Wednesday 28th January
Took a walk into Key Biscayne Village via the beach. Since the tide was out it didn’t look too impressive all strewn with seaweed.

Thursday 29th January
Started cleaning the waterline of the boat which was beginning to look rather grungy where things were growing on the bit above the ant-fouling paint. Managed to do once side, tomorrow’s another day.

Friday 30th January
Finished the other side of the boat which had actual barnacles growing – better do this more often. Then I took the dinghy to the beach and flipped it over. Wow! Major barnacles on that.

Way back on Catskill Creek in Hop-Nose-Marina we Roger and Danielle from Ottawa (Barrhaven actually) aboard their catamaran ‘Chocobo’. We’d been following their blog (see left panel of this blog for a link to this and several other blogs of people we’ve met along the way) and we finally met up with them again in Crandon Park where we got invited aboard for bouillabaisse – Danielle style.

Chocobo is a 40’ Manta – wish we had half the space you get on these things.

Saturday 31st January
Had a little excitement as we sat waiting for the bus to take us into Key Biscayne. A car on the other side of the divided highway came skidding across the reservation towards us, carried on straight a bit and then flipped on its roof.

Once nice thing about Crandon Park that compensates somewhat for the current lack of facilities, is the fishing charter boats that sell fresh fish on the dock. As they fillet the fish right there on the dock they throw bits away which attracts a bevy of pelicans, plus this night heron which never seemed to leave.

Sunday 1st February
Carol came down with a cold and I headed off to the pharmacy for medication.

Monday 2nd February
Cold fronts are on the way and Carol is sick anyway, so we aren’t going anyway.

Tuesday 3rd February
The temperature drops precipitously and it’s only 8 degC in the cabin in the morning.

Wednesday 4th February
A trip to the library for consistent Internet.

Thursday 5th February
Took a trip into Miami to go to Home Depot and West Marine via bus and the metro railway system which travels high in the sky. The little train you see here is a free monorail that just circles downtown.

Friday 6th February
We decided to leave Crandon Park and return to Sunset Lake where we first stayed in the Miami area where the anchoring is free and there is easy access to laundry facilities which by now we are in dire need of.

Saturday 7th February
Had a day at the laundromat.

Sunday 8th February
A day working on the boat diagnosing and fixing a problem with an engine mounting bolt that had worked itself loose.

Monday 9th February
Another trip into South Beach for boat bits and some provisioning at Publix.
When we left Crandon Park we told other boaters about what a great place Sunset Lake is and we were followed here by Chocobo and John and Debbie aboard Aqua Vita who invited us over to their boat for ‘happy hour’. It was quite a party of Canadians with Jeff from Sounds of Silence and Doug and Cindy from Never Say Maybe.

Tuesday 10th February
Chocobo left for Pumpkin Key ready for the trip across to the Bahamas on the first part of their planned four year around-the-world trip.

We decided to try and visit the beach by going up the canal here across the island. We ended up just a block away from the beach and headed over for a peek. Like most Florida beaches, dogs a are not permitted, so we each had a turn holding Buddy while we took a look.


Miami Beach has been ph0otographed many many times, but we had to add to the collection.
Wednesday 11th February
The houses that line the shore here looked quite big from the water but from the road side they are even more impressive. This is the biggest finished one. Unfortunately I couldn't get it all on without a wide-angle lens.


The guy who owns it, as you might imagine, turns out to be the biggest unmentionable (in a family blog), playing loud rap music from his docked boat all day and late into the night and shining a floodlight on boats that anchor in front of his palace.

This place impressed us as the one with the best foliage in the driveway.


But right next to our anchoring they are just finishing this place that will take the prize. This is the water side view

And this is the side view.

Today is our last day in Miami Beach for tomorrow we head south for the lower keys.