We completed the crossing yesterday from the panhandle of Florida to central Florida (Carabelle to Tampa Bay area). This looper segment is known as the “crossing” and consists of 165 mile of open water across the Gulf of Mexico. In the context of the loop, loopers and the typical looper boat (a slow boat trawler), the crossing is a big deal. It is essential to determine a suitable weather window that is appropriate for your boat and crew. If you have a “fast” boat (top speed of 15 miles per hour or more), the crossing is nothing more than a long day. If you have a “slow” boat (top speed 10 miles per hour), then the crossing will need to be done overnight in order to arrive at central Florida in daylight hours.
The weather is boss…you do not want to be in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico in bad marine conditions. We had subscribed to a marine forecast service, as well as, utilized the forecasting services of the Looper Association, of which we are members. The Monday evening of December 12th looked good – waves less than 1 foot, winds of 5 knots out of the south plus a bonus full moon! Below are images of the moon rising and the sun setting about 4 hours into our journey.
We cast off our lines from Carabelle at 1400hrs and set out to rendezvous with two other “buddy” boats. Our three boats entered the Gulf with clear sunny skies and calm seas which then turned into a beautiful moon filled night and we could see fellow Loopers crossing miles away.
Eight hours into the crossing and everything was going great…then we heard the Coast Guard warning of possible fog building for the east coast of Florida. At midnight, we cruise into a blanket of fog and for the next 12 hours we are driving blind!
Let me tell you, it is a very odd sensory experience to be deprived of visual references whilst being responsible for the control of a 17 ton vessel. Talk about another huge learning curve/crash course in boating! Between our GPS chart plotter and its integrated radar, we pressed on into the night…and that was the easy part. Out in the middle of the Gulf, the water is deep, no obstacles, few boaters except other Loopers crossing (but radar identifies those vessels). It proved to be just fine. We played a couple of games of Yahtzee. We talked on the radio to our fellow boaters, checking on morale in the dead of night telling stories and jokes. According to the Coast Guard radio communications, the fog would lift in the morning as we approached our destination. At 0600hrs, we had progress as expected, despite the fog. At this point if there no fog, we could expect to be at our destination marina at 0800 hrs.
Sunrise was at 0655hrs and we waited expectantly for increased visibility. Nothing, so we persevered. The navigation dilemma was getting much more complicated at this time! The water was getting shallower, the tide was going out and there was more ‘things’ to run into. Our arrival route coincided with good crab fishing areas (which we knew), consequently there are there are crab pots here, there and everywhere, all marked with cantaloupe sized floating buoys, tethered to the crap pot below. Of course there is also an increased probability of locals out boating and fishing. We were tired. The Coast Guard predictions of the fog lifting came and went, I did not know who to be more upset with, the USCG inaccurate fog lifting forecast or the sun for not burning off the fog.
Alison and I have never had to dig deeper, as a couple, to get through the next 5 hours.
In order to mitigate the numerous risk variables, one of us would be responsible for driving the boat and on crab pot lookout. The other one would be responsible for watching the radar for other boaters, watch the chart plotter for avoidance of known obstacles and responsible for the navigation to our destination. We had to improvise our route to some extent due to crab pots and lack of visibility. We generally adopted headings directly into the sun (mind you it was still very foggy), in doing so it generated a somewhat illuminated path that provided the greatest visibility to identifying crab pots.
As we progressed at a meager 4 knots, we honked the fog horn every 10-15 seconds. Our heart stopped momentarily, when a local small boat came blasting out of the fog and nearly collided with us! We were attempting to follow a route recommended by the marina but their diagrams did not jive with our electronic charts…not good, oh bother…just what we need, another problem to solve! After some very cautious route improvising, but we were finally on the inter coastal waterway (…as in no more crab pots). At this point we would have been 20 minutes away from the marina under normal conditions, but the fog persisted and it took us 2 hours and as I jokingly predicted, the fog lifted minutes before we reached the marina.
Twenty two hours later, we were exhausted physically. The mental concentration over the last hours was well beyond that which either one of us had experienced at any time over our lives. We were too tired to celebrate our crossing conclusion. If you want to create new and lasting memories as a couple, we highly recommend that you do it in ways, other than, our Looper crossing! But hey, we arrived safe and sound. This crossing experience is one we will always remember and it makes for a doozy of a boat story!
Stay tuned for more adventures…
