Spring Trip Day 4 - Ft Myers to Ft Myers Beach

As comfortable as this boat is - and it has a better bed than I have at home, I somehow seem to wake up with the damn roosters.  This morning I checked the lake levels on Lake Okeechobee and wind patterns and realized that a Bahama destination was simply not in the cards.  Water levels are at historic lows which meant we could easily destroy a prop (I have experience there), and wind levels were going to be ugly for a Gulf Stream crossing, so we decided on the Florida Bay/Keys option.

Unlike Illinois, when it rains in Florida, it is usually over in about an hour.  We got poured on at 10am and by 11am we were on the water heading southish.

It is HOT here, but I love the heat.  Only 89 today and sunny from 11am until sunset.  We traveled back down the river and crossed into the bay towards Ft Myers beach.

This is Becky's favorite marina as they have the Main Lobster Game.  Becky caught 4 lobsters with the claw in just a few minutes.  She invested about forty bucks so it was ten dollars per lobster, cooked, and delicious.

We retreated to the boat early to get some sleep.  Tomorrow we will be on the Gulf of Mexico heading south to the Ten Thousand Island Wildlife Refuge.  I just might get me a gator....

Total miles so far ~165

Spring Trip Day 3 - Pelican Bay to Ft Myers

I woke up early as the wind really picked up. Steve and I were able to get the anchor up after a bit of effort and we headed down the channel towards Ft. Myers. It is a long stretch of water that was getting very rough due to the wind.

We navigated through 4' waves most of the morning. They subsided when we made a course change to the east and headed into the Ft. Myers area.



Fueled up (100 gallons @ 3.99/gallon with Boat US discount) and tied to the end of the gas dock for the evening.

To properly celebrate Becky's birthday (the hot dog just didn't do it) we went into town with some of Steve and Billie's family who were here for a few months. Her restaurant of choice: Carrabbas!!

We drank them out of Miller Lite and the manager apologized and gave me a Bud. I thanked him but it just sat there...

Our next decision is to either head to the Bahamas through Lake Okeechobee or head south to the thousand islands and keys.

Total Miles so far ~153

Spring Trip Day 2 - Tampa Bay to Pelican Bay

Woke up early and headed south along the ICW. We let the ladies sleep and wandered into the fog.

Fortunately there were no sand blastings of the props and we arrived into the relatively deep Sarasota Bay. Auto pilot took us across and into the downtown area.

From there it was a nice trip south along a mixture of man-made canals (called the ditch) and small bays.

Two bridges had to be lifted (or swung) for us to make it to Venice.

When arriving near Venice, the water turns a beautiful shade of blue and the visibility is fantastic. Lots of boats are in this area and you have to be careful.

South of Venice we hit another ditch which brought us to Pelican Bay, a very small harbor that is well protected from wind, and very popular.

It was Becky's birthday and she wanted a hot dog. So I popped open the grill and couldn't get it to start. I finally used a wadded up piece of paper and a regular BIC lighter to start it. I'll make sure we pick up a grill lighter at the next stop.

Toes were up around 10pm.

Total Miles Traveled ~ 100

Spring Trip Day 1 - Clearwater to Tampa Bay

After loading up the boat with more beer than one should ever need, we set sail (or started motors) and headed to a nice anchorage just south of Tampa bay.

Our boat left the Clearwater marina at 3pm and we arrived at sunset.

I dropped the hook and we grilled burgers.

An hour later we were watching TV, drinking our favorite barley colas, then some red stuff appeared.

Total travel distance so far - 40 miles.