We are off sailing again!!

After six months on a mooring in Boot Key Harbor in the Keys this winter we were in danger of becoming "harbor rats" and had a serious case of "harboritis". We were both itching to be sailing and on the move again. We will miss our friends and neighbors in the harbor but will see them again in six months or so.

We dropped our mooring line on March 31st and sailed out of the harbor headed north to the Little Shark River in the Everglades. We had changed our original plan to go up the east coast and across the Okeechobee Waterway due to some problems and scheduled maintenance they were having with the locks that might have prevented us from using the Waterway. So we opted for the direct crossing to the Everglades.

The crossing is 45 miles and we had good sailing weather and light to moderate wind. But it took 10 hours so it was a tiring day. We both prefer shorter distances and a more leasurely pace of cruising so we were glad to get that longest leg of the trip behind us. The Little Shark River is far from any civilization but we shared the anchorage with five other cruising boats.

The next day we sailed 35 miles north to Indian Key Pass in the Ten Thousand Islands in the Everglades. We had 15 to 20 knots of wind and big following seas so we made good time and were able to sail fast with only the genoa (front sail). I estimated the waves at 4 feet but was mostly afraid to look back at them!! Linda says they were MUCH bigger and she was watching them! At one point our dinghy, which was being towed on a long rope, caught an especially large breaking wave and went surfing and tried to pass Enchantress!!

We anchored in a beautiful bay off the pass surrounded by nature. We did put up out hatch screens to avoid the most notorious Everglades wildlife...mosquitoes!! All the cruising guidebooks say to have good screens and bring a shotgun to fend off the mosquitoes! :-) Fortunately, no mosquitoes got into the cabin because we don't have a shotgun!!

The next day we had a nice relaxed sail about 10 miles up the coast to anchor overnight in a beautiful very protected cove in Goodland, a little backwater Everglades town. Since I have mentioned we were in the Everglades every night, you may have figured out that the Everglades are BIG! I believe it is the third largest national park in the U.S.

The next morning we motored down the Big Marco River. This is a "jungle cruise" down a beautiful river wilderness area. BUT, it is shallow for a sailboat (sailboats larger than Enchantress with more than our four foot draft can't take this route)! So I was TENSE!! At one point the motor "sounded funny" and we started slowing down. Me saying "Oh no, what's wrong with the damn motor!!?", "Why is it
slowing down?!", "OH, crap we are touching the bottom and plowing through the mud!!!!!!". Yup, TENSE!!! Anyway, we made it without actually running aground and anchored for two nights in the bay at Marco Island, back in civilization. We when ashore to get groceries and to make the West Marine store richer as we had to replace a cabin fan and an anchor light.

On April 5th we left Marco Island and motored in light winds up the coast to enter Gordons Pass in Naples. We anchored in a nice fully-protected cove in Port Royal, a neighborhood of multi-million dollar homes, to wait out a cold front and high winds predicted to last a few days. So here we sit surrounded by the "Rich & Famous". None of the neighbors have asked us to "evening cocktails, daaahling" so I guess they must have their own social circle. I am worried that they might come out and ask us if they can borrow some Grey Poupon mustard or a bottle of French wine and we have none aboard! :-)

The tourist tour boats and sunset dinner cruise boats come through the cove. I am sure they are showing the tourists "that pretty sailboat" and are not here to show them the mansions. (grin) The tourists get very excited when they see the dolphins in the cove, but hey WE still get just as excited after three years every time we see the dolphins!