As was previously the case, much activity involving ship maintenance and loading and unloading of cargo was visible. It is definitely a “working harbor”. We saw the Norwegian cruise ship, "Norwegian Spirit” in a dry dock for repairs,
one of the two Stealth destroyers tied to a dock. The enormous cost and the inability to perform the anticipated defense has delayed building more Stealth destroyers for now. 
After leaving the busy downtown harbor, we passed into the large bay, which supports shrimping, fishing, and shipping channels. Shrimp boats always fascinate me, whether they are just passing through,
or actively engaged in shrimping.
We have enjoyed buying fresh large shrimp directly from the shrimp boats. The taste is beyond belief and the cost is so reasonable, that we feel like we are stealing them. They are considerably less than the $18.00 a pound that we often pay in Rhode Island. The first time we went to a shrimp boat, we met two people each buying over fifty pounds of shrimp. Naively, I asked each of them if they were having a large party that weekend and they said “No, this is how much we’ll use in the next several months.” After questioning them about the freshness of frozen shrimp left in the freezer for several months, they and the shrimper told us that when they are really fresh they have no smell and that they can be cleaned and then frozen in fresh water and they would stay fresh for at least a year. We tried keeping a pound for three weeks and found that they were right. Now we try to keep several pounds in the freezer all the time. I just can’t have too much!
After leaving Mobile Bay we traveled on the Intercoastal Waterway (ICW) on the panhandle of Florida. It passes through several different types of landscape luxurious homes, towns, beachy areas and swampy areas. We found some of the swampy areas to be quite scenic. They actually reminded us of many of Stephen Foster’s songs. We didn’t see any alligators this time, but we saw many dolphins, Spanish moss and interestingly shaped pine trees.
We stopped at the famous oyster catching port of Apalachicola, FL. Oysters are not our favorite seafood, but obviously many people enjoy them. We were amazed to see the high pile of shucked oyster shells near the shipping yard, but we were less impressed by its smell.
We tried to keep our tomato plants and basil protected from the frost and wind.
It seemed every time we survived a frost, the plants would continue to grow until another frost came. They finally had too much and they died after having produced over 80 tomatoes and many bunches of basil.
We can’t complain too much about weather though since the day we had hoped to cross the Gulf of Mexico from Carrabelle to Tarpon Springs the weather and seas were perfect! This is sunset during our twenty-two hour crossing.
After enjoying Tarpon Springs, we headed straight for our favorite site from last year, Caladesi Island State Park. It felt as if we were returning home with many welcoming rangers,
and beach scenes, 
many interesting bird viewings from our boat,
and observing the coy spoonbills that first appeared “bashful”
and later “warmed up" to being “gawked at by human admirers”.
Boaters like to put Christmas decorations on their boats. The boats movement made it hard to capture a non-blurred image.
We left the boat at Maximo’s Marina in St. Petersburg, FL for a month so we could spend Christmas at home with Beth and friends. While at home, we gave two “Great Loop” presentations with talk and pictures before a total of five hundred people and then did a different exclusive performance for the people our daughter Beth works with. All of these were at Mystic Seaport and were lots of fun.
After spending a few days in Indiana with Bill’s sister, Betty, and her husband, Jerry, we returned to the boat. Beth joined us for ten days. Bill had several projects on the boat before we could leave, so Beth and I did grocery shopping and watched two dolphin and two manatees swimming in the marina waters.
I think the pelicans and gulls were just as interested in watching us on the boat as we were of watching them on the pole above the boat. 
All work was finally done and we took Beth to Caladesi Island State Park. Unfortunately it was very cold and windy when she was there, so we didn’t do as much as we had hoped. We did manage a picnic at the beach
and then a trip by golf cart along all the nature trails. She was able to see her first "in-the-wild" armadillo,
and to see what is left of the original settler’s home.
While she was there, Trevor Crompton, the English artist that we met last time, stopped by the boat and gave me a stunning T-shirt that he had made with paintings of many of the animals, birds, shells, and plants that exist on the island.
After Beth left, we spent time visiting with several good friends that live near the coast in western Florida. The first were a wonderful boating couple that we met in Alabama this past summer. They live on Tampa Bay and took us on a sightseeing tour of St. Petersburg. For several evenings we dined at elegant restaurants and at their home and played the board game, Sequence, and dominoes. Competition between the men and the women was ruthless.
The first night anchoring out after leaving St. Petersburg was profitable. Not only did we drag up a crab when we pulled the anchor,
but there was also a nice sized catfish. Well, we didn’t really eat them!
After pulling anchor we passed by many interesting homes, museums, and commercial buildings in Sarasota
and then docked in Venice, FL. One of my high school girlfriends and her husband live there and they have been after us for years to stop by. With only one day’s notice they graciously welcomed us. It was a busy four days spent sightseeing in Venice area, including Boca Grande,
looking for shark’s teeth at Venice Beach,
eating in several local restaurants and at their home. Nights were spent playing cards, dice, and Sequence. We were all very competitive and had many good laughs.
After leaving Venice we spent part of one day beach combing. This is one of our favorite pastimes. This time it was at Don Pedro State Park, another white sand beach on the barrier islands in the Gulf. It is just off Charlotte Harbor. Shelling was good!
The next day we continued on to Punta Gorda to visit more boating friends to whom we had to return a ship’s clock. Bill had gotten it a year and a half ago to fix, but we hadn’t seen them since. I guess its better late them never and the fact that it now runs is a plus. While in Punta Gorda we took a bike tour around the “Murals walking tour”. Each mural depicts an important event in the town's history.
The whole town is nicely laid out with several parks and many biking trails.
Our next stop after visiting friends was at Pelican Bay. Many cruisers had recommended this anchorage because it is close to both the famous white sand beach at Cayo Costa State Park, 
Cabbage Key is famous for the Cabbage Key Inn where Jimmy Buffett was inspired to write “Cheeseburgers in Paradise. The walls and ceiling of the restaurant and bar are completely covered with dollar bills. The view from the inside is colorful. 
Even the cutout areas of the porch screen supports has an interesting design.
Naturally we had a cheeseburger lunch so we could experience this part of Paradise. We took a leisurely walk around the island and enjoyed the many scenic views. 
Our last stop before entering the more remote areas of the Everglades and the Keys was at Ft. Myers Beach where we moored for several days waiting for the weather to improve so we could head farther south. Ft. Myers Beach has a good trolley system that we used for getting to Lovers Key State Park and to do some shopping. The town also had many touristy spots to entertain people and several town parks that appeal to the tourists’ love of nature. From our boat we watched the Key West Express load and unload.
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