VIP Visitors with a Special Request

After we had a great visit with the Gawne’s, we had about a week before our daughter Jackie and her boyfriend John would join us for a week. John was a late addition but more about that later. We were able to really embrace the Key West lifestyle and get plugged into the small live aboard boating community at our marina. We even made friends with the resident pirate, Nick! As with any marina the boating residents are usually colorful. 

Add the Key West factor and you have a sense of what we are enjoying. Jackie and John arrived on schedule and proceeded to get settled in for the week. Jackie was supposed to be solo but John was able to come last minute. Jackie was raring to go and fill every moment with an activity.

Got no idea where she got that from. After two days the serene boating lifestyle set in and they enjoyed just hanging out. Now mind you we still got it all in. We biked into town, went snorkeling, and took a dinghy ride out to a back country sandbar.

There we watched rays, fish and even a shark cross the gin clear water with a brilliant white sand backdrop. I think it was the highlight of their time here. In a quite moment with John, on the sundeck, he had a very special request. Yeah you’re gonna have to wait for what the request was because as of this moment the news has not been publicized. It was a sad goodbye as the week just flew by. We were grateful for the many special moments were able to share. 

Two days later we were joined by Mark Knutsen and Nancy. The fun factor went up once again. They had been at the Miami Boat show and added coming to see us as a side trip. Mark, I still can’t believe you watched the lighted boat show from the shore! 

Yesterday a Looper friend of mine came over and we loaded into the dinghy and went Bug hunting. Spiny lobster are called bugs down here. It has always been a goal of mine to bag and eat one. Ok so let’s put “legal one” in front of this train.

So after four plus hours of snorkeling we both managed to catch a legal lobster. It was a blast , a ton of work but fun nonetheless. Later that evening I dispatched it and cooked it on the grill as a 5 star appetizer. Before we leave I hope to bag some more of those tasty bugs! 

Well good thing I procrastinated getting this post out as it is now public knowledge. The special request from John was that he asked me for my daughter’s hand. After making him sweat briefly I gave my enthusiastic blessing. We are over the moon happy and look forward to John joining our family. Congrats Jackie and John!

                                        Look at the new island couple!

The crew out biking Key West

                 Mother and Daughter both smiling

Scenic shot from West Martello Tower

                              Engagement Picture of the beautiful couple

Torture by Boat, its Bananas!

 

OK I know. It’s been awhile. I sure many of you wonder if I joined a Cuban boat lift and took up rolling cigars. Well no such luck just been busy having fun and entertaining guests. So on with the Blog.

One of the curiosities I had prior to embarking on this life changing Odyssey was would I get antsy, bored or get claustrophobic living onboard without all my terrestrial belongings of a dirt home.

Well I am happy to report not only do I not miss them I also do not miss the routine of caring for a home and the property that it sits on. With that being said I find the care of a boat to be quite exasperating and defeating with certain projects. Case in point. We have been living with some nuisance water in our aft bilge that would periodically cause the bilge pump to kick off, usually in the middle of the night. I knew the cause or so I thought. I identified that the fitting holding the rudder post had a minor leak. I had tried without success to fix it before we left on the Loop but no luck. Well with some extra time on my hands I went at it with a vengeance. I finally found the right tool to tighten the fitting and wala no more leak. Dried up the water in the bilge, project marked as complete. Two nights later the bilge goes off! Checked the fitting, still dry.

Looked for two days and finally found the source. A crack in the shower sump. Ordered a brand new one, installed, dry bilge once again. Crossed another line thru the item on the project list. Four days later bilge goes off again. What the heck! Took about four days to catch this one. Water was leaking out of a loose connection on the shower wand. Only leaked when someone was actually using the shower wand.

Tighten fitting, third line to cross out the project item and rendered a prayer to Neptune to let up a little as I was growing quite despondent. Needless to say my plea when unanswered. Bilge went off again three days later. This time I took drastic unconventional measures. As I sat in the galley holding my head wondering, why do I hate myself so much I noticed a bunch a bananas on the counter. Many of you boaters have heard the tale that bananas on a boat were bad luck. Many more of you know I do not subscribe to such nonsense especially coming from a scientific/medical background. But I was desperate! So I rendered a Captains order banning all bananas onboard. So then I went to work to find the source of water as all previous repairs were holding. Turns out water was leaking from the fitting for the fresh water tank level sender ONLY if the tank was filled completely to the top. So I sealed the the fitting with some good old silicone, tested it and it held.

It has now been two weeks and the bilge is as dry as the Sahara. Don’t know if banning bananas on board was the trick but for now the ban will remain in place. 

So do I miss my terrestrial trappings? Not really. Am I bored or antsy? Don’t have time cause I’m always fixing, re fixing or working thru how I’m gonna fix something.  When I feel the slightest level of anxiety I simply sit down on the sundeck and stare out into the turquoise water. My blood pressure almost drops too low as I suddenly feel like I could sit there all day. A feeling I never experienced in my dirt home lifestyle. This odyssey certainly has altered my inner priorities in a very significant way. 

The Pics were mostly from a Sunset Dinner Cruise we did with two other couples. Very touristy but it really was a blast. 

                                                Manitee Cruising through the marina

Life on the only Caribbean Islands in the US

 Key Wild

We have finally settled into the tropical lifestyle. I must say going to bed when its warm and waking up in warmth and is really to my liking. I can honestly say I have not missed the change of seasons, especially winter. Then there is the turquoise colored water that does something magical to the soul the longer you stare at it. One thing for sure is it makes one thirsty for one of those tropical drinks like Pain Killers.

For those of you who have been to the Virgin Islands you know what I a talking about. Another thing I have come to realize is if we lived here I would definitely take up fishing. It is hard to go out and not catch something. The other day we watched a 26’ center console off load their catch of Spanish Mackerel. Almost 150 fish with a total weight of about 1200 lbs. They were actually commercial fishing but still. I my meandering around the little nooks and crannies of Stock Island I have found the working part of the island which no surprise is mostly centered around the fishing industry. Fish, Lobster and Stone Crab seem to top the list.

Back in the yards Latinos are the rule. Painting pot bouys, making crab or lobster pots, fixing nets and tinkering on boats. There is a whole sub culture here. But all is not well when you really get to the heart of what makes these islands run. What I am referring to is the service and entertainment industry. As we have all seen the explosion of real estate values, here on the Keys it is greatly exaggerated.

The cost of housing is blistering if you can find it. With the advent of Airbnb and the likes, long term rental properties are simply not available. As a property owner here why would you rent your little shack for say $3000 per month long term when you can get $350 a night for vacation rental. Case in point as to the effect this is having. Mallory Square. Anyone who has been here knows it is the epicenter of the nightly sunset celebration.

It attracts hordes of people and used to have numerous tip harvesting street entertainers. Largely they are gone. They can no longer afford to make ends meet. This is having a ripple effect through the whole service industry. Who will be here to clean your room, refill your water glass, pick up the trash??? It will be interesting to see how especially Key West deals with these social and economic challenges.

For us, being water vagabonds, we get to enjoy what is here and right now there is plenty to see and do. 

One of the first places we went to was the Hemingway Home. The 67 six toed cats on property really did not wow me. What did was the lifestyle that Earnest lived. When he was living here he basically would write in the morning, fish in the afternoon then meet his buddies at Sloppy Joes for happy hour.

He was reportedly an accomplished fisherman. 

On Monday January 30th John and Megan Gawne joined us for a couple of days of fun in the sun. It turned out that the Key Western Music Festival was starting on Tuesday. The did a Duval street concert to open the event.

We were fortunate to be able to get a slip right in Key West Bight for two nights so we could be right in the heart of the action. To say we had fun was an understatement. On Tuesday we were joined by Canadian Looper Friends Randy and Julie. On Wednesday we biked around KW. Our travels took us to an old fort called West Martello Tower on the south end of the island right on Higgs Beach. Yes contrary to popular belief there is a sand beach here which is pretty nice. So this Martello Tower is remnants of an old fort that was never completed.

The Key West Garden Club has taken it over and planted many beautiful tropical plants and trees on the site. It was very well done. They frequently hold events like weddings there. 

The other fort we toured was on Truman Annex called Fort Zachary.

During the civil war it was under Union control that they used as a headquarters for naval blockades. The interesting fact about this place was that during one of the later renovations they used the cannons as fill. So basically they were buried in sand which actually preserved them.  One type of cannon was called a parrot gun which was capable of firing a 300 lb ordinate 17 miles. 

One thing for sure there is so much to see and do in Key West. By the way did I mention that the place is infested with chickens? Yep they are everywhere.

The lore has it that they are descendants of Jungle fowl from Cuba that back in the day were used in cock fighting. The roosters are actually quite beautiful with vibrant colorful plumage but very noisy. 

                                                    Yep its Wild all right

                         

Sue and Megan having fun

                       My new Serbian drinking buddy 

Water is sooo beautiful

       

Home Port in the Conch Republic

 Sunset Marina

 

On Tuesday morning January 17th we headed 32 miles down the north side of the keys to Sunset Marina in beautiful tropical colored water. We pulled into the marina after a bit of a tense approach in a very narrow channel across a flats area where they had dug out the coral to create the channel. The fun wasn’t over when we arrived. When we found our slip and began our approach. 

As I sized it up it looked pretty tight. Well that was an understatement. I literally had to press the boat in. We were bound by the piling on one side and the dock edge on the other. We temporarily tied the boat off  and went into the office. We explained the problem after which they said, “That’s the only slip we have you may need to find someplace else.” If you know anything about the keys dock space is impossible to find and we did not want to be on anchor for a month. I kept very calm but persistent. Fortunately that paid off. They ended up swapping with the slip next to us that was slightly larger. The boat that was in it moved into our slip. Still tight but it worked. Phew! The marina has nice floating concrete docks and is like being in an aquarium. It is full of sea life and gin clear water. There is a resident school of giant Tarpon that patrol the basin along with schools of grey snapper, Yellow Tail, Parrotfish and others. We watched a Cormorant chase and catch fish. They fly through the water like a guided torpedo. There was a Manatee that passed thru also. We got settled into our small little piece of paradise. 

Duval street is a little more than 4 miles from the marina so a bit of a hike on the bikes. We are getting the local intel on ways to get down fast and easy. On Wednesday we made our first hike into the conch republic. It was a beehive of activity just like days gone by but even more so.

Cruise ships now make regular stops in downtown just down from Mallory Square adding to the hustle and bustle. Sue and I had last been to Key West over 20 years ago for a Jimmy Buffett Parrot Head Festival.  It has grown a lot since we were last here. Our first trip to Key West was, no kidding,  almost 40 years ago.

We had come down to visit Sue’s parents and then came down to Key West for a weekend. We tent camped at Boyds Camp ground which is still here and just a short distance from the marina we are at. 

We have already made friends with the guy who runs a fishing/pleasure ride charter business out of the marina. On Thursday morning he stopped by the boat in one of his boats and asked if I wanted to go on a short boat ride. I have always lived by a policy to never turn down a boat ride, especially where I get to just be a passenger. So I grabbed my sunglasses and  jumped on board. He was taking one of his flats boats to a local marina to adjust the 300 hp Mercury Racing Series engine! We cleared the marina and he lit the thing up. 75 mph across 2’ of crystal clear water. What a ride! 

                                                              Front Street

Believe it or not a Hard Rock Cafe

                                      Key West Historical Museum

Resident Tarpon. If you dare you can hand feed them shrimp. I like all 10 of my fingers!

                            Oh look another tourist

Sunset Key

                                              Sunset at Sunset Marina

No Sharks Here

 Little Shark River

On Sunday morning the weather cooperated and the winds dropped and were forecast to continue to subside through out the day. Seas would be on our stern so a comfortable 44 mile cruise along the coast was ahead of us. The weather was sunny and cool with temps in the low 70s. We were on the lookout for dolphin, turtles and manta rays that jump out of the water.

No luck on the last two but we did see dolphin. We arrived at the anchorage about 2 pm. There was another boat in the anchorage when we arrived but before night set in there was two others. This place was pretty remote pretty 50 miles from the nearest point of civilization. We did the usual exploration on the dinghy and actually spotted a small alligator hanging out in the sun but no sharks. That night I spent about an hour up on the Sundeck staring into the brilliantly lit heavens realizing what a tiny speck we are in the overall scheme of things. Shooting stars were plentiful. 

Johnson Key

On Monday morning we hauled the anchor after a leisurely morning and made our strike across the Gulf to Johnson Key about 54 miles to the south east. This would be only the third time we would loose sight of land in all directions. Neptune smiled on us and granted us a smooth passage. We saw a couple of turtles, dolphin and one ray that jumped out of the water a good distance away.

The further south we travelled the more tropical colored the water became. We reached the channel where we cut through the reef and weaved our way 3 miles in to a beautiful anchorage. We set the anchor and admired the beautiful tropical waters that surrounded us. Johnson Key is just North of Cudjoe Key. We were a short 32 miles from our final destination, for the next month, at Sunset Marina on Stock Island. 

Back to Old World Florida

 Marco Island

Tuesday night we decided to treat ourselves to a nice dinner out at one of the Italian restaurants on 5th Ave in Naples. We did our usual and sat at the bar in this very trendy restaurant. People watching was at a premium. It is safe to say that the locals of Naples do not cook in their million dollar kitchens. They go out not only to eat but to be seen. We had a great meal and enjoyed the evening.

The Wednesday morning we decided to do a delayed departure so Sue could do some provisioning. Fortunately she was able to share a Uber with another Looper doing the same. By Noon we were off headed the short 15 mile cruise to Marco Island. There was a backup in the laundry department so we had to hike the dirty duds on the dinghy and then on the bikes to the local laundromat. While the clothes were doing there thing in the machine we rode over to the beach and took a long walk. We came across a whole flock of Skimmers, a local threatened shore bird.  Marco Island isn’t missing a variety of shorebirds, but it is said that is missing a “soul”.  It does not have any type of city center or downtown. Just one high rise condo after another. It was not our favorite Florida town but the skimmers were very much at home on the shoreline and our duds got cleaned.

LuLu Key

The next morning we headed out of port to run down the coast to LuLu Key located 37 miles south just inside the Everglades National Park in an area called “The 10,000 Islands”. It was a beautiful day on the water. The cloudless skies were deep blue with light winds and warm temps. We set anchor in a choke of a narrow channel with two Sandy keys on either side. The term 10K islands is accurate. Getting lost in the maze of islands is easy as one mangrove island looks just like the rest. We spent the day exploring and shelling on a couple of the remote beaches. The dusk sky looked like it was set ablaze followed by an appearance of the Milky Way.

Everglades City

On Friday January 13th, so that’s why the batteries went dead!  We pulled anchor and went to port at Everglades City to the once famous Rod and Gun Club. The forecast was not looking good as winds were supposed to pick up just shy of gale force. We choose to seek better shelter as the mangrove islands provide some limited protection.

Even though it was only 15 miles we left first thing as conditions were deteriorating. Everglades City is know for its world class fishing, airboats and eco tours of the Everglades. Duck and boar hunting were also popular years ago. The Rod and Gun Club is an old world Florida vestige of that time. Unfortunately it has fell on hard times. Lack of funds to restore the building and significant understaffing of the restaurant.

It has so much potential for the right investor with a big vision. We enjoyed a drink there and then went to another waterfront restaurant for dinner. When we transited the channel coming into Everglades City Friday morning we found two spots where the water depth was right at 4.5’. Our boat needs all of that to not hit bottom. I was concerned about the winds blowing the water out of the flats leaving us trapped.

So Saturday morning we left early to take advantage to the high tide to get past the two low spots before the wind had a chance to blow the water out. That meant we had to find cover so we were reasonably comfortable and safe at anchor. Going down the coast was not an option as seas were 6-8’. Fortunately we were able to tuck into a narrow area in Russels Pass to weather the winds. Our night on the hook was comfortable although a bit chilly. We survived quite well. 

On the wall at the Rod and Gun Club

                                     Entering Everglades City

Flock of Pelicans

                         Exploring the 10K Islands

Beach on LuLu Key