Key West, and the Butterfly house

Wednesday 3/5/2014
Wednesday morning we decided to drive to Key West and explore the city again. Finding a parking spot on the North side of the city, we walked to Two Friends restaurant and enjoyed a great breakfast before setting out for Duval street and the Butterfly House.
Some quick facts about Key West... it is 2 miles  by 4 miles with winter average temperatures of 76/66 degrees.
The walk to the Butterfly house was fun, stopping in several of my favorite shops from our last visit. We arrived at the Butterfly house and I realized I had worn a large blister on the instep of each foot. Getting back to the Van was a painful walk, I finally stopped Tom going for the Van. The photographs were worth the trip

Relax (except when planes take off) soak up sun, feed fishes, explore

The weather has been wonderful, 70's during the day, cool good sleeping weather at night. The Boca Chica Navy Marina is a unique resting spot. There is no WI-FI here unless you have access to a personal hot spot, no TV unless you have a satellite dish, and no mail. This is a working air station and we are reminded of that by the deafening sound of planes taking off and landing, some of them sending vibrations through the boat.
The water here is crystal clear and fish like cat food, then again so do the birds so I have to be careful when I feed the fishes. We rented a car.... well we actually have a 12 passenger van that is very cumbersome to drive, between the construction and, narrow streets and tons of traffic, Tom feels like he is back to driving a tank. Tom has worked on adding additional sound insulation to the engine compartment and fix a split in a hose to our bilge pump. Tomorrow he is going to start removing rust from the bright work, a never ending job. I have been dusting, rearranging and knitting, finished another animal and have made progress on a shawl and scarf, hoping one will be finished by the end of the week.

gulls trying to get cat food before the fish

view from the cockpit, there
is a mooring field  between us
and the bridge

Peggy Panda finished 

There are sand bars, and low grass areas where Herons fish

every day we are visited by Dolphins , look close this is a
Adult and baby

Look and you can see a large tarpon in the water

27 hours from Fort Myers Beach to Boca Chica Navy Marina lov

March 1st
we are in shorts and short sleeves!
We decided to make to jump south all in one trip. The waves were a little to a lot rollie, however by 2 pm we had enough wind to raise sails and so wing to wind until sundown. No dolphins this trip but we had a great sunset then a moonless sky with stars from horizon to horizon. We were tied to the dock at the Boca Chica Navy Marina by 11:30 AM fresh ice and just catching our breath.
I did get a chance to try out my new camera. I do have an Nikon D1000 that I love but no high-power zoom lens. They have a very hefty price tag on them as well as being heavy. I have a 35x zoom on my Fuji and up until now my close ups have been made with it. Panasonic Luminx came out with a 60x and I gave in finally and bought one. Some reviewers consider it heavy, but is turned out to be lighter than my Fuji. I think the photos came out great. and I am looking forward to catching more fish and fowl with this lens.
We are also treated to Navel fly overs, which are really quite loud.

Mom and baby Osprey 

one of the many Mangrove Islands

Naval Air Station Key West is located on Boca Chica Key, Florida. It is the second to last major island in the Florida Keys.

Key West is the southernmost city in the continental United States. It is 1.5 miles wide and 4 miles long, it sits 93 miles north of Cuba, 153 miles southwest of Miami and 24.5 degrees above the equator.

Emerald colored waters where the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean meet below the 42 bridges of the Overseas Highway make the three-hour drive between Miami and Key West especially beautiful.

leaving Moss Marina

Tom calling for our slip, first sight of Key West

love this palm tree

Key West 

all is quiet, a little roll but quiet

sunset 2.28.14

Relaxing, soaking up sun

February 24, 2014 Fort Myers Beach

Hello
We are enjoying the sun and finally have thawed out. Tom has chipped away at his maintenance list, our running lights are fixed or replaced, fuel filters changed, and some sound deadening foam added to engine cover that has lower the noise quite a few decibels. I have been working on my knitting projects and getting rid of my winter pallor.
We have had a few days of deep fog, but nothing like the fog we encountered off Panama City.
Saturday we enjoyed dinner at Sweet Melissa's Cafe on Sanibel Island. We visited there last March and again had a wonderful meal with our friends Riva and Dale.

Today Tom lowered the dingy and we took a 5 mile ride up the Estero Bay and around the Mangrove Islands. Then hiked into town for a Gyro sandwiches.
Plans... the few we have
I am waiting for my new glasses to get here then a weather window to head for the Keys. There is a Navy run marina where we can stay while visiting our favorite spots in Key West... Tom is looking forward to Key Lime

This is a replica of one ship that Magellan use to circumnavigate
the globe 

We passed an Osprey nest, Dad was watching us

Mom was minding the nest and a little nervous at our curiosity 

Tangle of Mangrove roots

one obviously derelict boat

Sandbar rest spot

The mangrove island across from us has hundreds of brown
Pelicans roosting in the trees

Red Heron... 

small blue Heron

something is in that pouch???

Cool Had at Moss Marina 

at sunrise and sunset we have a bird problem
here.... washing the deck is a chore

water is just warm enough to wade in
even picked up a few shells

e

or dingy ride
if you look close you can see a green line

The Estero Bay Estuary is bordered on the west by a chain of barrier islands, which include: Estero Island, Long Key, Lovers Key, Black Island, Big Hickory Island, and Little Hickory Island, from north to south respectively. Within the estuary are hundreds of islands, many with no upland area. Mangrove trees are by far the most dominant vegetation in the bay, although extensive seagrass beds are found within the shallow bays and sounds. The climate in the region is subtropical with the majority of rainfall from June to September. The estuary is not supplied with freshwater by any major river, but rather by a number of small rivers and creeks.

The Estero Bay Aquatic Preserve, comprising the northern half of Estero Bay, was dedicated in December 1966, as the state's first Aquatic Preserve. During the 1983 session of the Florida legislature, the southern half of Estero Bay down to the Lee County line was added. Estero Bay Aquatic Preserve is approximately 11,000 acres of submerged lands