Get ready for a lot. I have had 3 cups of Greek coffee, which I should not be drinking, and I am wired for sound.
An addendum to yesterday. The Admiral has asked that I report she did a perfect job of docking the boat stern in. Never even touched it as it settled in nicely. She has become quite proficient at close in manuevering.
Today was a work and play day. Up early to start cleanup. Setting up a boat to cross the Gulf means pulling everthing off the outside and securing it inside the cockpit and pulling all knic nacs inside down and stowing away. So we have now washed the boat as thoroughly as she has ever had and put everything back in place for more sedate Intracoastal cruising. It is good to be able to move around the cockpit again without tripping over junk.
Broke out the bikes and off we went.
Here are some shots coming into the Anclote River as you approach Tarpon Springs. You will note a bald eagle sitting on a limb. Within seconds he was attacked by a pair of ospreys defending their nest. They drove him upriver but you should have seen the aerial battle as the eagle flipped and tried to catch one of the ospreys. This close up with nature is a side benefit of our trip.
Cbay backed in at Turtle Cove.
We went to Mama’s Greek Cuisine for dinner. It is one of our favorites from a previous trip. A little known gem just one half block off the main drag. We had fried smelt. They are excellent. In fact we will ultimately eat here for Saturday dinner and Sunday lunch and dinner. Now that is customer devotion.
First we washed the boat. This was a great opportunity to try out our new custom designed hats which were Christmas gifts from our dear friends Jim and Janet Peeler. Mine says Captain and Jan’s says Commodore. Jim, an old Navy man who introduced us to Kool-Aid, says they are equal ranks. The Captain is responsible for day to day operation of the boat including all maintenance and the Commodore is the liason and planning officer. I am not to sure about that, and will defer to our other naval expert the Commander. In any event the hats are perfect since both us are fair skinned and have had some skin issues on our ears. We may look Gothic but we are UV protected.
Rode our folding bikes over to a nearby lagoon to watch the manatee. They come up in these areas in winter looking for warmer water for themselves and their young. Hard to photograph with these point and shoot cameras because of shutter delay but I hope our new Nikon Coolpix is taking better pictures than out old one. Our friend Larry Taulbee was our inspiration. Not up to his standard but a notch above our previous work.
Tarpon Springs is a wonderful place to visit by land or sea. It was started as a sponge diving area and at one time was the sponge capital of the world. Now most of the sponge beds have played out and tourism has become king. There are more real Greeks here than anywhere other than a college campus. You may notice our new matching shirts with the Cbay logo in full color. A Christmas gift from Beth and Jim. Beth is Jan’s sister and Jim is her talented husband who designed our logo. If you are an ebay attorney reading this please contact me and not Jim. He discouraged us from doing it but in my humble legal opinion we are at significant variance from their design.
Now to catch you up on our friends and yours. One of our readers said that he felt like he knew these people through us and he would love to meet them someday. Pat and Ken on 20BUCK$ are at Marina Jack’s in Sarasota where they will be for the month of January. We will see them when we pass through in a week or so. Pam and Bill on Seabiscuit are also at Marina Jack’s after spending two weeks at home in Lexington. Dean and Beth on Kismet are at Islamorada in the Keys at Plantation Marina. Ziggy is enjoying the tropical weather and may meet another parrot there. My Way, the boat that blew an engine outside Fairhope, AL is MIA. I will try to call them tomorrow as the boat was supposed to be ready for sea on the 6th but whoever finishes on time?
It is after midnight. I told you I should have left the coffee alone. My cardiologist would have a stroke. In the morning we will tend to a few chores and leave on a rising tide for Clearwater where we hope to visit friends Ray and Arleen at the Clearwater Yacht Club. We put the sun cushion out on the foredeck today. Why don’t you lay back and enjoy the ride?
