40th Anniversary Dinner


We arrived here on Sunday after a crossing that gave us a bit of everything, wind, and lots of it, light airs and everything in between. We left Isla Mujeres on Friday morning in company with Chris & Liz on Espiritu and with Tension Reliever with Rick and Roseanne aboard. Rounding the northern tip of Isla Mujeres, we quickly found ourselves in SE@18-22 kts and in the grip of the Yucatan Current sweeping us north at 2.5 knots. So with wind and current boosting us, we saw our speed surge to a max of 12.5 knots... excellent.
By sunset we were well across the Yucatan Channel and trying to sense the strong eddy in the Gulf Stream north of Cuba. The trick was to pass north-west of it to avoid being on the back side, and to cross above it without getting swept into the Gulf of Mexico.
But winds were no problem. By early morning, we were again romping north-east in 20-25 kts of wind and some very sloppy seas knocking us around pretty well... the washing machine effect. Although we didn't know it at the time, we took some salt water in our starboard fuel tank, a problem that didn't show itself until late afternoon.
By noon, the winds had lightened to just 15 knots and the seas, in the shelter of the Cuban coast, quickly fell away.
By late afternoon, Espiritu reported their autopilot had failed and so they would be hand-steering. As the winds were forecast to freshen from the south-west, we decided to modify our course and, in the light winds, motor-sail through the Rebecca Shoal Channel, past the Dry Tortugas, then north of the string of keys separating the Dry Tortugas from Key West, a distance of about 45 miles.
As we approached in the late afternoon, the wind lightened and we began to motorsail. All went well for a few minutes when the engine began to surge then die. A check showed a very dirty fuel filter after only 20 hours running time. Filter changed, we were off again. But shortly after, the engine began to smoke and stall. Another filter check indicated the fuel filter full of water. Our first suspicion was that when we filled up in Isla Mujeres, we had gotten some bad fuel. If so, we had a problem as we put it in both tanks. However, we decided to change tanks to see, and our problem disappeared. Hourly checks on the fuel filter (with a water separator) showed all was fine. So our only conclusion was that in rough seas, we must have gotten water in through the vent.
So as the sun set, we motored into Rebecca Shoal Channel, with Espiritu following our stern light while hand-steering. Bydawn we had cleared the shoals and turned east for Key West.
As forecast, the wind had piped up, so we were happy to be in the lee of the Marquesa Keys, knocking down the ocean swell for us. And by early afternoon we had picked up a mooring in the Key West mooring field.
Monday morning was check in with Customs and Immigration. All went slowly but well, and early afternoon saw Estelle, Espiritu and Tension Reliever all seated in an outdoor restaurant for some good junk food. With strong easterlies forecast for the rest of the week, we settled in to Key West, enjoying its unique culture... Home to the last of the hippies.
By weeks end it was time to move. We have made arrangements to have the fuel tank cleaned in Marathon, so Saturday we'll be off, weather permitting.