Log 107; Day 297; Mar. 14, 2009; Marathon, FL.

Our friends Don and Carrie at Burdines. Donnie agreed...great cheeseburger.

Here is the beach just at the mouth of Sister Creek, seems like a nice spot. Deb and I plan to go there today to check it out.

Not sure who this guy is...but we just loved the look of the dog in the dinghy. They were having a great time together.

We keep talking about Deb going to Publix...here she is with her basket on her bike.

If you look in the bottom part of this picture you will see a Iguana, that was blocking the way for Deb to get back on the boat. She said she was freaked out, and had to get the neighbor to come out and move it.

Just in case you did not think it was very big...no wonder she waited until it moved on.

Log 107
Day 297
Saturday, March 14, 2009

7:30 AM EST
Location: Sombrero Resort and Marina, Marathon, FL.
Weather: 73 with light winds out of the ESE...the forecast is for 80 today with light winds

I slept in till 7 this morning...for some reason it just felt good to go back to sleep a few times. Woke to a beautiful morning, again. Deb and I have talked often how we can’t remember the last time it rained. We’ve had a little sprinkle here and there, but no real rain. And, nothing is really forecasted for the next 10 days.

On Wednesday, Don and Carrie stopped by on their way to Key West. They are a great young couple and we loved spending time with them. Of course, the thing to do was take them to one of our cheeseburger places, and we chose Burdines. We took the long way getting there (through the mooring fields) and the long way back (through Sister Creek to see all the beautiful homes on the mangrove canals). It was a little windy, but not bad, and with 4 of us in the dinghy, we did get a few splashes of water on us when we were heading back. They left for Key West about 4 pm...where they will spend the next 4 days.

Thursday we did some mini-projects. I washed the boat, and also had a diver go down and check the bottom of the boat to make sure it was clean. It turned out that there was a lot of Ribbon Worms starting to attach themselves to the bottom, so it was a good thing I got it cleaned. Deb did several loads of laundry, and made a couple trips to the store to take advantage of the nearby Publix. Based on how much stuff we already have on the boat, I didn’t think we needed anything, but I guess (based on the several bags we brought on board) I was wrong.

Friday...is the start of our weekend (now that we’re retired we only work 4 “6 hour days”), so I packed the dinghy and headed off to go fishing. After a quick stop at Burdines, for some gas and 2 dozen live shrimp, I was off to check out 7 mile bridge and see how big the fish were going to be. But getting there I had a few issues. First of all, the current was very swift, and I had a hard time getting the anchor to set. Secondly, the waves were kicking up and it was rough trying to fish from the dinghy. And most importantly...the fish were not biting. So, after not too long, I pulled anchor and headed back to Sister Creek, where I have had so much luck, and I knew I would catch some fish. Wrong. Not sure why, I tried several places, but only caught a few small Jacks. Oh well...there’s always tomorrow. Deb ended up spending a lot of time reading a new book she got from Carrie (Eclipse...some kind of Vampire book???) and jumping on the bike to run some errands. Dinner was (I know you won’t believe this) cheeseburgers on the grill, which, by the way, were fantastic. The movie was Tom Hanks, in Terminal. Great movie.

Today (Saturday)...probably our last day in Marathon. I have been looking at the weather for some time now, looking for a 3 day window to get us up to Ft. Lauderdale, and I think tomorrow will be the start of that window. The winds will be ESE at about 13, which is greater than they said they would be a couple of days ago, but should be fine. Those winds mean that Hawk Channel will be a little bumpy, and we’ll probably end up having to go a little faster for a smoother ride, but, while it may not be a lot of fun, it will not be uncomfortable. So today will be about getting the boat back into cruising condition (instead of living condition). Which means things like, packing the bikes, and putting them in the engine room; filling the water tanks; putting down all the thing on the shelves that you leave out when your not cruising, and in general, making sure all things are ship shape. We don’t need to by another new TV, because we forgot to take it down. With all of this, hopefully, there will be some time to fishing one more time.

Well, it’s a little after 9 am now, and time to get going. Deb is buried in her vampire book, so she is very content for a while. After sending this log along, I will start to get organized, and get some chores done. I can also see a bloody mary, and a dingy ride, not too long in our future.

I’ll keep you posted.

Bob