Friend of mine down there put it best.
He said, "if your life does'nt revolve around being outside and in the sun, or in the water you're in the wrong state".
One of the first Floidians to actually tell me the truth
You guys all say, it's not that hot, it's not that humid, there's not that many bugs, athere's no gators, theres no sharks, theres no illegals etc, etc, etc.
I say BULL ****!!
Sure their is. But so what?? We don't have any of that in Ohio but I'm still moving
My same buddy tells me he puts up with all of that **** all the time but guess what??
If at 2:00 on a Wednesday he decides to go to the Keys (by boat), he can be there in a couple of hours.
Most of us spend all year planning and dreaming of a trip like that.
As far as gators, we've already seen several. When we run with the guys with the little boats down there we end up in what they call the "ditch's". We've seen em there.
For sharks we were down last Winter and did a dive off of Jupiter and Donna and I got seprated from the rest of our group due to very strong current and drfited over a school of probably 30 or 40 of them!!
They watched us float over as we hyperventilated and they never moved!!
We told the dive master who at first did'nt believe us and then said they were probably breeding and would'nt bother anyone.
So we're on the plane headed home the next day when a guy in the next seat over tells us there was shark attack on the beach right where we were at.
But guess what?? I'll put up with all that to live in freagin Utopia 12 months a year!!
On the Erie vs Ocean comment, I've done both and they ain't even close. I can run my 24' boat 70 MPH in 4 footers in the ocean cause they're 50 yards apart.
I can barely stay on plane in 4's at Erie because you're always in at least one no matter what.
If you can take them anyway but head on they're not so bad. But head on sucks bad!!
We get down there I'll tell you some Erie stories about water/weasther that we lived through that you won't believe.
Gary

Was this them?????

This is the most I have seen so far. Of course, maybe i havent been looking hard enough.

Well, them, a few big sea turtles, and some big lizards, and of course a bug or two you wouldnt find in any Audubon book, I have no freakin clue what they are, some kinda freakbug????

But other than that, Life is Beutiful.

Of course, I could get used to wakin up to this.........

Boyds Campground last November for the Worlds!!!!

Trying to plan/wait for our next re-con mission and it's killing me!!
A couple of years ago we got a condo on Ft.Myers beach w/a dock in the back yard but no boat. THAT SUCKED!!
Next time down, I bought a 13' Whaler over the internet and picked it up on the way!
Bought it on east coast, and went from there to the condo on west coast.
We had more fun in that little booger!!
Was fun being in a boat that would float in a heavy dew (less on plane ) , bullet proof with zero maintenance!
We were exploring mangroves at 30 MPH that you could see the bottom the whole way and could see it was too shallow to stop cause you could'nt get back on plane
We'd run until we saw a "hole" then stop for a cold beverage then pop it back on plane before we got back into shallow water again!! Was a freagin hoot!!
We ran that thing about 10 miles S. of the beach (had to buy 2 charts), N. to and around Sanibelle and Captiva(Gulf side then back through the i.c.).
Was way cool the day we loaded it up to head for home. Wew were in the bays behind the condo heading for the trailer when we saw a school of doplhin playing beside the boat.
We stopped and watched for probably 10 mins and had a second scholl there too. Got some great shots and both agreed that if we had to leave, that was the perfect ending!!
ON the bugs, the funniest thing we herard was the big black bugs that were every where were called "Palmento" bugs.
We might be back woods but in Ohio they're called "Cock Roaches"
The little Lizards are pretty cool too.

SHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thats a secret

They are palmetto Bugs Damnit!!!!!

as far as the lizards go, my dog likes to shase them, pounce on the tail, and break it off.

Oh yeah, there are more than little lizards, I havent seen him in a while, but this guy used to like to go"Bug Hunting" off of my dock!!!!!

Come on down.

Chevelle, yeah I have a Chocolate Lab that I'll have to keep an eye on. Can't keep him out of the water up here but will have to down there.

TimG, O.K., now I'm skeered!

You should be, you'll see more of them, than you will gators!!!!!

you could come down and work with me

I think I am going to be the next one to move down there !! Can't take much more of this climate !!!
I think my family will "Sponsor" me

Will work for food....................