Day 23: A really good day (except that one part)

Manatee Pocket to Peck Lake (anchor)

February 6, 2022

Last night was tough: our battery alarm came on a few times necessitating John getting up to reset it.  At about 3:00 he realized the best bet was to start the generator to see if he could get the battery charge up.  Unfortunately, the generator is very close to the portlights in our cabin and the fumes make me nauseated.  I had to sleep on the settee for a bit.  Disturbed sleep is awful, especially on a night that getting to sleep is a struggle.

Our friends Melody and James were just down the ICW in a spot that allowed for access to a beautiful, secluded ocean beach.  We decided to join them and raised the anchor.

Peck Lake is actually a wide spot on the ICW that’s good for anchoring.  On our way to our anchorage we saw some manatees which let me know we were where we needed to be today. We could even hear the ocean.

And then the bad thing happened: our motor abruptly stopped as we were dropping the anchor.  John thought perhaps something had gotten caught up in our propeller or perhaps we had blown our transmission.

We were lucky that the day was warm and the water not too awful.  John grabbed his diving mask and fins to go see if he could determine the issue.  He was able to untangle the anchor chain from the prop and shaft.  Lailia is up and running again.

After John had a quick boat shower, we dinghied to shore with Melody and James.  A quick walk through on a path and we were at the beach.  Having time with friends on a glorious day on a deserted stretch of beach was perfect.

The day became even more perfect when I also had a shower (my first on the boat).

Somehow this anchorage is not near either a bridge or train tracks.  We’ll manage, somehow.