The Jolly Trolley!

Saturday, February 25, 2012 The Jolly Trolley!

Lay Day: Indian Rocks Beach MM 93.3

Weather: Windy! N @ 20-25 knots; high temp in the high 70s, Low 55; partly sunny

Comments: IRB has a great transportation system that seems very popular with the tourists. We purchased an all day pass ($2.25/person) that allows us to get on and off at will.

We rode north to Clearwater Beach to watch sailboat races in the ocean. There were a number of fleets, but we were particularly interested in the Opti and Laser fleets. We were amazed to see these boats racing in the ocean in BIG wind!

After the regatta, we watched Beach Volleyball. The North End Volleyball Club was hosting the competition. In the game we watched, the #1seed lost to the #4 seed. They won the last two of the best of three to win the match.

We rode the Jolly Trolley (the bus) south to John's Pass where we did a little window shopping and walked through a few stores.

After about an hour, we took the trolley back to IRB. 

Feeding the local Bluebills (Lesser Scaup)

A Nice Walk!

Lay Day: Indian Rocks Beach MM 93.3

Weather: Windy! SW @ 15-20 knots; high temp in the low 80s, Low near 60; sunny

Comments: The Gray's and friends are on their way the the Daytona 500! They'll have a great time, I'm sure!

The morning was spent visiting with everyone. After lunch, we took a 3.5 mile walk from Belleair Bluffs back to Indian Rocks Beach. We even got to walk about 1/2 mile on the beach.

SUNSHINE tied up to the Gray's Dock

Visiting Friends in Indian Rocks Beach!

From: Twin Dolphin Marina, Bradenton, FL MM 93.3

To:         Indian Rocks Beach, FL MM 129.0

Odometer: 38.2

Latt:         27 53 39N

Long: 82 50 60W

Weather: A mixed bag of dense fog, sun, clouds and overcast sky; high mid to high 70s and low in the mid 50s; SSW 15 knots

Comment: Bradenton proved to be a great place. Not only did we have a great time with cruising friends, we enjoyed the city, museum, a couple of the restaurants and the Old City area. There's still a lot more to see and do on a return visit.

Departure was delayed by dense fog. Once underway, we followed the channel to Tampa Bay. We motor sailed across the bay and furled the jib when we entered a narrow channel that was bordered by 1/2 foot depths on both sides. 

On the day we passed through seven bascule bridges before making landfall at the Gray's home. Willis and Lucille and their neighbors were waiting on their dock for our arrival. They helped secure SUNSHINE, and in no time we started exchanging stories about activities and events since we last visited with each other. 

We went out to dinner and continued to swap stories throughout the evening.

Snooty!

Lay Day: Twin Dolphin Marina, Bradenton, FL MM 93.3

Weather: A mixed bag of sun, clouds and overcast sky; high mid to high 70s and low in the mid 50s

Comment: Larry and Fran came by at 0900 to take us to the local Publix. After stowing the refrigerated items, we walked to a local establishment for breakfast. It was great catching up on their family and what they've been doing. Sometime around 1100 hours, it was time for them to shove off. After the goodbyes, we walked to the museum where we saw a couple of shows in the planetarium, the feeding of "Snooty" and "Charly" the resident manatees and a few exhibits. Snooty is 63 years old, the oldest manatee in captivity, weighs 1200 pounds,.

Sixty-three year old "Snooty" lives in the Bradenton Museum

Lunch was taken in a German Restaurant, and dinner was enjoyed with Patty and Ray at a local Italian Restaurant. It was another great visit with them and we thank Patty, Ray, Fran and Larry for their company and friendship!

Reunion!

From: Sarasota Bay, FL MM 78.4

To: Twin Dolphin Marina, Bradenton, FL MM 93.3

Odometer: 24.0

Latt:         N 27 30 03

Long: W 82 34 37

Weather: A mixed bag of sun, clouds and overcast sky; high mid to high 70s and low in the mid 50s

The "Flock" (Larry, Fran, Ray, Patty, Anna Marie, Bill)

Comment: What a great day! We had a 3-boat (although we were the only attendees on a boat!) mini reunion with members of the "flock" from our southern migration in 2007-08. It was wonderful to see Patty and Ray (Reflection"), who now call Bradenton home, and Fran and Larry (Kalista) who are visiting family and friends. We haven't seen Fran and Larry for a couple of years. It's been way too long! We enjoyed seeing and hanging with all four of them.

Excitement!

From:        Englewood Beach, FL MM 43.3

To:        Sarasota Bay, FL MM 78.4

Odometer: 42.2

Latt:         27 23 31N

Long: 82 34 35W

Weather: The cold front went through yesterday. Today's high temp is in the mid 70s and the low should be 55; N wind < 10 knots but picked up after sunset to 15 knots making it lumpy in the anchorage at Longboat Key.

Comment: The trip to Sarasota Bay was interesting but uneventful. Our course took us through back bays, cuts and mangroves with developments peppering both the oceanside as well as the mainland. During the course of our travels we had to pass through several bascule bridges and one swing bridge.

The mud hook was lowered near Longboat Key on the west edge is Sarasota Bay by 1430 hours and it was time for some R&R. As the evening chased the daylight, the wind veered to the east and increased in intensity to 15 knots. SUNSHINE was bouncing in the waves from the two and one-half mile fetch and it was becoming uncomfortable. We are loath to be underway in the dark in unfamiliar waters, but we made the decision to make the 2 1/2 mile trip east across the bay to get in the lee of the eastern shore. The mud hook was up at 2200 hours and we were resecured to the bottom by 1045 hours. It came as no surprise that life is much better on this side of the bay in an east wind.

No Way to Start the Day!

From: Cayo Costa, FL MM 23.0 To: Englewood Beach, FL MM 43.3 Odometer: 21.9 Latt: 26 55 32N Long: 82 21 31W Weather: A cold front is supposed to pass through sometime today. High 83 low 64; wind SW @ 7 knots building to W @ 20 knots Comment: Rather than stay aboard at anchor, we listened to the forecast (several times) and decided to head north and get anchored before the strong winds arrived. After getting the mud hook on deck, we motored past About Time to thank Lee and Dee for their hospitality and friendship and to wave goodbye. We had a great time visiting Cayo Costa with them! As we rounded their boat, I set a course just south of an anchored sailboat, thinking that we were far enough south to avoid the three foot charted depth. I neglected to look at the GPS. I felt SUNSHINE scrap bottom, but before I could react, we were aground. I jumped into the water and tried to push off, to no avail. Lee and Dee launched their dinghy and came by to offer assistance. Anna Marie had already placed a call to TowBoat US. It was really nice of them to offer assistance. Since the tow boat was on the way, we figured to just wait. They understood and we bid goodbye to them again and they were off. As the tide slowly came in, I could feel SUNSHINE begin to move. She slowly broke free of her connection to the bottom. After 45 minutes we were on our way. Anna Marie called to cancel the TowBoat. The trip to Englewood Beach was uneventful. After Gasparilla, we were in protected waters the whole way. We got the anchor down by 1230 hours and settled in for the blow.