4/2/13 Tuesday We set out from Legacy Harbour this morning in the company of Lucky Lady VII and Kasey's Choice bound for Hurricane Pass near Marco Island.
It was a great day to be on the Gulf with calm seas and warm weather. We made our way to Gordon's Pass and picked up the inside route south. This strip of water between Naples and Marco is not for the faint of heart for two reasons. One, the traffic is always a little crazy with muscle boats, fishing boats, and rental boats all flying by at high speeds. Two is the depth of the water in a few places. It always gets your attention when the shallow alarm goes off and this route can make it sing! We try always to time it at mid to high tide for our travels on this route and have had no problems. So far!
As usual there weren't any boats anchored in this spot since most pull into the beach for the day and then return to Marco or Naples.
The beauty of this spot is that it still doesn't show on any charts of the area. What you see as beach in the picture is open water on the charts. Thank you past hurricanes for extending the island!
We spent a couple of nights anchored at the beach before the weather forecast drove us out. Marty & Yvonne on Lucky Lady VII headed back to Ft. Myers while we and Kasey's Choice went into Rose Marina in Marco to sit out the storm.
Rose Marina is home to a large fleet of rental pontoon boats usually piloted by novices. They're given a chart the size of a placemat and sent on their way for the day. All have VHF radios and the air waves are crackling throughout the day with calls of being lost or the engine won't start, etc.
Of course there's a small fleet of charter fishing boats that operate out of the marina also which attracts the pelicans looking for scraps from the cleaning stations. They seemed to like the dock next to Tourist when the boats were out. They even liked Tourist for a brief time till I shooed them away.
It rained pretty hard while we were in Marco but we did manage to sneak over to a local watering hole for happy hour! And Pam did get a load of laundry done keeping her happy.
Saturday we pulled out and retraced part of our trail towards Naples to anchor for the night in Rookery Bay.
We had a peaceful evening except for the bugs once the sun slid under.
Sunday we continued to Naples to meet the Coconuts crew, Bru & Sandy who had just returned from wintering in the Bahamas and were in town to check out a 52' Vicem.
They made it through security and were allowed aboard It was great catching up with them and hearing about there winter exploits.
Monday we went to look at the Vicem. A nice boat but not what Pam & I would consider as a replacement for Tourist.
After thoroughly going through the Vicem we headed to 5th Avenue for lunch and a little window shopping.
Fortunately we escaped unscathed from 5th Ave. and got back to the marina in time to spend a little time at the pool.
All too soon it was time for Bru & Sandy to depart and head for their home in Virginia where they'll be getting Coconuts ready for their second Loop.
Pam & I cast off and headed back to Hurricane Pass where we joined up once again with Kasey's Choice for a couple nights behind the beach. We spent time walking the beach and even had lunch at the food boat that pulls up on the beach each day. Not bad!
After a couple of nights we moved on to Marco and an anchorage in Smokehouse Bay for a couple more nights. We anchored close to the Esplanade a complex of condo's, shops, restaurants, and a marina.
A bonus to this anchorage is a Winn Dixie supermarket nearby with a dinghy dock that you can take the shopping cart to. In addition to shopping and lunch at one of the Esplanade restaurants I found a barber shop nearby. A good spot for a few days.
While we were hanging out in Marco, back home a birthday was being celebrated. Katelyn, the daughter of my son Addam's significant other Jeni, turned 9 on the 11th. Hope you had a fun day with lots of presents!
Saturday came and it was time to pull up the anchor. The only downside to this anchorage is the foul smelling muck that coated the anchor and rode when it was pulled in! Yuck!!!
Anyway we found our way out of Smokehouse Bay and on to the Big Marco River headed to Goodland. The route to Goodland is not without it's challenges. Shallow in spots and once you pass under the Marco bridge the markers change sides leading many an unwary boater to an unwanted grounding. Fortunately we both made it without incident.
It's a pretty ride to Goodland as you wind through the mangroves.
Just past the Lodge we turned to starboard and headed towards the Calusa Island Yacht Club for the next two nights. Stay between the shore and the unmarked pilings and you'll have no problem getting to the marina.
It's a long walk to shore but an interesting one through the mangroves and past the laundry building.
Of course this is where Pam got stopped. Much to her delight it was one of the cleanest facilities we've encountered in our travels.
Actually the whole marina was a delight even though off the beaten path. From our slip we could see dolphins and manatees plying the waters beside us.
Sunday we were joined by Bill, Mary, and Gary who drove down from Ft. Myers to go to Stan's with us.
A great time was had by all watching the festivities and listening to the music before returning to Tourist. The crowd didn't get any younger from our previous visit but it did get smaller as many of the snow birds have headed back north by now.
A special thanks to Bill for the shuttle service from marina to Stan's!
Tuesday we waited for the tide to come in before leaving the marina and heading into Gullivan Bay enroute to Panther Key. The charts show many areas of only 4 to 5 feet of water at the start of the bay but with the rising tide we encountered no problems. Our arrival at Panther Key allowed us plenty of time for a raft ride and for a beach visit although the beach was covered in shells which made it hard on the bare feet.
As is usual in the late afternoon the sea breeze picked up making the anchorage a little lumpy well into the evening. Fortunately it calmed down during the night making for a good nights sleep.
Wednesday we decided to head back towards Ft. Myers and figure out where to go from there. The water was a bit rolly as we rounded the Cape Romano Shoals but a little speed helped smooth our ride. Once near Capri Pass it calmed down and I went below to check things out. That's when I found a small amount of salt on top of one of the exhaust hoses indicating a possible leak. I wiped it off and found it again during my next check. Meanwhile Donnie on Kasey's Choice was experiencing some minor problems also. It was an easy decision to head for the mooring field at Ft. Myers Beach.
This was going to be an interesting visit to the field since the last time we were accused of chopping up one of the painters that attach the boat to the ball. That was over the St Patrick's Day week-end when we paid for 2 nights and only used 1. That time we left without incident on Sunday morning to attend the party at John Carroll's . Forward to Wednesday when we were back in Legacy and we get a call from the mooring field harbormaster telling me in a not so nice tone of voice that we have a problem and that I cut the painter on the mooring we used when we left on Monday. I explained to him that we did no such thing and that we actually left on Sunday, not Monday. The exchange got warmer and he told me he was going to call the Coast Guard to which I replied "be my guest". I further told him that he has no idea what goes on in his mooring field as evidenced by the 55' Fleming that was on a ball next to us that was meant for a 40' boat maximum. He said he knew it was there to which I suggested he check with them since they witnessed our departure. He kept up with the threats of law enforcement and that we were responsible for the damage. This went on back and forth for a couple more minutes with him cussing at me and me ending the call by telling him he could kiss my --- and hanging up.
Upset like I haven't been in a long time I got the phone number for his boss from Donnie & Marilyn of Kasey's Choice who had a problem with him earlier in the year. I called his boss and explained what had happened and he assured me that he would take care of it and that he hoped we would not stay away from the mooring field on future trips.
Back to the present trip. We pulled in and found a ball that could handle Tourist. It's pointless to call on the radio for an assignment since they never answer the radio. Fortunately we have a map of the field which we got from Donnie a couple of years ago which shows the balls and what size boat they can handle. Unfortunately very few boaters have this and it's not to be found online.
Once secured Donnie & I headed in to check in. Once we arrived in the office we found 3 other boaters trying to check in also. The girl was a bit flustered and it showed in her attitude. The policy of the mooring field is that if you have stayed there within the past 30 days you should not have to fill out all the paperwork. Donnie missed it by 1 day. As she handed him the papers she also handed them to me without asking when I was last there. Wanting to see what would happen I asked her to look in the file since our record should still be there. Guess what? It was with a note attached that we were not to be allowed in the mooring field which she broadcast to all in the small office! Now I look like a criminal to these other people. Great!
Looks like the city official I talked to dropped the ball! Undaunted I had anticipated this and had his number in my phone. A call to him which at first he played dumb to finally resulted in him talking to the office girl and me being allowed in the field. The city official also stated that he would like a meeting the next morning and that they would come out to see us which I welcomed. We are now back in Legacy still waiting for the meeting. I even called the official when we were getting ready to leave only to get his voice mail I left my number and requested a return call. I'm still waiting.
And you wonder where Addam and I get it from?!?! :-)
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