Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Scenes from Key West


I don't know how it happened but somehow the format of the blog got changed and I couldn't get it back the way it was.  It's probably easier to read this way anyhow so now we have a whole new look.

Here are some pictures that capture a little of Key West.

Rooster #1
Great little bar and restaurant
Still life
The marvelous Catman
Catman and Hanibal
Key West Bight
Sunset on Mallory Square
Rooster #2

Monday, February 27, 2012

Where is the Catman?

One of the things that most people who come to Key West enjoy is the sunset celebration at Mallory Square.  Every night crowds gather to watch the sun disappear into the water off the west end of town.  There are several sailing ships that tack back and forth offshore, adding to the beauty of the scene while giving their passengers a different perspective. Cameras are everywhere and people watching is entertaining in itself.

But before the sun does down, there is a whole smorgasbord of things to see.  There are small booths set up along one side where you can find some unique items for sale.  Everything from recycled aluminum can art to palm frond hats to original paintings are available.  The selection varies somewhat from day to day and there always seems to be new things displayed, keeping shoppers interested.

Tarot card reader
Unicyclist high in the air
The street performers, though, really keep things moving.  You can see mimes, jugglers, escape artists, sword and fire swallowers, dog tricks, singers, and acrobats.  They are all performing for tips from the audience so the more unique and/or outrageous they can be, the better the pay off.  Some have been around for years, maybe varying their acts some to keep people interested.  Others come and go with only brief notoriety.

My personal favorite among these performers is Dominique, the Catman.  We saw him last time we were in Key West and I went back day after day to see his kitties do their thing.  The show is always different because the cats don't always do exactly what he asks them to.  They are cats after all, right?  Who would ever expect  a cat to do anything you asked it to do?  However Dominique gets them to walk tightropes, jump through a ring of fire, catch the "sushi" treats he throws to them, and generally charm the crowd with the obvious love they have for him.  When they don't do what he asks them to do, the Catman makes up for it by being the entertainment himself.  There is no fence around the act.  The cats are free to come and go as they please.  But they remain in the show area, sometimes walking around a bit randomly, but never making any effort to leave.

I don't have a picture of my favorite guy and his kitties though because he wasn't there this weekend.  Both days we went there looking for him only to be disappointed.  I'm hoping he'll be back before the week is over so I can get my Catman fix and some pictures.  Until then you'll have to settle for this guy's picture. The pelicans here are quite tame as they have learned to expect handouts from all the fish being cleaned.

Sunday, February 26, 2012

Key West

We finally made it to Key West yesterday and tied up to the end of a dock.  It's an unusual arrangement for us.  There is not really a face dock here so we have our stern tied to the outer most piling of the first slip on the main dock and our bow tied to a piling at the end of the main dock.  It works, sort of, but we have to step over the lifeline at the bow in order to exit the boat.  At low tide it is a exercise in gymnastics.

On the way here we anchored in Newfound Harbor, about half way between Marathon and Key West.  There we met a fellow cruiser who lives in that area when she's on land.  We had first met her last fall when we were bringing the boat down from NC.  We were both anchored in a remote creek somewhere in SC and enjoyed sundowners together.  One of the really positive things about cruising on a boat is that you meet the nicest people.  The cruising community spreads out all over the world and you never know when you will run into again some people you met at another time and in another place.  Even if you didn't meet the people on a particular boat, when you see the boat again in a different place, it is a little like seeing an old friend.





Tom had his fishing lines out on the way to Key West and caught this nice Spanish mackerel which we promptly cooked for dinner that night.  He's been reading everything he can find and talking to different people about fishing and it must have paid off.

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Heading south

Boot Key Harbor
Our friends left early Monday morning and we cast off from our mooring ball on Key Biscayne shortly after that to turn south again. After stopping to anchor at a couple of places along the way, we have made it as far as Marathon where we have picked up another mooring ball in Boot Key Harbor.  There are 226 mooring balls here, most of which appear to be occupied and mostly by sailboats.  It is an impressive sight.  We've heard that this harbor used to be very polluted and full of derelict boats.  They hauled out 100 boats when the city took over and started cleaning up the place. Now the water seems to be quite pristine even though many boats have people living permanently on them.  There is a vessel that comes around weekly to pump out holding tanks as part of your mooring fee, so there is no excuse for dumping sewage overboard.  The availability of pump out stations in the Keys is quite good.  North Carolina should take note of how it can be done.  No discharge zones are obviously important, but there need to be options that don't require you to travel three miles offshore to dump.

Not a good wind speed for sailing
The wind has not been our friend lately.  In spite of forecasts for favorable speed and direction, we have been motoring instead of sailing.  Yesterday the wind was supposed to be from the south but instead it was due west most of the day, the direction we were traveling.   And the 10-15k predicted did not materialize.  The picture says it all.  This weekend when we are planning to anchor in Key West, 25-30k wind is predicted.  Such is the life of a sailor!



Saturday, February 18, 2012

FISH ON!

We made it back to Islamorada Thursday and anchored off the Lorelei Marina again.  Took our friends to the World Wide Sportsman and also found a place for them to purchase t-shirts.  We then had a few pina coladas at the waterside bar and listened to a little music.

We left the Lorelei Friday around 9:00 and headed out Snake Creek to the ocean.   Tom and Peggy had new fishing gear they were hot to try out, so as soon as we cleared the channel, out went the lines.  We were able to sail for a few hours but the wind eventually died.  This was just as well since the boat had to stop moving (or at least slow way down) as soon as a strike was felt on the hook.

Out past the shallow water we went.  Across the reef we went.  About three or four miles out, we finally hit the deep water.  The guy at the bait store had told us that between 100 and 150 feet deep was where we would find the fish.  We saw the flying fish jumping.  We saw the grass lines.  We saw the birds diving on fish at the water surface.  All supposed to be indicators of good fishing.  And then, zing!, there was a fish on Peggy's line.  That one got away.  And the next one got away.  But finally, she caught a black fin tuna that was a keeper.  And another.  And then Tom caught a couple, and then another.  Five all together.  OK.  So they weren't the huge tuna or mahi that we had been dreaming of, but they were dinner all the same.  And fun.  Since we had been trying and trying to catch a fish, this was a gold star day.  The only disappointment was that no one got a good picture of the catch.

Pilot House Marina - Key Largo
We are currently docked at a marina for the first time in a while.  We have had showers and drinks and are feeling pretty good about the day.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Back in Key Largo

We finally have internet access back after over a week without.  Our friends Pam and Peggy joined us on Monday in Key Biscayne for a week of sailing and we have moved south again to Key Largo.  The weather has returned to sunny, warm, and dry which is much appreciated.

One of the things I  have noticed about the Upper Keys is that there are no central shopping districts, at least none that we have found.  Stores, post offices, restaurants, etc. are scattered up and down the islands.  There may be small enclaves of shopping, for example, a super market, laundry, and pizza shop together in one place, but to find a location (from the water) where one can go in and "browse" a variety of stores - not so much. 

We have been trying to locate a gift shop our friends found in a guidebook intended for car drivers.  It sounded very cool, like something we might enjoy visiting.  But it has been daunting to 1) determine the location of the store relative to the water, 2) find a reasonable anchorage which is close to the location of the store, and 3) find a place to which we could take the dinghy and tie up that is within walking distance of said store. Being a tourist is a lot easier from land than from water unless you are in towns such as Key West.  Maybe further along the chain of keys we will find something different.  Or maybe if we were driving we would find something different. 

I remember the first time I drove down the Keys from mainland Florida.  I had a somewhat romantic image in my head of what the islands would be like.  It goes something like: tiki bars every mile or so with Buffett tunes playing continuously, lots of cute little, funky stores with wonderfully different items to purchase that no one at home had ever seen, beautiful beaches spread out for miles, and great food and rum drinks.  I was much younger than and I was greatly disappointed.  My tastes and expectations are different now but the reality is about the same.  So we head to quiet anchorages much of the time (of which there are many) and usually only venture into "town" for specific needs.  I'm not totally immune to the lure of the touristy places, however.  I am looking forward to eventually getting to Key West again and revisiting the uniqueness of all that that town has to offer.


Rain (delayed posting)

Campground
Tom bailing out the dinghy
It has been raining off and on, mostly on, all week since we have been at Virginia Key Grassroots Festival. Clothes, towels, shoes – all wet. I don't have a dry pair of shoes left. It's kind of depressing, especially since this is the first time they have had this festival here, there are a lot of people camping, most of them are wet, and some are thinking about going home early.

There have been two separate occasions when we have had 3 – 4 inches of rain come down in one storm. Fortunately, the ground is sandy so it is soaking in fairly quickly, but there are still large “ponds” in some areas. It is supposed to turn cold tonight and only be in the 60's tomorrow. All because of some strange tropical disturbance in Central America. Or at least that's what we've been told.

I guess we cannot complain too much. We have had almost perfect weather for the whole month previous to this, and it looks to be turning nice again next week. It's just unfortunate for the festival people. Many of these folks came all the way from New York to attend. The same organizers put on Shakori Hills in NC and another festival in Trumansburg, NY. They have “followers” that travel around to many different venues. It's pretty interesting to talk to these people about their lifestyles, which aren't too dissimilar to our present lifestyle, only theirs is on land. Following the music.

Jimbo's
Down the road from the park grounds is a place called Jimbo's. It's a little collection of shacks, painted buses, and liveaboard boats which advertises on its road sign “beer, smoked fish dip, cigarettes, gatorade, and energy drinks.” Interesting assortment of wares. There are many cyclists that ride in the park so I guess the gatorade and energy drinks are for them. Jimbo's apparently attracts an eclectic mix of patrons though from Harley riders to families with kids who come to the park to go to the beach here. Sometimes they have a band playing on a little stage. Haven't been here except during the day but I bet it gets even more interesting at night.

Sunday is the last day of the festival and we are heading south again after that, hoping the rain is over for a while. And also hoping for a better internet connection which has been missing for the last week.

Monday, February 6, 2012

Virginia Key

Miami Skyline
We left Elliott Key Sunday morning and sailed up Biscayne Bay, hoping to pick up a mooring ball at Coconut Grove.  They were all taken, however, so we continued on to the Marine Stadium on Virginia Key where we will probably be for close to a week.  The picture above is what we see currently off our stern.  It's quite impressive, especially at night.

Marine Stadium
This basin used to be the site of boat races several years ago and there is actually a stadium, now covered in an incredible array of graffiti.  You may not be able to tell from the picture, but the roof is a series of hills and valleys and we are told the local kids actually skateboard on it.  I'm glad I'm not their mother!

When we got here, there was a group of young couples with their children on the shore, picnicking, playing very loud music and racing around on waverunners.  Planes taking off from Miami flew directly over us and a seaplane buzzed the area several times.  It was a bit much.  Things did eventually quiet down fortunately.

There are maybe three boats here with people on them and another 20 left to their own (or their anchors) devices.  Most look like they are at least used periodically.  The shoreline is not dinghy friendly, but we had Jim on a neighboring boat suggest a way to get ashore without too much difficulty.  The park where the music festival is to be held is just a short walk away if his method works.  So this is our home for a while.  Quite different from where we have been the last few weeks. 


Saturday, February 4, 2012

Elliott Key

Moving closer to Miami for the music festival.  Anchored off Elliott Key.  National Park here.  We walked over to the ocean.  Poor internet so longer post later.

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Market day

Some of the bounty we brought home today
Going to the grocery store at home is a simple matter of relative ease.  You hop in the car, drive to the store, shop, carry your food back to the car, and drive home where you store everything in your large refrigerator and/or pantry.  Some of us don't particularly like to shop but, in the scheme of life on land, it isn't all that difficult.  Not so on a boat.

First you have to determine where the closest grocery store is located and whether or not the distance involved to get there is reasonable.  Since we had been here before, we knew the store was about two miles away, a distance we could walk without too much trouble.  You also have to locate a dock where you can leave your dinghy for a period of time without worrying about 1) being arrested for trespassing on private property, 2) having the dinghy stolen, or 3) having the dinghy damaged by sharp objects on the dock or in the water if the wind or current bang it around while you're gone.  We had that one covered too because of a previous visit, but it can be very difficult at times to find a dock to use.  Then you have to pack in the dinghy whatever you have for carrying home your purchased items and take the dinghy to a dock.  This morning we packed our rolling cart, a milk crate, and a backpack because we had some serious shopping to accomplish.

At the dock you unpack your "luggage" and haul it with you on your trek.  You do your shopping, pack the items in your cart, and head back to the dock, usually accompanied by some strange looks from fellow shoppers.  Today we came across the perfect size of cooler that we needed for our dinghy (more about this later), so we had it strapped to the rolling cart and loaded all our groceries into it at the store.  Talk about stares!  Anyway, there is also a great vegetable stand along the way back to the boat at which we stopped to add to our purchases.  All this is then carefully transferred to the dinghy for the trip back to the boat where it is all laboriously unloaded.  But wait!  You aren't finished yet because now you have to find places to store all this stuff in a dorm-sized refrigerator and a pantry about the volume of two bread boxes.  Let's just say we were pretty tired by the time we were finished the grocery shopping for today.  Hopefully these purchases will last us a few weeks with only a couple of additions of fresh things along the way.

Happily, the new fuel pump Tom installed in the dinghy motor yesterday seems to have solved our problems with fuel getting into the crankcase and causing the motor to run badly or not at all.  At least we didn't have that to worry about today while transferring groceries from shore to boat.  What would I do without his great MacGyver talents!