Sarasota 1-10-09

With a full moon, there is a low low tide which meant that we could not leave Anna Marie Island until 11 a.m. as evidenced by a number of boats aground in the marina and at anchor. Since we had such a late departure, we decided to take the short hop of 15 miles to Sarasota.

Rose’s Pick joined us again today as we headed out again onto the GIWW which is supposed to have a minimum depth of 6 feet, but with shallow sections bordering it, it is good to be vigilant. We hit 6’2” feet at mile marker G39 but otherwise, had comfortable depths of 8 to12 feet. We pulled into Marina Jack’s Marina which is an upscale marina at $2 per foot but provides great service and amenities. We were glad to meet a former Looper on Lyssa Lin and current Loopers, Jim and Sandy on Footloose.

Saratoga is a very inviting, boat friendly city with a lot of restaurants, shops and points of interest within walking distance of the marina. There is a walking and bike trail and plenty of outdoor dining, even a Tiki Bar along the park. We had a fantastic dinner at Barnacle Bill’s and I highly recommend the bouillabaisse. There is a Whole Foods within walking distance as well as a Saturday Farmer’s Market.

We decided to spend another day here and go to the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens on Saturday. It offered a lush verdant garden along the Gulf complete with a Tea Café and mansion showcasing local botanical art works. The only downside in town was the Harley Davidson rendezvous complete with oldster Wild Hogs revving it up to ear-splitting levels and outdoing each other in leather outfits.

On the Water Again (Anna Marie Island) 1-8-09

Well, it came time to shake off the barnacles and get back on the waterway again today. It was made easy by having a clear, low humidity, sunny day with a start of 61 degrees which is just perfect for us northern boaters. Gary and Rose on Rose’s Pick decided also to leave today and we traveled together for 44 miles to Anna Marie Island.

This trip entails going under 10 bridges. Bob had lowered our tall antennas for this (19.6') as we were going after low tide but all had a clearance of at least 21 feet. I should mention for fellow Loopers that the bridge tenders monitor Channel 9 which was not immediately apparent to us at the first bridge ( Bellaire)which also had important numbers missing on their sign that the central portion of the bridge span is 4 feet higher. Do not plan on making a lot of speed on this portion of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) as there are a lot of no-wake zones and some crab pots. You will have plenty of depth in well-marked channels and be accompanied periodically by curious dolphins.

As we neared Anna Marie Island, we saw a Coast Guard rescue practice mission with helicopters and boats which was made more real by the CG radio announcement later that an EPIRB (emergency beacon) had deployed in the area. It’s good to know that the technology works and that the CG is there.

US Today did a feature story on Anna Marie Island a few weeks ago and described it as the real Florida. It is a narrow island 8 miles long and is remarkable for the lack of hotels, hi-rises, shopping malls and box stores. We loved the laid-back feel and the 1950’s style Mom and Pop stores and restaurants. Cortez and Coquina beaches merge and provide miles of sand and Gulf waters ribboned by a walking and bike trail. Gary and Rose opted for the early evening spaghetti feed at the Moose Lodge, and Bob and I enjoyed a glorious sunset and full moonlight walk on the beach. The Manatee Trolley bus shuttles between here, Longboat Key and the mainland which makes the area accessible, but for now, it is still forgotten.

As we move south, the boats and people are getting more colorful. Would you guess that this colorful boat used to be a 1963 sedate 41’ Hatteras? The owner Rick is not done yet and plans to add another level of red and purple to “really bring out the color”. He shares the space with his cat and 2 African birds that talk and make girlie whistles. For a special treat, Rick lit all the Christmas lights and decorations for which he won 1st place at the boat parade, and that together with the neon glow of the boat, made it possible for us to do without inside lights that night.

Farewell to Clearwater 1-8-09

Welcome back faithful readers. Our boat has been docked at the Clearwater Beach marina for the past month and we have really enjoyed our time there. Most of our blog has focused on the traveling parts of our trip but some have asked what did we do daily in Clearwater for 3 weeks.

I am an early morning person and like nothing better than walking a beach for 1-2 hours at first light with my winged friends. I asked the pool staff at the Hilton Hotel if I could use their pool to do my water physical therapy program and they graciously let me use their pool early in the morning. There is a municipal pool in Clearwater but it is not open until March.

There is always something going on down at the docks and it’s always fun watching whose coming in and out. The pirate ship would regularly go by our dock at 4pm and start the song, "Who Let the Dogs Out", and then we were conditioned to start panting and sing the song also. Bob and I are not suntan people as you can tell from my still pasty white color that I have worked hard to maintain with sunscreen 45 and 55, but we did take our chairs down to the beautiful Clearwater beach every day at 2pm to read. After dinner, we would often head back to Pier 60 for a leisurely walk along the beach and catch a beautiful sunset.

Christmas in New York

We left sunny 70 degree Tampa on 12/25 for cold frosty Albany NY but were warmed there by the love of our family. My sister and brother-in-law, Maureen and Kevin, live there and graciously open their home and hearts to 16 family members who roll in with suitcases, laundry bag, sleeping bags, blow-up mattresses and food for 5 days. Did I mention liquor as this is an Irish family. It is quite a production with non-stop food, conversation, fun and games. Kevin good naturedly tries to tell us that family like fish stinks after 3 days but we continue to stay. The twenty year old cousins were invited to a number of parties but opted to hang with the crazy aunts and uncles probably to get stories and pictures to bribe us with later.

Catch the picture of Bob trying out Guitar Hero. OK—Norwegians do have to work a little harder at the rhythm thing but he was psyched by it and wants to get one for the boat. Our family loves the interactive game Mafia in which family members secretly plot to off each other—it really helps the bonding Soprano style. With rounds of Dance Revolution and American Idol, I can honestly report that there is a lot of “talent” in this family.

It is always hard to say good-bye but we always take with us our love for each other. We will see the whole gang again on the East coast this summer. We had an 18 hour trip back to Tampa through snow and sleet but did get to Clearwater beach at 12 midnight to catch the New Year fireworks.

Happy New Year and may 2009 bring you much joy and happiness.