Moving on!
01 June 2016 | Pensacola, FL
Karen/Early evening and calm
In between Key West and the Dry Tortugas are the Marquesas Islands. The Marquesas are made up of several keys arranged in the shape of a South Seas atoll with a lagoon in the center. Pretty cool, huh? We spent one night anchored off of the beach in a nice area on the south side. Several other boats were there as well so we could see their lights in the evening. This area is a protected marine sanctuary so you are not supposed to go ashore but you can dinghy around the mangroves and have an explore.
I’ve enjoyed taking photos during this trip and I am attaching one that really touched me. We saw of several of these home-made boats left on the shore which I can only assume were made and sailed here by people coming and looking for a better place to live and raise their families. I have never considered myself to be “politically active” so I really don’t care which team you are rooting for. America has a two party system - and it works! BUT for those folks who say that they will leave the country if their candidate doesn’t win - I wish they would look at a photo like this one and try not be moved. Obviously, there are people from other countries who risk everything to come here. Because no matter how much we argue about politics, or who we elect, we are still the best place to be. Okay - I’m done with my political “moment”. Moving on…
The next morning we sailed to the Dry Tortugas to meet up with our friends, Moray and Deb on Sol Purpose. They answered our radio call as we approached and gave us directions to where they were anchored. After we rafted up we spent the evening getting caught up on each other’s adventures. While we were watching the sunset, we listened on the VHF to a call for help from a nearby dive boat. Park rangers were responding and were searching for a missing scuba diver. They searched for hours, even after the sun had set. Since all four of us are or have been scuba divers, it’s hard to listen to that conversation and not feel involved.
Next day we all went ashore to Garden Key to tour Fort Jefferson. We stopped at the ranger’s office first and visited with Mike and Dave, National Park Service Rangers - and learned that they had successfully rescued the diver and all is well.
Construction on the Fort Jefferson began in 1846 and went on for 30 years, but it was never completed. The buildings and walls are still in place, along with some of the original cannons, mortars and other equipment. The fort was never involved in any “hostilities” but was an infamous federal prison during the Civil War and for some time thereafter. The most famous inmate was Dr. Samuel Mudd, the physician convicted for complicity in the murder of President Abraham Lincoln by helping set the broken leg of John Wilkes Boothe. (Ever heard the saying “my name is mud?” Now you know where it comes from.) Dr. Mudd did actually clear his name and was pardoned after two years. He had worked to fight an epidemic of yellow fever that overwhelmed the fort in 1867. I’ll put photos on Facebook separately.
So we said goodbye to Deb and Moray (we are working on plans to hopefully meet up again later this year and maybe go to Cuba!) For now, they are heading East and we are heading West. Over the past couple of days, Ron and I have made several long hops in the boat - stopping in Sanibel, Clearwater and Port St. Joe. The hop from Clearwater to Port St. Joe was my longest yet, 180 nautical miles (40 hours). We are anchored tonight in McRee Cove in Pensacola, FL, near Pensacola Naval Air Station. Home of the Blue Angels. While I had a nap to recover from night watch, Ron enjoyed watching them practice.
Tomorrow we will move out and will head to Port Eads, LA, where we will rest and refuel before beginning the last leg of this trip to Galveston. Keep praying for fair winds and following seas, ya’ll!!