Return Sail to Fort Myers Beach

After a week of fun, sun, and wind in the Dry Tortugas we decided to sail the 120 miles across the Gulf to our marina in Fort Myers Beach--approximately a 24 hour run. We pulled out around 8:30 a.m. on Feb.15th and sailed (even though the wind wasn't where we wanted it) through the day, spending much of our time reading, watching dolphin play in the wake of the bow, and listening to music. But the most magical part of any long trip is the nighttime sky. As the sun set, the constellations started to appear. Since we were out of sight of land, the sky was brilliant--with layers of stars visible beyond the constellations. At 2:40 am, a red Cheshire moon rose on the eastern horizon. Throughout the entire time on the Gulf, we saw only one other vessel--a huge fishing boat. We arrived around 9:30 am on the 16th, a bit groggy but happy to be 'home'.

Dry Tortugas

We sailed into the Dry Tortugas, a National Park, around 4:30 pm on Friday, Feb. 10th and were greeted in the harbor by friendly sailors and goliath groupers. What, you may ask, is a goliath grouper? It is the biggest fish I have EVER seen!! They were up to 6 feet long, weighing several hundred pounds. Luckily, they are friendly and curious and seem to enjoy being around people--unlike sharks. At one point during our visit, I decided to be adventuresome and swim with them....which lasted exactly 30 seconds. I started to wonder if they were carnivores or herbivores!



One of the Goliath Groupers--with a face only a mother could love!


The Dry Tortugas are composed of several keys that are 90 miles northwest of Key West. A fort was constructed in the mid-1800's on the largest key--it never saw any battles or even cannon fire, but it was a prison for the Union and housed Dr. Mudd, the physician who set  the broken leg of Lincoln's assassin.

Fort Jefferson

Complete with a moat!

We arrived in the Dry Tortugas just in time for a major cold front to pass through--causing cool temps and HIGH WINDS. When you see half a dozen commercial fishing boats come into a harbor--you know you're in trouble. This is confirmed when you see 7 commercial shrimp boats hunkered down just outside of the harbor (too big to be allowed inside). Despite the bad weather, we dinghied in over the rough waves and toured the fort which is the third largest brick structure in the Western Hemisphere! The weather deteriorated on Saturday, so we stayed on board the boat all day Sunday and did chores. Have you ever tried to clean a boat during high winds? It's like cleaning in a fun house at a local carnival--you are never standing straight up!

Chef Barry--no matter what the weather, we always eat well!

Monday showed up with less wind and warmer temperatures--and lots of visitors from Key West! For $250, you can fly over in a seaplane and stay for a couple of hours. Yikes! (At least the wind is free on our sailboat:)




We celebrated Valentine's Day and our 14th anniversary on a deserted island--really! We sailed a short distance to Loggerhead Key--location of an 1840's lighthouse, some empty park service housing, and of course white sandy beaches.

Our deserted island

We dinghied to shore (this is important later) and walked across the island to a protected beach off which there is a coral reef. Even though it wasn't quite resort weather yet--we snorkeled on the reef. I love snorkeling--it's like taking a peek in a window in a different universe. We saw at least 25 different types of tropical fish--including barracuda, a lion fish, sea urchins, angel fish, parrot fish, and unknown fish with bright neon colors splashed all over them! The coral were equally beautiful--especially the purple fan coral. This was the highlight of our trip!

Now, about the dinghy. When we left it on the opposite side of the island, it was tied up to a pier. I knew there were problems when, as we came within sight of the shore, Barry broke into a fast stride. The dinghy had disappeared! (Thankfully, it was just under the pier) Barry dug it out and told me to jump in for our ride to our moored sailboat. I dutifully jumped in-- and was IMMEDIATELY swamped with a huge wave that filled the dinghy with water. "Jump out!" he cries. This was not so easy--the surf was high and the waves were coming in quick succession. I managed to struggle out, spitting saltwater, and awaited the next idea from the Captain. He decided to walk the dinghy down the pier and jump in from the pier, once we were free of the crashing surf. Yeah, right. So I get on the bird-poop encrusted pier, take hold of the line, and pull the dinghy out further while Barry pushed it from behind. Now when he yells "Jump in!", I'm not so eager to follow orders. The dinghy is bucking up and down against the pier--and I'm suddenly thinking maybe it wouldn't be so bad to stay here with the seagulls for a night or two until this weather settles down more. But no....I leap in and Barry follows and we head out to the sailboat.

Now, about the sailboat. She is also bucking up and down on the swells. We arrive with the dinghy and again Barry says "Climb on!" Yeah, right. If the dinghy and the sailboat were bucking in unison, this would be so much better. But, they're pretty much going opposite of one another. So, I suck it up, stand on the seat of the dinghy, grab onto the rigging on the transom and wait for the right moment to pull myself up. Pictures of broken teeth flashed through my mind--but luckily I got into the rhythm of the waves and jerked myself up as did Barry--all's well!

Back in the harbor, our anniversary dinner consisted of bratwursts--one of our favorite outdoor meals.
It was our best anniversary so far!

The Marquesas

View of the inside of Marquesas Island

We set off from Key West in tandem with our friend Norm and his crew on Feb.9th to head west 30 miles to the Marquesas--a small group of protected and uninhabited islands. After about 6 hours on the water we arrived and dinghied in to check out the beach. I found hundreds of small hermit crabs, lovely driftwood, turquoise waters, and birds.Most surprisingly, I stumbled upon two boats abandoned presumably by Cuban refugees. A few days later, we were told by park rangers that if the Cubans successfully avoid the 'Coasties' (Coast Guard) and put a foot on these islands, they are offered political asylum. We hope these refugees survived.


Spent a quiet night at anchor and then headed 40 miles west to the Dry Tortugas. While under sail, Barry set a fishing pole off the back of the boat and caught two Spanish mackerel! Since one of his favorite sayings is 'Holy Mackerel!', this was a fitting catch! I'm not sure how big they were initially, but they keep getting bigger (if you know what I mean:) He cleaned them and they provided several meals for us and our friends!

Holy Mackerel!

While under sail, there are chores to do (as long as the water isn't too rough). I decided to tackle polishing the stainless--a necessary evil in salt water. Fortunately, the water got rough and I just had to stop. Too bad.

Last Days in Key West

Start of sunset, Key West, 2/07/12

Capt. Norm and Carroll, from St. Louis

Nelson and Rich from St. Louis

Final moments of sunset, Key West, 2/07/12

Incoming!

Moonrise

When in paradise, you lose track of time which seems to be separated only by weather systems and sunsets down here. We have had some rocky weather for the last week, interspersed with beautiful days like yesterday. No matter what, the temperatures always seem to fall between 70 and 80 degrees--can't beat that for February! Yesterday, we took the dinghy to 'town' for a morning of sightseeing and a bit of shopping in Key West-- returning to the boat for the arrival of several friends from St Louis who had boated down the East coast of Florida to meet us here. During the afternoon, we were treated to what had to be 'war games' at the Naval Base located right next to our anchorage. There were military helicopters and even a small submarine! In the evening, we enjoyed some roast pork with all the fixings for dinner and lively conversation, along with a beautiful sunset and moonrise (never get tired of that!) Today is our final day in Key West--heading west to the Dry Tortugas!

Top 10 Reasons My Girlfriends Would Have Flown Home By Now

Editor's note: After 2 days of high wind and heavy rain, stuck in the boat on a mooring ball a mile off coast, Linda is a bit stir-crazy. So here is a tongue-in-cheek list of the negatives of cruising :)

10. You have to dinghy a mile in the rain to do your laundry.  You do your laundry at a laundromat--where there are many "interesting" people. Your white shorts are soaked through--your mother warned you about this:)
 9. You are the first mate--meaning whenever you dock or anchor, you're the person who has to listen to and quickly heed all of the commands from the captain. Oh, and it is usually windy or there is an unusually strong current or you don't have the right lines ready and this is ALWAYS in front of an audience.
 8.  You sleep on a foam cushion that is softened somewhat by memory foam. not
 7.  The dinghy is tied up right behind your cabin, and when the wind is from the wrong direction the dinghy
       bangs on the hull all night , like a spurned lover. (Disclaimer: That sounds good--never happened to me, tho)
 6.  There is no TV--no big deal usually, unless you REALLY want to watch the Academy Awards.   
      Somebody PLEASE DVR it for me on Feb 26th.
 5.  When it rains or is super windy, you are trapped in the boat--some of you have walk-in closets bigger 
      than my 'salon' or galley
 4.  You have an icebox--which must be replenished regularly with 50+ lbs of ice. Thank God for strong    
      captains!
 3.  Due to the lack of refrigeration, your menu revolves around canned meats--tuna, chicken, beef, turkey spam (yes, spam comes in flavors  now! See what you're missing!)
 2.  Even non-mechanical first mates like me MUST learn basic mechanics--such as how to start the generator and the engine, how to read a chart, how to operate the VHF, how to help set and release the anchor, and how to save the capt if he goes overboard. I bet he wishes I was more mechanical!

And the #1 reason that most of my girlfriends would have flown home by now:
   The toilet! There's no flushing---no sirree. You PUMP it out and into a holding tank. Eww. That's all I'll say about that.

Windy Work Day

Who would think that the second day that we are in Key West that we don't leave the boat for the entire day but work on her instead. ( I mean work on Mardi Gras, not Linda). The wind today was mostly in the 20s and the chop was white capped. While we had a tentative appointment to meet my nephew David Maloney who is stationed in the Navy here, we decided it was not worth the soaking that we would all get while shuttling over to our mooring. Since David is in the Navy, he may understand but his girlfriend, Christy, may be less forgiving. Since this is normally Linda's job, I will turn it back over to her now. I am surprised that I can still type. (barely) (Barry)

Key West Continued



Sunrise in Marathon, as we head off for Key West

 Barry and I arrived in the Key West mooring field late Thursday afternoon, after sailing for about 9 hours from Marathon. The water was rather rough at first, but eventually we go used to it and then the winds calmed down. We chose to use the mooring field, because of the wind direction and speed--but as you can see from previous post (haha) the water was not calm when we rt'd from our day trip to Key West today :)


View as we sailed to Key West

  While in Key West we visited the historic cemetery in which you can see the headstone that reads: "I told them I was sick!"


A hungry fowl

 For brunch, we went to a funky, popular place called Blue Heaven and ate outside in the garden. Roosters joined us--plucking pancake bits right out of our fingers! (Lax regulations from the FL Health Dept, I guess)

We did a little shopping and walked along the historic wharf district before heading back for our dousing in the dinghy. Did you know it takes FOREVER for things to dry out when they are covered with salt water? So I did some hand washing in the galley sink tonight....never take washing machines for granted. Never.

Key West fun



The old-timers warned us! If we chose to moor in Key West's mooring field, the trip by dinghy to Key West would be long and we would get WET. Did we listen?!? NO!!

An exaggeration, but we did get soaked to the skin!

Key West



30-year old Hemingway




  Monday was a windy, cloudy day so Barry and I took a 50-mile bus ride to Key West. Public transit here is cheap and fairly dependable--and without a car, we need it! We caught the 10:15 a.m. bus and returned on the 8:40 pm bus with each trip taking about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. While in Key West--whether walking to the museums or to the bus stop--we figured we walked 5+ miles!! We took in the usual tourist attractions--Hemingway's home; the Mel Fischer museum; Duval Street window shopping; Sloppy Joe's for a late lunch; and Mallory Square for the sunset and the street performers. We watched the Catman and his performing cats--who bite anyone who dares try to pet them. Also caught the act of a local Houdini-like escape artist who escaped from a chained and padlocked straight-jacket!! Key West is filled with 'characters'--6-toed cats, roosters, care-free tourists on mopeds, and hawkers. We had a terrific day and plan to return by sailboat in a couple of days to moor at one of the local marinas and take in some of the sights in Old Town off the beaten path.

Lighthouse near Hemingway's home







Hemingway's home

  


What's wrong with this picture?





The Catman



Unexpected Pleasure



Palm Path





Makes us want to snorkel!



Crane Point Creek



Yesterday, we planned to take a bus to a flea market about 20 miles from here. We had met some friendly people on the beach who were vendors of metal sculptures at flea markets on the East Coast. But....we missed the bus (that's a whole story in and of itself). It just so happened that the bus stop (with no bus in sight) was right across the road from Crane Point Nature Preserve--so we decided to visit. What a wonderful place--the pictures don't do it justice. We walked the trails through palm trees out to the point where we looked out over clear water where colorful fish nibbled algae off of the rocks. Much better than a flea market!

Marathon, FL



Another breathtaking sunset




Barry at Marathon Beach




Linda at Marathon Beach




Park at Marathon Beach




Sunset at Marathon City Marina from the deck of the Mardi Gras

       Greetings from Marathon, FL. We've been here for 4 full days now and are enjoying this cruiser friendly town. We've found the local grocery store (only a 1 mile walk or a $4 cab ride); Home Depot; an outboard motor repair shop (we need a new fuel pump); a bus schedule; and a LOVELY beach (only a 1 mile dinghy or kayak ride). In the harbor, we've enjoyed the company of Mick and Sue--world travelers from Wales--who shared some funny stories with us over drinks and appetizers. I've also participated in a yoga class--outdoors, under the marina's tiki hut, overlooking the water. Wow!
      Today started with a greeting from a pair of dolphins, one of whom jumped out of the water right in front of me four times as if to say good morning. Around 9a.m., Barry and I took the dinghy (towing my kayak) up Sister Creek to Marathon Beach--one of the most pristine, well-cared for beaches  I've ever seen! Barry headed back to the marina to work on the outboard (he can't sit still). For the first time since arriving in Florida, the water was warm enough to enjoy some swimming. I met some friendly folks at the beach, including a couple from Missouri with roots in Kirkwood. Small world! Around 3pm, I decided it was time to kayak back to the marina. Unfortunately, the wind was in my face so the trip back was challenging. Just when I thought I couldn't paddle another step--Barry came around the bend in the dinghy to tow me home! What a great guy!



Mick and Sue--new friends from Wales