Has been a while since the last update and a bits gone on, just been a bit slack after the excitement of Matthew!! Sunflower was fine after Matthew passed anyway, others that where left there in the water were not so lucky. About a half a dozen yachts ended up smashed against the wall at the Green Cove Springs Marina after their moorings dragged. Apparently 70kts was all that was recorded there but it is no surprise they dragged as nothing seems to be properly maintained around the place there but it was a real shame to see a beautiful little Hans Christian that had just finished a big refit including full respray with its side all chewed up and pretty buckled. Anyway we were very happy to get back into the water without any incident but it wasn't without worry that's for sure, it is one dodgey boatyard.
So we went downstream 20 miles to Jacksonville and got a free berth in the city centre that turned out not to be so free after receiving $100 fine but that's another story. We decided when we were lifted we would commit to doing a refit in Guatemala early next year and do a proper job on Sunflower so Jacksonville was an easy place to stop and stock up with loads of tin foods ect. From there it was another 300nm south to Fort Lauderdale which took 2 nights and we copped a fair beating with the wind on the nose and weather a fair bit worse than they forecast but we got there without too much trouble and enjoyed the beer even more than usual. Fort Lauderdale is a full on joint, there's some serious money floating around that's for sure. We managed to find a free anchorage after being told to move on from the first place but ended up in a great spot with easy access to everything. Our main purpose for the visit is to buy paint, loads of it. From the epoxy barrier coat to the Coppercoat antifoul type stuff and then all the whites and yellows for everything else, it's a lot cheaper here than Guatamala apparently. After a couple of days of catching buses back and fourth to get the perfect shade of yellow mixed I then got an email.....work. Most people dread it but I was absolutely stoked, we can actually afford the paint now!!
Friends of ours on "Imagine" had a friend named Dale join them in Cape Town for the crossing to Brazil where we met him. He is a super nice guy and after getting to know him over those few months he said if we ever end up in the States in the "Keys" to give him a call and we were just on our way to say hello when I got this email and he said we could park up on his jetty in Key Largo which was so VERY nice of him and that is where Julie and Sunflower is now. I had a week there before I had to fly out and it was great to catch up with him and meet his wife Sandy and have a look around the place and meet some of their friends and neighbours, what a spot! Certainly the most luxurious mooring Sunflower has ever had in our hands anyway, thank you so much Dale and Sandy😀
Now I've been back at work in Aus nearly 3 weeks now and I'm not sure when I will finish but it is all going well so either way I'm not too worried but with any luck we will be in Belize for maybe Xmas or New Years, who knows???
