Universal Time New Years Celebration

New Years Eve day we are on passage from the Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida to Isla Mujeres, Mexico. We anticipate the 300 nautical mile voyage will take two to two and half days depending on the strength and direction of the Gulf Stream current and the cooperation of the wind. We carefully chose our weather window to avoid strong easterly winds that can make the Gulf Stream crossing dangerous. So far the wind is so light that we are mostly motoring, although we do have the sails up as we head South across the Gulf Steam toward the Cuban coast. Once about fifteen miles from the Cuban coast we hope to pick up a counter current that will give us a boost toward Mexico.

Since we are currently on passage a midnight local time New Years toast didn't make sense. So we decided on a "Universal Coordinated Time" UTC New Years toast at a more convenient time close to local sunset. So we rang in the new year as we watched the sunset in it's New Years/Five o' clock somewhere fashion and a nice bottle of Champagne. The weather was perfect for a Green Flash phenomena and so a nice bright green flash served to ring in our new year.

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year!

David & Kathy
s/v Pacifica
23*45'N 83*39'W 00:56UTC 1/1/2009

PS Fishing is awesome with fresh grilled Mahi Mahi for lunch, Little Tunny sushi appetizers and Cero Mackerel pasta for dinner.
Universal Time New Years Celebration

Marquesas Key

Marquesas Key our first stop is located at: 24°34′19″N 82°07′10″W
Here is a picture of the nautical chart and corresponding satellite image.
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Still preparing to leave

We had a few last minute things to work on,
such as the Starboard Engine. Not a real problem, just some
maintenance and we thought we should do it while we were here. Plus
the wind was on the strong side. The wind should be nice tomorrow for our sail into the Gulf of Mexico.

Sailing to Mexico

We are off to Mexico and will no longer have cell phones.  However, we can still check our email, even in the middle of the ocean, so drop us a line.  sailpacifica@gmail.com

Key West Christmas

We gathered around the poinsettia (a stand in for the more traditional Christmas tree) with our stocking and Christmas presents.



After a nice sail, including a lengthy spinnaker run, we made it to Key West on Christmas eve with just enough daylight to join the crowds and festive atmosphere along the waterfront walk. Over a dozen street performers provided live music, juggling and even a mini circus made up of house cats jumping through hoops. Everyone had gathered to watch the sunset. In Key West sunset watching is nearly mandatory and taken very seriously at least by the tourists. Key West could be the Green Flash capital of America. We managed to miss the sunset while watching a high flying unicycles act. After a stroll of the storied and colorful streets we found the perfect people watching restaurant to enjoy dinner. After dinner we enjoyed some live music at Sloppy Joes.

Planning to depart today for the Dry Tortuga's we made one last trip to the grocery store. , but were delayed when we found the fuel dock was closed for Christmas. So, maybe we'll leave tomorrow. We worked on some projects and Dave managed to partially floor the boat in the process while installing a pressure salt water sprayer at the galley sink. The pull out sprayer, like those found in normal homes, uses sea water for the prelimiary rinse of the dishes to save water and allows us to stay away from civilization longer.

We hosted a Christmas dinner party aboard Pacifica with cruising friends John & Mary of s/v Kittywake. We even cooked a turkey... or at least a turkey breast as even it would barely fit in our small oven. Kathy even baked a home made pumpkin pie for desert.

Key West

We are headed to Key West this afternoon and should be there for Christmas Eve.

Key West in the Southern most point in the USA.

Dry Tortugas National Park

Our next stop after Key West, FL is the Dry Tortugas National Park.

The Tortugas were first discovered by Ponce de Leon in 1513. Abundant sea turtles or "tortugas" provisioned his ships with fresh meat, but there was no fresh water-the tortugas were dry. Since the days of Spanish exploration, the reefs and shoals of the Dry Tortugas have been a serious hazard to navigation and the site of hundreds of shipwrecks. U.S. military attention was drawn to the keys in the early 1800s due to their strategic location in the Florida Straits. Plans were made for a massive fortress and construction began in 1846, but the fort was never completed. The invention of the rifled cannon made it obsolete. As the military value of Fort Jefferson waned, its pristine reefs, abundant sea life and impressive numbers of birds grew in value. In 1935, President Franklin Roosevelt set aside Fort Jefferson and the surrounding waters as a national monument. The area was redesignated as Dry Tortugas National Park in 1992 to protect both the historical and natural features.

Holiday greetings!

Wishing you and yours a very Happy Holidays!

2008 recap we...
got engaged.
sold our sailboat 'La Vie' in Australia
remodeled and sold Kathy's house in San Diego
bought a 36' sailing catamaran 'Pacifica' in New York
cruised the eastern USA from Massachusetts to Florida.
extended 'Pacifica' to 39' a two month project
got our USCG Captains licenses
started a sailing charter business... won't you join us?
created this new website

For those we've lost touch with over the past year(s) we'd love to catch up so drop us a line at: sailpacifica@gmail.com

Florida Keys

We are anchored near the red X waiting for good weather to head to Key West for Christmas. All that stormy snowy weather in the mainland USA is making it windy and a cool 70 degrees down here.

First Snorkel of the year

We did some major provisioning before we left Marathon. We really don't need a whole lot of staple supplies, after all we will be in Mexico and can get pretty much whatever we need for pretty cheap. But there are certain things we won't be able to get, at least not at a good price. Namely wine. So we took our little wheelie cart along with another rickety one from the marina and started the mile or more walk to the grocery store. We loaded up with quite a bit of wine, diet cokes, and all sorts of other stuff that we probably didn't need to. The walk back was pretty tough as 2 of the wheels on the marina cart broke. It made for a long hot walk back. After that we did 2 runs in the dingy to load up the jugs with water and one trip across the road to fill up the gas cans. By now we are tired and hungry and ready for a swim. We headed out the bay and only 5 miles out or so out is a great reef. They have moorings balls out there, first come serve. The moorings help protect the reef so boats won't be anchoring all over. We tied up and went for a great snorkel. We realized that it had been over a year since we went snorkeling. Not since we were in Vanuatu. It was a great swim, we saw a shark, lots of very big barracuda and pretty healthy coral. I think the fish get fed by snorkelers there because we were followed by hundreds of little yellow fish. It was pretty cute.


Random picture of Dave driving the Dinghy in Miami Beach

First planned stop in Mexico

In the next days or weeks we hope to sail to Isla Mujeres, Mexico an island off Cancun.  The attached link is from a fellow cruiser who explains the check in process for a visiting yacht.... got to love the bureaucracy!

http://www.nwcaribbean.net/picasso.htm

Cruiser friendly Marathon, FL

We'll be spending  a few days in Marathon, FL to pick up a few last minute items before heading for Key West and the Dry Tortuga's National Park on our way to Mexico.  It nice to be in warm waters again and steady warm weather.  The water is a minimum 72 degrees and the air temperature lows are about the same so it's definitely shorts weather at last.

We sailed down Hawks channel from Snake River to Marathon, FL between the reefs and shallows and thousands of crab or lobster trap floats.  Along the way we landed a fish for dinner when we sailed out into the Gulf stream about four miles offshore.

Marathon, FL is made for cruising sailors with a super friendly city marina that makes the more mundane tasks of a cruiser oh so easy.  Laundry, showers, trash, access to groceries and water are close at hand, as well as a robust social scene, so Marathon is one of those places that can be hard to leave.

Cruiser friendly Marathon, FL

Key Largo, FL

Tonight we are anchored in Key Largo, FL (25*06N 80*26.5W) after a nice 40+nm mile sail in Easterly winds inside the Keys from Miami.  The waters were shallow, less than ten feet deep, and clear so it was a little shocking to sail through the skinny sections were the total depth was only five feet.  I could have jumped off the boat and walked at times it was so shallow.  Good thing we only need three feet to float!  We chose to sail down Biscayne Bay as the Keys and reefs provided protection from the Easterly winds and made for fast sailing on flat water.  Mostly close reaching in 10-15 knots with boat speeds in the mid fives to mid sevens.

Tomorrow we are planning on reaching Marathon, FL to replenish some stores and then look at the weather for a crossing to Mexico a two + day sail from Key West, FL.  Weather will be very important for the crossing as we will be dealing with a fight with adverse Gulf Stream currents.

Key Largo, FL

Tonight we are anchored in Key Largo, FL (25*06N 80*26.5W) after a nice 40+nm mile sail in Easterly winds inside the Keys from Miami.  The waters were shallow, less than ten feet deep, and clear so it was a little shocking to sail through the skinny sections were the total depth was only five feet.  I could have jumped off the boat and walked at times it was so shallow.  Good thing we only need three feet to float!  We chose to sail down Biscayne Bay as the Keys and reefs provided protection from the Easterly winds and made for fast sailing on flat water.  Mostly close reaching in 10-15 knots with boat speeds in the mid fives to mid sevens.

Tomorrow we are planning on reaching Marathon, FL to replenish some stores and then look at the weather for a crossing to Mexico a two + day sail from Key West, FL.  Weather will be very important for the crossing as we will be dealing with a fight with adverse Gulf Stream currents.

Offically USCG Captains!

Among other project this summer like exploring the NE USA, extending the boat 2.5' we endeavored to obtain our US Coast Guard Captains Licenses. The captains license project included back ground checks, a physical, drug test, extensive applications a trip to Boston, MA and seven exams. We made the stop in Miami here for the final step, the written exams. The exams required extensive study some pure memorization on obscure topics, but mostly the topics were germane to our chosen lifestyle afloat.

We are both relived to have the exams behind us and we are now looking forward to our next project of improving our spoken Spanish. We also hope to make more regular blog entries.

As soon as tomorrow we may head south through the Florida Keys to be followed shortly by a voyage across the Caribbean sea to Mexico. The next pressing question is where to spend Christmas... Key West, Mexico or Belize.

Sweet Sunset in Miami Beach looking toward downtown Miami.

Offically USCG Captains!

Among other project this summer like exploring the NE USA, extending the boat 2.5' we endeavored to obtain our US Coast Guard Captains Licenses. The captains license project included back ground checks, a physical, drug test, extensive applications a trip to Boston, MA and seven exams. We made the stop in Miami here for the final step, the written exams. The exams required extensive study some pure memorization on obscure topics, but mostly the topics were germane to our chosen lifestyle afloat.

We are both relived to have the exams behind us and we are now looking forward to our next project of improving our spoken Spanish. We also hope to make more regular blog entries.

As soon as tomorrow we may head south through the Florida Keys to be followed shortly by a voyage across the Caribbean sea to Mexico. The next pressing question is where to spend Christmas... Key West, Mexico or Belize.

Sweet Sunset in Miami Beach looking toward downtown Miami.