Jim and Betty Howe seeing us off from our slip at Banana Bay
Gary and Karen Holtze waving us "Good Bye"
"Liberty" underway
Following the "Emerald Road" to Key Largo
Our first sunset on the "Loop" in Black Water Sound, Key Largo
After
five months at Banana Bay in Slip 21 with silent prayers to God and a blessing
of Holy Water, we left on our next voyage on America’s Great Loop at 7:40 a.m. Much to our delight, our past slip neighbors,
Betty and Jim Howe, were there to help us release our dock lines, electrical
cords, T.V. cables, and water hoses (all those essentials that attach “Reflection”
to dry land). Also on hand to see us off
were; Dockmaster Mike Stachowski, marina neighbors Judy Crawley, Dennis Hanley,
and Karen and Gary Holtze, as well as Karen Mehigen and her cousin, Cindy, whose
husbands, Mike and Bob, would be following us north on the Mehigans’ boat, Liberty”,
while the wives drive their car to their next stop in Key Largo. After final waves, and a nostalgic look back
at our winter home for the last six seasons,
we were on our way with “Liberty” behind us on a beautiful morning with blue skies, temperatures in the high 70s, and
and an east wind of 10-15 knots on Florida Bay.
Traveling on this side of the Florida Keys can be somewhat “tricky”
because of its shallow waters and a large amount of crab traps and lobster pots
which are put out by local fishermen, so that it becomes a real “treat” to
avoid them, since they are often dropped very close together. “Liberty” stayed with us until they reached
Buttonwood Sound in Key Largo where they would anchor and pick up the girls
there and ferry them to their boat by dinghy.
We went on a few miles north to another anchorage in Blackwater Sound,
where we arrived around 2:30 p.m. and a trip of 63 miles. After a rest, we enjoyed cocktails, a
wonderful sunset, and a celebratory first-night steak dinner.
April 8, 20015
We
lifted anchor again at 7:30 a.m., since our plan was to meet up with “Liberty”
around 8 a.m. in the channel as we both headed north to Miami. The weather was very similar to yesterday’s,
with continuing east winds in the 15 knot range. “Reflection’ moved along slowly, and finally “Liberty”
caught up with us on the north side of Jewfish Creek.
Today
we were taking spray across the bow, and eventually experienced drizzle from
clouds that kept forming over the ocean. At about 12:15 p.m., Mike called us to say
that “Liberty” would be parting ways with us at that point, since they were
going east to the Miami Beach Marina for a few days stay, while we were headed
to the Coral Reef Yacht Club in Coconut Grove.
It was great having their company, and we hope to see them again as they
head north with their boat to Rhode Island.
We arrived at the Yacht Club at 1 p.m. after a trip of 41 miles. We were all tied up, when about an hour later,
we were treated to a deluge of un-predicted rain, soon after George had just
hosed off the boat. After checking our
emails (thanks to all of you who have sent us so many “well wishes”), and small
tasks around the boat, we headed into the Yacht Club for dinner. We have been here a number of times and have
always enjoyed their lovely facility and dining cuisine. Tonight was “Pasta Night” with a lovely
buffet where you could pick your own ingredients and the chef would cook them
up. The food was excellent, and we also
met another couple from the Club, who not only chatted with us for awhile, but
also generously sent over drinks to our table.
It was another wonderful evening!
Fair winds to you!
ReplyDeleteSteve & Kim
Maya