Coconut Grove Scene

Overlooking the mooring field....

The Coconut Grove Sailing Club, www.CGSC.org is such a great place to base out of, especially when Olympic Sailors arrive for a few days of practice before the World Cup. Here we are observing world class sailors setting up brand new RS-X windsurfing boards with new 9.5 meter $1,000 sails as we work on grocery shopping, laundry and boat washing. What a contrast! French, German, Spanish, Brazilian, Italian and more languages are all being spoken as rigs are being set up and tested. I spoke to one Brazilian Olympian who has been to 4 Olympics. He told me how these RS-X rigs are all new and that the sails are used for one regatta and then they are retired. You would never arrive at an event of this level with old boat gear. It all is brand new! Amazing to see. Interesting to observe.

Arriving CGSC with Dinner Key Marina to Starboard

Walking around Coconut Grove is a real joy as well, with beautiful well planned bike paths and walkways with landscaping and residential high rise buildings with balconies overlooking the harbor. Beautiful grocery stores, Starbucks, Johnny Rockets, Cheesecake Factory, Chili's, Surf Shops and Ice Cream Shops make for a full choice of shopping and eateries. Add to this a full movie complex and you have a very interesting center of town. We like towns where we can arrive by boat and we like mooring balls where the cost is contained. The Coconut Grove and Dinner Key area has it all, and we consider this location one of our favorites.

Here are a few CGSC photos of the scene....

Here is Jonathan Rudich (USA528) adding his sticker to his new RS-X sail

My favorite model, Radeen, walking Dinner Key Marina

The fork lifts launch boats 24/7

Boats ate stacked 6 high on racks overlooked by the condos

Dinner Key Condos with waterfront balcony views

One cool million dollars will get one of these flats

One of my favorite building overlooking the harbor

Center of town at Coconut Grove, Coco Walk with Starbucks....perfect!

THE WAY to do laundry. Drop it off at 9am, pick it up at 3pm...done
This is 60 lbs! We have been out a while...2 weeks and 2 days since laundry at Burnt Store

Laundry returning to the boat. Time to pack it away and remake the beds!

One of the RS-X sailors from France takes a practice sail

Finland sails an RS-X as well

So here is the current scene at the Coconut Grove Sailing Club and Dinner Key area south of Miami. With the snow and cold storms up north, we are having chilly nights of 50 degrees and days in the mid 60's, topping out at 70 if we are lucky. Miami is fantastic in Dec, Jan and Feb, what a great place to spend the winter.....

World Cup Sailing

Being in the mecca of USA winter sailing location and based at the Coconut Grove Sailing Club, www.CGSC.org, we will be observing and photographing world class International and Olympic Sailors this next week. This is going to be very FUN.

Check out what is going on here, in Miami, Biscayne Bay Jan 25 to Feb 1...click image below...

We are at Coconut Grove

ISAF Racing Area right here in Biscayne Bay!

YAHOOOOOOO, this will be really fun to observe and photograph

Arrival Biscayne Bay

Our Track of 47 miles today....

Speedboats, Biscayne Bay, Coral Reefs, Stiltsville, Miami Skyline and a beautiful sunset.

Welcome to Biscayne Bay Day #1. Let the fun exploration and review begin.

Photos tell the story best.

Our first speed boat pass....cool

Our second speed boat about hit us....exciting

We tried to sail, but not in 6-8 knots

This darn reef was in our way

Stiltsville, the old homes that were built over the reef

Miami over the bow as we power north

Beachfront home on Key Biscayne where we dropped the anchor 

This is the sunset on the beach front home

This is our sunset view from infront of that same home

Our first of many sunsets on Biscayne Bay

Sipping red wine and taking in the sun set

Many yachts pick up anchor and run back to dock. Not many stay out over night

The sunset light up this cloud bank after sunset

Look at the reflection in the water, beautiful

Time to make dinner. The view from the galley below deck

We really like Biscayne Bay, and we are not disappointed by our first night on anchor off Key Biscayne. It has been two weeks since we last docked, so we plan to move into Coconut Grove Sailing Club and or Crandon State Park Marina for some yacht cleaning and land side services. The boat is trashed with salt spray everywhere, and it needs a serious cleaning.

Everglades to Florida Keys

Sunrise in the Everglades, sunset in the Florida Keys

What a beautiful trip, now if only the winds would have participated, but they never arrived!

Oh well, that is why we have a diesel.

Enjoy this trip with photos.

Our track from Navionics on our Samsung Tab 2 tablet creates this Google Maps.

Pre-Sunrise off Little Shark River

Sunrise breaking out off Little Shark River, Everglades, Florida

Beautiful colorful sky at sunrise with some blue

To the West a near full moon was setting

Flat calm waters as we run south into the AM sun

Interesting water colors and sky

Water, Sky and reflections are so interesting in calm seas

Crab floats are everywhere and these can get caught in the prop or rudder

The Channel Five Bridge and the access to the Atlantic Ocean

Sunset as we approach Rodriguez Key, Florida Keys

Yes, we anchor among the crab floats, oh well

Sunset from our anchor. Time for dinner

Tomorrow we make our destination #1, BISCAYNE BAY. We plan to spend many weeks in Biscayne Bay because there is so much to review and re-explore. We Love South Beach, Coconut Grove, Dinner Key, Crandon Park State Marina, Key Biscayne, Boca Chita, Ocean Sailing vs Bay Sailing and so much more. Looking forward to Biscayne Bay sailing....

Everglades Sky

We sailed from Marco Island, off the west coast of Florida south into the Everglades and had some of the most beautiful skies and clouds we have ever seen. Midway south on the Everglades we ran up into the Little Shark River where we dropped anchor at dusk. What a remote and interesting spot, No services, no cell services, no Internet, but, 65 channels of digital TV. Needless to say, we left that for the alligators, sharks and mosquitoes.

Enjoy these photos....