Nice and Warm

En Route On The ICW
N 28 11 94 W 80 38 49

Yesterday went well. I met Pete at the airport. His flight went without a hitch.

On the way back, I tried to accomplish a secondary mission. Our new engine has a sonalert device which sounds an alarm if the temperature is high or the oil pressure is low. However it sounds at 4600 hertz, while my ears only hear up to 3000 hertz. I can't hear the alarm even if I put my ear right next to it. Libby, on the other hand says, "Stop that piercingly loud sound." Sonalert makes different models of the device. One of them sounds at 1900 hertz. While waiting for Pete I found the
name of a local dealer on the Internet. So on the way back, we stopped at Eau Gallie Boulevard to go to RS Electronics to buy the device. Alas, when we got to the specified street address, we found that RS Electronics is no longer there and that their phone was disconnected. Mission not accomplished. So much for Internet research.

Last night we had our dear friends Reg and Terry from Blue Topaz over for dinner. The five of us had a great time talking about many things. Especially interesting was Reg's story about riding out two hurricanes while in the Bahamas. I learned one thing when Reg said he put the dorade plates in. Instantly, my mind clicked. Ever since buying Tarwathie I've been wondering about several round, threaded, bronze plates were for. Just hearing the phrase, dorade plate, made me understand. One unscrews
the elbow shaped air vent scoop from the dorade box, and screws the plates on in their place to make them water tight.

Today we set off at 0730, stopping at the marina for fuel, water, pumpout, and a newspaper first.

Pete just loves it out here on the waterway. It's sailing. It's warm. It's beautiful. It's sunny. Wildlife is everywhere. Just as a special treat for Pete, three frisky dolphins swam up beside us and frolicked in the water for a while. I think Pete is really enjoying himself.

By tonight, we should be in the vicinity of the Kennedy Space Center where Libby and I watched the space shuttle launch last December. By Sunday, I plan to be in Saint Augustine. When there, the winds may be more favorable to going on the outside.