To Be or Not To Be

We only thought we had success with the plastic welding of the holding tank. When we did what we thought would be the final test before installation we found it was still leaking. We weren't the plastic welders that we thought we were. The solution then was to take off all of the plastic we had been welding on, and Peter went to his old standby fix. Epoxy. He put epoxy everywhere. Hopefully with the plastic all scratched and roughened up it will hold.

We had used epoxy before and it held for awhile, but then it eventually began to leak. This is holding right now and it will allow us to get underway again.

Peter is such a conversationalist after lunch.

The next day we set out for Marco Island. Docked at The Marina on Factory Bay. A really nice marina. Out for lunch. Fish and chips; grouper and snapper. Very good. We then enjoyed just sitting in the sun and relaxing.

Great water feature at Marriott Hotel.

Day 2 we went for a 4 hour  bike ride to the west side of the island. Stopped for lunch at Toucan's and sat at an outside table and read the local paper. The Marriott Hotel had a wonderful water feature out front that we had to stop and enjoy.

Day 3 another bicycle ride to the Ace Hardware store to get the propane tank filled. Marco Island is a great place to bicycle around as it is all flat. We stopped at the Publix store for groceries on the way back to the boat.

Peter's jet propelled bike.

Day 4 was the local Seafood and Music Festival that we had to visit. We had some Lobster Macaroni and Cheese and Key Lime Pie. Not sure the Lobster Mac was as good as at Marathon but it was a close second. Stopped by the Publix again for groceries. I know, 2 days in a row, but when you are travelling on bicycles, there is only so much you can carry.

Grocery shopping is limited to what you can carry on the bike.

Day 5 Martin and Kathy are coming today. Good day for laundry. Make up the vberth in fresh linens for them. Get the boat ready for guests. They arrived shortly after 1pm and we wanted to take them out to lunch at the Philly Grille where they have the best flatbread sandwiches. And a great selection. We gave them the tour of Marco Island and all of the places we had seen and enjoyed. Back to the boat for a visit and then out for dinner at an Italian Trattoria that was very close to the boat. Great Dinner with great friends. Back to the boat for a game of cards before turning in for the night. The guys won, the best 2 out of 3 games. But we gave them a good challenge. Their dog Shelby settled in really good on the boat. She could be a good boating dog.

Day 6 We had breakfast on board and then went to the local Marco Island Historical Museum. Then it was time for them to go back to their place in Zephyrhills. After they had left and we were back on the boat; Peter says "Now what are we going to do"? My question exactly. We sure had a good time with Martin and Kathy and it seemed like they had just got here and they were gone. The boat feels empty and sad without them here.  In fact I can't believe it, but I didn't even get a picture of Martin and Kathy when they were with us. We were so busy getting caught up and visiting and laughing that I didn't get any pictures.

This is Tuesday, still Day 6, March 26th and we have another 2 days to wait for the weather opening that will let us make our way to Marathon. We want to join up with Steve and Linda Franko on board Yesterday's Dream. They have a slip at Banana Bay Marina till the end of the month. If the weather window holds for Friday and Saturday we can just make it to join up with them. They are travelling the east coast of Florida to Fernandina Beach to take part in a Marine Trawler Association Rendezvous. We have decided to forgo the Bahamas and travel with them. We always have a good time with them, and it is more fun when you travel with someone. This timeframe will work well for us also as we need to get this boat up to the north of Florida, arrange for a trucker to take the boat back home and we will have to take down the mast and get her prepared for travel.  We will only have a month and a half to get Deja Vu ready for the summer on Georgian Bay.

Where has the time gone. We thought we would have a month in Marathon, a month in the Bahamas, and then return to Florida and ship the boat home. We ended up spending all of our time on the Gulf coast of Florida. And we enjoyed every minute, but now we have to adjust our timeframe.