Leaving Sarasota, Back to Bradenton 3/23

Monday, March 23, leaving Sarasota, and heading back to Bradenton.

At 7:35, the lines were pulled in, and Sea Fever headed into Sarasota Bay.  We waved goodbye to Marina Jack’s, the cappuccino bar, and Kathy’s ring, and set our sights on Bradenton, once again. It was a beautiful day. There were only two bridges that needed to be lifted. And we made good time.

Again, we were surprised at our assigned slip.  The past few times in Bradenton, Sea Fever was in the same slip.  This time we were almost 2 blocks from the marina office (and the bathrooms and showers!) The dock boys were there to help us dock Sea Fever, the winds were in our favor, and it was a text book docking.  Which was extra nice as an audience had gathered. It always seems that there are audiences only for the disastrous dockings.  One our newest dock mates commented “It looks as though you have done this before”.  Kathy responded “Once. Or twice!”

We got settled in, decided it was too hot to deflate the dingy, headed to get some dinner, and settled in for the night.

Not much, but we were warm 2-13-2015

Friday, Feb 13, 2015

It was a pretty day with not much else going on except for cleaning the boat and stocking up on food. And we had a nice warm night with our heater going, and all our systems being charged.

On bad advice, Kathy thought she could walk to the Publix Super Market. Turns out it was miles away.  After a half hour of walking, getting nowhere, she turned back and headed to the Westin.  No, fans of Kathy, she did not get a room and order room service, although it was a great temptation.

She asked the doorman to call a taxi for her.  Sorry, Ma’am (I was Ma’amed) we have not taxis, but I can get you a car.  Tired, weary, and toting her little cart, Kathy said okay. 30 minutes later, a Lincoln Town Car appears, ready for the Publix run.  She has never been to a grocery store in a chauffeured Lincoln Town Car before.  Nor has she paid $35 to get to a grocery store!  Food and drink was purchased, meanwhile, Tim washed the boat, so all in all, a pretty pedestrian, albeit expensive, day.  On to Fort Myers tomorrow.

Heading to Tarpon Point Marina, 2-12-2015

Thursday, February 12, 2015

Coffee and tea warmed us, but the cabin was a silent one as we sipped.  The wind was still strong.  Tim started the conversation with “I am weary, and I am disappointed.”

Tears welled up in Kathy’s eyes as she answered, “So am I”. As gorgeous as the islands are, and as much as we wanted to explore, we are tired of roughing it. Tired of being cold. Been there, done that. We decided to pull anchors, and head to Tarpon Point Marina in Cape Coral, Florida, a distance of about 27 miles.  We would be traveling the ICWW (Intracoastal Water Way) with glimpses of the Gulf.

Again we were struck with the housing density.  Home after home after home, interspersed with restaurants that had dockage for boats.

Of course, as soon as we were underway, the sun came out. It still wasn’t warm, and both us were sporting turtlenecks, fleece and long pants.

This section of the ICWW is called the Miserable Mile.  It is a mile long narrow channel, with cross currents, and outside the channel it is very shallow. And very well-traveled. As a result, it is extremely difficult to maintain an accurate heading in the calmest conditions.

It is the land of big power boats.  Boating courtesy suggests that larger recreational vehicles slow down when they pass, either by overtaking, or passing.  In addition, the rules of the waterway suggest that overtaking boats hail your vessel on the marine radio to let you know that they are there, that they will be overtaking you, and suggesting on which side of our boat they will be passing.

Boat courtesy also suggests that when passing or overtaking, the bigger, faster recreational boat slows down. No boats did any of the above.  We had boats overtaking us on one side, passing us on the other, while we just tried to turn into 4 foot wakes.  We were glad to get to Tarpon Point Marina and dock Sea Fever.

Tarpon Point Marina is part of a luxury waterfront resort, with a huge Westin on one side, and skyscraper condos on the other.  There are also some planned unit developments within the gated community. It was interesting to note, that while the marina is very large, and does have slips for transients (us), they do not allow people to live aboard their boats.



Sea Fever at Tarpon Point Marina...with the condos in the background

We stopped at the fuel dock to check in and top off our tanks, and then headed to the slip. 

As we were docking, a guy named Mark came up to us and asked us how old our boat was, was it at least 25 years old?  We replied in the affirmative.  Turns out this guy knew Tim from years ago, when Sea Fever was in charter for a few years.  He remembered Tim, and the boat. Another small world experience.

After 3 nights of either little sleep, cold conditions, or both, we headed up to Pinchers Restaurant which has all day happy hour, ordered our two for one wine, and had a satisfying dinner.  As so many of these posts end, we went back to the boat, and went to sleep.

Leaving Venice and anchoring out, 2-10 through 2-11, 2014

Tuesday, 2-10-2015

The goal was met to head out of Venice at first light. As we expected, both bathrooms were in use, even that early, so we cast off to head to Pelican Bay.  At least the electrical cord didn’t need to be disconnected and stowed!

It was a chilly morning, and rain was threatening, but off we went with high hopes of anchoring around and about until our reservation at the Fort Myers Yacht Basin was available for us on Saturday, Valentine’s Day.  The goal was to spend some time in Pelican Bay, and explore Cayo Costa, a Florida state park that is only accessible by water. There were other islands and anchorages on the list as well.

As Tim piloted the boat, Kathy set about to charge the computers and phones, using the boat’s power supply generated by the motor.  In short, because the motor was running, we didn’t need to worry about the ship’s batteries getting run down. Only one computer (we have two) could be charged at a time, and one phone. A balancing act, to be sure.

The threatened rain appeared, and a cold rain it was.  We hauled out the foul weather jackets, hats and gloves once again. We had hoped to leave them stowed for the rest of our trip, but NO, not the case anytime soon.

The anchorage in Pelican Bay was a very busy one.  And a very shallow one. The waters were between 6’8 and 7’2 feet deep. Which, as Tim so charmingly put it, if the boat sank, we could sit on the top of the cabin waiting for help!

In addition to the shallow waters, the winds had come up, and presented 30 mph gusts, which made anchoring a challenge.  Tim, as chief anchorman, decided set two anchors off the bow, and we went about doing just that.  It took about an hour the first time to get them set.  But it turns out, the boat was dragging the anchor, so once again, out to reset the anchors. The waters were too choppy to untie the dingy, blow it up and set out for its maiden voyage of the trip. We got the cabin set up for the night, had dinner, ran the propane heater for a while, and hoped for a calmer day on Wednesday. The winds were fierce this night, and there was a lot of slapping of waves and bouncing about.  Not the most restful evening.

Wednesday, 2-11-2015

Wednesday dawned with weather similar to Tuesday.  It was disappointing, at best.  Visiting these state parks was something that Tim was counting on. He wanted to show Kathy some of the beautiful spots he had enjoyed when he lived here.  Today was not the day, again, to deploy the dingy. And so we stayed aboard, and read and napped.  Ran the motor a bit to keep the computers powered.
1
Another bouncing night, again with wind gusts up to 30 MPH, with little sleep between the two of us.

On the way to Venice, Florida that is 2-9-2015

Monday, February 9^th, on the water to Venice.

One of the many jokes we have made on this trip was the exotic places Sea Fever has taken us.  Paris, Cuba, Florence, Guttenberg, Aberdeen, Panama City, St, Petersburg...and today, Venice! 

The day dawned sunny, but cool at 55°. We only had 25 miles to go to reach Fisherman's Wharf Marina at Venice. Tim had called ahead to secure our slip, and we headed out. The sun continued to shine, and warmed up to 66°, still not warm on the water.

For so much of the trip, the landscape would teeter between exceptional wilderness, and inhabited areas.  Since leaving Sarasota, the shore lines were chock full of large expensive houses, with little open areas.  Here is one such modest home.



Modest little home on the waterway on the trek to Venice, Florida

As we neared Fisherman’s Wharf Marina, Tim hailed the dock master on the radio and was told that they thought they had room for us. After much 10-4ing, a slip was assigned, and the dock master and another staff member helped Sea Fever get docked. Even though the dock master had assured us of a slip with 30 amp power hook up, there was not one available to us.  They were all 50 amps, which meant we would have no shore power for the evening.

Overnight temperatures promised to be in the mid 50s, so it was to be a cold night without electricity to run the ceramic space heater. The propane heater could be fired up to take the edge off, but it is not a good idea to keep it running all night while sleeping!

Other shore power related things came into play. The water heater wouldn't have power to heat water. Computers, phones and hotspot could not be recharged. 

In addition, there were only two bathrooms/showers available for the whole marina
Several mariners had given the marina 5 stars on Active Captain, our primary source for marina reviews. We think that the high ratings were primarily because the marina was under new ownership, and had made huge improvements to the docks and facilities.  Kathy had to admit, the docks were nice!

As so many of these posts end, we fixed some dinner, and headed to bed, resolute in our intentions to, once again, head out at first light.

Sarasota.1-31 thro 2-8 2015

It is time for statistics, again:

• Saturday, February 7 marked the start of Month 6 of Tim and Kathy's Great Adventure.
• From leaving Lake City, MN on September 7, 2014 to Sarasota, FL on February 7, 2015, 2106.16 miles have been traveled.
• In the same time, 383 hours have been put on the motor. Some of that time was idling while waiting for barges to lock through, or bridges to be raised or swung.

• 31 marinas have had the pleasure of our company, and 16 anchorages.

While Kathy was in Massachusetts with her family, watching snow predictions, Tim moved the boat to Sarasota on Saturday, the 31st.  It took him about 5 hours which time included navigating through two lift bridges. All by himself...no one to make sandwiches, no one to take the helm for him.  Poor fellow!  Actually, Kathy guesses that he enjoyed being alone for a little bit!  

It amazes us both how long it takes to get to a destination by water as opposed to by car.  Back when we were in Bradenton, our friends picked us up at the marina, and took us to Sarasota for a movie, dinner, and back to our boat.  Our rule of thumb is that any place you can get to in an hour by car will take a day by boat.

The marina is lovely and at the top of our marina hit parade.  It is in downtown Sarasota, a short walk from shops, restaurants...and a cappuccino bar for Tim!  It is surrounded by walking trails through a small park.  Tim walked almost everyday while Kathy was in Massachusetts.

Wow, were there big boats docked there!  Sea Fever was dingy size for most of them.  On Tim's walks, he shot a photo of Sea Fever in its slip next to "The Big Boys" as we call them.

Sea Fever in her slip next to the "Big Boys" at Marina Jack's in Sarasota, with downtown Sarasota in the background.

There have been big boats in other marinas, but usually they are boats of folks that have decided that boating is their way of life.  They have given up their homes in favor of living on their boats. 

 

We did not get that impression in Sarasota.  These are pleasure cruisers.

 

The restaurant at Marina Jack's is excellent, and sported a waterfront dining area, a regular bar and an elegant dining room.  We ate there twice and while we indulged our desire for burgers,  the rest of the menu looked great!  And the food passing by our table enroute to other patrons was perfect!



Bayside seating at Marina Jacks!  The weather was finally cooperating!

 At the end of our dock there was a modest boat parked by the restaurant/marina building. It is bigger than any house in which we have lived.  On the back of the boat was a door to get onto the swim platform.  The name of the boat was on the back of the boat, and it was so fancy that they had the last part of the name also painted on the inside of the door, so that when the door was open, the whole boat name displayed.

BDB...Big Damn Boat next to the Marina Jack's restaurants with condos in the background.

We took a walk up Main Street Sarasota, perused the shops, and that was when we found Tim's cappuccino bar. Kathy found a ring that she coveted and vowed to go back and price it on Sunday.  Alas and alack, the store was closed on Sunday.  Probably just as well!

The Finneys drove down to meet us to pick up the coat and luggage and we went to dinner in St. Armand's Circle at the Columbia Restaurant. It was, as always, a fun night.

Tim makes his black bean soup from the Columbia's recipe.  He, of course, likes his better. But the food was excellent. 

They returned us to our current home away from home.  We will miss the Finney extended family as we continue Tim and Kathy's Great Adventure.

Sunday, we headed south.  In a week we will be in the Fort Meyers Municipal Marina.  Our plan is to make it to Venice, Florida, and a refurbished marina there, then spend four days anchoring out before we get to Fort Myers Municipal Marina.

With regret, we pulled out the of marina, and headed onto more adventures.

Back to Twin Dolphin Marina, Bradenton 1-12 though 2-3-2015

Monday, January 12 through Feb 3

With a fond farewell to Frank, Fonda, and Buster the dog, we headed back to Bradenton.  The winds and the current were with us.  Once we cleared the Sunshine Skyway Bridge we became a true sailboat for the first time since we left Minnesota.  It was fun to feel the wind in the sails, and we are certain that Sea Fever enjoyed doing what she does best…sail.

We docked at our same slip at Twin Dolphin Marina. And enjoyed being in a familiar place for a few weeks. Twin Dolphin is high on our hit parade of favorite marinas.  Great service, a nice restaurant, and good facilities...as well as being close to friends.

The marina building which houses the laundry, showers and bathrooms, and the main office.

The restaurant, Pier 22, has great food, and affords a view of the Manatee River, and all of its boat traffic. Every month, the marina hosts a breakfast there for any of the marina tenants who would like to attend.  It is a good meet and greet opportunity for both old and new.  And hey, the free mimosas or bloody marys help keep the conversation flowing! 

The restaurant, Pier 22 at sunset.  Photo taken from Sea Fever

Our pace has slowed down quite a bit, as the destinations are all “want to” as opposed to “need to”. While there are still some long days traveling from location to location, staying put a little longer seems to suit us just fine. 

Twin Dolphin Marina is one of those places where our stay was longer than expected.  It was nice to have friends close by, and be in familiar territory. All in all, we will have stayed here about 5 weeks. We know that we will miss our friends, the Finneys and their extended family.  We hope that they didn’t think we were the company that never went away! As many friends as we have made on this trip, the old friends are the best. Every time someone new comes into our lives, they get the short version of our life, as we get their short version as well.  Old friends know the long version, and it is fun to catch up when they folks from home, it isn’t the same. 

So enough of waxing eloquent…and to the blog.

We decided not to make the $900 rental car mistake we had made renting a car from Enterprise for a week over Christmas, and vowed that taxis and walking would be our means of travel.  Kathy took the taxi to Publix, just a few miles away.  After her shopping, she sat on the bench in the entry of Publix Grocery store, next to the store sponsored hover-rounds, waiting for a taxi to return her and the groceries to Sea Fever. She recalled shopping for groceries in St. Paul, and wondering what kinds of folks took taxis to and from the grocery story.  Now she knows!

We caught up with our friends on Brisa, and met new folks, Mark and Becky, on Mara Beel.  Our stalwart friends, the Finneys met us for dinner several times, and as always, it was great fun.

Toward the end of our stay in Bradenton, Kathy went to Massachusetts to help transition her sister from her care facility to her home.  As only Jackie Finney could do, she showed up at our marina with her Minnesota Thinsulate Eddie Bauer coat and two carry on pieces of luggage so that Kathy didn’t have to buy stuff to go to the northern tundra. After 15 years of being a Floridian, Jackie still keeps the coat, and loans it to wayward folks heading north.  It was a welcome loaner, to be sure.

Kathy flew into Bradley airport in Connecticut on Friday, January 12, was picked up by sister-in-law Audrey, and headed to their home in Amherst.  The LL Bean coat and gloves were put into immediate use.

The trip was successful, sister Karen was settled.  While Massachusetts had a lot of snow on the ground, more snow was promised for Monday, so Kathy left Karen earlier than she had hoped, to make it back across the state to Audrey and Gregg's house. Karen, Gregg and Audrey all suggested that she make the drive during the Super Bowl game.  And boy, were they right.  There was nary a car on road! And she got "home" before the end of the game, when the Patriot fans would be spilling into the streets.  Great advice!!!

Sure enough, the snow started falling around midnight.  Both Gregg and Audrey had a snow day on Monday.  More than a foot of snow fell.  As the snowfall waned, and getting about was easier, Gregg and Audrey headed for the gym.  Being good hosts, they invited Kathy along.  With no regrets, Kathy declined, thinking that sitting quietly in a big house with just Jazz the dog to keep her company had some appeal.  A very enjoyable couple of hours was had by all!

Tuesday, as she was waiting for the shuttle to take her to the airport, she snapped a couple of pictures of Gregg and Audrey's front walk.



Jazz enjoying the snow more than anyone else.













26+ inches of snow blanketed the yards around Gregg and Audrey's house in Amherst, MA.

The ride to the airport and the flights to Tampa were without problems.  Tim picked up Kathy at the airport and they headed for Marina Jack's Marina in Sarasota, our new home for the week.