MIDORI ADVENTURES

On Wednesday morning (of New Year’s Eve), we were getting ready to “weigh” anchor and head south to the Keys, but the starboard motor did not want to shift easily into gear. Captain Brian had determined that the problem was more serious than changing the shift cable. Because we have many miles to go in order to get to the Keys and more to get to the Bahamas, we made a decision that we should not proceed any further without getting the engine serviced.

Walkers Marina was within sight of our anchorage and we could see that they had a 50 ton boat lift. Dozier’s Cruising Guide came to the rescue with a phone number. We were tied up at Walkers’ dock by 8:00 a.m., waiting to see a mechanic. A few hours later, it had been determined that MIDORI would require a haul-out to service the motor, however, this being the busiest time of the year, that could likely not occur until Monday (January 5th). Also, we would have to move over to a Calusa Island Marina as Walkers are not allowed to have liveaboards.

The Calusa Island Yacht Club/Marina is situated in quiet mangrove surroundings in the village of Goodland. This is a laid back fishing town with a few restaurants and fishing supplies, but no grocery store.

The Marina section has four covered rack-storage buildings that can each hold about forty boats. The marina provides gas and diesel, live bait, ice and a few supplies and snacks in The Ship’s Store.

The Yacht Club section has a lovely building with showers and laundry.

Although this is not where we planned on being, I am getting my chance to check out Goodland (be careful what you wish for) and couldn’t think of a nicer place to be “stuck” over New Year’s.

Happy New Year to all our friends and family!

Stay tuned,

First Mate Lynn