Key Largo

Since leaving Key West, we have had a couple of very interesting experiences, including our first big "weather event".  We stayed an extra day in Key West after Tristan left, partially because we enjoyed it there, and partially due to still windy conditions which made for a not great travelling day.  We could have departed and anchored, but it was so easy at the marina, and made use of the nearby pool for the afternoon. Also forgot to mention in our previous post that the America 2 is there, which is a re-creation of the original America that won what became known as the America's Cup, the legendary sailing trophy,


Our departure from Key West was somewhat melancholic as this was our furthest south-west point, and this represented the turn north on our travels.  We decided to run all the way back to Bahia Honda, near Marathon, as it was a fine day, and the interim anchorages hadn't been highly spoken of by other boaters.  We arrived at BH late afternoon, and had time for a swim before dinner, in beautiful conditions.  The night was generally calm, until we were awoken at 5am by a ferocious T'storm, which passed right overhead, and must have dumped over an inch of rain in a couple of hours, and accompanied by some strong winds. First thing to address was get all the windows closed, as we had been enjoying the fresh air. Great way to de-salt the boat anyway!

Not much sleep was had from that time so we had breakfast while listening to the weather forecast for the day.  A brief weather window was forecast for 9am for a couple of hours, so we lifted the anchor and got underway just before that, for the 1.5 hour run up to Marlin Bay, which we had enjoyed so much the previous week.  The run turned out to be quite nice, but all the way we were being chased by the next weather front.  We arrived at the marina just as the skies opened up, and got absolutely soaked while docking the boat.  Oh well, nice thing about this boat is just throw the clothes in the dryer, warm shower, and change!

The winds intensified as the afternoon wore on, and the only respite was to join others in the Clubhouse for some games, puzzles, and appropriately, a late afternoon "Dark & Stormy".  The weather front passed in the evening and the next day was dry and warmer.  We spent the day in the pool and doing a few boat chores.

We departed Marlin Bay Friday and anchored again at Lignum Vitae, which was our first nights stop on the way south.  We swam, in flat calm water, but the water was still a bit "milky" from the effects of the previous 48 hours of wind. 

Launched the dinghy to prepare to visit the state park on the island the next morning, but discovered it would only start in reverse.  The previous owner had the engine serviced prior to sale, but it appears as though the service, which was a water pump replacement, resulted in the shift cable loosened as well.  So no visit to LV this time either, and will get it serviced at next stop.

We had a wonderful night, with dead calm seas, and the most spectacular sunset we have seen while here.  Only one other boat taking advantage of the mooring  buoys that night.  It continues to surprise me how little boats anchor out here.  Almost all spend their time at marinas.  Now the anchorages arent like we experience on the west coast for protection, but with reasonable watch for the weather, they can be a great choice.





From LV, we headed north, and to the Atlantic side, to John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, about a 25 mile run.  The unique aspect of this run was that it represented our first bridge opening experience.  Not many of the bridges have sufficient clearance to get under, with only a few in the Keys being high level bridges.  This bridge had allegedly sufficient clearance, but only by 3 feet, and we arrived just 4 minutes before a scheduled opening for a sailboat.  So we chose to wait for the lift rather than find out just how much clearance, or lack of, there might be.

The balance of the run to the State Park marina was largely uneventful, except for the last mile thru a very narrow and twisty, although well marked channel, into the marina.  Very few "big" boats come in here apparently, but it is their loss, as it is a great little facility, with an active dive and snorkeling charter business operating out to the reef, and a great little beach.  In fact, we went for a swim in the late afternoon, and discovered that just off the beach, were the remains of 1715 Spanish ship wreck with nearly a dozen cannon, and an anchor in less than 6 feet of water.  How often does one get to see that?

We will likely spend a couple of days here, with mid-day trips out to the reef, before continuing north.  Tristan plans to join us the following weekend so we need to make some northerly distance.