There's a gap of several days. Then the actual voyaging part begins (after 42 days of preparation.)

We're not counting the hiatus days. The 2025 cruise day count resumes with Day 43, when we returned.

Hiatus — mind the gap

Sunday, January 11 to Wednesday, January 16.

We closed up Red Ranger. Checked the docklines. Unwrapped the truck, and went to the frozen north. This time, we left the fridge running. (Unlike the Day 39, where we discovered I turned everything off.)

This was some family care time.

Move aboard (3rd round)

Day 43, Friday, Jan 17. 4 days past full moon.

Weather forecast:

We tried to squeeze through at 15:30. It was less than 0.92’. This was not a good idea. There is no squeezing through.

This was 45 minutes of agony to dredge our own channel the miserable 0.25nm (500 yds) from South Gulf Cove Lock to the Myakka river.

Lesson Learned: Highest possible tide. Return will be March 16 when the tide is 1.7'.

Here's our Spot Locator ping from the anchorage

Device Name: Red Ranger 
Latitude: 26.94924 
Longitude: -82.18695 
GPS location Date/Time: 01/17/2025 16:57:25 EST

The exit route is almost exactly 10 nm. At 4-5 kn it takes 2 to 2.5 hrs. Don't leave early.

Day 44

Somehow we’ve anchored over a line of crab pots. Up anchor. Move 150yd E. Drop anchor away from crab pots.

Here's the location from the iPhone's compass.

26°57′37″ N  82°11′50″ W

Today, we bent on the sails.

• Mainsail. Takes about 3 hrs to wrestle up there. We think it weighs close to 100 lbs. In the heavy Myakka River current, the boat doesn’t face into the wind, making things right awkward with sail luffing all over the starboard rail. The lowest batten is close to 18’ long, and we’re both careful to announce when we have it under control and when we’re letting go.

  I managed to get the lazyjacks twisted. Once that was cleaned up, we got the sail piled on the boom with all the battens in and both reef points properly rove.

• Mizzen. Much easier. I can bend this on single-handed.

• Yankee. Also a beast. 40-50 lbs and awkwardly large. Since we wouldn’t simply point into the wind, the sail was all over the deck.

• Stays’l. This, too, can be single-handed. It’s easier when one person feeds into the foil and one person hoists.

Day 45

Weather was nasty. Stiff winds most of the day. Gusting into the high 20’s. In the narrow river, the waves weren’t huge. But they were relentless.

Late in the afternoon, a sudden very heavy rain. Then clear, little wind, and rapidly alling temperatures.

Tomorrow looks like a short, chilly, sail to Punta Gorda.

Day 46

Monday, Jan 20. Expecting wind N10g17, temp 13-17C.

Factor in wind chill; this will be cold. Too cold to mess around with anchors and sails.

Forecast looks like we may camp here the rest of the week. We have water, food, clean clothes. Looks like low-key pajamma play days.

(CA has double socks, I have wooly slippers. We're both wearing fingerless gloves. It's cold.)

Fixed another failed Sensta Airpax breaker. After about 30 years, the paddle is prone to breaking off. They're getting harder and harder to replace.

I wanted to color-code them, but, I'm running out of the sensible colors, and now, any 10A breaker will do.