January 25, 2012

Jerry is up at 3:30am concerned about our battery situation.  It wasn't charging properly.  He started the generator about 5:15am which charges the batteries.
Big change in plans.  We are going to cross Florida through Lake Okeechobee instead of going through the Keys.  
This takes us through some very shallow waters.  Must be careful to stay in the channel.

The sign says "Danger beware of shallow waters".  The bird walking through the water is a dead giveaway.   

We passed Tampa, Sarasota, and Venice.  Couldn't believe the houses, condos and big boats. 

A couple of the many incredible houses along the shores.

We had several bridges to pass under today.  Some were swing bridges, some causeways, some lift bridges.  I'm amazed at the number of bridges and each has its own tender.  All Florida bridges are on channel 9.  Some open on a schedule but most open on demand.  Railroad bridges seem to be open unless there is a train coming.  A few of the bridges we've passed under.

This was a spectacular bridge, I wish I could have gotten a better picture

The Bridge Tender has to walk to the center of the bridge to operate the motor.  We had a couple of these bridges to pass under.

In spite of the fact that it's a Wednesday, the Intercoastal is hopping with boats, big and small.  We have to watch for the bigger fishing boats, they don't slow down and we always try to slow down for the smaller fishing boats so they aren't waked. 

 Havent' seen many Osprey up until now.  Jerry got a couple of shots of this nest.

Our anchorage this evening was planned for Venice close to the yacht club.  We checked it out and decided it was too shallow and too close to houses.  There is a free dock at a park just the other side of the yacht club so we make our way there to figure out our options.  It looks like our next opportunity for anchoring is 14 miles away.  We make our way to Lemon Bay.  The dolphins are following the bow of the boat, so cool to see.

Another pleasant evening on the sun deck.