We're in Steinhatchee, FL at the top of Florida's West coast.

We crossed 70 miles of open Gulf waters today after waiting one day in Carrabelle for wave conditions to improve. Waves were about 3 ft. today for most of the trip. The picture is our GPS screen showing Florida's Big Bend, the armpit between the West coast and the Panhandle. Our boat is the arrowhead in the center, since this picture was taken when we were about half of the way across.

Once we were out in the gulf, it just looked like this for 360 degrees... all water on the horizon. We didn't see any other boats the whole way, except for a few fishing boats as we got close to Steinhatchee.

There is no other way to get to the West coast than to cross the gulf. Some cruisers take a very long overnight cruise from Carrabelle to Tarpon Springs and miss the Big Bend. I want to try to get in to Crystal River in the Big Bend next to see, and maybe swim with, the manatees that come there when other waters get cold in the winter. It's a crystal clear, spring fed, river that has one of the largest springs in the world as it's source. The water can be shallow, so it'll be a llittle tricky, but the charts indicate that we should be able to make it if we're careful.

We'll be here in Steinhatchee for at least 2 more days, waiting for the Gulf waves to calm down. The forecast for tomorrow is for 4 to 7 foot waves in the Gulf.