"WHISPER SPORTING HER CHRISTMAS WREATH"

Interesting things which happened since our last update are, going aground heading into an anchorage in Venetian, South Beach, Miami and having a friend come out to help us, he tied our halyard (a line) to his dinghy and when Whisper slid free our friend could not get the line off his dinghy quick enough and his dinghy went upside down throwing him in the water. The Skipper had to get into “Scarlet” our new dinghy and go help, we ended up towing his dinghy upside down to the anchorage and he was on board Whisper. After a lot of maneuvers things got back to normal. Thank heavens going aground is just getting caught in soft sand. You would think that was enough excitement for one day. We had to reset the anchor and Whisper stopped suddenly when we investigated, there was a line around the prop. Vic stripped, got in the water with his snorkeling gear and with a lot of corresponding was able to get it off. We thoroughly enjoyed Venetian. But we set sail for Marathon; it took us two days of really nice winds. The trip was uneventful, except when Vic asked what was trailing behind Whisper wrapped around her rudder, it was a green plastic garbage bag. Luckily Vic was able to get into the dinghy while I took the helm and got it off without incident. Here we sit in Marathon, FL once again awaiting a “Weather Window” to cross to Cuba, sound familiar? We waited in Key West, Fl last year and never got one until it was too late.

We are on a mooring ball here, which means that we have “Whisper” tied on to a great big ball that is anchored in cement. It is great as we can dinghy ashore for washrooms, showers, laundry, library, internet, etc. There are stores and restaurants within walking distance.

We were blessed Christmas with the arrival of our 5th Grandchild. April gave birth to a baby girl 8 lb 11 oz, 20 inches long.


Repairing a sail. I was fortunate enough to meet this Australian Couple - Stu and Lynn. Stu is a master sail maker in Australia. He took my 150% sail and cut it to fit my new furling gear. This may not mean much to some but to a sailor it is the same thing as having a new motor. He told me the sail would pull like a naughty school boy. Can't wait to try it out in a good breeze.














A Narrow passage. We have taken the inside route on our way South towards Marathon. In order to do this, one must have a draft of no more than 5 feet and go through very small cuts such as the one you see below. Total concentration is the most important thing at this time.














Rudolph the Black Nosed Reindeer. We spent the most wonderful week in South Beach, Miami. Not only are the people there unique, but the animals seem to have taken on the same air of being different.














A great sail to Marathon. When you are going South, the best thing you can have going for you is a northerly wind. On this occasion we had three consecutive days of wind coming from the right direction. Although like all Northerlies it is colder than an average day, but getting out there and sailing was more than well worth it.














Marilyn's perfect picture of flipper. I have been out done! Last year I captured a dolphin in mid air, Marilyn has it coming out of the water and going in on the same picture. It is not very often you capture this.














A Visiting Cruiser. This is Corning from the sailing vessel "Blessed Spirit". He lives in Maine and has visited Newfoundland many times. He and his Wife Tita have been in constant contact with us since we sailed in 2007. Perfect sailing couple. He can appear at any time from any direction and always carries a smile.














Shallow water. We are sailing along in waters 8 foot deep. If you happen to loose your concentration, these birds are a pleasant reminder that if you vary a little off course (they are standing knee deep) then you have problems.














We arrived in Marathon on Dec 21st. to be with other cruisers for Christmas. It was a great surprise to find out that the Marina Common Room would be available for Christmas Dinner. The Marina supplied, Turkey, Ham, Mashed Potato and Sweet Potato and each cruiser brought along a pot luck item. With over 200 people we had a huge selection of 100 different dishes. A good time was had by all.