PHOTO LINK CLICK HERE —>> September 30, 2012As I write this on the 20th, we are sailing to Key West for a break from our boat chores and to test all the new equipment. The wind is a gentle 10knots from the northwest and we are heading south. The sky is a beautiful blue with lovely cloud formations and in the distance towards the  shore is the regular afternoon thunderstorms we can hear them banging away. In all it is peaceful and very comfortable

We started September with a long challenging bike ride to Sanibel on the Labour Day weekend. We rode 12 miles to get there. Most of the ride was along the usual pavements that everybody bikes along.  Then as we approached the bridge and causeway to Sanibel we had to ride along the side of the road. This was for me quite nerve racking having cars and bikes zooming by within an arm’s distance.

As the bridge loomed I saw what a challenge it was as there was a real incline to ride. That is also when John showed me the sign that said “no stopping on the bridge” I felt very intimidated. However we both made it over without a problem. I was quite exhausted but very pleased with myself. The bridge is about 75-80feet high to allow for the sailboats like Aeeshah to fit under, so it is quite a steep climb.

After the bridge is a long causeway with a smaller bridge which is nowhere near as difficult. Anyway at Sanibel we headed to the Lighthouse first stopping to get some lunch to carry with us. At the beach by the Lighthouse we found some shade under some trees, had lunch, people watched and read. It was quite crowded being a popular beach area. We had a swim, used the outside showers which are so refreshing, dressed and rode to the ice-cream parlor to get some energy injected before the slog, I mean ride back. We totaled 27 odd miles that day, but it was worth every bit of the climb up the bridge both ways.

The Labour Day Monday we took the dinghy over to Estero and walked across the island for a peaceful walk along the beach. As the weather was not the best we expected a semi-deserted beach. What a surprise to find that the beach was packed with beach parties of every type. The majority of people were younger and obviously well practiced at partying on the beach. The music from the beach bars was pumped, every type of watercraft was practically on the beach, and everyone had different types of images to portray.

The most surprising to me was the number of guys that had these stripped snakes wrapped around their arms and necks. They were gyrating with the snakes and seemed to think it was a way to attract the females on the beach, just bizarre to me. I felt sorry for the dogs, as they must have been hot and very confused by everything going on around them. Overall it was a very entertaining walk. We swam and then walked back through all the action to the beach showers before going for an evening drink.

Two weeks later on the Sunday we set off for Bonito Springs on the bikes. I had seen what I thought was a National Park gate, it turned out to be parkland but you need a canoe to travel through the waterways. Back we rode to Lover’s Key for a picnic, swim and relaxing afternoon. To make the return journey a bit more interesting John suggested we ride along the 8miles of Estero beach front – on the beach. So around that time it started to rain as well. We did have an ultra cool ride along the beach just above the waterline. The sand is very hard packed and generally quite smooth to ride on. Towards the end of the ride we could hear the sound of thunder and saw behind us the regular afternoon thunderstorm chasing us.

So we raced it to the beach end, bought an ice cream as our reward and sat under a pavilion till the rain, lightning, and wind eased. Then in a break we rode over the bridge and back to Salty’s. The weather closed in after our return.

After my Sanibel bridge encounter I am now able to ride up all of the bridges. I feel if I was able to do that one I can do them all. Our bike riding is normally a daily activity. Usually it is linked to getting something we need and so usually the rides are about 6-8 miles. John and I also use the AC in the stores as our reward as the temperatures here are slightly milder but that’s 90s in the shade.

One ride, which was not as favourable, was a venture into a bird-spotting park in the mangroves. Everything was fine riding along the broad walks and trails until we hit the mud. I sank in the mud and cloud of mosquitoes rose around me and used me as their dinner. We left as fast as was possible but by that time we were covered in mud and mosquito bites.

Enterprise Car rental sent us an offer we couldn’t refuse for a weekend deal. We used the car to get some essentials and explored further south finding a new National Park: Delnor Wiggins State Park at the North of Naples. It was quite a windy rough day and so we really enjoyed the walk and swim.

Our boat chores/projects this month have included: We cured the AC leak and fixed a serious plumbing leak. We had installed an AIS system, the new VHF, and a new Clarion Satellite radio system. John installed the new wind generator.

The riggers Richard and Chris installed our new main sail with new reefing system and main sail cover. Plus they did all the inside foundation work to have the inner forestay fitted. They also installed a new Seldon boomvang and Furlex furller for the jib. John built an anchor locker divide for all the extra chain we will need to get.

Jen made a hatch vent and a port shade cover too. Then experimented with baking muffins and bread.  Plus we did other various small boat projects like rescreening ports. The wind generator plus the solar panels that were previously installed mean that we generate approximately 90% of our energy needs. In all it was a very productive month.

And now about our trip to Key West. The trip down had started as the peaceful, comfortable passage mentioned above.

During lunch there was a loud, Bang! from above our heads. At first John couldn’t figure what had happened until it became apparent that the main sail’s out haul had busted, simply put, the bottom of the main sail at the end of the boom the attachment had shattered. It took quite a bit of muscle and some rope and we managed to rig it to work for the trip.

Meanwhile the seas started increasing along with the wind and before we knew it we had 20+ knots of wind and 3 – 5 foot seas. That was around when the cleat for the jib’s halyard gave way. So John had to use a different method to reef the jib while I was having a very hard time keeping the bow to wind to make the whole operation possible. These weather conditions continued all through the rest of the day and through the night. It was a very uncomfortable rough night.

Unfortunately I was of no help as I felt dreadful and literally crashed out in the bed we use for crossings. John managed to dodge thunderstorms all night with the help of the new radar. He could see on the radar that they were literally forming over us and they were chasing us for much of the night. The wind was gusting above 25 knots and the seas were over 5 feet. It was nearly impossible below to sleep but after I finally crashed for a few hours I was then of some help. It was a real shake down.

We arrived at Key West harbor entrance at 10:30 and got to the mooring field at noon, tidied the boat, cleaned up had lunch and napped for a few hours. The rest of the day we spent relaxing, having a swim and generally doing what we felt like doing.

For the following days we set about exploring Key West by land and sea. Our first full day we started by checking in with the dock master and then left the dinghy at the dinghy dock while we walked around. Key West is an exceptionally interesting place. The shops are full of the most interesting collections of just about anything you can think of. The famous Duvall Street that is close to a mile long is one of the most entertaining streets found anywhere the shops and the street venders kept us busy for most of the afternoon.

Another day we took the bikes ashore and spent a day riding around the outside of the island and down many of the quaint streets.

When we were about halfway around the perimeter of the Key near the African Memorial Park John noticed that his front tire was glitchy, he decided the bearings were going and so could not risk riding, as it would damage the bike. We started looking for a gas station for some grease and after asking a number of people we finally came across a bike rental place where they directed us to Island Bicycles http://www.islandbicycle.com/ The owner Aaron was exceptionally helpful. He striped down the front wheel, found the problem was the bearing holder and fixed it. (probably from one of our rides along beaches) He did this in a matter of 20mins or so. I ‘d recommend his business to anyone He was our hero of Key West. “Thank you Aaron for everything and yes we hope to look up your friends in Jamaica.”

The whole day was brilliant despite the fact that it rained. The evening was spent swimming off the boat and then in the town for a lobster dinner at the Raw Bar.

One of the days we went to ride the dinghy around the entire Key. However the bushing in the propeller of the dinghy was acting up so we were unable to plane, go fast, therefore we were only able to putt putt along. Admittedly we did get to really see most of the shoreline however it was somewhat tedious.

We cut back into the Key via the Cow Key Canal and decided to look for the Winn Dixie grocery store to stock up.

We had been told that it was by a bridge where we could leave the dinghy and have the people that live under the bridge watch it. Problem being we were not sure about which bridge was the right bridge. The first one we check was obviously not the right one as nobody lived under it and there were no grocery stores at the ends. That set us off on a bridge quest which ended well over a hour later after we had travelled down a canal that stretch about 1 & 1/2 miles and under 4 bridges some so low we had to lay down in the bottom of the dinghy.

The canal was a tunnel through the mangroves in parts, along backyards in other parts, past car parks and trailer parks in other parts. The bridges ranged from concrete tunnels to steel trestles. Finally the last bridge was the correct bridge as we spoke to a fellow who was just untying his dinghy from the mangroves and he told us that we had finally found the correct bridge.

The ironic part was that it was directly opposite where the boat was moored in the Bight mooring field, granted it was hidden in the mangroves, but we had driven all around to find what was already there.  Oh and we decided we couldn’t be bothered go to the Winn Dixie anyway.

Our final day we took the dinghy engine in to be serviced and walked around until it was ready. We seemed to walk every road in the town spending the time checking out the stores, people and the art galleries.

The passage back was a pleasant one. There was a moon and good wind of 10-15 knots to sail. We arrived back again in about 24 hours. I was able to do my share of watches (8pm-12 then 4am -8am) due to some great medication however the side effects made it quite a challenge to stay awake, I felt like I needed matchsticks to keep my eyes open. The sunrise was as amazing as always.

Back at Salty’s we were greeted by some other live-aboards Charles and Alex who helped us tie up.

The final days of September will be back to boat chores and getting ready for the Annapolis Boat show where we are enrolled in seminars and hope to buy our final necessities ready for our end of October departure.

Novels we really enjoyed this month were:

The Sandcastle Girls by Chris Bohjalian,                                                                                                     All Women and Springtime by Brandon W Jones                                                                                      Elizabeth Street by Laurie Fabiano

 “The point is not to pay back kindness but to pass it on. People are opportunities. The gift is in the interaction and the connection with another person, whether it lasts forever or not.”  Colleen Seifert