Shortly after Steve and Claudia arrived we headed out fishing

I keep the dinghy right beside Rick Hendrick's 80' boat...Steve had never seen a fishing boat that big

For some reason Claudia had here name on the door when we arrived at lunch.

Steve and Claudia are on the left in this picture...Ron and Cyndy are on the right. We had a great luch together in a little Mexican joint on Duval. Great friends.


This is Rick Hendrick's boat coming in from fishing yesterday

Rick Hendrick is in the front left in this picture...Dale Earnhart Jr. is in the red hat. I told them I'd take their picture together. The fish they caught are Dolphin...beautiful fish

Log 96
Day 260
Thursday, February 05, 2009

8:30 AM EST
Location: A&B Marina, Key West, FL
Weather: 52 and very windy...there are wind chill factors in the Keys this morning

It got down to 50 last night...with winds all night howling above 20 mph, and 30 mph in many places in the Keys. If we were up north this would be a heat wave, but in the Keys...this is the worst part of winter.

Our friends Steve and Claudia got here on Monday afternoon (the pictures on the log really tell more of the story than I can today). It was a nice day with light winds out of the South, so I wanted to take Steve fishing as soon as he got here, because I knew the winds would pick up and this would probably be our last opportunity. So within 20 minutes of their arrival we were walking down the dock heading for the dinghy, and then headed out to my new fishing spot...about a 25 minute run. The good news was Steve caught several fish very quickly, but the skies were getting dark, and you could see lots of lightning off to the NW. I had to convince Steve to stop fishing, because he was enjoying himself, but finally did, and by the time we got back to the dock it was raining, and very dark. Shortly after, the skies opened up and it poured for most of the evening.

Tuesday was an exploring day of Key West, as the 4 of us walked all around the area. It was cool out (65), and windy, so it was a great time to walk. We ended up at Turtle Krawl for lunch, which is just across the harbor from our boat, and then walked Duval street in the afternoon. I finally had enough of Duval, and Steve and I came back to the boat, while Deb and Claudia walked for another couple of hours. For dinner we went up to A&B for happy hour, and were joined by Jerry and Lynn (across the dock on Sea La Vie). We didn’t spend much money (1/2 price for everything) and had a great time.

Wednesday...we met another couple for lunch today. Ron and Cindy Witzke...friends of ours from Michigan. Ron was VP of Human Resources for TLC...the company I retired from. Ron just retired, and he and Cindy have rented a place in Key West for the next month. The 6 of us had a great lunch and talked a lot about old times. Now that all of us are newly retired we also talked about what the next 12 months was going to be like. For Ron and Cindy...after a month in Key West; a month on the west coast of Florida; a month in South Carolina they head back to Michigan for the summer and then head to Paris...for 6 months. This retirement thing is ok. Also yesterday, the excitement (at least for Steve and I) was seeing Rick Hendrick and Dale Earnhart Jr on the dock. I mentioned before that Rick’s boat (Reel Wheels) was here and I kept waiting for some of his drivers to come here to fish. Yesterday was the day, and when they came back in from fishing Steve and I were there to catch their lines and help them tie up the boat. They had no more docked, when out walked Rick and Jr out of the cabin. You can see from the picture we took they caught some fish. We decided not to bother them with any autographs...but it was cool seeing them, none the less.

Today...not sure. Because of the high winds, and cool temperatures we are not sure what we’ll do. I’m in charge of finding a cool spot for lunch, and after that...who knows.

I’ll keep you posted.

Bob

Log 95; Day 257; Feb. 2, 2009; Key West

When the cold front came through on Friday the winds really picked up, and the birds were going crazy. It was kind of spooky.

We had lunch here on Friday...they say this is the oldest place to eat on the Island. It is much nicer on the inside, than this picture would lead you to believe.

Just across the harbor from us this lobster boat came in to unload their catch. Some folks bought fresh lobster from the guys.

A shot from our swim platform early on Super Bowl Sunday

This shot is taken from the fly bridge on the boat just across the dock from us during the Super Bowl party

Log 95
Day 257
Monday, February 02, 2009

7:30 AM EST
Location: A&B Marina, Key West, FL
Weather: 69 with 13 mph winds from the SE...another cold front it coming through tonight

It’s warm and nice out this morning. There are a few small showers in the area, and a couple of sprinkles made it to the boat, but not a lot of rain to be concerned with. A lot of activity happening in the harbor this morning, with boats leaving their slips heading out...some to the Bahamas...and others just going out fishing. Just across the dock from us (in Galleon Marina) a boat over 150 feet just pulled in. He must have been running all night, in order to get here at this time. We also had two other boats come to our dock this weekend. One from Texas, and another from Arkansas...both here for 3 months to go fishing. It’s amazing to see all this happen.

Here is what has been going on for the last few days...

Friday...the morning was warm and no wind...just beautiful. After spending part of the morning on the boat, Deb took a walk, and we made plans to meet Jerry and Lynn (our dock mates on Sea La Vie) for lunch at Pepe’s...supposedly the oldest restaurant in Key West. When we got there at 11:45, the first thing we found out was that they were still serving breakfast and would not take your lunch order until 12. But...you could have a beer...so we did. Lunch was good...but expensive. Actually, I doubt we’ll go back while we’re here. As we finished lunch the skies were getting much darker in the NW and within an hour the wind picked up to about 25 mph, and it started raining. The temperature also dropped about 10 degrees. The rest of the night was cool, windy, with off and on rain. For dinner we had homemade chicken noodle soup, and the movie was 3 recorded sessions of American Idol.

Saturday...all night Friday night the winds blew, and the boat rocked from the waves in the harbor. Not bad, because we are very protected, but enough to remind you it was windy outside. The morning was very different from the last several days as it was windy and cool. Not fun to be outside, but once the sun came up it was not bad. After a few chores, Deb went walking and we decided to call one another at 11, and meet for some lunch. We ended up going to Meteor BBQ...and the food was great. The afternoon we spent reading and relaxing on the boat...more of the same in the evening. Not exciting...but a great day none the less.

Sunday...the dock is getting ready for Super bowl early this morning. Right next to us is a boat called Wendy Sue, and they are the center of all party activity on the dock. Every weekend folks come and go from their boat, and sit on the dock in front of their boat to tell the latest happenings. Their are about 5 or 6 boats that all gather here on a daily basis. Interesting to watch (and listen to sometimes), but it does make us feel funny sometimes being right next door to them and not “one of the group”. But most of the folks could not be nicer, and invite us to join in...it’s just they have their own group...and we certainly understand that. The party turned out to be a good time. Everyone brought something to eat (another pot luck) and there was plenty of food. As you can see from the picture lots of folks attended, and it was quite a chore to get through the crowd on the dock. About 1/2 time it got a little cool out, so many folks went back to their own boats. Deb and I did the same, and watched the last half down our salon.

Today...friends of ours, Steve and Claudia, will be joining us today, and be here until Friday. They live in Dixon, Illinois and have driven down, making many stops along the way. Steve and I had planned to go fishing today, but he just called to say he was having a wheel bearing problem on his car, and would have to get it towed to Miami for repairs (they are currently in Key Largo). He plans to get a loaner car and then drive back down here to Key West, so I doubt there will be fishing today. Fishing, or not, it should be a good day, with temperatures in mid 70’s. The winds are predicted to turn North again tonight...so the next 3 days will be a little cooler. Typical winter in the Keys.

I’ll keep you posted.

Bob