Tavernier

A shot this morning from the swim deck
Below: Tavernier Key

We left Marathon at 1030 yesterday bound for Indian Key, a short sail away. It is always a joy to leave port but at the same time, if one has stayed several days and met folks, a bit of regret. As is usually the case, we met folks from all over and we spent some time with Gary and Tess who plan to leave "in about a year". One can only guess that they will or will not. You see, they are now locals. Eveyone knows them and they know the town. Good luck in the planning process since when they do leave, their destination is the Philippines, their home.

Hawk Channel is a natural , reef protected channel in places several miles wide. It is not immuned from the Atlantic swell but is calmer than the open Atlantic. The Gulf Stream comes close at times and is part of the weather forecase. The Gulf Stream is a real river and has a very strong current running north. At times it is only a few miles off the reefs.

The channel is heavily traveled but being so wide, one hardly notices. The water is clear and only two dozen or so feet deep. As we sailed past Indian Key yesterday, we decided to continue for a bit longer. The coral in the channel was clearly visible and the winds were so light that we just motored along at a mild pace. There were all kinds of boats, mostly large trawlers and sport fishing boats. Of the few sailing vessels, we passed none heading toward Key West. All were motoring. It was a fine, but very hot day with rain showers around.

We reached Tavernier Key, just off Key Largo around 1810 and dropped the hook in 10 feet of water. The anchor was clearly visible and that is amazing. This area is about the finest diving and snorkeling area in the US and there were many dive boats anchored around the area. At around sunset, they all head back to their bases and that left us with Hawk Channel and our anchorage to ourselves, we thought. The moon was spectacular and the winds remained light. Just at sunset, a sailing vessel was making way, such that it was in the light air, toward an opening in the reef that separates Hawk from the Atlantic. They were setting up to "do the crossing" to the Bahamas. Being about 60 nautical miles or so, most sailors leave at sunset so as to arrive there after sunup. One does not want to approach those waters at night. Preferably, it is a good thing to do so as high sun so that you can see the coral and shallows. The scene of that boat, under full sail, against the full moon is one that words would not capture. Just let your imagination picture an 18th century sailing ship doing the same without all the lights of shore, silently looking for that opening to the North Atlantic.

Our anchorage is about a quarter mile off Tavernier thus we were not bugged last evening. That's a good thing since the mangroves are home to some knarley critters that love mamals. Though hot yesterdy, the night was just right for some serious snoozing. Today we will pick another anchorage and move toward Biscayne Bay.