2 new Hella fans & 2 new house batteries 6.19.10

Last week Jim pulled the 4 house batteries and took them down to be checked….2 were bad and he replaced them with new ones.  Now we shouldn’t have to run the generator so much.

We also added 2 Hella fans to the sleeper.

Jim placed them between the ports so we can pull air in through them…or if it is raining…we can aim them so they blow out…which should pull air in through the open hatch. Either way we should be more comfortable at night.  They are fairly quiet and very low amp draw.

They swivel and do not interfere with the opening of the ports.

We will most likely launch the boat a week from tomorrow. It is pretty hot here in Florida right now so we’ll definitely find out how much they help.

It won’t be like having AC….but better than no air at all.

5.30.10

Jim’s brother, Carl, is going to pick him up this morning …take him to the house to pick up the truck and trailer and then we’ll haul out.

I’ll have all the screens down and the boat ready for towing. While we waited for Carl, Jim deflated the dingy and got that stowed on the foredeck.

It was a busy day at the launch ramp…and we normally wouldn’t pull out on a weekend ..but we’ll wait for a break so as not to hold anyone up.

Since everything is ready when the trailer hits the water..it really doesn’t take much longer than any other larger boat.  Once on the trailer and off the ramp, we get it ready for travel. Dingy, gas cans, diesel can, generator etc all go in the truck bed, hatches closed and locked and the dog and bird loaded into the truck….and we are on our way.

Once the battery problem is fixed…and the 2 new Hella fans that I have ordered are installed…we’ll head for the water for another couple of weeks.  Can’t wait!!!!

5.29.10

I was up early and had a nice view of the moon as it was descending. We finally spent the “full moon” time on the water…it always seems we miss it for one reason or another.

We chatted with the fishermen while walking Raisin. Guess they had a nice night and we told them we had enjoyed their campfire.

We’ve decided to haul out on Sunday. Our battery bank isn’t holding as long as it should…Jim thinks we might have a bad battery or cell that is draining the charge or just not holding one..so……instead of running the generator most of the time….we’ll go in so he can check them out and replace them if need be.

The river was very busy today. Boats going every where.

This looks like a home made houseboat…It’s beached behind the island at R110  (I keep saying G109) but it’s really by marker R 110. We didn’t get a chance to visit with the couple aboard…maybe next time.

We anchored for the night…had fun watching a few of the resident gators cruise the area.

You definitely do not swim in this area, but it’s a great gator watching place.  I don’t think we have ever anchored here and not seen at least one….and counted 14 in or around the island a year ago. It’s one of our favorite stops.

5.28.10

Everything was quiet behind G3, Lungun Island. A small boat beached long enough to walk his dog then left. We had the place to ourselves.

I enjoyed watching this Heron preening itself while enjoying the early morning sun.

Our day ended with a beautiful sunset.

As the sun was going down, a pontoon boat with 2 gentlemen beached at the island. They off loaded enough wood for the weekend. We enjoyed their campfire while we listened to the frogs and night sounds. They fished all night, but we never heard a sound. Good neighbors.