Finding that one boat
April 12, 2007
Alex and Marcia Orsolini both grew up in families that had boats on the lakes of southern Wisconsin.
By Capt. Carl Kelly
They fished and played on the lake waters both as kids and as adults, mainly using runabouts and pontoon boats.
"When we moved here, it opened up a whole new world of boating for us," Alex said.
"When we first came down (14 years ago), we rented a boat at Marco Marina," Marcia said. "They gave us a map and told us what to do. We wanted to go to Keewaydin.
"We thought we'll just cut across here," she said with a laugh. "The very first time we took a boat out, we went aground."
"We've learned a lot since then," Alex added. "We took the Florida safe boating class. We started boating with friends here and started learning the waters."
They bought a 20-foot Welcraft center console that Alex described as, "a nice little boat to get the feel of the water."
That was before they retired and moved here permanently four years ago.
Then, they bought a 37-foot Formula PC.
"We found it didn't suit all of our needs, fishing, fuel consumption. We like to go to the Keys and the Formula didn't allow us to carry enough fuel to do things like that," Alex explained.
So, they sold the Formula and bought a Pursuit 2670 Denali.
Travel
"We like the idea that we have a boat that we can travel a great distance," Alex said. "We use about 15 gallons per hour at about 26 miles per hour. With a full tank, we can go about 100 miles. This type of boat is also good for fishing.
"But, there are trade offs," he noted.
The berth, galley and head are smaller than in the Formula.
"It's more like camping," he said. "It's hard to find that one boat that does everything."
So, they have several, including personal watercraft.
Alex is commodore of the Marco Bay Yacht Club this year.
"We're often confused with the Marco Island Yacht Club," Alex said.
That may be because the names are so similar and Marco Bay has not had a home base, whereas Marco Island is very visible in their club home at the base of Jolley Bridge.
"Originally in 1968 when the club was organized, we had O'Shea's as our home base," he said. "Then, O'Shea's was gone and we didn't have a home base. But, now we have a home base, the Marco Lodge in Goodland, which is a real bonus for us to have. They fly our flag. It's nice to have a place where the club can go socially. We have our Final Fridays happy hour there."
"It's a great location," Marcia said, "a nautical location. People can boat there. We can have our meetings there."
"There's a need for both clubs," Alex asserted. "Ours is very inexpensive."
"One hundred twenty five dollars a year to belong to a club that travels together, that parties together," Marcia added.
Activities
They listed some activities of the Marco Bay Yacht Club - day cruises, overnight cruises anchoring out, extended cruises to Tween Waters, Moss Marine, Sanibel, Key West, the Dry Tortugas, a guided trip through the backwaters to Everglades City.
They described an upcoming overnight to Panther Key, where they will cook out on the beach, play horseshoes and bocce ball. And they will fish, possibly for some supper.
"It's a fun time to get together and just let your hair down," Marcia said.
"The nice thing of boating with a group is the safety factor," Alex said. "We never leave anyone behind. It takes a lot of the stress out of it. You always have someone there to help if you need help."
The Orsolinis still haven't found that one boat that does it all, but they have several boats to cover the various things they want to do, and they belong to a boating club that also fits, encompassing good socializing and safe boating.
Capt. Carl has held his USCG captain's license since 1994. If you have questions or would like to make suggestions for this column, contact Capt. Carl at
marcocaptain@comcast.net.
"When we moved here, it opened up a whole new world of boating for us," Alex said.
"When we first came down (14 years ago), we rented a boat at Marco Marina," Marcia said. "They gave us a map and told us what to do. We wanted to go to Keewaydin.
"We thought we'll just cut across here," she said with a laugh. "The very first time we took a boat out, we went aground."
"We've learned a lot since then," Alex added. "We took the Florida safe boating class. We started boating with friends here and started learning the waters."
They bought a 20-foot Welcraft center console that Alex described as, "a nice little boat to get the feel of the water."
That was before they retired and moved here permanently four years ago.
Then, they bought a 37-foot Formula PC.
"We found it didn't suit all of our needs, fishing, fuel consumption. We like to go to the Keys and the Formula didn't allow us to carry enough fuel to do things like that," Alex explained.
So, they sold the Formula and bought a Pursuit 2670 Denali.
Travel
"We like the idea that we have a boat that we can travel a great distance," Alex said. "We use about 15 gallons per hour at about 26 miles per hour. With a full tank, we can go about 100 miles. This type of boat is also good for fishing.
"But, there are trade offs," he noted.
The berth, galley and head are smaller than in the Formula.
"It's more like camping," he said. "It's hard to find that one boat that does everything."
So, they have several, including personal watercraft.
Alex is commodore of the Marco Bay Yacht Club this year.
"We're often confused with the Marco Island Yacht Club," Alex said.
That may be because the names are so similar and Marco Bay has not had a home base, whereas Marco Island is very visible in their club home at the base of Jolley Bridge.
"Originally in 1968 when the club was organized, we had O'Shea's as our home base," he said. "Then, O'Shea's was gone and we didn't have a home base. But, now we have a home base, the Marco Lodge in Goodland, which is a real bonus for us to have. They fly our flag. It's nice to have a place where the club can go socially. We have our Final Fridays happy hour there."
"It's a great location," Marcia said, "a nautical location. People can boat there. We can have our meetings there."
"There's a need for both clubs," Alex asserted. "Ours is very inexpensive."
"One hundred twenty five dollars a year to belong to a club that travels together, that parties together," Marcia added.
Activities
They listed some activities of the Marco Bay Yacht Club - day cruises, overnight cruises anchoring out, extended cruises to Tween Waters, Moss Marine, Sanibel, Key West, the Dry Tortugas, a guided trip through the backwaters to Everglades City.
They described an upcoming overnight to Panther Key, where they will cook out on the beach, play horseshoes and bocce ball. And they will fish, possibly for some supper.
"It's a fun time to get together and just let your hair down," Marcia said.
"The nice thing of boating with a group is the safety factor," Alex said. "We never leave anyone behind. It takes a lot of the stress out of it. You always have someone there to help if you need help."
The Orsolinis still haven't found that one boat that does it all, but they have several boats to cover the various things they want to do, and they belong to a boating club that also fits, encompassing good socializing and safe boating.
Capt. Carl has held his USCG captain's license since 1994. If you have questions or would like to make suggestions for this column, contact Capt. Carl at
marcocaptain@comcast.net.