They've used the head, but not the bed
Feb 7, 2008
Dick Gady said he started boating when he was about 6 years old, fishing with his father in an old row boat.
By Capt. Carl Kelly
But his first boat was a wood Boston Whaler he bought shortly after he and Nancy married and moved to Cleveland on Lake Erie.
"Oh," said Nancy Gady, who seemed surprised at the memory. "I forgot about that."
"It had a 35-horsepower Chrysler outboard," Dick Gady explained. "The motor didn't run very well. But I did take it out on Lake Erie once in a while, which I probably shouldn't have. It was probably 16 feet."
"I remember one time we went out there," Nancy Gady said. "Remember the waves. We thought, 'What are we doing?'"
Their boating experience before Florida was like that, limited to small boats and freshwater fishing. Then, they moved to Marco Island.
"This will be our sixth year in Florida," Dick Gady said. "We bought our boats the first year we came down here, which may or may not have been a good idea.
"We went to a boat show in Tampa," he continued, "and saw a brand new Sea Ray Amberjack. Then, we found a used one a couple years old. Bought that. It's 29 foot. Then, I got a used, repossessed Hewes flats boat. It's 18 foot.
"The Sea Ray has a cabin, a head, a galley ..."
"But, we've never cooked a meal," Nancy said, finishing his sentence.
"We've used the head but we haven't used the stove or the bed yet."
"But we're going to. Soon."
First weekend cruise
They joined the Marco Bay Yacht Club last year and will go on their first weekend cruise with the club in February.
"We're going to sleep in the boat," Nancy Gady noted, "have our breakfast and whatever else we decide. So, we have to get everything organized."
Then, she suggested he tell about the first time he drove the Sea Ray.
He acquiesced.
"We bought the boat in Tampa and the owner, of course, lived up there. I'd never been in a boat more than 18 feet in my life. So, fortunately, I have a friend who owned a 40-foot boat. He and his wife came over. His wife stayed here with Nancy and we flew up to Tampa.
"It was a little breezy, but it's two and a half hours to get out of Tampa Bay. So, it was fine till we got out in the Gulf. The waves were six to eight feet. The wind was out of the north. We'd go up and down, up and down, bang on the waves. It was a 10-hour trip. The waves came over the front. My windshield wiper broke. Of course, the saltwater dried on the windshield."
"They came all the way. They never stopped," Nancy Gady commented. "Aren't they brave!"
Then, she told about her day.
"It was just a little gray here. Barbara and I went out. We did a little shopping. Had lunch. When we came back to the house we said, 'Oh look, they're here.'
"We were so excited. We ran behind the house thinking they would be there smiling. But they were just ashen. I am not exaggerating. They just looked like ghosts. He was not smiling."
Dick Gady concluded the story, "That was my initiation to Florida boating."
The Sea Ray Amberjack is 29 feet long with a 10-foot beam and a three-foot draft. It can be used for both cruising and fishing. The Hewes flats boat is 18 feet long with a 7-½ foot beam and very shallow draft and is strictly a fishing boat.
They like both boats, but Dick Gady noted, "The Sea Ray is an O/I. If I had to do it over, I'd probably get two outboards. There's a lot of maintenance. You've got double systems, two water systems, two electrical ..."
Captain's notes
* Some of the channels in our area are fairly narrow. Navigation of, passage through, a narrow channel can be dangerous, so for safety sake, there are rules that govern navigation in narrow channels.
* Keep to the right of the channel as near to the outer limit of the channel as possible.
* Avoid anchoring in a narrow channel, if at all possible.
* A vessel engaged in fishing shall not impede the passage of any other vessel navigating a narrow channel.
* Since larger vessels can safely navigate only within the channel, do not cross a narrow channel if crossing will impede the passage of a vessel that must navigate within the channel.
- Capt. Carl has held his USCG captain's license since 1994. If you have questions or would like to make suggestions for this column, contact Capt. Carl at marcocaptain@comcast.net.
"Oh," said Nancy Gady, who seemed surprised at the memory. "I forgot about that."
"It had a 35-horsepower Chrysler outboard," Dick Gady explained. "The motor didn't run very well. But I did take it out on Lake Erie once in a while, which I probably shouldn't have. It was probably 16 feet."
"I remember one time we went out there," Nancy Gady said. "Remember the waves. We thought, 'What are we doing?'"
Their boating experience before Florida was like that, limited to small boats and freshwater fishing. Then, they moved to Marco Island.
"This will be our sixth year in Florida," Dick Gady said. "We bought our boats the first year we came down here, which may or may not have been a good idea.
"We went to a boat show in Tampa," he continued, "and saw a brand new Sea Ray Amberjack. Then, we found a used one a couple years old. Bought that. It's 29 foot. Then, I got a used, repossessed Hewes flats boat. It's 18 foot.
"The Sea Ray has a cabin, a head, a galley ..."
"But, we've never cooked a meal," Nancy said, finishing his sentence.
"We've used the head but we haven't used the stove or the bed yet."
"But we're going to. Soon."
First weekend cruise
They joined the Marco Bay Yacht Club last year and will go on their first weekend cruise with the club in February.
"We're going to sleep in the boat," Nancy Gady noted, "have our breakfast and whatever else we decide. So, we have to get everything organized."
Then, she suggested he tell about the first time he drove the Sea Ray.
He acquiesced.
"We bought the boat in Tampa and the owner, of course, lived up there. I'd never been in a boat more than 18 feet in my life. So, fortunately, I have a friend who owned a 40-foot boat. He and his wife came over. His wife stayed here with Nancy and we flew up to Tampa.
"It was a little breezy, but it's two and a half hours to get out of Tampa Bay. So, it was fine till we got out in the Gulf. The waves were six to eight feet. The wind was out of the north. We'd go up and down, up and down, bang on the waves. It was a 10-hour trip. The waves came over the front. My windshield wiper broke. Of course, the saltwater dried on the windshield."
"They came all the way. They never stopped," Nancy Gady commented. "Aren't they brave!"
Then, she told about her day.
"It was just a little gray here. Barbara and I went out. We did a little shopping. Had lunch. When we came back to the house we said, 'Oh look, they're here.'
"We were so excited. We ran behind the house thinking they would be there smiling. But they were just ashen. I am not exaggerating. They just looked like ghosts. He was not smiling."
Dick Gady concluded the story, "That was my initiation to Florida boating."
The Sea Ray Amberjack is 29 feet long with a 10-foot beam and a three-foot draft. It can be used for both cruising and fishing. The Hewes flats boat is 18 feet long with a 7-½ foot beam and very shallow draft and is strictly a fishing boat.
They like both boats, but Dick Gady noted, "The Sea Ray is an O/I. If I had to do it over, I'd probably get two outboards. There's a lot of maintenance. You've got double systems, two water systems, two electrical ..."
Captain's notes
* Some of the channels in our area are fairly narrow. Navigation of, passage through, a narrow channel can be dangerous, so for safety sake, there are rules that govern navigation in narrow channels.
* Keep to the right of the channel as near to the outer limit of the channel as possible.
* Avoid anchoring in a narrow channel, if at all possible.
* A vessel engaged in fishing shall not impede the passage of any other vessel navigating a narrow channel.
* Since larger vessels can safely navigate only within the channel, do not cross a narrow channel if crossing will impede the passage of a vessel that must navigate within the channel.
- Capt. Carl has held his USCG captain's license since 1994. If you have questions or would like to make suggestions for this column, contact Capt. Carl at marcocaptain@comcast.net.
