The promised dingy ride turned out to be cold and
windy, with some random splashes coming over the bow. We toodled around and found a place that
would be a better anchoring spot if we're in that area again. Wildlife abounded with shore birds, turtles,
dolphins, but still no alligators.
Personally, I think they all went on vacation where it is warmer. Smart.
On the way back to the boat, we decided to explore a tight canal with
vines hanging down to the murky water; we realized it really was too tight for
the dinghy to be navigable, so we did a slow turn around one of the hanging
vines. It was then that I saw these
little black Ninja crabs skittering up the vine to get away from us. I think I let out some sort of scream. They scared the bejesus out of us! If they wanted, they could have jumped into
the boat. Thankful they didn't because I
was already creeped out.
After two nights on the Shark River and never
feeling comfortably settled via anchor (strong current clears out any good holding ground), we headed out to get across the Gulf to
the to Point Ybel on Sanibel Island, where we would anchor for the evening and
then slide under the 70-foot bridge (huzzah!) and make our way towards our
marina that would be our base for the next month.
Wind was good as we were starting out, but then
petered out to nothing for a few hours.
I would occasionally give Gary the stink eye and suggest starting the
engine, but he didn't, so we were behind and even though I had agreed to sail
through the night (to avoid higher winds expected the next day), I was not
happy that we had to do it.
The wind got back up again and at some points, we
were doing 8 knots. Whizzing by;
finally, it was about 2 am and I was on watch. I had taken my Bonine, so I was
less nervous, but Gary stayed in the cockpit and slept, so he was close by if I
needed him. We made it to our
destination at 4 in the morning (sounds like a song; hey, it is a song (or
two)!!!!!) and with the winds up and the boat bouncing, we tried to sleep. After a few hours of sleep, we ended up
moving under that glorious 70-foot bridge and anchored in Glover's Bight.
Glover's Bight is right in front of the
marina at which we'd made reservations, so it was an easy move to motor over
and check in for the month.
We were given our slip number and as we rounded the
corner to scoot in there, Gary was not convinced we would fit; it did look
impossible, but it was just the perception and we got in smoothly.
The first day in we met our next-door neighbor Donna
on a power boat who offered rides to stores if we needed them and tennis
rackets if we hit the courts, and then Joe, a sailor from a few boats away,
came by to say hello. He was pretty
funny; he said he liked the boat. When
we told him what it was, he said he now hated us for having the boat because
he'd always heard of them but had never seen one. So we had him aboard for a look-see. Nice guy, a cop who gave us great pointers for
one of our planned trips to a few nearby islands and also gave us some Sea Foam
fuel additive for our dinghy motor because it had been stalling at low RPMs (it
is good stuff and the motor is happy now).
The marina is nice; there's a restaurant just steps
from the boat (we've spent a lot of money there already). The complex includes a Westin Hotel, shops,
two restaurants, and a condominium building (where the penthouse suites go for
about 8 million dollars--eek!).
There are several pools close by, but marina
folks need to take a short jaunt into the nearby neighborhood to the recreation
center to swim. We didn't get a chance
to check it out before we departed for a trip home. The cons are that the sunsets are not visible
from here and I sure don't have 8 million to pay for that kind of view. The bathrooms are a days' walk from
here. Not really, but when you're used
to the heads being a short walk away, the walk to the bathroom can be really
long, especially if you're holding your knees together already.
On our second full day here, a business associate
and friend of ours, John, and his wife, Sharon, came by to see the boat before
they generously offered to take us out to dinner. I really enjoy their company. One of the first questions from John is
whether we'd seen any naked sailors on our journey (the answer is, thankfully,
"no"). He said they are not rare. We had a great dinner out with them at a
place called Rumrunner's; the scallops were awesome. Last time we saw John, he could carry Elliott
on his shoulders; no such luck with that now.
We came in on the 26th of January and flew out on
the 29th to visit family and friends back in Virginia for 10 days. I had been nervous about leaving the boat
unoccupied for that length of time, but once we settled in here, I felt relaxed that the boat would be fine and was more than ready to see my loves back home.
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