Despite some intermittent morning winds, the Cape Coral Sail and Power Squadron’s Weekender Group met at Marker 68 on the southwest side of the Midpoint Bridge over the Caloosahatchee River Saturday, April 13, for its monthly boating venture. The departure was delayed a few minutes as the boat captains discussed the river conditions and how rough the ride might be.

An alternative destination was proposed in North Fort Myers but as it turned out, the river cooperated, and the vessels were able to pick up to speeds above 20 miles an hour to their destination. This day, the destination was Boathouse 31 in Fort Myers, about an hour trek north on the Caloosahatchee River, past the Power Plant, and Manatee Park.

Tides were low and winds still present late morning when the group arrived at the restaurant for lunch, however, everyone assisted each other to provide for a safe docking of the vessels. Present in the group were five vessels, captained by Curt Collins, Ed Estes, Jerry Feldmen, Jeff Maddy and the group leader, Scott Fergen, totaling 23 people. The restaurant staff were quick to set tables up for the group upon arrival and got drinks ordered as the group decided what to eat for lunch.

Weekenders is a monthly outing group of the CCSAPS chaired by Fergen, a Sail and Power Squadron member. The group is open to all members of the Squadron, however, passengers on a members’ boat do not have to be members of the Squadron. It’s a great way for Squadron members to take out friends and meet, exchange fellowship, improve boat handling skills with other boaters and for their boat guests, learn about the activities of the Squadron.

For those wanting to avoid some of the weekend congestion on local waters, another Squadron group, the Weekdayers, chaired by Doug Benton, also meets monthly with the same objective: rendezvous at a central location and venture out as a group, but, as the name implies, they gather on weekdays, usually Tuesdays or Thursdays, instead of Saturday.

Rendezvous locations and times for both Weekenders’ and Weekdayers’ locations vary depending on the destination, usually around 10 a.m., and most vessels participating are back at their home docks between 2-3 p.m. Vessels monitor their VHF radios at all times should conditions warrant a change in destination or to update skippers of docking conditions at their destination restaurants.

For more information about either the Weekenders or Weekdayers or joining the Squadron, contact the CCSAPS at 239-549-9754 or webinfo@ccsaps.org.