Northbound Again

As much as we would like to stay in the Keys a bit longer, the dreaded "H" season is fast approaching once again so it is time to make our way back north. We made one last provisioning run to the Publix supermarket near Tarpon Basin and departed on Wednesday morning. The goal for the day was to pick up some fuel and once again anchor near Elliot Key.

We have done pretty well on fuel best I can figure. We last topped off our 66 gallon fuel tank in Ft. Pierce during our trip south. Since that time, we have spent most of our travel time under sail, only starting up the motors to maneuver in tight channels (where the wind is often blocked or not in a favorable direction) and to anchor (the windlass needs running motors). The lack of solar means most of our diesel was actually spent feeding the generator to top off our house battery bank.

Believe it or not, I found only two marinas where we could get fuel between Tarpon Basin and Elliott Key. One was Gilberts Marina located right next to the Highway 1 bridge into Key Largo. They didn't have fuel prices listed on Active Captain and the reviews seemed to indicate that they were well aware of the fact they were the only game in the area. The other marina was Herbert Hoover marina in southern Biscayne Bay. They were a municipal marina and, while the knowledge of the staff was questionable, they were reported to be more friendly and with better fuel prices (for the area).

We sailed as much as we could. Unfortunately the winds that were forecast to be from the east were more northeast and we occasionally fired up an engine to get a better course. We arrived at the marina a little after 3PM (they close at 4) and topped off our fuel and water supplies. When we left the fuel gauge indicated over half a tank and my "worst case" calculation said we should have at least 26 gallons remaining. It was nice to see it only took 32 gallons to fill up. I've been logging the gas gauge indications and fuel added and am gaining more confidence in what the gauge is telling me.

We departed the marina and motored directly into the wind across Biscayne bay. We dropped the hook just a bit north of where we were the last time, near a sandy beach. Just as we were anchoring a couple of guys from the parks service stopped by. They wanted us to know that they were doing rodent control on the island that night and not to be alarmed if we heard gunfire. Fortunately we didn't hear a thing, I guess the park service great rat hunt didn't go that well but at least they didn't keep us awake.

Our neighbors anchored at north Elliott Key

The next morning we decided to continue our trip north by making a stop by No Name Harbor before doing an overnight passage to Lake Worth.  We raised the main sail while still anchored and only started the engines in order to use the windlass.  We pulled up the anchor, pointed the nose north, and let the sails once again take over.  We made our way through one of the narrow cuts and had a nice sail across Biscayne bay.

No Name Harbor at Bill Bags Cape Florida State Park.

We arrived at No Name Harbor around 1 pm.  The main reason for stopping here is that I know that the harbor is often used as a staging location for people waiting on weather in order to cross to the Bahamas and I wanted to check it out while we were here.  We tied up to the wall and paid the $8 day use fee.  We had lunch at the on-site restaurant (can't say I would recommend them...all the quality of airport food with prices to match) and took the dogs for a nice long walk along the paths in the park.  Around 5 pm we bid the park adieu, continued out Biscayne channel and pointed the bow north.  The engines again fell silent after we exited the channel and wren't pressed into service until we were becalmed about an hour outside of the Lake Worth inlet.

Sun Setting somewhere over Miami/Ft. Lauderdale.

Having spent so much time sailing since we left Ft. Pierce and given the heat of the day, we decided to treat ourselves to a dock at a marina in North Palm Beach.  This would allow us to use the air conditioner, do some provisioning without the hassles of the dinghy, and get wifi access. So, as I finish up this post I'm sitting in air conditioned comfort...trying to keep my eyes open late on Friday night.  Maybe I'll finish and post this in the morning.

Yes, We Can Sail This Boat

Another post that either disappeared or didn't manage to get posted.  Guess the internet was more spotty than I thought.  Oh well.  This should have been posted somewhere around 4/16/2016. At least this time I found a couple of the pictures for the post.

We departed the marina at Lake Worth, where we picked up the batteries, around 1PM. Yes at least this time it was not a multi-week process to replace the starting battery. We made the short trip out the Lake Worth inlet and pointed the boat south once again.

We unfurled the sails and put the engines to rest. With the southeast winds, we were set up for a nice beam reach down to Biscayne Bay.  We sailed down the coast, past Palm Beach (and a dozen other towns with beach in the name) Bocas Raton, Ft. Lauderdale, and the Port of Miami.  It is amazing how deep and how blue the water is here just a couple miles from shore.

How most of the coast looks...high rises along the coast.

As we were passing by Boynton Beach, the Coast Guard came on the radio and said there had been a report of an airplane going down a mile west of the inlet. We kept a lookout, occasionally scanning the sea with our binoculars. Soon a Coast Guard helicopter and a couple small Coast Guard boats were searching the area around us. After a couple hours, as the sun was setting, they gave up the search. Since we were in the area around the time the plane supposedly went down and we didn't see anything, I suspect this was a false alarm or they got the position wrong.

We made between 4 and 5 knots under sail for the entire trip from Lake Worth to the Biscayne Channel entrance. Seas were 1 foot or less on a 4 to 5 second period, and that made for a fairly comfortable sail.  It was nice to finally make significant progress without the aid of diesel.  We did fire up an engine briefly to help us negotiate the channel.  We passed by the stilt houses and into the Bay.

And you thought good fences made good neighbors...

A Stiltsville building with Miami in the background.

We continued our way south and anchored just off Elliott Key early in the afternoon. We were about 3/4 of a mile away from the key in 6 feet of clear water.  We dropped the dinghy into the water and went over to check out the dock and ranger station on the key.  It was deserted except for the millions of mosquitoes that make it home.  The signs say you can camp there for a $25 fee...but I don't think I'd pay to feed the mosquitoes all night.  Camping here does come with a luxury though; they have restrooms with running water and even cold water showers. When you live on a boat with a small holding tank, you take advantage of restrooms when you find them.

After we decided that we fed enough mosquitoes, we headed back to the boat.  We swam in the clear water around the boat, and even got out a bit of soap for an impromptu bath.  Enjoyed a beer while sitting on the bow of the boat as dusk approached. Anchored this far away from the key gave us a nice breeze, and the mosquitoes didn't come out to visit.

This is more like it.