We stayed in Crystal River (CR) for a month. Pete’s Pier is pretty run down, but it is in a great location - walking distance to the center of town and groceries - and we had a beautiful view from the salon. It rained quite a bit for the first few weeks which was a bit boring for us, but much needed for the area. There has been a serious drought in Florida for the past few years. I started walking the neighborhood for exercise (cruising involves a lot of sitting and my clothes are getting tight). We also spent some time working on the boat. In order for us to keep it in Florida for the summer we have to change our insurance policy. That requires us to have a survey (inspection) of the boat performed, and after our 3000 mile cruise some tidying up was needed first. We (especially Dave) were pretty nervous about the survey, it was kind of like being graded on all of our work for the past 5 years. I am happy to report that it went really well, Dave got special kudos for his immaculate engine room. According to the survey we have a well maintained 11 year old boat. The surveyor even mentioned that the boat showed no signs of water intrusion! It is as if nothing ever happened.
Dave flew to Pittsburgh to get our truck the second week. Mike and Stacy were kind enough to lend us their car for the drive to the airport. Tampa airport is about an hour and a half from CR and we had to leave at 4 am for the flight. I got to spend my first night alone on the boat! We have spent a lot of time together in the past year (more on that later). Just having the place to myself for 24 hours was a bit of an event! Having a vehicle again added a new dimension to our activities. We took a couple of day trips. First to Ocala, about an hour away, where we wanted to see a Polo Match that was rained out. Central Florida is really much different from the south east part of the state. Up here is horse country with green pastures, miles of split rail fences and Spanish moss hanging from the trees. Then to Cedar Key, a fishing village about an hour away that looks like what Key West used to be back in the day. We also went over to Homosassa, the next town to the south and visited the Wilderness Park (a natural environment zoo for native species) and had some awesome shrimp at the Freezer. The Freezer is one of those local hole in the wall places that had great food at great prices and is packed with people. It started out as a wholesale fish shop and over the years a bar was added and they started serving fish too.
On Memorial Day a group of boaters at the marina had a pot luck dinner and we got to know some of our neighbors. There are about a dozen or so liveaboards at Pete’s Pier, an eclectic, friendly group from a wide range of ages and back grounds. One guy seems to have had a particular effect on Dave. John is about 76, tall, rail thin and has the nick name ‘Captain Granola’. He was never a boater before but thought he’d give it a try and lives on a 35 foot older powerboat. His main interest these days is nutrition and he experiments with different dietary theories, trying them out to see how they effect his body. One of his big focuses is sugar. John gave Dave a book about the negative effects of consuming refined sugars and lo and behold my Jelly Belly addict of a husband is eating less candy! Dave doesn’t have a weight problem, but he does have arthritis in his back and sugar is bad for inflamation. John is amazingly flexible and looks at least 15 years younger than he is, so here’s hoping!
Mike and Stacy have an extra pair of kayaks so we took a day trip with them to the Rainbow River. The river is just pristine and you can easily see fish from above the water. We saw an alligator sitting on it’s nest along the riverbank and several turtles. I have to say, coming upon these animals in nature is considerably more exciting than seeing them in a zoo. Especially true of the alligators.
It was hot and humid in June, mid to upper 90s. For native Buffalonians like us that is really hot. Dave swears his blood is thinning. By the time our month was up at Pete’s we were ready to head north to cooler weather. Phase 1 of our temporary mid-life retirement had been completed. Phase 2 will take place at our cottage in Canada. We found a spot to leave SeaChange, and on June 12 we packed up the truck and headed north. But first we have some stops to make on the way.
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