After about six weeks in Indian Rocks Beach we moved on.

On one of our side trips by car, we had driven to Punta Gorda and found Fisherman's Village Marina.  Bill and Barbara Lowenberg had recommended it.  We made reservations for a two night stay starting Jan 6.  It seems that to get moving again, you need to set a date and make a reservation. We allowed two days for the trip.
 

The Great Blue Hearon decided to come along with us. He hopped up on the Bimini and shouted, "Grawaaak". There was moderate wind from the north east, and the sky was overcast, when we pulled out around 10:00 AM. There was no rain forecast, so we set out hoping for conditions to improve. Before we left I measured the distance to the water from the highest point on the boat, the dinghy crane.   It's 21.5 feet. We would pass through/under three bridges before getting to the open Gulf. On the charts one of the bridges is listed as 20 feet clearance. With the low tide we could probably clear; we would not need to wait for the bridge to be raised.

At each bridge we called ahead and were given clearances much larger than needed, so we passed through each without delay.

As we went through Johns Pass, we could see that there was some fog off the coast. We could, however, see the three pairs of markers ahead, and so we fired up the radar and pressed on. As we reached the last marker we found that the fog was really what my nephew calls a "sea mist"... it looks like a fog, but gets you wet in a hurry.

As we proceeded south about ten miles to the Edgmont Channel the fog/mist got thicker and thicker. Visibility dropped to less than 1/8 mile. The Edgmont is the main shipping lane into Tampa Bay and we had never been there before. I reduced speed to 5 kts, called for concerned traffic on VHF channel 16, and got no replies.  We listened and heard fog horns, first off to port, then off to starboard.  I answered with long blasts on our horn and rang the ships bell for good measure. The GPS and the radar both indicated the pair of channel buoys, 5 and 6,  less than 1/8 mile to port. We could not see them or anything else for that matter.  Once across the Edgmont Channel (it took less than a minute to cross), I zoomed out on the charts and found that the fog horn to port had been at channel marker 7 and the other at marker 1. I had been answering the fog horns and not another boat.  I felt a bit foolish, but safer for my precautions.

Five minutes after crossing the Edgmont Channel the fog/mist cleared completely and we enjoyed a sunny day with calm seas. We put the boat up on plane to make up the time lost in the fog. We were about three miles off shore in 35 feet of water. We could see Anna Marie Island and later Sarasota as we headed down the coast. We turned the steering over to Dobbs and the Capt'n and only had to intervene for the occasional crab pot. We have discovered Rum and Coke makes a nice afternoon drink.

Venice Inlet is flanked by a pair of jetties that extend from the beach about 1/4 mile. The water is deep even that close to the shore. The inlet channel was crowded with small fishing boats. They were about 16 feet long, broad beam skiffs, with two fishermen, each throwing large cast nets. They were catching large quantities of fish on each cast. My guess is they were mullet.
 

We passed the Crow's Nest Marina and went on into the harbor area near the Venice Yacht Club. I was looking for an anchorage I had found on the internet. In the end we moved to the free city dock at Higel Park.   There was one empty space and we were able to get in quite smoothly with some assistance from boaters already tied up there.

 

That evening we strolled back toward the inlet. We were in an exploratory mood and wandered into the Jetty's Villas. There were some people partying pool side. We apologized for trespassing and were promptly asked to join in. We met Horace Greely, his wife and son, and another owner at the Jetty's. She was the president of the homeowners association. I was so taken with the place that I went back the next day to take some pictures.

 That evening we dined at the Crow's Nest.  While waiting to order we could see that the portions were very large, so Marion suggested we share an appetizer, and the Bouillabaisse. Even sharing, there was plenty to eat.

Venice is the self proclaimed Shark's tooth capital of the world. (Back in 1963 Myrtle Beach SC made similar claims). We would have a whole day of sight seeing before moving on, so we took the bikes into town. We rode up elegant Venice Boulevard with its wide esplanade park extending from the beach to the heart of town 1/2 mile inland. We saw a municipal tennis program at the town courts. We were given a map of the town, and souvenir sharks teeth at the Chamber of Commerce. We biked our way through the hi rent district and returned to the boat around noon.
 

Marion made us a picnic lunch and we took it to the beach with us. The water was rough from the onshore north west wind.  All of the sea shells semed to be just beyond the waters edge in about 6 inches of water. They would alternately be uncovered, or knee deep in water.   If you didn't move up the beach quickly, the occasional rogue wave would get you. That's how I got my pants wet.   For my efforts I got two sea shells but no shark's teeth.

On to Punta Gorda Jan. 6

We left at 9:00 AM and managed to pull out from our parallel parked spot without hitting the sailboat 3 feet ahead, or the sailboat 3 feet behind. Once out of the Venice Inlet it would be a straight three hour shot to the Charlotte Bay Inlet.  Be wary and attentive. There is a shoal about 2 feet beneath the surface for about a mile along the north side of the entry channel.  Don't try to short cut this enrty.

Once inside Charlotte Bay, the way is wide but attention is required at mid bay for a shoal from the north side.

In the bay we were greeted by three porpoises who played in our starboard wake for about three miles. They would turn their heads to the left so they could get a better look at the strange creatures that were waving, and hollering, and knocking on the side of the boat they were following. They would surface to get a better look. Taking turns, they would leap out of the water. Then as suddenly as they came, they were gone.

We made it to the harbor at mid afternoon. I could see we were going to like this place so I immediately requested an extension for another weeks stay. It worked out that we could get what we wanted.