January 25 – March 1
We left Venice and went to Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda, Bob and Pam Shircliff's (Mint Julep's) home marina. It's a beautiful place, right in the heart of things in the boating world, and miles away from anything else. It's close to the islands (Cabbage Key, Sanibel, Captiva, etc.), has beautiful sunsets, and even sports karaoke every Thursday night. We met Jerry and Carolyn Walker (Sassy) and made a few side trips from there. One was to Matlacha, an artsy community on Pine Island, with an old-Florida flair, where my favorite gallery was Lovegrove. We also had the pleasure of going on a day trip on Mint Julep to Cabbage Key for lunch, where guests still follow a long-ago fishermen's tradition of signing a dollar and taping it to the wall. We also visited Captiva and Sanibel, both of which are great places to shell. Brian flew to Fort Myers, came with us back to Burnt Store, and traveled with us to Tween Waters Marina on Captiva. We took a ferry to Caya Costa, an island that can only be reached by boat, to go shelling, and saw amazing dolphins on the way back. We also visited the beach on Captiva before traveling to Fort Myers. A few days after Brian went home, Julie came to visit. The rocky motion wasn't thrilling her, so we spent time at some hotels in the area. We shopped a little bit, hung out, and took Lady Royal on a day trip. We also had dinner with Becky one night, since she was in town interviewing.
 |
| Back of Lovegrove Gallery – Matlacha |
 |
| Lovegrove Gallery – Matlacha |
 |
| Carolyn and Pam – Cabbage Key |
 |
| Jim, Pam, Bob and Linda – Punta Gorda |
 |
| Brian on Lady Royal |
 |
| Another Beautiful Sunset |
 |
| Favorite Sunset... Thanks, Brian! |
 |
| Guess Who? |
 |
| Brian and Deb at Joe's Crab Shack |
 |
| Brian, Deb and Rob at Joe's Crab Shack |
 |
| Julie, Rob and Becky – Joe's Crab Shack |
 |
| Rob and Becky Dig In – Fort Myers |
 |
| Ahhhh... Julie Spends Another Day in Paradise – Fort Myers |
 |
| Deb and Julie Chilling at Hotel – Fort Myers |
For my birthday, we got up early and went shelling, which I find to be totally addicting. We spent the morning at Captiva and Caya Costa, then had a great dinner at The Veranda, which had great food and a beautiful patio. I highly recommend it to those traveling to Fort Myers. While in Fort Myers, we also went to visit the Edison and Ford homes, both of which have interesting histories; and we enjoyed the Edison Festival of Lights, an annual parade that attracts more than 200,000 people, fills the roads, and has a tradition of letting people come and mark their spots with their names on duct tape weeks before the event starts. Fireworks and numerous floats, bands, cars, etc. – along with music, an art show and more make this an event that the community looks forward to.
 |
| Shelling at Caya Costa |
 |
A Dolphin Birthday Treat – Caya Costa
|
 |
| Edison Festival of Lights – Fort Myers |
 |
| Rob's Bright Idea – Edison Festival of Lights |
And the month wouldn't have been complete without a visit from Rachel and Brian, who flew to Miami, came with us back to Fort Myers, and traveled with us across the Okeechobee to Lake Worth. When on the east coast, we had lunch with Hallie and Steve, dinner with Bob and Margery, and a barbeque with Louis and Louise (General Delivery), and Jean-Marie and Agnes (Na Maka), and it was great seeing all of them.
 |
Rachel and Brian – Loopers in Training – Fort Myers
|
 |
| Rachel, Brian, Rob and I – Stuart, FL |
The Okeechobee was reminiscent of the TennTom. The main difference was alligators. The Okeechobee is full of them, and they're easy to spot. Unfortunately, none of them wanted to sun themselves to pose for photos. When heading toward Lake Worth, homes on the waterway were amazing, and we saw more pleasure boats than we've seen since leaving home.
 |
| One of Many Alligators |
We're currently at Riviera Beach Municipal Marina waiting for a weather window to cross to the Bahamas with Mint Julep, Sassy, Finally, Ques End, Rambler, Rho-Jo, and Bade Boomer. More to come from the Bahamas!
