Leaving Fort Pierce

We are back on the boat and preparing to cast off around noon. I have made the casseroles and put them in aluminum loaf pans, prepared the cockpit ice water thermos, and boiled eggs for our nighttime snack. (We also have some delicious honeybell oranges given to us by my uncle and his partner that are our favorite nighttime treat). George downloaded a route from FastSeas and we entered it into the chart plotter. George has cleaned the cockpit and retied the lines to make it easier to cast off. 

We have a three-day weather window so we are planning to go as far as Beaufort, NC. If for some reason we can’t make it that far, we do have other options. Ever since we started sailing Breeze On we have kept a log book. Every two hours—it used to be every hour—we write down our coordinates, boat speed, course, wind conditions, and other brief notes. I often wonder why we are doing it and if it would ever come in handy. Well, it has come in quite handy for this trip. Last year at this time we sailed from Fort Pierce to Beaufort, NC. It took us exactly three days, traveling 500 miles at an average speed of seven knots. We had quite a good boost from the Gulf Stream. We are hoping to make the same trip in the same amount of time. We will probably have to stay in Beaufort at least a week waiting for the next weather window. It will be a different experience in Beaufort now that COVID-19 is here. We usually like to walk around town, go into shops, and eat in the restaurants. Now, if we walk at all, it will most likely be in places where we will not get close to other people or have to touch anything. Nevertheless, I am grateful that we are both still healthy and we are doing our best to keep it that way. 

Gulf Stream currents. They appear to be stronger this year as compared to last year.