Gulfport

Our first night in Gulfport was a little rocky. It takes a bit to get used to being at anchor again, but 25 knot switching winds don't help. Mike ended up sitting in the cockpit for most of the night keeping an eye on our anchor and holding. No problem for our Rocna anchor. Not so good for two of our neighbors. We think the west winds took them by surprise and the dinghies rallied to pull them back out and re-anchor.

Our first trek to land the next morning brought us right up to a dinghy dock by the Casino. Sorry Kim, not a gambling casino, but a large dance hall gathering place straight out of the 40's. It is adjacent to a large pier for day sailors,,,similar to the Memorial Union docks in Madison, Wisconsin. Gulfport makes it easy for boaters!

Right across the street from the beach are several open air restaurant/bars, each with its own personality. O'Maddy's was quite popular and had a great happy hour menu. We had a pizza, beer and rum punch for $18 plus tip. Next door is Salty's which has a large open courtyard with two giant Jenga games set up, a Ping pong table, a pool table and bean bag toss surrounded by plenty of comfortable seating. Brenda still can't beat Mike at ping pong! Further down was Neptune's where Hector amazed us with his guitar-playing abilities and then completely surprised us with his voice. Awesome! We have been missing live music.

Mike doing "research" for his wood carving

 

The street running perpendicular to the beach is lined with quaint sidewalk cafés, restaurants and boutiques. Absolutely no chain stores! We had a wonderful afternoon just taking in the sights and enjoying the beautiful weather and being on our own again (although we miss our Clearwater crew immensely). We'll probably be here a few days!

 

 

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