Last night the full moon peeped first in one hatch opening and
then another creating its own light show in our berth as Aurora swayed in the
gentle breeze.
In no haste to enter the Pelican Bay anchorage until tide
was in our favor and knowing this would be the shortest travel day of the whole
trip, made it our most relaxed morning of the three weeks. We’d heard tales that the anchorage was
tricky to get into and last night had heard a call for Seatow to assist someone aground. Our own
chartplotter indicated it was extremely shallow which added to our trepidation,
but using the way points and depth meter to guide us we found our way in with
plenty of water and avoided bumping Aurora's keel on the bottom.
Easily anchored by ten, we donned our tennis shoes and
lowered the dinghy, anxious after 3 days aboard to stretch our legs and explore
Cayo Costa State Park. There are kayaks
and bikes to rent or a free tram to take you to the beach a mile away, but we
needed a walk, so walk we did. First, we
headed west to the white sand beach looking out on the Gulf, then northward to
the tip of the island which overlooks Boca Grande Pass. Meandering along the way we saw many plants
in bloom, shore birds and live sand dollars at the water’s edge. The winding trail back took us through
hardwood forests, mangrove swamps, past an old cemetery, and eventually to the
Ranger’s station for a total of 5 beautiful miles roundtrip on this unspoiled
barrier island.
Over the last two years we had often talked of crossing
Charlotte Harbor to explore this island, and just never made it. Now we feel blessed, that ironically missing
the Bahamas trip gave us this opportunity to come here to this amazing place. That’s so the way it is when cruising, when one
door unexpectedly closes, often another totally unplanned opens. Just expect the unexpected.
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