Living aboard a boat by oneself can most certainly become somewhat monotonous after a while and can be especially true if one happens to stay in any one place for too long.
It's simply just too easy to grab a mooring ball or drop an anchor somewhere in the confines of an anchorage and simply not venture off anywhere for weeks on end.
And while Coconut Grove and all its upscale business establishments is conveniently located within walking distance of Dinner Key Harbor, it is nevertheless but another busy tourist destination in Miami.
The monotony of it all can set in after awhile and have one yearning for a change of scenery if nothing else. Consequently I finally resolved to heed a bit of advise posted on a Cruiser's Forum message board and set sail for a new destination.
It felt good to unleash Blondie-Dog from her mooring and sail on out away from Dinner Key Harbor. The feeling was most liberating and it felt good to be finally sailing in earnest again.
Light winds made for little initial progress but once the winds picked up, S/V Blondie-Dog was swiftly gliding over the pristine blue waters of Biscayne Bay.
I had initially intended to anchor off of Elliott Key for the evening but elected to continue my swift sail and drop a hook off the entrance to Jewfish Creek. I'd negotiate that narrow channel in daylight the next morning.
All in all it was ten hours of blissful sailing... well at least the last eight of them anyway. The only downside to day one was while at anchor that evening. Blondie-Dog was anchored downwind of mosquito infested mangroves and it goes without saying that I involuntarily donated a pint of blood.
My first clue that those mangroves were infested with mosquitoes should have been while under sail. A helicopter could repeatedly be seen swooping down upon the mangroves as if it were on a combat mission in a jungle somewhere. That chopper might have been spraying DDT or Agent Orange for all I know.
A recently purchased mosquito netting did nevertheless help keep some of the mosquitoes away. The No-See Ums were however another matter and had no problem finding their way in through the mosquito netting mesh.
I'd also like to think that the mosquito repelling coils that I had burning in the cabin had some effect in chasing the No-See Ums away but all it seemed to do was to scent up the boat's cabin as if it were an early Seventies head-shop.
All in all, day one was a most enjoyable day of sailing.
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