Seminole Inn, Indiantown, FL

Since ITHAKA is "on the hard" (in nautical terms) at RFYC having some work done, we needed to find a place to stay for a few days. Since this is spring break time and the snowbirds are still coming south, every hotel we called close to RFYC was full. We finally found an inn located 15 miles west of RFYC that had one room remaining, so we took it, sight unseen. It turns out that it is a rather historic inn, called Seminole Inn located in Indiantown, FL.

The Inn was built in the 1920's by a Baltimore banker named S. Davies Warfield who planned to make the Inn the center of his new planned community and the headquarters of his Seaboard Airline Railroad that ran from Central Florida to West Palm Beach. The Inn is situated on land settled by the Seminole Indians early in the nineteenth century and most of the residents of Indiantown today are full blooded descendants of the original settlers. Mr. Warfield was the uncle of Wallis Warfield who was to become the Duchess of Windsor when King George of England  abdicated his throne to marry her. She attended the gala opening of the Inn and visited many times after. Pictures of her and the former King adorn many of the walls of the Inn.

Today it is a quaint inn that still harbors some of the grandeur of the old south with it's wide porches.......

lush gardens......

.........and tiny rooms. It has been a long time since we've slept in just a double bed!

......there is still a nice lounge area to relax, read, play games or work jigsaw puzzles.

One of the wonderful side benefits of sometimes staying at unique, out of the way places is having the opportunity to attend very special events. Such was the case today when Sara picked up a flyer in the lobby of the Inn announcing a presentation by the son of world renown author Patrick Smith. Patrick Smith, a multi-Pulitzer prize nominee is most famous for his book "A Land Remembered", a historic fiction novel covering the history of Florida from approximately 1850 to 1960 as told through the trials and tribulations of the MacIvey family. Prior to Mr. Smith's presentation, a local "wilderness woman" gave a brief presentation on some aspects of early pioneer life in Florida.

Patrick Smith's son Rick gave a superb video presentation and talk explaining his father's many books and his life and style of writing. Though his father passed on a few years ago, Rick's videos included many recorded appearances of his father and his wonderful story telling ability.

It was an afternoon to remember!

Back At River Forest Yacht Center

Here we are back at the River Forest Yacht Center (RFYC) where we stored ITHAKA for the hurricane season in 2013 (June-November), before starting our Loop in March 2014. RFYC owes me a bottom paint job, plus I want the hull inspected for any possible damage after more than 6000 miles of travel. RFYC is located 20 miles west of Stuart, on the  Okeechobee Waterway, and we can "technically" say that we have closed our Loop here because this is where Sara and I picked up the boat ourselves in November 2013 and returned it to Ft. Pierce before officially beginning our Loop on March 19, 2014.

It seems soooo much easier maneuvering ITHAKA into the slings this time than it did the first time so many months and miles ago.

Going up............

...........and forward

The running gear looks great, even though most of the paint has worn off the  props and rudders.

All of the zincs will be replaced after everything is cleaned and repainted.

In addition to the bottom paint job, ITHAKA's hull above the waterline will be cleaned, waxed and buffed! She deserves it!

Mega Homes Along the ICW

Coming north on the ICW from Miami, through Fort Lauderdale and past Palm Beach, it is impossible to miss the mansions of the rich and famous that line the banks of this waterway. It is amazing to see these estates unfold as ITHAKA glides along. Each home being more spectacular than the one before. Some have their private yacht moored in front or on the side of their estate.

Williams Island Resort & Marina

One of the surprising things about traveling back up the keys and up the ICW was the difficulty we had finding marinas where we could spend a night or two. Mostly, they were all booked to capacity, were too small for our boat, the water was too shallow or they were extremely expensive, some topping out at over $5 per foot per night, plus the cost of electricity.

We were lucky to find the Williams Island Resort and Condominium Complex in Aventura, FL. This is an exclusive condominium complex that just happens to have a marina attached to it for its condo owners and they also allow some transient boaters to stay at their Marina.

The grounds are immaculate and secluded. A spa, health club, several pools and a private restaurant for condo owners are all included. Condominiums start at a base price of a little over one and a half million dollars!

Even some of the words on the road signs are in French. ITHAKA can just barely be seen behind the trees across the road.

We were only steps away from the restaurant and with our temporary membership card we had complete access to the whole complex.

ITHAKA all tucked in for the night.

Our neighbors boat had their steps rigged with a doorbell used to announce someone was coming on their boat. Most boaters just knock on the side of the boat when they want to raise the boat owner.

Our boat neighbors on the other side not only have a 70' yacht, with their dinghy on top, but they also have their 20' runabout tied up at their stern in case they just want to go fishing or for a joy

ride. Aaah, .........the good life!😃

The ICW on a Weekend

Because we chose to travel on Sunday when leaving Key Largo and heading up the ICW through Miami, we knew it would be heavily trafficked with the weekend pleasure boater. This particular spot, north of Miami, is called "Haulover Inlet" and is adjacent to the ICW.

It is a favorite spot with local boaters and their families on weekends, as can be seen.

The water is shallow enough in most places that people anchor their boat and then get out and wade from boat to boat to party and socialize.

They even have their own floating concession stand where burgers and soft drinks are sold, but no alcohol.

The Keys Behind Us, Miami Ahead

Though we only stopped at Marathon, Islamorada and Key Largo on our way out of the keys, it took us nine days to leave the keys and head north into the hustle and bustle of Miami and points north. Part of the reason is that we were in no particular hurry and for several days the wind was blowing 20-25 knots and it would have made for a rather rough trip.

Eventually the skyline of Miami appeared off our bow, along with all the increase in traffic one expects to find on the ICW on a weekend. Regardless of whether it is Miami, New York, or Chicago the thrill of seeing a skyline rise out of the water as you approach it from the deck of 

ITHAKA will never lose its excitement.

One of the many, many bridges that we will confront on our way back up the ICW. Luckily, the great majority can be passed underneath without problems. Only in a few cases is it required to have the bridge open so ITHAKA can travel underneath.

Just one of the many high rise condominiums that line the ICW in downtown Miami.

.........and of course Miami would not be complete without your average Mega Yacht!

Leaving Paradise (Key West)

On March 6, after ten wonderful, exciting, relaxing, and educational weeks in Key West, we reluctantly say goodbye to our temporary home and resume our Great Loop Adventure. A fellow Looper boat, with our friends John and Kathy Scott aboard, decided to leave the same day as us, so we "buddy boated" with them as we headed back up the island chain that make up the keys.

ITHAKA headed out into Hawk Channel and the 40 mile run up to Marathon, our first stop after leaving Key West.

SERENITY took this great picture of ITHAKA as we were leaving Key West. This is one of the very few pictures we have of ITHAKA underway because we seldom buddy boat with other Loopers, preferring instead to strike out on our own.

Hawk Channel or the ICW can be very unforgiving to Mariners that stray from the channel or have a moments lapse in judgment when navigating from paper charts or the chart plotter, as evidenced by this sailboat that is hard aground.

Seven Mile Bridge, just west of Marathon. Once we pass under this bridge we will leave Hawk Channel and enter the more protected waters of the ICW (Intracoastal Waterway)

Our first stop after leaving Key West is the brand new marina at Faro Blanco, in Marathon, FL. Having only been open five weeks, the marina was almost completely empty and everything was brand new. A rare thing to find, particularly in the keys during the winter months.

SERENITY preferred to anchor out, so we almost had the entire marina to ourselves.