We arrived in Boca Chica Naval Air Station Marina on March 10. A benefit of Ed's service to the US Air Force and the Air National Guard for 21 years is access to recreational areas of military facilities. Active duty personnel have first preference over retirees, of course, but usually there is enough room for everyone. We have to pay but we pay at a discount since these facilities are not for profit. Navy bases almost always have the nicest and largest marinas (Duh!--they are sailors!)
Boca Chica Marina is amazing! It is about 7 miles from downtown Key West and set among the mangroves and crystal clear aqua waters between Boca Chica Key and Stock Island. There is the Navigator Bar and Grill on site that serves sandwiches and provides a gathering place for all the cruisers. There is a sandy beach complete with thatched roof huts for the picnic tables. Other than the jet noise from the working Naval base during the day, it is a quiet place to enjoy the scenery. There are actually bumper stickers here with "I love JET noise" because it is part of life here. There are four long docks full of beautiful, mostly well-maintained vessels and a number of mooring balls. This time of year, the marina is always full with some active duty folks but mostly retirees enjoying the warm Florida sunshine all winter.
There are many who live here year round on their boats. At sunset, neighbors gather at the western ends of the docks to watch sunset and share their sundowner drinks. All who can celebrate sundown by blowing their conch shells. It is a happy place to be and informative, too, because the many of the folks on the docks have eons of cruising experience.
One of the downsides to Boca Chica is the distance from Key West and shopping facilities. The Commissary and Exchange are on another part of the base on Stock Island five miles away. Without a car, this presents a challenge. In good weather, we can dinghy over, but because the route is fully exposed, windy weather is a hindrance. This time, we tried public transportation successfully. We bicycled two miles to the base gate, caught the Lower Keys bus and got off at our chosen destination. Since the bikes fold up, we just took them on the bus with us--piece of cake and cheaper than renting a car. Ed spent some work time with the store manager at the Commissary while I picked up groceries one day, then on Saturday, we dedicated to cycling around downtown and seeing the sites.
We've been to Key West many times, and each time, we visit one more site we've never been to. This time we visited Ernest Hemingway's home. I've been a fan of his since I read Old Man and the Sea as a teenager. His house is much the same as it was when he lived there, and I can see how he would be inspired to write as he did while living there. Outside of Mr. Hemingway's home, the best site of the day was people watching. It was St. Patrick's Day weekend, and the crazies were out in full force. It was a great mix of young spring breakers and middle aged vacationers. There were thousands from the three cruise ships in port for the day. It was all quite a show. We returned to the marina in one piece and sober (we don't drink and drive the bicycle). We saved that for the sundowner at the boat.
We always find it easy to socialize at Boca Chica. This time was no exception. We met folks again that we talked with on our last visit. We happened up on a couple we met at Pensacola NAS Marina last June, and of course, we gained some new friends. We saw a friend's boat from Gulf Shores and were surprised to find that he had sold the boat to someone else on his last visit to Key West. The new owner, Paul Dunn, must definitely be a relative because he looked very much like my brother Wesley, same size, build and blue eyes. We had a great time getting to know him and his wife, Kitty.
It takes nearly three years on a wait list to get a full time slip. We placed our name on the list when we were here June 28, 2011 and found that our name is next on the list. Hopefully, we will have a slip before next fall and can come back for a longer stay next year. I could stand to live there for a while.
Key West Photo Gallery