Marquases to the Dry Tortugas

Follow our progress using this link: Steve's Spot

Day 14: March 18, 2018

Second Wind last evenjng

Today is the one that I have been talking about for a number of years.  We are going to make the dash for the Dry Tortugas.  The actual distance isn’t the big deal.  It is the rough weather that one so frequently encounters when heading out into the open waters of the Gulf.  Our forecast today is for very light winds out of the east making for a potentially easy ride.

We were up early, fixed our sausage gravy and toast and were under way before sun up at 7:00. As predicted, the winds were light but the residual rollers coming in off the Gulf made the ride rocky.  At about 9:00, an isolated cloud drifted over our heads and dropped a light sprinkle of rain. The boat is filthy and coated with salt, so a rain of significance would be most welcome.  It was not to be. We put up our sails hoping to catch a bit of wind to help the Suzuki

Tiny white crab scurrying across the beach

along, but, all we could milk out of following breeze was about a half of a knot.

Also, of concern was fuel.  We are carrying 3, 6-gallon tanks which is all that we can get on this trip.  There are no supplies including fuel on Dry Tortugas. It turned out that one tank took us to within 10 miles of the island so we have almost 2 tanks to carry us back if need be.

The main island of the group is Garden Key on which is the pre-Civil War fort, Fort Jefferson.  The group of islands was discovered in 1513 by the Spanish explorer, Ponce de Leon.  In 1825, a light house was built to protect mariners from the shoals and reef.  Construction was begun on the fort in 1846.  It was being built to control the entrance to the Gulf and was to be the biggest in a series of fortified defensive coastal structures.  The walls were 8 feet thick and stood 50 feet

Passing the north wall of Fort Jefferson

high.  It was slated to house 450 guns and house 1,500 defenders.  It never was completed.  

During the Civil War, the Union forces invented the rifled barreled guns that could shoot a projectile though a masonry structure making fortifications like Fort Jefferson obsolete. 

The Sally Port

During the Civil War, the fort was used as a military prison for Union deserters but its most famous prisoner was Dr. Samuel Mudd, who had splinted the broken leg of John Wilkes Booth after the Lincoln assassination.  Mudd was tried by a military court but was spared from being hanged by one vote and instead was sent to Fort Jefferson. 

I got carried away.  We arrived at Garden Key at around 3:30, dropped anchor in

One of a number of beautifully restored 10 inch rifled canons

the harbor, and quickly climbed aboard Damn Dink Too  for a quick ride to the fort.  We spent a couple of hours wandering around the huge facility.  It is obviously in a state of decline, however, the National Park Service  took over the area in 1935 after FDR named the region as a National Monument. There is so much to tell about this fascinating place.  I offer the following link to get a park service discussion of the Dry Tortugas:  www.nps.gov/drto

What's left of Dr. Mudd's cell.

As we approached the island, we noticed hundreds of frigate birds flying around squawking loudly.  The have arrived to take advantage of the nesting season of the sooty terns.  This spectacle occurs annually as many as 60,000 terns arrive on Bush Key, adjacent to Garden Key,to build their nest and raise their young.  The frigate birds feast on any unprotected tern chicks that they can find.  According to the ranger at the fort, after the nesting season, the terns will migrate back to the w

Frigate Bird

est coast of Africa. 

Original intention was to spend tomorrow wandering around the fort, however, the weather looks as though it will get quite ugly in three days so we plan to head out in the morning for the 2 day trek back to Key West.

Back at the boat, I offered to build a rice/mushroom soup/ham (Spam) casserole for dinner.  I off hand mentioned that we could use crab meat in stead of my special ham and for some reason, I don’t understand, Janine jumped on the concoction made with the crab.  We opened a of Pino Griego to accent this feast.  It was good.