Hello from Miami Beach. We have reached one of our intended destinations. This is where we decide whether to go to the Bahamas or stay in the Florida Keys. It has been quite an ordeal just getting here.
When I last wrote we were headed to Thunderbolt, Georgia to get the leaking compressor outlet hose on the refrigeration system replaced. We left our anchorage near Hilton Head Island and arrived in Thunderbolt without any problem. It was still cold, we had on multiple layers of clothing, and we were looking forward to showers with unlimited hot water. Arriving on Monday, both of us took our long showers and shed a couple of layers of clothing. On Tuesday morning, the technician arrived as promised and worked quickly and efficiently to replace the leaking hose. He finished that day, and we were ready to shove off the next morning.
The next two days were uneventful except it was rather cool, but we had on fewer layers than we were wearing in North and South Carolina. On Friday as we motored along by Cumberland Island, the engine started making a rattling noise. Bill looked and discovered the mount holding the refrigeration compressor to the engine had broken. Darn and double darn (or worse). With a couple of c-clamps we had onboard, Bill rigged up a temporary way to stabilize the compressor atop the engine, and we called Tiger Point Marine in Fernandina Beach, Florida. They gave us an appointment for Monday. We decided to anchor off the Sea Camp Ranger Station at Cumberland Island National Park for the weekend. It was warm, and we enjoyed walking the beach and trails around the island. I should tell you here that Irish Eyes has two refrigeration systems; one runs when the engine is running, and the other runs if we turn on the invertor. We were never without a cold refrigerator, so the beer stayed cold, we had ice for our drinks, and we did not lose any food.
Valentine’s Day we tied up to the dock at Tiger Point Marina and waited for the welder to call. He did, and Bill took the broken bracket to the office along with a photo, written instructions, and a drawing showing how the repair should be made. Unfortunately, the paperwork did not get passed to the welder right away, so we stayed two nights at Tiger Point. The marina is in Old Fernandina, and we spent some time walking the streets, looking at the houses, and exploring the old cemetery. Bill reinstalled the bracket on the engine and fixed the compressor on the bracket. In doing so he heard freon hissing from a leak in compressor inlet hose on the refrigeration. There are only two hoses, and first one hose and now the other hose had sprung leaks. I was just about ready to give up and turn back north. The only thing that kept me from really lobbying for that was… It was cold in the Carolinas but warm in Florida.
Unable to schedule a prompt repair in Fernandina Beach, we untied the dock lines and were underway headed south on Wednesday, February 16. It was warm. I did not have on my two pairs of long underwear, and I did not have on my wool hat. Shortly after we were underway Bill says, “Do you hear that scraping noise coming from the engine compartment?” He checked and found that the noise was coming from the pump that pumps sea water to the engine to keep it cool (again). We shut the engine off, and Bill put on the spare water pump. Because he is now practiced, it only took him about 10 minutes. It is always good to have aboard tools, spares, and an engineer who can do mechanical work. We continued through northern Florida enjoying the scenery and the warmer temperatures. Just after we crossed the river outside of Jacksonville, Bill looked down into the cabin and saw water pouring from the quarterberth onto the cabin sole. Not good, not good at all. An engine cooling water vent hose had slipped off its barb. Once again, we drifted along without the engine while Bill put the hose back on fastening it in place with a new hose clamp. I steered while he cleaned up the wet stuff in the cabin. We anchored for the night north of St. Augustine.
The next few days were uneventful. We had days of warm sunshine and one day of cold, windy, drizzly weather. Since we were going to have the refrigeration hose replaced in Vero Beach, we decided to take a slip at the City Marina rather than a much less expensive mooring ball. We arrived in our slip on Monday, February 21. Bill had earlier contacted C&O Marine Refrigeration, and they were scheduled to be at our boat the next morning. Our friends Rob and Minta Fannon, formerly of Kingsport and now are living on their boat, were spending the winter in Vero Beach. We enjoyed happy hour on their boat, Caroline, with another couple from East Tennessee. It was therapeutic to tell everyone our woes. The Fannons were kind enough to accept our Amazon deliveries which because of our delays had arrived in Vero before we did.
Tuesday morning Carlos, the refrigeration guy, came and took away the bad hose to see about having a new one made. I did laundry, and we put away some of our winter clothes. It was finally shorts and tee shirt weather. Carlos called and said he was having trouble finding someone to make a replacement hose. With that delay we paid for two more days in the marina. It was nice having the Fannons in Vero. They had a car, and we thus had transportation for shopping (mostly for boast stuff). We enjoyed their company at both a restaurant supper and lunch.
Thursday, Carlos called again and said that he had been unable to find a shop that could make our hose. He asked if Bill could shop around by phone for a new hose. It did not seem the repairs would be finished before the weekend, so we paid for the slip until Monday. Bill called an automotive air conditioning shop that said they no longer make their own hoses because their nearby O’Reilly’s Auto Parts did a better job. Bill checked with the recommended O’Reilly’s and passed the information along to Carlos. It was about 3pm, and we figured no work on the hose was going to happen that day, so we took the bus to Publix for some groceries. While we were shopping, Carlos called and said he had gotten the hose made and would meet us at the boat in an hour! Great news. Carlos and his worker Oscar showed up after 5pm, installed the new hose, and refilled the system with freon. We were delighted.
Since our slip was paid through Sunday night, and since the coming sunny warm weekend would fill the ICW with fishermen, motorboats, and jet skis, we decided to stay put and play tourist in Vero Beach. Saturday, we took the bus to the beach and strolled along the boardwalk then by the shops, and finally through two parks before arriving back at Irish Eyes. We spent a pleasurable Sunday afternoon in the Vero Beach Art Museum. Not a bad time at all.
We were underway by 9am on Monday, February 28 and continued our trip south. We anchored that night in Hobe Sound just north of Jupiter. Between Jupiter and Miami there are 33 drawbridges for us to pass through. It was an exhausting two and a half days of motoring and keeping our speed right so we could make the scheduled openings. However, the weather was pleasant, and the traffic was surprising light, so it was not too bad.
We had our anchor down here in Miami Beach by lunch time on Thursday March 3. The last couple of days here have been windy, but that was fine because we were in a well-protected spot surrounded by land on three sides. We have no need to move again for a while. We have stuff to buy, places to go, and still more things to fix. There’s always something broken on a boat!
Hope Spring comes soon for all of you.
