I apologize in advance for the length of this blog entry.

Departed Aquamarine Harbor on December 10 for the short run south to Pelican Bay which is adjacent to Cayo Costa State Park.  

After our anchor watch beer, took the dinghy ashore and took a nice walk.  Beautiful island and park.

We walked about a mile to the gulf which was raging.  The winds have been pretty fierce for some days.  Two red flags…no swimming allowed.

We stopped at a little inlet on the way back to the boat to look for manatees and alligators.  We have yet to see a manatee, but caught an alligator sunning itself.  Mike was so giddy; he has been waiting to see a gator up close.  He kept telling me to get closer.  I kept telling him, “Hell no.”  Honestly, the gator looked bored.

Our friends Jay and Barb were also at anchor on The Blessing.  We had them over for dinner.  They are from Canada and are doing the loop.  Here is a picture of their girl at anchor.

Although this anchorage is pretty protected, it is not so much so in North winds which we had in abundance.  Hull slap was pretty brutal, but our Rocna held us tight!  Late the next morning, we hopped in the dinghy to venture to Cabbage Key.  The wind was still howling, and cold, so we donned hoodies, a jacket and a foulie.  Mike wanted to go past the mangroves to our East, so we ventured over there.  Two men anchored on a beautiful sailboat stopped us and asked us if we had a couple specific tools.  We did, so we went back to our boat, got them and brought them back.  As we were leaving their boat, we ran aground.  I looked down and there was maybe a foot of water beneath us.  Both of us forgot to look at the tides that morning.  Hopefully, lesson learned.  Poor Mike had to take off his shoes, get out and tow us for a bit.  In the video, one can hear Mike saying, “Mush! Mush!”  Isn’t the “Musher” supposed to be the one sitting in the conveyance?

Thankfully we had a mostly following sea on the way to Cabbage Key.  The little island is only about 2 miles as the crow flies from Coyo Costa, but because of the skinny water, we had to take a squirrelly, and questionable, route.  We made it without incident.  Cabbage Key is a tiny little island.  There are no paved roads and no cars.  You can only access it via boat.  It is super charming.

We went to the Dollar Bar, had a beer and a cheeseburger.  It is storied that this place was the motivation for Jimmy Buffett’s Cheeseburger in Paradise.  (This is one of a handful of joints with that reputation.)  In the late ’70s, he invited the staff to a local concert and dedicated the song to them.  His is one of the ~70,000 dollar bills adorning the walls and ceilings (his is framed with a picture).  With the exception of Jimmy’s, the dollar bills are donated to charity every year.  The burger was pretty damn good.

Got our asses kicked on the trip back to the boat, but didn’t run aground!  Thank God for foulies!

Departed Pelican Bay early the next afternoon for a short 20 mile run to Ding Darling anchorage at Sanibel Island.  For the first time in a long time, we had calm weather!  We were all alone, and treated to a stunning sunset.

Sunrise the next morning:

Last Thursday, departed Ding Darling @ 9:30 en route to Naples.  Was beautiful as we turned the corner at Sanibel Island Light.

We were running outside the GICW in the Gulf, so were hoping for calm seas and winds.  We were also excited about getting into some deeper water…we thought!

My husband, God love him, decided to bake some banana bread for the staff at the marina while we were underway.  Seeing him in the galley makes me smile.

The first half of the trip was beautiful.  Then the wind increased…was blowing about 22-24 knots steady.  Then up to 28 knots.  It’s amazing how quickly these shallow waters can go from calm to crappy.  We bashed for the last 15 miles or so, then had to turn abeam to the entrance of Naples.  Thankfully, that was short lived.  

The homes along this part of the coast are unbelievable. 

We needled our way into Naples Bay Resort and tied up.  It is very protected, and it was so nice to get out of the wind.  Our boat will be here for 9 nights (Mary needs a job), and we couldn’t be more pleased with the resort.  I can do laundry here for free!  And, it’s super convenient.  (It’s the little things.)

Friday, we did chores.  Saturday morning, we picked up a rental car and drove to Cape Coral.  We were invited to the home of Kitty who is a harbor host for those doing the Great Loop.  She has an incredible dock outside her home that she lets folks use.  We were greeted by a very fast and very long black snake when we first got there.  Her backyard and pool are totally covered in a large screened structure.  This is pretty common in south Florida.  She said it is not only for the bugs, but for snakes, rats and iguanas!  The good news is they don’t get alligators due to the brackish water.  Kitty was so gracious.  We had champagne, cheese and crackers and key lime pie!

We then drove to Fort Myers where we met up with Kent and Heather of Heartbeat.  They left Penny dog on the boat, but shared the best tourist picture of her from that day!

Drove back to Naples and went to 3rd Street to walk around and find some place for dinner.  Naples is all lit up for Christmas and is really beautiful.

Yesterday, Mike and I ran a bunch of errands and did a lot of provisioning.  We picked up Kent & Heather, who had just arrived in Naples, and went to the pier.  It was a stunning day, and was magnificent to hear the surf!  Made me miss the Pacific Ocean.  

Today, we are driving to Key Largo to visit the Griffins!  So excited to see them.  Will be there until Thursday when we will drive to Ft Lauderdale to meet up with Chris and Katie before they take off for their Christmas cruise.  Will be back to the boat Friday, scheduled to take off Saturday, to where we do not yet know.  

Here are a few shots of our marina.  Loving it here.

Mom, I’m so sorry this biog is late!  Love you and dad and miss you so much.  I will see you in a few short months.

Cheers all!  M&M