Fort Myers, FL

We said farewell to Longboat Key this morning and started our journey north (well, actually we have to go south first, then east and THEN we go north). Anyway, winds were brisk at 10-12 knots but coming from the east so I expected the shoreline would protect us from unpleasant seas in the Gulf of Mexico. Well, I was partially right. As long as we stayed relatively close to the shore (less than half a mile), the ride was bumpy but not bad. Problem was, we had to go out pretty far to clear the Boca Grand sea buoy, so those 20-30 miles weren't so "grand". We had 2-3 foot head seas with a fair amount of spray over the bow. None the less, ENCORE handled it with grace and style -- and so did the Admiral!

Upon arriving at Fort Myers Yacht Basin, I discovered that their docks were permanent concrete and pretty high from the waterline. Realizing that we are dealing with an extreme lunar tide this week, it occurred to me that the only way the Admiral would be able to get off the boat at low tide was with a ladder. Fortunately, there was another marina just to the west that had floating docks (which rise and fall with the tide) and they were able to offer us dockage for the night. Phew… that was close!

Tomorrow we transit the Okeechobee Waterway. It is 130 miles from our current location to the other side in Stuart. We will go through five locks -- the first three locks "lift" us up a total of 16 feet before crossing Lake Okeechobee (about 35 miles across). We will then go through two more locks that "lower" us back down another 16 feet to join the Atlantic Intercoastal Waterway. Forecast is for winds out of the SE tomorrow at 12-15 knots. Other than the actual lake crossing we are basically riding in a manmade ditch that is well protected. Well protected may not be the best choice of words since it is full of alligators and Florida crackers (a.k.a. Rednecks). If we don't make it to the other side, be sure and look for us on the next episode of Swamp People.

If all goes to plan, we will be enjoying dinner at one of our favorite restaurants tomorrow night, appropriately named, "Sailors Return".