Living Simply in Paradise

As reported in my last entry to this blog, we've arrived in Marathon and have now spent the past three

Great spot to spend the winter months

weeks getting organized for living on the mooring. We've also managed to get back to Vero Beach to retrieve our car with a stop in West Palm Beach to visit my sister Mary Jo and her family. So at this point, we're pretty well settled and ready to enjoy our time here.

Of course projects never seem to end. Our latest was the decision to purchase a new stove. The old one, after 17 years of pretty steady use, was showing an increased number of issues. We knew we'd have to replace it at some point. So I figured why not sooner rather than later, so we could enjoy it more. I got it installed without a great deal of trouble. In most ways, it's much like the one it replaced, but it does have a few features that will make Sandra's cooking more pleasant.

Speaking of things being more pleasant, our life here in the Keys would fit that category in several ways. As most readers of this blog might surmise, life aboard in the tropics has lots of attractions. Some might even say that boat life is a simpler life, lacking the complications of life on land – no lawns to mow or snow to shovel; in fact there's no “yard work” at all. We don't have the high tax rate or the high heating bills of winter or cooling bills in the warm weather. We always enjoy the advantages of “waterfront property” without the high costs that usually accompany those locations. And if for some crazy reason you get tired of the view, you can move to another location to get a totally new one. I feel sorry for the vacationers who come to the Keys for several days or a week and pay so much for that brief stay. The cost to us for staying on this mooring for six months is probably equal to renting a cottage for a week or two. We truly recognize how fortunate we are.

That said, I'd be remiss if I left the topic at this point. Many may say, “Wow, if it's all that good, why don't I do the same. It sounds like an easy, simple way to spend the winter.” We live more simply when compared to those who live a land-based life, but it's certainly not simple. For starters, we are not at a dock where electricity and water are handy. I cart water to the boat in six gallon jugs (weighing 50 lbs apiece) to fill our tanks so we have drinking water and can wash dishes and ourselves. Our vehicle for getting to shore and back is an 8 foot dinghy. Think of it as a convertible that doesn't convert, so we must watch the weather whenever we go ashore. We find it important that all our groceries make it back from shore without getting rained on. For electricity, we depend on the sun and the breeze. If those two are insufficient, we have to run the boat's engine to recharge the batteries. In order to make that all work for us, we've changed our lighting to LED. We don't leave the TV plugged in when it's not being used, since it still draws power.

In mentioning the TV, I should also add that we don't get any TV stations this far from Miami. In order to get them, we'd have to be tied to a dock for cable or add satellite equipment (at significant cost and high electricity use to keep the antenna pointed at the satellite.) We do like movies and have a sizable collection. We also are able to get movies from the library as well as at Redbox.

So the LED lights, the TV, our water pump, (Yes, we need to pump it out of the tank each time we use the faucet.) and our refrigeration draw off those batteries charged up by the sun and breeze. It works because we are set up to be efficient. All of those items listed here together each day consume less than two hundred watt light bulbs would consume in your home in six hours. We are careful and efficient, and we feel good about that. If we can avoid using the engine, we don't add any greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. But this too takes an extra effort.

The baby was nursing while they waited for me to share the water.

Then there is our project list. But getting to all the items there will surely get you to stop reading the

rest of this entry, so I'll quit here. Instead I'll go back to sharing a few of the interesting and exotic aspects of our life here. As I suggested in the last entry, upon arrival we got reacquainted with the local inhabitants that you aren't likely to find in other parts of the country. Going in for water one afternoon, I found a mother and baby manatee hoping to get some fresh water while I filled my jugs. I didn't oblige them for a few reasons: it's against the law with steep fines, the water containing chlorine is not good for them and providing the water there encourages them to hang out by the docks with boats engines nearby that could do them serious harm. But it was great to see them.

There are lots of iguanas here in the keys. Some of them are small and others, like the one pictured here, are pretty good size. They are generally shy of people, so getting this photo was a treat.

As some of you may recall, I volunteered last spring at the Dolphin Research Center. Now back here, I've picked that up again. It's great fun to learn about the dolphins and see them interact with their trainers. This photo was an early holiday shot I was fortunate to be a part of. I'm the one with the Santa hat. Rainbow is the other participant in the photo.

I'll end this here but pick it up again soon with more of our life aboard in Boot Key Harbor. A cold front has hit us, and the temperature is down to 68 degrees this evening. But don't fret for us. Tomorrow we'll be back up in the 70s and even warmer by the weekend.

Captain Bob

Carpe Diem

Down Hawk Channel to Boot Key HarborSan

Nothing remains the same. Change is the one thing we can always count on. In the past few weeks, those changes encouraged us to delay our plans time and again. As reported in the most recent addition, those delays turned out to work in our best interest.

As we prepared to leave Miami Beach, we were still working with delays – this time due to more weather.

The harbor was more crowded than this photo suggests.

But change came to us again. After we'd done the short sail down to the south end of Key Biscayne and the state park including No Name Harbor, we began to see a shift in the weather forecasts. We spent the night there after enjoying a nice walk in the park. We were also reminded how busy No Name Harbor can be on a nice weekend, especially after a week of dreary weather. The harbor we unsafely packed with boats of sizes from 20 feet to fifty feet or more. We never would consider dropping the hook under such conditions. Anticipating this, we'd already anchored outside the harbor.

Peacefully settled by ourselves outside the harbor

The change in the weather changed our plans from perhaps a night at Dinner Key and a second night at Pumpkin Key down in Card Sound and then deciding what to do next. The forecast suggested relative light winds out of the NE with 2-4 foot waves in Hawk Channel. These conditions were supposed to continue for a couple of days at least, giving us time to make it all the way to Marathon.

As we awoke Saturday morning, the forecast had improved still further, so we headed out. It's a two day trip. We'd planned to spend the night at Rodriguez Key (about the only place available on Hawk Channel for deep draft boats). What a beautiful day! Little to no boat traffic and no big bunches of crab pots to get in our way. We tucked in behind the Key so the waves were not an issue. The wind actually pretty much died away during the night. The next day was more of the same except for an increase in crab pot buoys. Enough wind to motor sail allowed us to arrive in Boot Key Harbor by 4PM.

We were surprised by the number of boats already on moorings. There were more than we saw upon arrival last year nearly a month later. However, we were still able to pick up our favorite mooring N13, so friends who are following us will know where to find us upon their arrival.

After talking with other boaters, we were especially glad we chose to delay. The rain we'd heard about was really nasty here. However, it's been quite nice since our arrival. We also noticed that the water is clearer in the harbor than we'd seen it in the past. The marina manager agreed and suggested that the addition of the sewer system here has ended much of the leaching into the harbor from homes. For those who have been coming here for years, this represents an important change. Cleaner water is always a plus.

So we're now getting settled and adjusting to our winter location. It feels good. We've been to our first Tai Chi class, beginning our fourth season of these classes. I should also add that we've recently acquired a book on Tai Chi: The Harvard Medical School Guide to Tai Chi: 12 Weeks to a Healthy Body, strong Heart, and Sharp Mind. This book has already reinforced our thinking about the value of Tai Chi. And while on the subject of health, we've just completed reading for the second time another book: Super Immunity. This one has had an important impact on our diet and health.

We should have our kayaks in the water within a day or so, and we're already talking about getting out into the Florida Bay for visit to some of our favorite spots. Life is good!

Sandra's recently completed painting of the Treasure Cay beach in the Bahamas.

Her latest basket creation

Captain Bob

Carpe Diem

A Stop in Miami Beach

The view from our boat

As I write this latest addition to the blog, we are anchored off Belle Isle by South Beach, Miami

Beach, a spot we've visited several times previously. Miami Beach is such a different city from others we've visited. As has been noted by many, it is almost like being in a foreign city, since such a large segment of the population doesn't typically use English as their conversational language. Many speak Spanish, of course, but we find a good number of European tourists here speaking French, German or some other language. Then there are others who do speak English.

The lush tropical trees and flowers together with the parakeets and the brightly colored building accents just added to the unusual "foreign" image of the place.

We spent last Sunday (Oct 19) traveling here from West Palm Beach (Lake Worth for you fellow cruisers). It was a long day for a slow boat – about 80 miles along the coast. We managed to get a boost from what many cruisers call the counter current to the Gulf Stream. It runs south just of the beach a bit. We got a boost some of the time and appeared to loose it at other times. On the whole, it helped us get down to the inlet into Miami in a couple of hours less than without the boost.

These blackbirds visited us each day to
say "good morning."

We managed to arrive at Government Cut just as two cruise ships were leaving port. Needless to say, we delayed getting into the channel until they had safely passed us. We still had to keep alert, since this is a busy area with tugs pushing barges, lots of pleasure craft including those jet skis that buzz around everywhere here. But all went well, and we got the anchor down and were settled well before sunset.

As I reflect back on our travels and delays of the past couple of weeks, I am reminded that my evaluation of our situation ought to be made with the perspective of time. As a problem arose, my first thoughts
were pretty negative, but I soon focused on the challenge of solving the problem. One issue – the water pump, that delayed our travels by more than a week – was initially evaluated as a bad thing. However, given the perspective of time, I now see that it was in our best interest. The Keys

Although busy with boat-related projects, Sandra managed to
 complete another basket.

have been getting dumped on with rain and wind for several days, leading to localized flooding. Only getting to Miami Beach in time for the rain, we've found ourselves in a better spot. The rain hasn't been anywhere near as bad as further south, and we've been able to get off the boat for several hours during most of the days of our stay here. The rain is supposed to end in the region tonight, so I had initial thoughts of scooting down to Marathon over the weekend. But the winds have already picked up, and there's talk of small craft advisories during the upcoming days. Once we're along the Keys in Hawk Channel, there are no places for us to hide overnight from a NE wind, so we'd be miserable. We are taking our time once again. We'll spend two to three days in Biscayne Bay and benefit from its protection and lighter winds. Then when the weather calms down a bit, we'll continue our travels to Marathon. Who knows...we might actually get there in the next week!

Captain Bob

Carpe Diem

A Return to Vero - New Opportunities?

A Greek philosopher by the name of Epictetus was said to have stated something along these lines: It is difficulties that show what men are. Such a statement perhaps ought to be hanging up in every cruiser's boat. I found the quote in a book I was reading as we returned to Vero Beach after an absence of only two days. It reminded me of one of my own thoughts. I determined that unforeseen difficulties might motivate real discouragement and frustration. However, we should rather look at such as opportunities to demonstrate our highest and best self. I have found that in most cases these difficulties are not unsolvable. It's just that they are inconvenient. Overcoming such obstacles can bring an added sense of satisfaction...especially if we don't loose our sense of balance when it first shows up.

You may ask why I'm writing about difficulties and obstacles at this point. Well, it seems that the fresh water pump installed last year under warranty - a pump that is supposed to outlive the engine – had an unusually short life. This time I get it replaced not under warranty. I became aware of this difficulty the day we left Vero Beach. We debated for a bit whether we should move along and find some other place to get it replaced – perhaps even going to Marathon before the repair. But I was concerned that the leak might get bad enough to prevent further travel in some place where there is no source for the repair.

Additionally, our exhaust fan was sounding like it was on its last legs and the engine was not running as smoothly as it should. It appeared that perhaps the primary fuel filter needed replacement. After replacing it, however, I found that the problem was something other than a fuel filter. We were already heading back to Vero Beach when I also noticed that the alternator was charging the batteries at close to 16 volts. For those who are unfamiliar with boats' 12 volt systems, many devices run the risk of getting cooked at that high a voltage. It seemed that our problems were just continuing to add up much too quickly.

I soon found a place for us to drop the anchor for the night so I could shut the engine off, called tech support for Balmar (our regulator was of this brand) and got some great help in short order. The answer to the high voltage turned out to be a loose battery cable to one of the batteries. I made a temporary repair, so we could continue our travel the next day. (Those who are interested in the details can email me for them. I won't bother other blog readers.) I learned the next day upon undertaking the rest of the travel back to Vero that the fan and the engine speed issues were both related to this one cable. When I got back to Vero Beach, I'd buy a new cable and solve all three issues.

Now you may be thinking that the troubles are all behind us now that I am working on each and finding solutions. But no, that's not quite the end. Once we were back, the outboard motor's kill switch fell apart. For those unfamiliar with modern outboards, the kill switch is supposedly a safety device that shuts off the engine. Once it fell apart, the engine wouldn't start. After going through a bit of frustration that mounted even more when I learned that the replacement was way over priced and would have to be ordered, perhaps causing us to remain in Vero Beach even longer than the time needed to replace the water pump.

I was determined to see all this as a challenge to be met and overcome, so I did my best to remain calm and think through the solution. In the end I found a relatively inexpensive solution that was locally available. The outboard is working fine now. The only thing we continue to wait for is the water pump. At least this time it appears that the parts didn't have to come from Japan as they did a year ago.

So how did I keep my cool (for the most part, that is) you may ask? I sat down and thought about the above quote and then realized that none of these problems put us in any danger. The delay would not greatly impact our ability to get to Marathon prior to most others headed that way this fall. We would not be prevented from visiting friends or stopping at places we wanted to see along the way. It's not like we had a two week vacation that was now messed up. We would be delayed about 10 – 12 days, the cost of the repair was unplanned, but we could accommodate the cost and the delay. It's likely that the daily temperatures in Marathon will have cooled a bit, making our life down there all the more comfortable when we do arrive. Life was still good to us. And with these thoughts in mind, I was able to focus on what will hopefully be the best, most efficient approach to getting our boat back traveling once again.

By the way, we have managed to get some projects out of the way while we await the parts. Sandra has also finished another basket and completing a painting. (See end of this blog entry.) I managed to complete several small maintenance tasks and also get out for an afternoon's sail in our dinghy. We went swimming at the beach, enjoying the 81 degree water temperature.

So while this return to Vero was unplanned, it has been a reasonable stop. And aside from our eagerness to be moving south again, we continue to enjoy life.

Carpe Diem

Captain Bob

This painting of flamingos from the Butterfly Conservatory in Key West.

Sandra's latest basket

Summer Road Trip Comes to an End

Since my last update to this blog, we have done a bit of travel while the boat has remained in Vero Beach once again. Although we were away from the boat for about a month and a half, it has seemed like a much longer time. In part, this is probably due to our busy schedule while on the road. We visited friends and family at seven different stops while also spending a week camping in the Blue Ridge Mountains with enjoyable hiking and exploring around Asheville. We did some hiking in New Hampshire while visiting Sam and her family and spent two+ very enjoyable days on the Maine coast. It was another great trip, but I am glad to be back home once again – even if the weather here in Vero Beach is much more summer-like then we needed. (We've also found that this is called the rainy season here.)

Of course, “home” has come to take on a different meaning for us. We spent most of our lives thinking of home as “a house in a particular place”. We continue to struggle a bit with the reality of this common definition of “home”, since our current definition no longer seems to have a particular location attached. The boat certainly feels like home. After all, we've lived in it for nearly seventeen years – much longer than any other dwelling. As far as “place” is concerned, it is currently Vero Beach, but will soon become Marathon for several months, then who knows...

Our plan has been to spend the month of September here at a slip. We knew from last year's experience that we'd want power from the dock for air conditioning. We also knew we'd have a few projects to tackle, and those tasks would be more easily accomplished with the boat at the dock. The resources we'll likely need are easily accessible – most of the time. We expect to stay long enough for the weather to begin cooling just a bit and for the greatest threat of hurricane season to be over.

One of the projects was to either rebuild the raw water pump on the engine or replace it. Since I hate to waste that which is still serviceable, my preference is to rebuild the current pump. Unfortunately I've never done this before, so I hired the local mechanic to do the job and allow me to watch, so the next time I could do it myself. This turned out well. The parts cost less than $30. The new pump would have cost 10 times that amount. I bought extra bearings, so the next rebuild will cost nothing but my time and perspiration.

Upon my return I learned that the battery charger no longer worked, so I had to replace this unit as well. It wasn't something I could have rebuilt, and it was nearly 17 years old, so it owed my nothing. My only challenge here was to buy the correct replacement unit. In the process, I learned that the sales people from whom I bought it don't always know as much about the units they sell as they think. At least one suggested that I call tech support at the company prior to installation. That was a good suggestion, since I had purchased the wrong unit. After at least three trips to West Marine and three different chargers, I finally had what I needed to install the appropriate new charger. Glad I had the car here to make those trips, since West Marine was about 15 miles away.

While I was tackling these and other projects, Sandra was getting the boat's interior back in shape and dealing with some of the teak finish work. Together we will manage to get the boat ready to leave Vero and head further south by early October.

We're looking forward to that trip. There are a few stops we especially like such as Peanut Island near the Lake Worth Inlet for snorkeling, South Beach, Miami for some people watching and a stop at Whole Foods while we are there, Key Biscayne for some beach walking and pleasant paths at the state park along with the trip down through Biscayne Bay before heading to Marathon. Once we arrive in boot Key Harbor in Marathon, we'll get to see friends connected with the marina and Tai Chi class while we await boating friends who will arrive a bit later in the fall. You see, if geography is important in the definition of “home,” then Marathon has become one of several homes for us. We spend enough of the year in other places to really enjoy coming back once again.

Carpe Diem

Captain Bob

Summer Photos

We visited this Buddhist temple with Sandra's sister Paula.
 It's the largest such Thai Buddhist temple outside of Thailand.

My sister Kathy, her husband Mike and daughter Tina took us to the
Biltmore Estate in Asheville - largest home in US.

Jenn and Kaya joined us on our camping adventure

The Blue Ridge Mountains were spectacular!

We hiked to the top of this, but we began the trip above 5000 feet.
Still a good hike.

My tree-hugger daughter Sam hiked up
Mt. Chocorua in NH with me.

The rest of her family, including husband Jeremy and three grandsons
Nathan, Chris and Ryan join us for a hike up Mt. Kearsarge.

South Freeport, ME where we ate our first Maine lobster of the year.

Scenes like this one of Potts Harbor in Casco Bay encourage us to make another
sailing trip to Maine next year.

Adventure in the Bahamas

For those of you who have not heard from us since we left for the Abacos, I should begin this by assuring you that we returned safely prior to Arthur's arrival in the Bahamas and south Florida. We actually arrived in Florida on Sunday, June 29^th, a day before tropical depression #1 started causing trouble for the Abacos and the Gulf Stream. While not planned that way because we knew nothing of the developing tropical depression, we were fortunate to travel back with flat seas and no storms.

This near miss with the storm was actually a sample of the weather we missed during our two week stay. We missed the worst of the thunderstorms that were showing up over there on a regular basis beginning with the evening we arrived on the Little Bahama Bank. We enjoyed lots of sun, and only a couple of storms caught up with us. The weather was pretty warm. In fact we never saw anything lower than 80 degrees during our entire stay. Most days were in the mid to upper 80s with intense sunshine. The shady spots were quite pleasant. The water was warm as well. While we never got a water temperature report while we were over there, we did see from the Weather Channel upon our return that the water temperature on the Bank was 88 degrees. We found water warmer and cooler than that during our stay, but we never had a problem adjusting to the water...just pop right in anytime. In fact, we did that a lot to cool off, but this only helped a bit, since it was so warm. We also did a bit of snorkeling and saw lots of interesting critters under the surface from the normal reef fish to more unusual including a moray eel, sea turtles, rays, large sea stars, live conchs and several barracudas up to four feet in length. In spite of warnings about sharks, we never saw one.

The beaches there were beautiful, as you might expect, but also generally rather uncrowded even though this

is supposed to be their busy season. The beach sand was remarkably fine grained which added to the quality of the beach settings. The water clarity was always good. Sometimes offering visibility in the 40+ ft range and other times only in the 25 ft range. This isn't up to what one would expect in the Exumas, but the Abacos are much more heavily populated with people and boats. It's always a bit surprising to be traveling along out of sight of any land and yet be able to look over the side and clearly see the bottom slide by. That's what it's like on the Little Bahama Bank.

So that's the overview of the trip. Below I've provided something closer to a daily update to let all know where we spent time.

We (that is Sandra and Maddie and me along with our daughter Jennifer and her dog Kaya) left Vero Beach on June 11th and headed south on the ICW to Peck Lake, merely a wide spot in the ICW adjacent to a state park and beach. The area is shallow, but there is a channel that gets us into an anchorage with no issues. The day was full of thunderstorms around us, but we managed to be lucky enough to miss any real storms.

Here I learned that our anchor windlass wouldn't work. Not sure what the deal is, but I'll be pulling the anchor up by hand for the foreseeable future till I am in one spot long enough to deal with it.

The next day we continued our travel to the Lake Worth Inlet by Palm Beach and Peanut Island. We arrived early enough to get the dogs over to Peanut Island for some exercise and then returned without them for a bit of snorkeling. At the park on Peanut Island an artificial reef has been developed to attract fish. It makes for some pretty good snorkeling in clear water.

The weather and seas forecast for the next day looked appealing, so we awoke and headed out toward the

This may be the best way to deal with a long trip.

east the next morning. Our plan, after some debate, was to head straight over to the Abacos and check in at Green Turtle Cay. This would require an overnight sail across the Little Bahama Bank. All went well across the Gulf Stream with little wave action. Approaching the Banks, we were treated to an amazing view. The water turns from a deep purplish blue to bright turquoise in a matter of a few feet. The depth there rises very quickly from more than a thousand feet to about 30 feet. Thanks to a bit of a boost from the Gulf Stream, we managed this portion of the trip in 2 hours less than we'd planned.

This sunrise greeted us as we arrived in the Abacos.

By evening the clouds began to build and a storm approached. We tried to outmaneuver the weather by heading south some to Mangrove Cay where we could anchor if the weather really turned nasty. However, it just seemed to dissipate over time, so we changed course once again to regain our earlier course. The rest of the night went quietly and we enjoyed a pretty sunrise over the northern Abacos. We dropped the anchor at Green Turtle Cay by 9:30 that morning, and I went ashore to locate the customs office. The process went smoothly and provided my first of many pleasant experiences with locals of the Bahamas. They are a friendly people. For those wondering, the entry fee for boats over 30 feet is still $300. We'd heard rumors of a change, but they proved false.

After getting the dogs ashore and we explored a little. We were looking for a beach with little success until we came upon a resident in a golf cart. (This is common transportation on many of the smaller cays.) He gave us a ride to a beach, but it turned out to be much farther away than we were prepared to walk back from. In the end we rented a cart for the afternoon and explored much of the island. While there were cute shops and friendly people, this was not our favorite cay. From there we moved on south to Great Guana Cay. The beach is great; the people seem friendly; and the atmosphere is laid back. This was one of our favorite stops – enough that we stopped here a second time as we passed by late in our visit. From there we made a brief stop at a small island known for good shells then is was on to Marsh Harbor. This is the third largest town in the Bahamas (but only 6,000 residents) and the hub of the Abacos with respect to supplies. We visited a big grocery store sort of like what we'd find back here. The food is more expensive, but lots of

A landmark at Hope Town

Hope Town and the harbor from the top of the lighthouse.

stuff was available. We also did some laundry while we were here and bought some local rum before moving on to Hope Town. This is one of the more popular tourist stops in the Abacos with lots of cute houses to rent, restaurants to enjoy and a lighthouse that attracts lots of photos.

Tahiti Beach

Then it was off to Tahiti Beach, a beautiful one that is aptly named. We did a bit of snorkeling here, enjoying especially clear water and lots of fish. We continued south to Little Harbor. This is at the southern end of the Abacos. It's a cute harbor with little there but a bar and sculpture studio. The water was quite clear here, but the anchorage was rolly due to its proximity to the ocean inlet.

This was as far south as we traveled before heading back up the way we'd come. As we headed back up, we spent a night at Man-O-War Cay. This was a cute town that wasn't as geared to tourists as Hope Town, but similar in other ways. The settlers here came over from the colonies after the revolution, apparently loyal to Mother England. Lots of churches here for a very small community.

Our next stop was Treasure Cay. This is a resort community developed from nothing. Most of the people

Treasure Cay beach with a bit of weather in the distance

who work here live in Marsh Harbor, more than a half hour's drive. There is no real town beyond the stores and restaurants established to support the vacation homes, condos and rentals that have been built. The highlight of this stop had to be the beach. It's promoted as one of the ten best beaches in the world. I can't confirm that view, but only because I haven't seen much of the world. But it was a beautiful beach with fine sand and clear water. Again, not crowded like US beaches. We got water and fuel here and did some laundry. Or to be more accurate, we had some laundry

Jenn in the pool at Treasure Cay

done here. We hand over a bundle and get it back clean and nicely folded for $8 a load. (This isn't a lot more than we spend to do it ourselves in Marathon.)

We left Treasure Cay with a general plan for final stops before our return to the States. Although we'd spent less than two weeks here, we'd managed to see and do quite a bit. One reason for this is that the islands are so close together. Some were only 5 or 6 miles apart and a long sail would be perhaps 20 miles. So even on travel days, most of our time was spent exploring one island or another – not traveling between them.

We really liked Great Guana Cay, so we decided to stop there for one more day before heading out. We wanted to go to the beach there and stop by a bar/resort called Nipper's. This is an outside hangout with a bar two small pools, a gift shop and restaurant in addition to some cabins. From there you walk down a sand dune to another beautiful beach. The place is laid back. For example, the pool use doesn't require that you buy some food or drink. As you get to the beach, you'll find a stack of beach umbrellas next to a sign. The sign tells you the beach umbrellas are for your use. They just ask that you return it when done. There are also beach chairs available. At other places, we'd have to pay for these. For example two chairs and an umbrella at Treasure Cay costs $30 per day.

From Great Guana Cay, we began our trek back...at a relaxed pace. We stopped at an uninhabited Cay for

One of the many critters we saw...the sea star, that is

our first night out - Powell Cay. We explored the shoreline on both the bay side and the ocean side and collected a few shells. Then it was off to Double Breasted Cay. This was as far as we traveled north in the Abacos. We were told there are more sharks around here, but we didn't see any. We did see a few swirls in the water that appeared to have been caused by large fish, but we didn't see what caused them. Up here in the north where there are fewer inhabitants and few visitors, we found a number of living conchs and several shells that people had already cleaned out to eat the animal. Conchs are quite popular here, sort of like lobsters are in Maine.

Sandra & Jenn on a sandbar at Double Breasted Cay

The weather forecast for the next day looked good for a Gulf Stream crossing, so we decided to take advantage of it. Our plan was to sail across the Little Bahama Banks during the day and then do a night crossing of the ocean, coming in to Ft. Pierce Inlet after sunrise and then up the ICW to Vero Beach where we began this little adventure. All went well. We had some threats of stormy weather, but nothing materialized. The ocean was relatively calm, but we had to watch out for the several cruise ships which passed fairly close by. It wasn't till we go in to Florida that we first heard about a developing tropical low pressure that had a chance at developing into something more serious. If we'd stayed in the Bahamas another day or two, I'd be writing this now from over there instead of here. We feel quite fortunate that we made the trip when we did.

More beautiful water

It's not all beautiful sand beaches, however.

A small town church, typical of the island communities

So now we are back and getting our lives organized for the next adventures and resting up a bit as well. We will stay here for another week before heading out by car to visit family and friends up north for a month and a half. So our next boat travel will come in the fall sometime. I'll plan to provide an update as we approach that time.

In the meantime, enjoy the summer.

Captain Bob

Carpe Diem

Back up to Vero Beach

Although we traveled familiar territory since the last entry of this blog, each trip is a bit new and different. We get to see things we missed on earlier trips or just happened to be there at the right time this trip. The travel went well with cooperative weather most of the time. We got in the water for more exploring, saw the sights and sounds of the city and lots in between. Here is a chronological report:

Sunday, May 25^th

We ended up staying at Rodriquez Key for two nights. Part of the reason for this was the fact that we wanted to avoid traveling to Miami in the middle of the Memorial Day weekend. Saturday we took some time to kayak in the shallow water near the island. It was shallow enough that we couldn't have used the dinghy with the outboard. It was interesting to see several rays swimming around. Sandra was startled when she saw a 5-6 foot shark heading right for her in her inflatable kayak. It turned out to be a nurse shark and quite harmless, but for a moment it was a bit scary.

Sunday we continued our journey north up to Angelfish Creek where we crossed through into Card Sound and Pumpkin Key to anchor for the night. (For those interested, the Creek was plenty deep enough for us near high tide.) It was just an afternoon's trip, since it was only 20 miles or so from Rodriguez Key. What surprised us as we left was the crowd at Rodriguez that day. There's a sand bar just out from the island, and it was the gathering spot for 40 or more boats on the weekend with lots of people in the water. We'd never been through here during busy weekends in the warmer weather, so we were quite surprised. We also noted that the dive/snorkeling site of Molasses Reef was mobbed with boats as well. Fortunately, Card sound that evening was pretty quiet.

Monday, May 26^th

We left Pumpkin Key late morning hoping that the worst of the boater traffic would be calming down by the

We decided to let him have right of way.

time we made it up through Biscayne Bay to Miami. It did still get pretty busy, but not real crazy as it might have been. We had more good sailing in the Bay as well. On the way, we saw a boat that had capsized and partially sunk. Not sure what had happened, but there were a couple of towboats there with large balloons to help keep it afloat. As we entered the Miami Harbor we thought surprises were over for the day, but a large cruise ship came into the ICW channel to turn around. It was a turning basin but not a big one. We had to wait for the ship to do a 180 and head back out of the harbor. The remainder of the travel was uneventful and our planned anchorage near South Beach wasn't crowded.

We spent the day Tuesday visiting South Beach. It's a great place to people watch. We also did a bit of grocery shopping, since there was a Whole Foods and a Fresh Market there. Each time we visit Miami, I am reminded that I could never get a job there that dealt with the public, since I don't speak Spanish. It's as close to feeling like a foreign country as one can get here in the States.

Wednesday, May 28^th

This was to be another travel day. Either we stayed on the ICW to face 30 – 40 bridges by the time we got to West Palm in two days or go out in the ocean and try to make the whole trip in one day. The weather didn't seem to scary, so we opted for the outside route. We figured our time to be in the range of 12 – 13 hours without any help from the wind or currents. Well, we figured wrong. We only went out about 4 miles but got a good boost from the Gulf Stream as well as from a light breeze. Net result: we made the trip in about 9 hours.

We anchored just inside the inlet south of Peanut Island. This gave us a great view of ships coming and going as well as easy access to the park on Peanut Island. Maddie was anxious to get off the boat , since she had been off only once in more than a week aboard. We got over there twice – once with her and then back again for a bit of snorkeling. They had installed an artificial reef just off the beach, so we wanted to explore a little. It was great with lots of fish. The big surprise, however, were the manatees that showed up. It was our first time swimming with manatees. They are such gentle animals. Watching them swim, all I could think of was a man swimming in a big bubble like costume.

Friday, May 30^th

A new way travel on the water...or over it.

We were back “on the road again” the next day, this time heading up the ICW for a short day that got us to an anchorage called Peck Lake. It's not a lake – just a wide spot in the ICW, but it's a pretty spot with just a short walk to an ocean beach. On the way there, we watched something quite unusual. I'm not sure quite how to describe it, but luckily, Sandra took a photo which is included.

Part of the beach was closed off to people. A tern nesting site (it was the nesting season), and the birds were everywhere. And they didn't want us anywhere near them. As we approached the barrier ending our walk, they were buzzing overhead, already unhappy with us. Not wanting to disturb them, we did an about face and walked away.

Saturday, May 31^st

This was the day we made it to our destination – Vero Beach. We noticed the the mooring field was nearly devoid of boats, unlike the scene when most cruisers come through in the late fall or early winter. We picked up a mooring close to the dinghy dock and went in for a real shower. (The shower on the boat is functional but not like one on land.)

We're here for a week or two. Jennifer will join us later this week, and we'll all begin our trip to the Abacos sometime next week when the weather is right for the crossing. The blog may be a little quiet for the next week or so. Without the travel, I'm not sure what will come along to motivate an entry. But until then, whenever then might be, I'll sign off.

Captain Bob

Carpe Diem

Weather and Water Influence our Travel

Wednesday, May 21st

The clouds in the Keys are always interesting,
and the mooring field shows signs of becoming less crowded.

We've done it –left Marathon, that is. We had planned to leave on Monday of this week, but the wind was still blowing with small craft advisories. By today, Wednesday, the winds had settled a bit so we ventured forth. Our plans were to travel on the Florida Bay side of the Keys for a day or so, perhaps traveling to Islamorada before crossing over to Hawk Channel on the ocean side for the rest of the trip north. Then again, we may slip into Biscayne Bay for a day. We aren't sticking to any specific plans, but rather taking each day as it comes. Tonight we'll stay at Cocoanut Key, an anchorage we've been to several times this season. Then tomorrow we'll travel toward Islamorada on the Bay side. Where we end up tomorrow will depend on how much the wind dies and how shallow the channel turns out to be. We draw 5.5 feet and must be careful in the Bay where what's considered deep water is only about 8 feet.

The delay of a couple of days was difficult. It seems that once we set a time in our minds for leaving, we have a hard time moving away from that date. We've learned over time, however, that it doesn't pay to ignore the weather. A standard rule for cruisers is that one should make plans with lots of wiggle room. The weather can prevent travel for several days in some cases. Ignoring the weather can put a boater in an unpleasant or even dangerous position from which it is difficult or impossible to correct once committed.

Saturday, May 24^{th AM}

As I sit here enjoying my first cup of coffee, I can look out on Key Largo and Rodriguez Key. The last two days have gone pretty well even if the results weren't quite what we'd planned initially. We left Cocoanut Key and traveled up Florida Bay past Marathon toward Islamorada as we'd planned. The travel went smoothly with no area that was too shallow for us until we got to Bowlegs Cut. To get to our planned anchorage, we had to pass through this cut and Steamboat Channel. Both of these were shallow. Although we'd made it through in the past,we weren't as confident this time, since the wind had been blowing for days. We've been told that NE winds can blow the water out of the Bay. So I called Towboat US for a little local knowledge and was encouraged not to attempt it. We changed plans and moved over to a nearby anchorage we'd used before and spent the night there.

The wind continued to die down as predicted (what a surprise!), so our travel yesterday was quite pleasant.

Fish at the reef are curious.

The water along the upper Keys is really quite clear in Hawk Channel this time of year. We could easily watch the bottom go by in 18-20 feet of water. Given the light wind and clear water, we opted for a quick stop at Hen and Chickens, a snorkeling spot with mooring balls available. We didn't stay too long, but while we were there, we saw lots of fish and a variety of coral. In fact, as we were about to get in the water, we noticed two good sized barracuda lurking, so Sandra was a bit hesitant, since she had also seen three others by the mooring ball as we approached. But as soon as I got in, they left. The water was as clear and aqua colored as we'd ever seen it at Sombrero Reef. The fish were plentiful as the photo suggests and the coral was varied and also interesting.  The purple sea fans were especially pretty here. This just gets me thinking about the even clearer waters of the Bahamas we'll be heading into in less than a month.

Enjoying clear water at Rodreguiz Key

Because we never got quite as far as originally planned on the Bay side, we're a little ahead of schedule now. We wish to avoid the greater Miami area during Memorial Day Weekend, so we'll cool our jets here for a day before moving on. Then we'll either head up to Key Biscayne via Angelfish Creek or up to Key Biscayne and No Name Harbor. We've been through Angelfish Creek before. (This takes us from Hawk Channel – the ocean side – to Card Sound which then leads into Biscayne Bay.) It too is a bit shallow. We've got to make the transit near high tide, and we're not sure about the impact of the recent wind. I'll probably call Towboat US again for a little reassurance. In the meantime, we'll enjoy the sunny weather with 83 degrees and great swimming and relaxing here near Key Largo. It's a tough life...and all that sort of stuff.

Carpe Diem

Captain Bob

Our Season in Boot Key Harbor Comes to an End

Here it is, the middle of May, and we're still in Marathon. But we are currently in the process of doing things here for the last time before we leave. This includes the last walk to Publix for food; the last run down to Burdines for outboard motor fuel (they have ethanol-free gas); our last Tai Chi classes; and our last run up to Sombrero Beach to clean the dinghy bottom. (We see clear evidence that the cleaning is needed.) I'm also scraping the barnacles from the bottom of our boat for the last time this season.

Since my last update, we've had company and also gotten our first aerial views of the Keys. We decided to

take a helicopter ride around Marathon. What a spectacular view the multicolored water is from the air! It was Sandra's first ride in a helicopter and only my second. It was really fun.

Water comes in a variety of colors.

Samantha, her husband Jeremy and our three grandsons came down for a week. Then my sister Kathy and her family came for a visit. As they left we followed them up to West Palm Beach for a family wedding. My other sister Mary Jo and her husband Scott hosted us. We left our car there along with our bikes. We'll be leaving Marathon shortly and must move the car first. They kindly agreed to have us leave it there until we can retrieve it once we are in Vero Beach.

As we progress through our last week in Boot Key Harbor stocking up on food and fuel, we are also trying to get everything working. That's not always too easy. Our fridge died the day before Kathy was due to arrive. And for the price of a first rate kitchen model, we get the basics that will keep our food cold. That's because it's for a boat. You probably already know what “boat” stands for if you've been the owner of one for a bit, but I'll pass it along anyway – Break Out Another Thousand. I also needed to repair the HF radio, so we could depend on it for weather updates when we go to the Bahamas in June and could contact others for assistance in the event of an emergency. Unlike being in the Keys, our phones don't pick up the Internet there without significant cost. And the VHF radio works only for limited distances. The repair was not major and appears to have been completed successfully.

Sandra is doing much of the provisioning. I help carry stuff, but she does the meal planning, etc. We expect to be cruising around the keys for a week or so before heading up to Vero Beach. We'd like to have all we need for that time, so we don't have to find a grocery near where we anchor. If we need one, we do know where there are a couple within an easy dinghy ride at spots along the way.

The other factor that could delay our departure is the weather. We've had a windy time over the past 10 days or so, and it has yet to abate. We hear that there are cruisers trying to get to the Bahamas who are hold up in Bimini. They need a bit of lighter air before crossing the Bahama Banks, so they're waiting out the wind until they make the jump across. The forecast keeps changing, so we're hopeful that conditions will be appropriate for our departure early next week.

If you are still reading this, you may be wondering what our next plans include. They are a bit more adventurous than the trip to Vero, although that should be interesting in itself. We hope to stop at points along the Keys before entering Biscayne Bay and exploring that for a day or two. Then it's on to Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and Lake Worth before getting to Vero Beach. The total trip will cover at least 250 miles.

Then early next month, our daughter Jennifer will be joining us for a trip over to the Abacos in the Bahamas. We hope to stay there for two to three weeks. Again, the weather is the key factor. We don't want to cross the Gulf Stream in rough weather, and we must always be alert to the potential of hurricanes, since the season officially begins on June 1^st. This will be our second trip over there, but last time we went in the spring as the water was warming up in the Abacos and many other US cruisers were there also. This time will be warmer and possibly with fewer boats. Jenn went once before as well. She went in June several years ago, so this should be similar to her earlier experience and bring back memories of that first trip. We are all looking forward to a great trip.

So as I have mentioned here several times, we are leaving Marathon in a few days. And it is with mixed

Sam, Jeremy and the boys enjoying a bit of paradise at the Dolphin Research Center

emotions that we do so. As you have already read, we do have some interesting plans for travel during the next month or so. But we really like this little corner of paradise. We may be prejudiced in our statements about it being a bit of paradise, but all those who have visited us down here have agreed wholeheartedly. Some will say that the summers here are hot. That's true, but the summers are at least as hot in Virginia and in many other parts of the country. Because we are on the water, our nighttime temps don't vary much from the daytime temperatures. That is perhaps the only difference with this island life compared to the mainland. We are at some risk of a hurricane here, but we've had to change plans in the past for hurricanes in Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, Massachusetts and Maine. So this isn't necessarily all that different. We will miss being here, but we also look forward to our return in the fall.

Captain Bob

Carpe Diem

Those Amazing Dolphins

Life continues to go well for us on Carpe Diem in Boot Key Harbor, Marathon. Many of our winter friends have left already, but we were glad to catch one couple, Terri and Larry Howard aboard Vixen. We got them over for a meal two nights ago. They began their journey back up to Jacksonville yesterday morning. The mooring field is far from empty, however, and we've met a few couples on boats who will be here for the summer.

Some of our activities continue as they have. For instance, I spent yesterday at the Dolphin Research Center (DRC) volunteering as I now do once a week. As I mentioned in the last entry, I do this, in part at least, as a way of giving back to the community from which we get a great deal. I do have an interest in marine mammals as do many people, and I'm happy to help an organization whose mission is to study dolphins to learn more about them while treating them very well. While my volunteer activity does not require any specific background or expertise, my presence there gives me the chance to learn quite a bit about dolphins and a few other animals as well.

So what have I learned? For starters, I've come to appreciate all that goes into such an operation. There are 24 dolphins there now. Most of them were born there while a few are retired from active performing at other places. Two have been rescued – one from a shark attack when it was quite young and also seemed to have lost its mother. The other was rescued from the BP oil spill, also at a young age. They are all healthy now, but they could not survive in the wild at this point. Survival for dolphins is not something driven by instinct. They need to be trained by their mother to hunt for food and avoid dangers. At the DRC they don't get that training, since the mothers never learned it either. They get up to 25 lbs. of restaurant quality fish every day, so there's no motivation to try to catch food. In fact the lagoons they live in are full of fish that could provide them food, but the dolphins ignore them. Oh and by the way, the fish the 24 dolphins eat comes at a hefty price – about $800,000 a year. The fish come frozen and are stored in a huge freezer. Each dolphin gets a specific diet which is prepared daily. Their diets all vary depending on size, age and other factors. As this diet is prepped, the fish are examined and those not up to standard are rejected. The rejects come to as much as 50 lbs a day. I was glad to learn that it's not thrown away but given to a local bird rehabilitation center where the food standards don't need to be as high.

So when I think about the food bill together with the trainers and research workers plus those who deal with the public along with grounds keepers, I begin to understand the reasons for the prices they charge visitors to come in and to interact with the dolphins. This is a non-profit operation, and all their support comes through admissions and memberships.

These curious creatures love to swim along the shore of their lagoon people watching.

I've learned a bit about the dolphins themselves, as you might expect. For instance, they can stay submerged for seven minutes; they can put on a burst of speed up to about 25 mph; the young are nursed by their mother or a nurse maid for up to two years; they live in the wild to an age for about 25 years, but in captivity where they are cared for well, they can live longer. The oldest known dolphin in captivity is in its early 60s. The oldest at DRC is 52. Her name is Molly. She is a descendent of one of the original Flippers from the 1960s movie by that name. (In fact the movie was filmed here.) Her grandparent was one of the stunt doubles. It seemed that the dolphin who starred in the movie wasn't particularly athletic, so stunt doubles did the jumps and other such stuff. Molly still performs on occasion. Her most interesting peculiarity is her interest in scarfs. She collects them and hides them in her lagoon, bringing them out now and then.

A speed run

Trainers spend quite a bit of time with the dolphins. The training has more than one purpose. Of course this allows them to show off the dolphins to the public, but it also provides exercise for a mammal that in the wild travels quite a bit and thus get plenty of exercise. This training also provides a platform for some of the research. Some of the activities they performed, for instance, are not taught by the trainer but by other dolphins. They learn and copy. In fact, according to research done at this point, the dolphin is the best imitator next man – better than monkeys, for instance. I could go on about what I've learned of dolphin behavior, but this is probably more than enough for a blog entry. For those who might want to learn more, feel free to respond to this, and I'll try to answer any questions.

The coming month will include lots of activities for us. Our daughter Samantha and her family including our grandsons Nathan, Chris and Ryan will be arriving tomorrow. They'll be here for a week. Then my sister Kathy and her family arrive for a few days before we go up to West Palm for a family wedding. Then we'll prepare to leave Marathon and head slowly up to Vero Beach. There our other daughter Jenn will join us for a trip over to the Abacos for three or four weeks. So we'll be busy, but hopefully not too busy to continue this blog.

Captain Bob

Carpe Diem

While I was volunteering, Sandra continued to work on baskets.  This is her rainbow basket.