This is our view of the Intracoastal Waterway today. Wide open bays much of the time.
There were lots of small green islands, and much of the time we could not see the shore. There was lots of boat traffic, however. Cruisers, fishing boats both small and large, pontoon boats, sightseeing boats. And sailboats, which have right of way.
And lots of dolphins! We had 5 on one side of our boat at one point. Every time we hear a flap, I rush to the side of the boat like a kid to watch them. I wish I could get better pictures.
I just had to take one more house picture as we passed Sanibel Island. Surely this wasn't a single family home!
Ft. Myers Beach was our destination. We want to see the sights in Ft. Myers, but the town is15 miles upriver, so we will anchor at the beach and take a trolley to town. The approach to the beach went past a beautiful park on the point, with lots of people swimming and sunning.
Most of the anchorages are mooring balls, a new experience for us.
They are cheaper than marinas but don't have services except pump outs. We had trouble following the office lady's directions, and once we got to the mooring field, the numbers on the balls were always on the side facing away from us. As we were riding back and forth trying to read numbers, this guy in a work boat starts yelling at us and waving a flag. I finally heard him say something about not driving around like that when there was a diver down. How was I to know that's what that flag meant?
We finally found the right ball, Danny made the perfect approach, and I missed the buoy. As I said, this was a new experience for us. The big ball is the mooring, then there is a little buoy, kind of like a bobber with a large ring on it. You are supposed to hook the ring on the bobber thing with your boat hook, bring it onto the boat, and tie your rope to it. Then it goes back into the water. Pulling it up is not as easy as it may sound. I'm leaning over the front of the boat, the boat hook is completely extended, and I am pretty much waving it around because I don't have much leverage.
So, Danny drives around again. This time, I get the bobber thing but can't figure out how to get a rope tied through it because my rope is about twelve feet long. Danny came to help me and we must have looked like a slapstick comedy act. I was in his way, then we had the wrong rope, then the wrong cleat - you get the idea. Love Danny's heart, his comment was, "Well, how can we make this better next time?" My answer was to anchor out and forget the damn mooring balls!
The office was WAY back at the beginning of this huge field, so we took the dinghy and drove up there to pay, and to take garbage. This is what a dinghy dock looks like. Basically it's very low so folks can crawl out of their dinghies with less trouble.
Since we hadn't had lunch, and it had been a stressful afternoon, we stopped at a bar for pizza and beer. I drank Coors Light in memory of our friend Ed.
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