More Fun in Ft. Myers Beach

We arrived at Bonita Bill’s about 3:30 on Wednesday, March 23rd, after taking on 310 gallons of fuel at Ballard Oil for $3.85 per gallon, including tax.  Mark, Jim and Bob were all on the dock ready to catch a line and Jim had a pitcher of beer ready to share.  In fact, he was pouring us a drink before we even got all our lines situated!



Thursday was a quiet day.  We met Kerby at the bar when he got off work and had a few drinks there before going to Doc Ford’s for a few more.  Then it was back to the boat for an early evening.



Friday morning we had to move the boat to free up space at the dinghy dock for the weekend.  Anyone who knows me very well knows how much I hate docking!  But other than one engine crapping out on us just as we got out in the bay next to “Miss Cher,” it went fine.  Todd had changed the fuel filter on the port engine the previous day and forgot to turn the fuel valve back on.  Thankfully it was a calm morning at slack tide!  And, once again, we had Jim and Bob and even Kerby on the dock to assist.

Later that morning we met up with Tom & Colletta who were visiting family in the area.  Tom & Colletta live in Chicago and Tom has been following our blog for several years.  They recently purchased an Ocean Alexander and are in the process of moving it to their home waters on Lake Michigan.  After chatting aboard “Life’s2Short” for a while, they graciously treated us to lunch at Bonita Bill’s.

It was nice to finally meet you guys.  Thanks for lunch!



Later that afternoon we joined Jim on the patio for a while and then Mo & Gale stopped by in their dinghy.  Their boat, “Blue Heron” is currently at Snook Bight Marina awaiting a new transmission.  When they left we joined Steve & Diane (“Aurora”) and their group at Bonita Bill’s for a crazy evening of karaoke.  If you saw the last blog update, you will recognize Steve & Diane from our many fun evenings in Sarasota.



Diane and the girls singing Girls Just Want to Have Fun by Cyndi Lauper.





Then Brenda and The Rockettes took the stage.  My first (and hopefully last) live karaoke attempt!  Thanks for backing me up, girls!





Getting geared up for the Blues Brothers!





And here they are, complete with backup dancers!







Looks like the girls are having fun!



Dancing with the Captain.



Winding down the evening with a final song by Kerby.



Todd got industrious Saturday morning and washed the boat.  But other than that, we spent a quiet day aboard.  Sunday was also quiet until about 4:00 when we joined Kerby, Shelly and Tony at the bar and then meandered next door to Doc Ford’s for a few drinks.  Todd & I decided to walk over the bridge and ended up at The Lighthouse Tiki Bar where we found Jim sitting at a table with several people.  We joined him for a while, grabbed a quick bite to eat and headed back to “Life’s2Short.”

The “Sea Trek” fishing charter always draws a crowd when it returns from a trip.



We awoke Monday to thunderstorms with strong, gusty winds and pelting rain.  A good time to be tied to the dock!  Other than going to the bar to have Kerby’s locally renowned meatloaf for lunch, we spent a quiet day on board putting together our blog site advertising “Life’s2Short”  for sale:  http://l2s4sale.blogspot.com/.  We then went up to the bar about 6:00 p.m. to help Tony and Shelly who were swamped and short-handed.  After the crowds died down we stayed for a while and visited with Jim and a few of the other patrons before calling it a night.
There is always always a lot of bird life on the docks at Bonita Bill’s.

Great Blue Heron



Great American Egret



Snowy Egret, note the yellow feet



And then there’s Splash, who has a history.  Splash was thrown off the Matanzas Pass bridge (65’) as a kitten, was rescued by Bonita Bill’s and has been a “family member” ever since!



Tuesday morning Jim gave Todd a ride to the store to pick up a few things.  We planned to pull out Wednesday morning, so about 4:30 Tuesday afternoon we went up to the bar to say goodbye to Shelly when she got off work.  Then we had Kenny (off the shrimp boat “Miss Cher”) and Jim over for a nice dinner.  Kenny reciprocated by bringing us a two-pound bag of beautiful, fresh jumbo shrimp.  What a deal!  Then it was back to the bar to say our goodbyes to Kerby since Wednesday is his day off.

An evening view of Bonita Bill’s from "Life’s2Short."



It got very windy Wednesday morning and there was a huge line of storms with tornado watches and warnings to the north, so we decided not to leave.  Greg & Sandy off “Latitude Dancer” stopped by late that morning and invited us to join them at the Moose Lodge for dinner and dancing, but we ended up running into Larry & Sheryl later that evening at Bonita Bill’s and didn’t make it.  We originally met Larry & Sheryl at Bonita Bill’s on St. Patrick’s Day in 2008 and saw them again last March when we were here.  What a sweet couple!

This photo is from 2010 but it’s worth posting again.



Thursday remained very windy and the storms were still raging to the north, very slowly working their way south, so we spent another day tied to the dock.  As the Captain likes to say:  “Cruisers don’t have plans, just intentions!”  We then joined the gang at the Bonita Bill’s Tiki Bar for a final evening of fun and camaraderie.

Hanging at the Tiki Bar with “the gang.”





Shelly and Aaron, who both work at Bonita Bill’s.



Tony being silly in the kitchen.



A final hug for Shelly.  Thanks for the good times, girl!



What remained of the storm front (which wasn’t much) finally moved through in the wee hours of Friday morning so we untied the dock lines and were underway before 8:00 a.m. April 1st.  Our faithful dock hands, Jim and Bob, helped us get off the dock without any major incidents and we proceeded to cover about 85 miles – a very long day for us!  Eleven-and-a-half hours later we dropped anchor at the northwest end of Sarasota Bay near Whale Key.  The northwest wind was still blowing pretty hard and the Gulf was a mess, so we weren’t able to run offshore.

Leaving Ft. Myers Beach with a shrimp boat in front of us.



Saturday morning we continued north the final four hours to Cathy’s house in St. Petersburg where Cathy and neighbors Ted & Linda were waiting at the dock to help us tie up.  On our way through Tampa Bay, however, we ran into all sorts of activity, dodging sailboats and steering clear of several huge cigarette boats!

A busy morning in Tampa Bay!



Friday evening another one of Cathy’s neighbors, Bob, dropped by when he was walking the dogs so Cathy invited him to stay for a while, called his wife Marilyn and asked her to come up, then she invited the neighbors on either side of her (Ted & Linda and Joe & Jackie) to join us as well.  So the nine of us spent the next few hours sitting around the table on the lanai playing the dice game Left Center Right.  If you’ve never tried it, it’s very simple and a lot of fun.  And if you’re lucky you might even win a few bucks!

Today is Sunday, April 3rd, and we are busy making preparations to fly back to Missouri to spend some time with my niece, Jennifer, and the rest of the family.  We should arrive back in St. Petersburg on April 14th and will continue the trek north on or about the 18th with plans to stop at Anclote Key (outside Tarpon Springs) and Crystal River.  While in Crystal River we will visit Bob & Phillis, old-time boaters from way back, who have made Crystal River their permanent home.  Looking forward to seeing you again, guys!