PARTY TIME

May 19 - Jay and Nancy led us on their final Pub Crawl on Ft. Myers Beach.  Jay had collected Happy Hour two-fers at various pubs, and naturally he didn't want to have any left when they departed, so we had to help him out!  Had a great time!

At Nemos, we enjoyed listening to the music of Laurie Star and Steve, very talented entertainers.  They are favorites of Jay and Nancy, and we could understand why.

Jay, Entertainers Steve and Laurie Star, Nancy

BAHIA HONDA TO FT. MYERS BEACH

May 18-19 - Got an early start so we could make it to Marco in one day (124 miles).  The weather was gorgeous and the seas perfectly calm until mid-afternoon.  It's always a thrill to cruise through Moser Channel under the 7-mile bridge!

Cruising across Florida Bay on autopilot, Charlotte's at the helm while knitting on the afghan she is making for Grandson Ross and Starr's wedding gift.  She still has a long way to go, so obviously it won't be finished before their wedding on June 5th.  Hopefully it will be done before it gets cold enough to use it.

We arrived at Marco and anchored across from the Snook Inn.  Decided not to go ashore after 12 hours of cruising, but enjoyed listening to the music coming from the restaurant as we relaxed on our aft deck.

May 19 - Another beautiful day of cruising on the Gulf.  After refueling at Ballard Oil at Ft. Myers Beach, we picked up a mooring ball right in front of our good friends, Jay and Nancy Watlington aboard Serendipity.  It was great to see them again.  They had actually stayed there an extra day awaiting our arrival.

Jay and Nancy came to pick us up in the tender and off we went to shore to begin an afternoon and evening of eating, beach walking and pub crawling. 

OMEGA'S ON THE MOVE AGAIN!

May 17, 2010 - Omega left her home dock after weeks of preparation.  How great it feels to be back on the water again!  Since we got a later start, we only cruised a couple of hours and anchored at Bahia Honda, which is a beautiful anchorage. 

It felt good to enjoy a relaxing evening with a beautiful sunset as we were both exhausted!

DON AND ROSIE PECK'S VISIT

May 6-8 - Our good friends aboard JUST ROSIE, Don and Rosie Peck from Spring, TX,  paid us a visit.  We met them last fall at Goose Pond Marina on the Tennessee River and enjoyed their company, so we were delighted when they called and said they were headed our way.  They are doing the Loop, which we completed in 2002.    They had to anchor out off Summerland as their draft is too deep to make it to our dock so they came ashore in their tender.    We had a great time while they were with us.  Took them to Boondocks and out to No Name Key to see the key deer.  They headed on down to Key West, and we got together for lunch down there the following week and took them for a driving tour around town.

CAPE CORAL TO SUMMERLAND KEY

Nov. 30 - We left at first light and headed for Ft. Myers Beach to refuel at Ballard Oil.  This is the most economical fuel stop on the west coast.  The weather was beautiful, and the seas calm.  We made it to Pavilion Key in the Everglades just before sunset.  This anchorage is totally unprotected, so you only want to stay here when the seas are calm and there's little or no wind.

 

Sunset in the Everglades

Dec. 1 - We began our last day on the water bright and early.  It was another beautiful cruising day with relatively calm seas.  About halfway between Pavilion Key and the Seven Mile Bridge, we began dodging  lobster bobbers.  The Capt. had to be quick on the trigger to miss those that suddenly pop up suddenly right in front of us.  Oh, what a welcome sight it was to see the Seven Mile Bridge in the distance!  The beautiful aqua waters of the Florida Keys helped us realize we would soon be home.

The pelicans welcomed us back!

We had a following sea on the Atlantic side as we headed west toward Summerland, which made it easier to spot the lobster bobbers.  We anchored for a short while off Summerland to await the incoming high tide. 

First Mate Charlotte

Capt. Bill

We were able to get through the shallow area and continue on to our homeport before dark.  Our friends, Jim Thompson, Bud and Lorene Jonas were there to catch our lines and welcome us home.

What a wonderful trip we had!  We were gone six months, cruised 403 hours, and traveled 3241 miles.  How blessed we are!

SARASOTA TO CAPE CORAL

Nov. 25 - Our departure was delayed this morning until thunderstorm possibilities passed and the fog lifted.  It was slow going today with multiple bridges and no-wake zones.  Lots of dolphins were playing in these waters throughout the day, and we were fascinated to watch them swim in Omega's wake.   Bill made a neat movie of some of them having fun swimming and frolicking at the bow.  One photo from the movie is shown below. 

We anchored behind Useppa Island, a beautiful island with lots of nice homes all painted white.  The residents use golf carts for transportation around the island (no cars).  There is a resort/marina there, and it's just across the Intracoastal from Cabbage Key, which is a favorite stop for boaters.  Since we wanted to get to Cape Coral for Thanksgiving, we missed going there to eat.  Another time, hopefully!

Useppa Island

Nov. 26 - It was a cloudy, cool morning as we hauled the anchor and headed for Cape Coral.  We were surprised at how many boats were out on the water on Thanksgiving morning when the weather wasn't nice at all.  Our friends, Bob and Barbara Fordyce, welcomed us to the dock at their condo.  It was great to see them again. 

We joined a group of their friends for a Thanksgiving buffet that afternoon at Tarpon Point Resort.  It was a very nice gathering.

Bill, Bob and Barbara Fordyce and friends

                                                                                         Charlotte, Bob and Barbara Fordyce

Tarpon Point Resort







Nov. 27-29 - Bob and Barbara were our gracious hosts for the weekend.  We enjoyed every minute as always.  They hauled us around for various errands, etc.  We went to several of their favorite hangouts to eat, attended church with them, and enjoyed several Happy Hour gatherings with their condo friends.  They always make us feel like we're family.

CROSSING THE GULF

Nov. 23 - The big day is here!  It's time to cross the Gulf!!!  The weather window looks pretty good for today and tomorrow before another front moves from west to east.  We left the City Marina dock at high tide and headed out to Government Cut near the inlet where we anchored to await our departure time.  We had planned to depart at 4 PM which would put us into Tarpon Springs around mid-morning.  Shortly before noon we heard several other boaters talking on the VHF radio about heading for the inlet.  After talking to them, we decided to leave earlier so we would have radio contact with them while crossing.  At noon, we were underway! 

Heading to Government Cut and the Gulf

Homes near the Inlet

We had three to four foot waves during the afternoon, but it wasn't uncomfortable.  After dark they laid down to around two feet, which wasn't bad at all.  We took turns at the helm and napping on the couch in the pilot house through the night.  About 4 AM Capt. Bill indicated that if we changed course and headed for Tampa Bay, we would be there about 11 AM.  This sounded like a great idea since it would save us a day's cruise from Tarpon Springs to St. Pete, and we decided to go for it.  It was foggy at dawn and for several hours thereafter.  We continued on down the Intracoastal from Tampa Bay and anchored by Marina Jack's in Sarasota at 1:45 PM.  A marathon for sure - 230 miles in 25 3/4 hours!  Don't think we'll ever top that record.  We were thankful that all went well, and we were safely back on the west coast of Florida.