The Cruise - Week 9, Florida Keys - February 23 - March 1, 2015

Monday February 23.  Beautiful day, 80 degrees, sunny and little wind.  We took our dingy around the west end of Marathon, under the Seven Mile Bridge and into Boot Key Harbor where we rode around looking at boats in the mooring field and stopped to see friends.  Had lunch at Dockside restaurant in the harbor and made a short stop at Sombrero Beach.  We are beginning to think about what we will do next…after this cruise.  One option (of many) is to move up to a larger boat and cruise on a regular basis.  Not all the time, but maybe a trip of a few months each year.  Hmmmm bigger boat…so what would that look like.  This is why we are riding around looking at boats and talking to people.  If you pull up to a moored or anchored boat and begin asking questions, the owners are always happy to talk.  If a new/larger boat happens, it will be at the end of a long process.  We got back to Harbor Cay about 5:00 pm after traveling over about 12 miles with a 3 ½ hp motor on a 9’ inflatable dingy.  We were tired.







Tuesday we planned to take Dubhe out for a day cruise to Molasses Key, but of all things, we were covered by fog which did not lift until late afternoon.  Fog is extremely rare here but it changed our plans.  We mostly just sat around for the day and waited.  Happy Hour at the Cone of Knowledge was early as we had a couple join us who have completed a long cruise in the Arctic Circle above Norway.  They were interesting people from Norway and Denmark, but I don’t that is a place we will go!  After drinks and snacks we were not hungry so we walked over to Burdines for Key Lime pie.  We ended up having a couple of beers, French fries, AND Key Lime Pie.  This cruise may kill us.
On the way back to Dubhe, we met a couple and went to Porkys for more beers.  Of course no driving.  In fact, I haven’t driven a car in over two months!

Wednesday morning (February 25) we planned to head out to Molasses Key for  a day trip (again) but about 8:00 am, fog rolled in and stayed around past noon.  As we had made plans to meet friends at Dockside at 5:00, we did not have time to go out after the fog lifted.  Shortly after noon we heard many sirens which turned out to be from an accident on the seven mile bridge that took the life of one person and a dog, and totally shut down traffic on the bridge for over three hours.  Apparently someone tried to pass another vehicle on the bridge in the fog and ran head on with oncoming traffic.  The traffic on US 1 in the Keys is such that passing doesn’t get you any further than the next car, especially on the bridges.  If you ever drive down here, put yourself on island time, relax and just go with the traffic. 

In order to get a little exercise, I took a long walk on the old section of the Seven Mile Bridge almost to Pigeon Key.  As I was walking back, I heard someone call my name.  It was Bill Davidson who I worked with 35 years ago and had not seen in 10 years   what an amazing encounter Bill and Debbie who live near Boston had gotten held up by the accident on their way to Key West and were also taking a walk.  I called Nancy to join us and we had an hour or so to visit.   

We went to Dockside Restaurant with Tom and Vivienne for drinks and to hear the Jessie Brown Band.  They were great.  Jessie Brown has a fantastic voice much like Allison Krauss.  I expect they are an up and coming group so if anyone has a chance to see her/them, do it.

We are really enjoying our cruise so far, and learning a lot.  Our greatest learning experience is that we need a bigger boat to really enjoy cruising.  We love Dubhe and we enjoy her popularity with just about everyone who sees her, but we need a double bunk and just a little more living space to be comfortable.  To this end, we have been looking at other trawlers.  Monday, riding through Boot Key Harbor, we saw many and talked to the owners.  Thursday, we met a boat broker to look at a DeFever 41, but it is too big and too old.  After he left, we walked over to another boat we liked and knocked.  The couple aboard were very welcoming and invited us aboard.  It was a Monk 36 which is the right size and has a traditional “salty” look.  As we go north over the next few weeks, we will look at as many boats as we can manage along the way.

 

 Saturday, I changed the oil and a fuel filter in Dubhe in preparation of our return trip.  As I have said several times, I like it here, but we are itching to get moving.  Cruising is about going to new places.  Friends Frank and Debbie came over for lunch and drinks which then required a nap.  They are leaving tomorrow morning to go over to the Marathon mooring field and wait for weather to begin their trip back north and to the Bahamas.  When people start leaving, it really makes us want to go too.  We also made the pig races at the Stuffed Pig Restaurant.  They claim that it was national pig day but I have never heard of it.  It was a hoot.

Sunday we went to church at Saint Columba Episcopal as we have for the past four weeks.  This is a growing, outreaching church.  We will miss them.  I replaced a bilge pump float switch that I should have replaced when I installed the second switch.  I had left the old one in as the primary and sure enough, it went bad.  Boats stuff is expensive but if you try to go cheap, you will pay in the end.  Frank and Debbie on Heron yesterday for Boot Key Harbor, but three more boats came in.  On one is a couple (David and Beverly) from Beaufort, NC who we got to know at the Cone of Knowledge.  People leave, but there are always more coming.

The Cruise - Week 8, Florida Keys - February 16 - 22, 2015

Monday, February 16, 2015.  At last, some good weather at least for a couple of days.  Wind should turn to east and southeast and moderate, so we decided to take a two day cruise.  I wanted to go west then under the Seven Mile Bridge via Moser Channel and on to Molasses Key where there is a channel between two small islands.  We departed about 1000, but not long after clearing Moser Channel, the wind was southeast to about 20 kts.  Although the seas were only about 3 feet or so, they caused Dubhe to roll badly when we turned to the west south west for Molasses Key.  We had not secured everything as we should have and lots of stuff inside went flying around the cabin.  Within a few minutes, I decided this was no fun and turned around.  We went back under the Seven Mile Bridge to the Florida Bay side of the islands where it was calmer and we were more head on to the waves.  We continued eastward past Harbour Cay and anchored up behind Crane Point about 12:30, had lunch, took a nap, and read.  At 3:45 pm, we raised the anchor and continued east about 6 or 7 miles for a very nice cruise close in to the shore, until we anchored up behind Fat Deer Key for the night.  We had a nice sunset and conch for supper.  The wind was southeast at about 15 kt, but the anchor was holding well.

Tuesday morning, we had a leisurely breakfast and just laid around for a while, reading and sunning.  The weather was perfect, with a south wind at 10, sunny sky, and upper 70’s.  At 1:00 pm, we departed for a nice slow ride back to Harbour Cay.  I tried to troll but there was too much grass in the water.  By time the lure hit the water, it was a ball of grass.  Docking is fairly tight at Harbour Cay, but we managed fine with a little help on the dock; arriving about 2:30 pm.

Wednesday, the rain started and the wind picked up overnight.  The rain has continued to almost noon and the north wind is beginning to make our little marina a quite bouncy and has continued to increase into the night.  About 0400 Thursday, the wind ramped up to sustained of about 30 kts with gusts to 34 kts, (almost 40 mph).  Waves at least 3 feet high were coming into the marina and Dubhe's motion, tied up to the dock wall, became quite violent.  Check it out at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WwA20jCCJ8

Just another Iguana on the side of the road.

By mid morning Thursday, the wind had backed off, some but was still 20-25 kts.  I was very tired since I didn't get my normal full night's sleep, but we walked to the grocery store anyway (2.2 miles each way).  In the evening, we were invited to a fish fry here.

Friday.  The wind continued all night but had moved a little to the east and was only about 20 kt so the motion was not so bad.  BUT it is cold, 45 degrees which is about as cold as it ever gets here. There is not a lot of activity on the docks or water this morning! Rode our bikes to the grocery store and picked up hogfish for supper on the way home.  In my opinion, this is the best fish you can eat; perfect texture, color, and flavor.  I expect this will happen more before we leave an easy source.  Hogfish is not caught by hook and line, but must be taken by spear fishing.





Nancy's birthday was Saturday.  I gave her a Marathon "destination" bracelet and I think she really likes it.  We went with friends (Tom and Vivienne) to a flea market on Big Pine Key which seemed to pretty typical; I bought some odds and ends like bungee cord, lighters, sanding pads, etc.  The best part was having brunch at The Stuffed Pig back on Marathon...we continue to eat too much and my shrinking clothes are showing it!  On the way back to our slip, we stopped by West Marine...I broke down and bought a new toilet for our head.  The bathroom on a boat is commonly referred to as the "head".  The term comes from the days of sailing ships when the crew would relieve themselves all the way forward on either side of the bowsprit, where the figurehead was fastened. Some people refer to the toilet itself as the head, but I prefer to call the enclosure (bathroom) the head.  I removed the existing toilet but ran into difficulty with installation of the new one so gave up for the day. We have restroom facilities on shore here at Harbor Cay. Enough!

Birthday dinner Saturday night at Castaway Restaurant in Marathon.  Nancy had crabcakes but after so much fish, I had baby back ribs which were great.  Of course Key Lime Pie for dessert.



Sunday, we went to church at Saint Columba Episcopal and stayed afterward for a newcomers brunch, although, as we told them, we would only be there one more Sunday.  This is a friendly, outreaching church and we have certainly enjoyed being there.  Sunday afternoon, I finally achieved installation of the new toilet without leaks! So far so good.  The weather is now perfect...low wind, sunny, and highs in the upper 70's.

SUCCESS!

The Cruise - Week 7, Florida Keys - February 9-15, 2015

Monday.  A fairly lazy day.  Pancakes for breakfast.  I was able to finish varnishing the rail after we spun Dubhe around a couple of days before.  We rode our bikes to the Seven Mile Bridge and walked out a ways and stopped at Porkey’s for a beer on the way back, then drinks with friends at the marina cone of knowledge.  The cone of knowledge is a “Tiki” hut, area covered with a cone shaped palm frond thatched roof.  The “knowledge” comes from the visitors consuming various amounts of alcohol and pontificating.

Tuesday was a windy day and quite rolley in the marina.  It looks like we are going to have strong wind from the north and cooler weather for several days.  Of course cool means low 60’s for lows and low 70’s for highs.  I spent the afternoon repairing and re-configuring my bilge pumps.  I had installed a second pump before we left but because of a broken (very specialized) fitting, I just got around to fixing it.  I also relocated the float switches but the older one does not now seem to work properly.  I guess that will be replaced next.  My goal is to have two independent bilge pumps with separate float switches.  In the evening we went to a local restaurant with friends to celebrate Tom’s birthday.

Wednesday was the first day of the Valentines Shuffle Board Tournament.  Wow, shuffle board!  I have never pictured myself in Florida playing shuffle board, but here I am.  Nancy and I were in the first round and fortunately, managed to loose after a respectable showing.  Later, a trip to the grocery store 2¼ miles each way on a 20” bicycle, which is not a trivial undertaking.  We ate supper at Burdines restaurant which we had been looking forward to since arriving.  We ate here with the boys in 2000 and last year when we visited in June.  We were not disappointed.

Thursday we attended the great Harbour Cay shuffle board tournament, went to the grocery store, and stopped at the fish market on the way home.  We had hogfish for supper which was fantastic.

Friday I finally got around to rebuilding my head (toilet).  The manual pump had not been working properly and I knew this was coming so I already had a rebuild kit.  First I pumped out the holding tank and ran some clean water with bleach through the system to help clean it up some, but it is not a pleasant job.  After at least an hour of hard work, I had it reinstalled but it would not work smoothly and it leaked!!.  I disassembled it and put the original piston back in.  Fortunately the piston was not one of the parts that really needed replacement.  It leaked again around the base of the pump.  Although it is not the proper thing to do, I used a pipe thread compound on both sides of the gasket and it sealed!.  The ABS plastic pump body is cheap, and the base was not perfectly flat as it needs to be to seal.  Next time I may need a whole new pump or a new and better head.

Saturday – Valentines Day.  Although anyone further north would think our weather is great, it has not been good by Keys standards.  The wind has been blowing nonstop to 20+mph out of the northwest to north.  This creates waves in the Florida Bay which come straight into our marina.  Dubhe is bouncing and rocking more than I have ever experienced tied up to a concrete wall!  It is quite uncomfortable at times.  Fortunately, as the wind moves around to the east and south in a couple of more days, the waves will go away and it will warm up.

Sunday, we went to church at Saint Columba Episcopal Church then cycled to K-Mart.  Shopping is quite limited here.  There are two grocery stores, K-Mart, and Home Depot.  Not much else except restaurants, convenience stores, and small shops.  At last the wind has died and shifted to the east.  We hope to get Dubhe out for a ride in the next couple of days.

The Cruise - Week 6, Florida Keys - February 2-8, 2015

We have rarely had a moment with nothing to do since arriving at Harbour Cay Club in Marathon. There are 20 or so boats here with liveaboard cruisers, most about our same age so there are many people to meet and social activities available.   Seems that most people here also follow our general schedule, ie early to bed, early to rise.

Saturday, our friends from Beaufort (Jeff and Marjorie) who have a car took us to the grocery store and K-Mart which was great, but it is too far to walk and we want to be independent so we started looking for bicycles.  Sunday morning we went to church at Marathon Community United Methodist Church and it was good to be there.  We would prefer to attend a Lutheran Church but there are no ELCA churches here and the Methodist church was within walking distance.  After church, we walked toward K-Mart stopping at the Conch Cafe for lunch where we had conch and were not disappointed.  We wound up buying two small (20") bicycles at K-Mart and riding them back to Harbour Cay, so now we have transportation.  Sunday evening there was a Super Bowl party in the clubhouse with more food than we could eat.  We enjoyed the party and meeting most of the folks.

Monday was a "work day".  I washed Dubhe down and we generally cleaned up.  I hauled our dingy out on the boat ramp here and cleaned the bottom.  I was surprised that there was so little growth on it after being in the water for 5 weeks.  I expect that when we are not moving nearly every day, the growth will occur faster.

Tuesday, we were invited to go sailing with friends we met last year in Beaufort on their 43' catamaran "Quandary".  We had a wonderful time just day sailing.  They are moored in Boot Key Harbor so we went out Sisters Creek and straight out about 10 miles past Sombrero Key Light, back to Moser Channel and back to Boot Key Harbor.  I had forgotten how much fun sailing is when you do not have a particular destination.    The weather has been gorgeous...sunny and in the mid to upper 70's.

Wednesday, we went with our Jeff and Marjorie and a couple of friends of theirs to Key West.  We had a fine day just wandering around the city, stopping frequently for drinks.  Of course, we made it to the Bull & Whistle on Duval Street where we spent a lot of time almost 40 years ago, and to the Sunset.  We had dinner at La Trattoria on Duval Street and made it back to Harbor Cay safely at about 2200 (10:00 pm), past our normal bedtimes.

Thursday it rained all day which is the first significant rain we have had since leaving. It was kind of nice to have a down day.  Mostly just fiddled around on Dubhe and read.

Friday. It is hard to believe we have already been here a week.  I was planning to rebuild the toilet but found that I did not have the full rebuild kit so I ordered the additional part which will not come until next week.  This is not critical at this point but could become so at anytime.  We had dinner with new friends at the “lanai”, a covered “pavilion here for events.

Saturday I sanded and varnished most of the cap rail.  In the afternoon we went to the Pigeon Art Festival.  It was ok but just a lot of booths for people selling their artwork.  Some was nice but I am not a great art enthusiast…we did have ice cream which made it worth it.  On the way back, on our bicycles, we stopped at West Marine, again; his time to get a paper chart of the Keys.  We attended a renaming ceremony for one of the boats here.  It is generally known that changing the name of a boat will bring bad luck unless done properly.  This is one reason that Nancy and I have never changed the name of a boat.  We like the name DUBHE anyway.  A proper name change ceremony will involve reciting words to appeal to the gods of the ocean and will include alcohol of some kind.  Probably not really useful to protect a boat, but it is fun for the participants.

Last Sunday, we attended a United Methodist Church which was ok, but no one there even greeted us.  Today, we went to St. Columba Episcopal Church which we really enjoyed.  The congregation seemed to be much more alive, several people talked to us, and of course, we liked the liturgical service much better.  We will go back.