Monday, March 7, 2011

Time to move on.  We have enjoyed our stay at Fort Myers.  The marina is in the heart of the historic downtown area, the people at the marina are very nice, and it is close to public transportation.  We would definitely recommend it to those traveling the Okeechobee Waterway.

We had lunch with Dave and Pat and said our good-byes.  We want the thank them again for everything they did for us during our stay.  It was great to see them again.

This past weekend there was a huge fund raiser for the Olympics down on the water front.  The Prince of Monao was here on his yacht (couldn't get close enough to get a picture).  Evidently, the Prince used to be an Olympian and is still involved in helping them raise money.  The downtown area was very busy.

The Fort Myers Yacht Basin was constructed as a Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) project to provide employment during the Great Depression.  Construction began on January 1, 1937, and completed in 1939, with a cost of $435,000.  During the late 1800's and early 1900's Fort Myers was the home of several steamship companies including the Menge Brothers Steamboat Line, the Kinzie Brothers Steamer Line, and the Fort Myers Steamboat Company.  The Pleasure Pier built in 1927 was part of a $300,000 recreation center which included a swimming pool, horseshoes, and a dance floor.  In 1943, the need arose for a USOC Center for G.I.s stationed at Buckingham Gunnery School and Page Field and the building was barged to its present location at the corner of Edwards Drive and Hendry Street.

Pat and Dave
(previous owners of our boat)

Hooters Patrol Yacht
(here for the festivities this past weekend)

Edison Bridge-we walked it
every morning we were here

Our last Fort Myers sunset
(at least for a while)