The hiatus from the blog was never meant to last this long. One thing happened and then another and we were very involved in navigating forward and watching our wake thread through new waters. We did take photos and while I can’t manage a day-by-day account of every nautical mile, I will catch up the months, anchorages, and harbors as best I can.

But before we head east and north, a few more words about Sanibel Island are in order.

Sanibel Island is situated where the west coast of Florida juts out into the Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf side of the island receives the battering of waves and tides that bring all sorts of marine life onto the shore and thus the island is famous for its shelling opportunities. Folks walk the beaches day and night looking for rare shells in mint condition.

One offshoot from the shelling activity is the annual shell festival. This 76 year-old celebration is an interesting combination of scientific exhibits and decorative shell crafts. Some, like the ingenious sailors’ valentines, date back hundred of years and some are contemporary creations ranging from jewelry to knickknacks

This lighthouse is created with a variety of shells. Note that the flower petals in the background are also made entirely of shells.

Interesting open boat sails close to the Gulf shore of Sanibel Island.

A pelican’s landing is rarely graceful, but it does have a certain choreography to it.

On March 20, we left Sanibel and cruised 24 miles to Fort Meyers to tie up at Legacy Harbor Marina. At the end of April we cast off the lines again and headed east along the Caloosahatchee River toward Lake Okeechobee. The Caloosahatchee soon gives way to a canal where boats are locked in and raised three feet to meet the water levels of the lake. Our first stop was 57 miles upstream at the city docks at Moore Haven, Florida, the gateway to Lake Okeechobee.  We tied up amid other cruisers and spent a peaceful night.

Looking east up the Caloosahatchee River at daybreak.

A river view of the Fort Meyers skyline

A waterman works the Caloosahatchee River. Ya gotta love his crew.