snowboaters

Snowboaters Paradise – Kismet Featured in Southern Boating Magazine!

Call us Snowboaters or Boaterhomers – Using Our Boat On Land And Water! – We're certain you've heard of the term "Snow Birds." Southern Boating just coined a new boating-related term for what the crew of Kismet has been doing for over seven years. "Snowboaters!" We also like to reference our over-land adventures by saying we are "Boaterhomers." Whatever the term you use to describe what we do regularly, as a lifestyle choice, it's working for us in a big way. Using our trailerable boat as both a land vehicle and a water vessel provides us with some amazing flexibility in…

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Everglades

Skirting the Everglades National Park – On Our Way to the Keys

We Anchored Twice in the Everglades This Trip – Russell Pass and Snake River – We have cruised this stretch of the Everglades several times during our boating adventures. The remoteness of this part of southern Florida appeals to our nature-seeking personalities. Anchoring in remote locations will give a boater an opportunity to experience wildlife in its most secluded habitats. After settling into an anchorage here, we try to put everything aside for a while. We turn the music off, get binoculars out and sit quietly outside in the cockpit as long as we can before the bugs come out at dusk.…

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Lovers Key

Lovers Key – Party Central During the Day, Quiet and Peaceful at Night

Lovers Key, at New Pass Inlet, South of Fort Myers Beach, is a Wonderful Anchorage Surrounded by Two State Parks – This is a place we “LOVE” to return to. After a brief stay at Salty Sams, in Fort Myers Beach, we followed Matanzas Pass south, past Ostego Bay. We then crossed Big Carlos Pass on our way to this anchorage between Lovers Key State Park and Pelican Landings Beach Park. We anchored in six feet of water, with the Dog Park (part of the Lovers Key State Park) to our north. The beach park was west of us and…

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Roosevelt Channel

Valentine’s Day in Roosevelt Channel with My Sweetie– Captiva Island, Florida

The first Stop After the Flotilla to Cayo Costa is Roosevelt Channel – One of the fun parts of cruising, and anchoring, is discovering new places to throw the hook. Kismet is beginning the slow process of heading down to the Keys. On this morning, we left Cayo Costa State Park, after anchoring with the flotilla of tugs for two nights in Pelican Bay. Our destination is Roosevelt Channel, off Captiva Island, next to the Buck Key Preserve and Patterson Island Preserve. We were buddy boating on this day with the crew of Liberty, another Ranger Tugs R29S, heading to Roosevelt…

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Cayo Costa

Drone Practice at Cayo Costa State Park, Florida

All Serious Boaters in the Gulf Coast Area Know About Cayo Costa State Park – After a month in Fort Myers, Florida, we are finally pushing away from the dock. In the next few days, we will be headed to Punta Gorda for the 2018 Southwest Florida Ranger Tugs / Cutwater Boats Rendezvous. But first, we headed to Cayo Costa State Park, a beautiful barrier island featuring a nice anchorage with room for all. In addition, boaters can dinghy to the dock off the park to hike or take a short shuttle ride to the beach on the Gulf Coast. A…

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Fort Myers, Florida

Kismet is Wintering in Florida – Palm Trees, Dolphins and Beach Walks for the Crew!

Our long-range plan last year was to spend the winter in Florida this year. After hauling the new Kismet across the country last fall, we put her away in a storage building in Sidney, Ohio for a three-month winter's nap. We like to be home with our family for the holidays and always leave northern Michigan after the new year. It would be tough, due to ice and snow conditions, to leave Traverse City with a 10.500-lb boat behind our truck. Ohio is a little safer bet. Even if it is in the throws of a storm, we'd be out…

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Sunset, South Bay Cove,, Lake Okechobee

Rim Route to South Bay Cove on Lake Okeechobee, Florida

"Big Water" – Lake Okeechobee and the Rim Route From our one-night stop in LaBelle, we proceeded toward Lake Okeechobee (or in Seminole Indian language, Big Water), we'll be taking the rim route around the lake instead of going straight across this time. The Okeechobee Waterway, which includes the Caloosahatchee River and the St. Lucie River, boasts 134.3 nautical miles from west to east and is the 2nd largest freshwater lake in the United States. You can transit the lake by going straight across or by the more protected, though shallower, rim route that follows the southern edge of the lake. We've…

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Friends, Jim Favors and Tom Conrad

A Simple Sailor Man

Tribute to a Friend – Tom Conrad We lost a good friend. Tom Conrad passed away recently and the boating community lost one of its best. We met Tom and Patsy Conrad many years ago through AGLCA (America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association). If the Great Loop boating adventure did not exist, we probably would never have met – with the Conrads living in Florida's Panhandle and us living in northern Michigan. What a loss that would have been for us. Because we shared a passion for boating and this adventure they call a "Loop," our paths crossed and our wakes overlapped. Loopers, ourselves included, often say that one of…

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Lisa On Ranger Tug Kismet

The Belle of the Caloosahatchee – LaBelle, Florida

Free Dock in LaBelle, on the Caloosahatchee River! On our way east on the Caloosahatchee River today with our eye on making it to the free town dock in LaBelle for a one-night stay, we had to go through two locks to get there. The Caloosahatchee River always provides us with a scenic cruise and the easily accessible free dock was a welcome stop, one we had not taken advantage of before. LaBelle, Florida, was settled along the Caloosahatchee River, in the late 1800s. At the turn of the 19th century, rivers were the highways of Florida. The region was populated by cattle and…

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Crew on True North, Fort Myers, Florida

Friends Helping Friends – Fort Myers, Florida

First Stop Legacy Harbor Marina, Fort Myers, Florida After spending the holidays at home in Traverse City, MI, we returned to Legacy Harbor Marina in Fort Myers, Florida for the start of our 2015 winter cruising season. Our plan this winter is to cruise to Key West from Fort Myers, spending most of our time in the Keys. Legacy Harbor Marina is a fun spot to spend a week, a month, or a whole season. Last year we spent a month enjoying the amenities of the marina while exploring all the events in the Fort Myers, Fort Myers Beach, Cape…

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Kismet Docked, Legacy Harbour Marina, Fort Myers

Fun Times, Good Friends – Fort Myers, Florida

Kismet Secure at Legacy Harbor Marina, Fort Myers We planned our winter trip to include a month-long stay at Legacy Harbour Marina in Fort Myers. Many of our Looper friends stay in this area during the winter months, some of them at this marina. We find that boating is like that, we bump into Loopers or boaters we know everywhere we go– planned or not. We did parts of our second Loop with buddy boats, Bella Luna and C-Life. We know other Loopers docked here from being involved with AGLCA (America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association). In the past, when in Fort Myers, we've always stayed…

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Kismet Docked in Sanibel, Florida

Kismet Shares See Life Too’s Dock – Sanibel Island, Florida

Sanibel Island, Florida – An Invitation We Couldn't Refuse While at the rendezvous, we had an invitation to stay at a fellow lugnut's dock on Sanibel Island. How could we pass that up? Steve and Laurie, on See Life Too, were so gracious to share the dock behind their house with us for a few days. Sanibel is a beautiful island with excellent shelling beaches. We borrowed our host's bikes to go grocery shopping and visit an art fair, we also got some good walking exercise on the beautiful trail near their house. Our hosts, Laurie and Steve, are on the back deck of Kismet for…

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Beach, Lover's Key State Park, Florida

New Pass Interlude Near Bonita Springs, Florida

New Pass, a welcome break before we head into Fort Myers for a month. Lisa and I have an unquenched passion, as it relates to cruising, and it has to do with going places we’ve never been. With this in mind, we departed Ft Myers Beach and instead of heading out into the open Gulf, we decided to cruise the inside route through Estero Bay, south past Big Carlos Pass, to an anchorage at New Pass inlet, just north of Big Hickory Island. The eight-mile trek is a well-marked channel but you’d better stay in the channel as it does get very…

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Jim and Kismet, Fort Myers Beach, Florida

Hooking Up with Friends – Fort Myers Beach, Florida

Fort Myers Beach – Gulf Star Marina Not a lot going on this time around for the crew of Kismet in Fort Myers Beach. We usually take a mooring ball, but this time we docked at Gulf Star Marina. It was Sunday when we arrived and we were treated to live music at the nearby restaurant, Doc Ford's. Our main objective while here was to hook up with some friends in the area. We scheduled breakfast at this Greek restaurant on the beach with friends, Hal and Marianne, from Charlevoix, Michigan (Kismet's one-time homeport), they were renting a house on the beach and…

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Gift Store, Matlacha, Florida

Old Florida Fishing Village on Pine Island – Matlacha, Florida

Pine Island's Colorful Matlacha, Florida Although we have been to Pine Island and Matlacha, Florida by car before, we had never visited by boat. Jim did some research and found Olde Fish House Marina, a local marina in Matlacha Pass, situated smack dab in the middle of one of the most colorful little "Old Florida" towns in Florida. Matlacha is just a small part of Pine Island, when you cross the bridge going toward the bigger (18-mile long) Pine Island, Matlacha proceeds it. You will know you've arrived by all the colorful gift shops lining the way. We stocked up on seafood and enjoyed…

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Produce from Farmer's Market, Sarasota, Florida

Two Options for Our Stay – Sarasota, Florida

We always enjoy stopping in Sarasota for a few nights. Sarasota is vibrant and provides a nice break for two salty tugnuts. For our first two nights, we choose the mooring ball option, just outside the harbor, instead of docking at Marina Jacks like we usually do. It was calm enough and just a short dinghy ride to the marina offers us access to town and the ability to get our daily exercise while visiting the Farmer's Market or stocking up at the grocery store. Sarasota is a very walkable city, there is always something interesting going on, and we never tire of making this…

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Kismet at Anchor, Long Boat Key, Florida

Waiting Out Bad Weather – Longboat Key Florida

Longboat Key Florida, Waiting Out Stormy Weather Longboat Key Florida is a regular stop for us whenever we are cruising the west coast of Florida. However, on this visit, the weather turned bad on our second day on the hook. So we moved to shore and tied up at Moore's Stone Crab Restaurant for our second night. Dockage is free if you have dinner at the restaurant. Dinner was great and we felt better tied to the dock during the high winds and rain that night.

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Egmont Key National Wildlife Refuge

Exploring Egmont Key National Wildlife Refuge

Egmont Key National Wildlife Refuge – from Fort to Ruins Fort Dade was built during the Spanish American War and remained in military control for many years. In 1974 the island was turned over to the State of Florida and became a state park in 1989. In 1974 the southern portion of the island became Egmont Key National Wildlife Refuge (also a bird sanctuary). Visiting Egmont Key should only be done during fairly calm water. Because there are no docks, one needs to anchor a ways off of the island shoreline and dinghy to shore. The shoreline is quite open…

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Pristine Anchorage at Mullet Key – Fort DeSoto State Park, FL

Two Fortresses Were built to Guard Against Invasions that Never Came, Mullet Key is one of them As one leaves the Gulf of Mexico to enter Tampa Bay, Mother Nature provides two keys that stand sentinel at the entrance of Tampa Bay. In 1889, Mullet Key, to the north, and Egmont Key, to the south, had fortresses built to guard against invasions that never came, remnants of both forts remain today in the parks that were created in the late 1800s. Robert E Lee made the recommendation, in 1849, that both Mullet and Egmont keys become fortified. Fort DeSoto, on Mullet Key, was built in 1889…

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Gulfport Florida

One-night Stay – Gulfport, Florida

Gulfport Florida – Always A Nice Stop Bordering St. Petersburg and Boca Ciega Bay, Gulfport, Florida is always a good stop, the little town is within a short walking distance of the marina and has lots of little beach restaurants and gift shops. We are just here for one night. It was rainy and overcast for our entire stay, but we still enjoyed docking in Gulfport again. I loved the pine needle crafts I saw in one of the shops, very "Old Florida," with all-natural ingredients, long pine needles, and raffia. The town is known for its local artists and craftsmen, culinary offerings, and an active community theatre…

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Pass-A-Grille, Florida

Laid Back Beach Town – Pass-A-Grille, Florida

Lots of sights to see on the water today as we made our way to Pass-A-Grille. We anchored in a big well in Pass-A-Grille, just behind the beautiful Don Cesar hotel (above). It was a quiet anchorage, well-protected from the elements, and had a little boat launch and dock where we could tie our dinghy up. We passed two "Rangers" today. The one above looked like an interesting yacht. During our night at anchor, we met the crew on Tortuga, the Ranger Tug below, while they circled the anchorage during an evening cruise. Frank and Salma had just recently bought their…

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Peaceful Night on the Hook – Redington Beach, Florida

Redington Beach Provides a Well-protected Anchorage for the Crew of Kismet. Redington Beach is located in Pinellas County, west of Tampa on a barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico, the town is only one-mile square and has four parks, five public beach accesses, and a causeway with benches for relaxing and fishing. We've stopped here before, it makes a good spot to anchor when traveling north or south on the ICW. The dolphins were loving our boat action today, they love to swim just under Kismet's wake. The anchorage is lined with small homes to one side, a park in the middle, some condos, and several restaurants.…

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Lunch and a Walk – Keegan Clair Docks – Indian Shores, Florida

Keegan Clair Docks – "Let's Stop for Lunch." Something new today, we found Keegan Clair Docks, a free day dock for boaters, just off the ICW, six miles south of Clearwater. We thought we'd take a break on our day's cruise to stop and have lunch on the boat followed by a short, two-block walk into Indian Rocks with access to the beautiful beaches. The dock is free during the day but has one of the longest lists of rules we've ever seen, it's prominently posted near the dock. One of the main rules listed is that the docks are not meant for…

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Caladesi Island – Trails and a Beautiful Beach!

Caladesi Island –  An Island Paradise! In our experience, Caladesi Island is never busy in January. This is our third stop at this state park, we never tire of its beauty. We stayed a few nights, one of only a handful of boats at this time of year. When we tire of walking the virgin pine forest trail around the island to the natural water hole, we take the return route, back to the marina, by way of the beautiful sandy beach. The updated marina has electrical and water hookups and you can stay for three days for a minimal fee.…

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Captain Jim on Phone

Launch Day – Tarpon Springs, Florida

Tarpon Springs is a Favorite Stop for Kismet! Kismet was launched at the usual place, Anclote River Park, just northwest of Tarpon Springs across the river. Turtle Cove Marina was our choice for dockage during our week-long stay while we did all of our usual activities which included, food shopping, and visiting our favorite Greek bakery and restaurant for Greek salads. We walked all over town and the sponge docks soaking up the distinctive aromas and unique sounds of the Greek culture. In between all that we did our final provisioning of the boat for our trip south down the ICW. We got the boat…

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