Since we didn’t have too far to go and we had left early and after a not so stern warning from the Park Ranger- “No docking along the wall overnight, but I understand because of the weather” we made it to our intended anchorage by noon. We weren’t sure exactly where to anchor until we came upon the anchorage packed full of boats. We were feeling a little leary of anchoring in all of these boats with our last experience, but were willing to do it if we could find a spot. Alas, we could not find a spot as the boats were packed in. We circled through a few times looking for enough space but we couldn’t find it, so we ended up motoring over to another listed anchorage. This was down a canal back into a fancy neighborhood. We decided this was no good either as there was no shore access, but it was cool to see the million dollar homes (and their boats and landscaping) from the water. We came back out to the bay and noticed two boats anchored out by themselves- they were out of the ‘channel’ in deep water along the edge where it gets really shallow. We decided we would anchor in this general area. We dropped the anchor and I made sure the anchor was securely set.
There was a dinghy dock not too far from where we had anchored. This was nice place to come to shore- there was a park to walk Frank and a bus stop for the city’s free buses. Our first day there we took the bus to the famous South Beach. As expected it was full of partying spring breakers! The beach was packed! We walked down the boardwalk area and finally stopped for a drink at Mac’s Club Deuce– which claims to be the oldest bar in Miami and has reviews from every major network and publishing personalities. Miami Vice also filmed an episode here and had their final season ending party here! The happy hour is 2 4 1 drinks and did I mention it’s cash only?! Luckily we had some cash so we could take advantage of that happy hour! We walked around some more and found the second ‘best dive bars in Miami’: Lost Weekend. We had some more happy hour fun here too before deciding we should head back to the boat so we could have dinner and walk Frank. During dinner it was decided we would stay at least another day as the weather looks good for the next several days.
Day 2: We took the bikes to shore after walking Frank. We biked to the beach and found a spot to lay out and swim. The beach was again packed, but we were able to not be too close to anyone- we are still trying to enjoy ourselves too! After the beach we biked to the other end of the island and stopped at Miami Beach Marina: “With the famous Art Deco District nearby you are also a few steps from the exciting shopping and nightlife of trendy South Beach” to inquire about dinghy docking. We were looking into it as an option instead of the dock we’ve been leaving the dinghy as we had heard you are not supposed to leave the dinghy there all day, and the police department was right there. We haven’t had an issue, but we don’t want to push it. The marina told us we could dock there, so now that we had our answer, we walked up to their bar/restaurant for a drink. Next on our list was a special happy hour: Lauren had told me about this and I insisted we go. The deal is: $46 Lobster and Champagne- a one pound lobster and half bottle of Champagne Lallier at A Fish Called Avalon, which is on Ocean Drive. We made our way there and found a spot to park the bikes. The street and sidewalks were packed with people (kids) leaving the beach as it was now around 5pm. We found a spot inside the bar in front of a giant window overlooking the street. We ordered the ‘special’ and I added some other items. We enjoyed ourselves and felt like we were living it up! After our extravagance, we headed back to the boat for the night but made a quick stop at the store for some supplies.
The next morning we went to shore with Frank and decided it was time to move on. We still had to make sure we were in Melbourne by the end of the month- we have plenty of time we think, but you never know….