Catching Up

Key West Days 103-120 Feb 17-March 5

Amie, Sean, and Liam arrived on Sunday February 17th to spend five days with us. Five days turned into eight when a snowstorm closed Logan Airport on their departure day. One of the boys slept on the boat with us and one with Amie at Visitor Officer Quarters. We did the “tourist thing” packing in: Ripley’s Believe It or Not, The Aquarium, The Pirate Soul Museum, Spiderwick, a Glass Bottom Boat to the Reef, an art festival on the streets in Key West, Hemmingway’s House, No Name Pub, El Siboney (the Cuban restaurant), four sunsets at Mallory Square, and four days at the beach. Whew!! On our last beach day, Fort Zachary Taylor State Park had the Marine Hazard Flag flying for Portuguese Man-O-War. They are beautiful transparent blue jelly fish with a sail on top and long poisonous tentacles capable of producing a very painful sting lasting for weeks. At the mercy of the wind, they float on top of the water with no ability to propel themselves. We developed a keen sense for spotting their sails and by the end of the afternoon, having seen dozens of them.

Bob and Sean spotted another interesting beach attraction, a topless bather. About that time a young Florida State Policeman came on the beach looking for the owner of a yellow Cruiser some tourist had run into a boulder and left in the parking lot. Having decided topless bathing was inappropriate for a family beach, I approached the policeman and asked whether it was allowed here. His adamant response was, “Absolutely not!” I pointed out the buxom bather and off he went to put an end to it, much to the disappointment of Bob and I’m sure the other males on the beach. Not 30 minutes later, there she was – topless again. She was determined – but I was relentless! This time it took me 15 minutes to locate the policemen and bring him back to the beach. The second reprimand was enough – they packed their scant belongings and left. The boys response, “Gram’s the Beach Topless Patrol.”

Several of the cruisers at Boca Chica told us about a great restaurant on No Name Key. The No Name Pub is off the beaten path and not easy to find. The pub’s early customers included people from all walks of life, from world travelers to fishermen. In the late 30’s, Henry Flagler was building the railroad across the Keys. In an effort to increase business, the upstairs storage room of the pub was converted into a brothel that was frequented by the railroad workers and fishermen. The venture failed after several years as the patrons were reported to be better looking than the ladies.

Today, No Name Pub is one of the few places remaining with an old Florida Keys atmosphere. The unique thing about the pub is the walls and ceiling – they are covered in $1.00 bills, signed and dated by customers who have been there. They estimate over $80,000 is hanging inside this tiny pub. Their pizza is fantastic!

The Boca Chica Marina where we are docked is located on one of the four Key West Naval Stations. Over the years, the Navy has played a significant role in this area, with 60,000 Naval personnel stationed in Key West during the 50's and early 60's. Bob was stationed here on a submarine in 1959. Today there are no submarines or other Naval ships in Key West. Cruise ships tie up to the Naval docks.

The Navy's focus today is on training fighter pilots (top guns) for combat (dog fights). The instructors – called “aggressors” - fly F5’s; and the students, F18’s. Their dog fights are electronically monitored and evaluated by instructors and pilots at the end of each day. The roar of planes taking off every morning at 7AM and returning mid to late afternoon in groups of 3 and 4 is deafening. They bank at 90 degrees and pull 5-7 g’s in their turns. I am told the operating costs of an F18 is $60,000 an hour. Bob asked one of the student pilots what he thought of the training he was receiving. His answer was an emphatic, “This is the hardest training I’ve ever had, and I’m glad for that. It’ll save my life someday.”

We’ve met many interesting cruisers at Boca Chica; it’s a very social group here. We’ve become good friends with a number of them and will continue to stay in touch. Helen and John Caffrey and Patti and Carl McMackin are members of yacht clubs at their home ports. The two couples invited a group of us to the Key West Yacht Club for lunch – great food, nice ambiance, and good service.

Following lunch we went to the Butterfly Museum in Key West with another cruising couple - John Van Blois, a retired fighter pilot, and his lovely wife, Nelly – who is Norwegian. The butterflies were beautiful, and it was yet another learning experience on this journey. Monarch butterflies have a five-generation migration cycle from Canada to Mexico and Central America while most butterflies’ life cycles are 14 days or less. John and Nelly are an interesting, well traveled, and entertaining couple. John has been to the Bahamas over 20 times, and he willing shared his knowledge of the islands with Jan and Luke Sand and Bob and me. A number of us went to cocktails on their boat one evening so Nelly could introduce us to one of her favorite Norwegian drinks, Aquavit, a potent cordial with an anise flavor.

We have really enjoyed getting to know Luke and Jan Sand, a most delightful couple. We seriously considered going to the Bahamas to cruise with them. They are now on their way to Bimini. They have a wedding in NH the weekend of the Newport International Boat Show and have tentatively planned to meet us there and help bring the boat back to Maine.

Yesterday, we had planned on going out to dinner at Blue Heaven, one of the finer restaurants in Key West, with Patti and Carl. Those plans changed abruptly when Bob discovered he had no car keys as we were leaving the Fort Zachary Taylor Beach. He had left them in his swim trunks pocket, and they had fallen out while we were swimming. Our cell phone and wallets were locked in the car, and Bob had only one soggy dollar bill in his pocket – just enough to call Enterprise and the locksmith. Three hours later, the locksmith handed us a new key along with his bill for $250!!

Today, the weather was perfect for a great sail, so we invited Patty and Carl and John Wiggins and took the boat out for a day sail to Key West. The winds were 8 to 12 knots, the waves 1 to 2 ft, the waters beautiful shades of turquoise only found in southern waters, and the skies sunny and bright – all in all a perfect sail.