Just a few miles south of Naples, you will find beautiful Marco Island—our next destination.   We docked in Naples for a few nights, so we planned to anchor in one of the bays on Marco Island.   After winding through the canals and passageways, we arrived at Smokehouse Bay.

Active Captain informed us of a dock here at the Winn Dixie grocery store, so this time we picked up supplies in the dinghy instead of walking or bicycling to the store.   We also visited a few shops in the area. Teresa found a dolphin pendant she fell in love with.  It was custom made by a resident local jeweler, and will commemorate our exciting first dolphin sightings aboard Sanctuary.

We made plans to visit with Henk and Thressa (from our local marina in Muskegon, Michigan) who are staying on Marco Island.   Henk, our resident Tour Guide, wanted to take us to see alligators. The four of us traveled by car to an area near the Everglades Big Cypress Swamp.  As if on cue, we spotted gators sunning themselves.  We stopped by Everglade City and saw the marina we plan to travel to next (Rod & Gun Club), and visited Goodland’s fish market.   Purchasing peel and eat shrimp and homemade Key Lime pie from the fish market, we knew we’d have a delightful dinner.  We’re getting accustomed to reasonably priced seafood and the like—it’s gonna be tough to return to northern food. Both of us seem to be automatically attracted to down south cooking. Henk made a brief stop at the condo they are staying in where we enjoyed the magnificent view of the gulf right from their balcony.   When Sanctuary heads south, we plan to wave at them as we travel past their condo.

We listened to Calvary Church Internet and Pastor Jim Samra tell a story about Ruby Bridges, the first black child to desegregate the all-white elementary school in Louisiana. Quite the moving sermon. You can listen to the whole story at: calvarygr.org.

After listening to Pastor Jim, we hopped in the dinghy and motored over to the Winn Dixie dinghy dock. Walked around Winn Dixie, across the bridge, and over to a local church on the canal by where we are anchored. So we went by dinghy to church Sunday morning!   Pastor Kevin and the congregation welcomed us with open arms. Most were surprised to learn we traveled to Marco Island by boat. What a beautiful building and right on the water too. Inside the walls and ceiling have a light-colored wood, lots of windows with a view out of palm trees blowing. At the beginning of the service, Pastor Kevin asked that all visitors raise their hands. Then he asked us to stand and give our names and where we are from. Lots of visitors present—several from Wisconsin, Minnesota, and all over. We were the only ones from Michigan who came there on a boat. In fact, we received quite the joyous recognition! Pastor Kevin Koenig is a very alive and lively character—a bundle of energy.

NOTE: The Ship of the Church symbol. We found this to be very interesting:

For Christians, since the days of the apostles, THE SHIP has been a symbol for the Christian Church. The mast and yardarm form a simple CROSS (in wood) which stands for Jesus who saved us by giving Himself on a cross that we might be forgiven.

The CHI RHO (in metal) is a combination of the first two Greek letters of the name Christ, meaning “The Anointed One” or “The Messiah.” The WAVES symbolize the troubles and difficulties of life on earth. The SAILS are filled with wind, a symbol of the Holy Spirit, which empowers the Church. Thus, the Christian Church, under the Cross of Christ carries the faithful safely across the troubled seas of life to heaven.

After the Trumpet Voluntary Medley postlude, folks gathered around welcoming us. We shook Pastor Kevin’s hand, met his wife, and presented him with one of Teresa’s books—Life is: Good, Fragile, Precious—Loving yourself so you can love others.

Later in the day, the wind began to build as was predicted.  Forecast: rain and heavy winds. We saw LOTS of wind, but little rain.   White caps and wind gusts over 35 mph displayed themselves in the small bay.   Sanctuary rode out the wind with no problem. We are thankful for the large Mantus anchor that held us secure and for our prayer warriors carrying us through the night into the next day.

Dinghy Dock at Winn Dixie grocery store

Alligators 

Scenes from Marco Island

Selfie with Witte’s at condo

Teresa’s new dolphin pendant

From Sarasota, the ICW took us to Venice where we tried to anchor but found the anchorage was too shallow.  The reviews on Active Captain and local information predicted that might be the issue, so we had a plan B which was to go to Crow’s Nest Marina.   The Crow’s Nest Marina is right on the Venice Inlet from the gulf just east of the jetties, so we could look out into the gulf and see the sunset from our dock.  There are many boats going by, but it is a “no wake” zone, so most are not noticeable.  They have an onsite great restaurant.  The beach is nearby and there are many nice places to ride a bikes.

Bob and Nancy, who also keep their boat at our home marina, stay in Venice for the winter.   Soon after arriving at the dock they met us, and took us to town for supplies.   We had a nice dinner with them and Scott and Karen from Last Call at the Crow’s Nest.    It was like a Lakeshore Yacht Harbor Marina reunion–where we all were last summer.

After Venice, we stopped at an anchorage near Manasota Key called Englewood #2.   It was a nice anchorage with plenty for room for boats, but very restricted dinghy access.   It is a no wake zone, because of the Manatees, so it is a long slow dinghy ride.   The one place that looked good to tie up the dinghy was also a good restaurant with live music, called Flounders.   It is an open air beach type restaurant with a sand “floor,” the shrimp tacos were excellent.   After eating, we walked over to the beach–an area known to be good to collect sharks teeth, but didn’t take time for that.  It is a low key laid back area, not full of T-shirt shops like many beach communities, just a few restaurants, a small convenience store, and a Beach Togs Store.

The next stop was Cayo Costa State Park, which is one of the favorite places so far.  As we were entering the anchorage, I saw a boat named Glorious Dei on the AIS screen.  After getting anchored, and confirming by texting, it was the same Glorious Dei with Thad and Cindy that we met at Hoppies, on the rivers many miles ago.  We visited with them for a short time before they left to go back to their dock in the Gasparilla area.  They are now Gold Loopers, which means they completed the loop. Congratuations Thad & Cindy!

This is a large protected anchorage with room for many boats.   The park has a few docks for day visitors and a ferry brings over visitors and campers.  The setting reminded us of South Manitou Island in Lake Michigan, but much warmer.   There is a nice dock to tie up your dinghy.  The island only has a few buildings near the docks for the park service. One of the buildings is a snack shack and they sell Ice Cream!!   There was once a small community on the island that supplied fish to Cuba and a doctor’s office for visitors to be checked out to allow entry to the USA.  The roads/pathways here are just dirt, not brick and pavement like the ones that remain on Egmont Key.   There is a lot to explore on the Island, it is very overgrown and jungle like once off the main road.   There is a golf cart that will take you to the other side of the island to visit the beach which is near the camp ground.   We rode the cart in the morning for a nice beach day.   There are miles of beach to walk, shell, and explore.  We captured some pictures of an Osprey (bird of prey) and his catch of the day–a Sheepshead Fish.

The sunsets and sunrises in the bay made for a very picturesque setting. We wanted to stay longer but the waterway ahead beckons………..Next stops will be: Fort Myers and Naples, hopefully soon to be caught up on the blog posting.

Last Call following Sanctuary through the open bridge

Venice Jetty

Market at Venice

Shacks along the ICW

Sunset at Manasota Key – Englewood Anchorage

Manasota Key

Manasota Key

Ferry crossing the ICW (Intercoastal Waterway)

Looper friends: Thad and Cindy from Glorious Dei at Cayo Costa

One of our favorite places so far……

Scenes from Cayo Costa State Park

Osprey and the catch of the day

They have Ice Cream on Cayo Costa

Any place with Klondike Bars can’t be all bad

Sanctuary at Cayo Costa

We even attended our local church while anchored at Cayo Costa, via the Internet…..

Sunset at Cayo Costa

Another sunset at Cayo Costa