Fort Lauderdale

It is hard to see but we are moored right next to the dark blue boat which belongs to our friends Dick and Anita from Kind of Blue, they are from the Netherlands. 

We arrived in Fort Lauderdale after a decent sail from Cuba.  We motored the last 30 miles into port as the wind had died and the sails were slating about although we were still making decent progress due to the Gulf Stream.  Our check in to the country was seamless, we did it all by phone and just had to show up at the Immigration office the next day to show our passports. We found a mooring ball about 3 miles north of the entrance and we are still on it.  We are awaiting some parts prior to our departure to the Bahamas. 

My mother decided she wanted to move so a frantic 24 hours after we landed once I spoke to her and my brother and arranged flights, I flew to Winnipeg to help her, my brother and his wife pack up her place.  She was really happy that I came and we all had some good times while stuffing boxes to the brim with her belongings. 

We sorted as we packed, Mom took what she wanted, Barb and Bob chose what they liked and I took some gems that we put into a storage locker in Winnipeg. My Mom is moving into a smaller place so I gladly took some of her fine furniture off her hands for use when we establish a home once again. 

I was sorry that I could not help out at the other end of the move but the logistics of getting to Calgary and back and where to stay was beyond me. It was great to be able to share the farewell they had at the church for her, a dinner with my cousin and his wife and a goodbye dinner arranged by the family of her good friend Bill McGowan. 

Meanwhile back on the boat, Barry was hopping on and off those rental bikes that some cities have that have stands all over the place, ordering parts and arranging for new chain to be delivered to the boat.  How he got it in the dinghy and on the boat and the old chain off the boat defies the imagination.  He said he was pretty tired afterwards!! 

Fort Lauderdale is one of the places where lots of cruise ships leave from. 

Here we are motoring past one of the monsters when we entered the port. There are lots of deals you can get on the water taxis, if you are in town pre or post cruise.  The beach is just too blocks from where we are moored and stretches for miles in either direction.  The waterfront is crowded with bars, restaurants and shops selling beach paraphernalia. The stores selling boat parts are about 5 km away across the big high bridge so getting there and back by bicycle is a good aerobic workout. 

Cat's-Paw IV is the sailboat on the right and the blue boat on the left is another boat from the Bluewater Cruising Association in Victoria. Neil and Peggy sailed her down the west coast and through the Panama Canal and are heading up to the Chesapeake where they will leave her for the summer. 

The shot is taken from the smaller bridge which is not so difficult to cycle over!!  Last night they had thought they had lost their wallets and in their panic to find them they did not secure their dinghy properly.  Friends had arrived for a visit and they came out to go shore to pick them up and their dinghy was gone. We lent them ours and after getting their friends the two men went on a dinghy hunt.  They went up the ICW and down the ICW and finally toured around the small mooring field.  They found it behind the powerboat on the extreme right of the picture under a dock.  A big cheer went up in the anchorage when they appeared towing it.  Yeah!! That is truly one of a cruisers nightmares losing your dinghy, we are so glad they found it.