As you can see by the picture we have been treated to some beautiful sunsets in Punta Gorda.

Rich and Julie left for NY on Thursday after lunch and shopping in Fisherman's Village. They made it safely back on Sunday to a driveway full of snow but clear roads on their trip.

We spent some time provisioning and laundry on Friday in preparation for starting our trip back to the Keys on Monday.

On Saturday we spent the day visiting with Larry's parents. We had lunch and visited the shops in Fisherman's Village. It was a good visit but short because we need to start our trip back to the Keys.

Sunday we did some more provisioning and enjoyed the pool at the marina. We were anchored out the entire time but had a dinghy dock pass which allows you to use the pool and tennis courts. We enjoyed all the amenities the dock holders had for a fraction of the cost. What a deal!

Monday we lifted anchor and entered the Gulf to start our trip South. We should have known the day was going to be interesting when the midship line wrapped on the prop at the fuel dock. Guess I wasn't awake yet. Larry took a very cold swim before 8:00 AM to undo it. We just started out in the Gulf when the fog came upon us. Not a fun trip but we maid it just before dark to anchor in Fort Myers Beach just off the Sanibel causeway bridge. It sure is good to have radar and a chart plotter.

This morning we pulled up anchor and started out to be engulfed by fog again. We decided we had enough yesterday and turned back, set anchor and spent the day relaxing. Tomorrow we will try again.

A Beautiful Day in Paradise

You can see by the picture Rich and Julie have finally been able to shed their cold weather clothes. The last few days have been warm and sunny, not much wind but we sailed in spite of it. We were not in a hurry to get where we were going. Yesterday we sailed out in the Gulf and went for a quick swim. When I say quick I mean quick the water temperature was only 57 degrees. It was very refreshing!

We are at anchor in Charlotte Harbor just of Punta Gorda at Fisherman's Village. We had a quite night without wind.

Rich and Julie's week has ended today and they will be picked up around noon. The week certainly went by quick. Vacation always has a way of doing that. Last we heard their driveway was snowed in, hopefully the sun has melted it all away. We'll miss them, it has been a fun week. We'll look forward to sailing with them this summer on Lake Ontario.

Larry and I will stay for a few days to visit with his parents. Next week we will start our trip South along the West coast of Florida and then though the Keys, then up the East coast of Florida. Florida allows you to sail their waters for 90 days without paying taxes in their state and we have met that limit. We plan to spend some time in Georgia waiting for warmer weather to head North for the Summer. We would like to take our time going North this year.

The Morning After The Night Before

This picture taken yesterday morning is of the main cabin with Rich and Julie after we pulled into a dock at Cabbage Key. The picture doesn't quite show the disaster things were in because Julie had already picked some of it up.

Saturday afternoon we had anchored by Useppa Island. there was a slight chop to the water so Larry took two trips to dinghy us to Cabbage Key for lunch. The winds dropped and the water calmed for an enjoyable evening. We knew the wind was to pick up during the night but we did not expect what was to come at 5:30 AM. At 2:00 AM the wind picked up to about 15 knots and at 5:30 AM, it felt like a freight train was coming at us. The wind had picked up to 36 knots. It got all of our attention. The men took vigil in the cockpit for anchor watch while Julie and I made them tea. It was very cold and wet from the rain.

When it became daylight we called Cabbage Key Marina for a dock. The dock master was not in yet so we pulled up on a long pier. The winds kept blowing and docking was not easy and to top it off the dock master ask us to move to a slip when he arrived. We went to the restaurant for breakfast first in hope that the wind would die down, no such luck. Larry handled the boat like a pro or should I say Master Captain. We spent the day walking on the Island, enjoying the fire at the bar and visiting.

We will leave here after lunch when the tide comes in and lifts us off the bottom. Our plan is to sail South and anchor off Sanibel Island. The winds and waves are predicted to lessen and we look forward to a sail on the Gulf Tuesday.

Cayo Costa Island

The shells in the sand looked as though they were frozen in place and they could have been with the temperatures as low as they were yesterday. Larry and I believe we have hit a record for low temperatures for us in Florida. Our cabin temperature was 54 degrees this morning. Rich, Julie, Larry and I went to shore to walk the beach yesterday. Don't know what we were thinking but we did. The shelling was good at the far end of the beach. That figures! When we got back to the boat, did I mention by dinghy, we were wet and cold. That rum sure did taste good!














After breakfast Rich and Julie took the dinghy to shore to explore. As you can see the sun is shinning, the air is very cool but the sun makes it feel warm. May be they will find lots of shells since the high tide last night. When they return we will lift anchor and sail to Cabbage Key. We have to leave at high tide in order to get over the sand bar at the opening to the bay.

The weather is supposed to gradually improve over the next few days. It sounds like the best day will be Tuesday and Wednesday next week. It reminds me of two years ago when we chartered a boat out of Burnt Store. It was cold and windy and wet most of the week. We have enjoyed our visit with Rich and Julie in spite of what the weather gives us. Fortunately they also are long time sailors and know how to roll with what Mother Nature dishes out.

Valentine's Day - Happy Anniversary

This was our celebration of Valentine's Day, Julie and Rich's arrival and their 37 th wedding anniversary. We enjoyed a wonderful meal together at Porto Bello Restaurant at Burnt Store Marina in Charlotte Harbor. They arrived around noon yesterday and we spent the afternoon stowing gear, visiting and planning the events of the week to come.

This morning we rose early and Larry went for a run while Julie, Rich and I went for a walk around the complex. The day is overcast with cool temperatures and light rain. Not the best day for sailing but we didn't let that deter us. We pulled away from the dock about 11:30 AM. The wind was steady at 13 knots and we furled out the sails. The wind kept with us but decreased about 2:00 Pm, at which time we turned on the engine and are headed for our anchorage at Cayo Costa Island. We are planning on a hot soup dinner to warm us as well as the cabin. Tomorrow we will go to shore and explore the island and look for shells.

Fort Myers Beach

The picture is of Indian Key where we anchored last night. Our night was calm after the wind laid down. If you look real close you can see our boat at anchor past the spit of sand and our dinghy beached on the sand spit. Yes that is Larry walking.















This picture is of the magnificent sun rise we were treated to this morning as we lifted anchor and prepared to get underway. We haven't been able to get a shot of a good sunset for the cloud banks but this made up for it.














This shot is of a para sailor out on the Gulf off the shore of Naples. They were so close I took the picture though the rigging. They looked as if they were any closer we would have collided. It was around 1:00 PM when we arrived outside of the inlet for Naples. We were making such good time we decided to go onto Fort Myers beach. We intended to anchor but a mooring field has been put in and no anchoring is allowed, so we took a mooring ball for the night. We are ahead of schedule so we believe we will stay another night.

Florida Everglades

The picture is of Larry bailing out the dinghy after an all day rain on Sunday.

Tuesday we celebrated my birthday with Mike and Diane M. from Express Mail. It was one year ago that we were in New Found Harbor with them and ate at Parrotdise Restaurant for my birthday last year. Unfortunately we have parted after only two nights together. They are going to Key West and meeting up with friends and we are going North on the West coast of Florida to meet up with friends. We will meet again on the return trip. That is what is so great about this life. You know you will meet again.

We left early on Wednesday morning from Boot Key Harbor and anchored outside of Shark River on the Gulf side. It was a quiet night with very little wind and waves. We were anchored with 6 sail boats, 2 catamarans and 2 power boats.

We left early this morning and traveled another 36 miles to Indian Key. This is the beginning of the channel to Everglades City, which we plan to visit on the way back to Marathon. We went to shore on Indian Key to explore by dinghy after we anchored. The sand is like fine white sugar and the beach is covered with many shells. The air wasn't warm enough and the wave action was to heavy to snorkel but it would on a calm day be a good place to do so.

Tomorrow we will get an early start and go just above Naples and drop the hook for the night. Our plan is to be in Charlotte Harbor for Saturday.

Boot Key Harbor, Marathon

Yes you guessed it we are still here in Marathon. We have to keep reminding ourselves it's Winter here too. We stayed till Friday to get an order from West Marine and to go to the local community theater for a play. Friday was the only window until this coming Wednesday to go up the West coast of Florida, we missed it. The winds have clocked around to the North and Northeast 10 to 15 knots and building to 15 to 20 this afternoon with moderate to heavy rain. Motoring into the wind and waves isn't fun so we stayed put. At least we didn't have the tornado that hit in Orlando and surrounding area. It's is amazing what damage and destruction it caused.

The picture was taken at the Turtle Hospital here in Marathon. Larry and I visited the hospital Wednesday of this week. What an education we received! Last year we spotted a turtle on the surface of the water and we thought it was sunning itself. We now know that it must have been sick and we will call the Coast Guard when we see one again. It was sad to see the injured and sick turtles. Some have been hit by fast boats, some have tumors on them and some are starving because of over fished areas. The turtle in the picture was being weighted on it's back side near it's tail. Air gets trapped in their system and causes them to float and not be able to dive for food. The weight helps them to compensate for this. It was amazing what the staff does to help the turtles live a normal life again. Some are able to return to the wild while others remain in permanent residents at the hospital.

LCH We planned on being in Marathon for 2 or 3 nights. As it turns out we have been here for 2 weeks as of yesterday. I made use of the time here to update and fix things on the boat. I was uncomfortable with the ground tackle that came with the boat when I bought it (22lb Delta Fastset and 15' of 5/16 chain). Last year I replaced the 15' of chain with 50' of 5/16 G4 chain. I had earlier in this trip replaced the 50' of chain with 200' on the Delta and purchased a 33lb Horizon plow (Bruce knockoff) and placed it on the 50' chain. This week I bought a used 35lb CQR which replaced the Delta as our primary anchor. The Delta is now stored away as a backup which we may upgrade to a 35lb Delta. Summary......primary anchor 35lb CQR on 200' of 5/16 chain, secondary anchor 33lb plow on 50' of 5/16 chain with 150' of 1/2 rope rode and the Delta and Dansforth are in reserve. Future.......FX37 Fortress storm anchor, expensive but the anchor of choice by cruisers to hold in soft mud and loose sand in a blow of 35 knots or more. In Florida many cruisers get out of marinas before a hurricane hits and they hang on their Fortress and their CQR and they do survive so long no one drags into them. We are not ready to stay here during the hurricane season now but we may do so 3 or 4 years from now.

I also have switched to LED bulbs in our Davis Mega anchor light.

I went up the mast to replace the anchor light bulb. I was 55 ' over the water, I never like being up there. I am looking at switching to an LED there as well.

We added a 4th house Group 27 battery to get us to 360 amp hours.

Sent our JVC stereo out for repair, it died.

Tightened packing gland on the engine.

Lastly, I had our Mercury dinghy outboard fixed and in the process learned how to overhaul to carburetor myself.

Tomorrow we get a pumpout and then I do what I hope is my last job while hear. I will replaced the joker valve on the head. A lovely job, funny how Gail doesn't volunteer for that one!