2 mile Dinghy ride
Correction on yesterday's blog ... the batteries that Clark and Jim moved around and installed yesterday weighed around 140 pounds - not 80 pounds as stated in the blog entry. Clark told me it was about 80 pounds for each of them not 80 pounds total.
We had two activities scheduled for today. The first involved a bike ride to the Marathon Marina in the morning (where we ate dinner last night at Lazydays) and the second a FaceTime call with my Idaho granddaughters in the evening. We hoped to see Debbie and Brent's new boat Change of Pace before they left for the Bahamas, but a window came up for their travel, so we had to cancel our visit.
With that news our plans changed drastically and instead of a bike ride, Clark and I (mostly Clark) climbed up on top of the boat and cleaned the new solar panels. Their being covered in factory dirt / dust did not sit well with Clark. I climbed part way up the step ladder so I could hand him things he needed while cleaning. They won't stay spotless but as Clark said, "At least they can start out clean!"
Climbing up on the hard top was never easy, but now, with the panels in the way, it is trickier than ever. He has to step between the panels while dodging the radar tower by crawling under it. Going up looked scary enough, but I held my breath while Clark climbed down as it looked so precarious. The ladder needs about two more rungs but then it would be impossible to store in the lazarette.
While we washed the panels, Sandy stopped by and said that she hoped to convince Bill to go to Keys Fisheries for lunch. If they decided to go, she wanted us to go as well. I asked Clark and he surprised me by saying okay. Sandy let us know the dinghy ride was on, and Clark said, "If we're going we better get the dinghy down."
We started the process at 10:00 and barely managed to get done by 11:30 when Sandy said they wanted to leave. The dinghy has not been uncovered since we got the new cover for it last summer. We took one look at the grime and mold we found when we removed the cover and ran for buckets and soap to give the poor thing a much-needed bath. Fortunately, it came up looking fairly decent with "Bar Keeper's Friend" and a scouring pad.
Because we have not lowered the dinghy from the top of the boat a sufficient number of times to be proficient, we have a cheat sheet / checklist of steps to get the dinghy from the top of Sunset Delight into the water via the crane provided. Since we made the checklist several months ago, I updated it with a few modifications as we walked through the procedure today.
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| Dinghy rides on top of Sunset Delight and requires a crane to lower it into the water. |
As we completed the final steps of our dinghy deployment, Bill and Sandy pulled their dingy around and waited for us to join them. Jim from Shell Belle stood on the dock talking to Mel on Morning Star II, and I asked him to grab a couple of pictures of our "first dinghy ride of the year".
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| Sandy and Bill from L'Attitude Adjustment waiting for us to be ready |
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| On our way to Keys Fisheries |
Although we have been to Keys Fisheries by bike and on Sunset Delight for fuel, we have never ventured there by dinghy before. I was happy that we had Sandy and Bill as pros to show us the ropes. We followed them into the docking area and watched where they tied up. I did not know what to expect. As we approached the wall, someone from the restaurant came and removed the chain at the top of two ladders so we could climb up.
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| Cement wall tie up for visiting boats with wooden steps to climb up to eating area |
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| Watching Sandy at the cement wall tie up. |
Food is ordered at a window. Each day they have a different theme. Instead of telling the server your name, you give an answer to today's item. Today the topic was "Feisty Animals". Clark decided to use "Tribble" as his animal. Not surprisingly, the young lady at the counter had no idea what a tribble was.
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| Sign reads: Good seafood is not cheap. Cheap seafood is not good. Diner's choice: 1. Take it. 2. Leave it. |
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| Standard menu and today's specials including the theme of the day. |
Bill and Sandy grabbed a table near the dinghies.
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| Waiting for our "theme" choice to be called. Evelyn, Sandy and Bill |
After a leisurely lunch, we headed out for our return trip to Faro Blanco. As we exited the fisheries, we passed a "Pelican Village" of sorts.
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| Pelican hang out at the Keys Fisheries |
We took a little spray on the way to lunch, but on the way home, we had a mostly dry ride. Since Keys Fisheries is a little less than a mile away from the marina, we had a quick trip back. Clark had a list of things to do upon return to Sunset Delight, so we did not stay out to explore. Returning to the marina, we found another favorite pelican hangout.
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| Birds at entrance to Faro Blanco Marina |
We followed our "stow the dinghy" directions upon our return. Since we did not spend over an hour cleaning it, we had the dinghy stowed by 2:00.
Of course by taking the dinghy out, Clark's to do list grew when he found the VHF radio on the dinghy not working. Fortunately turning the unit off then on again took care of the issue. The other item he had on today's list involved adjusting the camera at the stern of the boat. We have no visibility to the stern from the helm, so the camera is supposed to help. The positioning was set for docking but Clark wanted a more-encompassing view, so he had raised it to see more area behind the boat.
His final job for today involved yet more cleaning. Dragging the hose up on top of the hard top left marks on the hard top, Clark applied wax to remove the marks. With all those jobs done he sat down in the cockpit with today's paper and read for the rest of the afternoon until it was time for docktails.
I, on the other hand, had no energy after the trip to Keys Fisheries. Thus, I sat on the sofa in the salon and solved today's puzzles in the USA Today newspaper. After that I stretched out for a snooze. When I heard AC and Jim tell Clark it was time for docktails, I pulled myself up and put together a plate of cheese and veggies to take out to the lighthouse. Once there, we met some new folks at docktails specifically Rula Bula and Wine Speed - both on the loop.
After dinner we had a FaceTime session with my two Idaho granddaughters. Sierra turns 4 next week and Violet turned 1 in December. Violet is learning new words like "no" as well as new "tricks". She thought it funny throughout the call to shake her head "no". She has just recently started to walk. Surprisingly, she held her own as Sierra practically dragged her in a circle singing "Ring around the Rosie". We definitely enjoyed interacting with them and watching their antics.
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