MEETING THE NEIGHBORS
I have not counted the number of slips along the Isle of Venice. There must easily be 100 and another hundred across the canal on Henricks Island. I walked around the slips this morning and met several of the neighbors.

Irv and Jayne from St. Michaels, Maryland are cruising aboard Karaya, an Island Packet in the 40 foot range. They are waiting for a weather window to cross the GulfStream. They intend to spend a month or more in the Bahamas before returning to Maryland.

In the next slip is Jeff and Carollee. They started from Connecticutt aboard thier CSY 44 WT, Contessa. Jeff said he hopes to reach Granada before hurricane season starts on June 1st. Jeff and Carolee have an interesting story... but they can do a better job of telling it than I... Click Here Contessa was made by the same company that built Shibumi. The major difference between the two vessels is that Contessa is a 44 foot long walk-through(WT) and Shibumi is a 44 foot long walk-over(WO). What that means is, to go from the forward cabin to the rear cabin in Contessa there is a passageway that does not require one to exit the boat. In Shibumi, we must walk-over the cockpit to travel from one cabin tho the other. Shibumi's cockpit, therefore is larger and deeper, but you don't have to negotiate two sets of companionway stairs on Contessa.

As I continued my walk around the docks I met Bob and his wife who were visiting from Baltimore. They are taking a respite from the cold Mid-Atlantic weather. They are staying on a friends boat, while the friends are traveling by air in the South Pacific.

Everyone I met had an interesting tale to tell, like the father and son from Sweden, who were leaving today aboard their boat for Cancun and other points south.

Then there was Tobias, and his 5 year old son Evan. They live aboard a Morgan Out Island 36. Tobias is a 30 year-old single parent; complete with tattoes and body piercings. Don't ask! He and Evan hope to leave within the next week or so, after Tobias clears up "a few small maintenance projects".
"We're going to the islands, dude".
"Which island?"
"Don't know, Bro. All of 'em, maybe".
I would love to meet up with Evan twenty years from now. I'm sure he will have one whale of a story to tell.

THE AUTOPILOT CONTINUED
Myles Whitt of Myles Electronics was recommended by Fred Mayer.

Fred said that his company would have difficulties installing a hydraulic driver in Shibumi because of the cramped space around the quatrant. But Myles Electronics has plenty of sailboat experience. As it turned out, Myles determined that Shibumi does not need the expensive installation of a hydraulic driver. It has a perfectly good mechanical driver already fitted.

Myles will start the installation on March 8th... so we will be in Ft. Lauderadale a while longer.