Nov. 6- Dec. 18 Our Kadey Krogen Manatee trawler passes the muster and we grab a flight to Maine

Our annual Thanksgiving visit with Erin and her family was upon us. Before we left “Summertime” still high and dry in the Safe Cove Boat Yard, her survey had been completed... with a score of above average! We then found an insurance company that offered us a good coverage at a reasonable cost. Whew! Allegiant Air flew us from St. Pete/ Clearwater, FL to Bangor, ME in 3 hours non-stop. Erin met us with the winter coats that we had stashed at the Ellis’ house before we left Maine in October. The ground was bare but the temps were in the 30’s. Br-r-r-r!  We noticed the cold more than the younger set. They reveled in it. 

Emily's famous and delicious made-from-scratch carrot cake

Orono, with its U Maine campus, is a bustling town. There are always lots of social moments to choose from. As a result, the Ellis family has a busy life... school, church with choir and bell-ringers and a variety of after-school activities. Erin is on the Orono School Board and works in the Engineering Dept. office at UMO. Brett has several big projects in the works as well as his daily teaching commitments at UMO. Emily and Bailey are making great gains with piano lessons.

I was impressed with how well we could play Christmas carols as piano duets together. Wally and I are looking forward to having the girls join us here on the boat in Florida during their February school vacation.

With Wally’s bother moving from Millinocket to the Sugarloaf Mountain of Western Maine, 98-year old Mother June said good-by to her loving Sweet Seniors Guest Home and moved closer to son Jason. She seems to be adjusting well to her new environment.

Back in Florida, our friends in the Port Charlotte area gave us a “Splash Over” party the day our trawler went back in the water. The boatyard staff was surprised with the interest generated by their Travellift expertise. They were also impressed that our royal send-off went on for 3 hours. Thank you Paula and Dale, Pam and Bob and Pat and Alan!

Pam, Dale and Paula

Pam, Alan, Dale, Paula

Wally, Pat, and Bob with Darcy taking the pictures

We made our way down the 8-mile freshwater canal, locked through to salty Charlotte Harbor and crossed to Pelican Bay at Cayo Costa State Park.

Cayo Costa is our favorite anchorage

Sunsets are always beautiful

It was fabulous to be back on the water, anchored and then strolling down the Gulf shore side of the island. After two overnights, we made our way 35 miles south on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) to the Caloosahatchee River. Our slip in the City of Fort Myers Yacht Basin awaited us 9 miles to the east. 

Our slip for the next couple of months

Our view of the ever-so beautiful sunset

Pat and Alan from my hometown in Maine took us back to the boat yard (a 1-hour drive, but 2-day cruise!) to get our car. They are spending 3 months in a lovely neighborhood near the boatyard and had just visited friends in Fort Myers Beach, so retrieving our car with them was the perfect answer. We stayed overnight with them and enjoyed sharing stories and swimming in their pool.

We joined the Appalachian Strings at the Cultural Center of Charlotte County. For 2 hours on Tuesday mornings we play our mountain dulcimers with about 30 other enthusiasts. Ukulele players gather once a month just before the dulcimers. It’s the perfect world for us!

Dulcimer Jam

My sister Val and her husband Rick moved their “Whit’s End II” from Myrtle Beach, SC to Fort Pierce, FL recently. We drove across the South Florida peninsula to the Atlantic side to welcome them to our world. The Ft. Pierce City Marina has expanded its docks and it very up-to-date and welcoming. Friends Rob and Trish arrived on “Linda Jean”  and we all enjoyed a night of camaraderie.  

Rick, Darcy, Tricia, Wally, Rob
on Whit's End II

Val, Darcy, Tricia, Wally, Rob

Val and Darcy

We are enjoying being reunited with friends here in Florida. One of the most unexpected reunions happened after 40 years.

Darcy, Wally and Alayne

Elayne last saw us before we left Pittsfield, MA for Saudi Arabia. A Facebook Friend, she contacted us when she was in South Florida and we welcomed her to pay us a visit on the boat. What a lot of catching up we did in a few hours! We drove to Naples this week to visit with Dan and Natalie...friends from our Mexican travel days around 2000. It was great to see each other after all these years.

As we begin our 5th season of cruising, we are always delighted to renew friendships with folks we’ve met along the way. Dave and Barb from “Miss my Money” brought the “Cat Daddy” folks by and we reminisced about our Great Loop time together. Every day another boat or two arrives here in the Yacht Basin for a prolonged stay. How great is that!?!

Dave from "Miss My Money"

Dave, Darcy, Annette and Rafe from "Cat Daddy"

Wally started a new eating plan 242 days ago. On that day he weighed in at 242 lbs. Today he weighed 198.2 lbs! It’s been 30 years since he last broke the 200 mark. It’s been a serious effort on our part to eat healthy meal after meal. Wally is beaming as he slips into new clothes that really show off his trim figure. I dropped 15 lbs in the process so I’m liking my trim figure, too. At 70 and 71, we feel that we are giving ourselves a longer future for a fun and active life.