Since we always take a trip on Blue Turtle the day after Thanksgiving, this year was no different. Usually we take the boat up the river to Franklin Lock and Dam which is a great spot in fresh water with a camp ground that offers plenty to do for the kids. This year, however, we had neighbors in the marina heading to Keewaydin Island with some friends so we decided to venture south. Chris and Courtney on Sukha headed there on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving but we didn’t head that way until Friday, spending Thanksgiving at my parents house in Fort Myers.

Randy, Corey, Sophie and I left Snook Bight around 8am on Friday morning. It was a pleasant flat-calm day on the Gulf and Corey fished some of the crab pots along the way looking for triple tail. He did catch one triple tail but it was too small to keep. We arrived at the anchorage around 2:30 in the afternoon. Sukha and crew were already there along with friends on smaller boats that were camping on the beach. Shortly after we arrived, Dick and Inge on BonFoeyage (also from our marina) also anchored nearby. The plan was to all converge on the beach before sunset for a shrimp boil. Sukha and friends already had the campsite setup with tiki torches around the perimeter. Tim, a friend of Sukha’s, had prepared a shrimp boil feast to make anyone jealous. We had kids and dogs running, adult beverages and a bon fire to top it all off. It was truly an amazing evening with some great people and a killer atmosphere. Seriously, Randy and I count ourselves very lucky to be a part of such an amazing group and amazing lifestyle.

On Saturday, we had a leisurely morning sipping coffee on the bridge while Corey went ashore via kayak. Tim and his family packed up their gear on the beach and loaded it into their boat to head home. Courtney and Chris radioed us to let us know they were thinking of heading north to New Pass to anchor for the night and asked if we wanted to go. Keewaydin is about a 5.5 hour trip for us from home and after just getting there, we had to weigh the pros and cons and leaving so soon. While we love this anchorage, we were all already over the party goers that yelled and sang all night on the beach and it was to be a fabulous day on the Gulf for a cruise. Corey also voiced his opinion that there is a bit more for him to do at New Pass and that the skim boarding was better there. So, we decided to head back north with Sukha to spend an evening at New Pass. The passage was beautiful and calm and Corey fished the crab pots on the way back looking to hook a keeper triple tail. On one of the last crab pots before getting to New Pass, Corey hooked into a large triple tail. He brought it to the surface and over to the swim platform for Randy to grab ahold of it. Last time Corey had a nice triple tail on hook, Randy lost it trying to get ahold of it so it was a great celebration when he managed to get the boca grip in it’s mouth and land it on the boat. The fish was a beautiful 20″ keeper so the boys put it in the cooler on ice. We got into New Pass around 4pm and anchored. Chris and Courtney had invited us to dinner earlier, so we took a small fillet of the triple tail over so we could all taste it. We had a great time having dinner and catching up friends we don’t get to see too often at the marina because they too, are busy working and raising boys.

Sunday morning was spent relaxing on the bridge while Randy and Corey went ashore. We left the anchorage shortly after lunch to head home. We all agreed that we wished we had a couple more days. Time flies when you’re having fun.