Coming Home to St. Petersburg

Monday morning, June 22nd, we spent a little time walking around Ft. Myers Beach shopping for a new swimsuit for me before leaving our mooring and topping off with fuel at Ballard Oil. We were underway by 1:00 p.m. with choppy Bay waters and gusty northwest winds. We traveled about forty miles to anchor at Cape Haze by 6:30 p.m. Another hot, muggy day.

The car ferry getting ready to cross the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.


On Tuesday we made it as far as Longboat Key with another seven hours under our belts. The northwest winds were howling and Bay waters were a bit beyond choppy, especially Sarasota Bay where we got sprayed in the face with saltwater through the flybridge windows!

A storm blew through overnight, mostly wind, but it kept the Captain awake and on edge for a while. Another boat had anchored behind us late Tuesday evening and Todd watched it as it began dragging when the wind hit. Fortunately it wasn’t dragging toward “Life’s2Short” and the people on board were on top of the situation and were able to get safely re-anchored a short time later. I slept through the entire incident, storm and all!

Wednesday morning was nice and calm for our remaining three hours to Cathy’s house off Boca Ciega Bay where I promptly tackled several weeks of laundry while enjoying the air conditioning!

“Life’s2Short” tied up to her home-away-from-home.


Thursday was spent catching up on three months of mail and working on a variety of boat projects, including our spotlight which the Captain finally decided would have to be replaced.

The Captain working on replacing the spotlight.


Our friends from Crystal River, Bob & Phillis, were in the Tampa area so they came by Cathy’s to pick us up and we went to lunch at Sea Hags on St. Pete Beach where met Art & Trish, fellow boaters and friends of Bob & Phillis. Apparently Art & Trish had planned to go to the Exumas this spring but had to cancel at the last minute due to some boat issues.

When we got back to Cathy’s, we borrowed her car to go to West Marine to purchase a new spotlight and then to Wal-Mart for the dreaded restocking run. We finally made it back by 6:00 with a car full of shopping bags and decided to order in Chinese food and relax for the remainder of the evening.

Friday was mostly cloudy with rain off and on as we continued tackling our list of boat projects and chores. By Saturday the majority of our work was done and we spent the day relaxing around Cathy’s pool with Steve & Lisa who drove down from the north Tampa area to spend the night.

Pool time at Cathy’s with Steve & Lisa and Taz.


That evening we grilled some of the Mahi-mahi we brought back from the Exumas for dinner and then spent the rest of the evening playing a game called Apples to Apples. The boys decided to turn in well before midnight, but the girls were having too much fun and stayed up until about 3:00 a.m. solving the world’s problems, or something like that!

Lisa & Brenda getting ready to play Apples to Apples.


Let the games begin!


After the boys called it a night the girls went for a 2:00 a.m. dip. They also mentioned something about a pillow fight but we didn’t believe them…or did we???


Steve, who had tried every trick in the book to relieve his hiccups, got advice on a new trick from Cathy that worked immediately!! It has something to do with putting a spoon on your forehead while drinking a glass of water, all the while concentrating on the light reflecting off the spoon…sounds crazy but it cured them!


We spent some time hanging around the pool again late Sunday morning before Steve & Lisa headed home and the rest of the day was spent doing a few minor projects and chores and relaxing. Todd took off about 11:00 p.m. to pick up our good friend Everett Hayes who flew down from Springfield, MO to help Todd move the boat from St. Petersburg to Demopolis, AL while I fly back to Missouri to visit family. Todd and Everett made a similar trip two years ago and are looking forward to another “guys on the go” adventure!

The morning after and all Lisa wants is a cheeseburger??


Today is Monday, June 29th, and the boys are making final preparations to pull away from the dock tomorrow morning to begin their journey north. We wish them safe, fun and trouble-free travels as they spend the next couple of weeks covering well over 500 miles. Bon Voyage!

The Captain took Everett over to St Pete Beach this morning so he could dip his toes in the sand and saltwater prior to beginning their trip north.


This past weekend for Everett was a busy one because of a family wedding so he took an opportunity to take a long nap Monday afternoon on Cathy’s porch.


Monday evening we were craving Mexican food so a “Trip to the VIP” was in order. Great margs & Mexican food was had by all!


Well it’s now Tuesday morning the last day of June and the Captain & Everett have decided to wait at least another day before heading north. The weather for the next 24 hours calls for gusty winds, thunderstorms, and lots & lots of rain. They hope the weather will break by noon tomorrow so they can start their “Guys Trip”.