A Relaxing Day on Boca Chita

Day 17:  April 11, 2014

Another great night’s sleep with the boat tied to a wall.  The water is calm here and the wind has little effect on the boat so there is virtual motionless sleep.  A rocking boat at bed time is not all bad but this was nice.

We started the morning with chipped beef of toast.  Our typical ritual dictates that we straighten up the boat do your personal hygiene stuff and then begin the rest of the day.

We walked about the little island and visited with boaters in the harbor.  The numbers of folks gathering from Coconut Grove Sailing Club is increasing and we are excited to be invited to join in their activities.  They are saying that by tomorrow, the crowd from their club will become quite large and the activities will be varied and fun. 

We noticed several folks get in their dinghies and head out of the cove.  We talked to Alex and Sandra, folks that we have come to know, about their dinghy trip and they told of an abandoned, grounded sailboat and a big home being built out of the native coral.  We decided to take the Dink out for a spin in the calmest of waters on the leeward side of the island.  We motored out onto beautiful fairly shallow crystal clear water.  It was fun to see the island from this vantage point.  We swung around the south end of the island then started heading up the north side.  The water became progressively shallow and we finally were motoring in the sand.  I finally raised the motor out of the water and rowed back into deeper waters.  We returned to the harbor entrance where we met Bill and Maria.  They were heading north on their dinghy in search of the grounded sailboat.  We decided to join them for an enjoyable trip out onto the Atlantic side of the Island.  It was a bit wavy but the Dink handled it with ease.

The boat looked to me to have been there for months.  It was a sickening feeling to see this once beautiful 30 footer deteriorating lying at a 45 degree angle on the shallow tidal area.  From there we motored around an adjacent island to view the beautiful home that is being built on this tiny island.  It is obviously some person’s special dream home.

Back in the harbor, we joined Bill and Maria for snacks and cold beverages, th then more walking, picture taking and visiting.  On one of our walks, we saw a flock of interesting shore birds but without binoculars and our bird book, I was not sure what they were.  Back at the boat, we dug out the book and decided that they could possibly be Ruddy Turnstones.  At the group lunch later, more of those little birds were gathered near where we were eating and I asked if anyone knew what they were and one woman said that they were Ruddy Turnstones.  Ah.  We got it. 

As the evening approached, the wall in the little harbor began to fill up with boats, most of which were from the Sailing Club.  We were again invited to join the potluck dinner and spent the rest of the evening enjoying the various folks and the lively conversation of members.  They encouraged us to stay around for the festivities that would be happening tomorrow and even assigned us to a couple of teams.  It appears that we are definitely part of the group.

The evening was jacket cool and breezy so mosquitoes and no-see-ems were not a problem.  Bed around 9:30.