November 29, Day 169 – At Crooked Island in St. Andrews Sound

Today we woke to beautiful sunny skies and calm winds. It was gorgeous. After a leisurely breakfast we went for a long dinghy ride to the east end of Crooked Island. Gerry fished on both the Gulf side and the St. Andrews Sound side (nope, didn’t catch anything, but did lose some bait) while Linda walked the beach picking up shells. The temperature was perfect and the scenery was like what you see in travel guides. Around noon we went back to the boat for a quick lunch. Then we took beach chairs, a box of Sangria, a book, fishing gear and a shrimp casting net out to the beach where we were anchored. Gerry practiced his casting (see pictures below), Linda again walked the beach, watched the waves as they hit the shore and finished reading her book.

Just before 4:00 we went back to the boat to pick up food for tonight’s weenie roast on the beach. The gang on all 3 boats (Monk’s Vineyard, Second Star and Emotion III) had happy hour sitting in chairs on the beach watching the sunset. It truly doesn’t get any better than this. After sunset, we built a campfire and roasted hot dogs and set off the fireworks that Michael (Second Star) had bought earlier. It was truly a memorable evening. We’d rate it in the top five of the best of the trip (so far anyway).

Getting ready for the day

Gerry practicing his net casting .... this one was not so good

This one was better

The 3 boats in the anchorage

Miles of white sand

Interesting driftwood and trees all along the beach

Footprints in the sand .. just couldn't resist taking a picture of my wanderings

Very crowded beach .... us and the bird. By the way, there is only fine white sand on the beach. All the bumps and the stuff that looks like rocks are all shells.

Getting ready for the evening activities

Linda enjoying the view

The sun was dropping in the sky casting long shadows on the island

Michel snapped a picture of us as we started off in the dinghy on our way to the campfire and weenie roast

Here's the other dinghies at the beach as everyone made their way to the campfire

Setting up for the campfire

Carole loves to take pictures .... Smile everyone

We all have a front row seat for the show that is about to start

Let the show begin .... compliments of Mother Nature

Michel takes a moment for a quiet walk along the beach

A rising moon. While it wasn't a full moon it was big enough to really light up the night.

A brilliant sunset with all of us in silhoutte

Pink clouds were everywhere as the sun set

Another shot of the sunset

Sitting around the campfire

Roasted hotdogs .... truly a gourmet meal ... and the ambiance got 5 stars ! ! ! It had been a day (and night) to remember

November 28, Day 168 – At Crooked Island in St. Andrews Sound

We had a leisurely breakfast this morning and then hopped in the dinghy to go exploring. We walked along the beach collecting shells. Some locals told us that Hurricane Ida had brought in a lot and that not many people had been out on the beach here since the storm. We found some that we kept, including many sand dollars. However, we found no sea glass.

Gerry spent the afternoon setting up fishing gear and Linda worked on the blog and other computer things. We don’t get WiFi here so we are using our phone to get access to the Internet.

We hosted happy hour and dinner on our boat. The menu included margaritas and sangria for happy hour and tortilla soup and enchiladas for dinner. These are two items I usually make with leftover turkey and, even though we had no leftovers, decided it was appropriate to carry on tradition. Gerry had picked up some cooked turkey at Publix yesterday, so Linda whipped up the soup and enchiladas for everyone. It was a nice evening.

After everyone left, Gerry went outside to release the small Bonnet Head shark he had caught earlier. In the process, he kept catching fish. We now know what a Croaker looks like – he caught 6 using a fake stinky worm when it was dark. He also thinks he got a small black sea bass. He didn’t keep any, so no fish dinner tomorrow. It also gave him an excuse not to help with the dishes.

There is no TV here, so it was off to bed to get ready for another day on the beach and some fishing.

This is looking out at St. Andrews Sound

This is the barrier island (Crooked Island) that separates the Gulf of Mexico from St. Andrews Sound. This is the area we spent a couple of days exploring

A small cove on the island

Pelicans in a row

.... and a small sandpiper scurrying to beat the wave as it hits the shore

You can just barely make out the boats in the distance through the seagrass.

Our dinghy anchored on the shore

Gerry enjoying the beach

... and Linda taking a break from shell collecting

Sand, sea, sky and clouds all seem to blend into one

Gerry caught a Bonnet Head Shark

Emotion III seems framed in the sky and its reflection.

Approaching dusk -- beautiful

November 27, Day 167 – Panama City to Crooked Island

After a great night’s sleep we woke up fairly early this morning and decided to walk into town for breakfast. Based on recommendations from the locals, we decided to give Bayou Joe’s a try. The place was right on the water, had lots of local charm and, to top it off, the food was great. We next decided to wander through town (to work off some of breakfast). Gerry soon spotted a sporting goods store and ended up buying more fishing stuff. He’s bound and determined to catch fish in Florida ….. we’ll see. Next we found Panama Marine, but unfortunately that was closed for the long Thanksgiving weekend. We almost made it back to the boat without any more purchases, but about a block before the marina, Gerry found a music store and had to stop in to see what they had. He’s always checking out anything drum or percussion related. Well, they had some kind of thing-a-ma-jig that has a foot peddle and you step on it and it hits against something else and, of course, makes a noise. Gerry says it’s called a drum peddle and is usually used with drums. However, he’s using it with a cow bell. (Not sure I described it adequately, but you get the point … it makes noise … one more thing to drive Linda crazy.)

At 10:00 Carl arrived to take the guys to get their West Marine fix (they also stopped at Publix to pick up a few provisions). Once everyone was back at the boats and had checked the weather forecast, it was decided we’d head out to Crooked Island right after lunch.

At the recommendation of Bill and Ruth (Integrity) we decided we needed to try Tom’s for one of his famous hot dogs. It is somewhat of a local institution in the area. We walked into town and Gerry got a super dog and chili pie; Linda went for the much smaller cheese dog. All were quite good.

We headed for Crooked Island around 1:15. There were a few waves out in the Gulf, but they were coming from the north so they were on our stern and the ride was comfortable. Gerry tried a little fishing on the way, but without any luck. Oh well, there’s always tomorrow. We made our way into the anchorage thanks to some coordinates from the local loopers at yesterday’s dinner. It seems that the inlet channel changes often as the sand shifts because of weather. Once inside, we and Emotion III anchored in what we thought was an okay spot, but when Second Star arrived he advised that if we were staying past Sunday, he had found out we’d have to move as the Island is actually Air Force property and during weekdays they run exercises and there are certain places you cannot be anchored. With that new information, we brought up the anchor and moved to another location within the anchorage. By the time we all got settled, it was well past 5:00 and dark ….. So, no happy hour tonight.

We had a quick dinner, did blog and route planning stuff and then off to bed.



Here's the entrance to Bayou Joe's. It had a lot of character

More of Bayou Joe's

A shot of downtown. Wasn't very busy at 8:30 in the morning.

An interesting little know fact .... there were actually 3 Blues Brothers .... here's a picture of all 3. The third one is showing off his "drum peddle"

A shot of the Floridian Jolly Ole St. Nick

As you can tell, this is Tom's Famous Hot Dogs

... and here's a Tom's Famous Hot Dog eater

Looking south into the Gulf of Mexico

Here we are approaching our anchorage. It was a bit tricky getting in.

Emotion III getting ready to lower the anchor. The picture looks basically black and white because it was getting dark .... however, notice that the red color in the Canadian flag certainly shows up.

The sun was setting as we dropped anchor

The sky had an interesting look ... we think it's probably beautiful here, but we'll have to wait until morning and daylight to see it.

November 26, Day 166 – In Panama City

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!!!!

We slept in this morning and then had a leisurely “light” breakfast. Light, because we knew that Thanksgiving dinner would be yummy. We, and all other Loopers in the area, were invited to the home of Carl and Greg Vernon on Watson Bayou, just a couple of miles from the marina where we’re staying. Our transportation (Carl in his truck) arrived right on time at 11:00 to take us to his home.

The Vernon’s home is lovely and they were wonderful hosts. There were about 25-30 loopers there. Everyone brought a dish to share and the Vernon’s provided all the basics—turkey, ham, stuffing, etc. We all stuffed ourselves and shared stories. It was a very enjoyable day and a special Thanksgiving we will long remember.

Back at the boat later in the day we did normal post Thanksgiving Day stuff --- rested and watched football. Then off to bed.




What a view looking out at Watson Bayou

... and here's a view of the Vernon home from the dock

Quite a "full house" - Loopers everywhere

The salad table; dessert table was in the livingroom - turkey, dressing and ham on the counter and veggies on the other side of the great room - food everywhere

Greg announcing that "Dinner is Ready"

Here's Carl - talking about how he enjoys being a Harbor Host

All the Loopers - happy and content - what a wonderful Thanksgiving