Great Loop: Tarpon Springs to Gulfport

January 30th, 2022

It was so wonderful to be underway following our extended stay in Tarpon Springs.  We didn't realize how much we missed being on the water, underway to new destinations.  I feel we are motivated by a strong curiosity to see what is around the next turn or other side of the bay.  Don't know what exactly it is, but you know when it is time to move on.  We were ready!

Beth was so excited to be travelling, she spent most of the morning with her head out the window sniffing the air and enjoying the sights! 

I too was happy to be underway

One of the many bridges thru which we had to pass

We quickly found ourselves in a totally urban environment.  The sides of the waterway were lined with houses, and bridges spanned the waterway so traffic could move unimpeded.  Fortunately, Amy Marie's vertical height allowed us to pass through the bridges without requesting an opening.  The bridges seemed to have a standard 24 feet of clearance.  We did not even need to lower our antenna.  Yay!!  All the bridges have a large sign that warns boaters that there is a fine of up to $25,000 for asking for an un-necessary opening.

Bridge Tenders have nice offices

Waterfront houses tend to be pretty opulent.  Only a fraction of them seem to be occupied.  Very similar to the houses in ski areas.  People with too much money buy up prime real estate, build a McMansion, and use it 2 weeks a year.  It seems wasteful, but that is the way it works.

It is easy to covet these waterfront homes with boat docks

The waterfront houses are available in all shapes and styles

And these houses go on for miles and miles.  They are basically non-stop.  Florida developers have been very efficient at building on any available piece of land.  The new construction we saw, required a teardown of the previous structure to be replaced by something larger.

We continued south past Dunedin, Clearwater, Indian Shores and St. Petersburg to our destination at the Gulfport Municipal Marina.  It was located in a quiet location with access to bike routes.  We biked to downtown Gulfport in hopes of getting a cold beer.  Unfortunately, the waterfront bars were packed tight with patrons spilling out onto the sidewalks.  No one was wearing a mask.  With the pandemic still quite active, we chose to ride on by and head back to the boat for a beer and dinner in a less Covid risky location.  One of these days it will again be safe to gather with others.

Welcome to Gulfport!

The welcoming committee

Our stay was just for the night.  We were looking forward to meeting some friends in Sarasota the next day.  We did enjoy Gulfport and would like to return, post pandemic, so we could really immerse ourselves in the local scene.