Still in Marathon – 2/22

We’ve been following all the weather reports from up north and must say that we really miss all that’s going on … NOT!!!

I prefer the occasional frontal passage that cools things down into the 70’s.

Sorry for the lack of posts. Internet speeds, when available, are close to dial up so it’s been hard to upload photos and posts. We have a beef with the local provider so we won’t give them anymore money and as a result we have to rely on the few and far between free sites we can find. Our amplified wifi antenna does a great job but most people password protect their networks! Can you believe the nerve of some people?

The solar panels are installed and doing great in providing amps. I put on 2 – BP125 panels with a Bkue Sky Solar Boost 2512i controller. They are mounted over the bimini on independent stainless braces. They provide between 13 and 14 amps per hour during the middle of the day. Coupled with the wind generator we can cover most of our electrical needs, unless we have more computer recharging than normal.

I went up the mast and replaced the vhf coax, the anchor light (a nice LED with photocell) and the wind transducer. All in all it took two trips up and down and about four hours. Great view from up there. Although this isn’t the view from up the mast, it is an aerial shot taken while we were here. I’ve shown the location of the Marylee, as well as those of other friends. Harv and Anne are from Wausau.

We’ve met more people and have become good friends with many of them. Gary and Marcia are fellow O’day owners. This is their O35.

They have been coming to Marathon for quite a while. They had wanted to look at our boat while it was for sale, but we beat them to it by a couple of weeks. They’re from Rockford, Illinois.

Several friends have left for either the Bahamas or the west coast of Florida. This is Jim and Liz leaving for the Boat Show in Miami (their boat is in the show) and from there they will leave for the Bahamas. They are from Madison.

Terrapin, below, is the another Madison boat, seen here leaving for Ft. Myers Beach.

We are getting close to start thinking about heading north again. We will keep you posted as plans develop. There are more posts coming concerning our stay here as well as some updates from Goliath!