GLORY DAYS ON THE GREAT LOOP

Thursday, April 12, 2012

THE OTHER HOLLYWOOD.....FL

PAT CROSSING THE HOLLYWOOD BRIDGE

DAY 256; FRI. MARCH 30, 2012
DEP. DINNER KEY (mm 1095) 08:45 ARR. HOLLYWOOD, FL (mm1072) 12:30

D. 26.3 sm / 3862.3

We left Dinner Key thru the mooring channel and into the north section of Biscayne Bay. As we get closer to Miami, the bay narrows to a wide channel with the city of Miami to the west, and the port of Miami, the home of many cruise ships to the east. It’s not the natural beauty we have been seeing, but is very impressive, especially the Miami skyline. North of Miami the trip to Hollywood was mostly through highly populated areas with expensive homes and condos lining both banks of the river. When we arrived at the Hollywood Municipal Marina we pulled up to the fuel dock to empty the holding tank and get our slip assignment. The slips here have no finger piers so we have to depart the boat from the bow, which turned out to be next to impossible, or from the stern into the dinghy to get ashore, but there was no place to leave the dinghy. Fortunately the Harbormaster decided to put us on the end of “D” dock since the slip owner was away for a few days. We were totally alone on the dock and were able to get on and off the boat easily. That evening we took the bikes over the Hollywood Blvd. Bridge and went to dinner at Oopah, a Greek restaurant on the eastern shore of the ICW. The food was excellent. Instead of butter or oil with our bread, they served a highly seasoned chick peas In a motar and pestle. The idea was to smash the chick peas into hummus, and spread it on your bread. It was so good we could have made a meal of it. The best hummus I’ve ever had. The rest of the meal was also very good and we will make it a point to come back here next trip. The entertainment was a belly dancer, and we will let the pictures speak for themselves.

THE BOARDWALK AT HOLLYWOOD BEACH

THE END OF THE BOARDWALK

"THE TUB" RESTAURANT, HOME OF THE 13 oz. BURGER

GOING BY MIAMI

VENETIAN CAUSEWAY, OUR FIRST LOW BRIDGE

PORT OF MIAMI

MIAMI RIVER

ONE OF THE MANY SPECTACULAR WATERFRONT HOMES

IMAGINE CLEANING THIS PLACE

ENTERING HOLLYWOOD MUNICIPAL MARINA

HEADACHE TONIGHT!

YOURS TRULY DOING A BELLY DANCE

THREE IN A ROW

DAY 254 WED. MARCH 28, 2012

DEP. BOCA CHITA (mm 1105) 09:40 ARR. DINNER KEY (mm1095) 12:25

D. 33 sm / 3836.1

WIND ENE 15K-18K

In spite of the stiff breeze the trip across Biscayne Bay was not rough. The waves were mostly less than 2’ with an occasional 3 footer just to keep things interesting. When we got to the mooring field things got very interesting. The line to pick up the mooring was only about 6’ long and the wind kept blowing the bow sideways making it very difficult for Pat to pick it up. After 4 tries, our fortune changed. A sailor from the SV Essa Jane came over in his dinghy and put our line thru the eye of the pennant and we were finally secure. Thank you Essa Jane! The next good fortune we had was when we decided to take the launch ashore instead of the dinghy. We were discussing our shopping strategy when another launch passenger offered us a ride to the market. His name is Jofera Rosero, he is a video director, and his native country was Columbia. We got on so well he offered to give us a personal tour of Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, and Miami Beach. He also told us where to find the best Cuban food in Miami, La Rosa. We thanked him for the tour, swapped email addresses, and invited him for a tour of our boat the next morning. He was grateful as he was very impressed with our Loop travels. The third good thing that happened at Dinner Key was the arrival of Barbara & Tom Petersen on Encore. We met them in Marathon and spent 3 weeks just 2 slips away. They joined us for dinner at La Rosa and we had a great meal and a good time. If you ask any Looper what the best thing about the trip is, they will always tell you it’s the people you meet. We agree!

MIAMI FROM BISCAYNE BAY

DINNER KEY / COCONUT GROVE

DINNER KEY MINICIPAL MARINA

THE BARGE WE MET BACKING UP IN FRONT OF US IN A NARROW CHANNEL

AT BOCA CHITA

AT BOCA CHITA KEY.

Just another day in paradise.We spent this day in the grips of Keys Disease.We managed to work up enough ambition to go for a morning walk when the Ranger tour brought a group ashore. Every day at 10AM and 2PM a boat arrives with a small group of tourists led by a Ranger who gives a guided tour.There was also a small group of campers who set up tents for an overnight camping trip. The ranger invited us to join the tour which we did, and we learned some of the history of the island. Like several of these keys, the island was privately owned and eventually became a state park. The second owners were the Honnewells, of thermostat fame.They built the yacht basin, a large house, a chapel, cisterns, etc.There were still some small buildings standing, but the main house was long gone.After the tour it was lunch time, then nap time, then happy hour with the other boaters.Time just flies when you’re busy. Boca Chita is definitely a spot that we would like to visit again.

THAT'S GLORY DAYS BEHIND JOE

WOULD YOU BELIEVE JOE CLIMBED UP A TREE FOR THIS? HE DIDN'T, IT WAS JUST ONE OF MANY ON THE GROUND

ANOTHER DRAMATIC SUNSET

ONE BEAUTIFUL CRUISE

DAY 252 MARCH 26, 2012DEP KEY LARGO 10:00AM ARR BOCA CHITA 2:45PMSUNNY, WARM, FLAT CALMD 37.5sm / 3436

The cruise from Key Largo to Boca Chita was one of the best. We cruised thru Blackwater Sound, Barnes Sound, Little Card Sound, Card Sound and into Biscayne Bay. The sounds are separated by short canals or cuts and we could cruise for long, up to 10 miles, straight runs in clearly marked channels with deep water all around. You could be out of the channel in most places without running aground. When driving to the Keys by car, route 1 crosses between Blackwater S. and Barnes S. We have seen this many times, and today we crossed route 1 by boat. I finally found out what it is like “down there.” The real surprise came when we entered Biscayne Bay. The water was so clear we stopped the boat to check the depth. It looked to be about 2’, but was about 10’.–12’deep. We could see huge sponges shaped like funnels and large round ones with a hole in the top shaped like sea urchins, only 2’ in diameter. We saw several fish, many dolphins, and a large sea turtle, all this while cruising at 8mph. About a half mile from Boca Chita the channel is narrow and very shallow outside of it so we had to be very careful going in. Once in the entrance it opens up and you are in a circular harbor with a 1,000 foot wall on the perimeter. We planned to arrive here on a Mon., and there were only 4 other boats here. We were warned not to arrive after Thurs. as this is a very popular anchorage with the locals from Miami, and on the weekend the boats are double rafted and the music goes on all night. We spent 2 very peaceful, quiet, beautiful days here

UNDER US RTE. 1

THE DAYMARK MAINTENANCE CREW

ENTERING LITTLE CARD SOUND

A SPONGE 12 FEET DOWN

MORE SPONGES

ENTERING BOCA CHITA

SUNSET AT BOCA CHITA

EVENING TWILIGHT

KEY LARGO AND OLD FRIENDS

DAY 251, SUN. . MARCH 25, 2012

DEP LIG. KEY (mm 1166) 09:30 ARR. TARPON BASIN, KEY LARGO (mm 1140) 1:25

D. 28 sm / 3748

The cruise from Lig. Key was scenic and uneventful. The wind was out of the WNW at 15K and was supposed to pick up to 18K-20K and become NE. When we got to Tarpon Basin we had to turn east to hug the shore as there is a huge shoal in the middle. The basin is about a mile wide and there is plenty of room to anchor. The guide books say to avoid anchoring in the grass beds as the holding is not good. This is good advice, but rather than listen to the voice of experience we anchored where most of the other boats were and hoped the anchor would find sand. Mistake. But more about that later. We called AGLCA Harbor Host Capt. Sterling Kennedy and his wife Judy. We knew him from last year when he bought my used dingy davit. His home, a double wide, is on a canal just off the basin and he invited us to dinghy over for docktails. We spent a very enjoyable couple of hours with them and a couple of their friends, and are very thankful for their hospitality and local knowledge. We got back to the boat about 8PM and the wind started to pick up and change direction. I had the feeling we were dragging the anchor, and sure enough at 10:30 she broke loose. I hate having to re anchor in the dark, but there was no choice. We hoisted the anchor, and sure enough it was fouled with grass. Thank goodness there was light from the shore and I could see enough to know where we were. We moved south and east about 200 yards, dropped the hook, and prayed. We also stood anchor watch until midnight and awoke every hour to check our position until 4AM when I felt comfortable we were secure. Our original plan was to spend 2 days here, and Sterling offered us his car for the day, but we decided to leave that morning for the security of a tie up in Boca Chita Key.

SUNRISE AT LIGNUMVITAE KEY

JUDY AND STERLING KENNEDY

THE STERLING TIKI BAR

LIGNUMVITAE KEY

DAY 250 FRI. MARCH 24, 2012

DEP. MARATHON (mm1195) 08:15 ARR. LIGNUMVITAE KEY (mm 1166) 1:30

D. 40.0sm / 3720

Another beautiful morning in the Keys. We wanted an early start so we could get to Lignumvitae Key for the 2PM tour. This time, instead of taking the short cut thru Knight Ch. we opted to go thru Moser Ch. which is about 3 miles further east, adding another 6 miles to the trip. With the current roaring thru the short cut, the long way around was safer. Most of the cruise was thru wide open water, very shallow on both sides of a narrow channel. The wind was about 5 to 10K out of the east, and the bay was smooth to light chop. We arrived at the NW corner of Lig. Key about 12:30 and discovered the ranger station was on the SE corner. We would have saved some fuel and anxiety if we had read Active Capt. and found our destination BEFORE we arrived. The tour was mostly botanical with some island history thrown in. Nothing spectacular, but at least we can say we did it. After the tour we circled back around to the NW corner where at 4PM we picked up the only open mooring of the 2 available. We spent a very pleasant evening and night safe and secure. No worries about dragging the anchor tonight. The sunset was very nice as was the sunrise.

THE LOCAL RESIDENT

SUNSET FROM OUR MOORING

A NEW TRADITION FOR JOE

VENUS, JUPITER AND THE MOON

KEYS DISEASE

LUNCH IN KEY WEST

DAY 222, FEB. 25 THRU DAY 250, MARCH 24, 2012

KEYS DISEASE. A sickness exists in the Keys called Keys Disease where the notable laissez-faire attitude of the Keys allows a lazy person to become a sloppy, useless, unproductive member of the community. It's almost acceptable to drink and do not much else. It doesn’t take long, but this affliction gets everyone including us. What a way to go! We spent the first 5 days in Marathon on a mooring in Boot Key Harbor while we waited for our slip reservation in Sombrero Dockside Marina. The first day we were there we got a phone call from good friends Dot & Jim Mello who were vacationing in Orlando. Since it was cold in Orlando we invited them down and they spent an overnight with us. We had dinner at Burdines waterfront grill where everything is under $10.00. Supper was good and you can’t beat the view. The next day we all drove down to Sombrero Beach and enjoyed the sun. After a late lunch and a great visit we said goodbye to Dot and Jim who were well fortified with sun, heat and humidity. We arrived at Sombrero Dockside on March 1^st in blistering heat and humidity. Thank God for air conditioning. Marathon is our furthest point south and it felt like it. We met other gold Loopers who welcomed us to join them in pot luck suppers and dock side Happy Hours. We quickly became friends with all of them. These boaters, Robert & Kay Creech (C_LIFE), Diane & Louis Wade (BELLA LUNA), Ellen Langer & Roy DeLong, (OUR TURN), Lorenzo & DeLois Johnson (LIL’ DAVID), Tom & Doris Johnson (OUR TIME), Larry & Margie Ross (Wanderin L&M), and Ken Chumley & Darla (MOSEY) are what make Sombreros’ a special place. On Thurs. March 8, Joe flew back home for his quarterly check up at Mass Eye & Ear (everything’s good!) and returned on Sun. with Aunt Jane and Uncle Ralph. Their excitement at being on the boat with us was equal to our excitement at having them, however, theirs seemed to quickly diminish after spending 2 days in such a small space. We did enjoy their being there and after a day trip to Key West Uncle Ralph took ill and they had to return home on Tues. One of the more exciting events was a visit by Manuel T. Seacow, Manatee for short. One early evening Manny shows up behind the boat next to us. Needless to say he (she?) draws a crowd and some young girl climbs out on the swim platform and starts petting him. He enjoyed it so much he rolled over to have his stomach rubbed and stayed for almost an hour. The next day, while walking down the dock I spotted a good size fish hanging around. On closer inspection it was a barracuda. I ran back and got the camera, laid down on the dock and got a really good close up. I think this fish had Keys Disease too because he didn’t have any desire to leave no matter how close I got to him. In fact, if you look really closely at the picture, you will see a slight smile as he shows his pearly whites.

The rest of the month was spent in the grips of Keys Disease. We did, however, manage to buy 2 folding bikes at West Marine, do enough food shopping to sustain life, make a few dinghy trips to the beach, and I think do some other stuff, which thru the fog of Keys Disease, I forget.