Goodbye America!

We left the Sombrero Marina in Marathon, FL yesterday at eight o'clock, stopped for ice and fuel, then we were out into the Atlantic Ocean. In the morning and afternoon, the wind was good to us and we maintained an average of six knots and we were able to turn the engine off for some of that time. Also, we discovered our new best friend: the Gulf Stream. We cruised through it with an average of eleven knots and depths that got over a thousand feet.

But even with these extremely sufficient speeds, what do you do to stay busy sitting on forty-two feet of floating fiberglass? Well, we suggest to stay occupied by catching a 3o pound dolphin fish, playing 20 Questions with US Customs and Border Patrol Agents, or watch a huge car carrier freighter journey by...but that's just us.

On our boat everyone knows how to sail...but none of us spent too much time researching fishing. So, we were just hoping for the best when we threw out our lines. The next thing we knew, we had caught our possible dinner! Guy directed us all while reeling in the huge catch. Lisa slowed down the boat and steered us out of the wind, Luc reeled in the other pole, and Lauren and Alyssa went on an epic search for the gaff pole. After dropping it in the water, but being saved by the hook, Guy had filleted it and made some fresh Ceviche.

We were still reveling in our joy from the big catch and we decided to go swimming right there in the Gulf Stream. However, a US Customs and Border Patrol boat had been keeping a close eye on us by radar due to our erratic course from having to turn in circles to catch the fish. They sped up on us out of nowhere, asked us plently of questions, and requested to search our boat. We of course answered and agreed to everything they asked. And as they were leaving we all smiled and waved, each of us laughing a little inside about the spontaniety of the check.

For dinner, our dolphin was blackened in butter and olive oil, pure perfection! We experienced some rough weather that night, however, but we made it earlier than we thought to Westend. We arrived here at about 7 this morning and now, we are having engine problems so we are waiting for the mechanic. This is probably the only internet that we will have for a week, so stay tuned!