Trees – MV Simple Life

The next morning we were underway at 6:42AM and I was snapping photos as we went.

There are many locks on the trip to Lake O. Below is a clip as we lock-through at the St. Lucie Lock & Dam.

As soon as you pass through the Port Mayaca lock you enter into Lake Okeechobee. I thought about anchoring on the eastern shore of Lake O for the night. I did the math and figured we could cross the lake (22NM) and make it the 33NM to the dolphins just outside the Moore Haven Lock. Moore Haven lock closes at 5PM and all vessels must arrive by 4:30PM to be allowed to enter the lock.

Just through Port Mayaca lock and into Lake O – 22NM crossing and another 11NM of canal before our tie up location in front of Moore Haven lock.

There was a fire in the distance and the winds where carrying ash in the wind and raining it down on the decks of MV Simple Life. We had to be careful not to track the ash inside and stain the carpets.

Osprey are everywhere on Lake O. Seems like every piling has it’s own Osprey.

There is a concrete cylinder in Lake O that I could only guess at what it’s function is or was?

You must be careful to stay in the channel in Lake O as it can get shallow.

The trees and vegetation in Lake O is photo-worthy.

Gators be a lounging in what’s left of the sun…

Florida Gators

This dude was out riding in his air boat with his black lab by his side.

Black Lab Airboat Ride

There is a special feeling that Lake Okeechobee bestows upon me. It’s hard to explain but we all have places that we go to just feel like the world is right. I’ve been listening to the blues lately. More specifically, JJ Grey and the Mofros. The tune “Lochloosa” sums it up.

Where is that place you go to recharge your soul?

Homesick but it's alright
Lochloosa is on my mind
She's on my mind

I swear it's ten thousand degrees in the shade
Lord have mercy knows - how much I love it

Every mosquito every rattlesnake
Every cane break – everything

Every alligator every black water swamp
Every freshwater spring – everything

All we need is one more damn developer
Tearing her heart out

All we need is one more Mickey Mouse
Another golf course another country club
Another gated community

Lord I need her
Lord I need her
And she's slipping away

If my grandfather could see her now
He'd lay down and die

Cause every minute every second every hour
Every day - Lord she's slipping away

Homesick but it's alright
Lochloosa is on my mind
She's on my mind

The sun was getting low and it was creating a mirror on the lake.

I walked out on the bow while underway to attempt to capture just how dreamlike this crossing can get when the sun is low and the water still.

Fantasy on Lake O

We had finally arrived at Moore Haven lock and it was closed for the night. We were stuck in Lake O for the night so I decided to tie to the dolphins for the night. A dolphin is a piling that is supported by many other pilings. You often find large ships laying up against them or tied to them. Tonight I would have to pull the bow up close to one of them to get a line on it. Then I’d have to let that bowline out as I backdown on the piling to my stern. Once I get a line of the piling behind me I would adjust the two lines so MV Simple Life would sit evenly between the two dolphins for the night.

In the morning we awoke to fog on Lake O.

Lake O, I’ll be Baaaaccckkkk!

We got a lazy start and the boat that was anchored next to us (captured in the photo below taken just after anchoring) was long gone by the time we weighed anchor.

Last night’s view of the sky was amazing. The stars popped like I have never seen. It would seem that being devoid of any extraneous light makes the cosmos seem even larger and us even smaller.

We navigated beneath several bridges.

Ben Sawyer Swing Bridge located at SM 462 along the ICW in Sullivan’s Island South Carolina.

Wappoo Bascule Bridge located at SM 470 along the ICW in South Carolina.

Both of these bridges had about 30′ of vertical clearance so no need to hail the bridge tender for an opening.

We also passed several ADVs (Abandoned or Derelict Vessels) along the way.

NOAA has a website dedicated to helping with ADVs.

Abandoned boats are a problem everywhere. When she is new everyone flocks to see her. When she falls into disrepair, her value can be upside down. The cost to junk an old boat or the salvage fee after an accident or storm only adds to the abandonment problem.

As we sailed into Charlestown, SC, you could see the tall steeple of what I think might be St. Philip’s Church built in 1836.

While the thought of exploring Charleston was buzzing in our heads, we remarked that we could stop on the return trip. There are so many great stops along the ICW but if we stopped at all of them we’ll never make it to Florida.

The moss on the trees reminds you that this is South Carolina and not Rhode Island.

The type of tree that surround this home are everywhere along the shore. Maybe a type of oak tree?

I’m dying to see one of those live oaks that look like something out of a fairytale down here.

We passed many crab boats that would race between the crab pot floats that line the channel. You can always tell the boat up ahead is a crab boat because the birds follow them wherever they go. As the pot is pulled to the surface, the crabs are measured and those to small are discarded back into the sea. The flock of sea birds use this opportunity to nab an easy lunch.

Don’t you just love that man’s best friend is tucked up behind the windshield absorbing whatever warmth from the sun could be found?

Kelly & I got a kick out of seeing this “flats boat” with a man on the back pushing it through the shallows with a push pole. I could only imagine how difficult it must be to balance on that small platform as the boat rocks. We slowed as we passed so our wake would not flick him into the cold water.

As the sun got low in the sky it became clear that I needed to pick which anchorage I was going to drop the hook in tonight. Kelly requests that I research anchorages ahead of time that have strong Verizon cellular signal strength so she can watch the football games using the NFL Mobile app on her iPhone. While cruising we consume cellular data like teenagers stranded at the adult party.

We anchored in a creek called Toogoodoo just in time to watch the Patriots game.

Tag: Trees

Okeechobee my Lochloosa

Sunshine Highway