Longboat Key and Venice FL then its decision time again

We finally left Treasure Island (Johns Pass) a couple of days after Christmas heading for Moore's Stone Crab House where if you eat in the restaurant you may spend a FREE night at their dock.  Such a deal so off we went... the photo above is the Sunshine Skyway Bridge as we make waves down the west coast.

Here we are docked at Moore's for the night with NautiNell very nice dock and the meal was GREAT!

Sunrise over Sarasota from  Longboat Key

NautiNell all lit up for the holiday's

Sarasota skyline

OK this has got to be the winner of best courtesy car of all Marina's. pretty nice ride for a trip to the laundry mat don't you think?

Great NO Parking sign, yes we parked in front of it to get this picture.

Sunrise in Venice WOW I got 2 sunrise shots in 1 week a new record I believe,  ya ya I know sunrise at 7:30 am makes it much easier.

So as I had mentioned we are in Venice for a few days, NautiNell will be here for an extended stay as Miss Nell has a new grand baby and will be going to Dallas for a few days.  And Venice is the home of our friends Jeff and Linda who very recently completed the loop.  The picture above is our New Years eve on Snake Island a small island that the locals claimed for themselves and meet here to party, have cookouts search for sharks teeth etc.  Venice is the sharks tooth capitol of Florida betcha didn't know that!  When we got to the island which we had heard about from Jeff, there were no fewer than 50 people here.  They have a pretty cool set up too, fire pit, hammock's, grill, picnic tables and even an out house for the ladies. 

The only way to get here is by boat, finding a parking spot wasn't too bad though there were about 12-15 boats there when we arrived.
A great time was had by all and it was a nice way to ring in the new year.
 So while we have been hanging out here in Venice we have been trying to decide which direction to take from here.  The choices are to continue south down the west coast to the Keys!  Or, head on down to Fort Meyers and take the Okeechobee Waterway which cuts across the whole state and brings you out in Stuart on the east coast of FL..  The decision has been made, we will take the Okeechobee to Stuart!  This is where we cross our wake (where we started our loop), we will remain in Stuart for 1 month and do some sightseeing by land.  And try and decide where to go next?  South to the Keys? or East to the Islands? Stay tuned!