"2001 January 7- 25 Key West on a boat" Top 5 Page for this destination Key West Travelogue by grandmaR

In 2000, Bob and I took our boat RosalieAnn (a CSY 44) from MD down the Intercoastal Waterway (ICW) to Miami. After the first of 2001, we went on down to Key West, and then down to the Dry Tortugas.
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January 7 : We didn't get far enough to get around the tip of Key West, so anchored off the airport by Martello Tower West. We could clearly see the cars on Roosevelt Blvd. It was the most rolley anchorage so far. Bob said any time Castro tinkled in the harbor in Cuba, it rocked our boat. I kept being afraid that the Coast Guard would tell us to leave. I woke Bob up early and we left soon after sunrise.

We went around the south end of the island, past Ft. Taylor, the cruise ship docks, Key West Bight and the Coast Guard station, and around Fleming Key. We took a (free) mooring west of Fleming Key. Free because they didn't have any services such as pump out, dinghy dock, showers, and parking. Now they charge for the moorings. We can't get into Garrison Bight in the big boat because there is an overhead power line that won't clear our mast. We stayed here until Jan 24, 2001.

When we came again the following year in December 2001, they had started charging for the moorings, (with added services), but our boat is 44 feet and the limit is 40 feet so we can't stay here again until they put in moorings for bigger boats.

The first day, when we came in, we saw GEMINI whom we had seen several times coming down the ICW, and we circled around them as they were at anchor off Sigsbee and talked to them. They said they had permission to use the Sigsbee Marina dinghy dock, but the commissary wouldn't be open until Tuesday, and the exchange was open today (Sunday) but wouldn't be open Monday either.

We took a mooring over on the Sigsbee side, just NW of a big power boat named MAD DOG VI which was anchored, and checked in by phone. After we got settled, we dinghied in to the Sigsbee Marina, and walked up to the exchange. We met the folks from GEMINI on land. They had come in to do a wash.

Went to the exchange but they don't have lamp oil. Got some things, and a sandwich at the trailer outside the exchange. I did e-mail at the pay phone and then we went back to the little marina to the dinghy. A pelican had sat on the side of it and pooped in it. We can't take the big boat to this marina because it is too shallow and there is a low power line across the entrance.

The trip in or the trip back takes about 1/2 hour, and if there are any waves or wakes, we get a little wet.

I have convinced Bob that I need to use the swim ladder to get into the dinghy, as the ladders on the side of the boat slip sideways out from under my foot. I show him that we don't have to have the inflatable in the water to do that - I just go under it.

I tune the radio to a local AM station which is a sports station that I can listen to football (and I listen to the end of the game), and a local FM station. For TV, we can get one broadcast station (ABC) from Ft. Myers - sometimes - otherwise it is an all Spanish station, or a station that broadcasts tourist information on Key West and sometimes a local station that seems to rebroadcast CNN. Everyone on Key West with a TV gets cable.

Bob tying up the Portaboat to the dinghy dock

Monday January 8th - Mostly spent quietly on the boat. I tried snorkeling around the boat but it was COLD. I could see that I need to go down and scrape the prop again. I scrubbed the rudder, but couldn't stay in long enough to do the rest of the boat. The front has been kept pretty clean by bashing into waves.
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Tuesday January 9 - Pretty brisk winds (saw 31 knots) and some waves - the wind generator is spinning. Had to turn it off eventually, as it is overcharging the batteries.

We see sailboats out in the water and they looked like they were going to ram GEMINI, so I called them on the radio. Cathy said she thought they are a sailing school. Can't think why else they would be out in this weather. Cathy was taking advantage of the extra electricity to work on the computer. I spend some time rearranging stuff that I threw aboard willy nilly - putting my clothes on hangers etc.
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Wednesday January 10 - While we are eating breakfast, we hear someone call the Coast Guard on the VHF and tell them that there is a boat sinking in the mooring field. We look at it with binoculars (it is about 1/2 mile away), and see that the bow is down with the deck even with the water. Appears abandoned. About a hour later it has sunk. No one seems concerned.
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Thursday. January 11- We put together the folding dinghy (portabote) and put it over the side. Then we went in to Sigsbee with some laundry. I did not do the dinghy entry well and ended up with my hands on the ladder, and my feet in the boat and my behind in the water. That didn't happen again - I learned how to do it.

Bob left me to do the laundry and he went to the commissary. Of course he finished first, but he didn't get any meat, so he wasn't too worried about the food spoiling in the heat. I walked across to get a sandwich because I hadn't had lunch, and stopped by the MWR office where all the campers check in on the way and found out that there was a place there that I could do e-mail directly with the laptop.

We brought in my former work equipment cart to carry all the laundry and stuff, and Bob discovered that it doesn't have cross pieces on the bottom. After I show him how to load it, it works very well. I also did pocketmail on the pay phone.
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Friday January 12, 2001
We went in to Sigsbee for me to do e-mail and get a shower and Bob to get the rest of the things from the commissary, and get drinking water in bottles which we didn't do before, and also fill up the big gas can. It takes me longer to do the e-mail than Bob wants to wait, as he has not brought in the cooler or the cart, and is very impatient. So I leave without getting a shower. There are over 600 campers here.
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Saturday, January 13 - I got a shower on the boat, and then we went in to Key West Bight to the dinghy dock.

Race boat

It is about 1/2 hr. ride through the cut between Fleming Key and Key West. We can't use this cut with the big boat because there is a low fixed bridge. There are lots of little speed boats using this cut making wakes, and the current rushes through at a great rate. See the second photo in the Intro.

We found the dinghy dock (look for the turtle kraal tower) and tied up at the far end, and got our daily pass (a yellow piece of paper), which Bob taped on the seat. We had lunch looking out over the dinghy dock and the old Turtle Kraals, and then wandered around town a bit.

It's the same but different from when Bob was stationed here in the late 60's. Did some errands and took the Conch Train for old times sake. It was just starting up when we lived here before. (see Conch Train Travelogue)

We have found that the old Evenrude motor has a clogged filter and must be full of gas to run. The little gas can in the portabote was empty so we had to buy gas and oil to get the dinghy full enough to go back.

When we went to leave the dock, we found that another big inflatable was blocking our exit. We tried to go out under the dock, but there wasn't enough room. FInally someone let one dinghy out and pulled the big one in so that we could get out.

Listening to the VHF radio you hear some interesting things.. A motor boat named MISTY anchored out farther than we are called the CG and reported a raccoon had gotten aboard his boat, which was anchored about 1/2 mile off the Navy base. The CG eventually ferried an Animal Control person out to him.
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Sunday, January 14

We hear on the FM radio that the Ft. Lauderdale to Key West race is finishing up today. That's in addition to the international races.

Called the Evenrude dealer to see if he had the ceramic filter we need for the dinghy motor. They didn't have it but suggested another place that we might try.

We decided to rent a car, so I called around to get prices. Avis had the best ones. So we told Avis that we'd like the car for 2 days, and would pick it up at 1 pm. They have mopeds (scooters) for rent, and also bikes, but we'd need 2, and the mopeds each cost as much as a car.

They also have little electric cars, but they cost 3 times as much as a regular car.

Got ourselves in the dinghy and into the dinghy dock. We tied up at the end, and I went to the harbor master and paid for 3 days, and asked him to get a cab, which was there almost before we got out to the front. It was $14 to go to the airport - $7 each.

We went to Walmart, and then ate lunch at the Key West Diner in the shopping center.

We went to the other hardware store which turned out to be on Stock Island, but they didn't have the part we need for the dinghy motor either.

Went to K Mart to get some lamp oil, but they only had citronella and pine flavors - no plain unscented oil. We went to Sears, and WInn-Dixie and Publix and then went back and parked in the parking garage near the marina.

We walked along the waterfront and had dinner at a restaurant at the other end (I had a salad and conch fritters. Bob had a salad and a sandwich), and watched the racers with their boats which were stacked almost on top of each other. Some were rafted 3 deep, and they had some which were just in the middle between the slips not tied to anything. All of them had big decals on their bows. They are all here for the International Race Week this week.

The waitress was talking to some at the next table - a crew of 8, and they don't sleep on the boat. Indeed some of the boat which looked to be about 25-30 feet didn't have much of a cabin, and I could see why they didn't sleep there. I guess they are for day racing only. The hotels and marinas are all full.

Reflections in restaurant window

Monday, January 15:

Dinghied in after breakfast. Because the dinghy dock was full, we tied up at a regular dock which is not a floating dock but a fixed dock. To get off, I had to crawl up on the dock. Not graceful. Bob was mortified and pretended he didn't know me.

Went to get the car and the person we needed to pay ($8 for the night)wasn't there. When she finally came, drove by our old house on Patterson Ave, and took pictures. They've replaced the leaky old jalousie windows. The salt pond in back has been filled in and is now the back of Walmart. The marl area at the north end of the street which used to be low income housing (Poinciana Apartments) is now a fancy professional office building, but the salt pond at the other end is still there.

Went back the Lutheran Church where my two oldest started school, and took pictures - that's still pretty much the same and then had lunch at Captain Bob's near Garrison Bight - it wasn't very good (see Restaurant Tips). I've written a Tourist Trap tip about it.

Then we drove down to the lighthouse, and parked, and I took pictures of it (we didn't go to the top) We also found a post card of it before it was renovated in 1985, and it was cream/tan then just like in the picture I painted. I also took a picture of Hemingway's house from the outside.

I wanted to replicate the picture Bob took of me in the garden of the Audubon house, but didn't get to do that. I did track down the Key West houses in the other picture I painted (opposite the park at the east end of Truman) and took pictures of them. The foliage has grown so you can't see them as well as in my picture.

We then went to Ft Taylor. I was insistent that we hadn't been there before, and I was right - they didn't even start to restore it until 1968. And besides it was on the Navy base and not accessible. Bob was thinking that Ft. Taylor was the Martello Towers (which both of us thought were Ft. Monroe at first - but that is in VA - this is just Monroe County). Holly our niece was married at Ft. Taylor.

We paid and went in, and walked around on top of the fort walls, and I took pictures. We saw two cruise ships leave, and we could see the races off in the distance. (see the Ft. Taylor page)

After we'd had enough walking, we drove to the Kino sandal place and managed to find a place to park with a meter. I looked at sandals and also at belts, but didn't buy any. Did get anniversary presents for two of our children (wind chimes) at an outside stand nearby.

We went to the garage and parked. The garage was fuller than yesterday, and we went all the way up - I took some pictures from up there. We eventually found a place under cover to park. Bob walked to Key West Marine, and I tried to find my way to the Key West handprint store, but I got lost. Bob had to lead me to it.

They no longer make the prints in Key West, they are done in Bali. The old factory is now a spa. I tried on a 2x dress with a sailboat print that I might have bought but it was a little tight and I was afraid it would shrink. We then walked down the street to Lilly's. They don't have anything larger than a size 14. She went bankrupt and sold the business and someone else runs it now. She still has her signature in her prints though.

We stopped at Finigan's Wake near the garage for dinner, and I had the special which was corned beef and cabbage. I took most of the meat back with me.

When we got back in the dinghy (I had to lie down on my stomach with my feet off the edge of the dock and sort of slide off).

Sunset over the mooring field

The current was really against us in the cut so we inched our way through and it was near sunset when we got back to the boat.
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Tuesday. 2001. January 16

Today we are going to turn in the car. We dinghied in - even had the current with us going through the cut. We tied up at the dinghy dock - actually at the floating dock part this time, and taped our ragged paper pass to the seat again, and set off for the car. It looked like rain, and in fact rained a little. We got the car. I wanted to use the bathroom, but the bathrooms in the garage were locked.

Bob had something else to pick up (can't remember what), so we drove to the PO so I could mail film and get some one cent stamps and he walked over in the drizzle. The line at the PO was a mile long, so I just stuck some stamps on 2 paperbacks that I was mailing to mother, and bought a couple of post card stamps, and used the pay phone to get e-mail. Then we drove to the visitor's center. Found that we could get the Bone Island Shuttle for $5 @ with unlimited stops ($4 cheaper than the taxi), so we got tickets on that. Bob left me at a hotel stop outside the airport, and turned in the car and then walked back. We rode the shuttle to the stop at the southern end of Duval and then walked back to the marina.

Men

On the way, we ate lunch at a place called Crabby Dick's on the 2nd floor. They did have cute signs on the rest rooms - pictures of a woman and a man in a speedboat and were labeled Outboard (men) and Inboard (women).

Walked past a bar where there was a guitar player under a purple spotlight (and he may have had purple hair too), singing to the melody of the purple people eater song about purple pecker eaters.
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Wednesday, January 17

We got into the dinghy and went in to the base where Bob did the laundry, went to the commissary and exchange, got a shower, had a sandwich and filled water bottles, and I did e-mail and internet stuff. The MWR will let you log on for 15 minutes at a time. They have two access lines in a lounge with a TV with cable. They also have internet access on their computers for $5/hour.

There were a couple of guys on the laptop lines, and a guy vacuuming the lounge, so I asked to use their computer, but it was Juno, and kept kicking me off. After about 15 or 20 minutes, I gave up and took one of the laptop lines and did my 15 minutes, and then logged off. I tried their computer again, but after it kept telling me that pages could not be displayed that I had just looked at them on my own computer and knew that they could to be displayed, I finally asked if I could use my own local ISP #, and they said yes. Then I could look at my bank account and see what my VISA bill was. It wouldn't let me pay bills because of an 'insufficiently encrypted browser'. So I logged on again with my computer and did that.

The portaboat was seriously loaded down when we dinghied back - good thing there weren't any waves. We had two loads of laundry, my computer, the commissary shopping some of which was in a cooler, a cart, the filled water bottles, the motor and ourselves. The weight limit is supposed to be 475 lbs with the motor. Then we had dinner in the cockpit and ran the refrigeration. Bob says the freezer is freezing the meat.

Roof hatches from garage roof

The top of the parking garage is a good place to get a look at some local Key West architectural customs.

Key West houses built before A/C are designed for maximum air circulation, and protection from the sun. One of the characteristics of the houses are hatches in the roof that can be propped up to let the hot air escape. Often they have high ceilings, and a deep porch so that the sun is kept away from the windows on the 2nd floor, and a lot of shutters that can let in air without letting in heat.
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Thursday January 18

Today I mostly lazed around, writing e-mails, reading the paper, and listening to the radio - both the VHF and the FM. Bob painted the whisker pole and did little chores around the boat. The water temp has only gotten up to 72 deg F.

Friday, January 19 - We went into Sigsbee one last time and sent my email. Bob got some stuff at the commissary. Back at the big boat, we disassembled the portabote because the weather was supposed to kick up - actually it was already blowing pretty hard on the way back to the boat - and tied it down for the trip to the Dry Tortugas.

2001 January 20 to 23 - blowing too hard to leave the boat. Sat around reading, and doing chores on the boat and observing other folks and listening to the VHF. Talked on the radio to a guy on a steel ketch who was having a problem with his dinghy and told him how to get a mooring. Listened to Biz Baz (Bizarre Bazaar) on the FM radio in the morning plus all the local news. Bob painted the wall in the saloon that backs up to the shower, and finished up the whisker pole, which we put on deck. Have to wait until it is calm enough to go up the mast to install it. That's not now. Bob also figured out that he had the needle in the sewing machine backwards and fixed the 110 refrigeration.

We have a mouse - Bob found droppings in his underwear drawer, and the chewed up the receipts that Bob was keeping there and making little piles of confetti. We don't have any mouse poison, so we put out little dishes of antifreeze (ethylene glycol) for him, but he hasn't appeared to eat any.

Conch house architecture

2001. January 24 - Weds - GEMINI has left to go to the Dry Tortugas. Heard them on the radio this morning. They said later that they came by the boat to tell us, but we were apparently listening to the radio. Bob tried to get the outboard that came with the inflatable to work, but it would not. So he gave up and put the Evenrude on it. We took the laundry, trash, water bottles and the cooler, and I went in to do email, and he got a shower, did the laundry (brought it over and left it with me), and shopped at the commissary. I did email etc, and then I wanted to get a shower and a sandwich. I told the other folks that I was leaving the laundry there and would be back. I met him coming across the parking lot. He had already had lunch. I told him I'd be back to the dinghy by the time he filled the water bottles. And I was.

We dinghied back to the boat and then I ate my sandwich.

Dry Tortugas