Fort Myers, FL and Vicinity, January 6 – 19, 2011

By Trawlers on February 2, 2011 in Magoo

Sanibel Beach, FL —

Cloudy Sunset from Deck of "Magoo", docked at Fort Myers Yacht Basin

"City of Palms" – Fort Myers

Fort Myers and Vicinity

January 6 – 13. Back to Florida and on the boat again. – Wow, glad to be here in Florida. The second week in January Florida was the ONLY state that did not have any snow!! – Yes, we are still doing “The Great Loop” but it feels more like “The Great Pause”. Since we are staying in one place here in Fort Myers and relaxing or going at a slower pace (a huge contrast to the constant movement of the past eight months). – While we are “pausing” we will post pictures of the places we go and the things we see. We plan on moving North the second week in February.
Florida (The Sunshine State) Ponce de Leon named this region “La Florida” and means “Flowery Land”. It’s said that he landed in the Spring when the vegetation was in bloom. – Did you know that Florida has the second longest coastline in the U.S. (approximately 1350 miles — the longest is Alaska with 6640 miles).

Historic River District, Fort Myers, FL

The historic section of Fort Myers (known as “City of the Palms”) which is located on the Caloosahatchee River. Caloosahatchee is pronounced “Kuh loo sah HACH ee” and we still stumble when trying to pronounce it. It is an Indian word believed to mean “river of the Calusa” (Calusa is the name of the Indians originally living in this area). We are docked at the Fort Myers Yacht Basin located in historic downtown Fort Myers, also called the downtown River District. This marina is walking distance to parks, restaurants, theaters and stores making it a great place to stay. The people who run the place are pretty nice, too. You could say that they run a “tight ship”.

"Rumors" — A Floating Hair Salon at the Fort Myers Yacht Basin Marina

As we get acquainted with Fort Myers, one of the things we couldn’t help to notice was the consistent names of businesses and parks, such as: Edison Bridge, Edison National Bank, Edison Celebration of Art, Edison Park, Edison Congregational Church, Edison Restaurant, Edison Mall and so on and so on. It didn’t take long to find out that Thomas Alva Edison is one of the most famous Fort Myers residents, or I should say winter resident (total of 30 winters). You know, the famous inventor who was most noted for inventing the light bulb and phonograph (or should I say the “pre-stereo” for those of you who don’t know what a phonograph is). He was also responsible for inventing the dictaphone and mimeograph (the beginning of copy machines). In addition to all these wonderful inventions Edison created the Vitascope which was the beginning of the silent motion pictures. Then in 1903 he blended audio with the silent movie and thus evolved the ”talking” movies, referred to as “talkies”. Wow, huge accomplishments!! And to think that as a child he couldn’t talk until he was almost 4 years old. It’s said that if he were a child today psychologists would diagnose Edison with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and put on the drug Ritalin. Kind of makes you wonder how far we have really come??? Progress??

"Uncommon Friends" — Edison, Ford, and Firestone. — Fathers of the American Industrial 20th Century

Another famous Fort Myers resident was Henry Ford, also an inventor. As a matter of fact, he was a close friend to Edison and moved in right next door. Ford gave a gift to Edison of a gasoline-powered Model T Ford. Now, that’s quite a present. I’m sure Edison supplied Ford with plenty of light bulbs in return and a phonograph or two.
Fort Myers is also the winter home for the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins. The games usually start here in the middle of February.

Red Sox, Spring Training in Fort Myers. — As a youth Artie met and got a signed baseball from Ted Williams.

Camping Out for Red Sox Tickets, Fort Myers

We Walked to the Arcade Theater from our boat and saw two plays ("Sylvia" and "The 39 Steps")

Sunday we walked the cobbled streets to the Arcade Theater and saw “Sylvia”, a comedy. There’s nothing like a live show for a fun night out.

A Little Hide-A-Way on Captive Island

Bubble Room Restaurant on Sanibel Island, FL

Guess Who!!

January 14 & 15. Sanibel and Captiva Islands (barrier islands), It is said that Ponce de Leon named Sanibel and Captiva Islands for Queen Isabella of Castile. Sanibel measure approximately 12 miles long and five miles across at its widest. Captiva Island is smaller at less than 5 miles long and a 1/2 mile wide. We think that this is a pretty special place because more than half of the island is made up of wildlife refuge!! Now that’s saying something. The resident’s priority is to keep the island as natural as possible. There are no gaudy neon signs, but buildings are tasteful and painted to blend into the natural surrounds. There are over 22 miles of biking trails and beautiful beaches, of course.

Shells of Sanibel Island, FL

Shelling is especially popular here; but I confess most of the shells we found were broken. We did find some small shells to keep as mementos. Early mornings or after storms would be a better time to find pristine shells.

Wildlife at the J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge

More Wildlife at Sanibel's "Ding" Darling Nat'l Wildlife Refuge

No fast food chains are allowed on the island (except Dairy Queen, but that was here before the laws were enacted in 1974). Also, the only two story buildings that are here were built before 1974, one story is the only ones allowed to be built.
Jan 16 – 19. Fort Myers