Day 199 Anchoring near Cedar Key

Had to pry John away from the Steinhatchee dock this morning. He vows to return to this serene old fishing village. The Gulf was calm - rocking us gently like only Mother Ocean can. We almost fell asleep at the wheel. The only thing that kept us alert was the hundreds of crab traps in our path. The water is now clear and a deep shade of jade. By the end of today's trip, the seas were like glass. We decided to hug the coast so it's shallow which allows us to view the bottom. Dolphins occasionally played along the bow or delighted us by leaping out of the water. Despite the slight chill on the fly bridge, it feels so good to be back in familiar waters. John was anxious about navigating the waters around Cedar Key, namely Sea Horse Island, but he did a fine job to get us to an idyllic remote anchorage. The sunrise and sunset were a gift. Beautiful. No internet tonight.  We were going to stop at Withlachochee, but are concerned about building seas and winds by mid-week so we'll save Withlacoochee and Port Richie for another trip. Tomorrow we are going to make the run to Anclote. Can't believe we are within days of being back home.