Islamorada

April 30 - We motored from Jew Fish Hole to Islamorada against 20 -25 kt head winds. Even though Tom & Muareen 's Cantagree's bottom is covered with barnacles, I had to motor at 2600 - 2700 rpm just to keepup. Normally, Eagle's Wings cruises at 2300 rpm. We dipped into two possible anchorages so Tom could check them out. The Intercoastal Waterway (AKA the ICW) passed through two banks, Peterson Bank and Shell Key Bank, on our way; bird spectators watched longside the channel probably taking bets on boats that would run aground. Skinny water is the rule. You can see our track at our Spot Shared Page.

Sherwood is hanging in there - a real "boat" cat!

We are anchored off Islamorada, a small town on Upper Matecumbe Key in six feet of clear water. Joanne & I donned our snorkeling gear for our first ever look at the bottom of our boat from the water. I got busy scrubbing the bottom. We'll work on it tommorrow as well. Also, for the first time, I dove to look at the anchor. It is buried in sand which is good for holding the boat securely at anchor. Click on images below to expand.

We had a wonderful seafood dinner with our friends, Maureen & Tom.

We strolled downtown for a look at the Monument to Hurricane Victims of 1935. Joanne and Maureen posed for a picture in front of it.

Just another lovely day in the Florida Keys!

JewFish Hole

We left Marathon this moorning (April 29) and motor against the wind to Jew Fish Hole, west of Fiesta Key and the Five Mile Bridge. We are anchorded in a spot that offers some protection from wind and waves. Check our track on our Spot page.

Tommorrow we head for Islamorda: http://www.islamoradainfo.com/

Richard

Idle Time

April 26 - We joined five other PGSC couples including Maureen & Tom for a bus ride to the Big Pine Key flea market. Becuase the season is winding down, attendance, both buyers and vendors, was light. Neverthless we all managed to buy something.

In the afternoon, we washed clothes and played Pegs & Jokers with Tom & Maureen. Want to know about Pegs & Jokers? Click http://www.pagat.com/misc/pegsandjokers.html

Strong east winds generated by a big high pressure system off the East Coast are pinning us and many others down. Looks like the adverse wind will continue blow most of next week. So here we are. Follow this link to friends from P dock who are pinned down up in Stuart: http://www.sailblogs.com/member/twoifbysea/

Following Tom's suggestion, I raised my riding sail on the backstay and flattened the sail out using an in-line to pull the tack tight . We are now swinging about 20 to 30 degrees. The boat on the mooring ball ahead of us is dancing all over. Cantagree, a Catalina 36, looks to be pretty stable. The Island Packets here don't move at all, of course.

The in-line cleat at the right is a handy gadget to secure lines. Not sure if I got it right but it works. Check it out at http://www.hitchcraft.net/

Still Waitng

April 25 - We waited for a bus to take us to the flee market on Big Pine Key. The bus never came probably due to the scheduled race over the Seven Mile Bridge. So we walked down US 1 to West Marine for a look around and stopped by the library on the way back. Tom and Maureen treated us to an excellent dinner aboard Cantagree. East winds continuing to blow well above 20 make for wet dinghy rides back to Eagle's Wings from the City Marina.

April 24 - We rode out to Pigeon Key on a small power boat (ride included in the tour) for a look around and an interesting history lesson. Pigeon Key, all four acres of it was base camp for the building of the Seven Mile Bridge for the overseas railroad. I forgot to put "film" in my camera so no pictures now. Maybe I can get some from Tom.

Waiting for Weather to Cross Gulf Stream

April 23 - Joanne & I rented a car so that we could get to Key West early in the morning to board the Yankee Freedom II, a fast boat to the Dry Tortugas. The Dry Tortugas are 70 miles west of Key West and are a US National Park. Colorful Tortugas Jack provided a tour of Fort Jefferson, America's spectacular 19th-century coastal fort, as well as commentary on the cruise over and back. During the Civil War it was a Union military prison for captured deserters and housed four men convicted of complicity in Abraham Lincoln's assassination including Dr. Samuel Mudd. We also snorkeled in the crystal clear water. A 4 foot barracuda got Joanne's attention pretty quickly. We spotted lots of colorful fish such as sargeant majors and parrot fish. Just a wonderful day and a great experience!

After the trip we enjoyed Cuban food and briefly watched a fire eating act at Mallory Square before driving back to Marathon.

April 22 - We took a dinghy ride down to Burdines for great burgers in pardise.

At Boot Key Harbor April 21

We took a bus for $1.50 ea to Key West today. Enjoyed the trolley, Ernest Hemingway House and Little Whitehouse tours. Back in time for sunset. Looks like a long wait for a weather window to cross ther Gulf Stream.

Richard

At Boot Key Harbor

We left Marco Island at 8:20 AM April 18 with a forecast for wind from the NE at 15 kts.-perfect for our 54 nautical mile passage to Little Shark River . Our route took us around Cape Ramano Shoals. View our track at the Spot site. The promised wind held for a few hours, died away, clocked to the southeast and increased to 27! Slow, slow was our final leg into Little Shark River where we anchored at 7:20 PM, eleven long hours after our departure. Richard & Joanne fared well; Sherwood suffered through it getting sick once. Lots of attention was required to avoid the CT mine fields! CT = crab trap.

We left Little Shark River with a forecast for a SE wind at 15; we experienced 20+ all across Florida Bay sailing with the main only reefed once. We kept the genoa furled so that we could keep a good lookout for the crab traps. Joanne proved to an excellent CT spotter dogging and weaving through the many lines of crab traps stretching across the bay.

Out of the vast expanse of blue water, we spied Marathon's bridge in the distance. Marathon is one of the bigger islands in the middle of the chain of the Keys. It is known for its hospitality to boat cruisers and for its great facilities. We went under the huge bridge, headed for port (left) and wound in the channel where we picked up a mooring ball in Boot Key Harbor. Boot Key looks like a sea of bobbing sailboats. We figured it took us 9 hours after leaving Little Shark River to go about 44 nm (nm=nautical miles) from the north. We hope everyone is following our SPOT trail (website below). We made contact with our friends, Maureen and Tom, from sailboat "Can't Agree" who decided to come back to the harbor after receiving a bad weather forecast for crossing the Gulf Stream. We are looking forward to spending time with them here in Marathon while we wait for ideal weather for crossing the Gulf Stream.

At Marco Island April 16-17

We motorsailed for 6 hours along the coast gazing at blue green water, occasional dolphins and gorgeous coastline until we entered the harbor into Marco Island. We were greeted by JB and Mickey Walton, the uncle and aunt of my sister-in-law, Nita. They let us use their dock and invited us to a yummy Texas dinner of chili, rice, salad and ice-cream for dessert. They were so hospitable to us - what a wonderful time!

Tomorrow we have a long sail along a more remote coast of Florida called the 10,000 Island Area. We hope to anchor at Little Shark River overnight and then proceed to Marathon in the Keys.

Eagle's Wings Underway

April 15 - We were finally ready to leave on Tuesday after Richard's minor surgery followed a check-out appt Monday afternoon. We put our cars in storage and my cousin Constance drove down to Burnt Store after treating us to a chicken dinner at the Elks.

We waited a day for a cold front that brought lots of rain, thunder, lightning and even hail to pass before departing on Wednesday morning.

We went down the ICW and picked up a mooring ball at Fort Myers Beach where we spied Charlie's Angel of the Punta Gorda Sailing Club. We had dinner with about six couples from the club at the Matanzas Inn.

On the way down, Joanne got a call from her doctor recommending another test. So we plan to hold up at Marco Island while we rent a car to drive bck to Punta Gorda before proceeding further down the coast.

Richard

Waiting at Burnt Store

Our new outboard engine was diagnosed with a seal leak. While we wait for the dealer to order parts for the repair, we completed some more boat projects. Friday night we attended the fish fry at Sacred Heart with friends Tom & Maureen and David & Patti and later played “Pegs & Jokers” a neat board game. Tom & Maureen leave tomorrow for the Exumas; David & Patti plan to leave early next week. I‘m getting anxious to leave; Joanne has been more than ready for a few weeks now!

While we’re waiting, we decided to tour the Ringling Brothers Museum in Sarasota. John Ringling built Cà d’Zan, the last of the Gilded Age mansions in America. Designed in a Venetian Gothic style, it really reminded us of Venice . We took a guided tour; you can read about at http://www.ringling.org/ We also saw the model circus, learned a little circus history and toured the art museum. On the way back from this fun trip, we drove along Siesta Key. The sand is very fine and white – just one of the most beautiful Florida beaches that Joanne has seen.