Day #2 - Saturday: Capt. David takes command

     There are a million details to get done this morning before we can leave, and it seems to take an eternity to get them all done.  Overnight, we've produced a list of about a hundred questions for Joe and Edgar:   things we cannot figure out; things we cannot get to work; topics from yesterdays crash course in how to operate Rainbows End's many complex systems; more paperwork for crew members who arrived late last night; and on and on.  Joe had told us that nearly ALL of their charterers spend their first night at the marina; nobody sets sail on their first day here.  And now we know why.  And in retrospect, it was a good thing that we spent a night right here, checking out our vessel and getting familiar with her.

      More provisions needed to be procured and stowed.  The girls take off to do that.

      After the girls got back, we need to return the rental cars.  Tim and I take off to do that.  Ed from Budget Rentals gives us a ride back to the marina.  Along the way, Tim and I tell him about our yacht charter plans.  Ed turns out to be a knowledgeable boater.  He tells us about  a friend of his who was a boat broker who had to quit that business when he could no longer stomach selling yachts to guys who had no clue what they were doing.

canal in Key Largo

      FINALLY, at about 11:00, all the details have been done.  Everything has been loaded and stowed.  Systems that didn't work before, such as the propane stove, now work.  Paperwork is complete.  Questions are answered; or, at least as many as we can think of. 

      I take command of my vessel and assign the helm to Tim, my First Mate and Maneuvering Under Power Expert.  Tim fires up the main propulsion diesel engine as the rest of us guys release the dock lines.  We are underway, and wave good-by to Joe and Edgar.

map of Key Largo Marina

      Key Largo Marina is notorious for its narrow and very crowded canals.  Tim would later say that taking the helm of Rainbows End, a very large, expensive boat that he had never driven, with an unfamiliar propulsion system, through those horrifically narrow channels lined with multi-million-dollar boats, was the scariest moment in his life. 
      A couple hundred yards from where Rainbows End was moored is a very, very tight right-hand turn, appropriately called "Crash Corner".  I complied with Joe's instructions and did a "securite" call over VHF channel 16 to warn over vessels that a large catamaran was outbound at Key Largo crash corner.  No reply, which hopefully meant that no one else was coming around the other way.  Very slowly, very cautiously, Tim crept forward around the corner, while we other guys stood ready to fend off any near collisions with boats or wharves or anything. 

Tim at the helm

     Well to make a long story short, we made it out of the marina canal safely without incident.  Sighs all around. 

      And finally, we are out in the open Atlantic ocean.  Cool ocean breezes erase the heat of that sweltering marina.  I take over the helm, raise up the mainsail, and unfurl the jib.  (Wow, these electric winches sure make that easy.)  Rainbows End is now under full sail, using that silent, abundant, free energy provided courtesy of Mother Nature.  Propulsion engine off!

      Oh, and put on some music!

One very happy sailor

      The drinks start to flow, and I see smiles returning to the faces of my previously-stressed-out crew.   The girls are now down to bikinis.  Michelle says:  "Now THIS is what I envisioned sailing to be all about!"

Mitch & Lindsey on foredeck