We survived a windy, rainy and bouncy night as Winter Storm Finn lashed the Panhandle. Yesterday’s winds built from 20 to 30 mph from the east, but we were behind a seawall and the adjacent building under construction that sheltered us. As the storm moved northeast and the winds clocked around to the south, the waves in Pensacola Bay built until they were crashing over the breakwater protecting our harbor and creating waves in the marina. By midnight, it was too rolly to sleep. We got up to check our lines, and chatted on the dock with Rob from Ebbtide, the Looper boat in front of us, who was also wide awake. Our anchor was banging on the bow, which echoed down below, so I climbed up on deck to relocate and secure it. A steady parade of powerful thunderstorms began at 3:00 AM and continued until 6:00 AM, with heavy rains and 40 mph wind gusts. Interestingly, the rain knocked down the waves, and we were able to doze off at times. By daybreak, the wind moderated a bit, and we got a little more sleep. The wind continued and it rained on and off all morning, but was no longer stormy. The friendly marina manager at Palafox checked in with us by text, as did several of our dear friends and family. We’re fine, so is Dragonfly, and we hope that everyone else gets through this nasty storm.
The rain stopped and the sun came out by late morning, but the wind cranked back up into the mid-20s, with gusts over 30 mph. We got tired of getting jostled around and went for a long walk in the wind, then took a well-needed nap before going out to dinner. We had an amazing meal at The Fish House, and the wind finally died down by the time we returned. We hope to get underway tomorrow if the seas have calmed enough to cross Pensacola Bay.
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| Dragonfly de-rigged of all canvas for high winds |
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