Second Wind on the Great Loop and Beyond

Monday to Wednesday, November 30 - December 2, 2009.
Clearwater Beach is delightful. One of the first things we did was to walk across the street from the marina to see the beach. White sand, great boardwalk, fabulous sunsets -- this is our reward for crossing the Gulf. Every evening at sunset, local vendors, tourists, and locals celebrate at the pier. It is a fun place to be. After one beautiful sunny day, the weather fell apart, however -- rain and wind are scheduled to arrive the day after we did.

With forecasts of weather unfit for boats, we’ve decided to stay at the Clearwater Marina for a while. Moving from a slip constantly rocked by tour boats to a protected slip near the fuel dock (and behind a big Hatteras), we are now a lot more comfortable than we were. We’ve spent a good bit of time trying to figure out plans and make reservations for the next month or so. I do miss being able to go online!

With strong storms headed this way, Clearwater makes a good hidey hole. A mechanic is available to change some filters on the engines, the local Jolly Trolly comes every half hour to carry us to nearby stores and restaurants, and a sandy beach, complete with boardwalk, is just a short walk away. Sunset is celebrated every night with beach musicians and vendors. An added bonus is that Bob’s cousins Claudia and Al live nearby in Largo, FL. Claudia and her dear friend Bob drove us to St. Petersburg yesterday, then took us to her lovely home, and ended the evening with dinner at an excellent Greek restaurant. We also got to get reacquainted with Al’s wife Marie and their adorable 7-year-old daughter Amanda. We now have a stash of sweet ruby red grapefruits from Claudia’s garden – no scurvy for the Staggs! We’ll look forward to visiting with them again while we are in this area of Florida.