My how time flies!
15 June 2013 | Dinner Key Marina, Miami, FL
David
My how time flies! – Well, I must confess to being a little overwhelmed and getting mixed up into the real world pace again faster than expected. Here it is mid-June, we have been back in Miami for almost 3 weeks, back in our house for almost a week, and I have not updated the blog. My sincere apologies! I’m sure everyone wanted to know about the last leg and how we actually got back to Miami. Well, we did it the easy way.
In our last posting, we were in Dry Tortugas and had about 230 miles to go. Our first stop was to be the little island grouping of the Marquesas west of Key West. We got some advice from our friend and coworker in Key West about how to get in and where to anchor. So we headed off due east along “Highway 30” (actually 24 30’N latitude line) into an almost dead calm wind and calm seas. We had motored the last 40 miles or so to the Dry Tortugas and after a little re-anchoring exercise and wind shift the night before, we were motoring again. The distance was only about 40 miles and planned on a nice afternoon arrival.
The islands came up quicker than expected and we worked our way through the shallow spots to a nice lee anchorage in about 8 ft. of water but still a quite a distance from shore. But everything was shallow. After anchoring we took the dinghy in to explore and promptly ran aground still 100 yards off. The islands make a small bay inside called Mooney Harbor but it is only about 3-4 ft. deep. So we explored along the beach and enjoyed the sunset one last time.
Next morning we were off to Key West. Again light winds and no seas so we putted over the last 20 miles or so to Stock Island and Oceanview Marina where my company’s Key West charter base is located. In our 10 years in Florida we had not yet been to Key West by boat so this was another milestone. Our friend and the charter manager, Vanessa, helped get us docked and loaned us your truck to do a quick run to the grocery and go downtown Key West to find our missing “boat buddies”.
As it turned out and as suspected, Swift Current had engine problems, skipped the Dry Tortugas and headed for Key West. It took another day to arrive and they had to wait until sunrise to get towed in to the Conch Inn Marina. But they were on the way to getting things checked out and hoped to be ready to leave with us in a day or two. They were really spared anything major but a blocked fuel line and in fact decided to follow us on to Miami.
We left at sunup again motoring into almost no wind or seas up the coast in what’s called Hawk’s Channel, the area between the Keys islands and the outer reef to the Atlantic. The water is only 10-15 ft deep for the most part and Swift Current was a little uneasy but trustingly followed along behind WD. Our first stop for the evening was to be tucked in behind Rodriquez Key near Key Largo about 80 miles up. The trip was uneventful and we actually pulled out the mainsail for a while. As we got anchored just about dusk, we had a major wind shift and squall came through, but anchorage was well protected from the north winds and soon we settled down for a calm night.
The next day was Saturday, it was a full moon, the Memorial Day Weekend and our little yacht club was planning a raft up near downtown Miami for the night. Our plan was to arrive right at happy hour and surprise everyone with our unscheduled arrival. We still had about 50 miles to go. We upped anchor at sunrise and headed out to Hawk’s Channel again with Swift Current again shadowing us along the coast. The winds were now up to about 20 kts and northeast so it was right on the nose. We motored with a reefed main to the north end of Key Largo and came through Angelfish Creek cut. This was even more unnerving for our Canadian friends as the depths here drop to only about 6 feet as you enter. Then the depths “increase” to 8-10 feet as you progress through the channels and up the bay. We had been here many times and were confident of the course and Swift Current followed along.
Finally about 5 pm, we ducked in behind Virginia Key and raised all the flags of our trip. All decked out we went under Rickenbacker Bridge and into the old Marine Stadium. Our friends were already there and as we came around they were truly surprised about our arrival. And we had made it home!
We spent three nights anchored out and were almost alone by Tuesday morning since the club members had all gone and the weekend boaters were all back to work. We headed back to Dinner Key Marina with Swift Current seeming still glued to our stern. But we took the long way back as we gave them a tour of downtown, Key Biscayne, Cape Florida lighthouse, Stiltsville, and finally Coconut Grove and Dinner Key Marina. We actually got our same slip back and WD felt right at home looking good as always.
At about noon on May 28th, we were back where we had started. It would be two more weeks before we moved off WD and back to the house. It was a very melancholy time as we knew the trip was over but we were very proud of our accomplishment. And the memories we had and friends we had made will always be with us. Thanks for coming along with us as well.
We will not close the blog but of course will not make as many postings. I do plan another soon to summarize the trip and the final accounting. Might be of interest to someone making a similar trip.
If you need a blog fix, our friends Bert & Dorothy on Island Girl are doing a that right now and you can follow them on their blog at www.sailblogs.com/member/islandgirl38. They are currently in St. Lucia and following our blog as they travel. We wish them well and fair winds.