Adventures Aboard Gypsy Wind

Palm trees and views I can't believe, why would I ever want to leave?

2009-09-01T03:24:00Z

For those of you who don't know, the title of this blog entry is a line from another one of my favorite Jimmy Buffett songs - Island Fever. (Yes, I know - I have a lot of "favorite" Buffett songs). "I think I've got a touch of Island Fever" was the screen saver on my computer at work for about 6 years. I still don't think I've been cured. I'll always have Island Fever, and that's a good thing.

It’s been a couple of weeks since I’ve posted anything on the website, but I’ve added a bunch of pictures (more to the Key West photos, a new album dedicated to our friends and family who visit us on Gypsy Wind, more photos of the beautiful woodwork Eddie has done for us, and on our home page, a photo of Bill and Carol, the previous owners of Gypsy Wind, who we often brag took such wonderful care of her). I’ve also added a journal entry of what we’ve been up to the past couple of weeks.

Harry has done some more writing on his log – he’s up to August 8^th. He’s getting there, slowly but surely. He also wrote a story about our good friends Mel and Jackie (located on the "Our Story" page under "Calling for the Sea"), who turned us on to the sailing/cruising lifestyle. The story even has a cool little video linked to it.

Harry’s daughter Kelly was down to see us this past weekend and we had a blast with her and her boyfriend Nate, and friend Alexa. There’s also an update on my son Clinton’s Mississippi trip for those of you following his journey as well (at the bottom of our home page).

We are truly enjoying Key West, so much so we've decided to hang out here a bit longer than planned. But we will be doing a lot of sailing and having a lot of fun, and will continue to share it with all of you. So we hope you enjoy following our continuing adventure.

A little more to the story.

2009-08-22T03:34:00Z

No one really knows this part of our story, but I wanted to share it with you, because I am so happy for my friend…

I started working for Chambers Law Group in April of 2003. Kathie started six months later. Over the years a good friendship developed, probably because we kept each other sane while working in an often insane environment. Kathie lived in Madeira Beach as well with her husband Dan and their two boys. She knew that one day I would leave Chambers to sail away – and she hoped that she would not be far behind to pursue her dream to live on a farm. For a year we joked about the two of us skipping into work hand in hand, with big smiles on our faces, and giving our notice at the same time. Six years after starting at Chambers, we each gave notice within one week of each other!

Kathie’s husband Dan is a high school football coach and P.E. teacher. Florida schools are struggling, and they were ready for a change. It finally came with the opportunity to be head coach at Whitwell High School in Whitwell, TN (about 30 miles outside of Chattanooga). To top it off, there was a beautiful house available close by on 12 acres with a swimming pool and a new barn!

I personally do not watch the television show “Friday Night Lights” (although I did see the movie), but it is my understanding that they are living it. As in Florida, Tennessee is very passionate about football, and the Whitwell Tigers had been on a losing streak for years. The town was buzzing prior to Dan being offered the job and speculation of who the new coach would be ran wild throughout the town. Then, the job was offered to an outsider no one knew anything about. Dan would be under a microscope, but he accepted the challenge. I was with Kathie when she received the call from Dan saying he got the job and would be leaving within days to start. Dan had to get a picture sent to them for the article in the paper, so, in the craziness, I ran over to their house and snapped a few, cropped them down and he sent them off. It all seem surreal at the time - so last minute it barely sank in for them. Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, Dan was off to Whitwell Tennessee. Kathie and the boys followed about a month later.

The town welcomed Kathie and Dan with open arms and as game day approached, the anticipation of Dan’s ability to resurrect Whitwell’s football team grew intense. But for now, Whitwell showed confidence in their new head coach.

Tonight was Whitwell’s first game, and Dan had knots in his stomach all day. As Kathie put it, he was trying not to vomit on the field! However, with Whitwell’s first touchdown, the knots became butterflies, and eventually their flutters subsided…I am happy to announce that Dan was christened with a Gatorade bath as the Whitwell Tigers beat their opponents 28 – 6.

Dreams come in many packages – everyone’s is different, but a dream nonetheless. Congratulations to Kathie and Dan. I miss you guys, but so very happy for you! We're livin’ the dream baby, livin' the dream!

First Week in Key West

2009-08-17T23:38:00Z

We survived our first week in Key West, and let me tell you, it was tough. No, really, it's amazing and we are loving it. I have updated the website with journal entries for our first week here and photos. I received Judy's photos from when we left the dock and they have been added to "Leaving Madeira Beach and John's Pass", so be sure to check them out.

I have also added a little something about my son Clinton. He is on an adventure of his own, canoeing down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico. He has shared our story with people he's met along the way, and I have shared his story with our friends and family. So, in order for everyone to follow him, there is a link at the bottom of our home page which will take you to details and photos of his adventure.

We thank you all for following our dream, and will keep you up to date as often as possible.

Love to all!

Capt'n Harry & Heidi Ho
SV Gypsy Wind
Key West, FL

Wound down

2009-08-14T02:34:00Z

We have wound down from the long trip Tuesday and are settling in nicely in Key West. It's really not difficult adjusting to island time. Harry has finally started to write in his log, and I posted his first entry tonight, so be sure to check it out. I had said I'd get some more pictures up as well as another journal entry, but we didn't return from our kayak ride today until about 8:00 (you'll hear about that in my journal - great day!) - so, there's just been no time for the computer. But I'll get there, I promise...although, tomorow we're going lobstering. Yeah, life is tough.

Love y'all!
Heidi & Harry
SV Gypsy Wind

We are in Key West

2009-08-13T02:21:31Z

We arrived in Key West yesterday at about 7:00. I have updated my journal but haven't yet posted new photos. Will do so tomorrow night. Since we will be in Key West until the end of the year, my journal entries will be less frequent. However, I will give y'all a taste of Key West every now and then, and most certainly let you know when we've sailed off to any islands. As soon as we get the throttle cable fixed (see my journal for details on that) we are going to head to the Dry Tortugas with our friends Rob and Michelle.

For now, we safe and sound and calling Key West our home.

We are in Key West

2009-08-13T02:13:00Z

We have internet connection!

2009-08-10T01:44:00Z

We are anchored between Cabbage Key and Useppa Island and I've secured a connection. The website has been updated with my journal and lots of photos so please check it out. We head for Marco Island tomorrow and then on to Key West Tuesday. I hope to give you another update soon!

We Have Left The Dock

2009-08-06T23:34:00Z

Quick update: On August 4, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. Gypsy Wind left Madeira Bay Marina and headed south. We anchored out at Egmont Key the first night and headed to Manasota Key (near Englewood) on Wednesday. We ran into a squall but handled it OK and made it past the storm into Venice Inlet, making our way on the Intracoastal Waterway in nice calm sunny weather. We are currently anchored just off of Manasota Key with a view of the White Elephant Tiki Bar, where Jack Mosley is playing tomorrow (Friday) night. We are having dinner with him and his wife Debra tonight and they were kind enough to let me use their computer to make this post. Unfortunately, we have been unable to pick up a wifi signal from the boat, but as soon as we can, we will update the website with photos and our journals. Until then, we are safe, happy, and livin' the dream!

Shake Down

2009-07-23T23:59:00Z

Today we took Gypsy Wind out of her slip and into the Gulf to make sure everything is finally working properly. It couldn't have gone any better than it did. Well, I take that back, we could have had more wind, but beside the light winds, it was an absolutely beautiful day on the water. We let all of the sails out, the transmission worked like a charm, and the auto pilot was perfect. In fact, on our way back in, Harry told me to go the chart and get us to the John's Pass sea buoy using our Maptech Offshore Navigator and the auto pilot. He would not let me use the helm to steer us onto course...and I did it with no question or problem. We ran straight to the buoy.

We've got a few minor things to get done and we should be able to head south the first week in August.

We'll keep you posted!

We are still here...

2009-07-17T16:50:37Z

Hello all - yes, it's true, we haven't left the dock yet. But at this moment it is strictly due to scheduling conflicts - the boat is in good working order and ready to go. The new proposed departure date is the first week of August. Stay tuned!

Welcome

2009-06-28T23:50:54Z

Welcome to our blog. Here we can communicate with our friends and family. Please feel free to leave messages and comments. We will reply to them as often as possible.

We will also post on our blog when updates are made to the website, so please feel free to subscribe to our blog and recieve updates so you can stay on top of where we are and what we are doing!

We are leaving Madeira Beach on July 6th, so check back soon!