Little Bayou & The CCR

During the latest month or so the HideAways along with the usual suspects, Smooth Sailing and Miandros had been planning a quick escape to a small bayou in nearby south St Petersburg.  Little Bayou lies just off northwestern Tampa Bay about ten minutes by automobile from our home port or maybe a couple of hours or more if you poke along under sail. 

The trip includes, as all of them do, a nice sail across Boca Ciega Bay after which we must negotiate two bascule bridges which usually require a long wait dictated by our state governments’ wisdom that effectively ruined the historic perfect timing of both.   (Read rich tea-drinking people living nearby.)

Little Bayou St Petersburg Fl

It’s The Time of Year Not Even the Sun Gets Up Before Mid Morning.

 The lazy winter sun gave the HideAways only one day of light to prepare the boat.  Loading seven hours of mixed gas, bedding, and chocolate stores along with a major attack of cleaning left HideAway sparkling and full a week before the much anticipated sailing adventure.

Half past Saturday morning would feature what has become known as a “cold start” for HideAway.  There could be only one trip to the boat for final provisioning.  What ever finds its way aboard joins the adventure, what ever doesn't is left at the dock, home, truck or other unknown place to be found later.

As the week progressed the weather forecast went from “Lets Go!!” to “Really?”  Always the eternal optimists, a requirement if you rely on wind to power your imaginings, the mighty trio dreamed of Little Bayou charms.

The Church Choir Roadie (CCR)

The only potential shoal on the cruise was the multi-church choir concert scheduled on Friday night.  The capts attendance was required as a perquisite for two days of glorious messing about in boats.

Not that the capt minded really.  Some music cannot be fully appreciated recorded.  Great music must be experienced live much in the vein of the 60s era Airplane, sans the church, was a spiritual experience to many. 

Eight church choirs combined to sing Handel's "Hallelujah Chorus” will shiver the timbers of the most crusted old salt. The shear power of 200 voices will have your heart thumping and your eyes wet for no apparent reason.  It was a mind-blowing experience, assuming you have one left after your Airplane trip of course.

The morning of the next day found the capt overheated with fever.  Getting a flu shot had worked well.  For with only a prick of the arm, or maybe the other way around, the capt was down for the count.  No where to go, the HideAways could only unpack and hack up the stuff of nightmares instead of cruising away the weekend. 

Now what to do with seven full hours of mixed gas that will last for months and months of day sailing?  Not to worry by the by, the chocolate stores have been dealt with already.  Urp. 

SMALL BOATS ROCK!