Cabbage Key & Thanksgiving

Wednesday we were looking for a cozy spot to anchor out of the north wind that's been howling for a couple of days.  We were planning on Cayo Costa but even though the chartplotter read depths of about 8 feet it looked pretty shallow.  A little later we saw a few boats anchored just west of Useppa Island and decided to join them. 


Within about half an hour we had been invited to a Thanksgiving brunch.  They had an amazing spread of food and cocktails.  I think at times there were 15-20 of us on a 37 foot boat.  Each time someone new came we all just shuffled a little to make room.  A couple of visiting fishermen stopped by and traded some freshly caught Redfish for snacks.  That was fun!


That's a bloody mary.  On the spike was a huge shrimp,
cheese, hot pepper, sausage and garlic stuffed olive
 

Just across the Intracoastal Waterway sits Cabbage Key.  We took the dinghy over to check out their famous bar.  The walls (and everything else) are plastered with dollar bills that guests have signed.  There are slips available, cottages for rent and a nice restaurant.  We went back the next day to walk the trail and climb the water tower.





we added our dollar to the wall
 

the view west out over Cabbage Key from the water tower
 

This is a really nice anchorage.  Although we are still getting a north wind which is cool and the passing boat traffic makes us rock a little, I would come back here again.





Thanksgiving dinner at the Cabbage Key Inn