All Fixed Up, Ready to Go!

Oceanside Marina
Key West, Florida

Hooray! The new transmissions are in, the engines are perfectly aligned, and we’re ready for the weather to cooperate so we can be on our way! All that’s left to do in the engine room is to paint some of the bolts and connections, de-grease the diamond plate, and put stuff away. Ole worked like a stevedore to get it all done.

Mark the Mechanic

Mark DeJong of Marine Diesel of the Florida Keys was fabulous. His staff are knowledgeable, fast, and courteous. And besides, he looks like somebody from ZZ Top. We would highly recommend him for any work in the keys – he works on about 20 boats a month, and he’s a straight-up guy.

By the way – the “used” engine oil coolers were not exactly. Apparently the Twin Disc transmissions require high oil pressure through the coolers, and American Diesel pressure tests them (with water) before they release them to the customer.

We’ll move back over to Safe Harbor Marina today, fuel up, and twiddle our thumbs until we have a good forecast for the Straits of Florida and the Yucatan Channel – we’re looking at a Friday departure. The cats are overjoyed at the prospect of 60 hours at sea.

Here are some pictures of Safe Harbor Marina — it’s probably the last place of its kind in Key West, given the exorbitant price of real estate. One of the highlights of the place is the Hogfish Bar, located at the head of the dock, on Front Street.

The slip we’re in is privately owned (called a dock-o-minium) and rented out by the day or month when the owner is away. Don’t know what prices are like to own the slip here, but over at Oceanside we heard of a 40-ft slip going for about half a million dollars.

“Captain Bud” at Bama Seafoods

Another highlight is the Bama Sea Products dock just across from us. At all hours of the day or night, fishing boats pull up to offload whatever it is they have caught. We’ve sampled some fine yellowtail and incredible Key West pink shrimp at slightly less than grocery store prices but way fresher