Wind in the Rigging
25 February 2015
February 15-February 25
Our reservations at Stock Island marina are for the 16th. We will stay at anchor here at Bahia Honda for one more night.
It warms up a little more each day. Don takes Judy and I to the beach and drops us off for our morning walk. We walk as far as we can and back again. We are so interested in exploring, finding shells, looking at creatures, stopping to talk to people along the way, and taking in the beautiful surroundings that three hours have passed before we know it! After lunch I decide that I want to do a little snorkeling. I put on my shorty wet suit and climb into the dink with Carl. We motor into the beach and drop anchor a little off shore. It is shallow enough for Carl to walk to shore. I get in and swim around for a while but only see a few fish. I leave my flippers in the dink and walk to the outdoor shower to get the salt off. There are lots of people enjoying the beach on a Sunday. After rinsing out my wetsuit and washing my hair, we walk back to the dink and motor back to the boat. Judy invited us for leftovers on Nemo. Motor wouldn't start on the dink again! Don towed us back. We bounced around as the wind picked up overnight. We had planned to leave at 8 a.m., but since we were all up up early, decided that we were all ready to move on before 7a.m. The winds continue to build as we inch towards Key West. Our original plans changed from two to three days because of the weather. Winds are expected to build tomorrow night to 25-30. We decided it would be better to stay put a few days. Then we realized how nice the shuttle to town would be. Wouldn't have to worry about finding an anchorage and dinghy dock space. Also, this is a great stagging spot for sailing to the Marquesas keys and the Dry Tortugas. We quickly decided to book a month, while it was available.
Wind,wind,more wind and cold! Record cold for Key West, 49° last night. We spent our first full day here cleaning the boat and doing laundry. That night we checked out the tiki hut. The tiki torches and fire pit are burning and music is playing in the background. The Shrimp Road bar and grill is a food truck and a bar ,with a bartender, who serves wine and beer . We tried the fish tacos and shrimp basket, very good! My favorite seats in the house are the hammock chairs. A great place to relax with a beer. They have corn hole boards and bocce ball courts. Next to the tiki hut is a community garden with cute guinea hens running around. I enjoyed seeing what people are growing, tomatoes, assorted greens, brocolli, flowers and herbs. The next day we took the shuttle van to Old Town. The marina has a nice 14 passenger van that runs five times a day to Old Town and will stop by Publix on the way back. We took the 10:00a.m. shuttle and spent the day exploring Key West. We laughed at the chickens crossing the road. We enjoyed fish tacos and great steak nachos at a mexican restaurant and walked to the southern most point in the continental United States. Michael, the driver picked us up at 4:30 and stopped and waited for us to shop at Publix. Don and Judy discovered a local Cuban restaurant within walking distance that serves a great breakfast! Three large pancakes, two eggs and bacon or sausage with Cuban bread and Cuban coffee for under $5.00. There are other dishes with avacado, mango and a burrito with chorizo sausage. Can't wait to try some other things! We have enjoyed playing mexican train in the Captains lounge overlooking Safe harbor. A three masted schooner named Peacemaker arrived midweek. It is for sale and we took a tour. Beautiful! Judy and I took the shuttle van in and walked the historic waterfront. We stopped at Island Dog bar for mojitos and conch fritters. A fun day of shopping! We have ridden our bikes to the Botanical Gardens and on to Smathers beach ( 8 miles round trip) and walked to West Marine. We took our dink across the harbor to Hogfish bar and grill for dinner. Carl has fixed the motor! Started right up! Don and Judy had friends come to visit by ferry from Ft. Myers. They took them out to snorkel on the reefs. The winds have been singing in the riggings of the large sailing vessels here. I love that sound. Winds have settled down now and our daytime temperatures are in the upper 70's, nightime in the 60's.. Perfect. We have enjoyed a week full of new adventures with many more ahead!