LATEST NEWS FROM LIFE NAUTONCALL
Savannah Shenanigans
After a successful night at anchor we pulled the hook early to get to Savannah as early as possible. It was a breezy morning and our trip down the Ogeechee River was choppy. The wind was right on our bow so it slowed us a...
21 April, 2022
Georgia on my mind
Leaving Fernandina Beach and heading north on the AICW, ready to make some miles and see some sights. It didn’t take long, we passed the Ocean Explorer shortly after we left the dock. She is a new Polar Class cruise ship on her maiden voyage...
19 April, 2022
The Visit
The plan was to get to Fernandina Beach to pick up Emily and Kyle, but when I looked at the parking lot at the Jim King boat ramp I realized this was a better place to meet up with our new crew members. So after...
18 April, 2022
Ponce to Sisters Creek
Leaving Ponce heading north the Thunder storms weren’t done with us yet. The morning sail through Daytona Beach was quiet and uneventful. You don’t see much Spring Break action on the AICW. Approaching our destination for the night, Palm Coast Marina, the skies darkened up...
11 April, 2022
Ft Pierce to Ponce Inlet
Leaving Fort Pierce on April Fool’s Day, The plan was to make it to Fernandina Beach to meet up with our daughter and her “future maybe someday” boyfriend in a little under two weeks. North of Vero Beach we ran through some heavy rains. ...
05 April, 2022
Palm Beach to Fort Pierce
Back in Key Largo we met a looper who told us about his “Secret Beach” where you could take the dinghy and have access to Palm Beach and a Publix store. We tried it out and it was everything it was advertised to be. After...
30 March, 2022
Sunday Money Sunday!
The last time we traveled through here we were running to pull the boat out in Indiantown and head home before Covid lockdown. I said at the time that was one of the coolest days of boating ever and I would love to do it...
27 March, 2022
All over Haulover
It’s time to head North on the AICW, the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway or as some call it the “ditch”. You can navigate all the way from the Keys to Norfolk VA without travelling out in the Ocean. Here we are starting out by...
27 March, 2022
The Smuggler’s Run – Part 5 Back to civilization.
For the last week or so we have been living on the outskirts of America. While we didn’t smuggle anything we certainly could have. This part of the Country is pretty empty, we probably only passed a handful of boats coming across the Everglades. That...
25 March, 2022
The Smuggler’s Run – Part 4 – Time to head North
All rested and ready to move on, we left Marlin Bay on the morning of the 23rd. and ran North on the inside route, which means running on the Gulf side of the Keys. The water was shallow usually 6 to 7 feet. We left...
24 March, 2022
The Smuggler’s Run Part 3 – Let’s try this again
So the second attempt at crossing the everglades went better than the first. We left Rose Marina @0830, just after the Key West Express. The winds were not as good as we had on the first try. They were around 15 knots by noon and...
22 March, 2022
The Smugglers Run – Part 2 – The Incident
St Patrick’s Day 2022 didn’t exactly go as planned. We were all set to head offshore for 2 or 3 days crossing the everglades. We were well prepared, provisioned, weather window with at least 2 days with low to no winds. It was a little...
18 March, 2022
The Smugglers Run – Part 1
When I told someone in Ft Myers that it only took us two years to complete the Florida Loop, he said “Oh, you mean the smugglers run” I had never heard that and it intrigued me so I did some quick internet research and apparently...
10 March, 2022
Back to Cruising
I am calling this post ” Back to Cruising” because we got to do regular cruising things. See new places, meet new people, meet up with friends and family, go to the beach, you know, the fun stuff. We left the dock at a leisurely...
08 March, 2022
The Kindness of Strangers
We launched the boat on Friday the 26th. but the work didn’t stop there. The Marina left us in front of the lift for Saturday. We kept busy with more cleaning and the final stowage issues so we could be ready for rolling in the...
04 March, 2022
The Refit
When we arrived the boat yard was already hard at work on projects, the bottom had been Soda blasted down to the original fiberglass and they were fairing out all the little pin holes and imperfections on the surface. Also, when the old paint...
25 February, 2022
Back to the Boat!
When we left the boat in Indiantown Marina on the hard, I was thinking we will be back in a couple of months and still have time to make it home this summer. (2020) Worse case scenario, we come back next winter and carry on...
09 February, 2022
Cut and Run
On the morning of March 21 2020 we started North on the AICW with the plan to find somewhere to pull the boats and put our Loop on hold. On the radio it was all “doom and gloom” with cancellations and travel restrictions, On the...
27 March, 2020
Day 190 Made Miami
After a quiet night at anchor, we were up early to cross Biscayne Bay before the East winds blew up. Truth be told the winds have been blowing from the East constantly since we arrived in the keys. There was a small beam sea but...
20 March, 2020
Day 189 On the Move North
We were unable to get fuel at Tavernier yesterday so our first stop today was at Gilberts marine to take on enough fuel to get us by for the next two weeks without stopping. The restaurant and bar were closed but the gas dock was...
19 March, 2020
Day 181 thru 188 Everything Changes
Heraclitus, an ancient Greek philosopher who lived around 500 BC said “The only thing that is constant is change.” That pretty much sums up the next week or so. When we woke up on the 11th of March, the plan was to meet up with...
18 March, 2020
Day 180 Key West
On March 10th. the East winds were still blowing strong. A wind of force 5 on the Beaufort scale (17-21 knots or 20–24 mph) is known as a “Fresh Breeze”. For us on Nautoncall it means stay put. Especially if it is going to create...
10 March, 2020
Days 176 thru 179 Marathon
As predicted the winds picked up significantly out of the East when we arrived at Marathon. Nautoncall was nestled nicely in slip #8 of the floating docks at Marathon Marina & Resort.The docks were first rate, new because they were replaced after Irma took out...
09 March, 2020
Days 173,thru 175 The Everglades
Leaving Marco Island for the Keys there were a few options. Kind of like the Gulf crossing from Carabelle, we could make the 90 mile run straight to Key west or break it up into 3 days to travel along the coast. The winds were...
05 March, 2020
Days 171 & 172 Marco Island
We finally got our weather window to leave Fort Myers Beach. The wind was still brisk but it was blowing from the East so the seas were calm. It was actually a beautiful day on the Gulf. Otto decided to work on the first try...
02 March, 2020
Days 167 thru 170 Waiting on a weather window
With the visits over it was time to move on, we have spent enough time in Fort Myers area, we love it but it is time to get moving again. The Watsons were ready, the boat was ready, we were ready… The weather was not...
29 February, 2020
Days 149 to 166 Time flies when you are having fun! Part 2
The second half of our kids visits started with a road trip to Fort Lauderdale to pick up our daughter. We had lots of time so we made good use of the rental, some shopping and then some sight seeing, we drove across Alligator Alley...
25 February, 2020
Days 149 to 166 Time flies when you are having fun! Part 1
Days 149 to 166 were dedicated to our Children. I had to break the post up into 2 parts because there was just too much fun for one. Origionally I was planning on being in the Keys when the Kids visited, but you know how...
15 February, 2020
Days 142 thru 148 New Neighborhood
Our next week in the Sunny south was just going to be a hang out week. With most of the boat projects done and a little over a week before kids start showing up, we relocated to Glove Bight back in Cape Coral to stay...
07 February, 2020
Days 137 to 141 On the Ball at Fort Myers Beach.
The first time I came to Fort Myers beach back in 1990ish, I drove over the Matanzas Pass Bridge and looked south to see the mooring field. I thought how cool would that be. Since then, staying on the mooring ball has been on my...
31 January, 2020
Day 140 Testing tablet blogging
We are having trouble using too much data so I am testing out writing blog posts on my tablet. Did it work? Is this a nice sunset? Sent from Samsung tablet.
30 January, 2020
Days 135 and 136 The Birthweekend
Our productive week in Fort Myers ended with Janet’s Birthday. We were planning on leaving on Sunday so Saturday was spent cleaning, provisioning and doing laundry. Not a very fun Birthday. To make up for it we went out with our Marina friends Anne and...
26 January, 2020
Days 127 thru 134 Back in Fort Myers
Our mechanic made it back to town from working on someone else’s boat, so it was time to make our way back to Fort Myers Yacht Basin again. This time I was hoping to get into the South Basin where all the cool boats go....
24 January, 2020
Days 124 to 126 Cayo Costa
Pelican Bay looked like a nice anchorage when we passed by in December but we were on a mission and just stopped at Cabbage Key for a Cheeseburger in Paradise then onto Cape Coral. We have heard through the cruiser’s grapevine that it is a...
16 January, 2020
Days 121 thru 123 Sarasota
It was time to move on before we wore out our welcome at Anna Maria Island. (If we hadn’t already) We could not meet with our mechanic for about a week, so we were in no hurry and had no real schedule like we did...
13 January, 2020
Dys 117-120 Back to the Boat
We arrived back on Anna Maria Island to find Nautoncall exactly how we left her. Thanks to Paul, Jill and Finley, they took very good care of our Baby. The first day was spent cleaning and provisioning her. It was good to be back in...
10 January, 2020
Days 94 thru 116 Home for the Holidays
Our Christmas break was a very busy one. This was the first year in many that I was Nautoncall for the Holidays. It was nice to not worry about the CN Grinch ruining my Christmas plans. I got to spend some time with my Mom....
06 January, 2020
Day 94 – Home again, Home again, Jiggity Jig
When we left on this journey we were asked, “How can you stay away for that long?” My answer was, ” It’s kind of like going away to College, we will leave in September and fly home for the Christmas Holidays, then fly back and...
17 December, 2019
Days 91-93 On the move again
Our parts finally came in and we could put Nautoncall’s heart back together. She started right up and had oil pressure almost instantly, all good signs. Unfortunately during the test run the transmission was still leaking. Not as bad, but any leak is too big. ...
15 December, 2019
Days 80 thru 90 – Fort Myers Week 2+
Our second week in Fort Myers was a mix of Waiting on boat parts, completing some projects on the boat and experiencing “Retired life in Florida” We took the Free Trolly to see the Butterfly Estates. They were a little lacking live butterflies currently but...
11 December, 2019
Days 74 thru 79 Ft Myers week #1
Our first full day in Ft Myers Yacht Basin was a work day. Not on the engine because the mechanic was busy and had not received our new seals yet. I worked on bilge pumps and took on the s***y job of rebuilding the head...
01 December, 2019
Day 73 Ft Myers boat show coming at ya!
Day 73, Monday November 25th. We had planned to heat to Ft Myers Yacht Basin to meet up with the mechanic to address our leaking transmission. He had said he wouldn’t be able to see us before Tuesday so we left Cape Coral at 10AM...
25 November, 2019
Day 69, 70, 71 & 72 Down the Intracoastal
We had planned to stay in the Tampa area and just hang out for a while since we were way ahead of schedule. I was worried about my transmission leak and looked into finding a mechanic that could help me out. I found a guy...
24 November, 2019
Days 67 & 68 Tarpon Springs Fla
After the Giant Great Blue Heron kicked us off of Anclote Key, we made our way up the Anclote River to the town of Tarpon Springs. The home of the “Sponge Docks”. In the early 1900’s Greek sponge divers settled here and started a new...
20 November, 2019
Day 65 & 66 The Gulf Crossing
The Nautoncall was shoe horned into a slip at The Moorings of Carrabelle staged to get ready for Crossing the Gulf. The Gulf Crossing is one of the sections of the Loop that scares the most people off. The majority of the Great Loop can...
18 November, 2019
Days 59 thru 64. The Panhandle
The trip across the Florida Panhandle was a 210 mile, 6 day voyage that was driven by the weather (Again!) and I really wanted to explore Mobile Alabama and see some of it’s Southern culture and Maritime history. We arrived in Dog River on the...
16 November, 2019
Day 58 Nautoncalls first tast of the Salt
The 10th of November, 2019. Our last day on the River system started out with fog. It seemed patchy in the Tensas River so we pulled anchor at 0700 and headed for the Tombigbee River. When we tried to enter the river it was Pea...
10 November, 2019
Days 54,55,56 & 57. Tombigbee Part 2
The second part of the Tombigbee started early with a group of boats leaving Columbus Marina at 7AM. Because of the time change the sun was just rising. We went straight into the Stenis Lock and then traveled 4 hours where we had a short...
09 November, 2019
Days 50, 51, 52 & 53 The Tombigbee Part1
November 2 was another cold morning. We were delayed leaving because of morning fog and then some engine issues. Those solved we left Aqua Yacht Harbour at 11AM and started into the Tombigbee Waterway. At the start we saw a large flock of White Pelicans....
05 November, 2019
Day 48 & 49 Shiloh
The weather forecast for Halloween was heavy rains followed by frost warnings so when we got to Aqua Yacht Harbor we decided to pay extra for a covered slip for a few days. We spent a down day working on projects and processing pictures. The...
01 November, 2019
Days 46, 47 & 48 Tennessee River
So my plan was to anchor out in Panther Bay and get up the next morning and go hiking on some trails in the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area. Then move father south on the Tennessee River and find another anchorage for the...
30 October, 2019
Day – 44 Panther Bay
The sail plan for the day was a short 3 hour hop on Kentucky Lake from Green Turtle Bay resort to Panther Bay. Panther Bay is in the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area and there are some hiking trails that one can reach...
27 October, 2019
Days 41,42 &43 Green Turtle Bay
Oct 24th. Started early with a Navagation meeting with The Loons, Knot Diggin and ourselves. The destination was decided to head to Green Turtle Bay for a few days of R&R. Green Turtle Bay is a looper favourite, Catherine called it a velcro stop because...
26 October, 2019
Day – 38,39,40 The mighty Mississippi
October 21st. Started out rainy and grey. We called the Melvin Price Lock, which we could see from our marina, to see if they could handle us at 0700. We were told to wait half an hour before leaving the marina and they should be...
23 October, 2019
Day 40 Paducah Kentucky
Paducah Kentucky is located at the confluence of the Tennessee and Ohio rivers, only 30 miles from the Mississippi River so it became a center for Riverboat and rail transportation. The river has seen some huge floods over the years so they built a big...
23 October, 2019
Day 36& 37 The end of the Illinois River
After a quiet night at anchor behind Diamond Island we were awakened by some hunters racing by and hooting just before sunrise. It was a beautiful still morning on the river. Roughly 25 miles later we saw some turbulence in the water and got a...
20 October, 2019
Day 33,34 &35 – Running down the Illinois River
Oct 16 2019. After our day of rest and recuperation we were keen to continue further South. Armed with the knowledge obtained yesterday at “Looper School” with Jeremy at Heritage Harbour Marina, we set out at first light destined for an anchorage along the way....
18 October, 2019
Day 31,32 Off to Ottawa
Oct 14th. The plan was to leave Joliet at 7AM to be able to clear a lift bridge that would not open during rush hour and then make our way through 3 locks ending in Ottawa at a recommended marina before dinner time. It almost...
15 October, 2019
Day 30 – Good Bye Great Lakes!
On Sunday Oct 11th. we woke to a beautiful sunrise. It was marathon day in Chicago, with the running of the Chicago marathon. There were helicopters, police sirens and even the Chicago fire department’s fire boat buzzing the habour. With the Wason’s and our new...
13 October, 2019
Day 27,28,29 – The Windy City
It has been my experience while cruising on Nautoncall that a lot of places are aptly named. In this case nicknamed aptly. Chicago is the Windy City! We stayed on a mooring ball in Munroe Harbor for 3 more days and it was one of...
12 October, 2019
Day 26 – Chicago Baby!
When we were planning this adventure the plan was to leave after the Labour Day Bocce weekend and race to Chicago to beat the bad weather on Lake Michigan. I had planned on 14 days to Chicago, give or take, weather permitting. So much...
10 October, 2019
Day 25 – Michigan to Michigan City
Today went exactly (almost) as planned. Up early, used the self pumpout at the Municipal Marina and then headed out into Lake Michigan just after sunrise. The east winds were a little stronger than expected so we stayed close to the shoreline for 50NM to...
08 October, 2019
Day 24 – South Haven work day
No pictures today. Just a quick note to keep us all up to date. It’s Oct 7th 2019. West winds today kept us in South Haven. It was a work day for us. Janet finished two new hatch covers for Nautoncall. I installed a new...
08 October, 2019
Day 21,22,23 – From one Haven to Another
Friday Oct. 4th was originally going to be a stay in Port and do some work day. But when I got up and looked at the weather it also looked like a good traveling day on Lake Michigan. The North west winds had died over...
07 October, 2019
Days 19,20 – Gone to Grand Haven
Not much to write about for the last two days. Yesterday the winds were strong easterlies and overcast skies with showers off and on all day. I took a wet dinghy ride across Muskegon Lake to Torrenson Marine to pick up some new fuel filters...
03 October, 2019
Day 18 Miserable in Muskegon
This looping lifestyle, It’s not all rainbows, And beautiful Sunrises. Unlike the other day that started out scary and ended up being a nice Saturday, today was the opposite, it started out great and turned into a miserable wet day. We started out with...
01 October, 2019
Day 17 – Made it to Muskegon
Day 17 was a 49NM Run down the east coast of Lake Michigan from Ludington to Muskegon. The weather report called for strong east winds switching to Southerlies in the afternoon, so the sail plan was to leave early and hug the shoreline protected from...
30 September, 2019
Day 16 – Finally away from Frankfort
With the predicted East winds we finally had a weather window to leave Frankfort. A very nice town but it was time to move on. We left at Sunrise destined for Ludington. It is amazing how much the Lake can calm down in a day....
29 September, 2019
Day 15 – Back in Frankfort
We tried to leave Frankfort this morning. Wind switched out of the North and we hope a following sea would not ne too bad. We left a 0830 and headed out into the Lake. The waves were right on the beam leaving the harbour. About...
28 September, 2019Day 14 – Still in Frankfort
I was hoping to travel even a short while today as the winds were supposed to be from the South. We can handle more wind when we are heading straight into it. However when we woke and checked the Windfinder, it was showing 20 knots...
27 September, 2019
Day 12 & 13 – Frankfort Follies
When we docked at Frankfort the Dockmaster told us that there was a big blow coming and we should expect a surge to enter the harbour, possibly up to 2 feet. We might be wise to add extra lines and make sure to add lines...
26 September, 2019
Day 11 – Flying to Frankfort
The red sky last night was a good omen. We were up before the sun and set out at 7AM to make the trip to Frankfort before the winds picked up too much. Today was a day of Ships and Sand dunes. Just after sunrise...
24 September, 2019
Day 8,9 & 10 Long Lasting Leland
We were up early and left Oyster Bay in time to make the 8 O’clock opening of the Charlevoix Lift Bridge. We expected a weather system to come later in the day and wanted to get a little further south before it hit. Leland was...
23 September, 2019
Day 7 – A New Great Lake
It turns out you never know when there is a cam with a view of you and someone from home might be watching you. Eric Kernohan emailed me a picture of Jan swabbing the decks before we departed today. A rare sight indeed – thanks...
20 September, 2019
Day 5 and 6 – Holy Mackinaw
September 18th. started with pretty Sunrise on Presque Isle Bay. A 60 NM run on a flat Lake Huron brought us to Mackinac Island arriving about 4PM. After getting settled in we had dinner on the boat and walked uptown for ice cream. The...
19 September, 2019
Day 4 – Why is it so quiet?
We woke up on Day 4 to a fog advisory and delayed our start to 0920. Then the sun came out and the lake was flat. Nearing Alpena, MI, crossing Thunder Bay, I was up on the flybridge getting some exercise on the bicycle and...
17 September, 2019
Day 3 – Water Water Everywhere
Today was an offshore travel day from Harbor Beach, Mi across Saginaw Bay to Harrisville, MI. The plan was to leave early and hopefully beat the building winds in the afternoon. Up at 6AM, quick shower (They have great showers) and depart @6:50. About an...
16 September, 2019
Day 2 – Red Sky in the Morning
We woke up to a beautiful “Red Sunrise” this morning. We were up early because the plan was to put as many miles as possible under the Keel to make it to Chicago before the end of the month. Left Port Sanilac Harbor at 7:10...
15 September, 2019
Day 1 – Ready not Ready!
Well today was the day. After 25 years of dreaming, 7 years of boat prep and probably a couple of years of serious planning, we have begun the Loop! After a frantic few days of boat projects and last minute packing we finally left the...
14 September, 2019
What to take?
Time is getting short. The crush is on. Janet is sewing non stop on the new flybridge tarps. It’s probably going to get a little cool and it will be very nice to have new windows to hide from the elements while on the Great...
08 September, 2019
Labour Day Love!
Well Labour Day has come and gone. (Or Labor Day for my American friends) So much for leaving on the Tuesday after Labour Day.When we originally planned this adventure and discussed leaving in August it was BooHoo’ed by someone that we would be missing the...
04 September, 2019
Another duck
I have been talking for months about getting all my ducks in a row. Getting all the things necessary to ]eave home for a year and travel America’s Great Loop. Buy an affordable boat suitable for long distance travel, check. Take her...
16 August, 2019
Prep work
Here is a list of my pre-departure jobs It’s a long list…
20 June, 2019
Knot Digin Delivery
After 9 months of waiting and negotiating we were finally on our way to pick up our “Buddy Boat” with the neighbours. The boat was located at Starport Marine in Orillia ON. We had planned on a 4 day trip to bring her home to...
16 June, 2019
Kincardine, Ontario
We mad the short trip from Port Elgin to Kincardine this day and as we were tying the lines we heard Bagpipe music and head up to the park to catch the last set of the Mudmen concert at the Kincardine Scottish festival. This is...
09 July, 2017
Nautoncall is in Tobermory!
Sunset dinghy ride in Tobermory. We went back to apologize to this guy for cutting him off just to take a picture and ended up towing him in faster so he could beat his buddies to the dock.
05 July, 2017
SS Keewatin
After leaving the Trent Severn Waterway System we crossed the bay to visit the SS Keewatinis in Port McNicoll. We toured it today, It is truly a treasure and a must see. I really appreciate a National Treasure that you can visit by boat,
28 June, 2017
