The Island Life

I write this from the shore of Boca Grande about 16 miles due west of Key West and seemingly thousands of miles from reality!  We left Key West mid morning on Friday after fueling up and refilling our tanks with 400 gallons of water.  Fully ready for whatever remote possibility might come, we slipped out of the southwest channel and made a line for the Marquesas.

It was a lovely day even though the wind was minimal.  We made an average of about 4 knots and had a leisurely and relaxing sail enjoying the increasingly clear water as we progressed.   We made it just off the western bank of the Marquesas Keys around 4pm and immediately settled in.  With the boat secure, we hopped in the dinghy to explore the islands.

Justin, the leader of our 20 something gang (the oldest is 23!!) is quite the character.  He’s hard not to like with youthful energy and unlimited creativity.  Our other “team” members were Jackie, his girlfriend from Connecticut, Chris a college roommate from Maine and his live aboard boat mate Will.  This gang had sailed the entire day with the music up and fishing lines trailing behind the boat.  

Yes, those are lobster tails!!!

  We watched the sunset from our decks and then headed to the island to prepare dinner and celebrate a good day.  Justin, a master when it comes to living from the sea, managed to bring in 5 lobsters (no joke!) for our dinner ashore.  We added some snacks, sweet potatoes and onions in foil packs to throw on the fire and I brought the key lime pie I baked underway.  We built a fire with dry wood strewn all over the shore and Justin cooked the tails right on a log using only a stick.  The potatoes were a perfect accompaniment and the pie even better with no utensils!  We stayed until the fire burned down to embers and retired for the night.

We really didn’t intend on spending more than one day on this detour, but when things are so perfect, it’s really easy to find a way to keep the moment alive.  With the next day being even more perfect than that before, we dinghied out with spears for fishing and went wandering again.   We found an abandoned boat that was obviously used by Cuban refugees.  How interesting to imagine what it felt like to embark upon such a feat.   The inside was empty to the hull with nothing but a motor with no transmission, a couple bench seats and lots of miscellaneous floatation material.  The outside had “USCG Okay” spray painted on every side apparently to show the Coast Guard they were somehow “approved”.  The whole thing was quite thought provoking. 

We played around most of the day exploring and the guys (okay, Justin – but the others did try) brought in a grouper, 3 red snapper and 2 grunts as well as 2 conch which we once again took to the shore for an amazing impromptu and inexpensive dinner.  This time I made a grain and bean salad and my famous layer cookies and we all headed home late, smelling like a campfire and happy as “clams”

This morning dawned as gorgeous as ever although with a mounting wind and we pulled up the anchors early and headed back to Key West.  One thing you learn very early on is that counting on any form of weather forecast is pointless.  When we went to bed, we were told we’d have 5-10 from the northeast, perfect for our return, and we woke to find 15 - 20 directly from the east.  As we were heading straight into the winds and tide, a quick decision was made to stop at the first 

possible anchorage and split the journey in two. 

 And that’s how we ended up on Boca Grande.  One can only describe this as the Bahamas of Florida.  The water is perfectly clear and crystal, the island is good protection and loaded with great beach combing.   We did a hermit crab race and played around for hours until returning to the boats to wait for the sun to set.   Evensong wrangled a Spanish Mackerel that will once again go on the fire tonight and I’m bound for the galley to make whatever I can throw together to add to the mix. 

And another day of this crazy new life comes to a close . . .

Impromtu

Hours and days pass no matter what life has on your plate.  At this very moment, we are sailing with a following breeze sailing at about 4 knots to Jimmy Buffet’s acclaimed Marquesas Islands.  We left Key West behind at just before 11 this morning and are venturing out with Justin and his friends here from Fort Lauderdale. 

Quite the change of pace, with best buds Patricia and Jay leaving on Tuesday afternoon, we moved back to the anchorage off the “main drag” (that’s a pun!) of Key West.   It was nice moving back to the “neighborhood” until yesterday afternoon when good ‘ole Mr Anchor decided to take a walk again (this is where you recall our introduction to the startled pelicans on the bird sanctuary).  Yup, we were peacefully settled in, me reading a new cookbook and Rob on the phone about some equipment when I hear Rob yell “START THE ENGINE, START THE ENGINE!”  I looked up to see us drifting into the 2^nd of the 2 boats we tried to “kiss” before heading to points unknown. 

Now these kinds of times aren’t really good for my psyche.  As any of you who know me already know, I’m pretty much ready for any adventure but I DON’T like paying too high a price and can very quickly turn tail and run if things lose their romance.   In other words, I got crabby.  I was ready to go get a hotel!  

Enter Justin and company yesterday afternoon.  We had just settled into our new anchor field with an apparent good hold and these fun 20 something kids show up with not a care in the world.  We took off and had some evening Key West fun along with a few pints and burgers at the local Irish pub.  Through the evening, the decision was made to venture out today with the improving weather to sail to the Marquesas and see what they had in store.

And here we are – the sun is shining, the sea is baby blue, I even saw a turtle not 15 feet off our port rail who escaped before my camera was ready . . . and I’m glad I’m here again.  Of course, there are no approved anchorages for boats with drafts like ours but that’s what the bonus of youth with a life of sailing experience brings to the table.  I look forward to sharing with you what’s to come!

The Value of Family and Friends

The past two days have flown by.  Our friends Patricia and Jay have been here with us sharing our crazy adventure.  Yesterday morning, we moved Moonshadow from her anchorage off downtown Key West to settle into a mooring where we could ride out the windy front approaching from the north.  We were off the anchor at 7ish am with the gorgeous sunrise and were around Fleming Key at the mooring field less than an  hour later. Our activities were more or less uneventful - exploring and doing the consummate touristy things we all do in a new area - but having close friends nearby was such an incredible treat.


You can suspect that there are bound to be challenges faced when a couple embarks upon an adventure such as ours.  Both of our individual lives left behind, we are left with each other as total companions.  That's not a bad thing, we have been companions for 30 years now, but sole companions is a different issue.   I am hearing a lot more details of boats and sports while Rob somehow has to field my ever emotional stream of consciousness.  I have to say that we've been up to the challenge so far.  We've had more laughs in the past month than I can remember in ages; we resolve discrepancies and disputes quicker than ever before; we move in familiar patterns in our small space . . . we've done well.
 
Patricia and Jay's visit came at such a good time.  With Key West not offering up the addition of any new cruising sailor friends (there's almost no other cruising boats in town!), having them here to bring in the New Year really held my melancholy tendencies at bay.  And the calls from my boys are priceless to me.  What a joy to see their name pop up on my phone!   My mom and sister round out the mix - all providing my essential tie to "home".
 
After setting Moonshadow on her mooring we spent another day wandering Key West yesterday finding the boys a good place to watch the USC/Nebraska bowl game while we did a bit of shopping on Duval and the surrounding area.   The guys were happily grounded in "The Krawl off Duval" while Patricia and I found the most amazing vegan lunch at "The Cafe" across the street with the best carrot cake I've had (no eggs/butter/or even cream cheese?!) and homemade chai tea to die for.   I could fall in love with this place!  The weather finally hit late afternoon and we headed to their hotel to regroup, deciding that Rob and I would spend the night there vs trying to get back out to the boat in the newly kicked up wind.

Today they headed back toward home while we loaded up the dinghy for the ride to the boat.   So, remember that weather I mentioned?  Yeah.  What a mess.  We don't have our dinghy technique perfected which was more than proven on the ride out.  We were thoroughly drenched before we got even halfway out when we readjusted our positions and made better and drier headway.   Ah, another lesson learned.  But we got out to find the wind generator happily charging our batteries and we battened down the hatches for a rockin' not aboard.

Cozily below while rockin' above, I am thankful for the memories of the past few days with dear friends and the calls from my boys that came just as we returned to the boat.  I'm thankful for the notes on Facebook and the emails from friends and calls to and from my Mom and other family, and skype and voicemail treats from time to time.  You all are most precious to me.  Thanks for coming along for our ride!

Happy New Year

So it would be nothing short of rude to begin my first post of 2012 without first saying HAPPY NEW YEAR!  Needless to say, this is quite the beginning of a new year in my life.  I can't honestly say that a year ago I would have believed I'd be living on a sailboat floating off of Key West, FL the beginning of 2012.  Just goes to prove, anything can be accomplished if you're willing to put in the work and make the sacrifice/compromise of making what can be uncomfortable changes!

Without further ado - let's catch up.  If you haven't been to Key West, you owe it to yourself to make that happen.  Although it is an off the beaten path community, it is entertaining at every step.  First off, the sunsets here cannot be beat.  We've been here for three sunsets now and each and every one is a delight.  A friend Alice has been excitedly saying "oh, you'll see the red sails at sunset" ever since I first brought up Key West.  I'm embarrassed to say that I had no idea exactly what she was talking about - thinking it was some sunset phenomenon that happened.  Guess any sailor worth their salt should know that Jimmy Buffet coined the phrase to reference the red-sailed schooners that take sunset viewers out each evening.  Their beautiful array of red sails are a treat each evening as they head out to watch the setting sun.

New Year's Eve morn found Rob and I preparing for a visit from our very dear friends of 25 years from Hilton Head, Patricia and Jay, coming to spend the holiday with us.  We needed to provision a few things and become more familiar with Key West so we headed out early to walk to the nearest "real" grocery store.   We've been finding real gems - quaint little cafes and bakeries along the way  - but the grocery store wasn't so easy, being over 3.5 miles from the marina.  We walked the whole way expecting to catch a bus back with our load . . . which never came as expected and we wrangled about 40 pounds of groceries in our backpacks for the grueling walk home.   To add insult to injury, when we finally made it into the dinghy to finish preparations on the boat - there were so many pleasure craft in the water and we took a BIG jet ski wake over the bow, drenching me and all of the groceries in a wash of saltwater!  Ah, the sailor's life.

But Patricia and Jay made it in not much later and we got right to the business of breaking them in on life aboard.  Not being seasoned sailors, they have been great troopers, braving a night including flashlight lit dinghy rides across the very choppy channel New Year's Eve and the always interesting toilet routine.  We viewed the infamous sunset with the appropriate sundowner apps and drinks before a quick BBQ dinner prefaced our night in Key West ringing in the New Year.  We headed into town about 8pm and wandered Duval with the crowds of revelers.  At midnight, we joined the throngs at the Bourbon Street Inn to watch the drag queen decend in the 6 foot high heeled red shoe all being broadcast by Anderson Cooper Live.  You gotta give it to Key West!

The dinghy ride back to the boat after 1am was pleasantly uneventful and we settled in for a peaceful, rocking night aboard.   Well, that was the intent anyway.  Some time just after I had drifted off to Sleep I found myself hearing a scream in the distance.  It was New Year's Eve of course and screaming didn't really seem that out of place, considering.  So I tried to ignore it . . . until it went on about every minute or so for over a half hour, and then beyond.  Rob was "out" so I went up on deck to determine if I should be paying better attention and then realized it was, in fact, NOT a party cry.  So I hailed the Coast Guard to alert them that someone in the harbor was apparently in trouble.  To make a VERY LONG story a bit more abbreviated - this person apparently had dinghyed out to a neighboring sailboat to find that the dinghy would not start again to assist her return to the island.  She was not at all in the mood to be patient with her situation and was entirely prepared to wake the WORLD if that's what it took.  We hailed the Coast Guard, Police and the Florida Wildlife Commission, all of whom determined they could not (or would not) assist.  Rob ended up "conversing" with her (yelling over the water) that we had called the authorities and if they didn't show up, we'd assist her in the daylight which she finally saw as enough reassurance to quiet herself and let us REST!  Seriously, could we have ANY just normal nights on this adventure?!

 After about two hours of sleep, we woke to begin our first day of the new year.  Our neighboring screamer appeared to have started her dinghy some time before we rose (maybe she should have tried again before SCREAMING for hours!) and we managed to fight our way to consciousness over brunch on board.  The balance of the day was spent wandering this cute/crazy/unique little town.  We visited Truman's "Little White House" where we met "Mr. I", the Southernmost spot on the USA, had coffee and pastry at the Old Town Bakery, a yummy little french cafe and enjoyed the entertainers at Mallory Square accompanying another phenomenal sunset.   Patricia and Jay took on a hotel room for the next two nights in town and we used their space to take a luxuriously long and hot shower before returning to our floating abode. 






With this kind of start to the New Year . . . it promises to be one of great adventure and surprise!  May that be the case for us all! 
Happy Happy New Year!

Learning Lessons Along the Way

I just read my last blog and was remembering the night before last.  That storm was amazing and it precluded the one to follow which brought winds shifting from a pleasant, warm southerly to a hard driving northeasterly.  This happened somewhere around 11pm when we were well into dreamland.  It was about that time that I woke, not sure why, and looked out the port thinking "hmm, looks normal" and put my head back down.  Another 30 seconds brought a big "thunk" and I jumped up the companionway to find us broadside to the wonderful little bird sanctuary we HAD been anchored off of.  Apparently with the wind shift, our anchor had either dragged or given up the fight and let loose altogether and we quickly and efficiently drifted right onto the rocky edge of this habitat!

Now anyone that knows me can imagine that I just stayed calm, cool and collected; reviewed the situation and had it at hand in no time . . . YEAH RIGHT!  Okay, so I kind of started freaking out - not entirely, but definitely in a way that I thought appropriate for the situation.  Rob's great in these times - he really DOES stay cool and thinks really clearly.  Thank heavens I'm at least able to follow directions!  Anyway, we tried to back out of where we were with no success and I got on the radio and sent for SeaTow (our saviors!).

Steve, the area supervisor, was on his boat quickly after our call and another boat followed him shortly thereafter.  They arrived and we tied our bow to his stern and within about 30 seconds, we were off and RACING out to open water at probably about 12-15 knots.  What a ride . . . sailboats just don't GO that fast!   We set anchor once again and cast Sea Tow's lines back to them . . . but not so fast, my readers . . . to find that they were somehow caught below Moonshadow's hull.  This brought on a whole new form of excitement when Nick on boat #2 got out the snorkel and fins and jumped overboard with knife in hand (picture big guy with big belly putting mask on while holding open switchblade - ugh) to try to remedy the problem.  Apparently the line caught in our prop while we were setting the anchor.  We really were in need of the extra excitement, right?

I didn't sleep much that night wondering if the anchor would get creative again so we didn't get going so early the next day.   It took me some time to clear my head but we did manage to pull it together and get back on our way around 9 the next day.  And what a day it was!  The winds from the north/northeast were perfect for our almost westerly travel and we raised the sails and headed out of the protected ICW channel (and the crab traps) into the Hawk Channel just outside the chain of Keys.  And the winds blew and Moonshadow SAILED!  What a glorious day!  We were whipping along for a good part of the day between 7 and 8 knots which for our boat is a great speed.  I finally got to feel a real day of sailing and it was a treat!  The sun was shining although the temp was cool and we sailed the entire day all the way to our next anchorage just before Key West.
 

Now that last anchorage was not one that was in our anchorage guide and I was determined that we would only anchor in those that were from now on.  So we headed up Boca Chica Channel to the Stock Island anchorage from Skipper Bob's book.  You can sense a story coming, right?  And I'm thinking, whew, this should be an easy night . . . as we turn "port after mark G5B" per good 'ole Bob.  That's just about when we slid to an unexpected halt . . . aground again!  REALLY?!!!?!!!  And I stayed calm, cool and collected (right) . . . . . . good heavens!  Can this be real?  And all of those wonderful thoughts and feelings came rushing in - like "I want to go home" and "are we doomed" came to mind!

With the tide running out and our attempts to release ourselves failing . . . we call Sea Tow again.  Do you realize what this feels like?!  I mean, really, does this happen to other people?!  And if you know anything about some of our previous sailing history from 20 years ago . . . is this just how it is for us?!  But SeaTow came and the guy, Steven, was just great and had us off the one spot of muck in the entire area without more than a quick tug.   Ah, the joys of power.  Anyway, Steven came below and we made margaritas and had a laugh or two before he headed out to more pleasurable endeavors.

 And we slept and we rose and we left the anchorage and we motored our last leg into Key West . . . and we MADE IT!  We actually MADE IT!  Even with more challenges in the past three weeks than even I would have imagined, we stuck with this thing and we worked through the problems and we celebrated the successes and we MADE IT!  So it's just after midnight here and we've been anchored for over 12 hours in the same place and after a day of wandering the streets of Key West and an evening aboard our floating home, all of the challenges of the weeks behind seem like distant memories - and life is righteous and good.

Another Day on Moonshadow

note - site causing lots of trouble tonight - some great pics won't load . . . will have to try another time (but you're missing some really good ones!)

So I spent most of the night worrying about what the next few days would bring.  I really MUST learn to let things go!  We went to bed early again - the sailor's schedule is setting in - and after very little sleep, I was up before the sun and we pulled up the anchor before 7. 

I don't know why I get so worked up!  We had a great day again today.  Right when we pulled the anchor and headed into our first channel, a family of dolphins chose our boat to play in the bow wake.  Rob wasn't exactly thrilled that I jumped out of the cockpit, throwing the boat on autopilot while I came up and looked.  Of course, we WERE heading into a marked and curving channel that the autopilot wouldn't allow for . . . but REALLY - a family of dolphins!  So amazing, nature!  The water was so clear you could see them all below the surface and they sure were having a great time playing in the wake.  Great way to start the day!

We were able to set the sails and make good progress but then not far into the day, the channel started filling up with crab traps.  I'm telling you - they were EVERYWHERE.  It's not like there isn't enough room throughout the keys to set these darn things without putting them directly in the ICW channel . . . and it meant no autopilot and the engine on because we spent literally hours (maybe 4?) dodging them every 30 seconds or so.  Exhausting!

But in the end, it was a great day - we made 55 miles today which I don't think either of us thought possible or expected.  We're anchored between the Fanny Keys behind Marathon.  We have only 40 miles to go to get to Key West but will probably anchor a bit before that tomorrow to assure arriving in Key West during the morning with plenty of time to get a good anchorage and get settled.

Tonight after we anchored, we started doing the odd jobs that add up throughout the day and the sun started to sink near the horizon.  There appeared to be some kind of storm brewing and I mentioned it to Rob.  The sunset was absolutely amazing with the dark clouds hanging over the horizon and it stay colorful and changing for 45 minutes!  Right in the middle of this amazing sunset, that squall line decided to move right over us and we were blasted with high winds and driving rain for maybe 5-10 minutes.  It was crazy!   So we got a good shower and lots of the salt on the boat finally was washed away and then we were treated to the continued sunset!

We had a delicious dinner of pasta with grilled veggies and feta cheese while watching a flock of hundreds of pelicans returning "home" to this spit of land we're anchored off of. Great time to retire early for another exciting day tomorrow!

On the "Road" Again

This morning's sunrise

I did go to bed early - 8:15 to be exact - so it wasn't difficult to be ready to roll before the sun broke the horizon.  We were off the mooring before 7am and back on the intercoastal well before 8.  Without any looming troubles, we were able to raise the main on the way out and quickly had the genoa in place once we were in the channel.  The engine was cut and then we were SAILING!  It's hard to believe we're three weeks into this adventure and had not managed to sail once without the engine banging along with us.  So when we cut the engine, the feeling was even better than was remembered or expected.  The winds were favorable, Biscayne Bay was wide open and we were off!  What a gorgeous day with sun and a 10 - 15 knot breeze in our corner.


It didn't take Rob long to pick his project for the day and he busied himself with polishing all of the stainless around the boat.  I donned my bathing suit, grabbed my book, studied the charts, kept us on course and otherwise occupied myself without any particular intent.  GLORIOUS!  For the record, if you like a well written enjoyable read about sailing, try An Embarrassment of Mangoes - a total delight.

The day passed without any catastrophes, surprises or even anything much to write about, but just being able to sail most of the day is worth firing up the computer for.  We even went 5 miles further than we had planned and are safely anchored behind the John Pennecamp Park on Key Largo just off the ICW and ready to hop back on board in the morning. 

Anchoring was uneventful as well and we had a glass of wine and wound down after a day of winding down!  Rob got a kick out of a passing boat asking what the propeller on the back of the boat was for . . . yup, that would be the wind generator.  Had to laugh.  The moon rose a tiny sliver in the sky with some bright planet as an accompaniment and the sun set in its usual glory.


With a simple dinner of sweet potatoes and an omelet for Rob (sad, isn't it?), we're sitting recalling the day and preparing for a lively round of cribbage where I plan on holding my record of winning every game we play!  Here's to a successful day of cruising . . . I'm ready for more of this!