Saturday, February 4 - Marathon

Saturday, February 4 - Marathon

We got an early start, headed for Marathon.  Many Loopers spend some time there, in fact many of them spend the entire winter, and we wanted to check it out.  The only marina that had space for us was on the "outside," so we had to cross under the 7-Mile bridge.  The old bridge is still there, with a gap in the middle, and the new bridge is tall enough for sailboats to go through.

The fish must have been biting, there were lots of fishing boats between the two bridges.

Boot Key Harbor, on the south side of Marathon, is home to lots of marinas and moorings, but every one we called was full.  We had heard lots of people talking about how hard it is to get a slip, and they were right!  Our last option was Pancho's Fuel Dock, and they said they would make room for us.

(PIC MARINA). They gave us a slip number on the phone, but when we pulled in they told us to tie up on the gas dock. That turned out to be a good thing, the view was much better!  Looking out the back of our boat, we could see lots of boats going and coming all day.

The dock hand, who remained barefooted the entire time we were there and started drinking Corona early in the morning, helped us get tied up, then we headed to the Chiki Tiki Bar and Grille for lunch.  It had been recommended in one of our cruising guides, and it was right next door. It was also a very popular place.

As we were leaving the restaurant, we saw "Leap of Faith," Laura and Artie's boat, at the end of the dock.  We had met these Loopers at Panama City, and followed them down the west coast.  It was great to see them.  They had completed their loop since we last saw them, so congratulations were in order!

We took a dinghy ride later that afternoon further into the harbor.  There are 260 mooring balls in the Marathon City Harbor mooring ball area alone.  It was quite a sight.