Arrival at Edmont Cay, St Petersburg Fla

5-14-92 - 95 hrs
Past thru what was left of a cold front, and got a nice cool breeze for 4 or 5hrs and then petered out again. Starting to pick up some radio stations, there is actually life somewhere beyond this blue event horizon. Really enjoying this passage, no problems (knock on wood), getting enough sleep the sky is blue and every foot of water going by is leading to our destination.
Out of this blue, blue sky and omen, good or bad I don’t know, appears in the shape of a Barred Owl looking lost. For a brief time he perches on the mast head until the slapping of the limp sails scares him away. What is he doing so far out to sea, we are 100 miles out from any coast, there has been no bad weather, how far has he flown and will he make it home?
Make contact with Essence they are about 20 miles out of Tampa bay and will arrive this morning sometime. Having no detailed chart of this coast I get the exact cordinates of the channel marker bouy outside Edmont Cay and feed it into the Sat Nav. Make contact with another boat (can’t remember name) who has been singlehanding from LA in 6 months! He loses his shaft and being so close and tired he calls a tow. Sounds like a very interesting person on the radio.
5-15-92 -117 hrs
In the North setting counter current traveling up the coast all night making terrific progress and as the midnight black fades into early morning grey we arrive in the ship channel. I hold my course to see how close to the needle eye we come to the bouy we have been making for, and soon pass it astern within 300 yds! I am very proud of this accomplishment and of course thanks also to good ole Sat Nav. Not really exhausted like we usually are we still take advantage to anchor in the lee of Edmont Cay to get our bearings and a taste of Florida. And soon we are in about 8 ft of water and kicking back listening to silence and not the drone of Sir Perkins.