Marquesas to Key West

Day 16: March 20, 2018

We awoke to a rocking boat.  We had calm waters we went to bed which evolved into a brisk south wind.  We were parked north of the Marquesas, so the waves were not big.  We fried up a batch of pancakes and accompanied it with ready bacon. 

First of a line of 7 large fishermen coming home from the north

 

At around 8:00, we hoisted the mainsail, pulled the anchor and sailed away on the final leg of our trip to the Dry Tortugas.  I unfurled the jib and for the next 4 hours, we had a marvelous sail.  We sailed to within about a mile for the Key West Bight Marina.  As we approached that area, the traffic became quite heavy.  There were tourists on rented jet skis zooming around, boats pulling kites with bodies squealing high aloft, huge catamaran

Fellow sailor

sailboats jammed packed with tourists making waves, and charter captains carrying fishermen out of the harbor area at top speed so that their clients would  have the most possible time on their prize spot.  All of this commotion causes the water to boil making progress slow and uncomfortable.  

We called ahead to the Marina and secured a spot for the next two

nights.  The weather forecast is such that we don’t want to be moving about until the predicted high winds subside. We pulled up to the fuel dock and refilled our two empty tanks, bought some ice and checked out our appointed spot.  It turned out to be along side of a long pier between two other boats.  It  was wide enough for us but would be a bit challenging to get into.  The dock guy assured us that we could do it and sent a dock hand to assist us.  We got in although it was not  pretty.

What to do in Key West.  We started off by taking a nice long nap.  It was quite hot, in the middle 80’s so it was easy not to wander out into the hot sun.  At around 5:00 we decided to find an establishment that was willing to do the cooking and cleaning up after

Head of a family

dinner.  We settled on the Schooner Wharf Bar.  This is an interesting establishment.  The floor is gravel and the noise is loud.  The waitresses fit the dimensions and dress as outlined in the Hooter’s organization. (Of course I have never been to a Hooters so this is just an assumption.) While we dined, the infamous roosters and chickens of Key West wandered about our feet searching out morsels left by sloppy patrons.  We both

And a COLD one

had a snapper melt sandwich and a cold beer.  (We haven’t had ice for 5 days so cold ones were definitely a treat.)

After dinner we walked the streets heading for the famous Mallory Dock where the throngs head to watch the sunset.  Along the way, we passed a Haggen Das ice cream stand and of course we were compelled to stop.  

On the Dock we saw all types of street entertainers.  We passed an older flute player making beautiful music with not one paying attention.  There was a sad looking little older lady who was playing her heart out on her guitar as she sang and stared at us with longing eyes begging for us to drop money in her can. There was a comedian dressed in black and white stripes and a black top hat who did a hand stand on a chair.  He too added his request for tips in his monologue. 

Street musician with a volunteer quarter

We found a place to sit along a wall across the walkway from older black man who was singing Jamaican songs into a microphone.  He was good and very entertaining.  Still we saw no one drop money into his basket for the longest time.  After one nice ballad, Janine and I agreed that he deserved a $5.00 tip. By the time we walked on, he had accumulated a fairly large crowd and probably received significant payment.  What a rough way to make a living.

The last showman we watched from afar was a guy who climbed a 15-foot high pole with a little platform on top.  He juggled a bit, did a hand stand and then asked for tips.

The crowds packed the edge of the dock, the shutters snapped (of in the case of iPhones, dinged) and the sun did set.  We wandered back to the boat.  We were tired. It was a good day.  We rested in the realization that we had achieved our goal of making it out to the Dry Tortugas and had returned safely.

The Sunset!