Day 169: GIWW to Madeira Beach

Day 169: January 3: It was a beautiful morning, sun shining and warm temperatures. We got UW at about 8:15, planning to cruise to an anchorage northeast of the Welch Causeway Bridge in Madeira Beach. It was a pleasant enough day; the sun in and out of clouds; sweatshirts on, sweatshirts off. Paradise did not leave the marina with us, choosing to travel with their other friends from Carmen's Reward. As we traveled the river, we noticed a grounded boat off to our starboard. Was she stranded by a negligent captain who didn't watch the tides? 



I was so excited to enter the GIWW. There is something unique about such a waterway; the calm water, huge mansions, small 1970's style houses, cottages, and boat after boat. I could travel this way forever. 

About 10 miles from the marina we came upon our first bridge; the Dunedin Causeway Bridge. A vertical clearance of 19 feet required us to hail the bridge-tender on channel 9. Summer Fling was in the lead she she did the calling. Indian Rocks Beach Bridge, vertical clearance of 25 feet, was next. Both bridges open upon request; bridge-tenders wasted no time getting us through.


We traveled 27.3 NM in 4 hours, pulling into an anchorage northeast of the Welch Causeway Bridge in Madeira Beach. We were able to gain access to shore via a small floating dinghy dock at a nearby McDonalds. Frank, Mona and I dinghied over and walked to Publix to purchase some provisions. Dinner on Slàinte Mhath of grilled chicken, veggies, salad and gnocchi followed by key lime pie! Not too shabby.
























Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

ABOUT US

Image
We are John and Bonny Gifford from Westport, MA. We have been married for 43 years and have two grown sons, Seth and AJ who are both married with children.  Westport is a small coastal town that boasts farm land, stone walls and the lovely Noquochoke River which lies between Narragansett Bay and Buzzards Bay. As life long residents of Westport our family has enjoyed the river and beaches tremendously.  Now that we are both retired, we are anxious to get underway on the Great Loop on Slàinte Mhath (Slanj-ja-va), our GB 42 CL. Slàinte Mhath comes from the Gaelic and translates into good health. It’s a traditional Scottish and Irish toast that we became aware of many years ago while enjoying a Guiness in the Settle Inn in Stirling, Scotland. Our bartender (George) greeted us with this hearty cheer, inspiring us to name a future boat with this hearty salute!  About 10 years ago we did end up purchasing that “future” boat, choosing the stately Grand Banks Classic. We got a tas...
Read more

Day 53 Continued: Covered Portage Cove to Snug Harbour

Image
 Day 53 Continued: September 9: The trip to Snug Harbour took about an hour as it was just over 6 miles southwest of us. Once again the water was calm. Along the way we noticed what looked like a gravel pit on the shore to our port and what looked liked a sandy beach on the starboard; something we haven't seen yet on this trip.  We carefully made our way into the small cove as the chart-plotter was showing very shallow depths, Reviews that have been written about this spot report that is a great anchorage that is protected from all winds. The cove is very deep especially in the middle, with great depths ranging from 30 to 45 feet. Entering the opening to the cove, we saw we had to watch for the shoals on the starboard side. The shelf comes over halfway across the entrance which is very narrow. We cruised through the cove, noting the incredibly clear water, The shallows that line the shore are turquoise and you can see right to the bottom, especially when the sun is shining. J...
Read more

Day 49, 50 & 51: Travel to Bad River Channel & Beaverstone Bay

Image
Day 49: September 5: We were pretty sure we were anchored on granite here on Bustard Island so we kept checking our position. Our anchor is held by all chain; putting out 75 feet in 16 feet of water under pristine conditions most certainly provides secure holding as long as the anchor has something to sink into. But you can never take anything for granted. Luckily, there must have been just enough mud for the anchor to grab hold but the chain did continue sliding on the granite throughout the night, creating a haunting sound. The anchor alarm went off at one point during the night alerting us that we had swung out beyond the boundary settings. Being that the anchorage is narrow, there wasn't any room for error so John had set the parameters tightly. When the boat moves beyond that limit, the alarm notifies us of the change. Tight quarters are always more challenging if you are concerned about the possibility of dragging.  It was a lovely morning. The bright sunshine and gentle bre...
Read more