When you move onto a new boat, everything is a new experience, even if you’ve owned a boat before. Today we will have several “firsts”. We will be leaving Shirk’s Bayou for the first time. We’ll be leaving on a trip for the first time. We will be going into a marina, tying up and getting fuel and pumping out the holding tank for the first time. We left the marina with 1100 gallons of diesel fuel. We are full. This is probably the cheapest fuel we will buy at $3.03 a gallon. We’ve decided to spend our first night on the water at Hogtowne Bayou, near Sandestin.
We have many mixed feelings. We are tired, from all the work we’ve done the past several weeks. We are nervous, about handling a boat this big. But mostly, we are excited that it is finally happening and we are heading to Morehead City, NC.
Departure day for Escape, we were tired but ready to go.
We left Shirk’s Bayou at 11:05. The weather was perfect, with clear skies, calm water, and a gentle breeze.
Dave and his neighbor were our escort out of Shirk’s Bayou. They helped us find the way over the shoal that blocks the entrance into Shirk’s Bayou.
Dolphins wishing us safe travels, as we leave the Bayou. I hope these will be the first of many we see along the way.
This is the first of many barges that we will meet in our travels. It sure did make us feel small.
Our first of what will be many bridges, big and small.
Well, we made it through our first day. Shay handled the boat like he knew what he was doing. We had no problems at the marina, although we did tell the dock master this was our first time and we’d take all the help we could get.
Our first night at anchor was spent at Hogtowne Bayou. We were anchored with one other boat near Sandestin, Florida. We had some trouble getting the anchor to set and hold properly. This was a great place to anchor. The wind was dead calm, after dark the water looked like glass, and the sky was full of big bright stars. Shay said he bet this would be the quietest night we would ever have on the water. I hope it is the first of many.
Below is a map showing Hogtowne Bayou.
One thing we have noticed about fellow boaters is that most of them are ready to help if it’s catching a line, answering a question, or giving advice. We have already met many helpful boaters. Some have visited Escape and given us advice from anchor selection to how to use it properly. Others have given us advice about charts, charting software, and even showed us how to change the fuel filters on the engines. We look forward to meeting many more helpful boaters as our travels continue.
One thing we have noticed about fellow boaters is that most of them are ready to help if it’s catching a line, answering a question, or giving advice. We have already met many helpful boaters. Some have visited Escape and given us advice from anchor selection to how to use it properly. Others have given us advice about charts, charting software, and even showed us how to change the fuel filters on the engines. We look forward to meeting many more helpful boaters as our travels continue.
Oh, I almost forgot. Our boat broker, Lenny Beck, called today and reminded us to include in our blog just how lucky we were to have such a great boat broker guiding us through the process of buying Escape.
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