Boot Key

We had a great motorsail then sail from Rodriguez Key to Boot Key Harbor.  We have been here before and like the amenities and the people you meet.  We introduced Suz and Sam to the cruiser's net on the VHF radio.  For the unitiated, this is a volunteer net of boaters in an area on a preselected frequency. They have a moderator who has control of the flow of information.  They usually start off with arriving boats and departing boats.  Then ask for announcements.  This can be anything from when the Bocci Ball game is to who will organize the next potluck party.  They also cover "buy, sell, giveaway."  In the Bahamas it is strictly giveaway since it is illegal to sell anything without paying a vendors license and taxes.  Of course, if you swap your item for cash...  In Boot Key, they also add trivia.  We have participated in them in several locations and always enjoy them.  We took advantage of the ease of getting to shore to go to our favorite Marathon restaurant, The Stuffed Pig.  Ask any boater who has visited Marathon about the "pig place" and they will know exactly what you mean.  We  also visited the Marathon YC and enjoyed a lovely meal, more trivia and a great view.  On the practical side of things, we made trips to West Marine and the grocery store.  Sadly, we will have more work than anticipated to get the boat in proper sailing shape.  Several of the winches are not at their best and the jib travelers are gunked up with varnish.  All just added to the list of projects.  It wouldn't be a boat if it didn't have a projects list!

This is a Caliber 35 on her way home to New Hampshire.  Chuck is the happy new owner of a gorgeous boat.  If we had started off with a 35 LRC, we would probably not have changed boats.  Since we didn't we decided to add more room to the list of "wants"

The wall mural welcoming you to the city facilities.

One of 2 dingy docks.  They have an area for hard dingies and one for soft.

Someone had a sense of humor naming this one, Great Old Broad.

We now can carry 170 gallons of water so it does take a while to fill.

Pigeon Key is a great place to visit.  Lots of history and scenery.  As this is a delivery trip, no time for a visit.

Some of the signboards of resident harbor dwellers.

Our able crew.

The Stuffed Pig mascots

Where the Gulf meets the Atlantic.

Details

I am still trying to figure out how to make some things work.  We have a wifi extender that feeds a router.  I am still trying to learn that bit of wizardry.  That will make keeping up with the blog and answering emails so much easier.  Patience will be required.  I was also loaned a Spot locater that I have yet to get working.  Once I do, it will automatically update where we are.  Again, patience.  All the learning still do.  Tomorrow (Thursday) we'll head out to points North.  We're aiming for Fort Myers but we'll let wind, crew comfort and the boat dictate where we'll end up.  Keep watching for updates!

Lunar Eclipse

We were lucky enough to have a mostly clear night for the full lunar eclipse.  It was well worth staying up to experience.  Enjoy.

Beautiful Full Moon

On to Rodriguez Key the Boot Key Harbor

 From off of Key Biscayne we continued on to our next stop and our first attempt to sail.  We plan to cross over to the Gulf of Mexico at Seven Mile Bridge at the west end of Vaca Key.  We liked Boot Key mooring field so that is the stopping point for resupply and laundry.  We spent a lot of time and money at the Container Store and Walmart and other stops in Hollywood but we knew there would be things we'd need once we actually spent some time onboard.  We know there will be lots of tweaking for a long while to come.  The first stab at everything seemed hard.  Lowering the dingy into the water, bringing the outboard for the dingy up, where to put food and stuff in general.  Raising the mizzen, raising the main all lots to learn.  So far the brain cells are there to figure it all out.  We know we will have our own preferences on how to do things so we'll adjust things from how the boat was managed previously.  However, Sherry and Preston sold us a great platform to work with.  I'm already really loving having a whole-house inverter while under power.

Happy with our new boat.

All this...

fits here!  All those great containers should work well for a long time to come.  The trap door there is to another equally huge space filled with spare parts.  It's not so great to have to take things out from so again, having to prioritize what is needed the most frequently.  Being a different boat means different configuration for putting things away.  We had a lot more drawers in Sanctuary's galley so learning new ways to do things.

Trying to rig the mizzen.  Nice legs!

Working on the main.  Nice knees.

The "bug lighthouse" leading into Biscayne Bay.

This house is on the Atlantic side of Vaca key.  It is completed isolated from the mainland so it has its own power sources.  Those black tiles on the roof are solar panels.

Sunset at Rodriguez Key

Tidal flats are always interesting places.

Waterfront on the Vaca Key (City of Marthon is found here)

Sunset in Boot Key

Lighthouse on Key Biscayne

Heading Out for Home

We had a lot of anxiety about backing away from the dock for the first time.  Blue Moon is so much wider and longer and handles differently so we really appreciated an extra pair of hands to handle lines and move on.  The trip involved getting into the Intercoastal Waterway (ICW) and heading south.  Our goal was No Name Harbor on Key Biscayne.  We traveled down the "concrete" waterway and made it to the harbor in good time.  The boat handled all the bridges and we were all able to make it back up and go forward.  Suz was very versed on our type of chartplotter so it was  a bit of school along the way as well.  It was fascinating seeing the urban environment and we are glad we were only visiting.  Being the weekend, the waterfront was hopping and the line of cruise ships was long.  Also being a weekend, the intended harbor was way too crowded for our comfort so we headed out and anchored in the lee of the island.  We could hear the the crowds a long time into the night.

Working our way out of the slip.  Saying so long to our neighbor.

First bridge to negotiate.  We had the times wrong on when it opened so we had a practise time of going in circles.

Blue Moon down time.

Beer and cookies, what a combination.  The beer was a girt from Joanna and Eric Musser.

All shallow spots are turned into party spots.

All lined up waiting for the cruisers.  We'll have to try it that way some day.

Good speed going down the ICW.

Kiteboarders having a great day.  Such a colorful display!

The shallows are far from land.  Notice the person standing on the flats.

You can see why it's called the concrete channel.

The skyscraper canyon of Miami.

Finally, open water of a sort.

We sailed through of fleet of colorful racers.

Slightly out of order but this was as we were leaving our slip.  This stream of water came on several times a day, all day.  It is pumping out the seawater that would flood the streets of Hollywood.  Not a noise we'll miss in the middle of the night.

Some of the remaining houses in the famous/infamous Stilsville in Biscayne Bay.

Somebody's having a party.

Again slightly out of order, the nice marina office.

Lots of Figuring and Frustrations

We were so thrilled to see our new boat.  Then....time to unload all those boxes and put the stuff somewhere so we can take her home.  Not a task for the faint of heart.  For both David and I that involves sitting and looking at the piles of stuff and then looking at the space available.  For my part, Suz was an invaluable resource.  She has a good eye for matching shapes of bins or items with the shapes of available spots. That first night we got all the boxes and clothes on board and sort-of put away.  Then we think.  But first came the celebration, tomorrow the hard work.

New Owners, Happy Day.

Bringing stuff down was a chore.

This all has to go somewhere.

Super helpers enjoying a break.

Looking better here.

And here.

Enjoying the champagne provided by our thoughtful neighbors Barbie and Steve.

First sunset aboard.  All the work seems so worth it now!