LOOP Report03/09/2005

Fort Myers Beach, Florida

Wedesday, March 9, 2005

Yes, we got to Boca Grande with Judy and Martin by taking a beautiful route up along inside of Sanibel Island, Captiva Island ( now split in two by hurricane Charlie) and Cayo Costa to end up anchoring in a little inlet beside a mangrove. Friends Paul and Linda arrived by car and met us at a dock and had dinner on board and then we dropped them back by dinghy to shore. They had a room at a local inn nearby. The plan in the morning was to tour town by rental golf cart, a walk on the beach that turned sour because the red tide that was a week old had littered the beach with all varieties of dead fish, the air was not pleasant to breath so took off for lunch at the Loose Caboose, then said goodby to Paul and Linda. By this time we were all coughing from the infected air and people in town were all complaining also. These are the makings of a spooky movie story.

Back on the boat the air got better and we headed back to Ft.Myers Beach to Moss Marina in beautiful warm air. Judy of course finally saw her dolphins and they provided us with aerobatics like haven’t been seen before. Wouldn’t you know it…she picked off a digital photo shot of a perfect leap out of the water and now wants to sell it to me, she almost became the mermaid of the day,… but I contained my enthusiasm and let it pass. Martin, Pat and I agree she got a great and wonderful picture and a memory to take home. Of course, yep once again…. a last “Oink, Onik” meal of grouper and crab legs at the local Beach Seafood Market & Grill (wholesaler and restaurant next door to their shrimp fleet).
Nationwide Mail Order call 800-771-5050. A last drink on board and they were off at 4:am to catch a plane home.

Laundry and cleanup in the morning and Allan and Darlene Leaver arrived at 1:pm. The day was a dismal, wet and a very windy one so we drove for some sightseeing and groceries after having another lunch at a local restaurant . Had to have Buffalo Wings as I’m up to the “you know where” with the seafood, well, at least for another couple hours.

We managed to book in at this marina until Thursday and will then move down a block (a dock or two) to another tie up where they can put us up another week. It’s the big Shrimp Festival weekend with a parade down the main street and all docks and places are booked up. They even close the bridge for the day, so we should be in for some real local fun. And it’s also March Break, so… that will add bikinis to the mix. (we’ll get out the binocs on the top deck)

Allan and I went for a gunk hole ride in the dinghy down to the mooring bay. Many boats are on mooring balls and some at anchor plus various leftover wrecks washed up on ground or into the mangroves by hurracaines. Just like Marathon you see all kinds of quirky boats and their quirky inhabitants. One thing we are discovering is lots of folks just sell all their assets and buy a big boat and then head for Florida and never go back.

One fellow we talked to was from Canada and was living an old wood 80 foot Halifax Fisheries boat. He said when he gets melancholy about home he jumps on a plane and goes back up to Canada and freezes his butt (I think he described it a little differently) off for a few days and hurrys back to his boat here. And he’s just one of the many that we have found hanging on to the docks we’ve stayed at. Life on the water here in Florida seems to be a lot easier on people than on those folks fighting the heavy traffic inland. Now, that is stressful!

Again we ate dinner in style as Pat and Darlene put together a fresh fish dish that can only be described as heavenly. Fresh Sheepshead fish rolled with a superb stuffing of shrimp, herbs de provence and green onions baked in a creamy lemon herb sauce. A little bit of wine to finish off the wee bits scrapped off the dish till it shone.


Went to see the frolics at the Ft. Myers Beach with Pat, Allan and Darlene Sunday afternoon and there was only elbow room, what a play ground (sand box you could say). You got to see all the varieties of the human species that inhabit this planet, some are well put together and some need a lot of more work. It’s not unlike snorkelling on a coral reef, one minute beauty the next predators like the barracuda, the hunters and the hunted. After a bar stop on the beach it was an ice cream cone and a stroll back to our floating pad. Dinner out, courtesy the Leavers, at a great Thai Restaurant by car nearby and finished off some terrific Soups, Tuna, Duck, Chicken and Shrimp. Can’t believe how good the food is here, must be it’s so fresh. Pat tells me it’s because I’m just hungry all the time. That could explain some of it.



Today the friends have gone and now for a clean up and some more sanding woodwork and varnish before the rain settles in again this week.
Good buddy Sandy Peat and son Stefan will arrive next by car and we will do some dinghy exploring with mutual friend John Kingston who lives here in Ft. Myers.

The rain has come with a vengence accompanied with guite a large tidal change overnight. Will relax and work inside on some details that need attending to, so bye for now….

Hold on a minute! Here comes Sandy and Stefan with John down the wet dock looking like soaked polar bears as they just drove through some winter to get here. Just as we are getting the Ark ready for the flood that came last night and today they arrived. 5:00 P.M. ……. Out again for some fish and hot dogs.

Loopers on the Ark…..Ted and Pat with Sandy and Stefan.