This morning we assembled our tandem bike and rode 3 miles to church at Tavernier. After returning to a good breakfast on board we finally cast off at 11 :30. Marathon will be our jumping off point to head north to Cape Sable at the tip of mainland Florida and then up the Gulf Coast. But with the late start today Marathon is out of reach so we looked for an indeterminate stop. There are no marinas on the inside (Florida Bay side) but looking online at cruisersnet, which has turned out to be a very valuable resource, we found an anchorage at the southwest end of Lower Matacumbe Key. The website warns against overhead power lines, but once we got inside Matacumbe Harbor we could see that you would have to be practically ashore before the power lines would be a problem. The anchorage is well protected from the strong north west wind, and we enjoyed a long afternoon reading, napping, and catching up with navigational plans. The harbor is home to a Boy Scouts High Adventure base, with many beautiful boats, presumably donated. I rowed ashore to ask their permission to beach our dinghy while we went to dinner. The only restaurant for many miles around is a Cuban one right across the highway from here. We enjoyed an excellent dinner and even treated ourselves to ice cream before rowing back to the boat.
On today's sail we passed a floating portuguese man of war, the first of those nasty stinging jellyfish we have seen in a long time.
The last 3 days have been just about perfect sailing, with strong fair winds, sunny skies, moderate temperatures, and beautiful clear green water. Navigating through the shoals and between many mangrove Islands has added to the fun of the sailing. Most marinas and marine facilities are on the ocean side of the Keys, presumably to accommodate powerboaters interested in fishing. The Florida Bay side which we are sailing is beautiful but limited by shallow water. Thank goodness for our 3 foot draft.
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