Little Shark River

Tuesday, April 9: Little Shark River, in the Florida Everglades, is a notorious hell-hole due to its occupation by gazillions of the blood-thirstiest mosquitoes you never want to meet.  Unfortunately, it is also the only protected place between Marco Island and the Keys for mariners to stop for the night. With winds out of the east at about fifteen knots, the group decided to risk a possible rolly night for a mosquito-less night, and anchored about ¾ of a mile offshore. Now, Wayne and I have anchored in Little Shark River two or three times and have never had a problem, but based on its reputation, that had to have been a fluke. Nearly everyone we've talked to who's been there has a horror story to tell.

Anchored nearby are Dennis and Shirla (Aurora), Anne and Jeff (Broadwater II), Cathy and Glen (Chatty Cat), Sherry and Louis (Valhalla), Steve and Nancy (Chat-Eau), and Kathy and Steve (North Star).

We motored most of the way today, as the wind was mostly on our nose. No social time tonight; Wayne and I were ready for a quiet evening, and I think most of the others probably were, too. It's been hectic preparing for this trip, we spent the entire weekend and time the past couple of evenings socializing, and we need to charge our batteries. 

We enjoyed a nice dinner and now Wayne is trying to fix the washdown pump. I did a small load of laundry, just because I can. We bought a little washing machine (no dryer) that fits perfectly in the forward shower. I tried it out before we left home and it works as well as my machine at home. It will be such a treat not having to spend time schlepping laundry in the dinghy and sitting in laundromats, which were especially hard to come by in the Exumas.

So far things have gone pretty well for the group, although one boat got the mooring line tangled in its prop while preparing to leave Fort Myers and another boat snagged a crab pot while approaching our anchorage tonight (unfortunately, it was crab-less). A third couple had a problem with their rudder that delayed their arrival here by a few hours. We, of course, had the gennaker and washdown pump issues. If anyone else had problems, they kept it to themselves.

YAY! The washdown pump is now working!