Heading For the Keys

Heading South on the Intracoastal

March 21st!! - Finally!! 0800 hrs and the Captain had our lines let loose and down the New River we ventured. Where too? After careful consideration about the Okeechobee and our time constraints ( yes we have a small schedule,, OOPS). We motored down the Intracoastal towards the Keys. The weather had been absolutely lovely with high 80* and sunny. We must inform you that our newly designed steaming light saved us quite a bit of time from bridge delays, now what to do about those weekend Manatees? The colour of the water changes from a brown tea to the aqua/teal color everyone expects to see when you think of Florida.

Water Taking on an Aqua Hue

The Smile Says it All!

Out into Biscayne Bay and our first stop for the day was No Name Harbor on Key Biscayne. It's a wonderful anchorage (hurricane hole) and usually very busy. You can dinghy ashore and visit the Bill Baggs State Park  which is exactly what we did each day.Our first vist to the State Park we sat along the wall and looked down into the water where we noticed a conch making its way. The water was shallow and clear enough to take this little video below.

Can you carry your house too?

 Early  the next morning we jumped in the dinghy and "somewhat sputtered" to shore, hmmmm another project in the future perhaps? We love this park, there are trails to follow through the natural growth of Biscayne Bay. The weather promised to be in the low 90's in the afternoon , so we planned to spend the morning walking throughout the park. I (Elle) hate heights had for some strange reason  decided that I could climb the stairs of the lighthouse. Each step closer to the top the staircase literally shook, or was that my knees?  The captain waited patiently for me to climb from the comfort of the rocking chairs on the lightkeepers cottage.  After our walk we returned to the Summer Wind for a delightful lunch. The temperatures did indeed climb to a record 92* so an afternoon swim in the harbor water was indeed refreshing. Thank goodness for a good breeze in the evening, it would have been very muggy and the 'no seeums' would have been out in abundance.

Note: We discovered our ice maker draws too much electricity and really drains the battery down when on anchor. Remedy: Only run the ice maker when we're travelling or plugged into electricity. Provision the cooler with ice from a store if possible when on anchor 2 or more days. We keep a cooler with soda (pop for Canadians) , bottled water, and juice on the back deck. Easy access and very important to keep oneself hydrated.

Dinghying around Biscayne Bay

Cape Florida Lighthouse

Can You See the Captain?

Lightkeepers Cottage

Trail throughout Bill Baggs State Park

Looking out into the Bay