A good sailor is always ready. Ready for whatever adventure, situation or weather is around the corner. In our case it was weather, wind and waves to be more specific and because of it we ended up visiting Clearwater Fl by boat.
This trip wan’t the adrenaline surging kind of trip that I shared with you guys last time my Dad and I cruised several hundred miles down the East Coast on his boat and battled high winds, rain and rough seas in the dark of night. Nope. It’s been the kind of trip that’s required flexibility and patience.
Unlike our crazy 500 mile 3 week sailing adventure to Key West, we only had a few days. A quick getaway weekend to reconnect and recharge our batteries. This mini trip that had been planned for weeks had a last minute change of course so to speak. We traveled north as far as Clearwater Friday evening before high winds gusting to 25 knots (roughly 28-29 mph) landed us in a boat slip hunkered down in the Clearwater Marina for the next 4 nights.
You may ask didn’t we check the weather? Yes we did, in fact we use several weather apps. But weather forecasts can change quickly and the direction of the wind was a huge factor.
So there we sat, rockin’ and a rollin’. Our boat shuddering with each swell from the bay that landed against the hull on and off for the next 4 days. Simple tasks like cooking a meal or making coffee could be a little challenging sometimes. I’d put something down and it slid away as another gust of wind pushed us over 🙂 Sleeping wasn’t so bad because you just get used to the noise and a rocking boat is fabulous to sleep on.
…and we love sailing which means you take the good, the challenging and anything else that comes your way when on a sailing trip.
So a change of plans it was. Have you heard the sailors phrase “When you can’t change the direction of the wind, you can adjust your sails” ?
Instead of reading a good book relaxing by a deserted island at anchor, DH and I took off to explore Clearwater Beach. Which is okay with me since I’ve wanted to see more of Clearwater ever since we moved to Fl anyway 😉 The Clearwater City Marina isn’t a fancy marina but it is full of character by way of boaters and their boats.
Exploring a town from a home base that’s a marina gives one a very different experience and there’s lots to see. I could so make that kind of gate!
There’s an economy of it’s own that happens in a marina. Take a stroll down the boardwalk and you’ll find boats for charter, rentals, ferry boats, dolphin sightseeing tours and more. There’s one big booze cruise pirate boat that passed us several times a day with the Macarena song blaring every time they passed. I was ready to start dancing and partying after hearing that for the 10th time in 4 days;)
The City Marina is located in downtown Clearwater and right across the street from the beach. Clearwater is famous for it’s pristine white sandy beaches and Spring Breakers. Thank goodness we aren’t in the middle of Spring Break yet. This place will be packed!
Each night at sunset the Clearwater Pier is lined with local craftsman and artisans selling their wares. Jugglers and acrobats perform in the park square located in front of the Pier and there was a big outdoor movie playing in the park too. I’m in love with the energy of this town!
For $1 you can walk to the end. The little white dots are sailboats, probably lasers a small class of race boat.
The locals like to gawk at the tourists too.
These lifeguard shacks remind me of the ones we had on the east coast growing up. We don’t have any at our local beaches in Madeira Beach. Our beach town is way too small, so are our beaches.
We are wanderers when it comes to sight seeing. We just roam and end up where we end up. One night dinner was spectacular at a local seafood dive, Cooters, where I had .79 cent oysters at happy hour. #Yum! #bringmeanotherdozen
We had a nightcap at Jimmy’s Crows Nest and Iguana Bar, an open rooftop place with the most spectacular views of the entire downtown. See the marina on the right and the beach on the left? How’s that for a perfect location?
Quiet time together was still one of my favorite things from this trip. I have special memories of playing Yahtzee, spades and hearts till wee hours of the night at the beach growing up. I would have added scrabble to our game night but DH refuses to play scrabble with me (read #poorloser).
Tuesday afternoon the winds calmed and we were finally able to shove off and head home. Sailing is always an adventure and this weekend was full of fun and new memories. We’d made new friends in the marina, explored the City of Clearwater and had plenty of laughs.
Anyhoo, I’ve been meaning to share a little of the beach life with you all and thought this trip would be loads of fun to share.
I’ll be back in a few days with a new DIY project.
Do you have a favorite local getaway near your hometown? Share below in the comments section!
Lynn White says
What a wonderful trip! I’ve never been to Clearwater, but it looks beautiful! Thanks for sharing your trip at the #HomeMattersParty!
Wendi says
Hi Lynn and thank you! Clearwater is beautiful and a fun time. We don’t explore our local towns and places nearly as much as we should. Seeing it via a boat and marina view added a lot to the experience. Thanks so much for your visit!
Mary-the boondocks blog says
Wendi it’s good to see that you got to take a few days and go sailing.The beach is pristine with all that white sand. Just beautiful. We have taken our little boat out of the water now and have to prep it for the spring. They are like little children aren’t they, they need to be taken care of and maintained.
Wendi says
Hi Mary! Yes, the getaway and together time was wonderful and much needed. Clearwater beaches are beautiful and it was nice to see them when it wasn’t too hot and crazy crowded. Boats really are like kids! They take so much time to maintain but it’s so worth it. We love out water time like you do. I can’t imagine not being on the water! Thanks so much for your visit my friend!
gail says
y’all are so adventurous! It sounds like you made the best of a “rough” time. 🙂
It’s fun to read about the sail boat since I’ve actually been ON it!
gail
Wendi says
Hi Gail! Adventurous is fun, it adds a lot to life:) I love that you know our boat too! It was special having all of my special blogging friends on a sail with us:) Hugs!
handmade by amalia says
Even with the unpredictable weather, this sounds like a wonderful adventure, Wendi, and the photos are beautiful.
Amalia
xo
Wendi says
Hi Amalia! Thanks for the compliment on my photos! That’s a lot coming from you who always shares beautiful and exotic photos:) We love adventure and discovering new things, it keeps life interesting 🙂 Thanks so much for stopping by and your sweet note.
Julia says
Great post Wendi!! While I started reading your blog because of the informative DIY projects, your sailing posts are my favorites. I think they’re the ones that really hook a reader on a personal level. My husband and I are water people and are exploring Florida for a vacation/retirement home. We may need to check out Clearwater!
Wendi says
Hi Julia! Thank you SO much for your sweet words! I sometimes forget that people are interested in more than just DIY and it’s interesting to see what it’s like in other parts of the country. You’ll love Fl! We are on the West Coast and it’s a fabulous sailing, water sport place to be. I’d be happy to answer any questions if you’re looking on this side or in the Tampa / Clearwater general area. Thanks again for your note and following the blog 🙂
Patty says
What a special time you had with your hubby. I love Clearwater Beach and have fond memories of that gorgeous beach. Our get a way is usually the Smoky Mountains, now that I’m living in Ky, but I sure miss the beach life.
I’m so glad you did this post, it brought back great memories we, only brought our boat into that marina one time and we had a great time, I don’t know how it is now but back then they really loved to party around the marina.
So glad you had the time off with DR and had such a good time
Wendi says
Hi Patty! We did have fun, it was a nice break from the everyday and we had fantastic quality time. I love that Clearwater is near and dear to so many of my favorite readers! I forgot that you were in Fl before. I imagine that the Smokey Mountains are a fabulous place to get away to as well. They must be gorgeous in the different seasons! Yes, the Clearwater Marina and the town in general is still a party social kind of place. We met some really fun people who were transient & live-aboards there too. Thanks for your note & hope you are doing well. Hugs!
Marie|The Interior Frugalista says
Oh my goodness Wendi, thanks for the trip down memory lane! Mr. Frugalista and I spent part of our honeymoon in Clearwater Beach. What we didn’t realize (being landlocked Canadians) is that we booked that part of our trip during American Spring Break. Let’s just say, there wasn’t a dull moment in Clearwater Beach. The strip you photographed was an ever ending trail of cars loaded with kids and music blasting from the speakers. Thankfully our hotel had a private beach and we spent a lot of time there – so much so that our prairie white skin turned lobster red and we both ended up with heat stroke. What happens in Clearwater stays in Clearwater – fun times were had!
Wendi says
Hi Marie! What a small world! I can’t believe you were her during spring break girlfriend. Especially because that was probably the time when it was out of control craziness! We saw several people on the beach who were candidates for sun poisoning last week. I wanted to put up umbrellas and hand them bottles of sunscreen! Clearwater is a fun town and even though we live just down the road from it, seeing it from a new perspective was a hoot. Glad you enjoyed my post and that it brought back fun memories! Hugs!