2014-12-21 to 12-31 - Cape Coral to Keewaydin Island to the Keys

12/21  Anchors up at 8 am & under the Sanibel bridge. It was a perfect day to cruise south on the Gulf of Mexico. 

Spoiled brats on 'daddy's' lap while underway

We entered Big Marco Pass (south of Naples) at 1:15, wound around the back bay to Rookery Bay & anchored by the beach at south Keewaydin Island at 1:45. Deployed the dinghy moments later & Wayne took off to the beach with the pups, Karen & Widget in tow.

Widget (pic by Jay)

Marco Island in the background  

It was a pleasant week & we were thankful for the break, however, I forgot it was Christmas week & all the crazies were at the beach...boatloads of people - kids, dogs, women in various outfits that probably shouldn't be seen in public.

A bit overloaded ya think?

Every day there were 3 pontoon boats pulled up on the beach  selling burgers, hotdogs, fish sandwiches, ice cream & other such goodies. Smell of grilled burgers blew our way. Who in their right mind can resist burgers on the grill? It took great restraint to not go ashore & have 'dinner'. The beach was packed every day so there goes our plan for peace  & quiet.Several nights campers pitched tents & built open fires. They sounded like they were having such a good time. We almost went ashore to join them, instead, we played dominoes.

Tent city

 We experienced several days of blustery weather & overcast skies. Good time to defrost the freezer - I really hate that job - must find a place for all the food then put a fan on top to melt the ice-takes most of the day ! Don't take your  frost-free fridges for granted.
Before we left Cape Coral, Karen & I had planned Christmas dinner. She got a turkey breast & I got the makings for my mom's stuffing. . 12/25  Christmas day spent on LARGO because she was lit up  
(the boat I mean-later,some of us were 'lit up ) & decorated  - it was magical. 

Jay, Karen & Widget - (pic by Jay)

We had traditional Christmas fixins' including green beans, cranberry & caramelized carrots. They have over 1000 movies on a device - I got to watch Don Juan De Marco, one of my favorite Johnnie Depp movies.

I got a very kewl, multifunctional knife

We stayed at anchor until 12/28 enjoying the peace but making tentative plans to leave the area for the 10 to 13 hour trip south to the Keys...but where to go? Marathon?-Key West? or 'home'? Reports of overcrowding at anchorages in Key West & mooring balls in Marathon helped made for an easy decision - home it is. Computers on to the weather links. Several days looked promising but Sunday seemed best. (looking back,we made a good decision as the following days proved to be blustery & windy) More beach days & dominoes - the weather improved with warm sun & gentle breezes. 

Life is good  - don't take it for granted

12/28  Gorgeous day. It was decided by all to pull anchors at 3:30 pm as we didn't want to anchor in the dark in the Keys. Psych! We did anyway.

LARGO right behind us winding our way out the back bay to the pass

The sky was clear with a bright, 1/2 moon & calm seas. Bundled up with long pants, two shirts, socks  & a sweat shirt, I took the first shift at the helm...Wayne relieved me about 1am.  It seemed I had just gotten to sleep when I heard the anchor chain drop - it was 3:30am - 12/29. Thankfully, it was an uneventful cruise. We were in about 10' of water by Tarpon Belly. If interested in a bit of history, Google Tarpon Belly Keys.

The purple lines on the chart show previous routes that BLUE MAX has taken
the lines on the left & going up-go to the Gulf  - lines on the right, go south to Summerland

BLUE MAX & Fat Albert (on Cudjoe Key) - another great pic by Jay

 We were anchored a fair distance from each other so Cap't Karen would have more water under her keel. 12/30 - She tried fishing using pieces of left over chicken & damn if she didn't catch Grouper & Lane snapper!! I announced to Wayne "we moving the boat tomorrow!" We had a yummy, fresh fish dinner on LARGO then watched We're The Millers - a movie we've not seen. It was pretty funny. We did move the boat & I did catch some snapper - not real big, average size for lane snapper, but good eatin' & the first fish I caught in a long time. 

Average size lane snapper 

12/31 We woke on this  NY eve to colder temps & the boat was soaking wet from high humidity, fog surrounded us but the water was like glass. 

Foggy morning on the hook - (taken by Jay)

NY eve festivities were spontaneous - I found a small spiral-cut honey ham & we completed the feast with veggies, deviled eggs, drinks & wine.

BYE, BYE 2014

2014-10-23 to 12-20 - Palmetto to Cape Coral, (me to Philly)

10/24  It was a chilly night anchored at Desoto point but we spent a glorious night under the blanket as the temps were in the 60's. Woke to windy & cold weather .(cold by our standards) Anchors up at 10 am. Tampa Bay was in an uproar & slamming us broadside. It was a relatively short distance to the Intercoastal but long enough for us to get beat up. Cruised down Sarasota Bay - LARGO right behind us when all of a sudden, a Coast Guard inflatable was next to them - they boarded LARGO. What a way to start the trip;!! We slowed & turned intending to see if they were OK. Instructions were to stay on course & speed.

This was a first for them & we were happy to hear it was an uneventful boarding. They even posed for pictures.

 Karen & the boarding party. (As we get older the coasties seem to get younger -- 
how old is the kid on the left?  About 15 years old??)

We anchored downtown Sarasota about 2pm - we were there for 4 days as Jay had to fly to Chicago for a meeting. Sue (Melton) came up from Englewood & joined us for dinner at Marina Jacks - a local venue at the marina which is divided by several 'rooms', inside & out. Each room has different music. We were inside at the piano bar.

W&W, Jay, Karen & Sue Melton @ Marina Jacks,

10/29  Anchors up @ 9:30 am - a calm day - we cruised on the outside.  Trolled but no fish. Entered through Boca Grande pass.

& anchored in Pelican Bay, (Cayo Costa) about 5 pm just in time for happy hour on LARGO. This is a favorite anchorage for many. We were here about 4 days. A cold front came in - temps dropped into the 40's at night - BRRR! Played dominoes; took the pups to the beach; got bait but no fish!! I showed Karen how to throw the cast net. Of course she learned how in about 5 minutes plus she's tall & that helps.

11/2  The wind died down a bit but it was still cold. Day light savings  ends today - that sucks for us. Less cruising hours & we have to be more mindful about time so we're not tucking in somewhere when it's dark. It's also our 11th anniversary. It took us 3 1/2 hours to cruise to the Cape Coral city marina where we were docked in August & a short walk to Mikey's Boathouse Tiki bar. It was here we met Jen & Mike in August. BLUE MAX was docked at the Tiki for the night  - we were at the bar. I saw a woman intently checking out our boat. She turned around & I said, "So, do you like my boat? Wanna see her?"(I could swear she was drooling-tee hee) I gave her a full tour. We became instant friends. Her husband, Mike & his son were anxious to leave & he knew he'd have a tough time getting her off the boat. Turns out they've been toying with the idea of getting a trawler & cruising when Mike retires.

My cousin, Sue & her fiance, Dean. flew down from Philly to Bonita Springs on 10/28 to open their house for seasonal renters. They drove up to the marina to see Wayne & the pups.  On 11/6 the 3 of us flew back to Philly as I was attending my 50th high school reunion on the weekend (see separate Blog) The reunion was a huge success with a 'meet & great' on Friday night & the reunion on Saturday night. Many of us have known each other for 60+ years as we grew up in the same neighborhood, attended the same grammar school  & church. I spent the week with my cousin, Sue & her family in Hatfield, PA. They picked me up at the hotel on Sun. & along with my old friend, Paul, (met in 1974) we went back to the Buck Hotel for the most amazing Sun. brunch I' ve ever seen.

Paul, Sue & Dean @ the Buck Hotel

Then it dropped to 40 !!!

I spent most of my summers here as a kid

Beautiful property

 I was delighted when Carol & Tina came to visit. Lots to chat about over lunch.

Paul's wife, Carol, Carol's daughter on the right, Tina, Sue & her grand-daughter, Hailey

Hailey, her brother, Mason. 
The beautiful Dobberman, Bella, is named after my mom

Wayne & I decided to stay at the Cape Coral marina for a least a month -Jay & Karen agreed as they also had projects...projects never end. During our trip south, we encountered intermittent problems;  One with the auto pilot remote control - a major issue because without the use of the auto pilot, the captain is glued to the wheel for hours. The second issue involved the winch that controls getting the dinghy on & off the boat. We could get the dinghy up & out of the water & swing it into place over the stanchions & that's when the 'down' stopped working - click, click, click like a dead battery. 
We managed to get the dinghy aboard with me pushing and Wayne pulling and a lot of discusion!

Obviously, we need this system to work without a hitch. Since the winches were about 14 years old and Wayne could not decide what was the problem, we ordered new ones. 
In the meantime, we got to visit with friends & family &  have happy hour & appetizers on occasion; played dominoes with Jay, Karen & Kathryn.

New winches & box for controls.
Note an other speaker so I can hear music when fishing...
(I prefer 'catching')

Bob & Karen
You can see Kathryn's little dog Trixie in the mix.

Many fun-filled nights at Mickey & Kathryn's for dinner, darts, pool & bon-fires. Mickey is a self-taught guitar player but what we didn't know is that Jay also plays. These two had a great time & we were joyous recipients of hearing great music. We all had plenty of drinks and snacks and I don't all the facts or how we got home to the boat.  But we did!

Jay & Mickey - Great music by the bon-fire

                          Jen & Mike joined us another night at Mick's.

Mike & Jen

Mickey, Jack, W&W, Scupper, Kathryn, Trixie, Mike & Jen

A cold front came down around the 17th...Temps dropped down into the 40's. YIKES!

 On 11/23, we took Wayne's neices, Raquel, Renee & kids on a short cruise to downtown Ft. Myers for a pumpout & lunch. A bit choppy & windy, but it turned out to be a wonderful day. Family is SO important.

Gregg's daughters Raquel & Renee & Renee's daughter, Jordan

Jordan, Jose, Raquel, Loren, W&W, Renee & Caleb

 11/27  We spent Thanksgiving at Sherri & Dave's house. We met for the first time 10 years ago when Dave & Sherri spent a few days at our cottage visiting Mickey & Kate.

Circa 2004: W&W, Kathryn, Sherri, Dave, Mickey & Molly

                           It was a beautiful day with beautiful people. 

Perfect day for an outside event

Dave, Wayne & Dave

The cookie caper

Kari & Kathryn

Sherri & Dave's home was like walking into an eclectic antique shop. I wandered around absorbing everything in sight. This is an amazing corner bar they bought from a neighbor for only $1000. I want one!!

Things were moving along, ordered parts, ran many errands , parts made for the new winches, broken step welded back on, replaced speakers on the flybridge & moved the good one aft so I could hear music while fishing & so it goes. On Monday, 12/1, Wayne took the spacers to get powder-coated, got dog food & now that a monitor has been installed on the fly bridge, a remote control that 'sees' the laptop, with the Navigation charts in the salon. (it didn't work & had to be returned) He came home, chatted with a neighbor then, suddenly, had total amnesia but no physical signs of a stroke.  He had no memory of going on those  errands. He asked me the same questions over & over again -for hours. It was freaky. I took him to the ER where they worked him up, had labs, CT, EKG then admitted him for further tests. ER doc said it was transient global amnesia...no known cause (unless you fall & hit your head). By the next day, he 'cleared' & I told him what happened. He said, "that was pretty bad, I guess I'll agree to stay the 2nd night".  All tests were negative. It's a bitch getting old - don't do it. 
He was right back to work on Thursday & "normal", at least for Wayne. On Friday, 12/6, with Kathryn's help, we started to sand the cap & handrails in the forward part of the boat.

We continued on Saturday with Kari's help as well & we finished the job!! It's a very big job for me so I'm eternally grateful for their help - & we had fun too. Now I have to put many coats of Cetol & Gloss on it...no one can help me with that job.

We set a goal to leave by 12/15 - NEVER do this...it just never works out. People ask us all the time "where you going next? when will you be there?" You're kidding -right? I don't know about tomorrow .
Projects continued at a fast pace on both BLUE MAX & LARGO...parts were ordered hoping for delivery by the goal date; specialist visited both boats for some repairs; food & liquor shopping; trying to see friends before we left. It was a whirl-wind month & playing dominoes when ever we had a free evening - but a hoot! Pete & June visited on the 11th (saw them last in Englewood) - another night I didn't have to cook as we went to Wine & Roses (Italian) for dinner.

Wayne wanted to put the solonoids from the 2 boxes that came with the winches into one, water-proof control box. He was almost done transferring everything into the new box when a part broke off while tightening it...just great!! that's all we needed. I called the company & explained the situation, after a I gave them a bit more information, they agreed to send a new one under warranty & they paid the air freight. The new goal date for leaving was now the 20th. 
On Black Friday, we visited the Sleep Number store. Interesting & informative - We ordered the 'short' Queen with bottom radius used in an RV. Two large boxes arrived at Mickey's- one had to be transported in Kathryn's VW with the top down. So, on the 13th Kathryn & I set out to disensemble the old bed & install the new mattress. Removing the old bed turned out to be a mighty task as there were at least four, heavy & cumbersome foam pads - all had to be rolled, tied & taken off the boat. We held our breath until we were sure the new mattress would fit...it did. At the same time, Karen was working to get Wayne's computer to communicate with the printer. She went up & down the steps from the printer to his computer. She was successful & Wayne was thrilled. Wayne was working on the new control box for the winches. It was a busy & fun day resulting in a pleasant happy hour & an unplanned dinner at Mickey's. Oh, & by-the-way, we love the bed & removing all that extra weight was a bonus. 

 Peace in the harbor - LARGO on the far right

The following week was another frenzied time but at least the weather was perfect. Dave & Karen Fiskum are Wayne's old friends from Racine, WI who now live in Cape Coral. We were happy that we got to see them twice during this trip. Several years ago & the last time we were here, they were just building a new home. It is absolutely gorgeous! We returned to Chicago Pizza for dinner. Pizzas are half price on Tuesday. Who can resist that bargain. ? 

On 12/19, we took the boat, once again, to Ft Myers for a pump out & joining us were new friends Bill Martin & Brenda. Bill's a retired Navy Captain & a gear-head like Wayne. They spent long hours talking about many things not of interest to Brenda or me.

 Bill at the helm

 Russ & Elaine, traveling on TWELVE STONES, had just returned from their Great Loop adventure & were docked at Ft. Myers city marina. (you can see their blog @; russandelaine.blogspot.com) We met them in 2013 at the boat yard in Green Cove Sps. We both left the yard on 4/2/13 - they headed North, we went South. It was great seeing them again. We had lunch at a wonderful little Chinese restaurant on a side street we didn't know about - fabulous! I had my camera with me but for some reason I didn't take pictures??

April, 2014 at the boat yard; Russ, Elaine & sea dog, Ike

By some miracle, we were finally ready to leave the marina (yahoo!) Jay took this next picture while we were getting fuel at the Boat House. It's so great to have someone else around to take pictures - & he's a professional as well.

We left the fuel dock at 4:45 - it took an hour to arrive at a calm anchorage near the Sanibel bridge where we spent the night so we'd be ready to leave first thing in the  AM.  This is another great shot by Jay Campbell...looking for an anchorage just before sunset.

Many of you may remember this picture from our Christmas card

It's about a 5 hr. cruise from there to Marco Island & we wanted to make sure we got through the very confusing & dysfunctional Big Marco Pass, & anchored before dark. We'll stay here for Christmas.