Our trip didn't exactly get off to a promising start. For several days leading up to the planned departure there was question as to whether or not we would even be able to go. A simple fix of an existing problem had spiraled into a potentially trip ending problem. However after working through those and getting advice and guidance from friends I managed to get the problem sorted out and all was well, kinda.....
DAY 1
Day 1 started by wrapping up a few preparatory things and doing the provisioning. I sat down the night before and spent a substantial amount of time planning meals, liquid refreshments and supplies. Colby came with me and we headed off to Publix to check off the massive list of things that had been compiled, and we spent the next 2 hours piling two grocery carts full to the top. I might have gone a little overboard, but it's much better to be over prepared then caught rationing crackers and water.
After filling our carts we made our way to the checkout and watched the lady look around for the TLC crew of "Extreme Couponing". (without any coupons) We shut the lane down and began to huff all our bounty onto the belt, causing it to make an almost audible *uuuugghhh*.. I had also tried to place things in order to help out the bagboy. Canned goods first, meats, boxed things, produce, then breads, chips etc. my good deed for the day!
In the two days prior to this our car had been transformed into a rolling dock box. All the things we didn't need for the trip began to stuff the car like a turkey, so when we walked out to our little Honda Fit we wondered if we could fit a few more clowns in the car. Colby put several things on his lap and we had to roll the back windows down after shutting the door to finish stacking all the food inside. Now it looked more like "Extreme Hoarders"!
We rolled into the marina and I realized taking all this on the dinghy and to the boat would be not only a huge undertaking but an unnecessary amount of work, considering we were going to be bringing the boat to the dock to top off our water tanks. The look on Jessica's face as Colby and I pulled up with an empty dinghy was priceless.
We fired up the engine, let her run for a few minutes and then untied from the ball to make our way to the dock. It was pretty windy and the direction meant I would be pushed broadside against the dock. I was planning my attack to the water dock located in the canal when I felt the engine shudder and then promptly die. Without being told Jessica sprung to action and ran to the bow, unclipped the anchor and I went forward to help her push the 55lb Rocna off the roller as we drifted helplessly across the mooring field. The anchor bit down, we let out some chain and came to rest directly in the channel.. I radioed the city marina and informed them we would be a few minutes.. The problem turned out to be a loose hose fitting that was letting some air leak into the fuel system and with a few turns of a wrench we were back running again. Now it had been about 45 minutes total time with the groceries baking in the Honda oven under the warm caribbean sun. We were majorly behind schedule and were now 2+ hours behind the time I had set as the latest time we could still leave.
I pulled a Capt Ron and slid right into the dock, almost like I knew what I was doing and we topped off the tanks and loaded the food, drinks, supplies. I took my laptop and ran inside the community center to see if there was an alternate anchorage I could still make before nightfall so we could at least begin the trip. An anchorage was suggested that was only 20 miles south. Looking at the charts it seemed like a go so I mapped it all out and threw my laptop back in the bag. The groceries were loaded, the water tank was full, the engine was purring like a kitten and we were on our way. We pulled out of Boot Key at almost 3:30pm (3 1/2 hours past my deadline) headed for the Dry Tortugas.
Peyton standing next to the Publix receipt
I was at the helm while Jessica & Peyton were below trying their best to organize the cabin, get things in the fridge and just make sense of the 100lbs of crap we were stuffing in the 50lb sack. The trip to our anchorage was smooth and we arrived about an hour earlier than expected. We dropped the hook in a place called Newfound Harbor. The anchor bit in hard and the bow dipped when we powered back on it, I felt confident we would be in for a good nights sleep as we prepared to relax, make dinner and enjoy a night sky without all the light pollution of being near a city. Colby put some bait on his hook and dropped it in the water. Jessica cooked some sloppy Joes with beans and chips and we sat on the deck watching a sailboat sailing and the sun setting on the horizon.
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| Newfound Harbor |
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| Newfound Harbor Sky |
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| Fat Albert the weather blimp in Cudjoe Key Flying |
Before bed I was doing some further trip planning when I ran across a review of the anchorage we were relaxing in. It talked about the fact that masted vessels were prohibited from anchoring in Newfound Harbor in 2006. Yikes! It was around 11pm and I sure as hell wasn't pulling the anchor up and heading out to sea, so I announced to Jessica below deck, we would be off to an early start in the morning!
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