LaBelle Florida

June 13 - 15, 2017

We arrived at the free City dock in LaBelle, Florida just before the afternoon thunder storms. The trip from Ft. Myers was lovely with so much to see and photograph. We approached the empty dock cautiously, making two passes before deciding we should drop a stern anchor on our way in. We will be nose first to a long face dock with pilings out about 15 feet from the dock. I navigate us in while Dave manages the anchor. A big sign tells us that we are welcome to stay for three days. The dock provides free electrical hookup, which is almost unheard of. The LaBelle dock sits tucked in just west of the bascule bridge and right next door to the Public Library which offers free WIFI. This place is a hidden gem!

LaBelle City Dock

Barron Library

Mystic at LaBelle Dock

The LaBelle Bascule Bridge

We plan to stay all three days, as we wait as long as we can for Lake Okeechobee to rise. It is doing just that, a little tiny bit with long heavy downpours that add water by the hundredths of an inch each afternoon. We learn quickly that we have until about 1:00 pm to get out and about before the rains arrive with thunder and lightening. We watched a couple really good light shows while we were in LaBelle.

After the rain stops, we would walk into town to explore. We found a Dunkin Donuts not far from the waterway. The kids working there offered us a free donut with our coffee. We find our closest grocery options are Save-a-lot and a huge Dollar General. We decided to ride a good 3.5 miles to a Walmart. It wasn’t easy to get the bikes off the bow of the boat. With one of us on shore and the other on the boat, we had to hand them over the pulpit and reach out over the water between our bow and the wall. We managed to do so without bikes or humans getting wet. In addition to groceries, we picked up shower safety handles that we will suction to the bottom of the boat when we scrape barnacles. This will give us something to hold onto as we scrub. As we meandered through the store, a nice older gentleman approached me. He said, “You are on the sailboat, right!” Surprised, I answered that I was. He said, “Do you need a ride back to the boat? I have a van!”  I told him that we have bikes. He said he could carry the bikes as well. I thanked him and explained that we look forward to our bike rides for exercise and a chance to get off the boat. As he walked away, I thought about how small LaBelle, Florida really is. We are the new folks in town and it seems that everyone knows it!

I am still struggling with pain in my ears after the swim we took 10 days ago to clean the bottom of the hull. We found a minute clinic not far from the free docks. We’ll be able to ride our bikes there in the morning. It’s time to see a Doctor. 

Labelle City Dock

Caloosahatchie River View From LaBelle

Forrey's Grill

Firehouse Theatre

1948 DeSoto

Hendry County Courthouse

Red Hearts

LaBelle Heritage Museum
under Restoration

Art Gallery Next to LaBelle City Dock

LaBelle City Park Amphitheatre

Honest John's Log Cabin BBQ

The minute clinic was only a short bike ride away. I was surprised to learn that my eustachian tubes are blocked and enflamed. The Doctor gave me prednisone and a tetanus shot and told me to pick up antihistamine. His best advice was his recommendation that we visit the Harold P Curtis Honey Store. It's a local fifth generation establishment that sells raw honey.  They let us try all five types of honey, Orange Blossom, Palmetto, Wild Flower, Mangrove and Sea Grape. We both chose the Palmetto as our favorite!

Harold P Curtis Honey Co.

Inside the Curtis Honey Co.

Three other boats arrived over the next few days. First there was Jim on a 30 foot sloop named Palmetto Moon. He looked young but mentioned that he was born in 1966. He had just crossed Lake Okeechobee and said that there was plenty of water under his keel. His boat draws only 5’ though. Mystic draws 5’5”. Another Jim arrived on a beautiful Chris Craft Sloop called Sea Horse. He also just crossed the Lake and said he found plenty of water. His boat draws 5’2”. This information was encouraging for us!

Mystic & Palmetto Moon at LaBelle City Dock

Sunset after the storm
Our first night at LaBelle City Dock

Sunset over Mystic & Palmetto Moon

The final boat to join us, Golden Fleece out of Chattanooga, Tennessee, came from Ft. Myers with three young sailors on board, Natalie, Brian and Paul. They reminded me of Dave back when I met him. They were excited and eager but really, they were just winging it. They asked if our boat was in Tarpon Springs during a big storm. We said that Mystic was, but that we were away at the time. They asked if we met Lee on the boat across from us. We said we had. They told us that Lee had tried to redo our lines during the storm! We could tell that someone had made an effort for us but had no idea who that was. So now we know! Life is funny sometimes!

Beautiful Sunsets at LaBelle

LaBelle Sunset 

   

        

    

On our last night at the LaBelle dock, the Gods gifted us a beautiful sunset and a double rainbow. We’d sat through big storms all afternoon. It poured a ton of rain over several hours. Then everything got quiet and calm and the clouds allowed the setting sun to peak through. Brian was the first to notice the rainbow behind us. These are the moments that we will remember when we remember this journey!

Changing Sunset at LaBelle Dock