CLICK HERE PHOTO ALBUM —–>> A visit to Dry Tortugas

Tuesday 3^rd April: Left Salty Sam’s at 8.30 and headed straight out. We were at the channel entrance  by 9:15 and set a course of 214 magnetic towards the Dry Tortugas.

John set his new rod in the troll holders and before we knew it he had a strike. Poor fish must have been on there a little while as the line was miles out by the time John reeled him in.

There was very little wind just about 5knots, the wind picked up but soon died again. By 1:00pm we had covered about 25miles and had 100 to go, heading in a southwesterly direction at 5knots.

 

 

We were entertained by a large pod of dolphins just before sunset a female and 3 or 4 juveniles swam around and around the boat racing each other at the bow, jumping and flipping just showing off to us. They stayed for a good 10 minutes it was just wonderful watching them. Then as the sunset other dolphins visited with us again racing the boat and jumping along side.

Wednesday 4th, April: We arrived at our waypoint at 8:15, which meant it took us just over 24hours to reach the outside of the Dry Tortugas.

Dry Tortugas

The Dry Tortugas is almost 70 miles (113 km) west of Key West is a group of seven islands formed by coral reefs and sand. Along with the water and surrounding shoals, is the Dry Tortugas National Park. The area is known for its famous marine life and its birds, its legends of pirates and sunken treasure and military past. 

By the time we had anchored it was 10:00am.

My first over night passage was surreal. The time seemed to stand still. I would read for 10 minutes, so I thought, then check the radar and really only 2 minutes had passed. I was on watch from 8 till 12:00 then John was on. He was meant to wake me at 4:00am but left me till 6am, which was very kind. He then crashed out and I was on watch for the sunrise, which was just lovely.

After we arrived at the anchorage we dinged ashore, paid the park fee and explored a bit of Fort Jefferson.

Fort Jefferson on Garden Key

Fort Jefferson, the largest all-masonry fort in the United States, was built between 1846 and 1875 to protect the nation’s gateway to the Gulf of Mexico. Supply and subsidence problems and the Civil War delayed construction. The fort was never completed because of fears that additional bricks and cannon would cause further settling and place more stress on the structure and the cistern system. Distinguishing features include decorative brickwork and 2,000 arches. Time, weather, and water continue to take their toll, necessitating ongoing stabilization and restoration projects.

All of the 8million bricks were shipped in and everything was built by hand. It is quite an accomplishment.

A lighthouse was constructed at Garden Key in 1825 to warn incoming vessels of the dangerous reefs and later, a brick tower lighthouse was constructed on Loggerhead Key in 1858 for the same purpose.

Bird key

Bird key, which is next to the fort, is the nesting ground for the Sooty Terns at this time of year there are 75,000 to 80,000 birds nesting there. Interspersed among them are 10,000 Brown Noddies nesting. They are constantly chatting away to each other. On a further key the Frigate birds and other larger sea birds nest. It is a lovely picturesque National Park.

Back at the boat we jumped over for a swim. It was quite a shock when first getting in but very pleasant after a while at 79degrees. During the evening we watched the boats around us, had drinks and snacks, read and made plans for the next day.  Before we went to bed we checked the weather and saw that the huge electrical storm that had been 300 odd miles to the north heading to the west coast was actually 100 odd mile away and headed south. So just in case we made ready for a bit of bad weather.

At 1:15 all hell broke loose. The thunder was non-stop, not a break, in fact it was like 100s of crashes at once. The lightening was continuously crashing around us. There were dozens of forks striking at once, some seemed to hop across the water and had spurs striking out of them. It was so bright it was like daylight. The wind was howling. The boat was straining on the chain. We were being thrown from one side to the other with what sounded like a bombardment going on around us.

John went up top into the cockpit to keep watch. We could see that there were lights on the other boats as they too struggled to be safe. We saw that one sailboat had dragged and was up in the shallows being side on to the wind and waves. I was shaking with fear and went and sheltered in bed. John stayed in the cockpit till it subsided.

We finally crashed out again only to be awoken at 3:30 by another assault. This time there was little electrical activity but the wind blew up to 32knots. The boat was flung around as the wind direction kept changing. At the Fort they clocked 50 knots. When chatting to the other boaters none of them had ever seen any thing like it. The park guard has been a resident for 2 years and never seen any weather as harsh other than hurricanes. The unfortunate folks that dragged were safe but had suffered a hit form the lightning and had lost their electrical system. They said their boat just spun around and around and that they must have been caught in a micro cell from the system. Anyway everyone was safe.

Thursday 5^th April: We started the day by attempting to snorkel around the fort. We had seen a good variety of fish and coral around the moat and hoped to use the underwater camera. However the water on that side was all churned up from the waves of the night before so we headed to the pylons. Actually at the pylons there were many good-sized fish, absolutely ginormous barracudas, huge snappers and many others. I took my coral photos, as the coral was great too.

Loggerhead key

After lunch we noticed that a couple of the other dinghies were heading over to Loggerhead Key, so we figured we would follow along. Loggerhead is about 2 plus miles away, off in the distance. There were still fair seas rolling from the bad weather, but it was a beautiful day and the wind was favorable ……off we went. It was a bumpy ride over but well worth it. The island was wonderful just wild, wild, wild with just the old lighthouse and buildings in the middle. We walked around the beaches and I was very happy to find a Horseshoe conch lying on the beach. We explored for over an hour and decided we would definitely go back and spend more time there. A wonderful, wild place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That evening was peaceful and relaxing having drinks, dinner and off to bed before 9pm. However we were awoken by strong winds and rain at 1:00am. This time there wasn’t much thunder and very little lightening in the distance, but the wind was stronger. John stayed in the cockpit watching to make sure the anchor held and that everything was safe. It didn’t last long and settled down for the rest of the night.

Friday 6th, April: We were up to a beautiful sunrise. After breakfast we were off to finish exploring the fort. We walked around the top again and around the interior where we hadn’t explored before. Quite creepy in the area where they had Dr. Mudd locked up. His crime was trying to leave back in the 1800s and he was locked up poor man. Life was harsh back then according to the tales accounted for in the fort. We then ended up sitting in the shade on the dock chatting to a couple from another sailboat. Steve, Maggie and their service dog Trooper. They were the ones hit in the electrical storm. He is ex US army and they travel in their RV and sailboat around the US. A very nice lifestyle.

After lunch we were off to snorkel the outside of Bush Key where we had seen an interesting spot plus it was in the lee. The area proved to be very ordinary just grass beds but with some huge barracudas. As we were heading back across to the pylons we were shouted at by the female guard telling us to come here now while pointing at her feet. So dutifully we swam to where she was to be told we were out of the designated snorkel area and were to get out and report to her for her safety lecture. Wonderful just what we wanted to be told off by an over zealous 20 year old guard. We did as told and then returned to the boat for the evening.

Saturday 7^th April: Last night was the first night without any bad weather. 2 of the remaining boats left with 1 new arrival there were 3 of us anchored.

In the morning we walked around the moat and believe it or not we saw a crocodile in the moat.  It is around 7foot.  Apparently it used to live on Long Key and when the sand bridge formed between Bush and Garden Key he arrived, too strange but true. So far he hasn’t taken any campers.

We had another look through the museum and decided to have an early lunch and head to the Brick Wreck for a snorkel. The Brick wreck is on Bird Key Bank about half a mile away and is the remains of a brick carrier that was run aground there in around 1857. We seemed to find the coordinates quite easily and anchored the dingy in about 4 foot of reef/sandbar. However once in the water we found there was a crazy current running. It was so strong that even swimming full out with fins it was not easy to make any headway. Considering we were about half a mile from the boat and land we decided getting caught in a current was not a clever option.

Loggerhead Key again

 

As we were headed in the direction of Loggerhead Key and our friends with Trooper the dog were going there we opted to head over to Loggerhead. It was a great choice; we walked the end of the island that we hadn’t visited previously and found it to be just beautiful. At the very end there were conflicting currents where the sea was flowing either side of the sand bar, the scenery was just stunning. With the lighthouse in the background, the blue sky, seabirds and the distant palm trees and nobody around. We cut up the far side to the lighthouse area and found our friends chatting with the keeper and his wife, Gregg and Sylvia. They are volunteers that stay for months at a time and work on projects maintaining the lighthouse and the cottage. The buildings were built in the 1800s and are all made of brick. Gregg is there as an electrical expert and is fixing up the ancient system that has not been operational in 5 years since the last bad hurricane.

John and I then went snorkeling on the north side to a place called Little Africa. It is a very large reef. We found it to be full of fish with some excellent coral. Our friends were off walking the beaches. We met up after and spent some time chatting at the dock while Maggie was snorkeling – her first solo snorkel. Trooper was crab hunting nearby.

We headed back to the fort to see if we could photograph the croc and if I could find the shell I had stashed the day before. Both were unsuccessful as the croc kept going back into his cave/culvert under the bridge and my beautiful shell was not to be found. Overall it was an excellent day.

That evening was lovely and tranquil light breeze, just the sound of the seabirds and gentle swaying boat. Then around 1:00am the weather came in again. The wind picked up to over 25knots continuous with gusts as high as 34knots. The seas picked up with waves of around 3 feet making for a constant rolllllll. John spent time up making sure everything was held fast. He put a double line on the dingy and good thing he did as by morning one of the lines was chaffed right through.

Easter Sunday, April 8^th, I made pancakes for breakfast. After which we just relaxed on the boat. The wind was blowing up and over 30knots right across the anchorage and so it was quite rough too. Towards lunchtime we went for another walk around the fort. We walked the top level – along the top it really felt like you could be blown off. Then along the middle section and finally along the ground level. We did find areas we hadn’t explored before – the bakery, which was quite creepy. Then around the moat again. After lunch the wind was still howling so we did chores and prepared to leave the next day. That evening we did a final visit to the crocodile and a dingy ride around the bay.

Monday, April 9^th, we were headed out at 9:40. The weather had moderated but the sea was still quite rough with 3 – 5 foot swells, which were confused so coming from differing directions. This meant my stomach felt queasy and unsettled. However we were able to sail for the full day and for much of the time were making good speed at 7knots.

We had a very long visit from a large pod of dolphins. There were around 18 or more dolphins in the pod and they stayed with us for 45 minutes or so. Jumping, racing the boat coming up to say hello. John lay on the bow and could smell their breath as they breathed out below him. They really were magnificent! So strong, swift and graceful, like torpedoes through the water.

The rest of the day slid past and before I knew it was my night watch, 8 – 12:00. This time it was very dark with no moon or light at all. However it was eerily beautiful and peaceful. When the moon rose around 11:00pm it came up as a huge orange ball. I saw dolphins swimming in the phosphorescence next to the boat with the rising moon in the distance. It was a beautiful sight. John relieved me at midnight and I gratefully crashed out.

The rest of the night the wind picked up and was slamming us on the nose. I was “sleeping” in midair for a good few hours. John changed tack and headed north so we had a gentler passage from about 3:00am. Again he let me sleep longer than I should have and roused me at 6:30. As the sun rose I had to keep close watch for the pot buoys. However they proved to be few and far between. We arrived at our waypoint exactly 24 hours after we had left at 9:30am. It was good to be back at Salty’s but sad to know we had to leave soon.