Planning Ahead to the 19th Century

Since our first sailboat on the coast, some 18 years or so, we have looked forward to charging to Port Aransas at every opportunity. Our first salt water boat, a 24 feet Seidelmann, had only about 4 feet of head room. We ran around below on our knees. It was comfortable for that size boat but it had no refrigeration, air conditioning or heat, no generator, a chemical RV type head and only cold water, and not much of that. I remember making a quantum leap in luxury aboard Lady J as she was known.  One winter night while at Port Lavaca, I whipped by Wallyworld and bought a small space heater and a really long extension chord.  Once warm below, I did not see Bear topside for the rest of the weekend.

Our next boat was a Cal 28, a vast improvement in creature comfort and performance. It had a/c, hot and cold water, a small galley and even a shower. She was a beauty. We had no plans to sell her. One day, whilst aboard in a three day rain, we decided to get off the boat and go yard walking. We were not looking for a boat, just looking to see the variety of boats in the yard. There were dozens of boats, both loved and abandoned of all types. It was in that yard, on a rainy day that we saw a Gulfstar 40 Sailmaster. She was in bad shape but being renovated. Her hull had been skinned, meaning that all the gel coat had been removed. It took some fine imagination to see “the possibilities” of her, but we did. We spent those five years literally replacing every mechanical system aboard, including the engine. She was great fun to sail and the problem was staying awake offshore. She was heavy and slow but very sea kindly. We kept her for about five years and had no plans to sell her. Then we learned Why Knot was for sale! I know by now you are seeing a trend here but it ends here. IF we do not destroy her in the process, Why Knot will sail under us, as I said at the head of this blog, until we cannot.

That brings us to today. One would think that since the boat is in the yard, there is nothing for the crew to do. Not so. Anticipating getting underway in a couple of weeks or so we begin the process of checking weather trends for future ports of call. We also start reviewing the charts and unlike sailing in the GIWW, aka “doing the ditch”, we will be in bays and in the Gulf where we will have proper sea room for actual sailing. Friends who have gone before are telling us about great anchorage, restaurants, marinas and historical stuff along the way.

Ship Island and Fort Massachusetts, Mississippi

Shore Battery in Galveston

Speaking of historical stuff, I noticed a reference to a fort on Ship Island in Mississippi Sound. That is one of the suggested anchorages from friends and the guide books. Being a wee bit of a history freak, I started to research the fortifications along the Gulf. Most Port A. folks know there were batteries guarding the ship channel during WWII. They were earthen gun mounts and they were on the two largest dunes next to the jetties. While in Galveston, I noticed a huge bunker partially buried between some hotel and the seawall. One in the Dry Tortugas is Fort Jefferson. We visited it when we were aboard Liberty Call, then berthed in Key West. Google Fort Jefferson for the history of that place. Think sixteen million bricks!

There were forts guarding the approaches to most Gulf ports. They were part of The Third System started in 1816. Some of them still stand today and several were in service through WWII.  Eureka, I have found motivations to go ashore on some of the islands of the Gulf. The main challenge, other than mosquitoes is convincing the Bear to accompany me. She has not been so inclined since I talked her into hiking to see Pass Cavallo lighthouse on Matagorda Island a few years ago. It had something to do with being waste deep in a Vietnam style slimy swamp and seeing the snake. It wasn’t really that big of a snake but to her all snakes are big killers. We (most likely I) will dive headlong into the Third System along the way. 

A couple of very good information sources:

http://andy_bennett.home.mindspring.com/coastal.html

http://www.nps.gov/guis/historyculture/index.htm