Last Sail of the Season Story continues...

Well, it's been quite a while now since I first started to tell the story of the last SV Athena sail of the winter 2008/09 sailing season... I guess it's about time to finish.
The wind never did lay down that weekend. It had been windy for days before that weekend started and it just kept right up through the three day sail.
After getting wits back together after the Boca Grand Inlet passage, we had to trudge on.
It would have been so awesome to be able to stay nestled behind the island in the calm. I would have been more than happy to stay there for days. But, alas, have I mentioned it really rots to sail on a calendar?
Lift anchor we did and back into the winds. We sailed down the intercoastal towards Sanibel. Saw some great dolphin leaps from the water behind a tour boat with a big wake. Dolphins just love playing in big boat wake. The dolphins we saw were totally clearing the water surface, bodies suspended in air for a moment. I also document the plight of marker 23. It's a rough world out there and even strong metal can't last forever in these waters.
As evening was approaching, it appeared there would be no rest from the wind. We could find no place to hide from the blowing winds and choppy waters. The islands provided little protection from the weather. But, I was tired and didn't want to continue. We anchored and hoped the wind would lay down that night (which it never really did). We did as best we could to have a great meal and enjoy the surroundings and the sunset over Sanibel. Even with the wind whistling through the rigging, the slapping waves on the hull, and the constant motion, which really doesn't bother me that much although it can keep one awake at night with the constant banging of things as they shift back and forth in the cubboards... It was still way more relaxing than trying to get through the Boca Grand Inlet earlier that day. It's amazing how all is relative and that measuring stick changes as experiences occur...
The next morning we woke up early and finished the journey back up the river, wind at our face.
It was a rough trip as compared to most of my sailing trips on SV Athena. Her tired old sails took a beating. A new "tell-tail" formed as you can see "flying" in the pic at the left from her foresail.