Waiting out Tropical Storm Fay in St Augustine,FL

[FLKokopelli]

It's been pretty boring stuck in the cabin, but I think slow Fay has finally left town. Not much happened here at our marina during the worst of her gusts.
Although, a Canadian sailor lost his 60' 100 year old sailboat just north of St Augustine. Another sailboat left it's mooring and impaled it's rigging on the Bridge of Lions. Needless to say the mast is no more...
Old Fay did have some positive points. With time on my hands I would not have found this site, for I rarely surf the web.
Linda Allen, S/V Kokopelli
wnsvtumbleweed@yahoo.com

[ksmith]

Glad you found the site. For me it has been a big help making the jump from land. I am not able to cruise but do LA.

We did not get much from Fay in the Tampa Area. But you are right the rain makes for a boring day.

[FLKokopelli]

Rain has stopped for the moment so took myself out for some fresh air. Thanks for the welcome..

[Tropic Cat]

Originally Posted by FLKokopelli

It's been pretty boring stuck in the cabin, but I think slow Fay has finally left town. Not much happened here at our marina during the worst of her gusts.

Welcome to the site. I think you'll find the forum interesting.

Fay parked over me for 2 1/2 days. I'm about 125 miles south of your boat. No damage to the boat, but I was glad to see her move up your way. This wasn't what I would call a pleasant week.

[SurfNRG]

Hey Rick, At least we got a free boat washing courtesy of Fay, huh? We all did well at the Anchorage Marina but I kept a good eye on the rising water to make sure all my lines were properly set, etc.. I was a bit concerned about the blow on your side of the river when it was howling out of the East. I think we had up to 65 mph which was just short of hurricane strength. I had a buddy loose his Downeaster near you during Jeanne back in '04 when a swivel broke and a 2nd anchor let loose sending him onto the rocks just south of Katana's. Total loss. Thank God Fay's winds weren't any worse than what she was. Fay did give us more rain than both Frances and Jeanne combined. Glad you made out well.

[Tropic Cat]

Thanks for the concern Kevin.

I have some photos of that Downeaster on my website. It was heartwrenching to see what was left of her after the storm.

I spent two days adjusting lines as the waters rose to the level of the fixed docks. I've never seen so much rain. The talking heads say we received between 20 and 30 inches in two days. Despite all that rain, Catalpa is covered with branches and leaves. I'm going to give her a bath in the morning.

Good to see that Blade Runner is unscathed as well. We can only hope that was our big storm this season.

By the way, if you see Pirate Mike .... tell him I said Hey...

[maxingout]

Originally Posted by SurfNRG

Hey Rick, At least we got a free boat washing courtesy of Fay, huh? We all did well at the Anchorage Marina but I kept a good eye on the rising water to make sure all my lines were properly set, etc.. I was a bit concerned about the blow on your side of the river when it was howling out of the East. I think we had up to 65 mph which was just short of hurricane strength. I had a buddy loose his Downeaster near you during Jeanne back in '04 when a swivel broke and a 2nd anchor let loose sending him onto the rocks just south of Katana's. Total loss. Thank God Fay's winds weren't any worse than what she was. Fay did give us more rain than both Frances and Jeanne combined. Glad you made out well.

I talked to the yard manager at Harbour Towne in Fort Pierce, and she said the wind was about 40 mph there, but the rains were extremely heavy. She indicated that everyone fared well during the storm. Of course, if there was a deck leak, you would fill your boat up with water pretty quick in those torrential rains. We covered Exit Only with a custom tarp, but it would be interesting to know whether our bilge pumps went off in the yard during the downpour. I heard they had about 14 inches of rain.

[Tropic Cat]

Dave, I had no idea your boat was in our neck of the woods. Kevin and I are both in Melbourne FL marinas although on opposite sides of the River (I'm in the cheap seats (grin)). I guess the 40 miles between Ft. Pierce and Melbourne had some affect on wind speed. I agree with Kevin in that we saw around 60 mph at the height of the storm.

There must be a few Privilege 39's around here. I saw one on the Lagoon about 10 days ago.

[maxingout]

Originally Posted by rickm505

Dave, I had no idea your boat was in our neck of the woods. Kevin and I are both in Melbourne FL marinas although on opposite sides of the River (I'm in the cheap seats (grin)). I guess the 40 miles between Ft. Pierce and Melbourne had some affect on wind speed. I agree with Kevin in that we saw around 60 mph at the height of the storm.

There must be a few Privilege 39's around here. I saw one on the Lagoon about 10 days ago.

I'm relying on Rose, the yard manager to Harbour Towne for windspeeds.

I think that section of Florida is a fairly good location for hurricane protection. Most storms come in to the south or north of that area, or they come across from the west side of Florida which minimizes storm surge risks.

[sluissa]

We're just starting to get some of it in Pensacola right now. It doesn't seem to be as bad as it was for you east coast guys though and not even close to the guys down south who got it first.. I guess it wore itself out on you. Not much rain yet, but we've barely gotten started and haven't even been hit by any major bands yet. Winds are a bit gusty, nothing major, but again, we've just gotten started.

[SurfNRG]

Originally Posted by maxingout

I'm relying on Rose, the yard manager to Harbour Towne for windspeeds.

I think that section of Florida is a fairly good location for hurricane protection. Most storms come in to the south or north of that area, or they come across from the west side of Florida which minimizes storm surge risks.

Not sure if you were in Ft. Pierce during the hectic 2004 season but Ft. Pierce got walloped by both Frances and Jeanne. Both eyes came in just a few miles south of Ft. Pierce giving FP the north then northeast side of the storms - de most potent.

Although the storm surge from the ocean may not be too bad oftentimes when the storm tracks over from the Gulf Coast, like Irene did in (I think) '99, it flooded the entire Indian River Lagoon - much higher water level than what we just experienced from T.S. Fay. Many of the docks along the ICW were damaged with sections floating around the lagoon. Talk about navigational hazards. Crazy!!!

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha Linda,
Welcome aboard! Kokopelli is a great name. I had the pleasure of a 3 day sail aboard an Ingrid 38 ketch just this last month. Great sailing vessel and very well constructed. Do you have tiller or wheel steering?
Kind regards,
JohnL

[FLKokopelli]

Kokopelli has a tiller. Most "Bluewater Ingrids" have keel hung tillers.