Short Trip; Back on the Ball at Boot Key Harbor

[Hilde’s log]

Those of you who follow our progress on the In Reach breadcrumb trail probably noticed our abortive attempt to go north on Saturday. We slid off the ball at 6:45 a.m. and motored out of Boot Key Harbor under clear skies and chilly winds. Dodging the inevitable crab pots, we motored out into the bay and turned east on our way to Hawk Channel. To our dismay, the wind did not cooperate in direction as had been forecast.

What it was supposed to look like when we went out...

Raven is a great boat, and she handles all seas well. The same cannot be said for the crew. We bumped and jounced along at an uncomfortable angle of heel and took turns manhandling the boat to maintain our course. Our speed was laughable. Our night’s anchorage was 50 miles north, and with the engine running and all sails out, we were making about 4.5 knots. The thought of the physical exertion needed to handle these condition applied over 10 or more hours convinced us to give up and try again another day when conditions were more conducive. About two hours out we turned around, and about 30 minutes later we were back to Boot Key Harbor. That’s the difference having the waves and wind go with you makes!

It was a good decision. Both of us were exhausted and sore as we slunk back to our mooring ball. Our neighbors dropped by to see what was going on, and agreed to go with us to the Overseas Pub across from the marina to help us drown our sorrows later in the evening. We fell into bed about 10 p.m. and conked out for 10 hours of sleep.

Today has been much better. We sat around in our pjs all morning, listening to the cruisers’ net (very entertaining) and catching up on the news (bad idea) on our phones. After lunch, we dinghied in to go to the annual Seafood Festival taking place in the nearby city park. Vendors of all kinds set up their tents and we wandered around for about an hour, buying only three items (and one was a gift, so it doesn’t count).

Our favorite tent was set up by the local aquarium. They had several kiddie pools with various samples of marine life that we were allowed to pet. I touched a small manta ray (soft, like wet silk) and took a good look at horseshoe crabs, sea urchins, sea stars, and water turtles. My favorite was the big land tortoise, a big cream-colored beauty with that ancient stare that turtles all seem to share. For a minute I was 10 years old, plotting to kidnap her and take her on board. I love tortoises.

This evening as we sat relaxing in the cockpit and enjoying a cool breeze, we were entertained by two boats engaged in hauling a sunken wreck from the mooring field. We saw the “empty” mooring ball when we came in and heard later that the space was occupied by a wreck. Two large boats, one on either side, winched the wreck to the surface (it appeared to be a large power boat). A diver went in the water to unfasten the boat from the mooring ball.

The biggest excitement was when they discovered lobsters in the boat. "This thing is full of lobsters!" came the shout over the water. They threw several presumably small specimens over the side but I suspect the others are going to be dinner tonight. The two boats finally hauled off the wreck, still more than half sunk, motors straining. We sat on deck, David taking photos, and we criticized the operation with the certainty that comes when you know nothing about the subject. That was good for an hour’s viewing – who needs TV?

Weirdly, we never saw any kind of flotation bladder.

Poor mucky boat!

Tonight, for the first time in several days, we are both feeling relaxed and calm. The mooring field is serene, the sun is sinking, the air is fresh and warm. We’ll stay here in hopes that the weather will shift for us at the end of this week. 

My idea of cruising - calm water, beautiful sunset, no bugs.