Westons Go South: Naples

Monday, April 18

Naples Yacht Club

We left St. Charles YC early so we would have plenty of time in case any “adventures” happened along the way. As we pulled out and were motoring out of the club’s channel, the boat that had left just before us called us on the radio. They were stuck in the channel, and were hoping we could get by them without getting stuck ourselves. Luckily we had almost a foot less draft than they did, so we squeezed by okay. They said there was nothing we could do to help, but I still felt bad leaving them. They were calling TowBoat US though, so they got pulled out eventually.

We had to go back through the “miserable mile”, but once again Sam did a great job and got us through it just fine. Then, we headed out to sea and set the autopilot for Gordon Pass near Naples. The autopilot worked wonderfully, so it was an easy trip except for having to dodge crab traps the entire way.

We came up the channel and easily docked at Naples Yacht Club. What an incredibly beautiful place, both the club building and the marina itself. There were REALLY big boats at this club; they made our boat look like a dingy!

Tuesday, April 18

Naples Sail and Yacht Club

We spent the morning at Naples where I caught up on my computer work. Then, we moved on up the bay to another yacht club, the Naples Sail and Yacht Club. We really like this one! It’s beautiful, but a lot more comfortable than the other Naples club. The dock master, Marilyn, is absolutely wonderful. She helped us over and over again to resolve various questions. She’s just terrific!

Wednesday, April 20

We borrowed bikes from the club and spent the day exploring the old part of town. It’s really pretty, and we had lots of fun. We went to the old pier, where we got to watch dolphins and pelicans. We got to see two dolphins making arching leaps out of the water. Everyone on pier went “Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!” It was beautiful! We rode all around and saw beautiful old houses, gorgeous plants, and wonderful birds. What a pretty town.

After our tour we came back and went to dinner at the club. On Wednesday they have Surf and Turf, and it was terrific. They had the best crab cakes I’ve ever eaten. The chef even gave me the recipe for them!

Thursday, April 21

The starter button we’d been waiting for finally came in, so we worked on replacing it. We got the job done, but that turned out NOT to be the problem. So, then we thought it was the fuse, so Sam hitched a ride down to West Marine and got a new one. THAT wasn’t the problem either. A guy on a neighboring boat came over to help test the wiring, but he wasn’t able to find the problem. Sam got on the phone and called mechanic after mechanic trying to find someone who could come and work on it, but didn’t have any luck. Poor Sam, about all he’s done this whole trip is work on broken stuff!

Friday, April 22

What a champion Marilyn was! She got in touch with a mechanic for us, and he came out and fixed us right up! It turned out to be a corroded wire way down in by the engine. He fixed it, then looked the rest of the engine over and declared it to be in great shape. So, once again we’re in business. Sure hope we stay that way!