We walked at got coffee and headed to Avis to pick up our rental car. We were only going to rent it to drive home to Texas for Christmas but the cost to rent a car for a month was cheaper than renting it one way to drive to Texas and get a different rental to come back to Florida. So we have it for a full month, which is great because we can explore Clearwater and the surrounding towns much easier.

After picking up the rental car we went to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is where the movie Dolphin Tale was filmed, which is one of Jen’s favorite movies. Unfortunately the dolphin the movie is about died a few weeks prior to our visit, so we were unable to see Winter. But, we did get to see Hope and a few of the other animals in the movie which was very cool. They have a beautiful facility and the staff were very friendly and knowledgeable.

For dinner we went to Cristions Coal Oven Pizza… highly recommend!

Jen took more sunset pictures, and we finished off the night watching boating videos on YouTube.

Today we took the Jolley Trolley with our friends from Silver Linings and their friends from Michigan to Dunedin and Tarpon Springs today. The Jolley Trolley is the public transportation in Clearwater. It was lot of fun and we enjoyed getting to see the town. Especially driving past the Church of Scientology, which we have so many questions… The building is so huge and takes up multiple city blocks. When we would drive by we would joke about stopping in for a Q&A session.

We went to Dunedin first. Such a cute town! Tons of shopping and restaurants. We got coffee and lemonade, and walked around the Farmers Market. Mike got the biggest radishes we have ever seen! We got blueberry banana bread and shared a yummy savory crepe. Mike was happy as we found a place for him to get some ice cream as well.

After Dunedin we got back on the Jolley Trolley and headed to Tarpon Springs. Downtown Tarpon Springs is full of Greek restaurants, bakeries, and the sponge docks. We met up with our friends on In Custody for lunch.

After lunch we walked around and did a little shopping. Mike went with the kids on Silver Linings to the candy store, he was able to find all sorts of fun candies. We stumbled upon a greek bakery, got some fresh bread that was very yummy. Sitting outside was a Tarpon Springs local who insisted on taking us to one of the local bars so we could have a ‘fix’ which is a Greek beer.

As the sun was setting the whole town gathered for the annual tree lighting ceremony, the mayor and police chief were there and gave a speech. It was super cute.

After walking around Tarpon Springs we got back on the Jolley Trolley and headed back to Clearwater and had dinner at Tequilas Mexican Grill and Cantina. They had 2 for 1 margaritas, and the food was good. It was the first time we had Mexican food since leaving Texas, it reminded us of home… lol

After the overnight crossing, we were all happy to get some sleep. Mike was up early as he had to work. The girls slept in and were up around 10am.

It was a pretty uneventful day. Dogs slept most of the day, Harley especially. He’s an old man, and the puppies and the crossing wore him out.

Jen took pretty sunset pictures, and we all went to bed early.

The day is here! The Gulf Crossing has arrived.

In preparation for the crossing Mike took Wednesday and Thursday off. He spent the morning checking over the engines, cleaning the strainers, verifying the route and trying to not be nervous about crossing the Gulf of Mexico in complete darkness. Jen made white chili with chicken for us to eat during the crossing (which by the way was delicious). After making chili Jen spent time gathering and making trivia questions, to help keep us and our buddy boats awake during the night.

Around 3:30pm we took the boat and got fueled up and pumped out. Around 4:15pm we headed out. On our way out of the channel, our buddy boats pulled out of their slips and followed us out. We had previously agreed upon meeting in front of Dog Island and doing a radio check to start us off. We had everyone and were ready to go! Kent on Silver Linings said a prayer over the radio for us asking God to protect us on this evenings journey that we were all in our own way slightly anxious about, but it was all about the journey and the experience, which we all accepted.

As we headed out to sea, the seas were calm and the sun was setting. Wishes previous 2 owners had a rule that she wasn’t out past dark… looks like tonight we were breaking that rule.

It was so calm and quiet, the stars in the sky were as bright as LED lights. We set the autopilot and ate some chili. Mike got out his fishing poles, and let a few lines out with hopes to catch a tuna. Safety is very important to us, so while Mike got his fishing gear ready and lines in the water, Jen was on look out to make sure she had eyes on him at all times. We had discussed a MOB (man over board) plan ahead of time, and the requirement of lifejackets and a spotter at all times when any one went on deck outside.

At 10:15pm trivia began. Jen was our host on channel 78. Mike and Kelly on Wishes, Kent and Katie on Silver Linings, and Steve and Terrie on In Custody all played. After 6 intense rounds of trivia which consisted of 4 questions per team per hour…Sports, Geography, History, Entertainment, and Boat related questions the winner was In Custody by 1 point over Silver Linings. It was so much fun, and it really did help pass the time and keep us awake and our minds moving.

As the sun began to rise, Mike caught a fish!! Jen announced on the radio “Fish On!” and our friends on Silver Linings slowed down and waited for Mike to reel it in. It was very exciting, he caught a tuna.

As we got closer and closer to Clearwater, FL it was about 11:00am, and we saw our first crab pot! Leading up to the crossing we had learned that the timing of the arrival was very important when it comes to navigating the crab pots. If you arrive too early the sun hasn’t rose enough and you cant see, and if you arrive too late the sun is beginning to set and you can’t see either. Arriving around 11:00am was the perfect time, we had great visibility and were able to dodge the crab pots with ease.

We pulled into Clearwater Marina at 12:30pm, and after a long night we were ready to dock and take a nap. But the wind and current had a different plan in mind… Needless to say docking at the marina deemed to be a challenge. With the help of the dock attendant and Wishes crew, we were finally able to get the boat backed into the slip for our month long stay, and the beautiful view we had from the stern of our boat.