Oct 7th - Redfish Point to Spectre Island
After a very restful night we were up by 0700. A quick check of the engine room showed everything was okay, so I started the engines so they could warm up while I made coffee. Paula came up from the stateroom as the coffee finished brewing, and we had our first cup. Nothing like sitting on the top deck and listening to the waves crash on the beach over on the gulf side of Perdido Key. It was a quick cup of coffee, though, as it was time to get underway. We had the anchor up and were on the move by 0735.
The weather was perfect, and we were even getting a push from the current for a change. Since it was a weekday, there was not too much boat traffic. We did get waked by a couple of smaller sport fishing boats, but not enough for anything to fall off the counters.
Overall, this was my kind of day of cruising. BORING! Nothing broke, no malfunctions, no fuel issues, just several hours of putt-putting. We got to Spectre Island, just off Hurlburt Field (part of Eglin AFB) by 1300, and had the anchor down by 1315. This is how we like to cruise, 5-6 hours, then anchor early so we can relax and enjoy the rest of the day.
Due to all the fuel issues, we had a couple of trash bags full of fuel soaked pads, old filters, etc. It was leaking all over the back deck, so I needed to dispose of it. There is a municipal dock in Ft. Walton Beach, with an adjoining public park. I figured there had to be trash cans there. So I took the dink and made the run to town; about a 20-25 minute ride each way. When I got there, I found the docks to be fairly new, and very nice. The city allows you to stay for one night only, but it is free. Unfortunately, most of the slips have silted in and are not deep enough for us. We would only be able to tie along side the end pier, where the pump-out station is located. I'll pass. But I was able to get rid of our trash, so at least that was successful.
Spectre Island is a pretty cool place. It it located within the boundaries of Eglin AFB, and Hurlburt Field is adjacent. The end of the runway is less than 1/4 mile away. Hurlburt is home to Headquarters Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC), the 1st Special Operations Wing (1 SOW), the USAF Special Operations School(USAFSOS) and the Air Combat Command’s (ACC) 505th Command and Control Wing. So we get to see some pretty cool aircraft coming and going here. Like the MV-22 Osprey and the AC-130H Spectre gunship. This is where the island got its name. It is also home to the Air Commandos, and they can often be seen training on and around Spectre Island. I used to think they were Navy Seals, but just learned different today.
There is also a gunnery and bombing range at Hurlburt, and it is used almost daily. You can hear the bombs and M-61 Vulcan Gatling gun. The M-61 makes a very distinctive sound.
So with all this to watch and listen to, this can be a fun stop. And it was... for the first several hours. When we have stopped here before, flight operations normally would end by 2200. But not tonight, then went on until 0300. With many, many MV-22 take-offs and landings. These things are very loud and we did not get much sleep. We had thought to stay here for a couple of days, but decided to move on in the morning.
Oct 8th - Spectre Island to Panama City
Since we did not get much sleep last night, we were up early again. After a leisurely breakfast on the back deck, we had the anchor up and were underway by 0800. This was going to be a long day, as we hoped to make it to Shell Island south of Panama City. The trip through Ft. Walton and Destin area was uneventful. Again, since this was a weekday we did not see all the crazy boaters that come out on the weekends.
It is a long ride across Choctawhatchee Bay. We did not get to the "Canyon" until 1315. But, it was worth the ride. This is one of our favorite areas to transit. The scenery is just gorgeous.
We had three hours of this scenery, and did not see another boat for the entire trip through the area. We had on little issue when we neared the eastern end, though. I suddenly heard a high pitched whine, and thought it was coming from the engine room. We throttled back, and I opened the engine room hatch. The sound was definitely not coming from there. Now it sounded like it was coming from the back deck, and I was concerned that it may be one of the cutlass bearings. We had to replace all the cutlass bearings back in 2005 and the symptom was a high pitched whine like this. I walked to the back deck and had Paula put the engines in gear. I heard the whine for a moment, then it went away. Then it came back louder then ever! At that point we had drifted further along and I realized the sound was now coming from behind us. There was a structure on the bank that housed something making the noise. Whew! What a relief!!!
By the time we exited this part of the ICW it was getting late and we were tired. I abandoned the idea of getting to Shell Island, as that was at least another 1.5 hours away. We decided to anchor just off Harrison Bayou, which is well protected from the southerly wind we had. It was a pleasant evening, bug free, with a beautiful sunset.
I will pick this up again later tonight. Time for sun downers and supper right now! :)
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