THE BLOG IS BACK!

Greetings from the shores of the Peace River here in beautiful Punta Gorda!  

John, Molly and I are once again in Florida and have been here since early December getting Free Bird back in shape and reconnecting with our dockmates here at Fisherman’s Village.

Until about a week ago it has been very hot here.  I know, I know - you have very little sympathy for us!  That has changed and we are now running the heater so Winter is here.  The days go so fast as there is always something to do in addition to working on the boat.  We are doing our best to fit in as much as we can.

I have joined a few of the gals from the marina on a couple guided kayaking trips.  One was throught the cypress swamps and the other through mangrove tunnels.  It's unlike any kayaking I have done.  Have thoroughly enjoyed discovering some new spots and meeting new people.   

Molly has been getting out and meeting new friends too.  Here was her 1st encounter with Izzy.  I think they actually like each other and may get to be girlfriends!

We continue to walk the neighborhood and discover new flora and fauna too.  Have come across some stunning colors.  It's literally an everchanging canvas as every day I go out I see something I missed the day before!

Our neighbor Bob Ryan was in Miami on business and John went over to meet him and They hung out in "the Keys" for a couple days.  They romped around in Key West checking out the action on Duvall Street and took a tour of the lighthouse and Fort Zachary Taylor.  I believe more than a few beers were consumed along the way!  

Coming down here in December meant spending our 1^st Christmas away from home.  Although we missed our friends and family back home, it was very festive here. 

We decorated the boat and even had a baby tree.  Caught a boat parade, did a night time canal tour of homes that were all decorated for the season and even saw the Grinch!  

 We sailed south to Fort Meyers Beach with another boat, Suzi and Mike on Night Shift and spent Christmas Eve and Day down there under the full moon.

Celebrating the 18th anniversary of the day we met - Christmas Eve!

Crew of Night Shift

We had the opportunity to sail up the coast on the outside and in through Boca Grande Pass anchoring off of Useppa Island on our way back home.  

I have 2 words for New Year’s Eve.  BIG FUN!!  The evening started with a transient boater playing bagpipes at sunset.  You just never know what's going to happen around here!

We attended a party sponsored by the marina for all its boaters.  All we had to do was walk down the dock and spend the night making merry.  I believe we all did a great job of it too!  

Some wild and crazy girls!

Took another 3-day trip last week with Jane, Steve and Izzy of Sea Pearl down to Cayo Costa State Park.  Highlights included time spent walking on the beach, a looooong dinghy ride in search of the “tunnel of love” and another gator encounter.  Saturday evening we weathered a storm packing some big winds and rain.  While there was a pretty bad tornado just to the South of us, other than a few rattled nerves I am happy to report we came out unscathed.  

Crew of Sea Pearl

Now we are in “get ready” mode as we prepare for our trip around the tip of Florida and our jump over to the Bahamas.  We will be travelling with 2 other boats from our marina and I think another sailboat crew we met coming down the river system last year will be joining us too.  The plan is to spend February and March there returning to our home port here in April and back home late April or May.

Just wanted to bring you up to speed and let you know we are alive and well down here. 

Please stay tuned as the blog will continue as our coming adventures unfold.  We plan to add an interactive button showing you our current position so you can track our voyage and we will do our best to document our journey so you can be with us as we sail on.

Here’s hoping all of you had a wonderful holiday season and that 2016 brings blessings upon us all!