Well, Trip One I covered here already. I went to the Ft. Lauderdale Boat Show in October and I got stuck here for an extra week thanks to Sandy closing all airports into NYC.
Trip two was in December, I flew down to secure a slip for next winter, but had no luck. The Florida Keys have way too many marinas and the choices are overwhelming. I need to get Dottie to come down with me. Actually it was a trip I could not turn down; airfare was a whopping $39.95 r/t, from Atlantic City to Fort Lauderdale.
Trip three was during the second week in January. Dottie did not want to go, but told me the type of marina we should be in.....so I followed through, and I found a nice, family owned marina on Key Largo in Tavernier. Check it out at Blue Waters Marina
One of the marinas I did look at had a dockaminium for sale.
This place was called the Manatee Club in Key Largo. It is located at MM125.5 oceanside as you come into the Keys from the mainland. Perfect setting, in fact it was all too perfect.
Here is a link to a few pictures of the place and the slip: Manatee Bay Yacht Club Photos
Trip Four: So, Dottie and I flew back down in the third week of January only to have what follows happen......
That story, in a quick synopsis, goes like this. The person who owned the slip paid $267,500 for it back in 2006. As we all know, the real estate market fell apart in 2008, and guy bellied up owing the bank about $110,000.00. All the bank wants is to get out of the real estate business and back to banking.
Dottie and I put in an offer of $50,000., but then some Cuban gentleman put in a bid of $51,250 and he got the dock. However, prior to anyone knowing of him, or his bid, the bank calls me and tells me we got it, then within a half hour I get a call from the broker with some BS story about Senor Jamma and the bank was unware of his bid, and it is higher than ours. No chance for a second time bid.
After some quick research, I found I could have brought a discrimination suit against the bank, however, I can't blame them. See, the bank is based in Cuba, Senor Jamma lives in Cuba and the real estate broker is Cuban also. Now, if the bank was Bank of America, and the broker was an American, I would proudly own this slip.....but I dont.Oh well, so is business, and as Dottie would say "apparently it was not meant to be....".
But it was not all wasted, we visited some boating buddies of ours, Roger and Dorothy Hayes aboard their Tug named Slow Churn. We had not seen them since July 4th of 2012.
We got everything in order with Blue Waters Marina and flew back home on the 21st of January. Temps started dropping rapidly, and we decided on a road trip.....We can we go, where it will be warm.....FLORIDA....LOL
TRIP FIVE:
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| Crossing into Florida from Georgia |
On January 25th we left NY to drive to the Florida Keys, so off we go for a three week excursion......and we had a blast. It took us four days to cross into Florida, and four days to drive home. We stopped to see friends and relatives all along the way. Mickey & Elaine Storto our dear friends who moved to Hilton Head last May, Dave Dozier and his wife, they own theRegatta Point Marina in Deltaville, VA and they also publish the Waterway Guide Chart Books. We met them back in 2009 at a trawler-fest on Hutchinson Island, FL., Gary & Carol Federation, (former Oak Park Boaters), Bruce & Diane Malboeuf, my cousin Rick and his wife Chris, Rolfe and Harriet Wall, cruising buddies of ours we met in Alabama two years ago and did the Erie with them this year.
On our way south we visited the towns of Annapolis, MD; Virginia Beach, VA; Deltaville, VA; Morehead City, NC; Cape Hatteras and the Outer Banks, NC; Charleston, SC; Stuart, FL, then drove across the state to N. Ft. Myers Beach, FL, then north to Bradenton, Clearwater, North Redington Beach, Tampa and on to Old Town and Suawnee, through Gainesville, St. Augustine, Charleston, NC and Hagerstown, MD and finally Clyde, NY.
As soon as I get back to my own desk, I will add some pics, etc.
Just as a reminder to all: Miami Boat Show begins later on this month.....LOL, you never know, now do you??
