Paradise is found!

We found Paradise! We are traveling with Monkey Girl, Laura and Bill Peters. They are experienced at anchorage and love it! We are learning to love anchoring too!

We planned our trip to Pensacola with the Blue Angels show. What good planning! We anchored near Spanish Point in a "spoils area". Dredging is a constant here and the removal of sand, mud or soil is usually to an area in the water called "spoils area". One must be careful and obtain what is called "local knowledge" to make sure the spoils area is deep enough for our boats. This spoils area is about 10 feet deep which is perfect for anchoring.

We were surrounded by sandy beaches. On one side was a small island, so Buddy and Boo were off leash and running like crazy dogs! They loved it! They were surprised when they tasted the water and spit the water out. So funny!

We lowered our kayaks and scouted the island and then we were surprised by what happened next! Bill and I were in the kayak waiting for Jim when two fishermen came by. They were drinking beer and not looking very serious. Bill is the curious sort and a good conversationalist so he inquired about their fishing. They indicated they were interested in The Loop and would like to see our boats.

Monkey Girl is an American Tug and is very different from Crawdad. The fishermen, Jim and Joe, boarded our boats and looked around. They offered to show us some fishing spots and cruise the area. Jim grew up in Pensacola, had lived in Chicago and other cities and had returned "home". Joe was his boss from Charlotte.

What came next was incredible. He was showing us the inlet to Pensacola and he saw a school of redfish. He was totally equipped for fishing and we caught fish after fish! There are restrictions on what you can keep, so we had to throw them all back! They were huge up to 50 inches! Their scales are very large and hard and feel like a hard covering. We each caught at least one and all were too large to keep. So fun! Redfish is typically eaten here blackened.

We hated to leave our Paradise, but we know there are many more wonderful anchorages and marinas ahead.