In our usual style, we had planned to fly by the seat of our pants and grab a mooring ball at Boot Key, which is first-come, first-serve. Now hearing how booked up everything was, we decided not to chance it, and I got on the horn looking for a spot. Apparently, my guardian angel had already been at work on this problem, and my first phone call secured us a spot at Burdine's Waterfront Marina. They said that right before my phone call, they had a cancellation.
The pressure being lifted, we enjoyed a beautiful day on the water.
We pulled out as the sun rose over Little Shark River
Said "goodbye for now" to our buddies once again
as we headed for open water
At last we were getting close
and the water was beautiful
We were all excited at the prospect of our next adventure
as we made the final leg of the journey
The Keys by RV - could this be in our future?
At last we arrived
and got SeaGlide all tucked into her space.
Our plan was to leave SeaGlide in Marathon and travel by bus to Key West and stay with Bill and Sherry in their hotel room at the Crown Plaza for a couple of days while we toured the area. They would fly back to Dallas from there, and we would finish up the loop and put SeaGlide on the market.
We had a great time! We took the bus the next day and got an early check-in. From there we toured Duval Street and took in the sunset celebration at Mallory Square. The next day we walked to different parts of town enjoying the sites: Truman's Annex, Hemingway's house, the Green Parrot, Sloppy Joe's, and Fort Zachary Taylor where we enjoyed the beach there.
Our transport arrives
The first odd site - roosters and chickens are everywhere
Our posh hotel
Duval Street
One of many Kapok trees, sacred to the Mayans
Hemingway's home
Key West Lighthouse
More cool sights around town
The Southernmost home in US
Meanwhile back at the Green Parrot...
Jeff admires the ape hangers
Sights around Mallory Square as we prepare
for the sunset celebration
The jellyfishs here are huge and beautiful
and finally the sun slips away
After dark the fun continues
We discovered this awesome cigar bar and blues club
Featuring a barber chair out on the deck
The next morning we were, as usual, determined to make the most of our time in Key West. After an awesome free breakfast from the hotel we went up to the rooftop to take in the view then hit streets to see more sites. We decided to return at sunset to have our sunset celebration back on the rooftop.
Scenes from the rooftop
More street scenes
Key West Cemetery
The beach at Fort Zachery Taylor
Strategizing our next move
and contemplating life
Took in an awesome tour of the fort
Huge iguanas on the grounds
Right after this shot, this little fellow stood up on his
hind legs and took off running. I was so freaked out
that I missed the shot...
As sunset approached, so did the rain.
My good looking husband in his new Ed Hardy shirt.
After sunset we headed back out for dinner and
wanted to take in a tour of the historic harbor.
Alas, our stay in Key West flew by, and Jeff and I made our way back to Marathon where we looked forward to meeting Rob and Sue from Papillon, who we met back in the Waterford NY days. They gave us a tour of Marathon in their runabout boat and then by land in their pickup.
The following morning while waiting for the bus back to Marathon,
Jeff had to give up his spot on this wall as he was challenged to a duel..
Our buddies, Rob and Sue, aboard Papillon
Lots of residential homes "on" the water
A few mooring balls now available at
Boot Key Harbor
Yikes!
The morning of January 17 we resumed the Loop. We decided to take the Atlantic route rather than the bayside as the water looked relatively calm. The Captain got on the Marathon radio show (The Net) to announce SeaGlide's departure. It was cold and windy, but the Atlantic was a good route.
We turned into Channel Five to Florida Bay and dodged another kajillion crab pots. We passed back into the Everglades National Park and ran into very shallow water after Steamboat Channel. There was a north wind that was blowing the water out of the bay - so much so that we could see the bottom. We made it through "the particularly sensitive sea area" under the watchful eye of the USCG. This area was part of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.
We got to the South Tavenier anchorage where we planned to spend a quiet night on the hook as we enjoyed our last night in the Keys.
So long Marathon. We hate leaving this beautiful water behind.
Cold, but glad to be back underway
Crab pots are so difficult to see when the wind kicks up.
The last thing you want to do is get one tangled up in your prop.
We've heard stories of the cables wrapping around a prop and pulling
the pot up with a bang damaging boat bottoms to the point of taking on water.
Shallow bottom
Our last beautiful night on the hook in the Keys
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