Mooring Ball 48, Dinner Key Harbor, Coconut Grove, Miami...

S/V Blondie-Dog is presently tied-off to a mooring ball once again and is quite happy with the change of scenery.

There's something to be said about tying off to a mooring and of not having to worry about whether one's anchors will drag during a blow. Yeah, I already know... I'm but a day-sailor at heart if the truth be known.

Besides, I happen to rather like the basic amenities provided by a marina. Nothing can quite gladden the heart of a sailor like a hot shower.

So watch out all you exceedingly attractive young and not so young ladies strolling about Coconut Grove! I have finally arrived!!

Sailing Under the Seven Mile Bridge... Pigeon Key

Sailing underneath the Seven Mile Bridge and on through to the Intercoastal side of the Middle Keys certainly was a memorable experience.

Memorable if only because of the length of that bridge and the fact that it straddles the historical and long since decommissioned Flagler Railroad Bridge.

The Flagler Railroad Bridge was constructed at a great cost back in the day. It later had the misfortune of being wiped out by a hurricane on September 2, 1932.

I suppose that sailing under the Golden Gate bridge would have been an even more captivating experience. In any event, sailing underneath the Seven Mile Bridge was pretty cool in of itself.

Nevertheless I was quite relieved after having successfully negotiated the narrow Moser Channel while under sail and of sailing on out into deeper waters.

Sipping Coffee While Blissfully Unaware of Dragging Anchors...

I'm pretty certain that I'm but a day-sailor at heart and not a liveaboard cruiser because against my better judgement the other day, I elected to get off the boat and go ashore knowing full well that winds would later be gusting as a "weak northern" blew on through.

The allure of a tall cup of Starbuck's bold coffee and a leisurely morning of surfing the web was simply too much temptation to resist... and while blissfully sipping on my coffee and checking out the many exceedingly attractive female patrons strolling on past my table, S/V Blondie-Dog's anchors happened to lose their grip and started dragging.

So yeah... that was my boat clear across the anchorage in Sunset Cove aground off of Pelican Key. It was indeed a wet dinghy ride across the swells and I certainly was glad that there had been enough fuel in my tank to get me there.

I suppose that I was fortunate S/V Blondie-Dog wasn't hard aground. Soon thereafter my boat was being pulled off into deeper water with the assistance of another boat. I didn't even have to throw a line over... one of my dragging anchors was picked up and used to tow my boat.

Needless to say, I didn't get off the boat for the next two days until that supposedly "weak northern" and its thirty knot winds had finally blown on through.