I woke up about 0515 and realized we still had enough tide to get over the controlling depths if we left ASAP (you know, time and tide don't wait on women, either) We pulled away from the house at 0520. It wasn't until evening that Ellen complained she hadn't had coffee all day... what a way to treat friends!
We took the shortcut across the flat, rather than taking the long way around the channel, and eased out Newfound Harbour #2 into Hawks Channel.
The weather was nice, with a SW wind about 12 knots, a direction we don't see a lot of in the Keys. We cruised easterly up Hawk's Channel to Mozier Channel, turning to the north, and passing under the 7 mile bridge, with plans to run the old ICW through the "backcountry" of the Florida Keys.
As we got to the east end of Duck Key, I had the sudden realization that we'd left all the boat keys on the key rack by the door. I called my neighbors, Katrina and Ritchie, and pleaded my case. They went to the house, picked up the sets of keys, and drove them to Marathon. What great friends!
Meanwhile, we back-tracked just a little, to anchor long enough to launch the RIB and run into Capt. Hooks, where they let me tie up to await my friends, who arrived within ten minutes of the time I had. Isn't it nice to have friends?
The rest of the afternoon we continued down the familiar run through the backcountry, which never presents any problems with MERCY's 4' 4" draft. I recalled with sadness that it was about a year ago that I ran this way from Miami with a couple of friends on board who had driven to Miami to make the trip home with me. The man, a few months later, dropped dead of a stroke, leaving his wife of over forty years a widow. I smiled with the sweet memories of the trip, and remembered. It is hard to lose friends...
As we neared Cowpens Cut, approaching Tavernier Creek, we met a USCG safeboat from Islamorada, who circled around and decided to board us. I offered to turn into the wind to simplify the process. They asked if I'd ever been boarded before, and I thought of the scores (hundreds?) of Coasties who had conducted boarding training scenarios on a couple of the gov't vessels that I'd captained during my seventeen year stint at USCG base in Key West.
One of the young men looked warily at Mocha, Ellen's chocolate lab, who thought it was wonderful three young men would come for a visit. My yellow lab, Mercy, just plopped down by another's feet like it was an every day occurrence.
The guys did a pretty thorough vessel boarding, looking in the engine room, and forward below deck compartments, as well as checking flares, life jackets, fire extinguishers, placards, our toilet and sewage system, and document papers.
After they left, we went through the cut and anchored south of Tavernier Creek, N25 00.504' W080 32.833' where we grilled steaks and watched the myriad of small boat traffic that flanked us until dark.
What a great start to another adventure!
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