Urban Marina Boat Life in Fort Myers, FL (Growing Some Barnacles) | Great Loop Cruising, Ep 2
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- Опубліковано 2 лип 2017
- We generally keep a fairly hyper-mobile lifestyle - changing locations every few days to every few weeks. But every so often, we feel the call - to slow the heck down for a bit.
We pulled into Fort Myers two months ago with a monthly spot reserved - and quickly realized a month wouldn't be enough.
In this video recap, we share a bit about urban marina life and the boat projects we've been up to!
For the full blog post version:
www.technomadia.com/2017/07/so...
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Cherie & Chris have been full time technomads since 2006. In the winter we explore land in our 1961 GM 4106 bus conversion. In the spring/summer we move aboard our 1999 Bayliner 4788 slowly exploring America's waterways along the Great Loop.
We share for fun in our spare time. We have full time jobs that fund our adventures - running www.MobileInternetInfo.com - where we track mobile internet options for RVers and cruisers.
We love sharing a slice of our life with others at www.technomadia.com, Facebook and Instagram. Come join the adventure!
© Technomadia 2017
For entertainment purposes only. See our website for a full disclaimer.
Your learning the basic maintenance of a boat, that's priceless when your trouble shooting an issue, your not kidding about the Florida heat was there last and it's hot and humid,
Livin' the dream.
22 years with a twin diesel trawler taught me how to fix every subsystem in the boat. That made the transition to an RV easier because of all the practice and training fixing the Boat. (Break Out Another Thousand). Best times of out lives. Enjoy Ft. Meyers. Hot, buggy and muggy, but a great little town.
11 years in RVs has also helped make the transition to boating a touch easier.. at least we're familiar with mobile household systems. But no sea strainers and sump pumps in RVs :)
I'm glad you both are enjoying the lifestyle, I'm also a live aboard. Just wrapping up my third winter in Minnesota. 1983 Caver 3207 Aft Cabin, live at Mile 830 on Old Man River(the Mississippi).
You did good choosing a Suzuki. I had a 6 hp one on a 12 foot boat aluminum boat and I never had problems. Now I have a 1995 Yamaha 70 b series on a 17 foot boat.
Cherie, glad to see you having fun exploring new avenues, some of us feel a little jealous about good looking young hunk Chris!!!
Aww.. thanks.. you just made Chris blush :)
Love the title! Unwittingly matching outfits seems to be a trend lately😊
So, from what I gather, you're telling us it's not possible to just buy a boat and 'set sail'!?...LoL. You've accomplished/learned SO much in a short time.
FL never had a 'winter' this past year and extremely high summer h&h has been oppressive....very challenging to work on anything..especially outside.
Stay cool, chill some 🍷, sit back and enjoy your 4th! 🎆💥
I'm sure some folks have just bought a boat and set sail... and we probably could push ourselves to do so too. But stress is not our goal :) Happy 4th to you too!
Love the new (and essential) sunshade. 😎🛥🌞
It's a great upgrade, for sure!
Awesome! We are moving to Fort Myers this month to FINALLY go full time in our RV. Bought a lot at Cypress Trails RV Resort to call home but gonna start traveling around next spring. Thank you both for all of the knowledge you have shared.
Enjoy... Ft. Myers has surprised us :)
I know the area will spoil you as downtown Fort Myers area is phenomenal. Get ready for the fireworks tonight. Great photos from the top of the parking lot garage in downtown Ft. Myers. You two take care and continue enjoying the area.
M J Leake: Nomadic Adventurer We should have a great view of the fireworks right over our boat tomorrow night. 👍
Have fun watching the fireworks from the boat.
enjoy your down time of not moving.
I docked my cuddy at the St Petersburg Municipal Marina/Downtown St Pete in 2009 and she went nowhere until I hauled her out and gave her to a friend in 2012 when I moved from the area. She ran fine but why bother I had the sensation of being on the water and the joy of marina life at a great location.
Moral of this story is, You are simply experiencing the good life. There is nothing as relaxing as marina life.
Just remember to scrape those barnacles. They grow fast when stationary.
(Don't tell too many people. I'm moving back to St Pete and would like to set myself up again at the marina. Wait list 1st time around was over a year.)
Interesting Videos you have posted. I enjoy the way you detail everything from major plans to how t0 deal with the day-to-day issues that are not readily apparent to those not living your lifestyle. One question came up in viewing this particular video that I haven't seen addressed elsewhere. I haven't been through everything yet so apologies if this has been covered. The question is, What measures do you need to keep KiKi from going on sightseeing tours of her own? Does she stay within the vessel on her own or does she go visit the neighbors?
Other than that- thank you for the service you are providing. The Great Loop is something I want to do and I enjoy spending downtime learning from people like you already living the dream.
Also, it's nice seeing familiar sites like this Marina as I have family upcoast spread out between Venice and Clearwater- it is nice to see familiar places.
Kiki is a well traveled cat, having been leash trained since she was a kitten. She stays indoors during the day, and only comes out with us. Usually on a leash. But since we have this dock pretty much to ourselves, we let her go with just "visual" leash on her evening strolls. (We do have a video on 'RVing with Cats' from about a year ago that goes into more on that.. but from the RVing perspective of course.)
Good to see y'all enjoying what you have worked hard for.
That view is beautiful! Glad you are enjoying and adjusting to the different pace.
So nice to see you both are truly enjoying life ! I will be starting my full time rving as soon as my house sells.
Sending you swift house selling vibes!
I am glad you got to spend time with your mom.
Keep asking Baylinerownersclub on repair projects. LOTS of knowledge there and most are willing to respond. What about weaver davits for the dingy. Your swim platform looks like part are in place already. Great video. Glad to see the learning curve is being conquered
We've been very active on BOC.. fantastic resource! We'll share about the davit setup once we have it all in place.
Thanks for reminding me. I lived in Fort Myers for 11 years. After 5 years away, I am thinking about coming back.
All smiles guys! Thanks☺
we are starting are travels across country we saw where you stayed on the Chesapeake bay bridge tunnel. so we stayed there it was pretty cool. But September 20 this year you can not say anymore they are putting a new tunnel in. No more restaurant but they will bring back the fishing pear.
Thanks for the update.. sounds like they're moving along on the expansion!
Nice update! And I totally support the SLOW pace of life you have chosen!!!
Keep enjoying!
Wow! You guys have been busy! I love Sanibel and Captiva; my family took a vacation there every year from Illinois. It is worth a lot to have the service persons teach you while they work. Glad you guys are just taking it easy. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Chris & Cherie, come on we all know that you planned the matching outfits. LOL! I'm so glad to hear that you're living the dream and it really is as good as you expected. The marina where you're docked looks great, but I have always found that being on the hook (anchor) was so much nicer. The only thing I missed about marina's is the company of other boats especailly the transients. It's great hearing stories about other places and learning places I might want to stop and see and places to avoid. Great looking dinghy by the way, that should prove to be lots of fun. I remember stopping one place where you could follow a canal into town and park at the McDonalds to eat. So many places are like that. Remember to look for town docks when possible, they usually let you leave a dink for a few hours for free! Glad you're back on the boat can't wait to see what's next! Great video! Bill S. s/v ODIN
We're looking forward to more time at anchor, which the dinghy will enable more of. Right now, we're super thankful for the electric hook-ups :)
i'm so glad you use LYFT, being i have been driving for them/me for the last three years. your location is great. i'm still trying to rv as much as possible - the word is ENJOY YOUR LIFE - hey that's more than one word!
We've been enjoying Lyft.. so super convenient.
I bought a small sailboat that was based in that very marina. Spent a few months with it there from late 2015 to early 2016. Nice marina. Enjoyed having morning coffee at the office deck in the mornings. Eric still dockmaster?
Yup.. Eric is still here (that was him pushing the palette jack in the video). Awesome guy!
You look so happy
Looks like the upgrades are going well. Good work.
So glad that things are working out for you both. I'm getting a 1980's VW Camper soon and will be a regional camper. Take care
A new jigsaw blade works pretty well with foam. I used one to shorten my Tempurpedic in the RV... and then put the mattress back together inside its double case when I moved the bed to my house. Can't tell it was ever cut apart, especially with the cut end at the head of the house bed.
my hubby n I used to live out in ft myers!! beautiful finishing!!! 🐡🐠 awesome you guys are enjoying everything out there!! can't wait til hubby and I get back out in the camper!! Happy 4th!! 🎆🎇⚓
Make sure to head to Love Boat ice cream, it's incredible.
Oh, and the Bubble Room on Sanibel Island.
There's actually a shop downtown here in Ft. Myers's that sells Love Boat Ice cream. OMG!! Guess we'll be walking more miles to work that off ;)
Hey guys, Keep in mind that fresh water isn't as buoyant as salt water. So you may draw a few more inches depending on how much fuel and water you have on board.
Be safe
Ahh.. yes. Thank you for that (another great reason to let the lake fill up some more ;) )
I assume you guys are at the Ft Myers Municipal Marina ? Nice folks, nice place!!
Nope.. pretty sure we mentioned we're at Legacy Harbor in the video?
thanks.....
I am fine with lengthy videos. If I cannot find time for a long one, I watch in spurts. They are not going to disappear, so no problem. I follow many RVers and Sailors, etc. Very much enjoy them. I am an MIA subscriber and Wynns Patreon.
What a great docking spot to spend some time in. You guys look happy! :-)
Nice to see you getting so settled in! If you get a chance while you're in the area, check out Whiddens Marina on Boca Grande! www.whiddensmarina.com/ A real throwback to the 1950's. Try to time it for when a shrimp boat comes in - oh the best! The old town of Boca Grande is a short walk from the marina and a real chance to go back in time. All the best for a fun and safe adventure.
Great update guys.....I'd stay another month at least ;-)
When next you replace your impellers, look into Globe Marine Blue impellers, superior in every way.
Too hot to walk. Ouch!
Ha, just checked out the marina on Google maps, and, there's the Y-NOT.
Hmm.. in satellite view? I just checked, and looks like imagery from a winter when they're full up (not when we were there).
Thanks,great video.
I wish you two could do more shorter videos like this, because I really enjoy watching them, but rarely have the time to watch any single video, from anyone on UA-cam, greater than 25 mins in length.
Safe travels!
We have tons of videos under 15m :)
Excellent! Honestly the ones that usually show up in my feed, are the lengthier ones,but now I will have to take a closer look.
Thanks!!
We only put out one long live archive a month typically. But put out 3-5 shorter ones :)
In case you don't know...if you click on the gear looking icon at the lower right of the video you can play the video at up to 2 time the normal speed...I find that I can still understand the audio at that speed.
I need some barnacles!!! 🤣 tired of having mice in my van... would love boat life!! need a personal assistance? 😁
Angela M I have heard that taking bars of Irish Spring soap, cutting them in half or 1/4's, and spreading them around the RV in basement storage or cabinets, will keep mice away.
Do you live down by the river?
Flexibility & doing it your way. That's what it's all about. Any wild life swim up to visit you guys in those two months docked there?
Precisely :) And yes, we've actually had dolphins right behind us pretty frequently. We never tire of that.
Will you have time to visit the Edison - Ford Estate?
We have the time.. yes. But honestly have been lacking the interest (just too hot out for doing anything during the day!).
One other suggestion. I bought the stuffed grouper from Merrick's and grilled it at our motel. Just incredible! Right across the river from you in Cape Coral: merrickseafood.com/
Lock up that dinghy!
If you add solar panels atop, what will it mean for your air draft? As I recall, the low clearance was a key reason you bought the 4788.
Air draft would be exactly the same as it it now.. basically replacing the existing bimini and still able to easily come down when needed.
I would advise not to put in the davit. Things that are inconvenient are avoided. Your boat would be a candidate for the 'bent bar' system. So much safer and easier, Gone with the Wynns have the system. Easy to make it electric with a cheap 12v drum winch. To put it up or down requires one person, rougher waves are not a factor and you do not have a large heavy dinghy swinging around.
The system we've selected was carefully considered after consulting with several other Bayliner owners, davit specialist, many boaters and our dinghy manufacturer. It'll be super easy for one to handle and still leave plenty of swim platform access (our primary entry to the boat, especially while at floating docks). We'll share more once it's all in and installed. But trust us, we don't make decisions lightly.
And BTW, what the Wynn's have IS a davit setup :)
What does it cost to stay in the marina? What size is your boat again? Thanks!
We're paying $14/ft (47')
What is your monthly cost for moorage?
We're paying $14/ft @ 47' = $658, plus $130 live-aboard fee.
Not bad! We keep a 30 foot boat up at Lake Powell. Its about 400.00 a month. Thanks
Considering those condos behind us sell for $500-750k (plus condo fees) - we're pretty darn happy!
Yep
Are docking fees as high as campground fees?
They're usually charged by the foot - so they vary more than RV rates (which are usually a flat rate). For monthly rates, we're finding them fairly comparable (at least around here). Nightly and weekly, it can get pretty pricey (about 3x what we pay for a night in an RV Park).
You guys are gonna want to keep that Beautiful New Dingy out of the water...What about bow....Ya..I know you want it off every time you stop...But Warm weather, running from Bridge, ( need to take engine on/off every time), Y'all add Years to that dingy, and get used to having on bow....????....(!!!!)....
We have a davit system inbound that will keep the dinghy on the swim platform with motor attached. We want it super easy to launch.
Thx.... ;-)
I keep trying to hate on y'all. But if you don't deserve the good life how could I if I had the money. Good luck, good life and never ending love for each other. Shame on me.