Day 179 & 180: Pelican Bay

Day 179: January 13: Foggy, dreary, rainy! The words I seem to be using a lot lately. We waited until a downpour passed before hauling the anchor and getting UW at about 11:00. Wanting to spend more time with their friends, Frank and Mona decided to stay in Punta Gorda for another day, so we set off on our journey alone. 

We left Punta Gorda under a grey sky. Charlotte Harbor was a bit riled and the chop only worsened the further we got into the more open water of Gasparilla Sound. A sailboat regatta was taking place right in the middle of the sound, reminders of the many times we had to dodge the tiny vessels in Padanaram Harbor back home.

It was not the best day to travel but we wanted to continue making progress. We keep joking that "when we reach Florida" we will be warm! We arrived in Pelican Bay after traveling 21 NM in about 3 hours, entering carefully and making our way around the many shoals. It's a very large and well protected anchorage; we dropped the hook in about 8 feet in a sandy bottom, joining several other boats in the basin. As the name suggests, many pelicans were present, swooping and diving all around the surrounding sandy beach.

Pelican Bay is actually a pass between Cayo Costa Island to the west and Punto Blanco Island to the east. 

We would love to have been able to explore Cayo Cost State Park but weren't excited about dinking to shore in the the chop and rain. 

The wind continued to howl throughout the rest of the day. Although John had parked us in a spot he thought would offer relief from the northwest wind, we still felt the rolls coming through the opening. I am hopeful the wind will calm down overnight. 

Day 180: January 14: Another day of howling wind and dreary skies. The sunrise was not too spectacular, clouds covering what rays the sun was trying to offer. 

We checked and rechecked the forecast, hoping things would shift enough for us to get UW. After a few hours we decided things were not going to get much better so we opted to stay put for another day. We were still rolling a bit so pulled up the anchor and went further into the basin around a corner that offered more protection from the wind. 

Mona and Frank did leave Punta Gorda and made their way to Pelican Bay in the afternoon, arriving right in the middle of a downpour. Shortly after they arrived, Paradise pulled in along with a few other sailboats and a Looper, a 46' Carver named Amare Vita. 

We dinked over to Summer Fling for dinner and a game of cards. We called it a night after John won and the Detroit Lions against the LA Rams wild card game started. Frank and Mona, being from Michigan and avid football fans, certainly wanted to watch the game. With all the anchor lights glimmering in the inky black sky, it was difficult to make out our boat; Frank shined a light, helping us to spot the unmistakeable shape of the GB.