Day 178 Ft. McRee Anchorage

"Toto, there's no place like home, there's no place like home..." This has been one of my favorite anchorages. Woke up to revelry and the national anthem being broadcast from the Pensacola Naval Air Station across the Intercoastal - Veteran's Day.  The weather was the perfect blend of sun, temperature and breeze. There literally was not a cloud in the sky - I really tried to find one - nope, none. It was hard to discern the blue sky from the equally blue water.  After breakfast, we explored the beach where the ruins of Ft. McRee are located. The fort was built in 1820 by slaves and occupied by Confederates in the Civil War.   (Pic 1 is a view of the site from the boat)  At one time, there were three forts in the area protecting this entrance into the Intercoastal. Dinked back to the boats and John and Sara shoved off to go visit with a high school buddy. Estrellita and Sundowner remained to soak in more utopia. After relaxing most of the day, Burke and Stell dingied by with fishing poles and asked us to join them on the far end of the island where Burke had discovered a red fish spot. Burke, who is an excellent fisherman, caught a couple legal sized red fish, John's had to be thrown back to grow a little more. Stell and I enjoyed a long walk on the pristine Gulf beach. As dusk approached, we went back to Estrellita for a delicious fresh fish dinner. We were entertained by a huge pod of dolphins that frequent this anchorage every day before sundown - you can see them breaking the surface in pic two.  It doesn't get any better than this. We have one more day of good weather till the polar vortex affects our conditions, so we'll decide tomorrow whether we move on or linger in this paradise another day.