Our first crossing of the Gulf Stream and the Straits of Florida

It is 90 miles from Key West, Florida to Havana, Cuba.  We certainly have traveled farther in a night - but this was the first time we had ever crossed the Gulf Stream.  The Gulf Stream is a tremendously powerful ocean current - the strongest in the world.  Essentially, a huge river flowing with considerable speed and force in the ocean.  The plan was to leave Marathon around 1000 and arrive at Sand Key Light just off the coast from Key West right around sundown and then set our course for Cuba. The day started out beautifully - hot and sunny with the wind blowing at around 10 knots.  As we were traveling from Marathon, Florida down to Key West it was raining on shore.  We were treated with a gorgeous double rainbow.  Of course, we felt this was a sure sign that our trip would be a good one. 

Double Rainbow off the coast of Florida

It is a little hard to see the second rainbow in the picture as it was fainter than the first - but trust me its there.  As planned we reached Sand Key Light right after sundown and changed our course for Cuba.  Quickly, we were in the Gulf Stream and suddenly we slowed way down - trying to move forward against the current is not easy.  Our speed dropped to 2.75 to 3 mph!!  Not good!  The winds were light which did not help.  We also encountered engine problems further slowing us down.  Fortunately, we were able to solve that issue and had no further problems with the engine.  If that wasn't enough we had a squall come up suddenly producing a bit of a headwind.  All in all the problems we encountered served to slow us considerably - in the end by 0600 we had only gone 35 miles!  Now that was a problem for several reasons - one we were tired, two we had a seasick passenger, three we were unlikely to make it to Marina Hemingway before dusk and worst of all the forecast was for gale force winds in the Gulf that evening.  We were now out of the Gulf Stream - but we had another issue to deal with.  Suddenly, we were faced with a headwind (wind out of the South).  It is impossible to sail directly into the wind so we either had to tack east to go south or north to go west.  Of course, the direction we needed to go was both south and west.  We decided to wait till 1500 to see where we were and make a decision.  At 1500 it was clear we would not reach the Marina in time (Marina Hemingway will not allow boats in or out from dusk to dawn).  The decision was made to make headway till 1700 and then hove to in order to eat and rest a bit.  For you non-sailors when you hove to the intent is to basically stop the forward movement of the boat.  It is a known storm tactic as well as a way to just stop for a bit.  So... at 1700 we hove to and fixed some food.  We knew the gale was coming and we would have to ride it out offshore.  We were now about 10 to 15 miles off Cuba's shore - we could see the Cuban coastline.  At 2100 the gale arrived, the wind shifted north and drove us off our hove to position.  The boat was still relatively stable so we just drifted for awhile.  The wind was blowing at a sustained 35 to 40 knots with gusts much higher - waves were at least 10 feet and the sea was "rolling".  At midnight we checked our position and saw that we were now 20 miles east of where we needed to be.  We decided to quit drifting and try to set a course for Havana.  So... we unlocked the wheel and raised the staysail.  For a couple of hours Michael hand steered but fatigue was setting in.  In the last hour he had 3 accidental gybes - a very dangerous situation.  We dropped the mainsail (which we should have had down hours earlier) set a course and set the autopilot.  Michael then went down to sleep and I tried to stay on the boat!!  We were being thrown around the cockpit and had to have a good hold to keep from falling.  Talaria did settle down once the mainsail was down however - the ride got a little better, a little safer.  The gale raged with incredible ferocity all through the night and into the morning.  At one point we completely lost sight of Cuba as the rain was poring down.  By 0930 we were getting close to Marina Hemingway and started trying to hail the Marina.

Havana, Cuba dead ahead

The folks at the Marina were slow to answer which was making us a little nervous.  Finally, they came on the radio and gave us specific directions for getting through the channel.  The channel into the Marina has reefs on either side and the buoys are not necessarily in the right spots.  So... you have to set a course for 140 degrees right at the light and stay on that course till you are through the channel.  Even though the seas were still rough we made it through the channel without any problems.  After dealing with customs, the dept of health, the dept of agriculture and the dockmaster we were able to re-prime our air conditioner and head to our berths for a much deserved nap.  The sleep of the dead ensued - none of us rose again till late afternoon!  We made breakfast and went right back to bed.  Tomorrow Cuba beckons but today we must recharge and recover from the night from hell.