We went sailing yesterday at Wheeler lake in Northern Alabama. A great day of sailing even if it was cold. We put on thermal underwear and fuzzys and overcoats not to mention are PFD's which are about as warm as a ski vest. The wind was good but gusty. It's hard to bury our rail but we came within an inch or two and at times had spray wetting the jib. The problem was we went about 7 miles more or less downwind and then had to beat back towards the dam. We agreed that we'd rather be cold sailing in the winter with good wind than sitting in the sun without wind on a hot day. The other advantage of winter sailing is all of the birds. Some coves were white with gulls and long lines of cormorants were flying back and forth. Coots and other ducks were around as were some geese. It was a excellent day of sailing. But we'd rather have been sailing around Mexico Beach. We still remember coming into St Joe and seeing hundreds of sharks and rays swimming under and around the boat. The leatherback turtles that we saw up near Panama City were unforgetable. Maybe next year we'll move our boat back to the coast. The advantage of lower costs and shorter drives seem less important when we get to thinking about what the coast has to offer.
It is supposed to get to 65 (er correction, make that 70) here today....I can feel Spring is on it's way. Time to start getting the boat ready. Still have to sand and refinish the hand rails cabin top, and now when it is still cool is the time to "git-er-dun"
one night and saw such a light as a star there was no indication of a boat under it. Nancy and I watched it for about fifteen minutes and it didn't move in the sky so we decided that it was a mast head light. We see them often and they always resemble stars. I often think that anchor lights should also illuminate the superstructure of the boat. I had the Natural Resources Police come by one night some years back. I warned them that I had a stern anchor down and they should mind the rode. They stopped and asked if that was a lantern hanging on my backstay. I assured them that is was and they asked if I had a masthead light. I told them that I did not. They said that I must display an all around white light. I said that the lantern shown all around and that the Coast Guard required that I display a white light where it could best be seen. They grumbled a little and went away. Had they persisted I would have asked them how they found me. There are no lights in that cove.
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