FLORIDA KEYS ADVENTURE

[Gazmn]

Hailing any & all MacG'rs who are in the FL Keys area this Feb:

While I'm a day late & a dollar short for leaving. My wife & I hope to make it down safely from NY starting 1/31/16.

I figured we can use here & PM's to exchange #'s & see if we can meet up. Any travel / weather info will also be appreciated by all

[The-strikes]

Not this year. I pulled the boat down to the keys from NY with my Tahoe 2 years ago. If you are using South Dade marina, don't plan on spending the night there because of the "no see ums". I had an engine issue so we went back to a hotel for the first night. The guys at the marina were great though.

[Tomfoolery]

Wish I could join you, but I used up my long distance driving and time off for the year by driving to Houston and back (1600 miles each way) for Christmas to visit my brandy-new granddaughter.

But one of these years, I really want to haul the boat to the Keys for some skinny water fun.

[Norca]

Hi Gazm
We are in Homestead right now, and we will leave South Dade Marina on Monday,
I tried to PM You, but the message stayed in the outbox.
We will head south as weather permits, without any specific plans,
I would have liked to met chinook also, I believe he headed towards Angelfish Creek today, but we are not moving until Monday.

[Tomfoolery]

I tried to PM You, but the message stayed in the outbox.

And that's where it will stay, at least until the intended recipient goes into his/her PM's and gets it. That's how you know it hasn't been picked up. But if it's in the outbox, it was sent, and it's waiting for the recipient.

[Norca]

Yes, I just checked the e-mail, and his answer showed there with a link.
Tthanks.

[Don T]

Hello,
Man would I love to head down that way and spend a month cruising around. Have friends in Florida but have not yet visited.............

[Gazmn]

Hi Gazm
We are in Homestead right now, and we will leave South Dade Marina on Monday,
I tried to PM You, but the message stayed in the outbox.
We will head south as weather permits, without any specific plans,
I would have liked to met chinook also, I believe he headed towards Angelfish Creek today, but we are not moving until Monday.

Hey I haven't left yet Still packing, & packing, &...

Thanks to all well wishers. & Congrats Tom on your Brandy-new granddaughter. While a boat trip is nice; a newbie on board is Priceless

-Strikes,
I get it. I did this in '09 & '12... It takes 3 or 4 years to wanna do all this work - again
I wonder how much I have left in me to do again, after this... ?

[Chinook]

Hi Gazman,

We just pulled out of the Keys today, so there's plenty of room for you now. Sorry we couldn't meet up with you there, but I'm still hoping we can do it in New York Harbor. We're sitting at anchor in Angelfish Cut, looking at decent weather for a crossing to Bimini tomorrow. We'll pull out at 3am, and hope to arrive at Alice Town by noon or so. Hope you get better weather than we did while in the Keys. We had to bag plans to visit Key West and the Dry Tortugas, just too windy and stormy. We got pinned down for several days at Bahia Honda, and again for 10 days at Tavernier while waiting for decent Gulf Stream crossing conditions. We did enjoy the cruisers on C dock at Mangrove Marina in Tavernier. Bahia Honda was great, too. The place was virtually deserted, however. We stayed in the marina boat basin and were the only boat there. If you go there, keep your boat buttoned up tightly at night. We had a large cockroach scurry across our companionway bug net. Fortunately, no evidence that any of the beasties penetrated our inner defenses.

[Ixneigh]

It's been unusually windy here this year. And the fronts are moving through faster. Park somewhere shallow.
Ix

[Gazmn]

Hi Gazman,

We just pulled out of the Keys today, so there's plenty of room for you now. Sorry we couldn't meet up with you there, but I'm still hoping we can do it in New York Harbor. We're sitting at anchor in Angelfish Cut, looking at decent weather for a crossing to Bimini tomorrow. We'll pull out at 3am, and hope to arrive at Alice Town by noon or so. Hope you get better weather than we did while in the Keys. We had to bag plans to visit Key West and the Dry Tortugas, just too windy and stormy. We got pinned down for several days at Bahia Honda, and again for 10 days at Tavernier while waiting for decent Gulf Stream crossing conditions. We did enjoy the cruisers on C dock at Mangrove Marina in Tavernier. Bahia Honda was great, too. The place was virtually deserted, however. We stayed in the marina boat basin and were the only boat there. If you go there, keep your boat buttoned up tightly at night. We had a large cockroach scurry across our companionway bug net. Fortunately, no evidence that any of the beasties penetrated our inner defenses.

Thanks for the elbow room Mike
& yes, I'm looking forward to us meeting in NY.


Ah, the wind...
When I was there in '09, those football players sunk their fishing boat trying to motor out their anchor, tying it to the stern. 1 or 2 drowned...
The wind stayed 17 - 20 kts...

& the trek I did Gulf side, anchoring shallow & using my rudders & cb at a shallow angle anchor post was the only thing that let me rest. Thx Ix...
I'm gonna bring my rf jib & hope for the best

[THE CUSCUS]

GAZMN, did you make it down there? Looking forward to your trip reports, as I am headed that way in the beginning of March.

[Gazmn]

Hey Cus,

I finally finished packing, hemming & hawing & left 10PM Sunday


That was 14hrs ago & I just took a snooze while in a Cracker Barrel parking lot in Emporia, Va. I'm a little less than halfway between home & Duck Key.
Ya gotta love Cracker Barrel. Comfortable, familiar down home food, RV length secure parking - all the way down I95. I hope to get in late tonight, Mon 2/1/16.

[Tomfoolery]

How long are you planning on staying?

[THE CUSCUS]

Man, you must be bringing a lot of stuff, to be packing that long
Safe driving the second half. Looks like you will have some nice easy wind days for afew days. I hope all those crazy windy days are done for the season.