Boating Articles by Tom

Starting with the little two-person inflatable raft I had as my very first boat, I have always loved the freedom and the feeling of being out on the water. With my father's help, I added a hard plywood floor to that little inflatable, and that was the beginning of a long chain of boats I have owned, loved, maintained, modified, fixed, enjoyed, and scared myself to death on over the past few decades.
A lot of boating time is spent fixing boats, maintaining boats, and upgrading boats with new boating equipment to suit our specific tastes and needs. Lots of salespeople at stores that sell marine boating supplies and boating accessories have learned to recognize me over the years. I have spent my share of time and money working on just about anything you could name on a boat, and made plenty of mistakes. I'm here to share the lessons learned.

Reviving The Stray Goat

October 8, 2019 By Tom Leave a Comment

A couple of years ago, the Goat Island Skiff Julie B was donated by her builder to the Charlotte Harbor Community Sailing Center. The intent was to sell her to some lucky sailor and use the proceeds to help support the Center's programs. What … [Read more...]

More Bobcat Pictures

October 7, 2019 By Tom Leave a Comment

The neighborhood bobcat passed by again. This picture was taken about 30 minutes after a picture of my cat in the same spot. The bobcat passing by the Omlet Eglu chicken coop and run, which still seems to be … [Read more...]

A Couple of Bobcat Visits to Chickens

October 1, 2019 By Tom Leave a Comment

We like to watch the sun set over Shell Creek every evening and then return home and close up the chickens in their coop for the night. Last night we showed up and Kailey the Cowdog suddenly alerted to a scent and took off across the yard. I was … [Read more...]

Return of the Coyote(s)

September 23, 2019 By Tom Leave a Comment

Early last night at least one coyote was around our game camera for about 10 minutes. It showed up at 8:11 pm. Still around at 8:21 pm. And completely unaware of the camera, it seems. Some of the pictures … [Read more...]

Adventure Island Blasting Through Charlotte Harbor Chop

September 22, 2019 By Tom Leave a Comment

I saw that the wind forecast for yesterday included gusts in the mid-20 knot range and figured this might be one of my last opportunities this year to sail my Adventure Island in the harbor while the water is warm enough to get very, very wet and … [Read more...]

Replacement Trail Camera

September 19, 2019 By Tom Leave a Comment

I walked by my trail camera a week or so ago and noticed it was down by the base of the tree, not strapped to it at knee height where I had left it. I wondered how it could slide down the trunk of a pine tree, then noticed the face of it was cracked … [Read more...]

Off Road Eglu Chicken Tractor

September 17, 2019 By Tom Leave a Comment

I found a used kayak dolly that I wanted on craigslist the other day and went down to Bokeelia to buy it. The seller was somehow able to quickly identify me as a person who can't say no to trash and as I was leaving he said, "Hold on a second. I got … [Read more...]

Waiting for that First Egg

September 7, 2019 By Tom Leave a Comment

Our chickens hatched around April 1, 2019 and are about due to start laying eggs. They're looking very robust and healthy and in this picture you can see some of the green sheen in the feathers on their backs. We bought some ceramic … [Read more...]

Watching Hurricane Dorian

September 1, 2019 By Tom Leave a Comment

As the state of PANIC here in Florida winds down with forecasts showing Hurricane Dorian will miss us, it seems like a good time to review the projected storm path and how it panned out. When I first noticed Dorian, it was a tropical storm that … [Read more...]

Klepper Foldable Kayak Sailing Charlotte Harbor