Florida Keys

 We have moved down the Keys and are hanging out in Key West for a while.

We made our final passage on the inside of the Keys from Tavernier to the Channel 5 bridge.  This was the area we were most concerned with due to reports of shoaling and the possibilities of going aground or not being able to continue.  After a call to TowboatUS for advice we continued and successfully arrived at the Chanel 5 bridge and anchoring on the ocean side.  We now know that this passage is possible if we ever need it again.  We spent a couple of days at Long Key checking out the beaches at the state park but they were a bit of a disappointment finding few shells but did find a couple of sea beans.  From there we sailed down staying further out into the deeper water to avoid the lobster traps and spent the night anchored off of Bahia Honda.  It got to be a little rolly so the next morning we pulled anchor and moved to Newfound Harbor by Big Pine Key.  The next day we launched the dinghy to go exploring but couldn't find a pass to the ocean side of the keys that was deep enough for us to get through.  So much for checking out beaches.  The next day we dinghied into town to visit the grocery store and buy gas for the generator and outboards.  Once back at the boat I fired up the generator to charge the batteries.  Something went wrong and I could smell hot wires in the battery charger.  I didn't see smoke but I am familiar with the smell for hot wires.  After some troubleshooting and trying again it appears the battery charger/inverter had failed.

The next day I spent online researching and shopping for a replacement.  On a suggestion from our good friend Wayne we found a used unit in Norfolk for a third of what new would cost.  After contacting the seller and arranging payment it was on our way to us, with a minor glitch.  The unit weighs in at about 90 pounds and we had agreed on $100 to pay for the shipping.  When the buyer brought it to the UPS store they determined that it would have to be packed differently and it would now cost $258 for shipping.  After a call from the seller we agreed to split the difference and it was on it's way.  Where to have it shipped?  Cori knows one of the sales reps from her previous job that lives here and he agreed to have it shipped to him.  Another problem solved.  For the rest of the week we stayed on the boat because it was overcast and chilly with a few rain showers.  In the meantime I would run the engine for about an hour a day to keep the batteries up and run the watermaker.  Delivery was expected for Monday but  both packages arrived on Friday.  We dinghied over to pick them up and we now had a replacement charger/inverter.  One complication is that it is about twice the size of the old one and I need to find where to mount it.  Saturday was spent doing a temporary install to verify that it was working properly and that I had all of the wiring correct.  After a couple of try's it seemed to be working.  Sunday I ran the generator most of the afternoon giving the batteries a good charge and making more water.

Monday we pulled anchor and moved on to Key West.  The morning started out with no wind but about halfway the winds came up and we were able to sail the rest of the way.  Having never been to Key West by boat we decided to try staying in the city marinas mooring field.  We moved around and found an empty mooring.  The next morning we went ashore and checked in and payed our fee giving us access to the dinghy dock, showers and laundry.  Our friends Bill and Helen from North Carolina are spending some time here and picked us up to spend some time visiting, going for lunch, showing us around and making a trip to Home Depot to get what I need to finish the charger install.  The next morning we went ashore to do some laundry, go for lunch at 5 Guys for a burger fix and pick up some groceries.  We seem to be going through a lot of fruits and vegetables since they are so readily available.  After we got back to the boat we had another boat circling us.  It seems that they had rented the mooring for a month and had put a marker on the pennant to mark it while they were gone.  The marker had come off and to us it appeared to be available.  He picked up another mooring when we told him we would be leaving in the morning.

The next morning we dropped the mooring, stopped by to apologize for the confusion and headed out for a trip to the Dry Tortugas.  With light winds we ended up with the spinnaker sailing slowly to the west.  We stopped at Woman Key since it was still early and there looked to be a promising beach.  The beach was disappointing for shelling and there was a swell running causing a roll so we moved on to Boca Grande Key for the night.  The next day we checked out the beach and then moved on to Marquesas Keys.  There were a number of boats here and more came in after us.  The next morning we went to check out the beach finding hundreds of what we learned are vase sponges washed up on the beach.  Cori collected a number of them and we dinghied around checking out the area.  We were about halfway to Dry Tortugas and there was little wind but the forecast was for more wind the next day. In the morning we pulled the anchor, hoisted the spinnaker and spent the day sailing the forty miles to Dry Tortugas and anchored midafternoon.

Monday morning we dinghied in early to check out the fort.  There is a ferry from Key West that brings people out for the day and we wanted to beat the crowd.  Dry Tortugas is first off referred to a "Dry" because there is no source of fresh water.  It is also home of Fort Jefferson, the largest fort built in the 1800's with brick which is now a National Park.  The fort covers ten acres of the sixteen acre island and is built using sixteen million bricks that all had to be delivered by ship.  For a number of reasons the fort was never completed and was at one time during the Civil War (or as our friends in the South refer to as "the war of northern aggression") it was used as a prison.  The most famous prisoner was Dr. Samuel Mudd who was convicted of being one of the conspirators in the Lincoln assassination.  There is a lot of reconstruction going on and it is very interesting for us history buffs.

There is a cold front forecast for later in the week and we didn't want to be out here unprotected when the winds kicked up so the next day we pulled anchor at sunrise and started back.  With no wind we were motoring and were running the watermaker.  We had planned to stop for the night at the Marquesas Keys again but since we had such an early start we decided to continue on to Key West.  We arrived just before sunset and found a spot to anchor for the upcoming wind event.  The next morning we dinghied ashore and Bill and Helen again picked up up to go for lunch and spend some time visiting.  Both Cori and I took the opportunity to walk down to a nearby barber shop for haircuts.  This are our first professional cuts since we left South Dakota fourteen months ago.  We also had to stop off for a piece of Key Lime Pie while we were out and about.

Thursday morning the winds kicked in and we spent the day on the boat.  Where we are anchored we were exposed to the wind and waves from the north but as the winds clocked around the waves are blocked by the island next to us and the seas calm down a lot.  I spent the day finalizing the install of the battery charger/inverter.  It took all day with a lot of salty sailor language but by evening it was installed and I was beat.

Today it is still windy but not as much as yesterday.  We plan to stay for a couple more days and then will be moving up to the west side of mainland Florida.