20. December 10, 2018: Wild Ride at Big Marco Pass
December 10, 2018:
We stayed in Factory Bay yesterday as it was stormy, but decided to leave through Big Marco Pass this morning. It was quite the ride! 20-25 knots of wind and big seas. Shortly after we got through, we heard on the radio that they had closed the inlet to boaters! Here's why:
As You Wish handled this superbly. After all, she'd weathered the storm of November 27th and 28th. I never got any videos of that, as it was dark, but that storm was twice to triple what this here is, just judging from the way the boat moves here (in a straight line!). Penelope did NOT like being shut down in the cabin with the dogs again, but they're safer there.
It was better once we got farther out in the Gulf, but still rough. I tried fishing, but nothing was biting. There are so many crab pots out here! We have to be vigilant to avoid them.
The wind died down and we knew we wouldn't make it to Northwest Cape before dark, so we went to Shark River in the Everglades instead. This is a nice secluded area, with just one other boat anchored. We tried to take the dogs to shore, but it was all mangroves and shallow water, no land that we could see. We don't dare let them crawl around on the mangroves to do their business: we can hear alligators! We tried to show the dogs (use your imagination) that they can go in the cockpit of the boat, but to no avail. Poor dogs!
December 11, 2018:
We dragged anchor a bit several times last night, as there is very poor holding here. Thankfully our Rocna resets itself. We awoke early so we could get to Northwest Cape as soon as possible. Our dogs were crossing their legs by the time we reached the beach, but they made it! Nikki and Teddy were so relieved that they ran up and down the beach like crazy. Nikki let out a yelp, and we think she pulled the tendon in her leg where she had knee surgery. She's favoring her leg now. We hope it's just sore, and she hasn't pulled it out of the groove that the vet made.
There are more shells here than I'd ever imagined seeing on a beach before (Unfortunately I forgot my camera on the boat). It helps that this place is really remote. I got chilled walking along the surf, so I put my feet in hot water once we got back to the boat, and that helped. The Gulf is very strange today:
We finally arrived at Long Key at around 4:30, after hitting bottom (3' 6"!) in the channel that was supposed to be 6' 9". It's great to have phone service again!
December 12, 2018:
What a terrible night: Nikki's leg hurt, and every time she moved she screamed. John went and slept with her so he didn't get much sleep either.
Our destination was Treasure Harbor Resort and Marina in Islamorada on Plantation Key. It's a bit tricky to get in, and you have to follow several markers as it's very shallow outside the channel. We were anxious to get docked and find a vet for Nikki before they closed for the day, and we cut a corner too sharp. As You Wish got stuck. Thankfully TowBoatUS was close by (and we'd paid for our membership!), so we got out and docked at the marina in very little time. BTW, if you are a boater, a BoatUS membership is a must-have. One call easily makes it worth it!
Pam, the harbor master at Treasure Harbor, is an angel: and she gave John and Nikki a ride to the vet! It cost us $226 to discover that our dog is a drama queen. She just overdid her run on the beach, and has to be on "bed rest". Still, we're so glad that's all it is!
Later we walked to the nearby Puerto Vallarta Mexican Restaurant, and the food was superb!! I'm so glad this restaurant is close by (and that it's still open!).
While John was at the vet, I did laundry at the marina. I discovered that there are big iguanas here! Some must be five feet long from nose to tail tip. Several were in the nearby mangroves. It's so funny to see them run down the docks in front of me.
December 13, 2018:
Last night was SO restful! No rough seas, no screaming dog. John rented a car, and we shopped at West Marine, Winn-Dixie, and an RV store to fill up our boat's propane tanks. After we unloaded, we packed up all three pets for their "before entering the Bahamas" vet check back at Upper Keys Veterinary Hospital: $180 for all three animals, which seems like a bargain after Nikki's vet bill.
Pam told me that I can use sea grape leaves as postcards! How cool is that? I sent one off to each of the kids. Postage is 71 cents, as it is hand-stamped, but what a unique thing to send from south Florida! We sure like it here at this marina!
We went to The Upper Crust for lunch. When we asked for fresh tomatoes on top of our pizza, the server looked at us like we had three heads! I don't think she'd ever had that request before. Maybe it's not a thing in south Florida? It was very good anyways! And it finally feels like "Florida" here in the Keys!
When we got back to the boat, we discovered that our holding (poo) tank had leaked into two compartments in the boat: so gross! Nothing like spending an afternoon cleaning that up. I hope it was just an overflow issue, and not something more serious. (Silly me: just wait until later).
December 14, 2018:
A tanker truck pulled up outside the marina, and filled us up with diesel, so that's done. We went for a walk and saw several animals, a baby coconut tree, and a great place to relax with a friend:
Vatina and Brian in the boat next to us told us about Brunswick Landing Marina in Georgia. It's supposed to be really nice, and a good "hurricane hole" in which to leave your boat for the summer. John called and reserved a slip for us starting April 1st. We also got Bahama charts uploaded to our iPhone.
We said goodbye to Pam, motored more carefully on the way out, and sailed to Rodriguez Key. The lee side was surprisingly calm. There's no place for the dogs to walk there, so John dinghied them to the mainland not far away. We hit the sack early as we'll be getting up early; there's a good weather window for crossing to the Bahamas tomorrow: yay!!
See “21. December 15, 2018: Crossing to the Bahamas”!
