Sailing on Biscayne Bay

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Biscayne National Park, Florida

We've been on the road exactly four weeks now and the trip is just getting off the ground.

And I mean, literally, 'off the ground'. Yesterday we took our sailboat tour of Biscayne National Park. Biscayne is a distinct national park, unrelated to the Everglades, except by proximity, that encompasses a huge acreage of land and sea due east of the Everglades and south of Miami. 95% of this park is underwater and, as a result, a boat of some kind is the only real way to explore it

Nature divides the park up into four basic ecosystems:

The mangrove forests line the shores and, well, we saw them up close and personal the last few days.

The coral reef is perhaps the most exciting zone. The world's third largest barrier reef runs pretty much parallel to the Florida keys, about 3-10 miles east and south of them. These reefs are exceeded only by the Great Reef off of Australia and those on the Caribbean side of Central America. The northernmost portion of this reef is protected within Biscayne Park. Being underwater, the only real way to see these reefs is by snorkeling or scuba diving. Joan and I are talking about snorkeling, but scuba diving isn't something we're likely to do. But the seas are too rough right now to even think about it, so this part of the park is pretty much off limits to casual tourists like us.

The keys are the barrier islands that run down for about 100 miles starting just north of the park (those are privately owned) on down off the Florida coast and ending not at Key West, but actually about 70 miles west of that. Biscayne Park incorporates several of these keys, including Boca Chita and Elliott Keys. We will talk more about the Keys later as we intend to get a closer look.

And that leaves the bay itself. A huge expanse of protected ocean, seven miles wide at its widest spot and averaging less than ten feet in depth. And so it was the bay that we explored yesterday, with the help of Captain Hans and a 40 foot sailboat. Although they can take up to six people on a sailing trip, we were the only passengers yesterday and so had the boat, and the captain, all to ourselves.

Neither of us have sailed before, and, although I pulled on some ropes a bit, we really weren't asked to do much. Captain Hans managed everything pretty much himself, explaining what he was doing so we could learn at least a bit of the sailing jargon. There being plenty of wind yesterday, we didn't need the main sail and made it across with just the jib and the ??? (The one in the back - I've forgotten already.)

For two and a half hours we simply sailed across the bay to Elliott key on the eastern side, and then turned around (which took about 3 minutes of work) and sailed back. He used the power motors to get us in and out of the narrow channels to and from the dock, but otherwise, the only sounds were the waves lapping at the bottom of the boat, and the sails gently flapping in the wind.

Oh, and of course, Captain Hans talking. He was an interesting young man, not yet 40, but someone who was very involved in ecology, wildlife, the outdoors, and especially the sea. He was a fountain of knowledge about everything related to the park. He started with a lecture on the mangrove trees as we headed out, although I already knew most of that. But once on the water and under sail power, he really waxed on and on about the politics and history of the park, the islands, the power plant, urban development and its effects on the ecology of the area.

Once on the water, the power plant on the southern tip of the mainland area of the park becomes very obvious - it is huge. Originally, they dredged massive channels through the bay to enable barges of coal into the plant. More recently, however, they have converted the plant to nuclear power which eliminates the coal barges, but introduces the problem of how to keep it cool. At first they drained the hot water directly into the bay which increased the temperature so much that the entire ecology was starting to change. So, instead, they built 10 square miles of channels and ponds that serve to cool the water which they can then recycle back to cool the hot reactors again. Although that sounds like a creative solution to a tough problem, the profit motive interfered with the execution - to save money, they failed to line the channels and ponds as designed with the result that the cooling water is now leaching out through the limestone and back into the ocean water. Wouldn't be so bad except that the water contains tritium and the wildlife in the bay is now showing signs of radioactivity. Good old capitalism coming to our rescue, right?

That was just one of the many stories Hans had to tell and we gladly pumped him of all we could get to understand the history of this park (Nixon and his cronies play a role too!). He explained what was below the surface of the water, although it was difficult on the sunny side of the boat to see much. I saw a sea turtle come up for a breath of air but, of course, it happened too fast to take a picture. Otherwise, there wasn't much in the way of wildlife to see - the water was a too choppy.

Off in the distance to the Northwest we could see the faint outlines of Miami skyscrapers. But it was too hazy to see anything with real clarity. Two other cities created smudgy outlines to the north and south of Miami.

Mostly, this was just a trip to contemplate the bay around us and enjoy the tranquil, repeating sounds of the boat and the water. It was a restful respite from the previous day's hiking and a definite change of view. The sailing trip is an expensive way to see the bay, and Joan and I are debating its value. I suspect that if the weather had been a bit calmer and less hazy, that the experience would have been much more rewarding. Just goes to show you that you can plan all you want, but nature usually has the last word. (17.1.28)

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Photos

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Biscayne Bay from visitor center

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Our Sailboat

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Leaving the channel

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The power plant