Mike and Beth's Adventures

Boca Chita National Park February 20th, 2022 A mid week visit to Boca Chita was a very pleasant experience.  The Miami  skyline is just 10 miles away with its  high energy vib.  Boca is the exact opposite, very relaxing.  A spot where you feels your  cares just melt away.  It is so pretty, you start grinning  as soon as you arrive and remain in this state for the duration of your visit.  Grinning  Boaters The Chapel, the palms, and the view. The Miami skyline  in the distance  Sunset on Boca Chita  End of the day Last light The Lighthouse at Sunset  We had a bumpy Voyage from John Pennekamp State Park to Boca Chita. It was a trip of 30 miles, in 15 knot winds and moderate seas.  The island atmosphere was especially nice after the wet and windy ride North. We enjoyed touring the island on foot and visiting the beaches.   We saw iguanas along the shore and in the bushes.  Beth went snorkeling and saw...

Pidgeon Key February 17th, 2022 Pigeon Key is a unique destination   located in the middle of the Florida Keys.  It is a small island located under the Old 7 Mile Bridge just west of Marathon, Florida.   It’s history dates back to the early 1900’s when the island was used as a work-camp for the men who built the Key West Extension of the Florida East Coast Railway. This was the railroad that linked Key West, an many other keys, to the mainland.  It was completely funded and build by Henry Flagler, who made his money with John D. Rockefeller in Standard Oil.    The Start of the Trail to the Island The Pidgeon Key Landing if you arrive by boat Another shot of the Pidgeon Key Landing The Bridge Tender's House Pidgeon Key hosts a collection of building associated with the construction and maintenance of the railroad.    In fact, you walk or bike, 2 miles, out to the island on the original rail road right of way.    In our case one direc...

Mike and the Mangrove Cut February 19 th , 2022 We traveled through a great variety of features on our voyage to John Pennekamp State Park .   The density of Keys and shoals increases as you head east to Key Largo.  With more obstacles to safe navigation, there are cuts through mangrove islands, cuts through limestone and coral formations, and considerable weaving to remain in water sufficiently deep to provide safe passage.  A challenge, but we loved it! Mangrove Cut on the way to Pennekamp The traffic volume was also greater due to travelling on a Saturday.  It is best to avoid travel on weekends in Florida.  On weekends,  people explode from land to sea, and want to see and do it all at 50+ miles per hour.  Boating courtesy, such as slow passes disappear and it is not unusual to have a sport fishing boat, with multiple outboards pass you in close quarters at high speed.  Wake management is no-existent.  It is every boater for them...

Lignumvitae Key February 18th, 2022 Lignumvitae Key is an island in the upper Florida Keys. It is located due north of, and less than one mile from the easternmost tip of Lower Matecumbe Key. The island has the Keys' highest point above sea level at 19 feet.  It is also home to a tropical hardwood, Lignum Vitae.  This is the densest and hardest wood known. Because the wood is self-oiling, lignum vitae was a popular choice for steamship bearings and for use in equipment like pulleys; composite materials eventually replaced it in marine construction and heavy machinery, and now the wood is mostly by woodworkers. Smooth Seas on the way to Lignumvitae On our voyage to Lignumvitae, we caught up with two R29 Ranger Tugs which were also headed to the same destination.   So we fell in line, and were the caboose on a Ranger Tug parade through the keys.   We were all the same color, so it must have been quite the sight as we motored along. Thank goodness for Amy Marie’s sh...

Our first sunset in the Keys February 10 th , 2022 This was an exciting day.  We reached a major milestone on our Great Loop adventure.  Today we arrived in the Florida Keys, at Bahia Honda Key.  The keys are so low to the water that you can not visually see them until you are within about 2 or 3 miles.  The waters are incredibly dangerous with shoals, reefs, and shallow water.  In the entire 52 mile run from Little Shark River to Bahia Honda, we were never in water deeper than 9 feet.  It was easy to see why so many ships foundered here since the Spanish first visited over 500 years ago.  We did not want to add Amy Marie to that long list of ships. Mirth - Our buddy boat on this passage We travelled with a companion vessel, Mirth.  We first met back in October 2021, on the Tennessee River.  Since that time, we would occasionally find ourselves in the same port or anchorage.  They were also in Little Shark River so we buddy boated fr...