By Capt. Rod and Susie Stebbins
Part 4
Cruising To The Upper Keys... Our last venture found us underway from West End on the Grand Bahama Banks on our way back to Florida. Still enroute the story continues . . .
Our thirty-six foot Sea Ray, SANCHO, Garfeldasteinski (a.k.a. the damned cat), Susie and I had a ball trolling the Florida Straits. We didn't do much good, but it did give us an opportunity to inventory and wash our lures.
When we left West End, Bahamas (26-41.15W/78-58.77 by 14381.5/61724.6) in the morning we gave our LORAN, "Elmo the Magic Box" or "Elmo" for short, our coordinates for Port Everglades Inlet Buoy "PE" (26-05.50N/80-04.80W by 14259.1/62113.9) and without a whimper Elmo updated our progress flawlessly. We initially set our heading at 269 Degrees and our cruise speed at about 1900 rev's - which produced a neat twelve knots. At this speed we’d make the traverse in about five and a half hours provided we didn't slow down. We slowed only long enough to catch some dolphin for lunch with enough left over for dinner. This cost us about three and half hours, making our total time to cross at about nine hours.
On long legs of a journey we like to set Elmo's course and destination limits at three nautical miles and we set our auto pilot "Mr. K" on the heading that Elmo says we should travel. This way we have three members of our "crew" doing one person’s job. Whenever Elmo sounds an alarm, we know right away that we have varied greater than three nautical miles from our original course. We can then make whatever course correction (right or left) that is appropriate to bring us back onto course. Susie thinks that "Mr. K" (Kenyon, Auto Helm 6000) is quite the guy and uses him all of the time while standing her watch. As for myself, I like the feeling of command and I man the helm all of the way. Susie is quick to add that she gets a lot less alarm signals than I do and Elmo won't let me cheat.
We picked our destination to be Port Everglades Inlet "PE" because it was convenient to plenty of marinas, services and one of the main port of entries for small craft arriving from the Bahamas. We added a cellular telephone to the boat in Tampa, Florida which has greatly facilitated making reservations for "Sancho" at marinas. We have found that clear conversations from a distance are better with the telephone than with the VHF. A call to the Lauderdale Marina early in the day assures us that we have reservations for "Sancho" for the next couple of days. We are fortunate as they only have about eight or ten transient slips available.
Just after dark our radar "Spy in the Ski, Nosy" paints a blip at four miles. Taking that we have done everything right, we should be seeing the Port Everglades Inlet buoy "PE". A few moments pass and we round the marker for a straight-in approach to the inlet. Fort Lauderdale's lights are all a'twinkle and as we pass boats and buildings we are reminded of colorful Christmas trees of years gone by. Our stereo playing soft music we putt-putt through the pass, make a right turn at ICW Marker 14 and set our sights for Marker 27 where we make a left turn to find Lauderdale Marina just ahead. It’s here we will spend the next couple of days.
Entering the United States from the Bahamas is really a piece of cake if everything is in order. Once we have tied up for the night, we make a call to emigrations (527-7299 or 527-7243). We answer some simple questions and we have formally arrived. As pretty as it is in the Bahamas it is always a great feeling to be back in the good old USA.
After a quick shower and a brisk walk we find ourselves dining at a fine restaurant (15th Street Fisheries) where we devour a pair of mighty generous steaks. Properly wined and dined, we are off to the security of "Sancho" for a great nights sleep.
Susie is again up and about before humanity. Fresh brown juices that grease the bearings of progress are filling the coffee pot. I awaken with the smell of fried sausage, toast and eggs. To the shower I go and in five minutes I am sitting at the ready waiting to be fed and juiced. Garfeldasteinski is sitting by her bowl softly meowing her impatience. Susie's timing is always just right and we are all fed soon enough to climb the bridge, hot coffee in hand, for a wonderful sunrise and a promise of endless shopping needs.
Susie is off to the store for supplies and I go over the endless need for cleaning bilges, looking for engine and generator oil leaks, checking engine juices, changing the oil and filters, greasing zerks, and generally looking for something that doesn't look right. We change oil and filters every twenty-five to forty hours of engine time. Some say this might be a bit excessive, but I feel that oil is cheaper than engine parts. This time is also spent cleaning, checking and arranging our diving gear. The spear guns and power heads are cleaned and sprayed with silicone lubricant. All of the canvas snaps are sprayed with the same stuff. By the time Susie gets back with the stores it is time for her to give "Sancho" a bath and to tidy up the inside. While she is taking care of her chores, I wander off in search of someone to talk to.
The rest of the day is spent lazily enjoying the warm Florida sun and catching up on what news we missed over the past couple of weeks while we await word from our friends and fellow boaters Hank & Jill Gonzales aboard his thirty four foot Sea Ray the "TWO TACOS." We are to rendezvous in the next day or so to investigate some wonderful dive spots that Hank has found. I guess that this is as good a time as any to say a few words about Hank. He is a retired airline captain that has been in the clouds too long. He believes in things such as Don Quixote, Fairy Godmothers and Frogs turning into handsome princes. As a matter of fact, his boating cap is the biggest stuffed green frog one might hope to never find sitting on a man's head. Hank does get a lot of kisses from strange women, so I guess that there really is justification or at least a method to his madness.
Hank has been in the Keys for just over two months investigating sites of some of the reefs that contain the remains of some very old wrecks (1733 fleet). He has reported that fishing is great and that some sites show promise of artifacts. We have made it a policy to never disturb the remains of wrecks that have become a part of natural coral reefs as the coral habitat is so fragile. We also encourage those that might visit the same sites to do the same. Some of these reefs are loaded with some of the prettiest tropical fish and to destroy their home for the sake of souvenirs would be criminal.
As usual, Hank is punctual and at precisely 8:00 PM he advises us that he will meet us in three days at 2:00 PM on Davis Reef (24-55.52/80-30.16 by 14106.2/43274.1). Davis Reef is just off shore from Plantation Key and from Lauderdale Marina "Elmo" says we are only 73.6 nautical miles as the crow flies. Considering that we could make that trip in about six to seven hours (off shore) we decided to do some sightseeing down the intracoastal waterway twenty one miles to Virginia Key (25-44.83/80-10.63 by 14216.8/62168.9) and the Rickenbacher Marina for the first day.
The second day we hope to visit Florida's natural fish aquarium "Key Largo National Marine Sanctuary," more commonly known as John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. Within this park there are wonderful things to see. There are seven wrecks within the boundaries of the sanctuary. Be sure to check the laws governing fishing and diving within the sanctuary as there are some things that are not permitted.
On the north side of the Sanctuary from Triumph Reef south to the northern sanctuary boundary there are nineteen wrecks and as many reefs that yield ocean fruits of all sizes and species. South of Molasses Reef which is just inside the sanctuary to Windley Key there are thirteen more wrecks and lots of beautiful reefs to visit. The wrecks found in the Florida Keys vary from a pile of rock ballast where a ship used to rest on the bottom, to ballast rocks that are strewn over an area where a ship's bottom was breached with the collision of nearby reefs, to minor frames of what was a boat or schooner. Some of the newer wrecks are very much as they were the day the were sunk and make excellent fishing and diving locations. There just doesn't seem to be an end to the fish and fishing is almost always great (weather permitting.)
Some of the reefs we will be visiting carry names such as Triumph Reef, Bache Shoals, Long Reef, Ajax Reef, Pacific Reef, Turtle Rocks, Carysfort Reef, The Elbow, Key Largo Dry Rocks, Grecian Rocks, Dixie Shoals, French Reef, White Bank Dry Rocks, Molasses Reef, Mosquito Bank, The Triangles, Pickles Reef, Conch and Little Conch Reefs, Hens and Chickens, The Rocks, Crocker Reef and Davis Reef. While we know that we will not be diving on all of them on our way to meet up with Hank and Jill, we will chance a dive or two along the way depending on the weather.
When we make plans to visit the remains of the very old sites we are sure to inquire with the local county officials prior to making dives as some of the sites may be under archaeological lease or may be closed to divers for one reason or the other. We are also very careful to not remove any of the ballast we find and are very careful to not disturb any of the fragile live coral. Bottles, coins, nails, pins and other artifacts are usually allowed to be kept. Please understand that we know that the any chance of finding treasure on any of the sites already known is remote at best as they have generally been pretty well picked over.
Our joy in visiting ancient wreck sites gives rise to dreams of romance, travel, and our imaginations run wild with speculations of what was so long ago. We try to imagine what it must have been like to sail in those days with their superstitions and fears of the unknown. We feel deep emotions when we imagine what it must have been like the day or night that the wreck discovered that which was to destroy her and send her to the bottom with her treasure, cargo and probably crew. We try to imagine what it was like to survive a ship wreck only to be stranded on a beach so far from home and to eventually be lost to undocumented history forever.
We will explore some of the wreck sites with romantic rings of the past such as Winchester (1695), Urca de Lima (1715), Nieves (1715), Nuestra Senora de la Regla (1715), Santo Cristo de San Roman (1715), Nuestra Senora del Carmen (1715), Nuestra Senora del Rosario (1715), El Populo (1733), San Jose (1733), El Infante (1733), Chavez (1733), Capitana El Rui (1733), Nuestra Senora de Belem (1733), San Antonio de Padua (1733), San Juan Bautista (1733), San Pedro (1733), Lerri (1733), San Francisco de Asis (1733), El Sueco de Arizona (1733), Sumey de San Ignacio (1733), Pillar (1733), British Frigate (1811), and an unknown Schooner (1869). True to form, Hank & Jill planted enough excitement of things to come that we were certain that sleep would be harder to find than the treasure of lost galleons.
The next morning we were well underway by daybreak. True to most mornings I was awakened with dribbles of cold water upon my warm back administered by the "love of my life." Susie finds certain deep seated needs to awaken me most mornings with cold water. I guess she just enjoys seeing me dance about the cabin with not much more on than nothing at all. Someday, pow...
The Atlantic is not an easy run due to some fairly brisk winds so we have decided to take the intracoastal waterway and enjoy the beautiful scenery before us. Most of the trip from Fort Lauderdale to Virginia Key will be at a no wake speed which will give us plenty of time to enjoy music and wave at others who will pass us in their journeys.
There were twelve bridges that we passed that day and ten of them had to raise their hardware to allow us to pass. There was some traffic along the way, but not enough sail boats to hold the bridges open, so we had to wait at each of the ten bridges for an opening so that we could continue. Under normal circumstances these delays would be a source of aggravation, but we knew what we were in for and the time required was allotted in our schedule. But still, the beautiful homes along the waterway make for a perfect distraction to having to putt-putt at a neck breaking speed of four to five knots. Susie also had an opportunity to make a wonderful lunch of fish sandwiches and a salad.
Garfeldasteinski even graced us with her presence on the bridge long enough to mooch some of my fish. The rest of the time she spent on the bow basking in the warm sun sound asleep but ever at the ready to scoot to the safety of her cabin. This day was a specially nice day. There was enough breeze to allow the hatches and the door to the cabin to remain open. The temperature was in the low eighties and the humidity level made the day a drying out event.
Garfeldasteinski was doing fine most of the day until we passed a cruising family aboard their beautiful "Hat." Poised at the ready on their bow was their beautiful German Shepherd that remained absolutely quiet until he was just abreast of the "damned cat" when he let forth his mightiest woof especially conjured up and well designed to make any cat have visions of the end. Garfeldasteinski, from a pleasant nap leaped from her nap site to the bridge in one bound, hissing and spitting as she passed us on the way to the cabin. We are sure that dogs don't grin, smile and laugh - but that one did. It wasn't until late that afternoon that the "damned cat" would venture out again.
Early afternoon found us moored for the night. Susie has prepared a wonderful dinner and while laying at anchor that night we renewed our spirits and vowed to savor all that the sun and seas could provide. The only non-participant to our ceremony was the "damned cat" who was assuring us that her only desire was her home in Tampa from which she was so unceremoniously extricated.
The weatherman has promised us a beautiful day for our trip to the keys and what we just know will be a thrill of a lifetime. Until next time may the Gods of sunsets send you nothing but rosy colors, a hungry cat and romance.
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