January 19 – 24, Marathon, FL

 

Marathon is a great place to vacation.  We have adapted well to staying in one place, adjusting to island time, and the warm weather and sunshine.  We will be updating the blog and our activity about once a week while we are in one place.

This week we spent time cleaning and washing the boat, getting the dinghy set up, adjusting the lines for the tides and winds, and general maintenance.  We are sterned into the slip here cause the finger piers are so short that we are getting on and off the boat from the swim platform.  The step to the pier also changes with the tides – sometimes a level step and sometimes a huge 3 foot step up.  We had to lift the dinghy out of the water and then slide it back into the water from the pier because we could not get the dinghy between the boat and the dock.  Now that the problem is solved we have access to exploring Key Colony with all the canals and small harbors.    

The bikes have also been removed and put to good use.  The harbor is at mile marker (MM) 53.  As some of you know, things in the Keys are identified as to their location by mile markers.  The heart of Marathon is at MM 47-49, so Tom and I have been doing a lot of bike riding.  Two days this week we have ridden 9-10 miles depending if we go exploring at the other marinas or if we need a loaf of bread.  The marina has a nice pool which is a good place for a refreshing dip after those bike rides.  It is also 2 miles to Pat and Jim’s house so that has become a regular stop for us too.

The choice of activities for the island lifestyle is many.  Tom has enjoyed fishing in the Gulf with Jim.  In fact, he was the only one who did any “catching” that day of fishing.  Hopefully the weather will permit a few more fishing trips so we can eventually have a neighborhood fish fry. 

 

There are also bocce ball games which involve the neighborhood, cocktails and slowly rolling heavy wooden balls on the court.  This week there were 16 of us playing.  Fun.  Pat and I have done a little shopping, out of necessity of course.  The local movie theater is a popular place on Fridays when the new movie comes out.  It has 100 seats and swivel chairs.  They seem to be arranged somewhat randomly with round tables placed conveniently to hold your popcorn, soda and beer.  It is very busy on a cool, windy night in Marathon.   

Last night we experienced one of the best things of the keys – which was a very casual local dock party.  There were about 16 of us who gathered on the dock, enjoyed delicious fresh cooked lobster and then musical entertainment.  Sal, our neighbor, Donnie, guy in the next sailboat and a Louis, a “local” guy from Portugal played guitars and the harmonica and sang.  They played Buffet, country, sing-a-longs, and ballads as we sat on the dock, with a breeze blowing and cold beers.  I could do this every night.  We were told there are a lot of musicians here and many play at the bars for free, or at open mic night so we will definitely be searching for those places.

 

The other great things in the Keys are the food and the restaurants and the Happy Hours.  Many of the local places have Happy Hours which basically means that the beer is a reasonable price and the appetizers are discounted in price.  At Sparky’s, they serve 25 cent wings and shrimp.  Four of us ate 40 wings and 30 shrimp. Not bad but the table next to us had 80 wings.  We will return to Sparky’s again.  Tarpon Creek also had discounted appetizers so there we enjoyed shrimp, sliders, calamari and conch fritters.  It also seems that ice cream is a necessity so Sweet Savannahs is becoming a regular stop.  Many times when Tom and I ride the bikes we become parched and need our thirst quenched so we have also stopped at Brass Monkey and Herbies.  I think you could frequent a different restaurant every day and still not run out of eating options.   

As you can probably tell, we are enjoying our vacation spot in the Florida Keys.  We are still planning on cruising again in a month - - but you can never be sure.