Sunday, February 26, 2012

Touching base from Marathon, FL





Sunset in Little Shark River

Well, one thing about boating is there is always plan “B”. I haven’t posted for a few days because we were without any service. Techno-withdrawal, can be quite nice, no phones, emails or figuring out how to work your iPhone. After leaving Goodland we headed to Everglades City for lunch. Everglades City has quite a history behind it. At one time it was designated as the County Seat and it was the central point for all political activities. Eisenhower, Truman and others use to come to the Rod and Gun Club to fish and hunt with guides. The main structure is unchanged from that era. Pecky cypress lines the walls and you can visualize everyone sitting down after a day of fishing and hunting and shooting the breeze. I used to fish from here with a guide, Snapper Butler, the Mayor of Everglades City, years ago. The area is known as 1,000 Islands and it got its name for a reason. Before GPS you could turn around and get lost, only the guides could get you home. As Snapper would tell me, “Only me and the Devil know where you are right now”, comforting isn’t it. I always prayed that Snapper never suffered a heart attack while we were out there! After lunch of Stone Crabs and shrimp rolls at City Seafood we decided to anchor out in Russell Pass. This is a Beautiful spot and well worth the stay. You see porpoise, turtles, manatee, egret and other species we could not identify.
Our low oil pressure issue came back so before we left I spoke to the Yanmar people since I had about 70 miles to go in wilderness and no way to contact anyone except by VHF radio. It was decided that I go and head for Marathon to meet the local Yanmar Mechanic.
Taking a shower on the hook!
On the way down, we anchored out in Little Shark River another spot for wild life. It is so quiet and untouched. Porpoise playing and feeding, fish jumping, birds flying and feeding and the stars at night are magnificent. You can see forever. The only drawback is those little no-see-ums! Does not matter what you use to repel them they get you. So once the sun sets, you have to retreat indoors. We left early the following morning to get to Marathon. Louis, the Mechanic will take a look at things on Monday. In the meantime we decided to stay at Harbour Cay Club. We met with three tugnuts from our Ft. Myers rendezvous, so it is like old times. The people here are friendly and helpful. When we entered the marina about 8 of them came out to say hi and help. They have an open kitchen, a tiki hut that they call the Cone of Knowledge. You meet there every night, 5:00PM to shoot the breeze. We decided to stay a week, I asked one woman,”so how long have you been here”, she replied, ”OH, 8 years”. I hope Louis is quicker than that for our repairs. We are members of the American Great Loppers Cruisers Association and coincidently they are having a Sunset Gathering tonight down the road, so I called and signed up. So far we have met the nicest and welcoming people. If you have trouble with your boat, someone is there to help, People have driven us to the stores for shopping, and people invite you into their boats for a drink and tell stories of their adventures. The boating world is small also, you meet someone, who knows someone and somehow there is a connection. Three years ago I was reading a website about a boat Kismet, Jim and Lisa Favors, well don’t you know it, we have met up with them a few times and have cooked and eaten dinner together. They sold their large 40 foot Fathom Boat that they lived on for 5 years and now own a Ranger Tug 27, same as ours.  Well this was a long one, hope I didn’t bore you, see you soon.




Another good evening with friends!

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Left Goodland

Parrot chairs, everybody needs one so we bought one for the boat
NOT!


Trophy wife welcoming all to Goodland!




We are outside of Everglades City in a channel off of the Barron River. We went into the town and had lunch at City Seafood and originally were going to stay tied to their dock. It was so beautiful coming in and we saw this anchorage so we decided to launch off after lunch and come here. There are a few boats here, but not many. This is our first official night anchoring out on this trip. We will also be anchoring out tomorrow night in Little Shark River, which is about 37 nautical miles from here. We are well stocked with food, water and fuel so we are golden. I have checked the weather several times and it looks like we will be good for the rest of the trip to Lower Matecombe Key where we plan on staying for about a week before heading up north to Key Largo.

Your hair does get long when on a boat for a while.


Sunset in Goodland

Your nose grows also!

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Naples to Goodland


At the dock in Naples

We left Naples today after 6 days at the City Docks. Naples is a city with a lot of history and a lot of big homes. They even have their own Fifth Avenue with a bank or financial company on every block. I saw more Rolls Royces here than I have seen in Manhattan. The restaurants can be pricy, but the food is good. We went to a farmers market early one morning and picked up some nice produce and avoided the Danishes and cakes. We rode our bikes to get groceries and some supplies; another 15 miles on the bikes in one day. When you shop by bike you are very selective as to what you buy and how heavy it is. Ever carry a 6 pack, eggs and wine on a bike? Sounds very nourishing, doesn’t it?

Just another Naples home, unbelievable

We took the inner route and avoided the Gulf because we thought it would be more scenic and it was. It is always nice to travel through the backcountry and see the wild life. The waters back there can get pretty shallow, even at high tide. I stayed well within the narrow channels and followed the local boats to make sure we didn’t get into trouble. We saw one guy in a fairly large boat stuck and the tide was going out. I felt sorry for him, but new better not to help otherwise I would be stuck there with him. It looked like Sea Tow was on the way so I felt better.  Tonight we are at Calusa Island Marina in Goodland, a beautiful spot with walkways through the mangroves. The owner was going into town and offered to take us to the grocery store. So this time I got two 6 packs, 4 bottles of wine and Clousen Pickles. We did get a few other things, but after the wine and beer I can’t remember!



Typical osprey nest on top of
a channel marker




Thursday, February 16, 2012

Now in Naples




Talk about a house boat!

The first mate working real hard!!!

We went on a 30 mile trip south to Naples. We will be staying here about one week relaxing (oh, what a novel idea) and visiting friends. This is a nice city, very upscale and they have their own 5th Avenue. The entrance from the Gulf and going through the channel was very impressive with all of the large homes on the waterway. On our trip down we say a few porpoise having fun and frolicking. They followed the boat for a bit. It is always difficult to get a picture, but eventually we will get a good one. The Gulf was fairly smooth for the trip and the water is starting to get that Aqua tinge in it. Can't wait for the Keys!

Always nice to see sailboats in the wind.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Sanibel Island, FL

Well, we spent 2 days on Sanibel Island. What a nice place! We rode bikes for about 15 miles and went to Ding Darling preserve. There is a great trail that you can do by bike, walking or car and stop along the way. You can fish, picnic and do some birding along the way. We saw white pelicans and saw a guy catch a huge trout. You could probably spend a day or two just meandering around the water ways in a dingy. We also met a group of people that are from Newtown and had dinner with them at a restaurant called Traders. Traffic around here during the day was bumper to bumper, bikes are definitely a good means of transportation.

Two tugs on the canal, mirror image!
 We were fortunate to get an invitation from another Tugnutter and use their dock while here, so docking was free, so you can't beat that! Today we start heading south and will be at Pelican Yacht Club at Wiggins Pass.

Friday, February 10, 2012

Ft. Myers Beach Florida



The Casino Boat for those who want
to gamble off shore

Sitting on the dock in the bay,
eating shrimp that is cooked just my way!
We have been in Ft. Myers Beach since Monday. We came in with a little engine problem of low oil pressure at idle. It turns out that the oil specified in the manual was too light for this warm Florida weather. So with an oil change the problem was resolved. We also had a Ranger tug Rendezvous and about 10 Tugs showed up at various times. It is always great getting together with other Tug owners and seeing what they did in their tugs as well as helping each other out fixing little things here and there. Last night me and one of the other Tugnutters got into a dingy and made our way over to the shrimp boats. We bought shrimp and each of us made different dishes and we had a feast on the docks by our boats. We have decided to stay here until Monday and then shove off and take a short hop to Sanibel Island for a couple of days.
When boating there is always something
to fix or figure out!

Monday, February 6, 2012

Arrived at FT. Myer's

A Rialto Harbor Rooster takes
a liking to Eggbert


  


Our friendly porpoise flipping
in the distance.

Last night's dinner, Steak,
Brussel sprouts and quinoa



Well today we arrived at Ft. Myer’s Beach at Moss Marina. We have met up with 10 other tugs and will be staying here at least 4 days, probably longer. I am having an issue with my oil pressure and hopefully it is only the sending unit and not an actual pressure problem. The repair shop said they will try to get to us by Wednesday. Oh, well, time is on our side so if we stay longer it won’t matter. Last night we stayed at a slip for free, which was provided by Tug friends we made in Clewiston. Today was a 27 mile trip to our destination and the official end of being on the Okeechobee waterway. That was a fun experience with the Rialto Harbor Docks being a real jewel. On our way here we came upon a playful porpoise that followed us a bit and then did a little show for us. Jess to a picture, but you need to know it was a porpoise.




I paid $47.00 for a fishing License
and this is what I get!


Cheers!



Saturday, February 4, 2012

Staying another day

Since it is so nice and serene here we decided to stay another day. Last night we went on a one hour boat tour provided by the facility. You brought your own booze and snacks. About 15 people attended and it was a fun time The section of the Okeechobee waterway that we are on is the Caloosahatchee River. Caloosahatchee is a term give to it by the Indians meaning beautiful river, so in essence translated it is the “Beautiful River River”! The section we are on is between two locks, the Franklin Lock, down river and the Ortona Lock, up river. I have attached a brief video of a lock door closing for those of you interested.

Friday, February 3, 2012

A little bit of paradise


Me with "Little Man" in Roland Martin's Marina.
The Best Dock hand in the world.

Egret on in the brush while
on the waterway.

We are in Alva, FL. Our trip from Clewiston brought us through two locks and a Railroad Bridge and plenty of wildernesses. Originally we were going to stay in Labelle, but there is little choice to dock or anchor and the town docks are not the greatest, so we decided to push on to Alva and found a beauty.
 We are at the Rialto Harbor Docks.  Go to their website for complete details, http://www.rialtoharbor.com/.  This is an absolutely lovely place located on 12 acres with a pool, tennis courts and other amenities. They will drive you back and forth to town and tonight they are bringing all the guests on a cocktail cruise, BYOB. It is a little pricy at $2.50 per foot with a 30 foot minimum. They bring you a newspaper and flowers in the morning right to your door. We will stay here for a couple of days. I will do a little fresh water fishing and we will do a bit of exploring in town.

On the Docks at Alva.

Waiting for the looooong train to pass.




Wednesday, February 1, 2012

In Clewiston

Hey man where did the land go!
We started out early today and left at 8:00am. It was a great day to cross the big pond. Lake Okeechobee is the second largest lake in the US. Michigan is the largest. We opted to go on Route 1, which is through the center of the lake. The rim route would have been a bit longer and it can get a bit shallow in spots so we went the conservative route. We went through two locks, which were a piece of cake today. The Port Mayaca Lock was only about a 1 foot lift and Clewiston was open in and out, so I wouldn't even say we locked through. We are staying at Roland Martin's Marina. Not bad, but I haven't really gotten around to see the facilities yet. The dock hand is called "Little Man" he is a very petite guy and a real busy body. Whatever you are talking about with someone he manages to enter the conversation.

Screw the Geiko my insurance is better

We saw a huge iguana today on the bank across from us. Another Ranger Tug pulled in behind us and they are spending the night as well, but they are heading east. They have a slip in Ft. Myers and said we can use it when passing through and we will definitely take advantage of that. Tomorrow we head to Lebelle and we are told that the wild life on this portion will be great. Today our Ranger friends said they saw a 15 foot alligator on the bank. I guess no jumping off the swim platform tomorrow!

One big ass lock door!