[Rhodes22-list] I'm Back From Sailing Nirvana in Destin, FL

[William E. Wickman]

I just returned from a week in Destin, FL. with the family.  We stayed in a
condo in SanDestin Resort and day sailed our Rhodes22 on Choctawhatchee
Bay.  What a wonderful place to sail.  We virtually had the whole bay to
ourselves.  Wind was a steady 6-10 knots most of the time with only light
chop in the bay.  Rather than give a blow by blow account, I'll just share
some highlights and insights.  Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures as
I forgot my camera.

The premise for this trip was a three day business meeting that I had to
host.  Rather than move out of our condo after the meeting, I opted to get
a week long rental and extend my stay; using the extra days to day sail,
returning to port every day.  This arrangement worked out well because it
is quite hot along the Florida panhandle this time of year so it is really
nice to have an air-conditioned room to sleep in every night.

There is no launch ramp at SanDestin, and they will not allow you to store
your trailer on property so if you plan to follow in my footsteps and visit
this resort with your boat, you will need to launch somewhere else and find
storage for your trailer.  I found the closest launch ramp was located at
the end of a bay called Hogtown Bayou located about 5 miles from the
Baytowne Marina at SanDestin.  It is a county maintained ramp with a good
concrete ramp and docks on each side.  It is very shallow with limited
maneuvering room, but I found no problems launching and retrieving my
Rhodes.  It does get busy on the weekends, but there is plenty of parking
even when I was there during peak summer season.  There is an overhead
power line not far from the ramp, so you have to be careful when raising
your mast.  I opted to keep my trailer at a storage lot a few blocks away
called Outback Storage.  They were very friendly and charged me $48 to keep
my trailer there for the whole week.  You could easily keep your trailer at
the ramp for free as an alternative.  There were several trailers and even
some with boats on them that were there when I launched and retrieved a
week later.  I considered the $48 an insurance policy.  I can't imagine
anything worse than coming back to a ramp to find your trailer stolen.  If
I were to use the ramp again for a multi-day trip on the boat (where I
didn't stay at SanDestin), I would just leave my truck and trailer at the
launch site.  There was also a picnic shelter, bathroom, and hose to rinse
off.

I had made a reservation to dock my boat at the BayTowne Marina at
SanDestin, but when I radioed the harbormaster upon entering port, he said
they didn't have any record of my reservation.  They informed me that they
were completely booked and had no extra room (This was after asking how
large my vessel was).  I felt a little discriminated against because they
didn't tell me until they found out how small I was.  If you have ever been
to Baytowne Marina, it looks like something out of the lifestyles of the
rich and famous.  Most of the boats were motor yachts that were from 50 to
200 feet in length (I'm not kidding!).  My little boat was dwarfed among
them.

Not believing that there was no room for my little 22 footer, I persisted;
suggesting that maybe they could keep my boat on the davits of one of the
mega yachts.  Finally, they agreed to put me in a slip that didn't have
power or water, which I didn't need anyway.  I happily bounded up to the
dock where the dockmaster awaited in his golf cart (this is a really
upscale place).  After filling out the paperwork and paying my $1/ft. per
day for the right to tie up to a dock with no hookups, I asked where I
should go; looking at the mega yachts and wondering which one I would get
to nestle up to and become friends with.  The dockmaster turned me around
and pointed across the bay to a distant dock where they store the shuttle
boats called Captain Ron's Cove.  "What?", I asked.  "Is that the reject
dock?"  Actually the docks were nearly brand new, but they didn't have any
dock cleats.  So, I found myself motoring across the bay, having paid $60
for a slip with no cleats that I would have to drive my car to access.  To
add insult to injury, on the way to my humble abode, I passed several
sailboats that were anchored....for free!!  Actually, I paint a much
bleaker picture than it really was.  The staff at Baytowne Marina were
actually very friendly and accommodating, and the $1/ft. gets you a whole
lot more than just a place to tie up.  I also, got full access to SanDestin
resort, including free use of bicycles, kayaks, showers (if I needed them,
etc.).  It is a first rate marina and I would recommend it to anyone
planning a visit to the area.  Remember, when you are walking the docks, no
one knows what boat you own and the law of averages would make it appear
that you have a very large yacht to the landlubber tourists that come to
the marina to gawk.

Regarding the sailing, all I can say is that it was fantastic.  I had no
grand adventures like on my trip to the Outer Banks... which was a good
thing.  This was a trip of pure relaxation.  Very good for my wife and kids
who thoroughly enjoyed every minute on the boat.  I had plans to sail out
to the Destin inlet and into the Gulf, but never made it.  The sailing was
just too good in the bay.  We fell into a routine that consisted of going
out in the morning and sailing until around 11am; having a leisurely lunch
and then heading out to the beach in the late afternoon.  We would return
to the boat and head out around two hours before sunset and sail until just
after dark.  I found that breaking up the sailing time into two sessions
kept the kid's interest and enjoyment, especially my 9 year old.  Mornings
found us in anything from dead calm to light winds that would build
throughout the morning.  The sunset sails were the best.  The sky was
beautiful and the vast bay was virtually empty, but for the occasional mega
yacht coming into Baytowne Marina.  When a nearby thunderstorm would pass
by, the winds would pick up and the sailing would get quite spirited which
satisfied my 17 year old son's desire for excitement.  We got the boat to
hull speed several times, but mostly sailed at 3 to 5 knots.  Very nice.
Coming back into the harbor after dark was no problem as they have a very
well marked channel and the lights from the resort provide adequate
illumination.  We felt quite smug one evening as we sailed right into the
harbor under the gaze of countless patrons at a bay-side bar.

Perhaps the very best aspect of sailing the bay was the dolphins.  We
observed dolphins almost every time we went out on the boat.  On several
occasions, a pod of dolphins would appear near the boat and start swimming
alongside and in our bow wave.  The best dolphin encounter was our first
sighting.  We were well into the bay and had been sailing for a couple of
hours.  We had pretty much given up on seeing any dolphins and I began
heading back to the harbor.  All of the sudden I felt a bump underneath the
boat.  Yikes!  Had I just bumped the bottom of the bay?  The charts showed
that I should be in 20+ feet of water.  Besides, the bump had a soft feel
to it, not like I have experienced when the centerboard or rudder hits
bottom.  A minute later a dolphin popped its head out of the water as if to
say, "Welcome to my bay!"  I am convinced that what I felt was a dolphin
rubbing the keel of our Rhodes.  Soon four large and one baby dolphin were
frolicking along side our boat.  Tears of excitement welled up in my
daughter's eyes as the dolphins continued to play around our boat for the
next 20 minutes (she is a dolphin fanatic).

The week went by much too quickly, and soon we found ourselves heading back
home.  Doing the day sailing thing was a nice balance that satisfied the
desires of the whole family.  Mixing sailing with other activities kept
everyone's interest high.  I personally yearned to head out for a multi-day
trip of exploration, and I definitely plan to return sometime to do just
that.  I feel like I just touched the tip of the iceberg of cruising areas
here.  Cruising this area earlier in the year when it is a bit cooler would
definitely make the trip more comfortable, but it can certainly be done
this time of year if you allow for some stopovers at marinas where you can
shower.

A note of experience on trailering.  One piece of advice that I would like
to share on trailering is to check your trailer wheels every time you stop.
I always touch the hubs on my trailer wheels to see if they are hot.  After
driving for several hours we stopped for lunch and I found that one of the
hubs was quite hot which concerned me because I have first hand experience
with what happens when a wheel bearing fails and heat welds onto a trailer
axle.  It can ruin a trip.  In short, I found that the bearings were fine
but the surge brakes were malfunctioning.  For some reason, the brake on
one wheel (I have the Triad tandem axle trailer) was rubbing or engaging
causing the wheel rim and hub to heat up.  I disconnected the surge
actuator and the wheel stayed cool for the remainder of the trip.  I, of
course, drove extra carefully knowing that my truck breaks would have to
perform double duty.  I plan to have the surge brakes checked out
professionally before my next trip.

I hope you will find your way to Choctawhatchee Bay and the
Pensacola/Destin area sometime.  They have some great cruising areas down
there!

Bill W.

Bill W.