Wow! What a day! What a long day!

Poor old Peri got abandoned again for 12 hours while his people, who he loves cherishes and protects to the best of his ability ran off and had a good time somewhere without him.

Guilt!

We got back into Key West by about 10 o'clock in the morning and found the parking space that Snooze had recommended just around the corner from a hardware store, where we were able to buy our second water jerry can; an kitchen supply store where we were able to buy a stand for beer can chicken (this is so that we won't have to rely on the can sticking out of the chicken's backside to keep it upright); and a bakery that Snooze had recommended for really great fresh baked bread. We bought a loaf for him and one for ourselves.

Then we took a short hike into town.

Along the route it became very obvious that there was so much to see in this place that we needed a guide to help us decide what we wanted to concentrate on during the one day that we were here. The obvious answer was the world famous Conch Train. This is a small car made up to look like a locomotive pulling up to ten cars for passengers and we couldn't have made a better choice. Our guide, Bob, was very good indeed and we were certainly able to see a lot more of the city than if we relied on our own two feet to get around. We saw the old city which was the part of Key West that was there originally. The new city was that which was created when the Navy dredged out the channels to make them deeper for the larger ships and created new islands which in turn solidified into simply an extension of the original mangrove islands doubling their size. We saw those parts of the city which were first established by Cubans creating tobacco empires in the United States. We saw the African American communities where they first came down as workers and then gradually became businessmen and millionaires in their own right.

I hadn't realized that Key West was the richest city in the US per capita at one time and that was mostly due to wrecking. When I first heard that I was more than a little shocked, as in the UK wreckers were criminals who deliberately lured boats onto the rocks to plunder them of their cargoes and murder their crews. Here in Key West, however, they were regulated by the courts and were strictly on the up and up. In fact they were looked on as heroes as their primary mission was to rescue the passengers and crew, and then the ship and cargo. In reward for which, the courts assessed them a share of the value of the ship and cargo. There is a really well done museum set up on the Key West waterfront honouring their memories and their contribution to the history of the city.

We were shown the Bull and the Whistle, two pubs on top of each other on Duval Street. The Bull is a normal street pub and the Whistle is a sort of pool hall with a balcony overlooking Duval. What is most interesting is that there is a third bar, the Garden of Eden, on the third floor. This is a clothing optional bar! No. We didn't have a chance to check it out. Next time in the Keys, perhaps.

We passed by the Hemmingway house which had been converted into a museum after his death. The tour guides gloss over the fact that his death was suicide, but as he was a favoured son I guess they can be forgiven. Several presidents including Hoover, Coolidge, and Roosevelt all spent time down here; so much so that there is a Key West White House on the tour as well. Truman Capote, Tennessee Williams and a couple of other famous authors also made their homes here for a while seeking the ambiance, the solitude and their muse in the narrow, overhanging, freewheeling streets of Key West.

As for more mundane pastimes, I now have a conch horn to blow at sunset; Barb bought some material for some more cabin pillows; and she was able to pick up some bridal party gifts for a wedding that our daughter Kayt is in. These were actually for the bride to give to her wedding party so Barb will be reimbursed, but even I thought that they were nice gifts. I'm sure that the ladies will appreciate them.

As we were leaving Key West Barb did mention to me with a slight note of disappointment that we didn't see a single transvestite or flagrantly gay person on the streets. Maybe that's a good sign. Maybe now it is so accepted that the gay community no longer feels that they have to flaunt their lifestyle as a sort of offensive defence mechanism. I sure hope so.

The Trip (2008)

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Last night Snoozer took us to another local eatery that goes by the name Porky's. As the name would imply this place would not make its reputation by linen tablecloths and tuxedoed wait staff, but the food was reasonably priced, plentiful and tasty. It was all-you-can-eat rib special so three of us at the table had that. Snooze's neighbour brought his two charming daughters to join us for dinner and they each had a Caesar Salad and Snooze had a French Onion Soup and Fish Fingers. There was a fellow, Rocket Man, who was considered a local legend, playing during the meal that did reasonably well with a three string guitar and a harmonica although it was hard to tell which song in particular he was singing at any given time since they all sounded the same. You had to listen closely and hope to pick up on some of the lyrics to realize that he had moved on from Jamaica Farewell to Cheeseburger in Paradise, but he added to the ambiance and made the evening that much more enjoyable.

Back at Snoozer's Tiki Hut we concluded the evening with a bowl of Black Cherry ice cream! Yummm! It was a great way to end the evening but a little hard on the waistline.

Last night we had our first rain in I don't know how long. This really is the sunshine state! I only know this because Barb told me. She got up and closed the portholes and skylights and let me continue my nap. I suspect that was because she feels that I really need my beauty rest. Yawn!

This morning when I took Peri in for his morning inspection of the facilities I also took the opportunity to book a car rental from one of the agencies at the local airport. Hopefully the Keys mentality will not extend to the agent not being there when we arrive to pick up the car. Snoozer has made another one of his great suggestions: we should drive into Key West tonight for the sunset festivities and then go in again tomorrow for the rest of the trip. The rental comes with unlimited mileage so other than the gas it's no skin off our nose and would allow us to do a lot more with the one rental.

I also got another very pleasant surprise when I got back to the boat. The strong winds overnight and the sunshine and winds during the morning have dropped the AHrs expended on the house bank to less than -30! We should be back up to evens before lunch.

In the afternoon and evening we took the rental car down the US 1 South to Key West. It has been over 12 years since we were last here and there have been substantial changes mostly in building up whatever remaining undeveloped areas were left. Key West was even more touristy that I remember it but still a lot of in a fantasy sort of way. We watched some of the buskers including the crazy cat guy who has managed to train cats to do tricks - common old house cats! You know, ones like Al that I can't get excited to do anything except eat? I had also forgotten about the roosters wandering about the town as well as the tame but wild cats, if you can imagine that. We had dinner at a place called Pepe's (very good but too much food, again!) and made plans to come back in the morning for the day. The purpose of the trip today was a sort of recce to see the places that we wanted to go into tomorrow. This included a Keys Deer Sanctuary on the way down and a stop at the hardware store to buy another water jerry can.

Note to future cruisers: the police here take their jobs of contributing to the municipal coffers very seriously. I have never seen so many patrol cars on a single 40 mile stretch of highway in my life!

The Trip (2008)

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Nelleke and her crew continue on her voyage of discovery. No, we're still here in Bonefish Bay, Fat Deer Key, but we are learning more and more about life on the hook. For those of you that have been aboard you know that we have a lot of electrical comforts aboard and all that comes with an obvious price tag, and I don't mean the capital outlay. We had purchased a gas 3500 watt generator with the intent of using it on those rare occasions that the sky is overcast and there is no wind. But, as they say, "The best laid plans of mice and men....". Our wind generator at night simply isn't enough to keep up with the demand and during the day when the solar panel kicks in there just isn't enough daylight hours to recover from the loss. So, we have to run the generator. When we get home I intend to add to the solar array with another 150-170 watt panel off the stern which should raise our daytime solar output to an average of 7 amps during the daylight hours. Add to that 3-5 amps from the wind generator in the right wind and we should have enough to keep ahead of the usage and even build upon the charge and keep the house bank topped up.

We are also looking into replacing the fridge that came with the boat. It still works and runs off 24V and AC power. The problem is that being British it is expecting to see 240VAC not the 120 that we provide it here. The result is that there is a much higher current draw to get the same power. When we are plugged in ashore that isn't too bad but I am still worried about the current draw and the size of the electrical connections provided that are designed for a lesser current. We have already had one fire aboard and I'd not care to repeat the experience. The other issue is that we have a small stand alone chest freezer that runs of 12 VDC and so the tiny freezer ion the existing fridge is pretty much wasted space. We would rather have a dedicated refrigerator and the separate freezer units. The size of the aperture is pretty standard and we have found one on the internet. We have asked the Binnacle to see if they can source one in Canada for us to buy when we get home. Then Barb and I got to talking to Snooze, and he made a very good point - it would be far preferable to have a top loading fridge to maintain cold. Every time we open the fridge now all the coldness spills out into the cabin which does something for the air conditioning I suppose but just adds to the electrical bill. The problem is that the fridge is under some of the limited amount of countertop that we do have, and we are loath to chop it up. I recall that the same source for the 24 VDC fridges has drawer type ones as well. That will let us store the refrigeration unit under the countertop and still have the advantage of a top loading unit. The difficulty is that we would need two to have the same capacity so we have doubled our initial capital costs. However, if we can swing it, the convenience far outweighs the price in our estimation. Of course all that depends upon what the Binnacle can come up with. As a side benefit, once we remove the fridge and before we put the new ones in we will have access to the top of the holding tank and we will be able to install a meter so we will have an idea of how full it is getting. Now that I think about it, we should be able to do the same thing under the nav station for the fuel tank. Now if I can only figure out how to get at the top of one of the water tanks.....

We have heard from Chris at the Binnacle, or should I start to call him Binnacle Chris? Anyway, he called this morning and spoke to Barb and let us know that the windlass was on the way and should be here by Monday. Good news and news that will let us plan for the work ahead for the install. I will need to disassemble the old windlass and once we have received the package we will be able to get the template to align the new holes on the foredeck. Hopefully I will be able to do that on Monday the day we receive the package. Then I can drill the oversize holes in the deck and fill them with epoxy. A day or so later once that has cured we can drill the actual holes in the epoxy for extra strength. Finally we can get the new chain delivered and installed and attached to the anchor and the boat.

I have also been discussing with Snooze the advantages of having another anchor aboard, this one a Bruce. His experience in the Caribbean is that most of the anchorages are not sand or mud but rather sections of coral particulate that I would be tempted to call marl. A CQR doesn't hold too well in that and neither does a Danforth. His recommendation is for the Bruce anchor which can burrow into marl and hold. Even here in Bonefish Bay in the 15-20 knots of wind that we are experiencing at present I have my concerns about the anchors, yes, I said anchors, dragging, slowly, but dragging none the less. I guess worrying is part of my job. We'll see later in the day. Maybe we'll need to start the engine and motor up and reset them. Alternatively I could just move the Danforth into a better position at more of an angle from the CQR.

I have dragged out my paint box to sort through the goodies and add the new paint brushes that I got at the marine flea market. I have got to get back to some of the painting that I had started in Gulfport. Now that my worries about when the windlass was going to arrive are over maybe I'll be able to do just that.

I am beginning to really look forward to next year and our trip into the islands farther south in the Caribbean. It had never occurred to me that the idea of sitting at anchor and watching the sun rise and set would appeal to me but it is getting more and more attractive. The last six years have been spent making what we fondly considered shakedown cruises, but we now realize that the real shakedown cruise started on 29th of August 2008 with this trip. We are really finding out what we need to make life the most comfortable, hence things like the increased electrical production capability, the new refrigerator, new dingy and motor, and a screen set up to be able to watch movies in the evenings. Barb's laptop will do in a pinch but putting its power needs through an inverter is a waste so we'd like to use the MarineNav computer which is dedicated to the boat. We already have a highres flat panel screen. We just need to install it and hook it up and put in some speakers.

The Trip (2008)

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