Friday, December 4th (Day 67)
I counted the days wrong on my last blog. This was actually day 67. I don't think anybody noticed...
We thought we would be in Stuart until Saturday but the weather window for off-shore to The Keys decided to come a little earlier. Instead, we are leaving today for the run to Lake Worth then off-shore tomorrow around Ft. Lauderdale, Miami and Key Biscayne. Good thing we got all our boat fixes and groceries done yesterday!
The cruise from Stuart to Lake Worth is only about 35 miles but there are 8 bridges that have to open for us along the way. The first 4 bridges are "on demand" which means they can open (or not open) at any time. The last 4 bridges are on a schedule - most open on the hour and 1/2 hour.
We had our anchor up at 7:45am and motored over to the Roosevelt Bridge where we had to wait about 15 minutes for a train to pass on the train bridge right behind the highway bridge.
It was a nice day weather-wise and no problems as we zoomed through the next 3 bridges without taking the engine out of gear (no waiting). This cruise takes us through Hobe Sound which is lined with huge mansions and golf courses. Around this same time we passed 1,000 ICW miles from Norfolk which is where the ICW starts at Mile 0.
We slowed for the Donald Ross bridge because it was only 3.5 miles from the Indiantown Road Bridge and we had an hour before it would open for us. Then, the last 2 bridges were spaced just right for our speed and we zoomed through them.
On the last leg to the anchorage, we were passed by this large mega-yacht. We see a lot of powerboats that I call "space ships" because of all the curves and windows. This boat took that to a whole new level. It was 92 feet long and had so many windows in the hull I couldn't understand how it held together in any waves. That dark stripe down by the waterline is window too.
The Lake Worth lake is a great place to anchor and you can find protection from almost any wind direction. But, we wanted to make an early start out the Lake Worth Inlet tomorrow morning and leaving from the lake would add over an hour to the trip. So, we continued passed the lake and anchored only about 1/2 mile from the Lake Worth Inlet. This is a huge anchorage but is 95% full of boats on private moorings (or empty moorings blocking us from anchoring). I found a spot that would be close to the channel but still out of the way. It looked like 2 boats next to us were also setting up for an ocean passage tomorrow.
We anchored at 3:30pm and settled down for the night. The only chore left for us before heading out into the ocean was to drop the dinghy and haul the outboard onto the deck-rail mount using a block and tackle off our mizzen boom. I don't like the 95 pound outboard adding to the swing of the dinghy when we are in the ocean. Since the tide was really ripping by the boat, we waited until the tide change around 5pm when the currents were much less. It would have been hard to keep the dinghy next to our boat with the current trying to take it away.
No problems with the outboard and we had it stowed on deck about 15 minutes later. I cleaned up a few things on the back deck but we were basically ready to go. The forecast called for slight west winds and seas of only 2 feet but 11 seconds apart. You don't even feel those. They just slowly pick up the boat and slowly set it back down. Here's hoping the forecast is right!
Saturday, December 5th (Day 68)
I had the alarm set for 5am and got right up to get the boat underway. The earlier we leave, the more options we would have in the evening. I pulled up the anchor by flashlight and by 5:30am we were motoring out of the anchorage to the Lake Worth inlet and into the ocean. The two other boats next to us followed us out.
There were almost no waves on the ocean and we turned south with both the mainsail and jib helping our speed with a light (6-7 knot) wind from the west. Last year we had higher west winds for this passage and sailed the whole way. Not today. Bummer.
A short time later the eastern sky brightened and the Sun rose behind the off-shore clouds. I took this picture of us motor-sailing past Boynton Beach. What a beautiful day on the Atlantic!
As I texted to my friend Dean, it was almost too nice a day on the ocean. Everybody was out enjoying the calm, warm waters - JetSkys to Sportfishing boats to Megayachts. I even saw this gent arm-paddling a surfboard 1/2 mile off-shore. That was a first for us.
We sailed right by this guy and he looked over at me so he wasn't lost or in trouble. Just out enjoying the day.
Our predicted west wind turned from the south in the afternoon. It was only 8-10 knots so didn't slow us down too much or cause bigger waves. I was just bummed that we lost our helping west wind. We pulled in all our sails around Ft. Lauderdale and motored the rest of the day.
In the afternoon we had a decision to make. Where did we want to stop for the night.
1. Go in Government Cut (Miami) and anchor near the stadium. We could be there by about 4:30pm
2. Continue south around Key Biscayne and come up into northern Biscayne Bay to anchor near the Key Biscayne Yacht Club (one of our favorite anchorages even through we were struck by lightning here in 2011).
3. Use the Biscayne Channel to run up into Biscayne Bay and turn south to anchor somewhere in the dark.
4. Keep going down the Hawk Channel toward Key Largo.
The major problem with the first two was it was a beautiful, calm Saturday night in Miami. Those anchorages would be packed with locals and loud music. The 4th choice would make for a very long day. The first decent anchorage was about 30 miles away and we wouldn't get there until 10 or 11pm.
We decided on option 3 and turned up the Biscayne Channel around 5pm. The Sun was just setting as we motored by Stiltsville which consists of fishing camps built on stilts so they stay out of the water. They are located in the shallow entrance to Biscayne Bay and nobody knows how they survive the hurricanes. Laura got this colorful sunset shot with the stilt houses.
A short time later we turned SW down Biscayne Bay and I was looking for an anchorage not too far away. As I looked up, I saw this after-sunset glow in the western sky shooting yellow-orange rays over our heads. It was pretty cool.
I checked the weather forecast from several sources and they all said calm winds tonight. I pulled away from the channel and anchored near the shallows in the middle of Biscayne Bay. I never do this. Absolutely no protection from any wind angle but it turned out to be a great spot. Laura did have to use a flashlight to see the anchor chain markers so I don't know if this qualifies as anchoring before dark. Neither of us like anchoring after dark.
Our northern view was the Miami, Key Biscayne and Dinner Key skylines. A very pretty place when the winds are calm. After dinner we watched the British Baking Show Christmas Edition and more episodes of The Repair Shop with the TV hooked to my iPhone. Two of our favorite shows - both on Netflix.
Sunday, December 6th (Day 69)
I woke up amazed that the boat almost never moved at all during the night. No wind so no waves. We just slowly bobbed around the anchor. It was very nice and comfy. We did have a fan blowing fresh air on us from a window. It only got down to about 72 in the cabin.
Morning brought cloudy skies but warm weather. It was the first time in a while that I just got up and slipped on shorts - my typical "Keys" uniform.
We took our time getting ready as there was no hurry. Today we were going only about 20 miles down Biscayne Bay to anchor near Key Largo. Tomorrow there was a storm coming up from the Caribbean with south winds clocking west then north. I planned on anchoring along the SW shore of Card Sound where we would be very protected from the south and west winds. During the day tomorrow we would move the boat about 3 miles to the south shore of Pumpkin Key where we would be protected from the north winds later in the day. That's the plan anyway....
As we pulled the anchor and got underway, I took this picture of the Miami skyline in the morning Sun behind us.
It was great to be back in The Keys. The last few days had been very calm so the water was very clear but "Keys Green". When I pulled up the anchor, I could see it come off the bottom.
Laura was up on the bow looking at the bottom going by and spotting things like old crab traps and starfish on the bottom. I surprised her with this picture. Very calm water today too!
No problems with the shallow areas we had to navigate and we anchored at 12:30pm in the spot I had selected. There is only a light wind to cool the boat this afternoon but the bigger winds from the south are supposed to pick up tonight. Windfinder.com tells me the winds are supposed to pick up around 1am but not hit 25-35 until 7-9am. At least I'll be able to see where we are getting blown!
We will sit tomorrow (except for moving the boat behind Pumpkin Key when the winds clock north) then head out Anglefish Creek to the Hawk Channel on Tuesday. I don't know if we can make Marathon in one day from here. It's about 60 miles and the days are short now. Winds are supposed to be NW at 10-15 so we might be able to sail the whole way with calm seas because the winds will be from the shore.
Even though we have done this trip 30 times, I still get sad when it's almost over. Our adventure is going to end for a couple months while we sit at a dock and enjoy our friends and beautiful Keys winter weather. Hopefully, the Bahamas will loosen their COVID restrictions by February or so and we will spend a few months on their beautiful waters. I'll let you know!
1,527 nautical miles logged since Catskill. Water temp is 73 here. Still a little chilly for swimming.
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