The West Coast...

....of Florida, that is. After our lumpy crossing of the lake we passed through three more locks, spent a quiet night at the LaBelle free public dock, and proceeded north in good weather to Pelican Bay, where we rocked all night in a north wind. Somewhere in central Florida we picked up a stowaway.

The next night found us tied to the free dock (do you see a pattern here?) at Moore's Stone Crab Restaurant on Longboat Key, where we ate....catfish and rock lobster. Here's Sea Angel at the dock with Jewfish Key anchorage behind.

Peter, the early riser, took this pre-dawn photo at the anchorage before the day's first ripple. Note the anchor light reflections.

The Okeechobee Waterway

The OWW crosses south-central Florida from St. Lucie on the east coast to Ft. Myers on the west. Our first night westbound we enjoyed visiting friends in Stuart - Bob Kassel and Bill & Barbara Vermiglio - who got us a free dock. We always appreciate that! Next morning we headed west, up the St. Lucie River to a long canal with two locks leading to Lake Okeechobee. That evening we tied up to dolphins at Port Mayaca Lock, on the eastern edge of the lake. It amazes me how patient those creatures are; who'd have thought dolphins could be trained to hold your dock lines all night? (Just kidding....here are the dolphins.)

After a quiet night we had a bumpy crossing of Lake Okeechobee. The wind had been up for a week; even though it was only blowing about 12 when we crossed, there was a leftover two foot chop on the beam. That sounds harmless, but it's enough to swing the boat through a 20 degree arc. After we cleaned up the spilled coffee, Nancy went back to bed.

Parts of the OWW are boring, other parts quite beautiful. Here are some scenes along the way.

Blue Angels

We wended our way through the Georgia low country, with a layover at Savannah to visit Larry and Martha, play some golf (Peter) and do some quilting (Nancy). Crossing into Florida we were treated to a Blue Angels air show near Jacksonville Beach.

That evening we anchored at Pine Island in the wild and beautiful Tolomato River, north of St. Augustine.Barry and Barbara Kipnis provided a free dock and lots of hospitality at Palm Coast.

We left the boat in their custody while we drove to Key Largo for Nancy's visit to the orthodontist.

We anchored in a stiff breeze and a chop for an hour at Titusville waiting for repairs to the swing bridge. Here's some of the chaos that ensued when the bridge finally opened. No one got hurt.

When the Yankees Came to Southport

Yankee businesses have invaded Southport in recent years. Some of the newcomers made derogatory comments about an alleged lack of worldliness among the local populace, giving rise to considerable resentment and proliferation of the bumper sticker shown below. Now the old-timers are proud to be identified as "USL's."

Southport, NC

We stayed an extra day at beautiful, historic Southport to visit with friends Miffi and Charlie Williams and to see the Stede Bonnet Pirate Race festivities. Every year at Halloween, Southport has a sailboat race, complete with pirate dress and water balloons, in honor of local pirate Stede Bonnet. Charlie and Miffi dressed for the occasion. They also fed us some excellent jambalaya.

This southern aristocrat shared her life story, even though she's dead 100 years.The trial of Stede Bonnett. After being found guilty, he and most of his crew were hanged in Charleston. They're buried in the sea wall at the Charleston waterfront.We finally put Peter where he belongs -- the old town jail. He seems happy to be there.

Nancy and Santa at the Christmas Shop in Southport. Where are Nancy's hands? What's that look in Santa's eyes?