Traveling with Eric's Inheritance

Friday, January 20, 2023

Day 201 - 202, January 7 - 8, 2023

Day 201 Saturday, January 7, 2023

St. Petersburg to Sarasota, Florida

We left at 0810, sunny and pleasant with NO fog. We had a short travel day planned to Marina Jack in Sarasota. Fifty-eight degrees with waves less than a foot, the biggest surprise of the day was the sawdust that had accumulated on the boat. There was so much that I had to sweep it and collect it in a dust pan multiple times. St. Petersburg Marina had been replacing pilings so they must have sawed one off near our boat. We didn't return to the boat until after dark so never saw it the evening before.

The Pier

We had a few dolphin sightings as we crossed Tampa Bay. We also met our first tow boat in a long time at the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. There were many No Wake areas to protect the manatees. We didn't get to see any though.

Shallow, another abandoned boat

We arrived at Marina Jacks at 1:10pm and were met by 3 very competent and efficient dock hands helping us into our slip. Hooray -- this time we are tied to a floating dock. NO more worry about tide changes. We have a nice view of Bayfront Park and are close to downtown.

Once settled we called our friend Elli who lives nearby. Elli and her sister Clara joined us at the boat then dinner at the marina restaurant. After dinner we hit Walmart and got to see their home. What a nice visit. We made plans to see Elli again on Monday.

Day 202 Sunday, January 8, 2023

Sunday started with a walk to St. Martha Catholic Church. Fr. George Suszko, the pastor, was very funny and engaging. The church was full and the congregation readily called out answers to Father's questions during the Homily. You could tell that he was well liked and the reason for the high attendance.

Sunday breakfast was next at Station 400. The restaurant is a renovated train station. There was a line outside the door when we arrived but we were seated quickly. Patrons walked up to the counter and ordered beverages (mimosas!) and enjoyed them while they waited outside for their table. The servers seemed to know the customers by name -- they must be regulars!

We strolled through the Art Festival vendors near the marina and enjoyed the park.

Tuesday, January 17, 2023

Day 199 & 200 January 5 - 6, 2023

Day 199 Thursday, January 5, 2023

Clearwater to St. Petersburg, FL

Goodbye Clearwater, it's been great. We loved the convenience and proximity to the beach at Clearwater Beach Municipal Marina and especially our time with friends old and new.

Dolphins leading the way.

Our day started with fog so our early morning departure changed to 9:40. We followed Phil-N-Wild through the pea soup fog and rain.

We traveled with Susan and Danny for a couple of hours until they turned right to head to Bradenton and we continued straight to St. Petersburg. Thanks Danny for leading the way!

We left Clearwater at 9:40 and arrived at St Petersburg Municipal Marina at 2:30. The marina is right in the heart of St. Pete. Frank, the dockmaster, was there to meet us and helped us tie our lines, especially important with the tide change there. The water dropped enough that it was a challenge getting off the boat; there was no way we would be able to get the bikes off easily. Good thing everything was so walkable.

First stop was The Dali. Great exhibition of Salvador Dali's works with some that include artificial intelligence to bring the paintings to life.

It is raining inside the car with it's mermaid passenger!

Stairway to the exhibits

Salvador moustache!

Day 200 Friday January 6, 2023

Today we are headed to the Chihuly Collection. Dale Chihuly is a glass blower/sculptor whose huge pieces of art have included installations over canals, as "simple" wall pieces, chandeliers, and stand alone pieces. The colors and techniques developed were transformative for the glass medium.

First was a cool demonstration of glass blowing.

The sculpture collections was amazing!

Later we enjoyed a walk on St Pete Pier, street vendors and dinner at Bellabrava. Definitely leftovers to enjoy later.

Off to Sarasota tomorrow.

Day196 - 198 January 2 - 4, 2023

Day 196 Monday, January 2, 2023

Back in Clearwater

Danny graciously picked us up at the airport yesterday. So warm and sunny compared to the weather at home. Lots of boat arrivals and departures while we were gone. We shared dock tales with Danny, Susan, Sharon, Grant, Will from Ernest Hemingway, Ellen, Joe, and Jack and Sharon from Sharon K. Topped off the evening with the Monday hamburger and beer special at Frenchy's (again!).

Day 197 Tuesday January 3, 2023

Today we took advantage of Danny's rental car and headed for groceries, then it was off to the beach for one last time before we leave Clearwater. We ate tacos on the boat (it was Tuesday) and then played 7's and 5 Crowns on Phil-N-Wild.

Day 198 Wednesday, January 4, 2023

Time to get ready for our departure tomorrow. Christmas decorations taken down inside and out. Hardest part was finding a place to stow them.... Jobs done we joined Phil-N-Wild and Lori and Mark from Ottysea at the Salty Cracker. One last dinner with Karen and Rick where we enjoyed The Columbia one more time. The Columbia is a family run restaurant that has been in business for 117 years serving Spanish and Cuban food.

Chicken Salteado

Pollo Manchego

Yummy meal, excellent company! It has been so much fun catching up with them while we've been in Clearwater.

Tomorrow we head to St. Petersburg! Unfortunately our friends Pete and Linda won't be there until January 15th.

One last look at Frenchy's

Our neighbor boat while docked in Clearwater

Friday, January 13, 2023

Day 183 - 195, December 20 - January 2, 2023

Such a great visit home to see family and friends. Six months since we left on our Great Loop adventure on June 20th! We flew from Clearwater/St. Pete airport to Plattsburgh, from chilly abnormal Florida weather to cold, snowy Plattsburgh.