R&R has been at two excellent marinas in Marathon, Florida for the past six weeks. We truly enjoyed Marathon and met many new friends. But…when Looper mentors Rich and Maggie stayed with us for a few days at Faro Blanco, rumors of a spreading contagious infection started circulating. When Rich and Maggie arrived, we greeting them with hugs, but only a few days later we sent them on their way with first-bumps. Rich is a physician and predicted that this outbreak could be as bad as the Spanish Flu of 1918.
Soon after friends Mark and Mary arrived a few days later to join us aboard R&R for a few days, we heard on the docks the Florida Keys might be closed down to prevent the spread of the disease. We and our guests were at risk of being “stuck” in the Keys (normally a gift, not a problem). When I spoke with the dockmaster, he told me that due to fuel truck disruptions he was low on diesel fuel and could only sell us 250 gallons. After some consternation and discussion, we decided that Mark, May and Rick should move R&R back to the mainland and Rhonda should meet us there by car. So we did the last few repairs, got as much fuel as we could, picked up the lines, put those big diesels in gear, and headed out to sea!
Marathon, Florida was the southernmost point of our Great Loop voyage, so we are now Northbound!
Yesterday we traveled about 80 miles across the Gulf of Mexico in calm winds and near-flat seas to Everglades City, near the Southern tip of the Florida peninsula.
Friends Mark and Mary traveled with Rick, and Rhonda drove our car to meet us. Safe travels for all!
Are you going up the east coast then?
Yes! North to Fort Myers, then East on the Caloosahatchee River to Lake Okeechobee, then further east to Stuart, then North along the East Coast to NYC, and on…