21-21 December, 2019 Ground hog day in Carrabelle

Saturday had rain showers off and on.  Windy but not excessive.  We were able to get decent walks in, do all the laundry at the local laundromat with local color provided by the owner, and putter around town.  Met new loopers from MN who arrived yesterday in a 34 foot trawler.  I inspected all of the electrical connections behind the helm station--just checking for security and integrity, don't need arcing and sparking in rolling seas.

Helm station wiring

 Interesting list of local weather warnings for Saturday and Sunday.

Weather warnings

Gulf of Mexico Crossing Options by Marv’s Weather Service 
updated - 2019-12-21 at 01:00 pm ..
Rim Route Option
example - can be a two or three day route ..
leg A - Carrabelle to Steinhatchee .. example of route
leg B - Steinhatchee to Crystal River .. example of route
leg C - Crystal River to Tarpon Springs .. example of route
.
weather windows at this time ..
Friday the 20th thru Tuesday the 24th - at this time with winds from 18 to 40 mph and wave heights from 3.5 to 10 feet we do not recommend crossing the Gulf until the seas calm down .. ie this weather window is closed .. way too bumpy .. we recommend waiting for the next weather window .. see our buoy reports ..
Wednesday the 25th - at this time if this weather window holds together you will experience very bumpy mixed seas with a per of 4 .. if your boat and crew can handle 2.5 to 3.5 with 4.0 footers the seas will be doable but very bumpy .. we recommend waiting for the next weather window .. see our buoy reports ..
Thursday the 26th - at this time if this weather window holds together you will experience very bumpy mixed seas with a per of 4 .. if your boat and crew can handle 2.5 to 3.5 with 4.0 footers the seas will be doable but very bumpy .. we recommend waiting for the next weather window .. see our buoy reports ..
Friday the 27th - at this time if this weather window holds together you will experience very bumpy mixed seas with a per of 4 .. if your boat and crew can handle 2.5 to 3.5 with 4.0 footers the seas will be doable but very bumpy .. we recommend waiting for the next weather window .. see our buoy reports ..
looking ahead - at this time the next weather windows could be on the 28th iffy or the 29th or the 30th iffy or the 31st iffy or the 01st iffy or the 02nd iffy ..

So--this weather forecast is different than a couple of days ago; December 25 looked very positive as a go day with smoother seas and decreased winds.  Although other reporting sources such as NOAA/NWS,  buoy weather and Windy are still showing the 25th as a possible go.  We will watch closely. Current gale force winds throughout the Gulf area we need to cross combined with strong winds as the front clears out, the question is, will the seas lay down so we and Serenity don't get the snot beat out of us?  Stay tuned.

Sunday--ground hog day again.  Darker, grayer skies with stronger winds and periods of drizzle, rain and heavy rain.  We watched Mending Fences Cowboy Church on youtube.  Our away from home church in Tennessee.  Video linked above in Serenity and Kaos tweets.   Hunkering down on the boat.