I believe it was sometime during the Spring of 2004. Heidi and I were doing some work on YIPPIE KY A, our 1972, 45’.6” Chris Craft Sportfish that we had lived on together for about a year. We were staying at the Harborage Marina in St. Petersburg, Florida. We would both call ourselves powerboaters. Heidi had done a little sailing with her Dad early in her life. I think I had been on a sailboat a total of three times in my life of 50 years and each of those times we ended up using the engine. With that said, I would not say that either of us are the kind of powerboaters who have an attitude towards sailboats. We just did not get them. That was until Mel and Jackie came into our lives.

One day this attractive 53’ sailboat came cruising down our docks and docked about 3 slips down form us. Over the next couple of days we saw this couple that was in their 60’s walking down the docks. Usually they would be holding hands and had a smile on their faces. Heidi and I were determined to meet these people. We did meet them and became very, very good friends.

We found out that they were from New York and Mel had been is dentist and Jackie was a schoolteacher. When their kids had grown up and graduated college and were totally on their own, they decided to make the big move. They sold the dentist business and Jackie quit teaching. The sold their house and most of their possessions and they bought a 1984 53’ Trintella. Go to www.yachtworld.com and type in the appropriate info in the “BOAT SEARCH” area and you will see a boat similar to theirs if one is for sale at the time you are reading this. They called their vessel Feisty, which was quite appropriate because Jackie was about the feistiest damn person you have ever meant and I do mean that in a most loving way!

They had left New York and had been cruising the Caribbean for the past 6 years. They had come to St. Petersburg for a refit. This is when you do a lot of work on your boat because after years of use it is definitely needed. They had heard of a person named Ron from St. Petersburg and wanted him to do their work. They thought the work would take a few months or so to complete. It ended up taking almost a year. During that time we spent a lot of time together. They would tell us of all of their adventures. The islands they visited. The carnivals and parties they became part of. The cultures they learned. The beautiful dive sites they dove. The bottom line is they told us of how much fun they were having and different and exciting every day was. I am not sure exactly how it happened, but one night I thing I looked and Heidi and said that it was time for us to become sailors. It was time for us to sell YIPPIE KY A and buy a sailboat. It was time for us to put a plan together to start living the life that Mel and Jackie were living. I think Heidi thought I had gone crazy. Not from the idea of living the cruising life. But the idea that I was even considering us becoming sailors.

Anyway, it did not take her long and soon she was on board. We decided that we would get YIPPIEKY A ready to sell and put her on the market. Now just to make sure that this was something we really wanted to do, Mel and Jackie asked us if we wanted to go on the first passage (trip) with them as soon as their boat was ready. We asked them where they were planning to go. They said Belize. We said “YES!”

Heidi was working as a paralegal for Chambers Law Group in St. Petersburg. She figured she could take a week off, so if we planned the weekends right, she could go for 9 to 10 days. Therefore it would be best if we could leave on a Friday so she would not have to be back until a week after the coming Sunday. For weeks we watched the weather patterns develop. We were looking for a 3 to 5 day weather window with favorable winds to cross the Gulf of Mexico. Mel had even hired a weather forecasting and routing service. They are an independent company that uses their expertise to tell you their opinion of the weather and what route(s) they advise you to take and/or avoid. Even as you are heading across the Gulf of Mexico they give you updates over your single side band radio or other communicative device like a satellite phone if you have one.

Around the middle of March everyone got together and agreed we had a good weather window coming up. We got the boat ready to go. We had a safety meeting where we went over everything. A couple of important notes from that meeting were at night no one was allowed out of the cockpit. During the day you can only leave the cockpit if another person was outside watching. There were jacklines set up. These are nylon lines running from the bow (front) of the boat back to the stern (back) along each side. At night or any time it was rough, we wear life jackets with harnesses that have a CO2 cartridge that automatically inflates the life jacket as soon as it hits the water. You would have to snap yourself into these jacklines if you were going forward or aft. Most of the other safety rules were common sense. We were about to cross the Gulf of Mexico and working together as a team was very important.

Anyway, we got everything ready and right around 7:00 p.m. we untied the lines from the dock and began our adventure ... so we thought. We went about 2 miles and suddenly Mel noticed that the depth sounder was not working. He asked me if I though we should turn around and fix it. I thought that was a smart idea and we turned around and went back to the Harborage. We worked on the depth sounder for a couple of hours and right around midnight we got it working. Mel and I talked about if we should leave now or wait until the morning. Heidi and Jackie had gone to bed a couple of hours ago. Mel and I decided that since we only had a few day weather window and since I knew Egmont Channel (the channel leaving Tampa Bay) well enough to steer us out into the Gulf of Mexico, that we would go ahead and shove off, again. This time it was midnight and we got about 3 football fields and got pulled over by the Coast Guards. We have to go right past their headquarters to head out of the marina. Anyway, they asked us where we going. We told them Belize which I think blew them away a little. They said we did not have our steaming light (a light a sailboat must have on at night when it is under power) on so we turned it on and away we went. We got out in Tampa Bay and as soon as we went under the Skyway Bridge it started to rain. I was running the boat and we had to turn the radar on to navigate. I remember when we got right to the end of Tampa Bay, right before we hit Egmont Key, in the channel heading out you have to take a hard 90 degree turn north then another hard turn to the west. Right when we made this turn to the north in a rain that was belting us there was this enormous ship making that turn at the same time coming in towards us. It was so big that the had a person at the bow with a spotlight showing us the bow and another person probably 3 or 4 football fields back showing us the stern. It was quite a sight. Mel wanted me to move out of the channel to give them more room but I was concern to put his boat too far out of the channel due to water depth. Anyway we made it past this monster ship and kept heading out the channel.

On making a 3 to 5 days passage, it is important to set up night schedules of who will run the boat when and who sleeps. We had decided that Mel and I would run the boat together and Heidi and Jackie would as well. We would be on three hour shifts. However, when we were heading out of Egmont Channel I knew that I was the only one who knew the channel well, so Mel and I decided to stay up all night and run the boat until we got out of the channel. We turned the boat over to Heidi and Jackie as the sun came up. Unfortunately, I don’t thin we ever caught up on the missed sleep for the rest of the passage. Lesson learned there – always stick to the night schedule and get your sleep.

So now the trip was on. We headed south down and off the coast of Florida. Due to wind direction we had the engine running the whole time so we could run a direct route and maintain a minimum of 6 knots. As we got off of the Keys I had a couple of rods out and we were trolling. I remember the moment that Mel stuff off the engines and we were totally sailing for the first time. I remember how cool I thought it was that here we were trolling and there was no sound of the loud engines. That was pretty damn cool.

For safety reasons, very evening right before the light would leave the sky we would bring the trolling lines in. One night right before I went to get the lines one of them went off big time. The set up we were using were not big. The reel peeled line out and sang loudly. I grabbed the rod. Heidi reeled the other line in as Mel tried to turn the boat into the wind. You see as long as we were going forward the reel was going to run out of line soon – real soon. I will make a long story real short since it does not have a happy ending. I fought the fish for almost 2 hours, broke the end of the rod and never got the fish close enough to the boat to see what it was before it broke off. I am pretty sure it was a big yellowfin tuna, but that is just a guess.

When we were sailing about 50 miles west of Cuba I had one line out and it was pulling a rig that had a wooden bird at the end of the line and then I had an artificial plastic feather and #6 hook trailing the bird by about 6 feet. Here is a sample of what it looked like except the bird was pink and the plastic feather was blue and white -
 

Anyway, we were trolling/sailing at around 6 knots which is perfect trolling speed. All of a sudden we noticed this big white bird checking out our baits from high above., He would zero in on the bait and make a dive towards the bait and every time he would go underwater and come up with nothing – just missing it by inches. He would shake his head like a cartoon character and go high up again and try again – time after time after time. It was really quite funny to watch. Heidi took a small video of it which hopefully you will be able to see here. Mexico Trip 3-05 (111).mov

The bird never got our bird or hook and this went on for at least 30 minutes until he finally gave up. If we were not going to catch fish, watching that bird was almost just as much fun!

We kept sailing and enjoying this new (for us) type of boat – sailing. We were running a rumb line course, thus we were not tacking as many sailboat do to take the best advantage of the wind direction. If the wind was not in a favorable position, we would simply turn the engine on. We always made a minimum of 6 knots. After a coupe of days at sea we received an update weather report and found out that the winds were going to change and they were soon going to be right on our nose. Mel decided that it would be best to change plans and head more easterly towards Mexico. We did this and after a day or so we were approaching land, a little north of Cancun. We were going to sneak in behind the Mayan Reef at this particular location that Mel and Jackie had a drawing of. (The Great Mayan Reef is also called Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System It is located on the coasts of Cancun and the Mayan Riviera. It is the second largest reef system in the world next to the Great Barrier Reef of Australia which goes an amazing 1550 miles. The Mayan Reef runs from Cabo Catoche, on the north of Quintana Roo, and extends for 620 miles to the coasts of Belize, Guatemala and Honduras.

Anyway, Mel and Jackie had some directions and a map they had received from other cruisers. This is how a lot of cruisers go to a lot of places. Some directions and maps work out and some don’t. After we checked the area out for a while we finally figured it out and went in on the south end of the reef. We made it past the shallows of the reef and started to look for a place to anchor. As we were looking we ran aground. We were able to put the boat in reverse and worked our way off the bottom. We anchored, grabbed a bite to eat and then I think everyone fell asleep and caught up on some much needed rest.

When you go to another country you have to check in and clear with their Customs Department before you can go on land. No one other than the Captain is supposed to leave the boat until you have cleared. We waited until the next morning to check the weather report out to see if we were going to be able to take off towards Belize which was still some 225 plus miles to the south. Heidi had to catch a plane back in 6 days so we had to make the decision if we had enough good weather to go. She had not made her return flight reservation yet so we could still makes changes if weather permitted. We soon made the determination that it would be better to hang out around here for 4 or 5 days and Heidi would catch a flight out of Cancun or Cozumel. I was going to stay with Mel and Jackie and help them complete the trip to Belize.

Since we were going to stay we had to clear customs. Close to where we were anchored was a place that a lot of hotels in Cancun and Cozumel sent their patrons during the day to go snorkeling, diving, fishing and simply to enjoy the beach. They had a restaurant there and there were also some hatched buildings that I think people could rent and stay in. We took the dingy off of Feisty the next day and went over to this building on land and asked them if there was a place there that we could clear customs. They told us we would have to go into town and we could ride with one of the vans that take people back to the hotels. We decided to go the next day so we went back to Feisty and did some snorkeling around the area.
After we had breakfast on the boat we took the dingy over to the beach and hopped a ride in the hotel van into town to check out about getting cleared through customs in Mexico. We took our empty 6 gallon gas tank with us – the one we use on the dingy. As we get into town we go ahead and fill up the tank. Another lesson learned – don’t fill up a 6 gallon, 50 plus pound portable fuel tank at the “beginning” of your trip into town when you are planning on walking or not sure if you are going to be walking around a foreign town for countless hours.

I don’t remember all of the places we walked to but after walking around for a couple of hours, going to the police stations, a commercial port and another port – all that we thought were places you would go to clear customs, but none turned out to be. Finally, we were sent to a new marina where we heard they will clear you. They told us to come back by boat the next morning and they would have whoever needed to be there to clear us. The local police chief then gave us a ride, which was about 20 miles, back to where we had the boat anchored. Mel and I rode in the back of a pick-up truck while Heidi and Jackie rode in front with the officer. Here we were, 4 gringos who were not supposed to even be on land until we cleared customs and we were be driven to our boat by the local police chief in the back of his pick up. Talk about an adventure!

The next day we sailed a few miles north and went into this tricky inlet surrounded by giant boulders on each side. We were accompanied by a fairly strong wind coming off our stern and causing Feisty to surf down the front side of some challenging waves. Mel expertly maneuvered the boat and we slid into the harbor entrance and came alongside a new floating dock. We were greeted by 6 different customs agents. We had the police chief, someone from the Dept. of Agricultural, the marina people and a few others. After about 45 minutes we completed all that had to be done, paid a fee of somewhere over $200 and were officially cleared into Mexico. I understand now the clearing process in Mexico is simpler and less expensive than it was in 2005

We decided to go into a small town, Puerto Morelos, Mexico that was situated like a group of buildings located like a square with each side about a 1/3 mile long. Puerto Morelos is a charming fishing village located 30 minutes South of Cancún ( 15 minutes from Cancún International Airport ) and 20 minutes north of Playa del Carmen in Quintana Roo. It is a perfect place to enjoy life and relax. There were a lot of small shops in this part of town we were in. We went to this one restaurant to celebrate my birthday which was coming up in a couple of days. We had a great meal and it was fun walking around this little town. Read Heidi’s article The Conch and the Gecko, about how she went to a small jeweler and bought a silver gecko and conch shell for my birthday gift.

A couple of days later Heidi had to leave to head back to her job in the United States. We had booked a one-way flight from Cancun. We got a ride to the airport and I followed Heidi until she got on her plane. It was sad to see her go because we were having so much fun. However, we both now knew that this was the beginning of our new life. We both knew that we would soon getting our current boat at the time, YIPPIE KY A (1972 45’.5” Chris Craft Sportfish) ready to put on the market. We knew that we would start learning as much as we could about sailing and cruising and putting a plan together to start the cruising life. He had a tearful good by and I left the airport and got a ride in a taxi to the local market as Mel and Jackie wanted me to do some provisioning (shopping) before returning to Feisty. I was going to complete the journey with them to Belize and catch a flight back from there.

Going to the market near Cancun was fun. Shopping was interesting as everything was in Spanish so I had to play charades with some people to figure out how to buy some of the things I needed. I got the items and got a cab to head back to the boat. He told me that today was his daughter’s birthday and I told him that it was my birthday today as well. He asked me if I had bought any beer so we could celebrate. I didn’t but I told him to stop somewhere and we would get some. I bought a six-pack of some local beer and now I was heading down the roads in Mexico drinking and driving with a cab driver celebrating my birthday. OK, not a real smart thing to do. I think we finished the six-pack in about 30 minutes. He then proceed to pull off of the rod and goes behind a small residential area (loosely defined). I must admit I thought for a second this could be trouble. However, what he did was roll his window down and threw out the empty beer bottles. Again, not the smartest thing to do and it totally goes against everything I believe in. However, at this point I just wanted to make sure I got back to the boat safely, which is exactly what happened. I thanked him for the ride, paid him and gave him an extra $20 as a birthday gift for his daughter from me. He was very appreciative. He definitely gave me a birthday memory that I will remember for quite some time.

The next day Jackie, Mel and I pulled anchor and we started heading south. We sailed toward the south end of Mexico and anchored near the southernmost part of Mexico. Everything is totally protected there. You can not dive or fish and take anything from the water. Jackie and I took the dingy into land and walked around for a bit. This place was exactly like the place Jimmy Buffett wrote about in A Salty Piece of Land. There were places where you could go fly fishing. I heard that people fly into this place just for the fly fishing. There was this beach on one side of the land. The Mayan Reef runs all the way down the eastern side of Mexico and to get to land you have to be able to find the breaks in the reef that hold enough water so you can get through. I was standing on the beach and could see the masts of this large sailboat coming out of the water near the reef. A local told me that a few weeks ago he tried to come inland and did not make it past the reef. Very sad. Jackie and I did a little provisioning as there were these very small shops that might have 20 or so items in them to shop. Some fresh (OK, almost fresh) vegetables and eggs. The eggs are not refrigerated and as long as you keep them that way they will last a long time.

We picked up anchor and headed further south. We were going to the last island off the southeastern end of the Yucatan Peninsular, Banco Chinchero - http://scantours.net/products/location.php5?id=277 . On our way there we hooked a big fish that turned out to be a nice sailfish which we release once it got to the boat. I thought that was pretty darn cool. I caught a sailfish on a sailboat! We also caught a small barracuda right before we got to the island. I cooked it later that night, but I was the only one that would eat it. There is this common fear of barracudas having ciguatera (http://www.usadiveclub.com/html/ciguatera.html ) which can cause those consuming them to get very sick. I understand they get this from eating other fish who eat the coral and have ciguatera. I had heard that as long as you eat young/small barracuda, they probably do not have enough of it in their system to hurt you. I must admit that although I was a little nervous about eating it, I did so and it was definitely one of the better tasting fish I have ever eaten . . . and I did not get sick!

As I wrote in another article on our website, just as soon as we anchored in Banco Chinchorro, a small boat with about 6 men came out from the land. They tied up next to us. They were all wearing navy blue pants and shirts, but they had no markings on the shirts or the boat. We assumed they were the Mexican Coast Guard. We were hoping they were the Mexican Coast Guard. Four of the men who were holding these semi-automatic weapons could not have been more than 20 years old. They might have shaved once in their lives. One of them went to the front of our boat and one went to the stern – each holding their weapons. An older gentleman also came on board and went down below with Mel which we assumed was to go over all of our paperwork to make sure it was in order. They did not speak a word of English and we barley understood any Spanish. I remember looking at the two young men with their finger constantly caressing the trigger of their weapons. I thought to myself that they could easily blow us away, dump our bodies so the sharks could eat us and no one in the world would have ever known what happened to us. It was a little frightening. However, after about 30 minutes the man and Mel came out from below and said that everything was in order. They asked if we had any cigarettes to give them. We did not have any. I asked if I could take a picture of them which I did. The bottom line is they were just doing their job, but from an outsider point of view it appeared quite concerning. They wished us farewell and when another boat came into the anchorage, we saw them go through the same routine.

We did some snorkeling around Banco Chinchorro for a couple of days and left right around sunset one evening. We were heading for San Pedro. Although the weather report was very good, the sail that night was pretty rough. In fact, Jackie said in all of the years they had been cruising this was the roughest continuous passage they had made. I guess it was maybe 5-8 feet with occasional bigger waves. Due to the size of the sea, we could not go through the reef where we wanted to near San Pedro. The break was very small and you had to make a hard 90 degree turn as soon as you went through. With the swells behind us coming so rapidly we thought it would be difficult to make this turn and we opted to go another 15 miles south and head inland at that point. From there we headed back north towards San Pedro. I remember standing on the pulpit of Feisty looking in front of us and letting Mel who was running the boat if I thought the bottom was getting shallow. This was a backup to our depth sounder, but if you wait on the depth sounder you are already on the bottom when it reads you the depth. Anyway after a little bit of stressful navigating we made it through the reef without incident and dropped anchor in San Pedro. The channel we were in is where every boat has to travel to get there. Thus, all ferries carrying provisions or anything travels these waters. We heard that one of the ferries had just hit an anchored sailboat a couple of night ago. Thus, we always kept a careful watch when we were on board, especially at night.

Well my adventure was about to end as I was to leave for Belize airport in a couple of days. I had spent over three weeks with our dear friends Mel and Jackie. Every day was an adventure. Every day I learned something new. Every day brought me closer and closer to the realization that this was the life I should be living. It is in the blood that goes through my body. I was ready to get back to St. Petersburg and get our boat ready to sell. The final day came and with tears in all of our eyes, we hugged and said our good byes as I got on a speedboat/taxi that took me from San Pedro to Belize. There I caught a cab to the airport for the flight home.

When I arrived Heidi was there to greet me and we both knew what we had to do next. So here we are now a little over four years later and we are getting ready to create our own adventures. First on the list will be to catch up with Mel and Jackie and cruise with them for a bit. For without them, we would still be powerboaters and we just may never have heard our calling for the sea! THANK YOU MEL AND JACKIE! WE LOVE YOU!