Wind picked up overnight to the point I had to get up and take down my cockpit sun cover - hard to sleep between the flapping and bumpy water. Got up and checked the engine and transmission, all ok. Will need to add a pint of oil in a day or two. The water strainer for engine cooling was full of sea grass from the rafts of it floating in Florida Bay yesterday.

Got underway at 8:20 and motored close to the coast to sneak by a large shallow area and avoiding backtracking around it in the normal channel. Then we were able to raise sails and even did two hours of motor off sailing. Sailing at an angle close to a strong wind means a lot of rudder corrections to maintain a course as the winds gusts. After a while the autopilot couldn’t handle it but we were sailing at over 5 knots with the rail in the water. Fun for a while. But, that didn’t last as the wind shifted from SW to WSW and so did our course. Back to a motor boat.

Big issue is my iPhone won’t charge. The cable charges my iPad but not the phone. Tried cleaning the contacts but no luck. At Marathon I’ll try a new cable. Can’t do much without the phone as my iPad is not set up for cell service. Might have to do that if I can’t get the phone working.

Pulled in to Pancho’s Fuel Dock at Marathon to get 8.3 gallons of diesel. Also bought a charging cable for the iPhone. When I plugged it in, it showed changing and 100% charged. So even the old cable was working again. On to the City Marina where I picked up mooring ball E10. Went ashore to sign in, get lunch, get 10 gallons of water and have lunch.

The City of Marathon took a harbor full of scuzzy live aboard boats anchored haphazardly in a well-protected harbor and has doubled the number of boats while cutting pollution in half. They put in mooring balls, dingy docks, showers, recycling, and required pump outs for sewage. There is a common area, a work area, free WiFi, pet areas, and follow up to make sure boats aren’t abandoned. A lot of rules and it seems to be working.

Had lunch across the street from the Marina at the Overseas Grill and Liquor. Great corn nachos and a sign that reminded me of our Irish tour guide in England.