Wahoo !

The last long leg in our circumnavigation of Cuba was a 4 day passage from Isla Mujeres, Mexico to Key West, Florida. This should have been a 350 mile trip but ended up being more like 450 due to a strong current and wind pushing us north from Mexico before we could turn East and head for the Florida Keys. The good news is that we sailed almost the entire way. My crew, Chris, showed off his fishing skills (including cleaning and cooking!) with the capture of this huge Wahoo. We estimated it to be about 30 pounds, so big that I couldn't get the whole fish and Chris in the same picture. We caught this on the first day out from Mexico and so we had fish for the rest of the trip (and then Chris took some more home with him!).

After we made it to Key West, we had a great overnight sail up to Ft. Lauderdale where Starshine now sits. Meanwhile, I picked up my truck at Matt's and drove out to my new home in California. Next week, I will fly back to Florida to load Starshine onto a freighter to be shipped through the Panama Canal to Ensenada, Mexico. From there, it will be a short sail up to her new home port in Southern California.

When I said we circumnavigated Cuba, I want everyone to know that we did not actually stop there as it is still "illegal" (though lots of Americans go there now). See the "Travel Map" link on the homepage to see the route of our trip. All in all, we went about 3000 miles in 4 months and visited 7 countries. We missed the earthquake in Haiti and the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, but not by much. We learned a lot about diesel engines and ourselves and, of course, got married. A successful voyage I'd say!

As I begin the daunting task of looking for work, we have already begun talking about our next voyage ... Tahiti?