Tide Hiker Adventures: Pelican Bay

Tuesday January 15, 2013
26 41.483 N
82 14 561 W

We set off at about 9 AM and made the 35 NM run to Pelican Bay in perfect weather. As we left the Caloosahatchee River and turned North into Pine Island Sound the water started to clear and turn blue. At last! There were lots of dolphins around and several times a pod of 3 or 4 decided to ride our bow wave. It is intriguing to lean over the rail and watch them swimming so effortlessly and watching back at us.

Porpoise watching

The entry into Pelican Bay was a bit tricky but we had done our research and all went well. The anchorage is separated from the Gulf by Cayo Costa and also protected from the East by a cluster of mangrove islands. There was about a dozen other boats anchored when we arrived.

We quickly launched the dinghy and Kylie and I went for an explore. There is a park Rangers Camp on the Island (the island is also a popular camping site) so we went ashore to investigate. They sold a few supplies including ice creams, so we bought one for Deidre and ran it back to Tide Hiker. The ranger had also told us of a Manatee breeding creek, so the 3 of us found the creek and puttered arround in the mangroves. We did not find any manatees, but we did find a lot of mosquitoes and no-see-ums. I am still itching 12 hours later.

Cheeseburger in paradise.

Two or three miles before anchorage we passed Cabbage Key. It is a little island with a famous cafe, reportedly where the Jimmy Buffet wrote the song "Cheeseburger in Paradise". Some how I managed to con Deidre into making the trip for dinner in the dinghy, knowing that we would be coming back in the dark. The trip there took about 45 minutes as we navigated around the various mangrove islands to Cabbage Key. On arrival the place seemed deserted, but the cafe was open for business. We were the only people there. I had a cheeseburger.

The trip back in the dark was a hoot. It was dead calm, Deidre drove and I used the iPad to navigate. I enjoyed the whole experience, the Admiral said "Not again". Kylie remained neutral.

Wednesday January 17, 2013

Yikes!

A really relaxing day. French Toast and lots of coffee for breakfast. It was a perfect morning, warm and sunny with a gentle breeze. We loaded into the dink and headed for the island. We landed at the Rangers pier and walked over to the beach and spent a hour or so walking in the shallows towards the point. We hitched a ride on the "tram" back to the bay side and dinked back to the boat for lunch.

After lunch Kylie and I had a go at cleaning the "mustache" off the bow with lemon juice. It worked! We should be in "clean" water for a few months now so hopefully the mustache is a thing of the past. Kylie wanted to be a bit "blonder" and so we then used the same supply of lemon juice to give her hair a treatment.