As expected there was a light breeze from the east as we
began our final leg to the Florida Keys about a 44 mile trip. In this area of
the Gulf commercial crabbing abounds, we drove for 25 miles picking our way
through crab pot floats that were spaced 100 to 200 feet apart. It is necessary
to constantly watch for crab pot floats since the lines between the floats and
the pots could get tangled in the propeller stopping the boat. The remedy would
be to cut the line off the propeller and shaft with a knife and usually
requires a diver.
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| A great home on Sister Rock, a very small island |
As usual the wind built as the day progressed, we crossed
under the 7 mile bridge about 1:00, continued on to Hawk Channel on the ocean
side of the Keys. The wind had increased to 18 knots and the waves to 3 feet in
the channel. Each succeeding leg of the route brought us more abeam of the waves
until the channel at Key Colony Beach. A well-marked deep channel that led us
to the Key Colony Beach Marina, Randy selected a slip for our boat and helped
us to with the landing now again in high winds.
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| The west view from our slip |
This trip completes our Florida
West Coast passage and marks the furthest point south we will travel. As much
as we planned this trip to the Keys, I am a bit overwhelmed about actually
arriving here. I feel we have made great progress in understanding ourselves,
our needs and wants, and now have a better understanding of our capabilities as
boaters. We plan to spend the next month here in the keys, it definitely feels
like the tropics this morning.
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