Wednesday March 9: Road Trip!!!

So it was time for a road trip!! Since we had some time and we have a car, it seemed like a great idea to do a trip around southern Florida to see some friends and family we hadn't seen for a while. Fortunately they were all in the same general area!

We left Marathon and headed toward Weston - location of the Cleveland Clinic with which we became so familiar over the past year. Destination was our lunch stop at a favorite Chinese restaurant :-)

Back in the car to continue the rest of our 5 hour drive to our destination of Dave and Joyce - formerly of Joysea. They sold the boat a number of years ago but still come to Marathon for a week each season. It's always fun to see them and since they extended an invitation - we were going to the condo they rent in Lake Placid FL!

Dave and Joyce

We had a great time! Their condo is on the sixth floor and overlooks a lake. Of course there are 27 (?) lakes in the area. Some quite large but other just puddles :-)

The town of Lake Placid itself reminded us of some of the small towns on the Trent as they have invited various artists to paint murals on some the town's buildings.

Most incorporate the history of the area in one way or another. Each one also has some 'hidden' items that are in the paintings as well.

This one had a penny and a rooster hidden in the motorcycle!

Orange groves

Dave kept telling us the only thing around are lakes and orange groves. He was so right! It was amazing to see the miles upon miles of orange groves as we drove around the area.

Our favorite stop?

Ice cream at Maxells fruit stop - with non-dairy ice cream! It was excellent - flavor was of course orange :-)

Nice front porch with rockers as well as several picnic tables in the shade. Very fun stop!







Next it was on to Terri and Scott's (Steve's sister) in Bradenton with a stop at Myakka State Park on the way. It was a very pretty day and Terri and Scott had gone early in order to obtain tickets for the tram ride at 11:30 - so nice of them.






The tram ride was really good - with a guide that was excellent and he gave a very informative tour. There were many small alligators along the trail and one very large one near the road.


It was very easy to see it from the car. Which is always the best place for viewing wildlife :-)

Especially if it's of a mind to take a bite out of people who are in it's space!

Steve, Terri and Scott did a couple of small hikes along some of the wooden walkways. The walkways make it easy to walk along an area that is basically a marsh. The walkway in the picture is a 60 foot high "CanopyWalk" with a high observation tower at the end. Another fun stop :)

After an enjoyable breakfast out the next morning, we were off and headed to Punta Gorda. This is the winter home of George and Nancy - formerly of Jenna Star - our next door dockmates for 5 years here at Banana Bay.

They are very much missed by the boaters here in Marathon.

Punta Gorda is a very nice area with water very nearby. We even had time to visit the Wild Bird Sanctuary where numerous types of birds are either held until recovered from injuries or stay permanently due to some disability.

The best? Nancy and George shared their pictures from the driving trip they made to Alaska this past summer. So many pictures of wildlife - it was like seeing a National Geographic special. So amazing. As I recall they traveled over 13,000 miles - talk about a road trip!

Wonder if our little Keys Kruiser would make the trip!


As always, the best part of being away is getting back to the boat. Numerous accidents around Miami and in the north keys area delayed us an hour and a half. So what to do but get off and go to the Thai place in Homestead for a late lunch - way better than sitting in traffic :-)