A Pause to Give Thanks
Weather has been a determining factor for us over the past 8 months, unlike any other time in our lives. We have learned a great deal about the weather (and about ourselves) as we have dealt with the power of it from the perspective of life on a relatively small vessel. We knew that some tough weather days were approaching as we continued east along the Florida panhandle, so we decided to take a short diversion to a small town called Port St. Joe. We decided that this would be a good location to sit for a while as we waited for conditions to improve for making the open water jumps across the Gulf to Florida’s west coast. We had gotten used to getting up early and moving the boat forward on our journey just about every day, but Port St. Joe was a great place to get another lesson in the virtue of patience as we waited for the cold rainy weather to pass.
During our week in Port St. Joe Marina, Stel and I read some devotional material on “gratitude”, appropriate for Thanksgiving. A quote by theologian Charles Edward Jefferson… “Gratitude is born in hearts that take time to count up past mercies”. He encouraged us to remember God’s past mercies, write them down and then read over these things often. When you let your mind be saturated with the goodness of God, you’ll be amazed at how the goodness of God becomes real! During the week, we took some long walks in the rain and spent many hours sheltered from the “Florida” cold, wind and lightning aboard Estrellita as she was tied to the dock. We had an opportunity to spend time remembering and listing some of the many things we had to be thankful for during our 37 years of marriage as well as the past 8 months on this special journey. It has made quite an impact on our level of faith, gratitude and joy!!
Although most of the week was rainy, windy and cold, we had one beautiful day when we took the boat from the Port St. Joe Marina to nearby Eagle Cove and anchored for the evening. We got to take a walk on a deserted sugar white beach, did some surf fishing, and then witnessed one of the most awesome sunsets that we had ever seen. After a few more rainy days back at the marina, the conditions finally improved on Thanksgiving Day and we cast off our lines while eating a turkey sandwich and a pumpkin pie that the dock master had given us on the way out. After a long day of cruising, we dropped the anchor in a quiet spot, anxious to make some holiday calls to our family and friends…..and then discovered that we were too remote to get a cell phone signal. We apologize to the family for our lack of holiday communication! Happy Thanksgiving.
“Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done” –Psalm 105:1
- Preparing to go out into the cold with some Looper friends during our first week in “sunny” Florida
- Sun is shining…..let’s go fishing
- Speckled trout…..let’s fire up the grill
- A new friend watching me clean fish on the swim platform of the Estrellita
- A beautiful afternoon with my two girlfriends, Estelle and Estrellita
- Estrellita anchored in Eagle Cove across the bay from Port St. Joe
- Date night on a deserted beach with an awesome sunset on the way
- Trending fashion statement in “sunny Florida”
- Stel takes a rainy day walk with the guy who looks like a turkey
- Dolphins and pelican waiting for a free handout from fishermen at Pt. St. Joe Marina
- Coming home after a long day at work…..ha.
- Ghost crab takes a chance and comes out of its hole for a photo op
- Wonders of the wind
- Two sea stars and a sand dollar just hanging out on the beach
FINALLY Finding Some Warmth on Florida’s West Coast
There are two ways to cruise around the “big bend” of Florida’s Gulf coast, an area that does not offer the protection of the Intracoastal Waterway. You can cross the Gulf between Carabelle and Clearwater, which involves an overnight cruise. Or, you can make shorter day crossings from one small town to another as you make your way around the bend, which involves entering some very shallow water inlets. Because Estrellita draws relatively little water, Stel and I decided for the latter. Either way, the weather needs to be watched very closely for selecting the days when open water cruising will be kind to the boat and to the body. The weather was good for several days, so this 3-day jump across the Gulf allowed us to visit the small fishing villages of Steinhatchee, Cedar Key and finally Tarpon Springs. All three legs of the trip involved about 8 hours of cruising a day, which we did along side cruising buddies Andy and Julie on “Fruitcakes”. We will always have fond memories of our days and evenings with them as we finally made our way into a WARMER climate!
Stel and I have visited the west coast of Florida in the past, but have never gotten a chance to explore the waterways. We welcomed the clear and warmer water, but were surprised at the consistently shallow depths of the inland waterways and bays. We are starting to get used to it and have never been so happy to have a relatively shallow-draft boat. And with these waters come hundreds of dolphins! The sound of Estrellita’s engines combined with the forward wake from our bow seems to be a magnet for these wonderful creatures. We very seldom cruise for 15 minutes before a pod of dolphins comes along side with acrobatic jumps, turns and occasionally a flip. It brings us pure joy to watch them and we are confident that God put grace in their movement and a smile on their face to express their love for us as well.
Did I think that I was going to get away with not decorating our home for Christmas this year? Not a chance! Our Looper friends, Ken and Ann Shandley, invited us to attend their Christmas Boat Parade in Venice, so the pressure was on to get Estrellita dressed up a bit for the occasion. Our friends allowed us to use their car to make a trip to Lowes where we purchased the lights and garland needed to get the job done. To tell you the truth, I have never enjoyed decorating for Christmas more. The parade was lots of fun and we followed it up with a wonderful Advent worship service at First Baptist Church of Venice the following morning. We were officially in the Christmas spirit. And a extra bonus….I had promised to take Stel on a boat ride in Venice some day. Done!
- Look Captain, I see WARM weather straight ahead!!!
- If it makes you WARMER than you already are, I’m on it baby!!!
- It pays to wait for the right weather day when going out into the Gulf of Mexico…it was beautiful!
- Never met a SEA HAG, but there is a marina named after her in Steinhatchee
- “Fruitcakes” following us into Cedar Key on a beautifully glassy day across the Gulf
- Kayakers passing by our anchorage at Cedar Key
- Christmas in Florida….what a treat
- Traffic circle in Tarpon Springs
- Pelicans roosting in the mangroves
- Totally focused on the beauty of this young mermaid’s eyes…..only
- Manatee sightseeing in our dinghy
- Manatee comes up to take a look at us in a lagoon in Tarpon Springs
- Nothing cuter than manatee nostrils
- Only in Tarpon Springs…sponge capital of the world
- Do you like Greek food? You’ll love Tarpon Springs!
- Sunshine Skyway Bridge spanning Tampa Bay
- Playful at our bow
- They will race to intersect our path
- Often jumping for the pure joy of it!!
- And then popping their tail to show off a little
- From our Marina Jacks mooring at the edge of beautiful downtown Sarasota
- Following the snow birds heading south
- Decorating Estrellita before the Christmas Boat Parade in Venice, Florida
- Stel adds the final touch with one of her hand-tied bows!
- This might have been more fun than we have ever had decorating our house!
- Maybe we could have won “Best of Show – Never Leaving Dock”
- Our two favorite fruitcakes, Andy and Julie
- A few of the 35 boats that passed us in the Venice Christmas Boat Parade
- We loved the 3 kings and star on Ken and Ann’s boat “Charis” (just completed the Loop the week before)
- Beautiful sunset views from Fisherman’s Wharf, Venice
Shell Shocked
Well….maybe not shocked, but pleasantly surprised by the abundance and beauty of the shells that can be found on the beaches of southwest Florida. We have been looking forward to this part of the Loop for its shelling and fishing. You can probably guess who prefers what, but I found myself really enjoying my time with Stel searching for different kinds of shells. We were able to find at least 30 different shell types, some of which we were familiar with, and some not. We are having a great time learning the common names and then finding color variations that make each shell a little different. Because of the abundance of beaches, shells, fish and natural beauty of the water, we have slowed ourselves down a good bit and spent a number of days at anchor around the islands of Cayo Costa, Captiva and Sanibel. We ended up in a marina on the south end of Sanibel, took the bikes off the deck, and spent 2 days biking the full length of the island. We have been to a lot of bike-friendly places on this journey, but nowhere quite like Sanibel. Great exercise and fun!
After leaving Sanibel, we cruised up the Caloosahatchee River a few miles and found a beautiful and secluded anchorage called Glover Bight. It was a great location to watch the meteor showers that were expected in the northeast skies on the night of the 13th of December. It was a cool night, so we wrapped up in some blankets and reclined on the bow for quite a show while we listened to some James Taylor. We spent 2 days and nights at Glover Bight doing over-due boat chores and some fishing in between. Some people have asked us whether we ever get bored on the boat for extended periods of time. We both are in agreement that we have not yet had a moment when we were at a loss for something to do. This life style is much simpler, but is extremely active and fulfilling. Boat cleaning, maintenance, buying groceries, doing laundry, planning, exercising, preparing meals, socializing, exploring, reading, blogging, keeping up with family & friends and the time spent cruising makes for full days. Did I forget fishing?? We even unpacked a few Christmas decorations from our “attic” (called lazarette on a boat!) and enjoyed some final decorating.
We look forward to making our way up the Caloosahatchee a little further to Ft. Myers, where we will pick up our son Sam from the airport. We will then make our way south, through the Everglades and on to Key Largo where we will meet the rest of the family for a tropical Christmas celebration.
- Shells, shells and more shells.
- The closer you get, the more you see!
- Layers of shells we found on a deserted beach at Cayo Costa
- Happy girl on a great shelling beach at Cayo Costa
- More proof of God’s creative hand
- A little lagoon we found at Cayo Costa….great for anchoring overnight and fishing over-day.
- Jacks are fun to catch, but not much fun to eat
- But this grouper is a keeper!
- Fish in the water in the afternoon….and on the grill in the evening
- Swimming after a runaway dinghy….how did that dinghy untie itself???
- Canadian friends, Germaine and Chantal, surprise us with a visit to our anchorage. We had not seen them in 2 months
- What are you boys doing playing underneath my boat???
- Hello!
- If you can’t find enough shells on the beach, you can always buy them here!
- Swanky entry to the Sanibel Marina
- Sanibel is a popular spot for “destination weddings”(notice the bows on the lighthouse)
- Grandma Dots Restaurant at Sanibel Marina
- Meeting new people along the way has been one of the highlights of our trip
- The trunk of a car is sometimes missed when trying to get the groceries home!
- Every rental car should come with a free tree at Christmas time
- Work day includes defrosting the freezer with a heat gun
- Varnishing teak is a more frequent task, now that we’re back on the saltwater
- Taking a break to talk to a local resident that came to our back door
- A school of cow nose rays cruise by our anchorage
- Stel gets a great picture of a ray’s wings breaking the surface of the water
- Stel had carefully packed some Christmas decorations in the boat “attic”
- Our Sanibel Christmas Tree with fishing line for tinsel
- Merry Christmas!!