Oliver Sails South: We are in Boot Key Harbor in Marathon, FL

With the Okay from the vet, we started our journey south again. We did not know if we wanted to spend more time in the Biscayne Bay or stop there on the way North in the Spring. Such dilemmas! We decided to keep heading south and will visit other places in the Spring.
We left Ft Lauderdale February 4 , got the engine full of diesel and headed to the Miami area. We went out Port Everglades for 2 reasons; we wanted to sail and there is a bridge in Miami we might scrap as it is only at 55 feet. Being out in the ocean with the sails full out and winds in the right direction we reached Miami area, the Biscayne Bay in no time. We came in the Florida Channel. We decided to anchor at a place called. "No Name Harbor". It is in the Bill Baggs State Park, perfect for walking a dog. You pay to anchor there on the honor system. From what we could tell, many people don't leave the boats to do this, but we are always the ones that follow rules. It was beautiful and had great walking paths.

Boats anchored at No Name Harbor

Stiltsville outside the harbor. Houses , now condemned. Who had this crazy thought?

Oliver looking for our friendly manatee

Florida Channel lighthouse

Sunset at the harbor.

The next day we left knowing we would return to head about 50 miles south to an anchorage. The winds had picked up and there were 2-3 footers, but we sailed fast and furious to Rodriquez Key with the east/southeast winds. More wind throughout the day made for a bumpy anchorage. To get the dog ashore we had to travel about a mile or so in the dinghy with the waves hitting us from the side. Not pleasant. Oliver , as usual was hanging out the side until a good wave hit him and then he stood in the dinghy . In the dark, before bed, it was even more exciting. We ended up with dinner at the restaurant there and then had a good night's sleep.

looking at Key Largo where we had to dinghy Oliver, long ride

another gorgeous sunset.

We left early as it was another 45 miles to go. It was a windy, sunny day, so we had another great sail. We were in Hawk Channel which protects you from the worst of the ocean waves by a reef. so even though the waves outside the channel were high, we only had 2-3 footers again. We had to anchor out in the harbor, report to the harbormaster's office and we were put on a waiting list for a mooring ball. We were number 6, so we figured it may take a couple days as weather was rough for people headed out. Well, we were lucky and got a mooring the next day. So we are here, pretty far out in a mooring field of 266 balls, but secure in the winds without worrying about an anchor dragging.
Oliver loves it here as we had a visit from a dolphin and manatee. The dolphins put on a show a first day here, jumping, splashing and swimming around the boats. Oliver was in heaven. His tail was wagging and he barked in approval. We also see beautiful ospreys and egrets on the mangrove area across from us. We plan to stay here a month. The town is a little scruffy, but it has 2 grocery stores, Home Depot, West Marine, Walgreens, a big park for Oliver and some tourist shops and restaurants. Saturday nights there is entertainment at the tiki hut,.Everyday there is entertainment watching the boater's dinghy by, some standing, some sitting, some sideways, and a couple that both stand. Dale is working on batteries, inverters, etc., I cleaned and shopped and Oliver visits, sleeps, walks and watches for his dolphin friend. So far, so good with the heart issues. We have a vet on call here, so keep praying. Everyone gets around on bikes or by walking.
Many people dinghy by us and say hello to Oliver. He is a popular guy! We do have to do laundry soon, but that can wait a couple more days.
We did get to see that basketball game this week against a maize colored team, which we enjoyed!