Monday - Feb 20 , 2016
A few days have passed since I sat down to write. During the time this publication has
been dormant Jacob and Kristin have been here. One reason for no TLs is because this is
the room we use for the 2nd bedroom where Jacob sleeps and it’s not easy to get at my
computer. That’s not the only thing that keeps me from writing and that is because we are
busy when they are here. If we’re not on the river in the Kayaks we’re going here or there
to see all the sights that we want to see. I’ll try to list all the things we’ve done over the
past few days.
Their flight arrived here around 8:10 on Friday (the 17th) and on the drive back to the
condo we stopped to pick up breakfast at a Subway. We actually got here around 9:30 or
10AM with just enough time to do a bit of unpacking before the Myakka Kayakkas (the
group here that goes out on the river each Friday. We were quick to see that we were the
only ones who elected to get on the river that day. However, that didn’t deter us. J&K
were first to go out on the boats and were out for maybe an hour. When they returned we
had some lunch then Pa Paw and Jacob were out again to do some fishing. No fish were
caught however, but it was fun anyway. During that foray on the river Jacob got to get up
close and personal with the huge duck population that’s here for the winter. He did like
that experience. That evening Ma Maw cooked up a fine dinner and we relaxed, played
some games and enjoyed each other’s company.
On Saturday we drove to Sarasota to visit the Myakka State park and take in the sights
there. We got there just in time to miss one of the boat rides there but booked the very
next one at around 2:30. Jacob and Pa Paw were up at the front of the boat with an excellent view. While out there looking at the gators and bird that abound here clouds rolled in
and we were thinking it was going to rain. The wildlife there must have been warned
about the coming rain and made themselves scarce. But we did see a few very large gators and only a handful of birds. The captain of the boat kept us all amused and busy with
his constant dialogue. We did learn a lot about the history of the lake and natural history
of the area. By the end of the 1 hour cruise we were a bit hungry and found a nice seat on
the patio of the restaurant there. As we settled in it did begin to rain and it appeared it
wasn’t going to stop any time soon. Kristin watched the storm on her phone and we could
see that the rain would follow us home.
By the time we arrived back it was still raining and we did get a short rest. Soon it was
time to take in one of the restaurants in Englewood that we knew would serve a good
meal. However, for whatever they must have been having a bad night and only one of our
meals lived up to our expectations and only Pa Paw brought his left over food home. (that
was smelling so badly in two days that it was thrown away too). We’re doubting that their
usual large group of clientele will hold up if they keep serving the way they did on Saturday evening.
Jacob and Pa Paw were up early and headed to Punta Gorda to a prearranged fishing charter to take place from Fisherman’s Wharf. That went off pretty well. We met with the
captain (Sam) and learned we were the only two other than himself on the boat. The trip
was to be backwater fishing on and around the harbor. We spent the first hour hunting for
fishing bait and making our way to the place he already knew we were going. The bait
were to be mangrove crabs. At first I though the captain was being cheap and not prepared, but later I learned you can’t buy these crabs and fish love them. The only other option would have been live shrimp. That would have worked but likely we’ve have gone
through a lot of that before we caught anything because the other small fish would have
robbed our bait as quickly as we could get the hook in the water. After catching the crabs in the mangroves at Ponce de Leon Park. That’s where the Peace River Wildlife Center is located. We searched
though quite a few mangroves trees before we found enough bait before heading west along the harbor maybe 4 miles to a man-made reef. There were searched, and searched to find just the right spot.
It was maybe 10:30 before we actually got any poles in
the water. Our fishing trip was supposed to be a 4 hour
long trip. But considering that it took about 30 minutes
to get to the reef, 30 or 40 minutes to catch bait, and another 30 to 40 minute return trip we actually fished about
half of the 4 hour time. During the time we were there
we caught some might fine fish. Jacob landed the first
one, a four pound Sheep’s Head. Believe me it took
some doing to get that fish in the boat. We managed to
land seven of those after loosing several that were
equally as large as the ones that Jacob caught. Once
back at the docs the captain cleaned our fish and wished
us a good rest of the day, as he headed back out with another group of fisherman. The photo doesn’t do justice
to the size of these fish. Believe me they were large.
Check out the one Jacob is holding. It must have bee attacked by something during it’s life but somehow survived. It would have been about a 3 pounder.
Later in the day we drove to South Beach on Gasparilla
Island and spent the last
part of that day watching
dolphin cruise by and some
strange fog they were having.
We had fresh fish that
daughter Kristin fried up
for our evening meal.
Those Sheep’s Head are
very good to eat.
On Monday we had just enough time for another short Kayak trip where Jacob caught a fish, and
Kristin said it was the best day she had experienced on the river. Just right according to her.
Afterwards we made our way to Fort Meyers
where we met with Stan and Janet (cousins) for
a short visit and a fine meal at the clubhouse.
That left just enough time to get them to the airport for their trip flight home.
As you can see their trip was jam packed with
activity. Once back home Mrs. G. fell asleep on
the couch where she is still sacked out. I haven’t the heart to wake her. It will likely be bedtime before she gets up.
OK...keep warm (as it appears from here) there isn’t any problem for that. Keep up the warm winter
temps...sounds great..
Jerry & Gerrie