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Sanibel Island and Fort Meyers Beach

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Sanibel Island is a magical place!   The amazing thing is that even though the last hurricane was devastating, it has already rebounded.  The Sanibel Marina where we stayed, was under 15 feet of water during that hurricane and surprisingly, all of their docks were intact because the boats that were tossed about and disappeared were well above the dock post height. One of the highlights of this marina, was that every morning, you find two fresh blueberry muffins at your door.  Yum. The other highlight was the dolphins who greeted us on our way in and then played right near the boat. On Wednesday, Jan and I rode our bikes 1.5 miles (and Don walked) to the Billy's Bike rental to get a third bike. We then biked back toward the marina, stopped for breakfast at The Lighthouse Cafe and biked another 2 miles to the beach and actual lighthouse. The Sanibel Island Lighthouse was one the first lighthouses on Florida's Gulf coast north of Key West and the Dry Tortugas.  The...
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Punto Gorda, Cabbage Key, Sanibel & MANATEES!

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On Sunday, we "Lifted" it into the actual town of Punta Gorda.  It was warm, but we walked around anyway.  Went to their Viet Nam Memorial which is modeled after the one on the National Mall and did some shopping - didn't buy anything and then found a great coffee shop! We "Lifted" back to a Publix grocery store, did some shopping then, Lifted back to the marina!   When we got back, we walked to the pool and relaxed, then ate and drank some dinner! Monday, we motored to Cabbage Key. On the way, we dropped the hook and went for a swim!  Cabbage Key was originally developed in the early 1930's by the Rinehart family - purchased for $2000. They built a 6,000-gallon water tower, which stills stands today and was built on one of the highest places in Southwest Florida.  It was 41 steps only, so we climbed it! The Inn and several cottages were first opened in 1944 by the Stults family. It is currently owned by the Wells family with a fabulous restaurant. It is ca...
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Owen's Fish Camp - on the hook near Venice - Punta Gorda

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Owen's Fish Camp in Saratoga - Fun, fun, funky old school fish food dive! I had a Lynchburg Lemonade (jack & lemonade) and Jan had a Bourbon Tea (tea, bourbon and peach). Don and Jan loved the barbecued oyster appetizers.  A great place with lots of fun, good atmosphere and great food! On Friday we motored 20 miles to Venice and anchored in a great spot. On our way we stopped at Midnight Pass, Siesta Key.  Legend has it, this was a drug smuggling spot in the 70's & 80"s.  Today, it is a smooth blue lagoon for rafting up.  We motored over in the dinghy and swam in the Gulf. Saturday, we had a 48 1/2-mile trip to Punta Gorda and the Burnt Store Marina.  It would have been a little shorter if Captain Don (now called dodo Don) hadn't made a route error. Anyway, by the time we docked we were ready for some relaxing.  We walked over to the Marina pool and chilled.  While in the pool, Don decided he was going to run for Governor of California in a new...
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Pass-a-Grille to Bradenton Beach to Sarasota

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We left Pass-a-Grille and motored all of 21 miles to Bradenton Beach. The good news was that we made it, but the bad news was that we had to motor across Tampa Bay. A rocky, rolling, sporty ride with 6' swell occasionally and wind! Ray and Jan did fine, except for when Jan slid off the couch because of us leaning sideways!  Yikes! Bradenton Beach is a cute tourist town with a beautiful beach & fine white sand! We swam in the Gulf both days as we were just three blocks from the beach!  Free laundry at the marina was appreciated - but we had rather sleepless nights because of the wind. Found a great Tiki bar with music at the Bridge Tender Inn - thank you Kylie Nero. Three of us had a drink called "Becky's Bikini Babe" - Coconut Rum, dark rum, OJ, Pineapple juice with a splash of Pina Colada. Sent a photo of it to our niece Becky! On Wednesday we motored just 15 miles to Sarasota and docked at Marina Jack's, right in the heart of downtown Sarasota. Sarasota has ...
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