So we left PG, and continued south, stopping for several nights in Pelican Bay, off Cayo Costa and the state park there. It was relatively crowded, but the Anchorage is so beautiful it was hard to care.
While we were in PG, I had a rigger drop by for a free consultation (first bonus point) on our furler issue. He showed up when he said he would (2nd bonus point) and after looking at the unit, agreed that if parts were available, it was fixable. He also said he would be happy to reinstall the drive after we rebuilt it, if we did not feel up to the task. He made sure I understood how to get the drive off, and warned me about an internal bushing that would be easy to lose (3rd bonus point). He also said he could sell me a whole new system (not Hood) for around the same price as Hood's upgrade pricing. His shop is in Ft. Myers, so when we decided having him install the drive would be a good idea, we told him we'd be down in the next week or so.
When we got to CC early on Friday afternoon, we took one last look at the furler to make sure our parts order would give us everything we needed. I'm glad we did, as we found the likely original point of failure, so one more part was needed. The bad news: Pompanette doesn't have one - they sold the last new one in existence last year. I text the rigger at about 5:30 (on a Friday afternoon) and left a message explaining that we were now at a decision point: head back to Tampa to sort out the parts issue in our home slip (which is paid for through the end of the month), or bite the bullet and put in a new system, in which case we continue on to Ft. Myers (or wherever). So I asked if he'd be willing to work up a price on a new system, as he mentioned. He responded (on a Friday evening! - bonus point 4), and wanted to know what part we needed. We told him, and he said he thought he might have some old Hood parts lying around the shop. He texted again later that evening, but with bad news. He couldn't find the unit he thought he had.
Saturday morning I checked the archives here, and found a potential lead on parts, so I sent off a PM, which was answered quickly. I talked to a poster here, who said he might have the part, but at his summer home, so he couldn't be sure for a couple of weeks. I sent pics, and he sounded hopeful that this was indeed the one part he saved (for someone else in my predicament). So we decide that parts are the way to go, and we relax.
Then I get a text. It's the rigger, on a Saturday! (bonus point 5), who tells me he has found the Hood 810 in his shop, and it seems to be complete and in pretty good shape. Spins freely, all the parts are there. So I ask THE question, and he says "just take it". (Uncountable bonus points awarded). We actually settle on paying him to install it, and beer money for the unit itself. Karen and I are thrilled, and once again we relax.
Monday morning, we set out for Ft. Myers. The GICW was pretty busy in the morning, with little caravans of 5 to 8 boats travelling together northbound. The first one we thought was odd, but by the time the fourth group came by at 25 knots, we decided that everyone was going home from a boat show. All of the boats looked new, and many had no name on the transoms. Lots of styles of boats, mostly 21 to 35 feet, and most of them had 6 to 10 people on them. Each group of boats was clearly travelling together, evenly spaced. It was strange.
Closer to Ft. Myers, it was simply a zoo. Boats everywhere, all sizes, and the guys generating the biggest wakes seemed to care the least. One good point, we caught the Miserable Mile at slack water.
We spent two nights at anchor across from the City of Ft. Myers yacht basin, and today we were on the free day dock there. We walked into town for groceries, and came back to await the rigger. While on the day dock here (a nice facility, with fuel, free pumpouts, and a nicely stocked ship's store), you can choose to pay $10 for access to the showers, laundry, and other facilities.
The rigger came by, and installed the "new" furler. Added bonus: we thought we were talking about just the drive unit, but we got a halyard swivel as well. Our swivel was still working, but needed a bushing. Scratch that off the list. Beer money was handed over in cash, and I'll be gettin an invoice for the rest via email. More bonus points.
So we've made some progress. We think we'll spend a couple more days here, then head further up the river, maybe as far as locking into Lake Okeechobee, and checking out Clewiston.
