Full Day of Fun at Key West; Back to Bahia Honda

Brrrrrr...it was freezing today on the water. We left Key West and headed back to Bahia Honda. But first, let me tell you about yesterday.

After a rough night's sleep at the dock (winds were gusting to 30 mph and I had to sleep in the salon. I was getting seasick lying in bed!) Jazzy and I walked with Patti, Wayne and Sailor to the Southernmost Point in the continental United States (90 miles to Cuba). (See photo at bottom...I hate this Blogger...no control over where your photos go!) Chuck stayed at the boat to remove one of the zincs that was causing vibration in the motor. It wasn't disintegrating properly and seems to be defective.

I wanted to revisit St. Mary's Catholic Church and the grotto with the Blessed Mother. We visited there with Ed and Gloria Hogan on our last cruise and I remembered how beautiful it was. I said a few prayers, lit a few candles and made my donation.

On the way back, I called Chuck and asked him to join us for lunch.

We walked to The Bull, but they only served drinks. Patti had a coupon for a two-for-one margarita, so we indulged. Then we walked to Wig-Ums Sports Bar Grill and split a cheesesteak. Chuck and I took Jazzy back to the boat and took another long walk to see Mel Fisher's Maritime Treasure Museum.

I took photos of the statues outside the Art Museum. next door and an unusual palm tree. We tasted a Frozen Key Lime Pie dipped in chocolate on a stick. Too sweet for my taste.

We walked all through the Truman Annex, a private housing complex and passed the Little White House. It was a beautiful neighborhood and used to be naval base housing.

Gluttons for punishment with very little sleep, we then walked to the Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park, where the locals go to the beach.

We watched the sunset, then took the long walk back to our boat. I played with Jazzy while Chuck took a 15 minute nap before meeting Patti and Wayne for dinner. We ate at Turtle Kraals, right in front of the marina where we were docked. I had a spinach salad with mesquite grilled shrimp and Chuck had a salad with beef brisket. Both were delicious.

This morning after picking up a few things at the grocery store, we left Key West Bight Marina at about 10:30 a.m. It was a little hairy getting out of the slip. It was windy and Chuck attached our lines to the guide lines between the boats. We had to slide our lines down the guide lines  slowly guide ourselves out of the slip. It was tense, but we had no problems. (See photo at left).

We started with following seas as we left the harbor. Winds were 10-12 knots from the North on the wind meter, but we were moving with it. It was actually 15 knots. Temperature was 60 when we left and it was chilly. The sun was warm, but not for long.

At 11 a.m. we pulled the jib to the first reef and half the main. We motorsailed. Seas we rough, probably only 1-2, but very choppy. We were heeling 15-20 degrees and taking water over the front. There was white caps everywhere. The dodger protected us from most of the spray. I made hot chocolate to warm us up.

The winds progressed to 22 knots and we were freezing with it coming over our port side. We were wearing lots of layers...T-shirt, sweatshirt, fleece and pea coat! It's amazing how fast we adapted to the warm weather and really feel the cold. Should have put on long underwear this morning!

We were headed for the anchorage in Newfound Harbor, but the winds are from the north and it's all open with no protection, so Wayne called Bahia Honda State Park and we're here for the night. I love it here.

We pulled in our sails at 3:50 p.m. when approaching the seven-mile bridge and arrived at the dock at 4:10 p.m. The approach was very shallow...it was dead low tide...just over three feet.

I went into the little store and bought Chuck a T-shirt to replace the one I ruined. It's a beautiful shirt. We're only going 10 miles back to Marathon tomorrow. Hoping to cross to the Bahamas sometime soon...about two weeks I believe Wayne said. Have to keep an eye on the weather.

You can see the current running under the bridge.