Peck Lake Puzzle

Jupiter Island Lighthouse

We had a pretty calm day on the water around Palm Beach and Jupiter today.  As is now our pattern, the end of the day was full of drama.  We left Loggerhead Marina at 9:40 am, a carefully timed leave taking based on bridge openings.  We just had 11 bridges, but one of them, Flagler Memorial, only opens at 15 minutes past the hour.  So if you aren't there at 15 after, you will wait a long time.  George figured out that we needed to pass Southern Blvd. bridge at 10:45, and then we would hit Flagler at 11:15.  Bridges after Flagler were 21 feet or higher.

This boat is covered up for winter in North Palm Beach, a rare/odd sight.

We were in Lake Worth for 2 - 3 hours this morning, and it was bumpy with 2 foot waves.  The wind was 15 mph, and the wide lake gives waves a chance to build.  I get anxious watching.  It is hard for me to have nothing to do:  too early for lunch, not interested in cleaning, can't read underway.  Hmm.  I got out my knitting and found a scarf I had been knitting a year ago from scraps.  I sat on the floor in the "kitchen" and knitted for an hour. "Busy hands are happy hands" as Porter McCollister, my 7th grade boyfriend used to say.  My mother did not care for that quote, but he was wise beyond his years.  I knitted several rows as Lake Worths bumps passed beneath me.  

We were headed to an anchorage on the west side of the ICW, expecting to arrive early afternoon.  Sometime after lunch George noticed that the wind was shifting from NNW to NE.  He asked me, "What direction will the wind be tonight?"  I checked and saw that the wind will shift to the east around midnight.  Oh, no.  Our anchorage, well protected from the north, would not be as safe once the wind moved.  So we looked for other spots.  We found Peck Lake about an hour farther.

When we arrived at 3:15, we saw six sailboats in Peck Lake.  Good news!  They think this is a good spot.  Bad news!  Where can we anchor away from them and still have 6 -7 feet of water?  I do not exaggerate when I say that we dropped and picked up the anchor more than 4 times.  First, we were too close to the ICW.  Then we were too close to a sailboat.  Then we started lowering the anchor and our depth dropped to 4 feet. Argghh!  The wind was blowing, and we were losing patience.  (We also had checked with the closest marina, and they had no space, so we needed to make this work.)

This anchorage is strange.  We were quite frustrated trying to figure out the shape of the bottom.  A sailor on one of the settled boats hailed George and talked to him about the shape.  He advised us to come behind the row of sailboats and head for the beach.  We did and found 7 feet close to shore and away from other boats.  Thank you!  Boaters are helpful people, and I am grateful to him.

View from cockpit of the shore of Peck Lake.  Home sweet home.