We got up really early this morning to make the jump to the Bahamas. After 5 weeks of provisioning, packing, stowing, upgrading, adding, adjusting, configuring and testing, we were ready to go.

Well it was overcast this morning and so we really couldn't get underway at 6AM. When the sun rose at 6:30 we found some hydraulic fluid under the starboard ram. Took a bit to ensure that was just a leak that tightening down a bleed nipple fixed. Then it was 7:30 and all of the bridges stay closed for rush hour (7:30 - 8:30). Then it was something else, then the Jungle Queen was on the way and no way we were going to try to pass that thing in a catamaran.

So finally at 11AM we saw a barge heading out and Hideko and I looked at each other and said, "let's go", in unison. We tossed the dock lines and dropped in behind the king of the New River. Grady's Pile or something. He had all of the bridges opened for us and everyone waited for him (and us) to go by. We arrived at the 17th street causeway (54' bridge) just in time for the Noon opening and shot out into the Atlantic.

Seeing as how it was noon we decided that Cat Cay Bahamas was a bit out of reach, especially with no wind. So we rerouted to our alternate, Key Biscayne. We are at anchor in 10 feet of water on the North East side of Key Biscayne, just South of the Key Biscayne Yacht Club, watching the lights come up on the Miami coastline. Not bad for a first anchorage on the way around the world. I guess it would have been a shame to never have spent a day in our home country on this trip, it is a pretty cool place.