After getting setteled in at the City Marina in Tarpon Springs, we finally got to meet our new friends on the MV “Stella Maris“ in person! Sean Jahr and his girlfriend Hazel Thomson. Our chat would be short because everyone wanted to take a nap, after the 22 hour adventure in the dark! We took a short walk to a small, locally owned, greek restaurant. I would tell you the name but I have no clue how to spell it or pronounce it, so I will just say it was a great place to eat lunch at! Gyros and a huge greek salad, it was delicious! We made a mad dash for the boat, we were so exhausted. We took about a 3 hour nap, got up just in time for dinner! On our way out we met the other couple that traveled with us on MV “Yesterdays Dream.“ Steve and Linda Franco. Had another short visit and headed out to get something to eat! Imagine another greek restaurant! Tarpon Springs is the Greek capitol of the US. We went to a place called Costas. This place is famous for its greek salad! They build the salad over a scoop of their own potato salad! We had a great dinner, plus 2 for 1 Sangrias made everything just right, to head back to the boat and go to sleep! The next morning, after all the chores were done, we got our bikes down so we could ride to West Marine and get a few things that the boat was in desperate need for! Our ride through town was very pretty, although we had to stop several times and ask for directions, we finally made it. We also decided to run in and get a few groceries, since the store was across the street! We have now learned a new lesson about hauling water! Buying the big 2 ½ gallon jugs is a lot cheaper then getting bottles! Sounded like a great idea at the time! When we got the bikes loaded down with everything we bought, the water was to much weight for our little rack to hold! I (Brandy) decided that since my back pack was virtually empty that I could haul the water and the ½ Gallon of milk. On our ride back to the boat on the Pinellas Bike Trail, that runs the distance of the entire county, those 3 gallons of liquid began to get very heavy! Although, Everything that we had bought, once again made it safely back to the boat. Later that evening, one of Charlie’s long time friends, Diane Gillmore Williams, was going to pick us up and take us to her house. Charlie and Diane go way back, into their high School years in Orange, California. They had a lot of catching up to! We met her husband “Stu,” and their great big cat “Chad.” We had a great conversation and shared pictures. The stories from the past, and what had been going on with each others families, it was a lot of fun to listen to! We took a ride on Diane and Stu’s golf cart. They took us around their neat little town, Ozona. It was hard to believe that there were million dollar mansions, amongst the plain old everyday houses! We stopped at the local pier, where neighbors gather to watch the sunsets, and another local marina called “The Speckled Trout.” Seafood would be on the list for dinner tonight! We arrived at “Molly Hammerheads,” that had a parking lot just for the golf carts! The food was excellent, in a great atmosphere. It was a very short ride back to the Williams house, where we had to change from the golf cart, to the car, and head back to the marina.
Once again, we slept in, as I guess we didn’t catch up on our sleep! The plan was to head out, and run the 37 miles to Pass-A-Grille Marina! We waited for Sean and Hazel to get back from breakfast, and all 3 of our boats were headed out of Tarpon Springs! I think, I forgot to mention that Tarpon Springs is also the sea sponge capitol of the U.S. Once again, MV “Stella Maris,” MV “Yesterdays Dream,” followed by MV “Bama Belle” would be going down the Anclote River. We would be leaving MV “Yesterdays Dream,” as they were only planning the short jump to Honeymoon Island.
After another beautiful day on the water, the arrival into Pass-A-Grille was anything but pleasant! Both “Stella Maris” and “Bama Belle” got into low water, which caused us to stir up some mud! The wind got to blowing around 20 to 25 mph. The wind was blowing so hard in the direction that would push the boats away from the dock, made the approach and the whole docking process a night mare! Especially for me, the rookie on board! I have learned that trying to move this large vessel sideways in the strong wind, is like trying to move a car with its parking breaks on! Finally, after both of us were successful in getting completely tied to the floating dock, we all walked up to the local pub “The Wharf,” for dinner! After this not so much fun experience of docking in the wind, we all needed a drink! The food was awesome! We ate anything from: buffalo wings, buffalo shrimp, conch fritters, lobster bites, and prime rib! We all felt like someone should carry us back to our boats in a wheel barrow! Before we untied the lines and head east to Sarasota, we wanted to go to the little deli, and go across to St. Petersburg Beach. This was the coolest little deli, it had all kinds of food! It had everything! We then walked the whole entire 3 blocks across the island, to the beach! We took a short walk down the beach, found a few shells, enjoyed the smells and the sounds of the beach. Time to head back to the boats, and make our journey to Sarasota!
Once again, we slept in, as I guess we didn’t catch up on our sleep! The plan was to head out, and run the 37 miles to Pass-A-Grille Marina! We waited for Sean and Hazel to get back from breakfast, and all 3 of our boats were headed out of Tarpon Springs! I think, I forgot to mention that Tarpon Springs is also the sea sponge capitol of the U.S. Once again, MV “Stella Maris,” MV “Yesterdays Dream,” followed by MV “Bama Belle” would be going down the Anclote River. We would be leaving MV “Yesterdays Dream,” as they were only planning the short jump to Honeymoon Island.
After another beautiful day on the water, the arrival into Pass-A-Grille was anything but pleasant! Both “Stella Maris” and “Bama Belle” got into low water, which caused us to stir up some mud! The wind got to blowing around 20 to 25 mph. The wind was blowing so hard in the direction that would push the boats away from the dock, made the approach and the whole docking process a night mare! Especially for me, the rookie on board! I have learned that trying to move this large vessel sideways in the strong wind, is like trying to move a car with its parking breaks on! Finally, after both of us were successful in getting completely tied to the floating dock, we all walked up to the local pub “The Wharf,” for dinner! After this not so much fun experience of docking in the wind, we all needed a drink! The food was awesome! We ate anything from: buffalo wings, buffalo shrimp, conch fritters, lobster bites, and prime rib! We all felt like someone should carry us back to our boats in a wheel barrow! Before we untied the lines and head east to Sarasota, we wanted to go to the little deli, and go across to St. Petersburg Beach. This was the coolest little deli, it had all kinds of food! It had everything! We then walked the whole entire 3 blocks across the island, to the beach! We took a short walk down the beach, found a few shells, enjoyed the smells and the sounds of the beach. Time to head back to the boats, and make our journey to Sarasota!
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