Adventures in Tarpon Springs - Day 70 to 71 - Tarpon Springs, FL

Saturday morning, two fellow loopers pulled into the marina and tied up next to us.  Jim and Cathy from Merried With Us, who we met in Fairhope, reported that they had experienced a terrible crossing.  Seems they left from Carabelle, other logical departure port, some 30 miles further east at 10:30 AM on Friday (essentially two hours after us).  Merried with Us and a second boat were limited to trawler speeds (10 MPH) as both had gas engines.  Note: Gas engines in cruisers are decidedly less efficient than diesels.  However, diesels are also considerably heavier.  Hence gas engines are used in boats under 40 feet, which limits their range.

Turns out that after midnight, the Gulf decided to deviate from the forecast which expected 1 to 2 foot waves for Friday and Saturday.  Based on the forecast the Gulf should have continued to calm down.  Instead, they experienced increased northeast winds and waves on the beam of at least 6 feet.  Both boats rolled so violently that the stuff in their cabinets wound up on the salon floor.  One has remember that a forecast is just that.  A highly educated guess but not entirely reliable.

Saturday we explored Tarpon Springs, which houses the largest Greek community in the US.  This is one colorful town and very charming. 

St Nicolas Greek Orthodox Church

A classic Greek restaurant where we had lunch

Tarpon Springs City Hall

The treat of the day was our discovery of an unusual car dealership called Classic Corvettes & Collectibles.  An $8.00 admission fee allowed us to view some museum quality cars for the 50s through the 70s.  All of which are for sale.

Here's just one example.  How about a Shelby, which according to the manager was one of 20 (at least that's what I remember him saying)?  The vehicle had a "not for sale" sign although he did say that $130,000 would motivate the owner to sell it.

Al Wiseman the owner of this unique dealership and a partner own three serial number "one" corvettes, a 1955, a 1956 and a 1957.  They want $4,000,000 for the set and will not sell them individually.  According to the manager, they turned down $3,000,000.  The provence of these cars are described on the website.  Clink on the link above and the on "Corvettes." Worth reading if you love Corvettes.  Note: I have owned five (1965, 1968, 1970, 1978 Pace Car and 1984 (the first C4).

Sunday, while Chicago was experiencing snow and high winds including 20 foot waves on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan, we went for an early morning walk in 60 degree temperatures.

Note the shorts

However, the lovely weather was short lived.  The massive low pressure system responsible for Chicago's (actually the Midwest's) windy snowy weather had a trailing cold front that went all the way into the Gulf.  By 10:00 AM we were watching the approach of a line of thunderstorms in advance of the front.  The first gust struck at 10:30 AM with 35 mile per hour winds followed by three hours of heavy rain.  Meanwhile, the Gulf, was experiencing winds over 30 knots and gusts as high as 50.  The seas were 16 feet.  Recall from yesterday's article that the forecast was for 7 to 9 foot seas.  So much for forecasts.

Meanwhile, we were thrilled to be off the water and spent the afternoon doing our wash.  We knocked off about 50 pounds in a record 90 minutes at a laundromat with commercial washers and dryers.  By 4:30 when we were finished it was warm again.

Sunday evening's activity was a visit to the Safford House Museum for an evening of Christmas carols in this lovely home built 1883.

Carolers sing in the parlor

Safford House during the day

The house is named for its original owner, Anson P. K. Safford, who with a partner invested $1,000,000 in 1880 and bought land for 25 cents an acre in the area that was to become known as Tarpon Springs.  Safford envisioned Tarpon Springs as a haven for wealthy northers who build winter homes to escape the snow and cold.  (What a novel idea.)  Safford was one of the early Florida real estate developers.  The house is listed on the National Register.

What made the evening even more interesting is that there were docents throughout the home that would tell you the history.  A gentleman named Bruce spend 20 minutes of more showing me the house and explaining it rich history.  Interestingly, Safford, who had an amazing career (see link), died pretty much broke.

Diana, Bruce and Les pose for a photo at Safford House

We plan to stay in Tarpon Springs for at least two more days, which should, according to the forecast, allow the Gulf to lay down.

Stay tuned for more adventures.

Written by Les.