|
Apr 3 We decided to moved further south to anchored at
Elliott Key's Coon Point, a popular weekend hangout for the
locals. We took the dinghy to the beach and to Sands Cut, which runs
into the Atlantic. The cruising guide says it is a good place for
diving and fishing. Indeed we found an abundance of wildlife
here - corals, lots of sea urchins, fish and small crabs.
The captain was pleased with his find - a huge conch.
Apr 4-5 For a change of scenery, we moved a little south - to
Elliott Key
Harbor. Having arrived early in the morning, we were the only
boat around. We dinghied to the harbor and hiked around the small
trail around the island. This
area is part of the Biscayne Bay National Monument, maintained
by the National Park Service. There are facilities for camping
and barbequeing. An hour later, we
returned to our boat and swam in the inviting waters. As the day
wore on, we were amazed to find ourselves surrounded by 32 other
boats!
Other than 3 of us powerboats, the rest were sails. Most were
flying some kind of yacht club burgee, and were dinghying back
and forth to the harbor. The faint noises and smell of barbeque wafting over to
our boat tells us that they must be having some kind of party. And we were not invited:-(.
Apr 6 Time to head back north to do chores like laundry and
provisioning. Passing by Coon Point, we saw tons of boats, both small and
large, anchored out on this beautiful Sunday. At Sands Key, we settled on a spot near various other
boats. Throughout the day, people were swimming and water
skiing. Come evening, the anchorage was deserted except for a
sailboat and us. Around 2200, we looked out to find that the
sailboat had moved closer to shore. We wondered why. Then all of
a sudden, rain came pelting down followed by wind gusts so
strong we felt that our anchor dragging. Turning on our
navigational software on the computer verified that. What to do?
First instinct was to go closer to shore like the sailboat did.
In the height of the storm, we turned on the engine, raised the anchor, ran closer to
shore, and reset the anchor. Again, the anchor dragged. The
captain tried one more time, to no avail. It dawned on us that our
35 lbs claw
anchor does not set well in grassy grounds. Plan B was to go
north of Boca Chita Key. Were we surprised to find that we were
not the only boat moving in the middle of the night! A sailboat
was trying to feel its way into the Boca Chita Key Harbor. We
had decided not to go there because of the dark stormy night and
its narrow entrance. We anchored slightly north of it, but again, the
anchor refused to hold. Plan C was to head back to Virginia Key where we
had anchored the first night after we left the marina. This was
now midnight. The wind was still gusty, but the rain had
stopped. It will take 2 hours to get there. With navigational
software and autopilot, the trip turned out to be a nice run and
a very good experience. At Virginia Key, the wind was still
blowing, but at least we were secured for a good night's rest.
Apr 7 - 13 After doing chores and fueling up back at
Rickenbacker Marina ($1.48/gal), we continued our trip north. Since our
buddy boat won't be getting to Palm Beach until the 15, we took
our sweet time. We anchored close to South Beach for a couple of
nights. Here, we took our dinghy into the Collins Canal to go
food shopping, a neat experience. After that, we moved to North
Bay Landing, to shield from the 20 knots west wind. Again, we
took the dinghy all the way into the Collins Canal, returning by
way of expansive Biscayne Bay. In the middle of the bay closer
to North Bay Island, it was very shallow, about 1 to 2 feet of
water. The bottom is sea grass and was amazingly clear. Seeing
the city from the dinghy offers a different perspective, one of
order and tranquility. The next day was a totally different
story. Passing through the yachting capital (Fort Lauderdale)
was chaotic. It was a beautiful Sunday and everyone was out on
the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW), causing so much wake it was
truly wicked. There were small boats passing container ships,
dinghies, fishing boats, sail boats and megayachts. Mind you,
there is no straight line on the water. These boats were
tailgating and cutting in line. Not only was there traffic,
there were bridges that we had to wait for them to open. At the
same time, there are boats tying up four deep at restaurants
near those bridges. It was a complete zoo. The stress level is
like driving on the expressway in Boston during rush
hour. We vowed that the next time we travel this way again, we
would go out on the ocean instead of the ICW, weather
permitting. Were we relief when we pulled into Lake Boca
Raton. Now we had to figure out where to anchor amidst 42 other
boats frolicking around here! Thank goodness that it was already
1730, and people were getting ready to leave. It was very windy
when we were here last December. This time around, except for
the 70s disco music from the hotel, it was nice and
peaceful.
Apr 14 Got to Palm Beach. North wind is
forecasted all the way to Thurs Apr 17. Any time the word North
is associated with the wind, it is a no go because that means
taking a beating crossing the gulf stream. We'll gladly
wait.
|
