We were sad to see Sherry leave, but we were expecting a visit from our good friend Patty. However, when I checked the forecast there was bad weather moving in and instead of making a long drive just to be stuck on the boat with 20-30 knot winds and rain, we recommended she postpone her visit. We all were disappointed.

Karrie and I were not anxious to ride out the front in the Lorelei anchorage so I called the City of Marathon Marina to see if they had any moorings available and they had two, so we headed off to Marathon about 30 miles away. Boot Key is on the ocean side so we needed to cross under one of the last two bridges under the Overseas Highway that could accommodate our mast height. We could cross over at Channel Five, just west of Lignumvitae Key or via the Moser Channel under the Seven Mile Bridge south of Marathon. There were reports that the Moser Channel bridge height is inaccurate and might not be the documented 65 foot height. One boater reported he bent his radio antenna atop his 63’ mast. This report sealed the deal and we sailed out Channel Five and turned west for Marathon running down the Hawk Channel. We trolled lures without any luck. We did have three dolphins join us for a short time. Karrie got video of them riding our bow waves, darting back and forth effortlessly in front of us.

When we arrived at Boot Key around 5PM, I called the city marina to check on a mooring ball, but as their policy is first come first served, the two balls that were available in the morning were now gone. They suggested that after we anchor out, that we should come in and put our name on the wait list. So we cruised into the harbor to look for a place to anchor. Did I mention that this is a VERY popular harbor? There are 226 mooring balls and outside the mooring field boats are crowded in on anchors., some waiting for a mooring opening. Well it was jam packed and boats were anchored very tight to one another. We were not comfortable trying to anchor there, so we turned around, left the harbor and anchored just outside Boot Key with about a dozen other boats.

In the morning we heard radio chatter of boats leaving their moorings. I called the marina again and they told me to come in and sign up for the wait list. Only one other boat was on the list and they expected boats to be leaving. This time I took their advice, and we waited for an opening. Before noon they called back and had a mooring ball for us. Success! We signed up for a week’s mooring.

Boot Key Harbor is an eclectic mix of permanent live-aboard boaters and transient cruisers. The moorings are reasonably priced and includes a large dinghy dock, weekly pump-outs, a parking space if you have a car or bike, loaner bikes, free water, showers, and public spaces such as a tiki picnic area, library, TV areas, large laundry, storage rooms, and work space “condos”. There is shopping within walking distance, and taxis are $5 to go anywhere in Marathon. The city has a large recreation facility next to the marina with tennis courts, ball fields, etc. One night there was a free movie at the amphitheater with a showing of Moana that we attended.

And of course there are some good restaurants in Marathon. Our first night (and last night too) we ate at the Castaway restaurant, famous for their honey buns. We have been patronizing the Castaway since the girls where young. Back then it was a seafood dive with the seating area on an open air porch on the waterfront with the shrimp boats and surrounded by mobile homes. Their specialty was all you could eat shrimp steamed in beer, cool beer, and of course honey buns. One time we went there was when the restaurant had changed owners. The kitchen was not keeping up with orders (I think the new cook was reading the recipe and fixing one dish at a time) and the waitress kept bringing us honey buns to keep us from walking out. We did eventually get our meal of beer steamed shrimp. That experience did not deter us from returning. After we moved back to Florida from Connecticut we started to visit the Keys again and of course the Castaways was on our list. But we were shocked that the old open air restaurant had been replaced. Turns out that one night the old structure simply collapsed into the water! Luckily it was in the middle of the night and no one was there so no injuries. They had to totally rebuild the restaurant and it is now larger and more modern, with indoor dining and air conditioning (oh my!). While the restaurant is “fancier” with a larger menu selection (including sushi of all things) the honey buns and steamed shrimp is still worth the visit.

The harbor has an active wild life population. While there we saw porpoise, rays, ospreys, pelicans and several manatees. One day when we returned to the dock, several people warned us that there was a manatee right behind our dinghy (as you can see in today’s photo). We patiently waited for the manatee to swim under us and move to the shoreline to graze on the mangroves.

There is an active cruisers net on the VHF every morning. One day I was able to help another cruiser who need a piece of “Starboard”, a white plastic composite plastic board which I happened to have a left over piece from a prior project. When the couple came for the board, they stayed and talked for a long time because they were interested in Leopard Catamarans, so we gave them the grand tour. Another visit was one of the of the local “celebrities”, Diesel Don, the local diesel engine mechanic. We saw a dinghy approaching our boat and the person (who we did not know) pulled up to us and said “Hi, I’m Diesel Don”. Karrie and I wondered if we had somehow committed some indiscretion and were about to be schooled. But to the contrary, Don continued, “Ever since you arrived my wife has noticed your kayaks and wanted me to ask about them”. We had a great conversation and offered to give his wife a “test drive” with our kayaks (which she never took us up on). Everyone we met was friendly and helpful. It is truly a community that pulls together to help each other out.