbossandbar.com/). Yum!
And toasted the end of a great trip at Riverside Market and Café. So long guys – please come back soon!
We
secured the boat and emptied the fridge for our quick return to chilly
Boston. We will be back to the boat in a
few days and ready to start our winter cruising…aiming for Key West.
Rich
and Sticky and Black Gingerbread (Old Ordinary Cookbook, Hingham
Historical Society)
1.5
cups flour
2
teaspoons powdered ginger
2
teaspoons cinnamon
1
cup soft brown sugar
˝
cup maple syrup (or golden or corn syrup)
˝
cup butter
˝
cup dark molasses (or treacle)
1
cup warm milk
2
teaspoons baking soda
2
eggs, beaten
1)
Grease
deep 71/2” x 11” baking pan.
2)
Mix
together flour, ginger and cinnamon.
3)
Combine
brown sugar, maple syrup, butter and molasses in a saucepan. Heat until butter melts and mixture is
smooth, stirring constantly. Remove from
the heat.
4)
Stir
in flour mixture.
5)
Stir
in mixture of warm milk and baking soda.
6)
Add
beaten eggs and mix well.
7)
Pour
into prepared baking pan.
8)
Bake
at 325 degrees F for 1 hour (or until firm).
9)
Remove
to wire rack to cool. Cut into bars.
Tam’s
Marinade
Sesame
oil
Panda
brand oyster flavored sauce
Korean
BBQ Sauce (original) – Kalbi marinade pear and apple