Marathon again

May 5-6, 2010

The skies were clear with just a little wind when we left Key West heading north again to Marathon or Boot Key. We were able to sail for about an hour without the motor, but when the wind dropped below 5kts, we added the engine at 2000 rpm which boosted our speed from 2-3 kts to 5-6 kts. There were some fishing boats out and at one time we were passed by 10 large fishing boats which were following each other south to Key West. We had to deal with all their wakes for a while. We arrived in Marathon about 4 p.m. and were on the mooring ball by 4:15 (1615). It was hot and there was still very little wind. We put the dinghy into the water ( from on top of the cabin) and put the outboard on the dinghy. Charlie made a trip to the Dockside Bar for some ice. He stayed and had a libation before returning to the boat for dinner aboard. It didn't cool off much until the morning. Thank goodness for the fans on the boat!

We had a leisurely breakfast , then got into the dinghy to go to the West Marine. Previously one could go up the small channel cut into the mangrove trees to the Marathon Boat Yard dinghy dock, but it was blocked by floates used to trap oil spills. We tried to find another small channel up to the West Marine but were unsuccessful. We finally tied the dinghy up near Burdine's and walked about a mile

or so to the West Marine. They now have a new bigger store close to where the old one was. We picked up a new remote microphone for our VHF to use in the cockpit. Our present one has been cutting in and out, which is frustrating because you never know if who you are trying to contact is hearing you or not. Back at the boat, Charlie installed the new remote microphone and it worked great! After having a light lunch, we headed into the Marathon City Marina office to pay for our mooring and to get onto the internet. I also recycled our cans,

bottles, etc there. They have added some additional dinghy docks in front of the marina office. We also discovered that the dock near the grocery stores is no longer available for use by dinghies. This makes getting groceries much more difficult. We sat under a big fan, out of the afternoon heat and answered e-mails. After buying more ice, we headed back to the boat. We went to the Dockside for dinner. It is owned by the son of our Mt. Pleasant, SC friends, the Beckers. We enjoyed the food and entertainment and the sunset. There are many empty moorings here in Marathon.

We will leave Marathon tomorrow. We will anchor tomorrow night at Rodiquez Key and proceed on to Biscayne Bay the next day.