Second Wind on the Great Loop and Beyond

Sunday, February 21.
We are definitely on "island time," so keeping up blog postings usually falls among the list of things that should be done -- maybe later. Since it is now raining again, tonight seems like a good time to post some pictures and reflect on one particularly nice day.

For the entire week that Jim and Martha were with us, we had cool, cloudy, and windy weather. Exploration was done by car, not by boat. We had great fun anyway and were able to see things we would have otherwise missed. However, when we bade them a fond farewell last Monday, we noticed that the sky was finally blue. By early afternoon, the temperature was actually in the low 70s, so Bob and I decided to hop in the dinghy and explore nearby Sister Creek. Sister Creek flows from Boot Key Harbor to the Atlantic Ocean. Along the creek a maze of canals provides boating access to the many beautiful homes on the island. This is a literally a water maze lined with mangroves. We were amazed that every time we got to the end of one canal, we could turn right or left and head down another, thoroughly enjoying the sights. I was especially thrilled to see a bunch o' pelicans being fed by some owners of one of the lovely houses. We turned off the engine and just watched, with camera clicking!

After a while, we realized that our fuel needed replenishing, so we reluctantly left Sister Creek and made our way through Boot Key Harbor to Burdines to get gas. By the time we returned to Second Wind, we were chilly once again but happy about our day on the water.