Paddle Posts

This day had the big crossing of Biscayne Bay. 

I was on the water before sunrise and it was like glass on the inside of Elliott Key. 

It’s always nice to start the day with smooth water?. About two miles into the paddle the sun came up. 

Not long after sunrise I took the channel between Elliott Key and Sand Key to the outside. I followed the shore of Sand Key, Boca Chita, and Ragged Keys. Once past the Ragged Keys the next landmark was Soldier Key way off in the distance. The wind started to build the farther out I got.  After passing Soldier Key I used the light house on the south end of Key Biscayne as my reference and headed that way. As I got closer the water was getting pretty lumpy. In the shot below you can see Miami and the lighthouse on the right. 

Here is a better shot of the old lighthouse up close. It’s really well preserved. 

After paddling along the Biscayne Key beaches which were loaded with people I crossed the channel over to Virginia Key. As I neared the end I saw a guy in the rocks yelling at me. It was Wayne waiting for me to come by. He was checking to make sure I knew the way into the cove where Esther and Wayne have their Virginia Key Outdoor Center. I rounded the end of Virginia Key where you can see the commercial harbor. 

Right after that I headed into the cove and was greeted by Esther and Wayne. 

We unloaded all the gear from the kayak and locked it in the rack with all of their other kayaks and then stored most of the gear at their facility. All three of us went out for a great lunch. Thanks again guys for a really nice lunch. I even had a little leftovers that I took back and then forgot about them and left them in Esther’s car ?. Following lunch we did a little sight seeing and went back to the lighthouse. That’s where I took the close up picture. Esther and Wayne have a great setup on Virginia Key. Anyone going thru Miami should stop and check it out. 

Later in the afternoon Jan came by to pick me up. Jan and Erika paddled in Key West with Gus and I. I’ll be staying at Jan’s house for a couple days while the current front blows thru. High winds and small craft warnings for Sun and Mon with a chance of thunderstorms late Sun. I’ll be back on the water Tue morning headed north. 

That’s it for the Biscayne Bay crossing day. 

22 beautiful miles today. I was successful at getting the kayak down the rocky bank with no big scratches. Maybe a couple small ones ?. Paddle was wet at about 0700. Morning colors were awesome. Here is the progression. 

Those are clouds on the horizon, not trees. And here comes the sun. 

Heading north along the coast of Key Largo the day started out fantastic. 

And by mid morning, miles and miles of mangrove lined shoreline and crystal clear water. 

I saw a fair amount of marine life today. Another big ray, a huge sea turtle that I floated right over, a bunch of small bonnet head sharks and lots of birds. After crossing to the inside at Christmas Point and going thru the little short cut I was greeted with a view of Miami way off in the distance. If you zoom in on the picture you will see the buildings. 

Looks a lot neater in person. 

After getting the kayak off the water thru the swim area I was greeted by the couple managing the camp and boat docks. Very nice folks. And they suggested I set up my tent right out on the end of the point. Great idea since the wind was keeping the bugs down. 

With the tent up and a cold shower done, I got all the paddle clothes rinsed out and hanging to dry. 

That was followed by a quick dinner and sunset. 

And that’s it for today. I’ll cross Biscayne Bay tomorrow and hang out in Miami for a couple days while another front moves thru. 

Happy Paddling 

This was quite the day. We got up early and drove south again to the Seven a mile Bridge. I was on the water before sunrise paddling from north to south and a couple miles out when I took this shot. 

I don’t know what that little spot is on the water. Probably something on the lens. 

On the way across I stopped briefly at the bigger of the two Molasses Key islands. It has a really nice camp spot and I’m told the smaller island is even nicer. Monica and Frank own the Molasses Keys. Gus was waiting for me at the south end talking to a couple that was launching their kayaks. Turns out they were the same couple I had met on the water a couple days ago. Nice folks. 

After paddling the Seven Mile Bridge we loaded up my kayak and drove north about an hour and a half back to Harry Harris park where I launched yesterday. We got all my gear out of the truck and stowed in the kayak and I was ready to launch again. We said our goodbyes and Gus headed north in his truck and I headed north in the kayak. I’ll be solo paddling and camping for a while now. I can’t even begin to explain how much I appreciated Gus’s support over the last couple weeks. With the high winds and no way to get around I would have been in a pickle. THANKS GUS ???

The weather was really nice all day. This is what I was paddling in this afternoon. 

Hardly any wind, smooth seas and the water was crystal clear. Lots of plant life to look at but I did not see many fish. I did see one huge ray. It was black with white spots and about five feet across. Pretty neat. I frequently came across these markers showing areas that are being protected. 

Nice to see and also nice not having power boats around. 

I followed the outside and had a great afternoon. After rounding the last point and heading in I met two nice ladies in their kayaks. They pointed the way to my camp site. The guide refers to it as the Garden Cove primitive camp site. It actually has a different name. 

The site is easy to find. Just look for all the posts blocking the entrance to a tiny bay. The site is right next to the posts. The landing is a bit challenging but I was able to get the kayak up using my beach rollers and moving the boat a little at a time. No scratches but the departure in the morning may be more challenging. 

That’s a steep three foot rocky bank to deal with. 

The site is really nice otherwise. 

Sunset was behind the trees so no good shots but I did take one of the view from the camp just after the sun went down. 
So, the day added up to a little over 22 miles and about two and a half hours of driving. Tomorrow I’ve got about the same total miles but will do it at my own pace and it’s supposed to be fantastic weather. After tomorrow’s paddle I will have paddled the entire length of the Keys with a fair amount of exploring around Key West. Time to get going on the north bound leg. 

Happy Paddling 

Another good paddle day. Winds were down a lot so the water was pretty smooth. I got on the water just after sunrise. 

I was on the Atlantic side for the first half of the day. Partway down I came across this sailboat. What a shame. 

The boat was just outside of a small channel. 

After crossing over to the bay side I found a really nice mangrove canal and the tides were going with me all the way into the bay. 

It was a really nice day all the way. Here’s what you look like after 27 miles with a 3.7 mph moving average and never getting out of the kayak. 

Amazing how clear the water is where I landed. Looks like I’m floating on air. 

After getting checked in at tonight’s hotel and taking a shower Gus and I went over to Monica and Frank’s house for dinner. I think I mentioned in a previous post that Monica and Frank own Florida Bay Outfitters. That’s the best kayak shop in the Keys. Frank took a picture of the three of us. 

That’s it for today. We get up early again and head back down to the Seven Mile Bridge so I can paddle that length. Then back up to Tavernier to fully load the kayak and start heading north again. 

Happy Paddling 

Another twenty mile day so the length of the Keys is getting checked off. I was on the water at 0800 on the FL Bay side of Long Key.  

I got a little lift from the wind but had a lot smoother water on the Bay side than yesterday. I took my time but still averaged 3.6 mph. On the way I passed the FedEx CEO’s waterfront house. 

Set way out on its own point. Too big for me. ?

After getting back to the B&B and taking a shower we were off to the No Name Pub for pizza. 

On the way we stopped at the Blue Hole to check on the gators. 

We got back to the B&B just in time for sunset. 

I have to check off 25 miles tomorrow so it’s time to hit the sack. 

Happy Paddling 

Gus had gotten a couple good shots of me paddling today. Getting ready to take off with morning colors. 

Passing by in the small waves close in. 

And taking off in the muck after the short break at the B&B. 

That’s all for this day. 

Checking off the miles today. The wind was still blowing hard. Weather said sustained twenty mph winds. Today Gus dropped me off and I did a little over twenty miles in five hours with a short break in the middle. I was in the water at 0730. 

With the wind out of the East I was moving along pretty well. In a few spots I had to move out a bit and along with deeper water I got really big  waves. Crossing the Bahia Honda channel was really wild ?. That was the roughest of the day. No rolling today but a lot of bracing. Halfway through the day I stopped at the B&B we are staying for a short break. Gus was already there hanging out in the beach. I was also greeted by several Key Deer. These guys just walk through the property like they own it. 

The rest of the way to the KOA was all down wind so I made pretty good time. When I pulled up to the ramp, Gus drove up and we loaded quick and high tailed it out of there. No one was the wiser ?. 

After getting cleaned up we headed out for a good meal at the Kiki Sandbar. 

So now I’ve covered all the miles from the Seven Mile Bridge to Key West. With high winds again tomorrow we’ll do the same. Gus will shuttle me north and I’ll paddle south back to the Seven Mile Bridge. The winds won’t calm down until Thursday so we’ll leave the Seven Mile Bridge crossing until then. 

That’s it for today. Happy Paddling. 

The last paddle before heading north was a paddle around Key West. We timed it so we would have tides in our favor going thru Fleming Cut at the end of the route. We were on the water at 0830 with low winds once we got into Cow Channel. It was a bit cloudy starting off. 

We did find a Great White Heron that was not too nervous about us taking pictures. 

First stop a little over half way around was the southern most point for a few pictures. 

After that, we hustled around the fort and past the commercial harbor since there was a cruise ship heading in. Then thru Fleming Cut with a great flood tide to ride and past a bunch of boats moored between Fleming Key and Sigsbee. 

We cleaned gear and did a few other boat chores in the afternoon followed by dinner at the Tiki Hut on Sigsbee with a pretty good sunset. 

We’ll be heading out early in the morning as I have a planned day of about twenty miles. We’ll head north and I’ll paddle south from the launch site to take advantage of the winds. It’s really great that Gus is going out of his way to shuttle me around!

That’s it for the last day in Key West. 

If you have been following the Paddle Tracks you might be wondering what is going on. In order to paddle the length of the Keys and deal with the continued high winds, Gus has shuttled me to spots where I can cover the distance going down to wind. This makes a big difference. Today’s Paddle was about 16.5 miles and I had a moving average of 4.1 mph ?. I launched at 0730 and took out at noon. Here are the only two pictures I took today right after getting on the water. 

Tomorrow Gus and I will paddle around Key West and then start moving east and north over the next week. Gus will be shuttling me for most of the week and then I’ll be back on my own again. We’ll continue to use the wind to my advantage as much as possible. 

As you can see, I’ve removed all of the outer Key paddling days from the plan. The winds have made it too dicey and I’m ready to move on. I’ll be back again to explore at a later date for sure. 

That’s the scoop

Happy Paddling 

Jan and Gus had their bikes and I rented one and we did the tourist thing all day. We rode around most of the island. We visited the Customs House museum, the Truman Little White House and Hemingway’s house. All of them were really interesting. We had lunch in town and also visited the Zachery Taylor fort. Only one picture for today. We stopped at the southern most point of the US. Gus and I will paddle around that point in Sunday. 

I’ll be doing a section of the Keys tomorrow and let let you know how that goes then. 

Happy Paddle