BACK TO MARATHON

Our trip back the seas were calm and the crab traps were easy to see. It is really hot and humid here, but we're not complaining....could be Chicago weather.



NO NAME PUB

This morning we did some mundane chores around the boat, then headed to No Name Key to the No Name Pub for lunch. There are supposedly $300,000. worth of dollar bills hanging all over the walls and ceiling. The Pub goes back to the 1930's. We drove through the Key Deer Habitat. The Deer are an endangered species that live in this area. They were running around like dogs in a neighborhood. Would NOT want to drive here at dusk.

HI HO HI HO, IT'S OFF TO KEY WEST WE GO!



KW ROOSTER





SUNSET @ MALLORY SQUARE

VIEW FROM OUR SLIP

Yesterday, we headed down to Key West on our boat this time! It was a fairly unpleasant ride for Jake and Dorsey. We took Hawks Channel, which is the Atlantic Route. It took us about 5 1/2 hours to get down here. Good news is the last hour or so, we changed direction and the sea settled down a bit. We are staying at the Galleon Marina....nice! We got a wonderful slip! The water is so clear that we can see large Tarpon swimming right next to our boat. We have a great view and there is lots happening nearby. We are about 3 blocks from Duval Street. Last evening, we went to Mallory Square to watch the sunset and the characters that congregate there. After dinner on the boat, we stopped at a couple places to hear some great music and sip some wine. Found a great Blues Bar!

This morning we walked around the old town. We wanted to get our walk in before the onslaught of tourists and people from the cruise ships arrived. The sidewalks get very crowded.

There is a beautiful pool here as a part of the Marina. After lunch, we headed over to the pool to relax and enjoy the gorgeous weather.

THE FUN CONTINUES...

DOLPHIN RESEARCH CENTER

TMCA FRIENDS, ROY AND LEISA

We are trying to get to all the cute restaurants around here. Yesterday, we had breakfast at the Stuffed Pig. Thus far, we've hit Salty's, Porky's, Burdines, Sparky's and Lazy Days. Tonight, who knows where we'll end up .
This afternoon, we went to the Dolphin Research Center. Roy and Leisa are in town and joined in the tour. Never knew Dophins could make so much noise. They sounded like a bunch of fussy little kids.
This evening, we'll watch the sunset from our dock neighbors boat, then it's out to dinner with the sunset watchers .

KEY WEST AGAIN :-))

We were supposed to take KNOTUGAL down to KW this weekend, but the weather forecast took care of that. A front has come through with North 25 - 30 mph sustained winds with gusts over 35. We would not be able to get back to Marathon tomorrow in those conditions. So...we drove down and met up with Phil and Matilde. They will return on Tuesday. Tonight we are hunkered down on our boat listening to the wind howl. John has the boat tied well and goes out to check the lines every half hour.

BEACH BUDDIES

Yesterday, we packed a lunch and dinghyed over to Sombero Beach with Phil and Matilde. It is quite a nice beach...very sandy. Could not have been a prettier day for it.

This afternoon, more TMCA friends, Camille and Ernie,  stopped by. They are visiting friends on a boat over at the Sombero Marina. Phil and Matilde joined us. Whenever a bunch of boaters get together, there is never a loss for words. Many stories were shared.

BURDINES

So many places, so little time!  We made it to Burdines this evening for the sunset. For anyone who has been to Marathon, this is a well known, long time haunt! It is your basic Dive, but has a lot of history and character. I had a Mahi Mahi Reuben sandwich. This seems to be a popular variation of the usual Reuben down here. Yes, it is GOOD!

This afternoon, we decided to check out the Marathon Cinema. It supposed to be the best movie theater in Marathon, of course, it is the ONLY movie theater in Marathon. It is a "mom and pop" sort of place but interesting and fun. Since it is small and seats are limited, everyone arrives real early and by the time the movie starts, everyone has made friends with the people in the nearby seats.

After the movie, since there was a large number of boaters in attendance, a whole herd of bikes left the parking lot. I should mention that there are bike riders EVERYWHERE!!!! We have to extremely watchful at all times for them. It is like driving on a college campus.

THE FUN CONTINUES

BEHOLD, THE SHRINE( I mean the dinghy) is splashed! It has been a long dry spell with the dinghy. The crane has not worked and it was always a major effort to put the dingy in the water. The crane is fixed and we had a delightful outing around Boot Key Harbor!

We have had a great past 2 days. I got to play some tennis, and John has finished a bunch of projects. He now has a hose to connect to the scuba tank. That way if we hit a crab trap, he can snorkel down to cut the line and leave the tank on the aft deck.

Last night we had a sunset happy hour on the boat next to us. They gave us a tour of their boat as did the other couple they invited. Both couples live full time on their 65' boats. It is hard to relate to 5 staterooms,full size washer and dryer, dishwasher and crew quarters! We still owe them a tour of our boat.
Fellow TMCA friends, Phil & Matilde, arrived to Marathon on Thursday. They are on a mooring ball near by. We  will pick them up at their dinghy dock this evening, and go to dinner to celebrate their 43rd wedding anniversary.

YOGA BY THE SEA

Sure wish I had a picture of where I went to yoga today. I did some searching to find a good yoga instructor here. I found one on Duck Key, that holds class in her home and in Marathon. Today's class was at her home. She uses her lower level for her studio....french doors open to a patio, which is just off the beautiful turquoise water! Can't describe how special the environment was, not to mention she was an excellent teacher.
John spent the morning polishing all the railings on the boat. He got a workout using lots of elbow grease.

KEY WEST



Certainly not us on the 3 wheeler! Funny thing was...it was a pretty old couple.....you rock senior citizens!

 We drove down to Key West today....long drive from Marathon (hour). Next time we go, we'll take the $1.50 pp bus. It was so crowded....even on a Tuesday. It was great people watching.
We got back in time to see the sun set. Every evening, the people on our dock gather about 20 minutes before sunset, with adult beverage in hand, to watch the sun go down. Tonight was a good one, but the "No See Ems" were out in force! They were biting like crazy. Everyone promptly retreated to their boats.

MARATHON DAY 3

Yesterday we walked out buns off....over 7 miles. We wanted to see what was around here so we just started walking along the Overseas Highway. One thing we have noticed. There is a TIKI bar on every corner! It is like Mexican restaurants in Texas. Also, there are lots and lots of boaters down here, lots of old guys with beards and a bunch of friendly people. We listened to "Cruisers Net" this morning on the VHF radio. Every morning at 9, people call in  with info and concerns of the local boaters. We saw several sailboats head out for the Bahamas this afternoon. They were waiting for a weather window and today was IT. They will sail all night to arrive there by morning.
Today, we rented a car for the month and bought groceries. The weather has been fantastic. 

MARATHON FLORIDA

We made it!!!!,
We spent the last 2 days on Plantation Key. We were only supposed to be there one night, but a front came through with 25 kt winds. It blew like crazy yesterday, so we stayed put. Our first day there, we met up with some boater friends, Jim and Linda, whom we had met in St. Augustine last year. They had rented a condo down here for the month of January and knew the area. We had lunch with them at the Island Grill and dinner at Lazy Days in Islamorada.
This morning we set out for Marathon. The first couple hours, it was VERY shallow with just a foot of water under the boat :-( This is "normal" through here. After that, the depth was fine, but there were THOUSANDS of crab traps EVERYWHERE. Good thing was the water is such a beautiful blue, they weren't too hard to spot. It was a very tiring 5 1/2 hours of driving for John today.
We are happy with our Marina...Marathon Marina. The place is great, the people are friendly , and it looks like a fun place for the month. After watching the sun set from the bow of our boat, we'll walk to a casual, local haunt for dinner.