The sun was just coming up over the horizon, producing clouds of pink and blue when we got up.
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There were storms in the Gulf, but nothing that should affect us this morning. It was hot already at 8:00, but we had to do a few things before getting underway. I took Auggie for an extra long walk so Bob had some time to add oil to the engines. He had to raise the deck floor of the boat to do so, so it was best if Auggie and I stayed out of the way. Since it was Saturday, there were more boats on the water today and some very crazy drivers. In the Miserable Mile near Cape Coral, we saw this fisherman approaching the floating bait shop, only to be turned away because he had no bait.
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The clouds got darker off in the Gulf, but hopefully they would stay out there. We spent the day mostly at cruise speed which kept a nice breeze blowing on us. Going slow was brutal with the heat. When we made the turn to head north, there was a noticeable drop in temperature with the storms offshore.
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Cabbage Key was pretty quiet at 10:30 in the morning when we passed by. The lunch crowd hadn’t arrived yet.
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Our favorite anchorage, Cayo Costa was busy with boaters and sunbathers. The fishermen were out in droves in the Boca Grande inlet even through Charlotte Harbor was a little choppy due to the wind vs tide phenomenon. The dock for the Don Pedro State Park was busy today. The only way to get to the park is by boat and it is a popular place for shelling.
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We arrived at Palm Island Marina around noon and found ourselves to be the only boat in the marina until about 3:00.
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I gave the boat a rinse while Bob defrosted the refrigerator. This would be our last night sleeping on the boat and the end of our trip, so I was a little melancholy. Auggie was anxious to get home and be on patrol for geckos in the yard. Things were pretty quiet and we had the pool all to ourselves.
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On Saturdays, the marina provides free beer and live music. We enjoyed listening to Shawn Brown on the pool deck.
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We spent most of the afternoon on the pool deck, taking a dip in the pool now and then.
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We met a very nice couple from Palm Beach who were driving a 37′ Rybovich. They were enjoying doing some sightseeing on the west coast of Florida. We shared some boating stories around the pool. About 5:00, we all headed back to our boats to have dinner. Auggie and I took our evening walk as the sun was setting.
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We relaxed enjoying our last night on the boat together. It was a fitting end to a great trip! Tomorrow we’ll be home after the last 75 miles. After the sun set, the sky was beautiful!
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