Key West Part 2 (February)

February brought more windy weather.  Dee and I always liked to walk down to the waterfront and see the anchorage which we then we realize how fortunate we are.    We were forever thankful to be at a dock in Key West during this time.  

The first of February sadly brought the death of one of our AC units.  The one we consider the main unit for Journey.  Fortunatly, Citimarine in Homestead had a great unit for us and it was delivered the next day to us.  Maybe the not so great part other than having to get it into the space it needed to be was finding out we had two thermostats of 1,000 that will not plug and play with the unit so we got a new thermostat as well.  The black does look better on our power panel.   

Next we met some new NC friends.  Vic and Dani who were in Key West Celebrating their 10th anniversary and joined us aboard Journey.  Vic is hoping to one day make this adventure happen for his family.  We had a great time hanging out with Vic and Dani..Dani and I had a photo shoot on the bull but only Dani gave the bull a ride!  We enjoyed watching her!  

Soon after we arrived in Key West we met the owners of the Grady White center console next to us at the docks.  Tom and Becca  have a house in Key West, but as I prepare this video, I know that house has been sold and they are building a new home out on Stock Island in a beautiful little cove.   Through Tom and Becca,   We met Ritchie and Philip who were in town to play at Hogs Breath Saloon.  Philip is a part of the Talisman group who played with Gene Simmons.  We enjoyed sharing Journey with them and hope to cross their paths again, especially if they are playing music.  

Speaking of music…. We met Justin and Jamie from the Blurry Truth, a small 3 person band out of Tampa, Florida and they recorded this song on board Journey.
Dee and I continued to explore the Keys and steal any type of beach time we could find.  The Keys are not known for beaches!  But we were able to find a few spots to explore.  Sunsets were always beautiful and a Kingfisher loved our lights at night and always dropped by to fish when we had them on.  The Bight was home to dolphins feeding in the shallows and a new creature for us.  The Sea Slug swam by one day.
The End of February brought the arrival of our good friends Brad and Cindy!  So good to see them again and hang out.  We enjoyed exploring Key West, and of course sharing our favorite spots especially where the Margaritas are found like Old Town Mexican and of course, Sunset Tiki Bar.  The weather was great so we were able to get off the dock and share another adventure into the back country with Brad and Cindy.  The time passed too quick!  We hope to get them back aboard soon!
We close out Key West with another visit from Naples friends, Jack and Mindy, and finally make it to the Wine bar we had been talking about for awhile.  Our last guest will be our daughter, Hannah, and it is her first time aboard Journey and we are excited to share Journey with Hannah.  Hannah is pregnant with our first grandchild so bar hopping will not be in order this trip for her.  So our first stop is at the Turtle Hospital in Marathon, Florida.  Where we learned all about the different types of turtles and how they are rescused, named, and cared for at the hospital until they can be released back into the sea, if they can be released back into the sea.  It was a great stop that we recommend!  We shared some favorites like the chickens and caught the horses on the beach one day.  We were sad to see her go but we need to start our trip north to be close for the baby.
We say good bye to Key West on a beautiful St. Patrick’s Day and head up to Marathon on the bay side and Dee caught one of the biggest Cerro Mackerals ever in 10 feet of water just as Dee was going to pull in the lines.  Super excited about supper with those steaks and this fish will feed a few times.  Our stop in Marathon for a week just to relocate our Jeep for the move up the coast and of course a stop for Happy Hour at Castaways- YUM!
​Next up:  We get some chores done in Marathon and head north stopping for a weekend at Elliott Key just south of Miami.  The water is stunning!