Wednesday, April 13, 2016

Sailing Trip to Bimini

Nan and I have been wanting to expand our sailing experiences beyond Biscayne Bay, and a Gulfstream crossing to Bimini seemed a logical choice. We enlisted our friend Mike Young from Colorado, who has been on every major Whispering Jesse voyage, and set a departure date for Thursday, April 14. As we prepared at the Coconut Grove Sailing Club over the last few days, Nan mentioned our plans to Brian McGrath, one of the first members we met when we joined over two years ago. He expressed an interest and soon we were a crew of four.

The weather should cooperate well for us, with predicted winds out of the southeast at 5-10 knots. This direction and speed combination should help to keep the wave heights at a tolerable level. We plan to leave at 5:00 AM and clear Cape Florida, at the south end of Key Biscayne, about an hour later. From there, it's into the Gulfstream's 3-4 knots of northbound current, where we're expecting a significant northward push. We're hoping to make it across in 10-12 hours. Wish us luck!

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