The trip down was easy, no wind to sail with so we had to motor all the way, but it was pleasant anyway. We anchored out the first night in Newfound Harbor, then went to Key West the next day. Our usual anchoring spot in KW is now blocked off by the Navy so we anchored just north of Wisteria Island. The next morning, we found we had dragged about 100 feet, so rather than risk dragging while we were ashore, we went around Fleming Key to the mooring field. We should have known something was wrong when we saw that the mooring field was nearly empty!
We took a ball, then went ashore in the dinghy. We signed up for the ball for a week, then went to Casa Marina to register for the Meeting of the Minds, the annual Parrothead convention. We heard a great band "Latitude," enjoyed a free margarita and then listened to Eric Stone. After Eric was done, we went to Kelly's for wings. It was a good day.
The next day we went ashore again, got our "goody bags" and heard Brent Burns, Jim Morris and Sunny Jom White. We also had a chance to chat with Howard Livingston, but didn't get to hear him play.
The following morning a strong cold front came through and the wind picked up to 25 knots out of the north. Now we know why the mooring field is nearly empty! There is NO protection from a north wind and guess what? The strongest winds here are always from the north. We ended up not being able to get off the boat for four straight days. We missed the best parts of the MOTM convention and spent the four days in bed watching DVDs.
The trip back was OK, just enough wind to sail, but of course blowing the wrong way. We did sail parts of the trip and motor-sailed the rest. We were happy to get back to Boot Key with its 360 degree protection. This place certainly lives up to its reputation as one of the best harbors in the world.
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| Latitude |
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| Eric Stone |
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| Brent Burns & Mike |
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| Sunny Jim (left) and Jim Morris |
