We are staying at the Isles Yacht Club. After being helped by an extremely friendly dockhand and having ice delivered by the dock master, we were then visited by a yacht club member bearing a plate of brownies (yum), a Meyer lemon and Key lime off her tree and a stack of information about the club and the community. Wow! Setting a high bar for hospitality. Today we walked into town to see a watercolor exhibition at the local arts center where our friend Roger Parent took third prize AND was named a Master Watercolorist this past week — there are only 4 in his group of 200 painters. While we were there, the friendly person at the front desk entered us into a drawing for “grab bags” of goodies as part of a crafts show that was also going on. I won! I am wondering if it was rigged? From there, we walked another mile to the weekly farmers’ market in the downtown area. Small and charming with a couple of produce stands and lots of booths with goodies ranging from jams and jellies, pickles and handcrafts to oodles of mushroom varieties, artwork and cupcakes. I got four of the most beautiful tomatoes I’ve seen in a while for $3! We strolled through Fisherman’s Village on the way back to the yacht club and found a nice restaurant overlooking Charlotte Harbor plus some shops to explore (and spend!) Tonight, we are going to a special jazz dinner at the yacht club. What a nice day.
The Isles Yacht Club set a new standard for hospitality. It is a robust club with a great facility — rebuilt in 2006 after Hurricane Charley destroyed their old clubhouse. In addition to a nice dock area, they have tennis courts, a pool, a billiards room, an elegant restaurant, a grill room and bar. Cruiser amenities include showers, lending library, loaner bikes and kayaks.
The view from the front of our mooring.
Four beautiful tomatoes for $3! What a deal.
The goodies in the goody bag I won at a raffle at the Arts Center. Notecards, a glass Christmas tree ornament and pink glass earrings.
Maybe I could move here? Punta Gorda has made a wonderful impression. And the condominiums down the street from the yacht club certainly has the right name!