Great Loop Date 03.08.2011: Found in Newfound Harbor...

Day #208 (Tuesday): 3197.0 total miles (31.7 miles)
Port #74: Newfound Harbor; between Little Torch Key and Big Pine Key, FL

(Is the chart looking confusing yet?  This trip is the Blue Line.)

OB began retracing her wake as soon as we left Key West Bight.  Our destination was an anchorage near Little Torch Key where we spent a month each of the two previous winters (2009 and 2010).  Todd and I had hoped to anchor there on the way to Key West a month earlier.  Wind and weather made that impossible.

OB waves goodbye to Conch Harbor and Key West Bight.

First in our retraced steps...Christmas Island.  We had taken the dinghy between Christmas Island and Sunset Island.  It seemed to be a favorite anchorage for many, including derelicts.



No anchored boats were seen at Sunset Island.  That area seemed more patrolled.



Little Palm Island was our landmark before entering Newfound Harbor to anchor.

Discovered over two decades ago, Little Palm Island has been the escape of choice for presidents, high profile celebrities and savvy travelers alike.  Crushed seashell paths wind through this 5 ½ acre paradise connecting the 30 oceanfront suites. All guest quarters are housed in thatched roof bungalows, with custom-made beds with romantic mosquito netting, outdoor showers and all the requisite luxe amenities. There are no telephones or televisions, or guests under the age of 16 (hmm-that's interesting, isn't it) - the only distractions are the outdoors and each other.  The Dining Room at Little Palm tempts with a vibrant blend of French and Pan-Latin cuisine. Guests can enjoy meals in an elegant, candle-lit dining room, on a terrace perched above the beach where key deer and songbirds visit, or at tables strewn along the beach.  Of course none of this is cheap...and we've never ventured on the island.  The house we rented on Little Torch had a menu for Little Palm Island and we could have gone there for just dinner.  We decided our money was best spent elsewhere! 

N II Wishin anchored in Newfound Harbor.  The wind really picked up by the time we anchored.

OB sitting quietly at her anchor with Little Torch Key in the background.  I was a little worried about the anchor holding all night long with such a stiff wind.  As it were, I had nothing to worry about.  She held well!

Little Torch Key behind us reminded us of many a sweet evening in our rental there.  We took the dinghy over and visited the marina where we launched our Whaler the last two years.  The dockmistress was so happy to see us...and sell us gas for the dinghy.  We went on back in the canals to see our rental...and it was rented.

That evening Todd and I, Joan and Jerry took our dinghy's to Parrotdise Waterfront Bar and Grill on Little Torch for dinner.  We met two couples there who are friends of Joan and Jerry from their marina in Michigan.  It was a fun evening with a lot of information exchanged about anchorages we could use as we moved up the Florida Keys as well as information about the Bahamas.