On The Loop Again

Our last post was at the end of November in Dunedin, FL after the nasty Gulf crossing and then traveling 15 miles north to Tarpon Springs. Tarpon Springs is a wonderful small town on the Gulf Intercoastal known for its Greek heritage and sponge fishermen. We enjoyed some great Greek food before we left to fly home for the Holidays. Turtle Cove Marina is located off the main river channel and literally tucked into a very protected cove. It was a great place to leave WaterMarks for the five weeks we would be back home. Tides are a bit strong in this area and the water levels fluctuated almost 3 feet every 6 hours and challenged Linda's short legs.

We flew home a week earlier than planned as Linda's 96 year old Mom took a fall breaking a bone in her ankle and she was placed in rehab. Two weeks after that Mom had a stroke. She has recovered from the stroke but her doctor indicated she could not return to her condo and live alone any longer. So over the next 3 weeks we listed, recieved and accepted an offer on the condo, cleaned out the condo, secured an apartment in an assisted living facility and moved Mom's furniture and possessions into the new apartment. During that time Linda got sick and was down for almost a week, totally missing most of the Christmas festivities (and also missing the warm Florida sun). We signed the closing papers prior to heading back to the boat and the closing occured on January 15. Amazingly, this was less than 40 days after getting the offer.  Getting through this in such a short time meant we didn't get the family time we planned during the trip home, but it was great to see the family and the three granddaughters. We were able to see a few people, but we missed out on visiting with many others that we had hoped to see.

We returned to WaterMarks on January 9 and spent the next 4 days reprovisioning and catching up on exterior cleaning and maintenance. Salt water is sooo different from sitting in fresh water. We were able to reconnect with Rick and Theresa on Elaine Mae for dinner before we left Tarpon. They were one of the first loopers we connected with way back in Peoria, IL. It was great to catch up and share our (mis) adventures since last being together way back in September. It was on our way to Dimitri's (more Greek food) that Linda found the gold hibiscus and decided that it was the good luck charm for a Packer's win! We departed Tarpon Springs on Tuesday, January 14, and traveled 20 miles south to the Clearwater Harbor Marina.  Note the picture looking out our aft picture window of the Clearwater Park at the Harbor. Today (Thursday) we jumped in the dinghy and had a great ride across the Intercoastal to Clearwater Beach. The day was perfect for being outside...mid-70s, sunny, light breeze. We walked the beach for a bit and enjoyed the white sugar sand and the day ended with a beautiful sunset. We will depart for St. Petersburg in the morning. Over the next month, we are looking forward to connecting with 4-5 couples from home who are wintering down in this area.