At Lorelei in Islamorada - a favorite !
pups love it here too !
Serenity
Cadillacs and pirate ships co exist here
Key West
Spring break in Key West
Ok - I will never be a professional conch blower
Jon and Rooster pal
Never at a loss for directions
Visitors next to our table at lunch
Tues. March 29, 2011
Sat. we picked up our rental wheels, then headed right back to Lorelei for happy hour, dinner and nonsense - the tuna remains a favorite of mine. Sun. we packed a lunch for the long ride, loaded our GPS so we could drive the straight line without getting lost, and headed to Key West. We detoured on our way to visit with our friend Sarah Taylor at her beautiful home, then onto Key West. Great afternoon, oysters, Bloody Marys and fudge !!! Yesterday ,Monday was the first annual (I hope) Fun in the Sun - wienies and buns party here at Banana Bay. We started with afternoon water/beach activities, followed by happy/cocktails hours while being serenaded by Pat ont the key boards and Don on guitar, then we roasted the wienies on the fire pit, rounded out by smores and sa'more singing - it was about as close to perfect as you can get for the ideal day at the marina with friends !
Sat. we picked up our rental wheels, then headed right back to Lorelei for happy hour, dinner and nonsense - the tuna remains a favorite of mine. Sun. we packed a lunch for the long ride, loaded our GPS so we could drive the straight line without getting lost, and headed to Key West. We detoured on our way to visit with our friend Sarah Taylor at her beautiful home, then onto Key West. Great afternoon, oysters, Bloody Marys and fudge !!! Yesterday ,Monday was the first annual (I hope) Fun in the Sun - wienies and buns party here at Banana Bay. We started with afternoon water/beach activities, followed by happy/cocktails hours while being serenaded by Pat ont the key boards and Don on guitar, then we roasted the wienies on the fire pit, rounded out by smores and sa'more singing - it was about as close to perfect as you can get for the ideal day at the marina with friends !
Trina a bit relaxed
Heading down to the gathering spot
George
Karen, friend and Skip
Max, Mandy and Don
Pam, Nancy and Joyce
Patty and Ed
Don, Stephen and Michel
Jon and I - oops that's Barbara
Joyce and Dave
Larry - our dockmaster
Ed
Dan and Donnie
Jon, Bob and Jim
Max and Sue
Joyce and Dave
Karen and Pat
Donnie
the gang
Time for wienies and buns
Pat, George, Bob and Jim with a serious hot dog grilling basket
Biddi
Max and Betty start the smores
Patty and Susan on Marshmellow duty
Betty, Pegge, Patty and Susan - lots of flaming marshmellows going on
Wed. March 30, 2011
This will shock many of you, but....... the pizza, cocktail, minimum exercise diet just is not working, no matter how hard I try !! We are eating pizza on average four nights a week, with leftovers for breakfast and lunch, cocktails daily, and minimum exercise consists of walking to the pizza place next door, walking to cocktail hours (hours) 100 yards away, and yoga 3 times a week. Speaking of yoga, who in the world ever invented yoga ??!! Was someone just sitting around one day and thought, hmmpphh.... today I will lay on my stomach, bend backward at the waist till my back cracks, and call it a cobra ? Maybe I will stand up, split my legs as far as they will go, then lean forward and touch the floor while I scream in agony at the top of my lungs - this will be the warrior pose. Maybe today I will just stand on my head so all the blood rushes to it, I feel faint and dizzy, get a cramp in my neck fall over and the pull of the muscles on one side of my body. One morning I had a great idea, I will just bend forward at the waist, keeping my knees straight and put my forehead on the ground while resting comfortably with even slow breaths - no probelm except you forget to breath, can not stand up, and get a mild case of the bends - are you kidding me - breath ???!!! Then there is my personal favorite, the day someone woke and and thought, how about today, I will lay on my back, throw my legs over my head so my shoulders land on the floor behind my head, and then I can kiss my own *** goodbye ? Plans for today - cocktail hours followed by an invitation for dinner featuring grilled pizzas - hey, I am no quitter !!
This will shock many of you, but....... the pizza, cocktail, minimum exercise diet just is not working, no matter how hard I try !! We are eating pizza on average four nights a week, with leftovers for breakfast and lunch, cocktails daily, and minimum exercise consists of walking to the pizza place next door, walking to cocktail hours (hours) 100 yards away, and yoga 3 times a week. Speaking of yoga, who in the world ever invented yoga ??!! Was someone just sitting around one day and thought, hmmpphh.... today I will lay on my stomach, bend backward at the waist till my back cracks, and call it a cobra ? Maybe I will stand up, split my legs as far as they will go, then lean forward and touch the floor while I scream in agony at the top of my lungs - this will be the warrior pose. Maybe today I will just stand on my head so all the blood rushes to it, I feel faint and dizzy, get a cramp in my neck fall over and the pull of the muscles on one side of my body. One morning I had a great idea, I will just bend forward at the waist, keeping my knees straight and put my forehead on the ground while resting comfortably with even slow breaths - no probelm except you forget to breath, can not stand up, and get a mild case of the bends - are you kidding me - breath ???!!! Then there is my personal favorite, the day someone woke and and thought, how about today, I will lay on my back, throw my legs over my head so my shoulders land on the floor behind my head, and then I can kiss my own *** goodbye ? Plans for today - cocktail hours followed by an invitation for dinner featuring grilled pizzas - hey, I am no quitter !!
Joyce showing a boat bite and Sue
Jim and Jon
Betty
Amazing Sue- opening the boboli with hand while holding wine in the other
Pat, George and Bob explaining the fine art of assembling the pizzas
Joyce and Dave - on thier way
What is that ?
Pizza grill master Bob
George and Pat
Jon and I
Kisses from Crew
A very happy Crew
and handsome too
Sue, Trina, Pegge, Mandy, Barbara, Susan, Patty and Betty
Nancy and George
And the sun goes down
down
down
Sandy face
Key Fisheries with
Jon, Susan, Bob and Sue
And we off red sky at morn - sailors take warn
Susan
Sunday 9:00 PM
Banana Bay mm 1193
Anchorage Marina – Jewfish Creek – mm 1134
We are on the move again – headed back to Palm Coast – weather forecast – hot and sweaty, again….
We really had a wonderful month this year in Marathon – very fun and great people at the marina. Thurs Am was yoga, followed by lunch with the ladies, afternoon siesta, then out to dinner with Bob and Sue and to the Keys Fisheries – a busy schedule and not for the faint of heart ! We sat upstairs at the bar for sunset and munched our way through a dinner of a variety of seafood samplings. Jon and I both tried the stone crab claws again, and I must say, they were 1,000 times better than the ones we got at the Seafood festival. We topped the evening off by going to the Marathon Yacht Club for frozen Brandy Alexanders – basically a thick milkshake with alcohol – delish !! Friday we got a call from Jim and Kathy that they were coming to Marathon for the weekend yesterday, so we spent Friday getting the boat ready for departure today, so we could just relax yesterday. Friday night we went to Hurricanes for dinner and ended up staying and listening to a great band, the Cane Doerfel family, which is actually 6 of 10 siblings ages 13 – 22, who were incredibly talented, and fun to listen to. Yesterday AM we did a Farmers market run, or I should say a battery bicycle run. Even though we stay at marinas every night and usually eat out for dinner, I still keep the galley well stocked in case we decide we want to eat on board. Yesterday afternoon we took Crew, who has become quite the little swimmer, to the beach to catch some waves, then Jon and I went the pool for the remainder or the afternoon. Jim and Kathy arrived at 5:00 PM, so we had some boaties, went to hurricanes for dinner for shocker – pizza, then went to see the finale of the play “Act Now.” The play was written and directed by friends of Jim and Kathy’s from Marathon. After the play, we ended up back at Hurricanes to listen to the band again. We were up early today for a 7:00 Am departure, and were bid farewell by Don and Patty, and Dave and Joyce at the dock. Crew had the great idea that we should leave him in Marathon to switch living on Don and Patty’s, then Joyce and Dave’s boat, till Jon and I could get home, get the car then go pick him up. I told Crew if we left him in Marathon we would not be back for him. He actually considered this longer than I thought he should have, but then he decided to stick with us and brave the trip home on the boat. We arrived here at the Anchorage Marina at 3:10 PM, but arrived three minute later than we did last year – I think the Captain and Crew are slipping …… As they do every Sunday – Gilbert’s across the water from the Anchorage had a fabulous band that we listened to, then went swimming and ate dinner at the restaurant here at the marina. Our plan is to get off early tomorrow and for to Ft. Lauderdale. We plan to meet Jim and Kathy who will be there for a survey on boat they are thinking about buying. The weather report which is not reliable is predicting winds 15 to 20. If it is too windy when we get up, we will probably hunker down here for another day because crossing the Biscayne Bay in high winds is no fun, and gives new meaning to Trawlers rock ! We will see what tomorrow AM brings…
Banana Bay mm 1193
Anchorage Marina – Jewfish Creek – mm 1134
We are on the move again – headed back to Palm Coast – weather forecast – hot and sweaty, again….
We really had a wonderful month this year in Marathon – very fun and great people at the marina. Thurs Am was yoga, followed by lunch with the ladies, afternoon siesta, then out to dinner with Bob and Sue and to the Keys Fisheries – a busy schedule and not for the faint of heart ! We sat upstairs at the bar for sunset and munched our way through a dinner of a variety of seafood samplings. Jon and I both tried the stone crab claws again, and I must say, they were 1,000 times better than the ones we got at the Seafood festival. We topped the evening off by going to the Marathon Yacht Club for frozen Brandy Alexanders – basically a thick milkshake with alcohol – delish !! Friday we got a call from Jim and Kathy that they were coming to Marathon for the weekend yesterday, so we spent Friday getting the boat ready for departure today, so we could just relax yesterday. Friday night we went to Hurricanes for dinner and ended up staying and listening to a great band, the Cane Doerfel family, which is actually 6 of 10 siblings ages 13 – 22, who were incredibly talented, and fun to listen to. Yesterday AM we did a Farmers market run, or I should say a battery bicycle run. Even though we stay at marinas every night and usually eat out for dinner, I still keep the galley well stocked in case we decide we want to eat on board. Yesterday afternoon we took Crew, who has become quite the little swimmer, to the beach to catch some waves, then Jon and I went the pool for the remainder or the afternoon. Jim and Kathy arrived at 5:00 PM, so we had some boaties, went to hurricanes for dinner for shocker – pizza, then went to see the finale of the play “Act Now.” The play was written and directed by friends of Jim and Kathy’s from Marathon. After the play, we ended up back at Hurricanes to listen to the band again. We were up early today for a 7:00 Am departure, and were bid farewell by Don and Patty, and Dave and Joyce at the dock. Crew had the great idea that we should leave him in Marathon to switch living on Don and Patty’s, then Joyce and Dave’s boat, till Jon and I could get home, get the car then go pick him up. I told Crew if we left him in Marathon we would not be back for him. He actually considered this longer than I thought he should have, but then he decided to stick with us and brave the trip home on the boat. We arrived here at the Anchorage Marina at 3:10 PM, but arrived three minute later than we did last year – I think the Captain and Crew are slipping …… As they do every Sunday – Gilbert’s across the water from the Anchorage had a fabulous band that we listened to, then went swimming and ate dinner at the restaurant here at the marina. Our plan is to get off early tomorrow and for to Ft. Lauderdale. We plan to meet Jim and Kathy who will be there for a survey on boat they are thinking about buying. The weather report which is not reliable is predicting winds 15 to 20. If it is too windy when we get up, we will probably hunker down here for another day because crossing the Biscayne Bay in high winds is no fun, and gives new meaning to Trawlers rock ! We will see what tomorrow AM brings…
We are not in Marathon anymore - Miami
No fuel - no problem - fuel on the go go
Sandbar and swimmers 10 feet from channel marker
Buzzard tree
4-5-11 Tues. 9:00 PM
Bahia Mar Marina – Ft. Lauderdale MM 1065
We decided to head off yesterday and arrived in Ft. Lauderdale with some strong winds, but the rocking and rolling was tolerable. We pulled in about 5:00 PM which was a long day on the water. Docking was interesting, they assigned us the wrong slip, which meant we had to back out at the same time a huge charter catamaran was coming in, we have lived to tell another tale, but…….. By the time we did boat chores, took Crew out, showered, we did not meet Jim and Kathy until about 7:00 PM, and went out to eat at Coconuts. We woke up about 5:30 AM today, took a look outside at the wind, and went back to bed. God thing – a front blew through here today, with gusts over 50, water spouts, rain, thunder the whole pot of stew - we were relieved we stayed put and did not head out trying to maneuver all of the bridges with that kind of weather. Our next travel day is a bad bridge day, so we like good weather. We had a great day of walking, ate lunch across from the beach, boat oogled, then made it back to the boat just around 2:00 in time for the skies to open up. We met up with Jim and Kathy again tonight for dinner, then they are driving back to Palm Coast tonight. We really enjoy Ft. Lauderdale – could spend more time here – but Palm Coast beckons……
Bahia Mar Marina – Ft. Lauderdale MM 1065
We decided to head off yesterday and arrived in Ft. Lauderdale with some strong winds, but the rocking and rolling was tolerable. We pulled in about 5:00 PM which was a long day on the water. Docking was interesting, they assigned us the wrong slip, which meant we had to back out at the same time a huge charter catamaran was coming in, we have lived to tell another tale, but…….. By the time we did boat chores, took Crew out, showered, we did not meet Jim and Kathy until about 7:00 PM, and went out to eat at Coconuts. We woke up about 5:30 AM today, took a look outside at the wind, and went back to bed. God thing – a front blew through here today, with gusts over 50, water spouts, rain, thunder the whole pot of stew - we were relieved we stayed put and did not head out trying to maneuver all of the bridges with that kind of weather. Our next travel day is a bad bridge day, so we like good weather. We had a great day of walking, ate lunch across from the beach, boat oogled, then made it back to the boat just around 2:00 in time for the skies to open up. We met up with Jim and Kathy again tonight for dinner, then they are driving back to Palm Coast tonight. We really enjoy Ft. Lauderdale – could spend more time here – but Palm Coast beckons……
Kathy and Jim
Jon and Susan
Jon and Crew
Ft Lauderdale beach
Celebrating thier 100th birthday
Low flying plane
Susan chatting with Danette on the phone
The origianl Sundance at Bahia Mar marina
The new Sundance complete with fish on top
Afternoon front came through with some wild weather
Stormy skies
8.2 knots - a near record for Sundance
Now this a tree house
Not all docks are equal
Incoming low flying
Momma feeding baby
Here is the Carter's old boat - Circe in Titusville
Jon use to race on this boat - if this boat could talk.......
This train ran all night long right outside of our boat
Ferris Wheel
Friday April 8th, 2011
Titusville Marina MM 878
After we left Ft. Lauderdale on Wed., we went to Lake Park Marina in Riviera Beach – a little marina we always enjoy. Yesterday we went to Vero Beach and stayed at the City Marina. Crew loves Vero Beach because they have a dog park there, I love it because they have great restaurant, the River House. The front that went through on Tues has really finally cooled things off. Today was a perfect day on the water, warm, lights winds, partly sunny. We have been getting up at 6:00 AM, and are able to be on our way by 6:30 AM this time of year because of the longer daylight. We like getting in by 4:00 PM so we can complete boat chores, shower and be ready to relax by 5:30 PM. On our way to Titusville today we ran into Barb and Barry on Iffin, Vern on Lovelee, Dave and Pat on Indecision and Phil and Sarah Lowe, all heading to the rendezvous in Stuart. We had hoped to make the rendezvous also, but our daughter Lindsay’s wedding shower is next weekend so I am flying up to NY for the day. We hope to make about a 75 mile run tomorrow and be back to Palm Coast early evening. A very interesting thing happened at the Marina, right across from us on the dock is the 41 foot Bristol, Circe, that Jon use to race on up on Cape Cod ! The current owners are the 4th owners since the original owners from Harwich port – the Carters ! Another interesting fact about the Titusville marina is the phone service and internet connection is slow, but about 10 miles away they send shuttles into space – how about some phone service first ??!!
I forgot to mention that while we were still in Marathon, we also got good news – after 100 years on the waiting list, we finally have gotten a slip at Allen Harbor Yacht Club in Harwich Port – we now need to get another boat for up North, so maybe some summer cruising blogs…
Speaking of getting another boat and weddings, hence $$$$$, I might as well just beat my head against a rock because no matter how hard I try, Jon just does not understand how taking me on continuous vacations saves him so much money. I broke it down pretty basic for him by providing him with the following examples: 1) When we are on vacation in sunny places, my hair naturally lightens up which is why I have never had to pay to have my hair colored 2) I do not have to buy groceries because we eat all of meals out 3) When I am not working, I do not have to pay to put gas in my car 4) I do not shop nearly as much, and primarily just go on line to Amazon and just check Jon Blake, voila – no expense to me 5) We do not have a phone bill because we are together, joined at the hip 24/7 6) We do not have to pay higher electric or oil bills because of lower consumption, and most important, 7) It just makes me happy – priceless…. I am sure there are a zillion more examples because those examples all came to me in about ten seconds, if I really dwelled on it, I am sure the multiple examples I could come up with would substantiate that the amount of money I could save Jon would be ginormous – I think he should let me show him how….
Perfect start to our final day of this trip
We are ready to get home
My captain
the Admiral/1st mate
and the Crew
Sat. April 9th, 2011
Home !!
We walked over to a carnival next door last night at the marina, and were up and out of the marina at 6:30 AM. We had a beautiful morning – one of my favorite stretches through the haulover canal – saw four mantaees, and several pink spoonbills. We also were treated to an air show at Ponce Inlet. It was a perfect day for cruising, and you could tell it was weekend – lots of boats and activity on the water ! Now that we are finished, I can let out a big sigh and actually say outloud, we made the whole trip without any major issues - and for us, that is major !! So, until next time - we remain, convivial !!
Home !!
We walked over to a carnival next door last night at the marina, and were up and out of the marina at 6:30 AM. We had a beautiful morning – one of my favorite stretches through the haulover canal – saw four mantaees, and several pink spoonbills. We also were treated to an air show at Ponce Inlet. It was a perfect day for cruising, and you could tell it was weekend – lots of boats and activity on the water ! Now that we are finished, I can let out a big sigh and actually say outloud, we made the whole trip without any major issues - and for us, that is major !! So, until next time - we remain, convivial !!
Breakfast, lunch, snack
the gnats are out in force
Man's airshow
God's airshow
Bird Island
Crabber wading in the water/channel
Follow the leader
Sandbar living
Nearing Haulover canal
Pink spoonbill upper left corner
Crabber
Island living