On to Fort Myers Beach and Sarasota. Keep the cold up north please! Dec 6-16, 2016

We planned to and stayed at the lock campground and marina due to scheduled maintenance that was to restrict lock openings from 1 to 4 PM on Monday.  So we got up on Tuesday and called the lock to be sure all maintenance was completed and the lock was in operation.  All was good so we proceeded to the lock around 7:30 AM.  Once inside the lock, the lockmaster was having a little difficulty closing the doors.  He said they just performed manatee maintenance, scrubbing the doors and adjusting the sensitivity of door closing so manatee could not be crushed by the doors.  He had to walk back and manually control the closing of the doors for us.  Once closed, it was a whopping drop to sea level!  6 inches.  No kidding, the tide was quite high so only a 6" drop.
Our intention was to go to Fort Myers Beach but given the wave forecast for the approximate 3 mile crossing of San Carlos Bay to Estero Island we decided to stay at Legacy Harbor Marina in Fort Myers instead.  Remember we are pleasure boating and don't have a rigid schedule, so we wait until it is a pleasure to travel.
Here we are on a cool windy day in Longboat Key.

Had a little rain shower in Fort Myers on the snowman though...yes it does rain in Florida.

Our friends Scott and Brigitte (Putz'n Around) called us and said they were in town running errands and we should meet them at Capone's for lunch.  A great spot and company!  It was so good to see them as our last time with them was in May in the Bahamas.   Legacy is a very nice marina with a Publix within walking distance and the downtown restaurants and shops also an easy walk.

 

We continue to get questions from our friends and family like what do you eat?  Well, Julie is an excellent cook.  In short, we have all the comforts of home because it is our home.  Gas grill, convection microwave, three burner stove, crock pot, pancake griddle, an electric grill, a few pots and pans, regular walks to a grocery store for fresh food and Julie's superb skills create great and varied meals every day.  We really don't go out that much unless we meet friends for lunch or dinner.  Even when underway, we are usually in calm enough waters for cooking and start the generator and prepare breakfast or lunch.  Pea soup for the rainy cool day.

 

Julie decorates the boat for Christmas with the same tree we used in our condo in Grand Rapids, some nice window accents and various figurines and such.  Another touch of home because it is.  She has a little box of various holiday items stashed in the lazarette and decorates for all the major holidays.  It is a nice touch for sure.
I forgot to add this to our last posting when we were in Stuart. Someone was borrowing my Mom's boat!

So on Wednesday we went to Snook Bight Marina in Fort Myers Beach to stay a day and visit more with Scott and Brigitte....and do some Bahamas planning too!.  We had a very smooth short 24 mile cruise and fueled up when we arrived as fuel was about 30 cents a gallon cheaper here than Sarasota, our next destination. This too is a nice marina with a  Publix literally in the same parking lot and the beach just across the street.  We had lunch and dinner with Brigitte and Scott and caught up on things from the last 6 months as well as some preliminary planning for the Bahamas.  We are getting excited about returning there!

Thursday the weather forecast was showing some big winds for Friday and Saturday so we decided to leave at slack tide (7:30 AM) and try to make Sarasota, Longboat Key Moorings, our planned destination and home for mid December to mid January.  We didn't really want to spend time on a face dock somewhere for a couple days as the north winds passed through.

Along the way we cancelled our reservation at the Venice marina we had originally planned to stay at for Thursday and Friday nights.  I ordered a bunch of boat spare parts and supplies on the mobile hotspot as we were underway and Julie captained for a while.  Her piloting ended up being longer than planned as I forgot to update the shipping address, Amazon had broken it into 8 separate orders and I had to edit each one with a new shipping address!  Oops.  So Julie piloted through the roughest part of our trip, across Charlotte harbor.  She is a great captain!
We saw this moving day on the way as we crossed Pine Island Sound. I think they pray for smooth crossings with this moving arrangement!

We used a number of "bigger water" spots to exercise the diesels and ran 18-20 MPH for a number of 10-30 minute intervals.  We were glad we did...by the time we got through bridges, slow no wake and manatee zones and travelled the 88 miles to Longboat Key Club Moorings Marina we arrived right at closing time (5 o'clock). 

Heading across Sarasota Bay at 20 MPH trying to see crab pots and beat the marina closing time and setting sun.

We got a slip right near the pool, hot tub, ships store, restaurant etc.  Shortly after we were in bed.... a long 10 hour day.

They are very full and we were lucky that we called when we did (early October) to secure a spot.  Their monthly rate is fairly reasonable especially given the quality of the facilities.  We are checking it out for a few days before we go across the state to Vero Beach to stay with Mom for Christmas.

Saturday night we took the complimentary shuttle to St Armands Circle and had an early dinner at what once was Charlie's Crab.  They still have the great warm poppy seed rolls!  We ate early so that we could walk across the bridge to Sarasota for the annual Holiday lighted boat parade. 

It was about a 6 mile round trip walk so we got to combine exercise with a great view (that pictures will just not do justice to).

 

Our friends Tim and Pat dropped by for a visit on Monday Dec 12.  They drove up from Bonita Beach where they are staying for a few weeks. We had lunch on board and then took the shuttle to the resort pool and beach for the afternoon and dinner at the sunset view restaurant. We had a great time catching up.  Thanks for making the drive Tim and Pat!

We did some maintenance on the boat, took nice walks and a dinghy ride around the canal surrounding the key on Tuesday through Thursday.  A view from the dinghy looking north from New Pass.

 

Other random shots from our dinghy ride.

 And our walk to the grocery store.  Nice golf course.

 

And we got some fog for a couple days as the humidity went up and the cool night air moved in.

Oh, and more repairs,...I also had two old crowns removed and temporaries put in on Tuesday.  Will get the permanent ones in early January.  So we humans need repairs too!
And here are some of our neighbors....zoom in on the boat names!

 

 

Our new bag....thanks Sherry!!  Great for beach supplies.  There are numerous beach access sites for our walks and the bag is really handy!

We had a nice day at the beach club after getting our rental car and running some errands.  And a nice sunset from Barefoot's Restaurant at the resort.

After the Holidays we will welcome friends Rich and Paula from Michigan for a few days.  And we hope Dave and Lisa (Caribbean Breeze) will stop by to say hello when they are in the area too.  And we also plan to see Bill and Carol who will be in Florida as well.  We very much enjoy family and friends visiting!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!  We hope you all enjoy the season with family and friends.