Florida Flats

Dock Fever? – Let’s Visit the Florida “Flats”

Ever since we arrived for our month-long stay, it's been very windy and this has inhibited our plans to explore the surrounding area of Key West by boat; we were getting itchy to push away from the dock. We're usually not interested in taking random boat rides, so when we do sever the dock lines and head out, we like to have a purpose and a plan. Key West, being the southernmost spot in the U.S., is somewhat at the end of the road and although the cruising options for a day out on the water are limited, the choices…

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Shaving Brush Tree Flower

Mother Nature’s Tropical Artwork

Our first walk in Key West led us to find these beautiful tropical flowers (they had fallen below the tree just as you see them here). Apparently, they are from a Pink Bombax, Shaving-Brush Tree, this deciduous tree is native to tropical Mexico. The tree is mostly leafless this time of year, better to see these pink beauties. They start as a brown/yellow banana-shaped bud (below-left) which peels down to reveal the pink "shaving brush" flower within. Just one small reason why we love tropical Key West.

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Kismet Docked, Key West Harbor, Stock Island

United States’ Most Southern Destination, Key West, Florida

After three grueling days camping out on Kismet in the boatyard, putting bottom paint on, we arrived at our most southern destination for our winter 2012 boating season, Key West – Stock Island actually, one island up from Key West. We'll be docked for a month at Key West Harbour. Stock Island is close enough to Key West to have fun in the popular tourist town when desired and far enough away to enjoy a relaxed marina setting with beach and pool amenities. This year we procured a slip in the outer basin which is lined with mangroves. We are nestled into…

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Kismet Bottom Paint Job

Boat Yard Blues – Part Two

I am truly in the swing of things on day two in the boat yard. The good news is the On & Off product helped de-wax the hull, one of the steps needed to properly prepare the hull for bottom paint. Next, I applied acetone to the hull to assure that all wax, from when the hull came out of the mold, was completely gone. After a good washing, I taped the hull off an inch below the boot stripe then applied a very light 220 grit scuffing followed by a final washing in preparation for the painting, which I…

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Tiny Mah Jongg Game

Mah Jongg Crazy

After the AGLCA Sunset Celebration came to a close, Cheryll (above left) and Jess (above right) and I decided we still had plenty of evening left to play a few games of Mah Jongg in the boater's lounge while the guys watched TV. I always carry a miniature game on board in hopes of bumping into someone who'd like to play or learn to play. It's a crazy game with lots of weird procedures and rules but once you get the hang of it, it's a fun game to play. I had taught Jess to play during the Ranger Tug…

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Friends at AGLA Looper Party

2012 Third Annual Looper “Sunset Celebration”

The 2012 Third Annual Looper "Sunset Celebration" was a huge success with over 120 in attendance. It was a little windy (not a problem for Loopers) – lots of good food was shared along with a chance to reacquaint ourselves with old friends. Thanks, Patricia & George Hospodar for organizing the event and providing Loopers in the area with an opportunity for this fun reunion.

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Dinner with Friends

Tug Nuts Reunite in Marathon

Just a few days before our week-long visit at the Harbour Cay Club in Marathon came to an end, Mike and Jess (below-middle), on Illusions (shown above) and Rich and Cheryll (below-right), on Roam (both couples own Ranger Tugs) joined us and before we knew it, we were having a mini Ranger Tug Rendezvous in Marathon. We had all recently met in Fort Myers Beach during the First Annual Ranger Tug Southern Rendezvous. We communicated often as we were traveling different routes down to the Keys with the hope a get-together would be possible – at least for a few days. As luck would…

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Seven-mile Bridge, Marathon, Florida

Bridge Walk – Seven-Mile Bridge

We got up early this morning to do a four-mile walk on the Seven-Mile Bridge, two miles out and two back. It's a fun walk, we almost always see some aquatic life in the water below while walking. Today we saw several stingrays. The Seven-Mile Bridge is a famous bridge in the Florida Keys. It connects Knight's Key (part of the city of Marathon, Florida) in the Middle Keys to Little Duck Key in the Lower Keys. Among the longest bridges in existence when it was built, it is one of the many bridges on US 1 in the Keys,…

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Snow Crab, Keys Fisheries, Marathon, Florida

Happy Hour Special – Stone Crabs at Keys Fisheries

Amazing as it seems, Jim and I have never tried stone crab claws, so, off we go for the well-known happy hour at Keys Fisheries Restaurant in Marathon. This is a good way to try this seafood special at a great price and we love the atmosphere. We've been here before for lobster Reubens, another unusual treat for boaters from the Great Lakes. We're glad to report the claws, along with the tuna sashimi we also ordered, were absolutely yummy.

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Dinner with Friends

Dining in the Keys with Crew of Chip Ahoy

Dinner in the marina tonight with friends Scott and Cyndi Perkins, on Chip Ahoy. It's always a pleasure to bump into this couple whom we met on our first Great Loop boat trip in 2006. Also from Michigan, Scott and Cyndi sail down Florida's West Coast to the Keys every winter. Cyndi is a talented writer/editor (Cyndi has also written chapter's in both of our books When the Water Calls and Women On Board Cruising). Scott is a gifted musician and performer. Click on the CD covers below to read more about and listen to some of Scott's excellent boating…

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Pot Luck MTOA Party, Marathon, Florida

2012 MTOA Gathering in Marathon

Another fun party in Marathon. Ken Chumley, on Mosey, organized the 2012 MTOA Gathering on the docks of Sombrero Dockside Marina (the same spot as our Tuesday night potluck a few days ago). It was a good time with lots of food and conversation. Lorenzo (Little David), Lisa, Ellen, and Roy (Our Turn) (below) are trying to hide from the sun under that sad little palm tree at 1 Palm Tree Ct. It was a hot one but we don't look to be suffering too much. We also got to meet Pete Donnelly (above - member 0001 - First member…

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Dock Party, Marathon, Florida

Tuesday Night Pot Luck – 1 Palm Tree Court

Tuesday night was the first of three boat parties this week in Marathon. It will be followed by an MTOA get-together on Wednesday night (same spot as tonight – on the docks at Sombrero Dockside Marina) and a Looper Sunset Celebration at Banana Bay Marina on Sunday night. The 1 Palm Tree Ct. gathering (a private event – by invitation only) is held weekly by several of the boats docked close to the restaurant at the marina. Every year they put together a "boater's lounge," so to speak, right on the dock under a sad-looking, half-dead palm tree. They bring…

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Pot Luck MTOA Party, Marathon, Florida

Initiating More Turtles

Jim couldn't wait to initiate Louis and Robert into the Turtle Club (below). Remember the post we made while in Tarpon Springs when Ed initiated us into the club, Turtles Inc.? So if you happen to see Louis or Robert don't forget to ask them, "Are you a turtle?" We had lunch with a group of boaters who are staying at Sombrero Dockside Marina. Diane and Louis, on Bella Luna (left), Phil, on Wonderland (center), Robert and Kay, on C-Life (right), and Alice, also on Wonderland (right in sunglasses). Wade and his daughter Shauna, on Shady Lady met us one morning to…

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Kismet at Dock, Harbour Cay Club, Marathon

Arriving at Harbour Cay Club

We are ultimately on our way to Key West but we're stopping in Marathon for a week to visit with a group of Looper friends who are staying at Sombrero Dockside. Last year when we brought a friend's boat down to Key West for him we found out about this little boat club on the Florida Bay side of the island, we stayed a few days and really liked it. So, back in January, we checked into the possibility of securing a slip for a week in late February. Our chances looked good since a few members would be traveling…

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Alligators

Caught Having a Mid-Day Snooze

How cozy these alligators look – we found them taking a mid-day snooze under the blistering hot sun just along Tamiami Trail in the Everglades. We were towing our boat to Marathon today and decided to stop at this Visitor's Center to see the alligators. They seem to have eluded us during our boat trips through here (probably because it was cold at those times) – I have to say the view we got of them today, from the walkway above them, was excellent. We found them sunning in this drainage ditch in front of the Visitors Center only feet…

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Kismet Docked, Everglades City, Florida

Going Back in Time at Everglade City’s Rod and Gun Club

Our mission today was to leave our anchorage in Russell Pass somewhat early in the morning and head over to Everglades City (located along the Barron River on the boundary of Everglades National Park), about a seven-mile run. We've been hearing about the Rod and Gun Club since our first Great Loop boat trip in 2005. We never quite made it there during our other two trips through the Everglades due to an unalterable schedule. One of the nice things about having a trailerable trawler is you can get to places quickly with a lot of flexibility. The club has…

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Waterway, Everglades City, Florida

On Our Way to Everglade City

We've been through the Everglades twice in the past six years but we've never made it to Everglade City. Today that will change as we are headed there to have lunch at the infamous Rod and Gun Club. A beautiful day to cruise in the Everglades, calm water and clouds that look like jumbo, puffy, cotton balls.

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Manatee trawler

Thanks to all the “Ted’s” Out There

Recently we made a post about meeting Ted, on Manatee (below - left), a very friendly boater whom we spent only about an hour's worth of total time with. We first met Ted while we were both traveling south on the GICW (we slowed down for a short conversation about where we were headed), we finally met up with each other in Goodland, Florida where we anchored near the Calusa Island Marina where Manatee was docked. In an hour's length of total time, I don't think you could say we were good friends but good enough for us to know Ted…

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Kismet Cruising, Everglades, Florida

Valentine’s Day Dinner in Russell Pass – Everglades National Park

Not many women get an opportunity to enjoy a romantic Valentine's Day dinner with their sweetie in a remote setting like our anchorage tonight in Russell Pass – Everglades National Park. It might not appeal to some but I have to tell you I'm lovin' it. We're anchored tonight with two sailboats, one in front of us and one behind us. Showers outside this afternoon and an early dinner on the back deck of Kismet (early because we want to eat outside before the bugs come to eat us). We didn't see any alligators or turtles during our stay, it's…

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Kismet Cruising, Goodland, Florida

Haul Out – Driving to Goodland, Florida to Relaunch

We've completed almost two Great Loop boat trips (a circumnavigation of the Eastern United States from the Heartland Rivers to the North Atlantic Seaboard, Canada and the Great Lakes) and both times we bypassed a few stops we wished we had had time to include in our schedule while in southwest Florida. The first is the little town of Goodland, Florida, just south of Marco Island and the second is Everglades City, at the mouth of the Barron River, on Chokoloskee Bay, just inside of Everglades National Park. Today, we pulled the boat out at Fort Myers Beach and drove to…

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Women at Farmer's Market

Up Early for the Farmer’s Market

   In true boater tradition, Ranger Tug owners still at the rendezvous, Carol, Jess, Cheryll, and I got up early to hit the Farmer's Market about two blocks away from the marina under the San Carlos Blvd. Bridge. It was a small affair but we all found something we needed.

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Boater Friends on Kismet

Cheers with Good Friends

CHEERS... Here's to Here & Here's to There. Whenever we meet up with boaters from our homeport of Charlevoix, Michigan, we have a special toast, and it's always the same. The HERE is always where we currently are and the THERE is always where we love to be and it's always the same... Charlevoix. We've been meeting up with Hal and Marianne (above) in Florida for the last few years. (Hal is our harbormaster in Charlevoix, Michigan and they are both dear friends.)  This year they decided to try the Cape Coral area so it worked perfectly with our schedule. Before we left home, we…

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