On Sunday April 19, 2009 it was time to start our journey home. We were very happy to have had the opportunity to see the west coast. Both of us agreed the west coast of Florida is very pretty, with great anchorages, however it's very shallow. Speaking of shallow, we couldn't dawdle to cross Lake Okeechobee. The lake is getting shallow and the locks had gone on restricted hours because the Army Corps had started lowering the water level. There was the lake to traverse and the five locks to go through.
Our first night we anchored in Pelican Bay near Cayo Costa. There were several MTOA boats heading home as well. The dinghy didn't come down because we had to make a pit stop to refuel the Summer Wind at Burnt Store Marina in Charlotte Harbor at $2.04/gal, so it was rather late in the afternoon by the time we arrived.The next day was off to Fort Myers and the city marina. We were very happy that we were able to leave the anchorage because a chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon was predicted and to be honest well needed. The storms stayed to our north, so they didn't affect our travels. Shortly after noon we arrived at the City marina. We had time to do some laundry and chores before going out to dinner with Nancy and Joe, great Mexican dinner. The scenery while cutting the Florida State kept changing as we went along. 
Dick timed our departure Tuesday April 21,2009 in order to make the lock opening which was only opening on the odd hours. There were two locks that day, the Franklin and Ortona Locks. The Ortona Lock had left us feeling frustrated and upset. Our boat was the first to enter and the lock was going to raise us about 15 feet. The rush of the water had created such a current and force that it was pulling the Summer Wind away from the wall, our lines (closer to the front provided by the lock) weren't long enough for us to have secured them to the boat. We had never had such a bad experience, and hope to never have that again! That night we tied up at Riverside dock in Moore Haven which is a wall with a dock for a few boats that you tie up on your own and your on your honor to pay. Leave the money or check in a lock box. The dock wall was full by the end of the day and we met two couples for cocktails. That's the greatest thing about boating, meeting people along the way. 
Wednesday morning we left Moorehaven early in the morning. We had two locks to traverse that day the Moorehaven and Mayaca Lock. The first part of the trip took us along the rim of the Okeechobee where there is plenty of wild and plant life to enjoy. Crossing the Okeechobee Lake at first was a little shall we say startling. We had entered the marsh channel around Clewiston and had hit a rather hard bump. Dick pulled back the throttle and checked out the boat. Then he put the boat back in gear and the Summer Wind seemed fine, no vibration, whew! The journey across the lake after that was uneventful although we did notice that the level of the lake had decreased a fair bit since our last crossing. The Mayaca lock was in the open position and onward to Indiantown Marina.
Indiantown Marina docks were not exactly the best docks we've seen. The first slip they had assigned us had a very tiny finger pier. There was no way we would have been able to get off the dock so, they assigned us another slip. Although longer, rickety was the only way to describe the dock. Because the marina is a little out of the way, restaurants will come and pick cruisers up. That evening we and another couple were picked up and because the restaurant was busy, we shared the table and had great conversation. That's how we met Nancy and Don on the Nellie B.
On Thursday April 23,2009 we stopped in Stuart, Florida. Tom Gilbert was at his home in Jensen Beach and invited us for a barbeque. He picked us up and took us to his home. We had a delightful dinner with his mom Evie, Tom, his brother- In law Curt, and two friends Chris and John. That evening we also went to town because every Thursday is "Jammin in Jensen" where motorcycles and vendors of every kind fill the streets. We had also gone to get some ice cream, however the ice cream store had moved to Stuart, imagine that!! 
We spent an extra day in Stuart because we like this little town very much. We walked the old downtown area, checked out the shops and boutiques. Tom and Curt joined us in the afternoon for a bit. We said our goodbyes, had a great time in Stuart. That evening we put the dinghy back onboard, and barbequed some sausage for dinner to go with the salad. As Dick was bbqing, a pod of dolphins came in to do some sunset fishing. It was great watching them swim around the boat.Well, now its time to start our trek north!
to be continued.
Our first day, we had a little 'free time' so a few necessary chores needed to be completed. First we needed to get a few provisions for the pot luck, hosting lunch aboard, and some social hour tidbits, so Publix (one of our friends had a car)here we come. Then we tended to do laundry because from our last rendezvous experience we learned there was going to be no free time during the event. Lastly, we cleaned the Summer Wind top to bottom because we volunteered to open our boat for 'green ribbon' visitations so other Turtles can come see our home away from home.
Everyday there is a 'social hour',where its time to catch up, mingle and get to know some new Turtles. This was also our first opportunity to meet our mentees the Beschers and make sure they felt welcomed and were having a good time and answer any questions they may have had about the event. Dick and I volunteered this year to be mentors. We've had wonderful and positive experiences at our 2 previous MTOA rendezvous and wanted to share our enthusiasm about this great organization. This picture below is Robin, our mentor from last year. 
Pot luck is usually the first nights dinner. There was a delicious array of dishes to sample and swap recipes. I (Elle) made chili and was pleased that it was a success, many compliments and an empty pot!
So the next day, Sunday we said our goodbyes and started our journey home.
Our first stop was Sarasota. Since we were there on the way up the coast we just dropped the hook and enjoyed a quiet evening. The next day was a short one to Englewood Beach where again the hook went down. Since Elle needed more shells we went ashore in the dinghy and walked the beach in search of same. The camera came out and, of course my resident photographer was busy. With a bag full of shells and back on board we grilled a nice chunk of salmon and enjoyed the evening. We were meeting 7 or 8 boats on Easter Sunday for a mini rendezvous so we had another day in between to go to a nice marina I remember from a few years earlier. It had a wonderful pool and a great restaurant so we indulged. 
On Easter Sunday, we went into Pelican Harbor to meet our friends. The rendezvous was great since everyone brought a dish to share. Elle made her famous Chili which was a big hit. Stayed in Pelican Harbor until Wednesday morning sustaining a huge storm the night before with winds gusting over 40 MPH, lightning, thunder and rain pouring sideways. Many boats were dragging their anchors but with 80 feet of chain and my heavy anchor we held fine. We were more concerned with other boats coming down on us. Everybody fared OK and the next day we were off to the MTOA rendezvous, but that is another story.
St. Petersburg was a place that neither of us have been, so it was going to be a new adventure. The night before we left Dunedin, we found out that St. Petersburg was having race week. Good thing we had phoned to make a reservation, or else there would have been no slip available. We also found out the track was going right in front of the marina. This sounds like its going to be an exciting weekend. So. Saturday April 4th,2009 we pulled into the basin in which we first encountered several police patrol boats. The basin was crowded with several boats and if we didn't have a slip, we weren't getting in, no big boats!
Well, we pulled in, tied up, went to the office and was warmly welcomed by all the staff. On top of the desk there was a box of ear plugs and a brochure with the schedule of events and we were told to help ourselves, and it was recommended to use the plugs if we were going to go anywhere near the gate. Our weekend was a smorgasbord of events. We immediately went to the gate to watch the preliminary races, absolutely amazing and exciting. Later in the afternoon, we went back to the boat for lunch and sat on the back deck to watch an air show and then watch the cars race around the track. Sunday, bright and early around 8:00 am, over the loud speakers, the American Anthem was playing and the stands were filling up with spectators, patriotic parachuters falling from the sky, another exciting race day. Today was going to be the Grand Prix Formula 1 race cars. Let us just say, WOW! This is a video below, click on the arrow. 
Again, its seems like Mother Nature was singing the same song only this time harder, the temps dropped from mid 80's to low 60's and night time low 40's and very windy.The couple on the sailboat beside us came out on deck and we noticed them taking pictures. Inside the yacht basin there are warm springs and this is where the manatees come because they need the warm water. There was a crowd at the end of the dock all mesmerized by the sight they were witnessing. Here at the end of the dock was a mother manatee rolling in the warm water coming from the boats air conditioning system. She was trying to get her calf under the spray and she would roll onto her back. However the calf wanted nothing to do with coming under the water, she just wanted to suckle. This sight awed and humbled us, very moving and loving. This is a video below, click on the arrow to watch.
The next morning we left for Clearwater. The winds were high and the trip was kind of rocky, but got there unscathed and thank all the (5) guys on the dock at the city marina for their help. Got a round of applause for not banging into anything as I maneuvered in. Not sure if I would have been able to get in to the slip without it. Note the boats in the clip below. That was one of the calmer days, can you imagine how much rockin and rollin occurred during the heavier winds. For the first 3 hours we couldn't get off the Summer Wind because the wind was holding us off the small finger pier. The tall boat in the background is the Summer Wind. 
Stayed in Clearwater 3 days, one of which we were picked up by Billy and Barbara Hajko and taken to their house for a lovely dinner. Amazingly I (Dick) have known them for almost 30 years and we are still friends LOLOL.
Sarasota is adorned with many statues, Greek gods,art deco, and statues representing times in history. You don't have to go to an art museum to appreciate them.
Sarasota brought back many memories for Dick for his in-laws lived on Lido Key. We took the trolley to St. Armand's circle where we walked and window shopped and ,of course, stopped for an ice cream, YUMMMM!!!! Also did a little walking on Lido beach where Dick shared stories.
