APRIL 6-7, 2021

 Tuesday, April 6, 2021. Day 121.

I was up early and ( first one up), turned off the anchor light. We had coffee and Roland experimented with a new recipe for German apple pancakes. Really good, really sweet.

The wind was only three knots, so dinghy down. It was only our second lowering of the dinghy with the new 59 pound motor. We actually do better each time, but we are still looking for ways to improve the system.

We motored over to a couple of different beaches on unoccupied islands that grow and shrink with the tide.

 Lots of jellyfish on the beach waiting for the return of the tide to wash them back into the water. Captain Roland pointed out that there were no birds or insects on the jellyfish “bodies“; very curious.

 Also, strange sand holes and mounds; possibly, sand worms?? Very weird.

Our solitude on the beach was very brief. Pontoon boats started arriving to enjoy the day. We walked about 2.2 miles exploring two different beach islands.

Our new motor had successfully trained Captain Roland so that he is caring for it the way it prefers, and it supports him by starting pretty quickly. It was a pleasure that the motor started on the first pull. The Captain was very happy with the new gas motor.

We dinghied back to Magic Moments for a lunch of grilled turkey burgers, and, in the afternoon, we went on another quick dinghy ride; it was high tide so there were new places that were accessible by water. And, mercifully, the beaches were deserted, so we knew we would have a quiet evening on the hook.

Wednesday, April 7, 2021. Day 122.

I awakened at 7am; worked out, had coffee and a shower and at 10am, we brought the anchor up and left our beautiful anchorage near New Smyrna, to cruise to Palm Coast Marina to see Roland’s sailing friends, Peter and Nancy.

As we were cruising, I spent the day doing paperwork, paying bills, doing taxes and yes, another credit card fraudulent Amazon Prime charge that had to be reported. What a pain to have to cancel yet another credit card. This time, I wouldn't be able to get a replacement until after we were back in Philadelphia.

It was a pretty day and a pretty ride to Palm Coast, although I missed out on a lot of the scenery dealing with the obligations of real life. Even worse, I knew that tomorrow would be another tax and bill day; and I hated missing all the sunshine.

As we passed Flagler Beach, the boat was inundated with hundreds of white butterflies; so cool. The ICW is very pretty in this area.

We arrived at 4pm to dock “on an angle”; I couldn’t believe the visual of the dock when we arrived Captain Roland had not mention to me that we would be docking on “an angle”, he didn’t know what that meant, and didn't ask, the dockmaster. When we arrived at the dock, I thought it was an optical illusion but in fact we docked parallel to a section of the dock that was in fact on an angle. It was very weird but the Captain did a great job. We did learn, at this docking that we were not charging our headsets sufficiently. We have modified our procedure and we keep them charged at all times. One never know when one may need the headsets!

As usual, as soon as we dock, I started the laundry, did the dishes, and straightened up the boat a bit because we were expecting Peter and Nancy to tour Magic Moments and have happy hour on the back deck (socially distanced).

After several servings of chips and rum, we went out to seek a restaurant. It was quite surprising that they were all packed and had an hour to an hour and a half wait. Finally we went to Flagler Beach and in an upstairs, outside, bar ,with very loud music, we had typical bar fare, burgers and sandwiches. Peter ordered a Philly cheesesteak (he says he really likes them).

Peter and Nancy told us that Flagler Beach is sort of the hippie hang out, specially attracting surfers. There are no high-rise buildings on the beach but a road runs between the beach and the houses and businesses.

We missed out on the the only possible “gourmet“ restaurant; the fish place we had heard so much about, closed at 7pm.....too late for our happy hour on the boat. Our loss!

Peter and Nancy (who were soon to be married in England --- Peter is English and all of his family is still there). They had met a number of years ago on the free dating website Plenty of Fish (how funny). Nancy had been a solo sailor for 5 to 7 years before she met Peter. Peter had been a sailor for 50 years and thought he had given up sailing; but he was mistaken. He and Nancy had been living and sailing on her 30 foot sailboat for about 6 years together. I had to admire them; they lived together on a small sailboat and they are not petite folks. I was not sure how they did it. They are both characters, fun to be with, and we had a wonderful evening.

Thursday, April 8, 2021. Day 123.

I was awake before 7am, and ran from 8 to 9, stretched, and showered (we were still in the marina so shower while we can!). Everybody at the marina was quite nice and there was a wonderful shaded path along the water where I enjoyed my run. We left Palm Coast at 10am; it was quite easy getting off the dock on an angle.

We had planned to spend a couple of days in St. Augustine, and then go offshore to Beaufort South Carolina. Unfortunately, the weather was not cooperating (surprise!). New plan: from Palm Coast to St. Augustine and offshore, without stopping, to Beaufort. I was very sad to miss my friends Evin and Paula who had planned to meet us in St. Augustine for dinner on Friday evening; but weather controls our life on the water. Evin and Paula went to St Augustine for dinner anyway! Love them.

At the 1pm opening, we passed under the bridge in St. Augustine.

 With Captain Roland at the helm, we entered the ocean at 1:10pm. He put on the auto pilot and, except for a passing freighter, and with Jacksonville on the horizon, the water, a beautiful aqua, was our only view.

Back to the Upper Keys and Trying the new dinghy motor March28-30, 2021

 Sunday, March 28, 2021. Day 112. Our Extra Day in Luxury.

I swam laps for 45 minutes; and I loved this pool. We spent most of the day getting the boat up to speed and doing errands.

I had planned a real treat: dinner at Billy's Stone Crabs in Hollywood. We had hoped to get there before 4 o’clock and sit outside, but the task became a little bit overwhelming and we didn’t get there until later. We took a Lyft both ways but, even though it was Sunday, the place was mobbed. The wait staff and bar tenders were not prepared for the crowds (and neither was I). They assumed that because South Beach was closed (spring breakers had wrecked havoc and the mayor took action), the tourists had flocked north. We did find two seats at the end of the bar sitting near no one. The stone crabs were delicious, the food was abundant, and the bartender was very accommodating. Towards the end of the meal several people crowded into the bar without masks and were unacceptably close to us. I was anxious to leave.

We wanted to walk on the beach boardwalk in Hollywood but it was packed with people; again without masks and nobody was socially distancing. We called our Lyft and went back to the boat. Unfortunately, it was a stressful experience, overall; I was not happy....but, the crabs were delish. Worth a revisit when, if ever, I feel safe again, dining inside.

Monday, March 29, 2021. Day 113.

I was up early and again, got to swim laps. I will miss this pool for sure. Even Roland took a quick swim and then we got the boat ready and left the dock saying goodbye to Williams Island at 10:20am, with the high tide. Again we went to Lake Maule, to stow the lines and the fenders. We went south the way we had arrived, through Sunny Isles, and prepared to go through the many bridges that required opening for Magic Moments.

I steered quite a bit, as we went south.

Again it was fun going south passed the area I had lived in for eight years, and I even knew the names of the bridges, which gave us a jump on calling the tenders on the radio (local knowledge is always helpful,,,,,lol).

The traffic was fairly heavy, and there were times when waiting for a bridge opening was tight; I’m happy that we avoided collisions.

Near Miami we passed the Gene Machine, an amazing 55 meter yacht owned by Jonathan Rothberg (high speed gene sequencing scientist and entrepreneur, hence the name of the vessel). The tender and the toy barge made an incredible vision. Google “Gene Machine “ and read the article: 14 passengers and 16 crew, and a newly installed lab for his daughter's research. It was breathtaking.

At 3:30 we approached Elliot Key, where we had been anchored when the water tank failed. Our plan was to test our new dinghy motor and maybe, if the wind lets up a bit, try our paddle boards.

The water was incredibly clear, the anchor grabbed nicely, and the wind was only 4-8 knots. We got the dinghy down (our fifth try), and, it went pretty well, especially considering that we had a 60 pound engine attached for the first time.

It was a new engine and required some patience and some care to get it started (also about 12 pulls on the cord). We hope that after a couple of uses, it would get easier.

We took the dinghy engine for its initial exercise in accordance with the detailed manual instructions as to the speed, to break it in. We dinghied to the Biscayne National Park on Elliott Key. I’m not sure there was anybody else there. We took a short walk around and I steered and ran the engine on the way back to the boat.

Tuesday, March 30, 2021. Day 114.

It was a beautiful, sunny morning, but way windier than we had hoped. As a result, the paddle boards were out; very disappointing. The day was spent working out the new dinghy engine which meant we got to scoot around the Upper Keys. We moved Magic Moments from Elliot Key to Key Biscayne in the afternoon.

The dinghy ride around the smaller coves off of Key Biscayne was fun. The boats and homes that are not visible even from the bay, were charming, and it was fun to zip around with our new, speedy by comparison to the electric engine, gas motor.

We raised the dinghy with the motor attached for the first time; and it went rather well. Not with standing what we were told, it’s highly unlikely we will ever be able to raise and lower the dinghy in 15 minutes, or with just one person. Maybe if we had a hydraulic hoist......

Key Biscayne is beautiful and the views of Miami and “the Beach”, are spectacular. But, we were ready to start the return trip North.

Lap of luxury March 25 - 28, 2021

 Thursday, March 25, 2021. Day 109 .

Up early so I could get to the ladies room at the boaters' lounge (there was only one bathroom for the women and it as a bit of a walk). Because there was no water on the boat, I was dependent on the public facilities.

I ran 3 miles around the marina and walked another half mile. After breakfast I went back to do another couple of loads of laundry.

The repairman called this morning and said he would, in fact, be there today (Yay!), but not until the afternoon. This was really great. It delayed our plans to go to the supermarket to get food for Passover, but getting the hot water tank in and operating was the most important thing.

I spent the afternoon by the pool (the facilities at the Williams Island Marina club were absolutely lovely), and brought lunch from the bar at the club to Roland, who was on the boat helping Dave the repairman. I was totally enjoying this time in the lap of luxury, while doing Roland and Dave the favor of staying out of their way.

Talking to the waiter and waitress at the pool bar, I learned that all of Williams Island is a membership club. As a transient boater, I was a “guest”, and could pay with my credit card (they added a small fee - that was the case also with the a Island Grille where we had dinner the night before). It was a beautiful afternoon and I enjoyed the opportunity to be sitting outside by the pool relaxing and doing almost nothing. And, I was thrilled that Roland and Dave completed the work on the hot water heater. Magic Moments was back in operation again.

Friday, March 26, 2021. Day 110.

   

It was warm and lovely. I woke up early and swam laps for 40 minutes to the pool. There was nobody else there; it was just delightful.

Roland had assembled our folding bikes, while I was swimming laps, so that we could go to the supermarket and do some other errands. Aventura has every store one can think of within a reasonable distance. I was familiar with the shopping area because I had passed by Aventura for years when I lived part time in Bay Harbor Islands, which is fairly close by. 

 We cycled to a supermarket, and I was pleased that would be able to put together a reasonable facsimile to a Seder. Bryna was coming to join us Saturday evening for the first night of Passover; our first dining-in guest on the boat since we left on December 6, 2020.

Saturday, March 27, 2021. Day 111.



Williams Island is quite beautiful. It is dense with high-rises, although they appear to be barely 1/4 occupied. It is our understanding that many of the units are owned by central and south Americans, Mexicans and Russians. A place for some folks, apparently, to keep their resources. Many of the boats at the marina are also owned by Hispanics and Russians.

Saturday morning we walked to West Marine, about a mile or two, to pick up our new dinghy motor and some equipment that we needed for this gas outboard. The motor weighed 59 pounds so it would not be possible for us to carry it back to the boat. Fortunately one of the employees at West Marine said he would drive it over and drop it off during his lunch hour. That was terrific, and Captain Roland remunerated him generously. We are really hoping that the outboard makes using the dinghy a joy.

Williams Island is lovely, the pool was terrific, the weather was wonderful, and I was enjoying my “vacation” in Aventura. After a few more trips to a different supermarket on the bikes, Roland and I spent most of the rest of day preparing our Seder dinner, cooking and preparing the Seder plate, and setting the table.

Bryna arrived before 5pm, with our yacht club membership and my replacement credit card that we had arranged for her to bring us from Philadelphia, and we took a brief tour of the island. She had to leave by 8:30pm because South Beach had a curfew until April 12 , due to the mobs and lawless behavior of tourists during spring break.

I think the hit of the Seder dinner was the brisket that Roland made in the Instapot.

Sunday, March 28, 2021. Day 112.

The original plan was to leave today to go back to the upper Keys. I went swimming for about 45 minutes (I love swimming laps in this incredibly great pool that I have all to myself in the morning). Roland wanted to stay another day, so we lucked out and they agreed that we could extend our visit, one more day.

Finally, The Keys. March 17-23, 2021

 Wednesday, March 17, 2021. Day 101

Elizabeth and Brian dinghied over to Magic Moments for a masked, socially distanced, opened doors, visit and tour of the boat. It was great fun to connect in person after texting since the Fall. Roland and Brian discussed all kinds of things about boating in general, and about Grateful, Magic Moments, and Roland's sailboat, Kodacrome. Elizabeth and I just enjoyed the social contact. Hopefully there will be less wind tomorrow and we will be able to lower our dinghy and visit Grateful.

Although it was a beautiful, sunny day, the winds were 10-16 knots, and we were still learning how to lower the dinghy. The water was cool and the winds a bit much, so no swimming, no dinghy rides, no paddle boarding, and no snorkeling. I took the opportunity to handle a lot of my paperwork and obligations that were piling up.

Thursday, March 18, 2021. Day 102.

The wind was a lot less when we got up that morning ( Yay!), so we lowered the dinghy (double Yay!). It took us only 10 to 15 minutes (we were getting better - triple Yay!). It was only the fourth time and Magnolia had told us that it would take about 10 times to get to be an expert. We arranged a noon visit with Brian and Elizabeth on, and took our dinghy over to Grateful for a quick tour to see all the work that Brian had done for the past two years to get Grateful ready for this adventure. Grateful was really beautiful; he had done an amazing job!

We then dinghied to the Marriott Resort on Key Largo. I had asked permission to use their dinghy dock to see the Resort and have lunch. Brian followed us into the dock (it was a little tricky). We asked Brian to wait until we were half way there before he started over as our electric motor was so unbelievably slow (next to our dinghy, Brian's looked like a jet ski!). 

 We had a great celebratory lunch at Guss's Grille in honor of our two week weeks past our second vaccine (hopefully pretty safe now), and in celebration of Brian‘s birthday in a couple of days. We ate and we drank and even had leftovers to take home. It was a wonderful lunch and celebration.

After lunch we went for a walk on Key Largo hoping to visit the park but it was a little too far and a little too hot. Elisabeth and Brian stopped at the health food store for a cold drink and to relax and we went to West Marine to pick up a few things that we needed (on a boat you always need something). On our dinghy ride back to the boat, we stopped by Bluejay from Annapolis Maryland, a sailboat anchored nearby. He had an electric motor and we had hoped he had some words of wisdom as we were still struggling with our electric motor. He was in a hurry to leave; we wished him calm waters and good winds.

Friday, March 19, 2021. Day 103.

After a vigorous morning workout on the back deck and navy shower, at 1:30pm, we left the anchorage in front of the Marriott Key Largo, wishing Brian and Elizabeth good luck. A front was coming through and Captain Roland wanted to move to the north west corner of Blackwater Sound, approximately 3 miles away, which had a new view and better protection from the changing wind direction. In addition, there were no jet skiers zipping all over the place creating wakes and rocking the boat. Bonus: it was quiet, too.

It was it was still too windy for the paddle boards, so we went for a brief dinghy ride. As we approached the mangroves, four or more dolphins began to follow us in the dinghy; they love to play. We were so close to them in the water; very cool! The dinghy was holding air; Roland's valve replacement and repair around the valve was successful. The electric engine is small, light and quiet, and no gas is required, just plug in the battery to charge it. But, the range is limited and the speed, extremely slow. We hope to use the electric engine the rest of this year but may consider a gas engine for the Bahamas, next winter.

Saturday, March 20, 2021. First day of Spring. Day 104.

Last night was windy, about 20 knots, and the boat was rocking and rolling at anchor. We decided to move to Thursday Cove, which was east of last night's anchorage. We were still unable to find a slip in a marina in any of the upper Keys. We did find one that would work for Brian, (Grateful is narrower than Magic Moments), which he arranged for a couple of days.

Really windy (again), so no paddle boarding (again). We went for a brief dinghy ride. Although we were skirting the mangroves, we didn’t see a lot of birds nor fish. The ride suddenly turned out to be way BRIEFER than we had intended. There was a problem with the motor. Really??!! It suddenly slowed down to a half knot. It was touch and go as to whether we would make it back to the boat, and rowing is not our forte! Frustration with this finicky motor was getting out of hand!

We had been “on the hook” for 8 days, and with the dinghy motor not working, we had a problem; we needed a marina. We were really frustrated with the motor. We had invested too much time and money for it not to be working. I left a detailed message on the phone for the electric motor repair shop (they are closed on the weekends), and then and we went about the job of finding a replacement motor. The wind was unceasing and was clocking around in different directions. Almost every day we moved to a different anchorage to maximize the protection from the wind. We had hoped to find a beach so we could clean the dinghy and a place protected from the wind so we could use the paddle boards. It was not happening. The Keys were not doing anything for us!

After many calls and emails, we got a few days in a marina in Aventura (north of Miami Beach), in the next week, and ordered a gas motor from West Marine in Aventura. We were so done with fighting with the electric motor.

We moved to an anchorage in Little Card Sound.

Sunday, March 21, 2021. Day 105 to Tuesday, March 23, 2021. Day 107.

We again moved our anchorage; this time to Arsenicker Keys. The derivation of the name was quite interesting. It came from the Bahamian nickname for the great blue heron “marsh sneaker”. Finally, we had an opportunity to use the paddle boards and we paddled around Arsenicker Keys. It was great fun, very peaceful, the water was clear; the views terrific. Finally! It was a beautiful paddle and both our boards worked out very well. We enjoyed the quiet the peace and the beauty.

At 1:17pm, we anchored after returning to a previous anchorage. We turned off the motor and heard the water pump going, Captain Roland checked everything and the results were not good. Apparently our hot water heater was leaking, and, there was no shut off valve. Talk about not good!

We had no choice but to shut off the freshwater pump. Now we had no water to drink, no water to wash the dishes nor to shower, and no water to prepare food. And here we were in the Keys with no marina slip available. Our visit to the Keys did not turn out to be the joy we had anticipated. And we had one really serious problem!