Cruising the Florida Panhandle

Saturday, 9 November – Fairhope, AL to Pensacola, FL – 59 mi., 5070 cum mi.

Clear, cool, 53 degrees. We had the pleasure of dining with Brian Franc, our yacht broker, who lives in Fairhope and who showed us the first boat we looked at last year in Orange Beach, AL. We also met other loopers docked beside us – Tom and Nancy on Terrapin, from Petosky, MI. This morning, we fueled up and headed south down Mobile Bay to the Gulf Intracoastal Water Way. Terrapin was not far behind us after doing the same. The wind calmed down overnight, so the seas were relatively

calm. Other loopers were crossing the bay from marinas up Dog River on the western shore. We heard conversations between Journey and Meridian on the VHF. We entered the ICW at red buoy 120, just behind a tow heading west, and now were keeping between the familiar ICW markers. We saw Lulu’s – Jimmy Buffett’s sister’s

restaurant. Heard she served good food, and sometimes Jimmy stops in. We encountered a couple of tows headed west, occasionally waited a few minutes as they passed under

bridges. The first part of the ICW was in Alabama, then it was the
border between Alabama and Florida, then all in Florida. We were glad to arrive in the Florida panhandle, it seemed as though we were finally approaching home, especially after seeing dolphin and osprey. We docked at the Palafox Pier and Yacht Harbor, the newest marina in Pensacola, where we found Harmony and met Misty Isle from Maine. Just at dusk, Terrapin pulled in, and we all had dinner at Joco’s – a nice restaurant at the marina.

Sunday, 10 November – Pensacola to Sandestin – 61 mi., 5131 cum mi.

Beautiful day, 61 degrees. This section of the ICW has narrow channels connecting larger bays, with sand dunes on the barrier

islands and homes on the land side.

We docked at Baytowne Marina at Sandestin. Nice facility within a large development, with condos and restaurants. You can rent kayaks and paddle boards at the marina's beach.  There was a boardwalk leading to an entertainment village – pretty cool - and a parrot who said "hello." Our Captain Bob and his lovely wife, Cheryl, joined us for dinner. They live in Destin. They were the ones that delivered our boat from CT. It was great seeing them again. And another sunset – starting to feel closer to home already.

Monday, 11 November – Sandestin to Panama City – 51 mi., 5182 cum mi.

Beautiful day, 60 degrees. Capt Bob joined us for our cruise today. He left a car in Panama City, so he hopped on board to go get it. Of course, we put him to work at the helm (part time).

 Early morning run across Choctawhatchee Bay, then into the ICW canal and the “grand canyon” of Florida – it was just the sand dredged up from the ditch, but it was the nicest man made sand pile we’ve seen. Finally we cruised into St Andrews Bay and to the Panama City Marina, past a big container ship.We were soon joined by Terrapin and Misty Isles. Docktails and a gorgeous sunset marked the end of a beautiful day.

 

Tuesday, 12 November – Panama City to Apalachicola – 62 mi., 5244 cum mi.

Partly cloudy, 62 degrees. The weather forecast was grim for Wednesday through Saturday – cold front coming with gale force winds, possibly easing on Sunday. We were planning to stop at Port St Joe, a quaint town and nice marina marking the western edge of Florida's Forgotten Coast," but we didn’t relish the idea of cruising to Apalachicola in 4-ft seas later in the week. So we decided to make a run for Apalachicola while the weather was good. Terrapin stayed in Panama City to meet up with friends. We followed Misty Isles out of East Bay, through Wetappo Creek, Lake Wimico

(very shallow, so we were careful to stay in the channel, with several markers covered with osprey nests), down the Jackson River, down the Apalachicola River and up Scipio Creek to the Scipio Creek
Marina. This is an "old Florida" fishing village – very old. Dilapidated docks, house boats, a historic downtown. We docked in front of Papa Joe’s – the reason folks come to this rustic marina. We also chose it because it was more protected from the coming north winds. We tied up as securely as we could, with double fenders and spring lines, extra lines to the north side, and securing anything that could be blown away. “Hunker down” was the term used by the dock hand. And we did, preparing to wait out several days of the coming storm.