January 22 – 23rd – Boot Key Harbor, Marathon FL

The temperature was 49 degrees. It was the coldest Keys temperature in 5 years. According to the radio net iguanas are falling out of the trees. Normally I wouldn’t consider 49 degrees to be cold but I seem to have become acclimated to the 70 to 80 degree temperatures we’ve been having.

We are getting some extra anchor practice in. We vacated our previous location as we were swinging into the main channel when the wind direction changed. Our next spot was a bit shallow and had no room for error. I didn’t like it. We finally found another spot in the harbor and dropped the hook.

All of this moving around was due to another strong front scheduled to move through the Keys. This time we put out a lot of rope and chain (called scope). This allows the anchor to have a better angle to penetrate the ocean bed. We also deployed our second anchor. The sustained winds increased to around 28 with gusts approaching 40. Catalpa’s gear held us through the night. Confidence restored.

A clear and cold morning.

This sunken vessel is near us. I wonder what the story is?

We ran into a few sailors we’ve met in the past. Ollie got in a play session with Wilson. They met in Vero Beach. There is no dog park nearby. There are sports fields with No Animals Allowed signs. There might have been a few animals on the baseball field in the evening.

We’ve explored more of the town. We have a marine chandlery (West Marine), grocery store, and Home Depot with in walking distance. Walking around here is a little difficult. Route 1 runs right through the middle of the island. It’s a 5 lane highway with almost no crosswalks. It seems like the county could make an attempt to make it more pedestrian friendly.

Today, the wind has calmed down and the temperature is getting back to normal.

Not stars. Anchor lights.

Catalpa anchored in Boot Key Harbor.