Tag Archives: Hurricane

Bullseye – November 10, 2022, Vero Beach, Florida, USA

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Bullseye – November 10, 2022, Vero Beach, Florida, USA

Going to be a direct hit it appears
Not a sign you want to see. Hurricane watch

And just like that, we have been through two hurricanes in the last month.  Hurricane Nicole is the first hurricane to make landfall in November in over 40 years and only one of three in the last 100 years.  The odds were in our favor when we launched the boat to catch a crossing window and we expected to be in the Bahamas by now.  Clearly, we are not.  It started out likely to be a tropical storm so we prepper the boat for the high winds by adding more mooring lines, removing as much windage as we could (removing the dodger are made for starters), and lashing down the main sail.  We made a quick run to the grocery store since it was the last time we would be able to go for a while and we came across this on our dinghy ride.  It was inoperable but interesting none the less.

As the storm got closer, it was clear we were in for worse conditions than originally thought and Sailing Hubby decided it was time to get off the boat since there was nothing more we could do and the conditions on the boat would be very unpleasant at best.  We headed to the local Holiday Inn on Tuesday to wait out the hurricane.

Lines lines and more lines
Wrap that sucker up tight
Chafe protection is more important then lines.

We walked to the boat, pouring rain or not, twice a day. Good way to get our walk in since the marina was only about a mile and a half away. The finger docks were flooded, coastal flooding had started, but as of today, our boat & dinghy survived the worst, which was 75 mph winds with gusts closer to 85. The last time we experienced this type of wind was our first real squall in Royal Island, Bahamas and it was rather terrifying! I am glad we are on land.

Lots of water

The coast was hit pretty hard, and I am grateful we were in the intercoastal and dodged this bullet. Ironically it isn’t our first hurricane together and one of our friends who is weathering the storm in the Bahamas said “Gee, you guys are in great spirits since you almost lost everything.” I hadn’t thought of it quite that way til he said it and our perspective was we really didn’t want to lose the boat, but we had each other, insurance, and our passports. All is well.

Crazy surf!

Not Just Another Rainy Day – September 29, 2022, Jekyll Island, GA USA

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Not Just Another Rainy Day – September 29, 2022, Jekyll Island, GA USA

Our time was up at the Airbnb in St. Augustine Beach, and we had to move again (which of course made us realize we have entirely TOO much stuff)!  Anyway, the plan was to visit Mom and Dad for a few days and head to Columbus to see the kids Wednesday morning.  Well, Hurricane Ian changed our plans.  Mom and Dad had decided to ride out the storm so we decided to stay as well in case anything happened, we could help clean it up.  They have quite a few mature trees not only in their yard but on the island in general. 

We went to bed Wednesday evening and woke up Thursday morning to no power and a downed power line across the driveway.  I remember seeing the flash when the power went out at 11:30pm so I was none too surprised.  We soon learned that half a dozen houses down, a tree had snapped breaking three high voltage lines.  I was impressed the crews were there by 8:00am to not only clear the tree but also to fix the lines.  We were supposed to have power back by noon Thursday.

So, like any family ruffing it during the hurricane, we drove to the other side of the island where they still had power and went out to breakfast!  Gotta have coffee.  Sadly though, when we came home, all the crews were gone, and out new estimate was to have power at noon…Friday.  Bummer.  So, Dad and Ron hooked up the generator and we all took a shower with what was left of the hot water. 

Seeing as how we had little to do but sit in the dark at home and wait out the storm, we took a couple of drives around the island to see the damage and storm surge.  Midday and high tide brought increased winds, rain, flooding, and storm surge.

The track of Ian has been wobbly at best and while Jekyll was predicted to be hit much worse, the shallow marshes surrounding it make is a fantastic hurricane hole.  The storm jumped around us only to change its path towards South Carolina.  Ian initially made landfall on the west coast of Florida at a Category 4 (nearly a 5 with 155MPH winds).  It could have been much worse, and I am grateful.   More to come as this passes over us and we get through the incoming rain.