AVENTURA, our new catamaran

Bringing Aventura Home: As many times as we had sailed from Louisiana to Florida, you'd think bringing Aventura back from Pensacola to New Orleans would be an easy task. After all, we knew the passage, anchoring spots and marinas. Plus the weather was cooperating. But, one thing we know about sailing is that there are no givens. The four-day trip was packed with the unexpected. I guess naming our new (old) catamaran, a 37 Lagoon TPI, Aventura was asking for it! After polishing the fuel, getting the air bubbles out of one of the engines, we started off on Sat., April 7th in the afternoon. All fine crossing Pensacola Bay to the Alabama Canal and onward to Wolf Bay just off the Canal, for our first overnight. Raising the new-to-us boom furled mainsail was an interesting experience, and it went just fine. Anchoring at Wolf Bay in 10 ft. waters (our draft: 4 ft.), using a bridle and 35 lb. anchor went just fine. As usual we enjoyed the sounds and sights of nature's plenty: water, creatures, and distance from the industrial/tech environments we tend to live in. Sun., April 8th was Easter. Barge and other traffic while crossing Mobile Bay was minimal. We played with the sails, got a feel for best angles to the wind and other efficiencies. We crossed under the Dauphin Is. Bridge in the late afternoon, expecting to make Petit Bois Isl, MS for our next anchorage. Just west of the Bridge, with no warning at all, we suddenly lost steerage. What?! The depth meter read 12.9 ft. We were sure we hadn't seen crab traps. So we assumed something else had fouled the propeller(s). Something with enough weight to it where the boat didn't budge from where it lay just on the northern boundary of the channel. To make a long story short, we were grounded, at least the forward section of the starboard keel. The depth in the stern of the boat read 12.9 ft., and that is where the meter must be because at the bow we were hard aground an oyster bed in 3 ft. of water! After a fretful overnight with barge traffic menacing us, we finally broke loose around 9:30 a.m. next morning when the incoming tide provided us the lift needed. A good lesson for a sailing couple that had never run aground in 12 yrs. of sailing (with deeper keels, one must add). We made it to the western edge of Ship Is., MS for anchorage that evening ruminating on the experience that had gotten compounded by another "incident." The in-boom furling system failed us, or, rather, we failed it. So Mike struggled with the sail to bring it down and wrap it around the boom as best we could. Lesson #2 taught us that we must pay attention to the outhaul, batten placements along the boom and point of sail when raising the mainsail under this system. With much humility and joy we motored into South Shore Harbor Marina in New Orleans Tue., April 10th, greeted by our good friend and slip neighbor, George, who also has a catamaran (see http://sailgulfcoast.blogspot.com/2011/12/madisonville-boat-show-10-2011.html). Now our attention is on making this neat cat, Aventura, our new buddy on the waters.

Sailing The Gulf Coast

Sailing The Gulf Coast

What could  be more wonderful than to find a new boat!  Mike and Gina are getting ready to leave Island Cove Marina in Pensacola, FL where our new catamaran is harbored.  Aventura is a 37' Lagoon TPI (French but made in the U.S.).  At 20.3' wide, she promises to be more comfortable for our aging bones as well as just enough space for entertaining.  She has 2 queen berths and a single.  The salon offers great views; the cockpit serves as an extension to the sitting and dining area.  If we keep her light, we most certainly sail more swiftly than on our older Pearson 365 (up for sale), maybe 7 knots in fair weather and more in brisker winds. 

So we're prepping her now for the voyage back to New Orleans, our home port.  Look forward to our many adventures to follow.  Aventura:  "adventure" in the romance languages, and easy to understand in English.