Monday, March 4 - Wednesday, March 27, 2013
We pulled out of Laishley Marina and headed for Fort Myers Beach. Mike has relatives wintering in the area. Also our good Looper friends, Anita and Don from Limelight have been stranded here since we were in Clearwater! Anita was bike riding with 7 other looper and was hit by a car pulling out of a parking lot! Her tibia was fractured leaving her knee unstable. It has been quite an ordeal with months of rehab in her future. We have only been able to visit Anita once so far when we rented a car in Clearwater. Now we would be closer to visit and keep Don company. After all the work building up to this adventure and the fun along the way, it's hard to come to terms with a sudden stop. Hopefully this will only delay their finishing their loop, not end it.
A mayday distress call to Coast Guard went out over the VHF radio of a possible stroke victim. His wife was at the helm and sounded very capable. Local sheriff responded. Hopefully all turned out well. It was scary 20 minute following it on the radio.
 |
| Past the Tip of Gasparilla Island as We Leave Charlotte Harbor Behind |
 |
Many Shades of Blue and Green
We saw 2 Sea Turtles but they were faster at swimming
then I was at 'snapping' a picture |
 |
| Lighthouse on Sanibel Island |
We pulled into Salty Sam's Marina on the mainland side of the ICW and surprised Don that evening! We got in touch with Mike's Aunt Lorraine and she invited us over for dinner. Dale and Lorraine's place is close to Mike's Aunt Jackie and Uncle Keith. A bonus, family friend, Don and Mike's cousin Monica was visiting with daughter Nicole and her boyfriend. Later in the week they all stopped by to check out the Irish Attitude and have lunch at The Parrot Key Caribbean Grill right on-site. A duo called Gaitlin performed here often and we enjoyed listening to them from our boat.
 |
Salty Sam's Ship Store
(I love the bright colors found all over Florida!) |
 |
Don, Jackie, Keith, Lorraine, Mike, Me, Dale
Monica (kneeling) |
 |
| Jackie and Keith aboard |
 |
| Spring Breakers! |
Mike and I got a lot of 'business' taken care at this stop. With tax day looming, we had to get our paperwork in order. Without a printer aboard we made bike trips to have copies made. We spent little time hanging out on the beach with all the college students on spring break. It was not the best of weather anyway. We did ride bikes over to the island to site see. We found Paper Moon and Karma but they were not aboard.
 |
Looking Down From the 65 ft Fixed Bridge as
We Bike Across to the Barrier Island |
 |
| Local Fishing Fleet |
 |
| Tourists at FMB |
 |
The Beach Scene from the Pier.
The Cool Weather Went Unnoticed! |
This was the time Janie and I have been anticipating since Mike and I began this adventure! Janie and Bud would be traveling aboard the Irish Attitude! Janie has been our number one supporter for this adventure. Time was limited and so we returned north to the islands we had just bypassed. The first night we anchored out at Pelican Bay near Cayo Costa State Park. It was a large anchorage with room to spare. Mike grilled steaks for dinner. A peaceful and relaxing place for Janie to decompress. (Bud had already reached that state of mind!) After breakfast we took the dinghy over to check out the island. There was a small old cemetery with headstones difficult to read. Guided tours were available but we just needed to walk. Janie and I left the guys on the beach and we followed the beach to the south. We came upon a dead sea turtle that had washed up on the shore. Sad site.
 |
| Evening on Pelican Bay near Cayo Costa |
 |
| Janie, Chilling |
 |
| Capt'n Mike and Bud |
Side Note: Florida's west coast had been experiencing an extreme case of Red Tide. This is a naturally occurring event caused when a microscopic algae in the water is released, grows and is absorbed by the sea grass that manatees eat. A record 170+ manatee died this month! It it can also cause repertory distress and rashes in humans. Luckily we have not had any issues nor witnessed any effects other then possibly one sea turtle.
 |
What IS this?
Look close, it's a manatee drinking fresh water
from a drainage tile. This is as close as I could get!
The small circles on the snout are the nostrils.
Closed now so it does not take in any water. |
 |
I did not realize that red tide could be seen
until finding this photo on the Internet!
AccuWeather on AOL.com |
|
|
Manatees Up Close
t1.gstatic.com |
The four of us dinghied back to the boat to weighed anchor (so much simpler than leaving the dock with all the lines, water and power cords!). Next stop, Cabbage Key (key, cay, cayo all mean island). This small island (near Pine Island) is a very popular stop and is rumored to be where Jimmy Buffet was inspired to write Cheeseburger in Paradise. Larry from Lady KK greeted us at the dock! Catmandu heard us hailing the harbormaster and changed their plans to anchor out. We had not seen Chris and Bill since Clearwater so joined the four of us for dinner that night. Janie and I hike around the island the next day, not a long trip! Cottages are available for rent and there is housing for staff members too.
 |
| Osprey Nesting Atop Water Tower |
 |
| The Dollar Bill Bar |
 |
| Supplies Are Delivered via... What Else... A Boat |
 |
| A Cheeseburger, Of Course! |
 |
| Old Friends and New! |
 |
Over $70,000 dollars adorn the ceiling
and walls. Each year between 10-25
thousand dollars drop annually and are
donated to local children's charities,
in the name written on the bill!
|
|
|
| Mind Bender and Irish Attitude Future Donors |
This turned out to be a very special day, Monday, March 11 - Jen and Jared blessed Mike and I with our first grandchild, a boy named Cameron Kelly Aldrich! Both mother and baby were fine. Anticipating this event has been tough on me. Knowing we would not be there for Jen..... Again I am thankful for Jared and the support his family showed. Uncle Rob was Cam's first visitor! We celebrated Cam's birth, Cabbage Key style!
 |
| Welcome to the World Cameron! |
 |
| A Gift from Janie and Bud! |
Irish Attitude returned to Salty Sam's. Janie and Bud had other friends to visit but we were pleased they was able to share a piece of paradise with us! We visited Anita again and went to breakfast with Don a few times. We went for bike rides but I was getting anxious to get home and meet Cameron. Flights were at a premium with Easter coming up and continued spring break travels. We opted to rent a car and head north, arriving before Cameron was a week old! Now I can relax again. Mike thought this would be his first year without snow but it snowed driving up, then every day in once we arrived! Gotta love springtime in Michigan! I was also able to squeeze in a (3 hr.) lunch with Chris, Kathy and Jackie! Great to see you all again!
 |
| White Out in....Kentucky? |
 |
| Grampa! |
 |
| Happy St. Paddy's Day Little One! |
 |
| It's Been Awhile Since Grampa's Held a Baby in His Arms |
 |
| Still Curled Up! |
 |
| Getting Ready for an Outing |
 |
| Go Green! |
We returned to Florida and our extended stay at Salty Sam's was over. Mike and I were glad to be heading out. Time aboard as taught us to be flexible. Plans made but are often changed. Such was the case with our next destination. It was nearly April now and traveling all the way to the keys (at Florida's tip) and back up the southeastern side was not to be this trip. That is a not a location to be rushed so we made the decision to take advantage of the Okeechobee Waterway System that cuts through Florida from Fort Myers to Stuart. Now we have a goal to be conquered in the future, along with a trip to the Bahamas!
 |
| Cloud Patterns Added Interest to this Sunset. |
