Monday, April 14, 2014. We drop the mooring at 7:45am and meet Quicksilver
at Burdine’s gas dock. It is sunny and
75 degrees, wind SE @ 10-15. There are 5
other boats headed north through the Hawk Channel this morning and everyone
pretty much stays in sight of each other all the way to Rodriquez Key. We motor-sailed until 11am and then were able
to sail. The wind is supposed to stay
SE, so we anchor on the NW side of the island. 84 degrees. Anchor down at
4:40pm. By 7pm, there are 14 boats anchored here. Four of the boats are rafted
and each flying both a blue and pink flag from the spreaders. Not sure what that means.
50SM, 40NM today. Marathon is Mile Marker 1195. Rodriquez Mile Marker 1145.
025° 03.36’N 080° 27.22’W
Tuesday, April 15,
2014. Tax Day. Beautiful sunrise. Anchor up at
7:30am. Wind SE @ 10, sunny, 75
degrees. About half the boats in the
anchorage overnight head north, and about half head south. The four boats rafted together head south.
Wind was more fluky than yesterday and mostly off our stern at 10 knots, so we
wind up motor-sailing all the way outside to the Biscayne Bay Channel, electing
to stay outside instead of going through Angelfish Creek and then up Biscayne
Bay. By the time we make the turn into
Biscayne Channel, then wind is up ti 20.
We raft with Quicksilver in No Name Harbor at 3:20pm. Nice and protected in this harbor and there
are only 4 other boats here, so plenty of room (the anchorage is small). We are
on the east side of Biscayne Bay across from Miami. We broke out the grill and
cooked burgers aboard and had Quicksilver over for dinner. The wind has built up and we have to keep
relighting the grill, but finally get the burger cooked. Relaxing evening.
25°40.68’N 080° 09.74’W 49SM, 41NM today. MM1096.
Wednesday, April 16,
2014.
Rained overnight, cloudy this morning, but supposed to clear. Wind is howling out of the north at
20-25. We elect to spend the day walking
to the beach, checking out the restored lighthouse and having an early dinner
at the Boater’s Grill, which is supposed to have great Cuban food. We hear from the Fosters that the wind is
howling in Vero, too.
No Name Harbor is part of the Bill Baggs State Park, which seems to be
a nice facility. The boater’s facilities
are kind of sparse. You can tie up to
the seawall and use the free pump out and there are (small) bathrooms, a two
machine laundry, and an outside shower.
The cost is $20 per night and it is on the honor system. www.floridastateparks.org/capeflorida/
We walked to the beach with Jon and Marguerite (Edwards, Quicksilver).
Nice walk of about a mile from the harbor.
We spent a couple of hours there, but the wind was howling and the sand
blowing (and covering everything), so we opted to go view the restored
lighthouse, which wasn’t open because a guard rail at the top needed
repairing. Nice grounds tho’, and the
lighthouse keepers’ cottage has been restored also.
An early dinner at the Boater’s Grill on the harbor, but no Cuban. That is available at the other restaurant in
the park (the Lighthouse Café), which we didn’t know existed. They make a homemade Sangria, which was
excellent, and the sandwiches we had (fish) were good. Drinks on board and then early to bed.
More wind overnight. Every time
one of the fronts comes through, the locals say that it is the last one for
this winter. We are beginning to doubt
the locals weather knowledge.
Thursday, April 17,
2014.
Today is a lazy day. The wind is
still howling, this time out of the east, as it “clocks around”. Hopefully, it will die down tonight. They NOAA weather is talking 8-10 foot seas
on the outside. Quicksilver can go on
the inside on the ICW going north, but we can’t fit under the Julia Tuttle
Bridge north of Miami, so we have to go outside to Fort Lauderdale.
We walked in “inside trail” over to the Lighthouse Café (which is right
next to the beach where we were yesterday – who knew?). Jon and I ordered Cuban Sandwiches (the only
Cuban item on the menu), and were thoroughly disappointed. More like a cold ham and cheese
sandwich. So much for reviews. We found a nature trail, which a sign said
leads to the Harbor and followed that back.
Nice walk.
Quicksilver is leaving in the morning and going inside to Fort
Lauderdale, so we decide to try the outside.
The wind is supposed to calm down and the seas subside.
When we get to the 17th Street Bridge, where the inlet
channel to Fort Lauderdale and Port Everglades meets the ICW, there is
Quicksilver. It took them exactly as
long to go inside as it did for us to go outside! We stop at Lauderdale Marine for diesel and
then on the Las Olas Marine, where we opted for a slip for 2 nights. Quicksilver has opted for one of their
moorings. We are on the dock at 2:30pm,
and it nice that the boat is still!
Sunny 82 degrees, wind SSE here in the marina.
Lisa and I walked over to the Quarterdeck for an early dinner. Lisa had a fish Reuben there when we were in
Fort Lauderdale earlier on the trip and really liked it. It was good this time also.
2 Bridges today, both scheduled.
39SM, 32NM today. MM1064.
26°07.21’N 080° 06.51’ W
Saturday, April 19,
2014.
Today we took showers, did laundry and washed the boat. Not fun things, but these need to be done and
it is easier in a nice facility, which this one is. We met two couples on a
boat on our dock from Toronto, who say they have met us previously. The older couple (Marilyn Devine and Stuart
Spanglett) actually bought their boat (a Nauticat “Union Jack”) in
Penetanguishene, but a few years ago.
The younger couple, Gary and Shanna (the daughter of the older couple)
still live and work in Toronto and visit the boat in Fort Lauderdale when they
can. Their boat is “Traveler”, a Hunter 42.
Tonight we are supposed to have dinner with Olga and Frank (the couple
we met on our last visit to Fort Lauderdale – who just got married). Frank got tied up at work but Olga came by to
take us to Riverside Market, where they have 100 kinds of beer and great
pizza. Nice evening. Crazy busy place, but if you are ever looking
for a non-tourist place……www.theriversidemarket.com
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