Bon voyage party

Friday night we joined sixteen of our dock mates and cruising friends at the Sombrero Resort for a bon voyage party. Even Gypsies drove up from Key West to join in the fun. (you two are a little crazy, but we are glad you did and we love you both) It was another night of music, dancing, food, drinks, laughs, and crazy hats. (I still don't know whose idea the hats were) We all looked a little, well, you decide after you look at the pictures. We wish they could all come with us to the Islands and continue this great time over there, but we will all go our separate ways and meet again out there on the water another day. We will miss all of them (and their livers) and hope to see them again somewhere out there doing what we all have in common and love to do. What is that you say? As our good friends Jeff and Karen's song says it all, " it's not about the place....not about the sunsets....it's about the people that you meet". It is so true and we have met a great group here at Dockside Marina. See you all on the water again one day!
A big part of the group here took the dollar bus to Key West for the "drag races". No, not fast cars, just shopping carts being pushed down Duval street by drag queens. (only in Key West) We stayed here to finish up our list because "were going to the Islands Mon" if Mother Nature lets us. (please Mom, can we go?)

September Song (where did those crazy hats come from?) out
Bob

Salty sporting his Hawaiian shirt ready for the Islands Mon

Am I cute or what?

Gypsies drove up from Key West for the party. What great friends!

William looking dashing in his new hat.

Jay and Nancy are "loooking goood"

I like Stephanie's better than mine

Katie loves Bob's new look

Two wild and crazy ladies

All the ladies showing off their new hats

If I was playing poker I don't think I could get a better four of a kind plus a king kicker (that would be Joe the king)

Tommy Santelli was great as usual

Nancy, you're supposed to drink it, not wear it

Looks like a window

It looks like we might have that weather window on Sunday we have been waiting for so long. It's time to go to the "Islands Mon".
We have had such a great time here in the Keys and in Marathon with Ron and Rena when they visited for a week, with all our new cruising friends we have met while here, and our old cruising friends who have come in from time to time.
It is going to be difficult to leave all our new friends we have made here, but we know our paths will cross again out on the waterways, they always do.
Because we may be leaving Saturday for our staging anchorage and others will be leaving in a short time, we are going to have a what else, "A PARTY" A bon voyage party at Sombrero Resort is planned for Friday night with fourteen of our cruising friends and anyone else who wants to come. Please be easy on us guys, we have to get up early Saturday. I know, I know, revenge is sweet.

September Song (your livers will be glad to see us go) out
Bob

Maybe if you are a good boy Bob, Katie will let you come inside to sleep.

We are short on transportation when we need to go a distance, so we load them where ever we have room. Todd and Stephanie in the way back.

William and Judy

Dancing the night away at the Sunset Bar and Grill

Todd + Brenda

Four beautiful ladies

Joe is always in demand on the dance floor. Two at a time?

Salty is always a happy dog when he gets to come along. He loves to sit at the bar and cruise chicks. Don't tell Cassie and Godiva, Salty!

Fishing for heads???

Joe and I took Half Note out fishing Sunday. The fishing was great, but most of the fish we caught were heads. Yes, heads. We were catching 14 inch mangrove snapper, but before we could get most of them to the boat something big was biting off the bodies of our fish. We never saw what they were, I would guess shark, but we knew we didn't want to clean our hands off over the side of the boat. I have to tell you it is frustrating to have a beautiful, yummy, 14 inch mangrove snapper on and then have a BIG fish bite the body off before you could get it to the boat. Not all was lost. We did manage to get a few in before Jaws (I think we heard the music) struck and it was a fun day of fishing even though most of what we caught were heads.

September Song (head fishing) out
Bob

What the heck is down there?

We couldn't get them in fast enough before something big and ugly would eat our fish.

This is what they looked like whole

Southernmost Air Spectacular

Saturday morning the three of us (me, Stephanie, and Joe) headed for Key West, along with Jim and Robin from Adventures in a separate car, to the Air Show at Naval Air Station Key West. What a great show we were treated to. It was non-stop all day and a spectacular ending with a Blue Angels performance and dinner with the Gypsies. Can't miss a chance to see them! No long detailed explanations, just pictures.

September Song (back at sea level) out
Bob

Look, up in the sky! It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a parachute. NO! It's lots of them.

 WWII P-51 and a F-16 flying in formation. Then and now!

Perfect finish to the day. Dinner with the Gypsies before heading back to Marathon.

What a fun night

Friday night was another one of those great nights with cruising friends. We all met at the pool side bar at the Sombrero Resort for dinner, drinks, great music, drinks, dancing, and drinks. OK, let's have a little side bar talk. You may think we are drinking way too much and having way too much fun. You may be right, but in this hot weather you need to keep yourself hydrated. As far as too much fun, is there such a thing as having way too much fun? NOT!
One picture is missing because it didn't come out clearly. I think it was the one where Katie and Nancy were giving me the Hawaiian good luck sign.

September Song (fun, fun, and more fun) out
Bob

The group poolside at Sombrero Resort

Dancing under the star

Best dance partner ever.

Tommy Santelli is the best!

Bob, Katie, Jay, and Nancy headed for a night cap at Dockside Bar.

Joe bought us all a night cap and some of the ladies showed him their appreciation.

My September Song

We sold our previous September Song a few years ago and the guy that bought her was, well let's just say not the person we would have preferred to have her. A little over a year after that he purchased a new boat and put September Song up for sale. She sat unloved until this last year when she was purchased by John Barker who we met Friday. Well I have to tell you we are so happy that she has an owner now who loves her as much as we did and she looks happy again. I know it may sound a little silly, but she gave us many wonderful memories and we wanted someone to have her that would enjoy her as much as we did. John is going to cruise her all the way to Panama and through the canal. Eventually he will ship her to Australia where John is from, and that will be her new home. Good luck John and take good care of our baby. She will give you many great memories.

September Song (this one not that one) out
Bob

Our old September Song sitting at anchor outside our harbor

The New owner of our previous September Song, now called My September Song, and his friend on September Song. Sound confusing?

When it's hot!

When it's hot, hit the pool. Nothing better on a hot afternoon than lounging around in the pool. The last two afternoons it's been hot here so most of us have been enjoying the pool at Sombrero Resort. As I said before, if we have to wait out Mother Nature, I can't think of a better place along with good friends to wait for that crossing window to the Islands.
Last night Jay and Nancy treated us all to a rum punch party on the North end of the dock. (much cooler in the North) It was a fun evening with a spaghetti pot filled with rum punch and a table filled with great apps. Thanks Jay and Nancy, it was a fun evening.
Today Todd and Brenda return from four days with the Gypsies in the Key West Playground, or as Gypsies call it, "Key Weird". I'm sure they had a great time (what they can remember of it) with Doug and Tammy (AKA The Liver Destroyers) enjoying all the sites, sounds, and adult beverages Key Weird has to offer. I'm sure their blog will be filled with all the details, so when they rest up (get sober) they will be posting it along with "censored" pictures. (come on guys, give us a couple of uncensored one's) See you at the Sombrero Resort tonight guys, you aren't getting off that easy! Yes, that's where we will be, dancing to the great music by Tommy Santelli after a dip in the pool.

September song (see you on the dance floor) out
Bob

Our dock mates at the Rum Punch Party.

Her first dip in a pool.

Katie, Jay, and Nancy chilling in the pool

What do you do on a hot afternoon in the Keys? Pool party!!!

Marathon playground

I guess if we have to wait for Mother Nature to give us a weather window to cross to the Islands, I can't think of a better place to wait her out. It takes us five to six days of travel to get to the Exumas and we would like at least two good days in a row for our crossing. The weather here in Marathon has been great, but 6 to 8 foot seas on the Atlantic doesn't make for a comfortable ride. September Song has been in worse, but why not wait. Besides, we are having a ball here while we wait. I'm not going to go through everything we have been doing this past few days, besides, most of you want "pictures," so I will let them do the talking. The "group" is headed for the pool after lunch for a day of sun, swimming, and pizza. See you at the pool.

September Song (at the Marathon playground) out
Bob

Saw this seahorse swimming around our boat. Way cool!

Another great beach day with cruising friends

Bob and Katie Stone on Floating Stone

Jay and Nancy on Serendipity