Bravo! Adventure
December 13 & 14
December 13
We're high from the crossing and, since we didn't have dinner,
we're ready for brunch. We walk to a nearby restaurant, but on the way Doug
needs to return to Bravo!. Jules and I note lots of pelicans hanging around.
Doug soon catches up with us. As we are sitting down to eat, he presents me with a birthday card that included two chocolate bars. This has been a great start to a great birthday day.
Following breakfast, we head back to Bravo!. A fishing boat is coming in and Doug suggests we stop for a little entertainment. As it turns out, the pelicans noted above were waiting for the fishing boats. These are boats that take people out to fish and then when they return, an added optional service is the preparation of the fish. This is where the pelicans come in. They congregate around the cleaning table and vie for the scraps that are tossed out.
Pelicans are beautiful to watch as they glide along just above the water surface. We have seen them dive into the water from about 15 feet up, going after fish. The pouch under the long beak can hold a lot of food. But still they seem a bit prehistoric.
Doug baked muffins in the afternoon. The evening dinner starts with Doug suggesting I check the freezer and I find a bottle of White Zinfandel organized by Elaine. We enjoy the stew that Jules prepared using the crock pot that he extracted from storage.
Toasting a safe crossing and happy birthday.
Sitting around the table talking after dinner, we notice a decorated boat going past. Then another. Then we figure out that there is a full Christmas parade is process and it's going right past our stern. There must have been around 30 boats, many undoubtedly being piloted by people who's already been celebrating in other ways. We wonder if they'll all get back to dock without incident.
Christmas parade on water
There's something about a plastic Frosty the Snowman in Florida that just doesn't seem right.
December 14
After breakfast we head out for a walk, but don't get far. We
had heard about the Jolly Trolley and found it parked waiting for departure
near the marina. We hopped on to ask about it and met the driver. When he introduced
himself as Charlie Daniels, he said "Do you know Jack Daniels?" and
went on to explain that he'd just moved here from Tennessee about a year ago
and that Jack Daniels was part of the family. We decided to go for the tour
($1) and Jules sat in the area close to Charlie, while Doug and I took seats
in the open area behind. Charlie gave us a good tour. Coincidentally, it included
a stop at the Sheraton hotel where the other Charlie Daniels' bus was loading
following a music event the night before. Jules asked if he was part of the
family as well, but Charlie said he wasn't. However, he'd sold Daniels a couple
tractors and found him to be a very nice man. If you want to wait for a 100K
.wav file download of Charlie's bell clang and Tennessee drawl, you can click
on the picture below.
Jules and Charlie Daniels
Doug then continued on a walk and found the nearby Clearwater beach. The navigation chart below shows how close we are to the beach. The boat is the red symbol.
The reason we have had this extra time in Clearwater is that we have decided not to press on to Ft. Myers. This is because we would need good conditions for the remaining time in order to arrive on schedule and the weather forecast is still not that good. So the remainder of the trip will be by rental car, dropping Jules at the Greyhound station here in Clearwater and dropping me at the Ft. Myers airport, both on the morning of the 16th. Doug will then drive to Stuart and will return with Elaine on the 17th to continue on with Bravo! to Stuart. Doug is eager to see what Elaine has been doing with their new place there.
Today, Monday 15 December, is blue sky sunny and the temperature will approach 70. So it's a wonderful last day. We have all been working on cleaning both the outside (to remove the salt spray from the crossing) and the inside of Bravo!
So with this installment, I sign off. This has been a marvelous time and Jules and I are so thankful to have been part of this guys' adventure. Thank you, Doug Hobson and Elaine Tefler, for this opportunity and for taking such good care of us.