Explore Naples, Florida

Our Spring Break ’23 Recap

Spring Break: when everyone in the midwest travels south for one week, the same week!  This year we participated in the traditional southern escape in early April.  We do not have kids in school but many of our friends do, so we planned to join a few on their spring break in Naples, Florida.  We decided to drive down …

Spring Break trips with school-aged children is something of a phenomenon.  How far south do we need to go, how quickly can we get there and how cost effective can we be – takes months of planning and years to execute perfectly. 

Our friends gave us a crash course of their nearly 10 years of experience – what to do and what not to do.  They have it down to a science and we loved spending time with them.  We’re so grateful they asked us to join them for spring break in Florida!

Kara & I drove because flights were almost $1k per person!!!  The drive from the northern midwest states to Florida means to brave Atlanta traffic (which is challenging – regardless of how you time it).  We planned our overnight stops on the way down after we were through ATL and on the way home, way past (very far north of) Atlanta.  Other than traffic, we love a good road trip.  One thing that made it more enjoyable was that we rented several CDs from our local library to play on the way in our older car (no Sirius XM for us).  We had so much fun listening to music along the way! 

It took two days to get there.  We arrived shortly after we could take possession of the house, and an hour or so after our friends.  They assumed we wanted to get unpacked, settled and relax while they headed to the beach!  NO WAY!!!  Wait for us – we can be ready in 5 minutes.  Let’s go to the beach!

Florida beaches are fantastic!  Kara & I are fortunate to have visited many Florida beaches – we even took our honeymoon to Marco Island.  This week was spent at Vanderbilt Beach in North Naples.  There’s a parking garage close by, but it fills up so plan to arrive early, and a small round about for drop off / pick up. 

The sand reminds me of southeast Lake Michigan, which is slightly more coarse and darker than the fine, white sand just a few hours north at Siesta Key Beach. 

Once again, our friends have the system down.  Load the car with food, drinks, chairs, towels and toys.  Make assignments for who carries what, pick a spot to set up, figure out who leads and who is supporting cast in the tent assembly, which is critical in the blazing hot sun to make an effort to artificially create shade for a few hours.  Music responsibility is a crucial role – make sure you have your playlist ready. 

In just a few minutes, everything is set up, kids are scattered to play (but don’t forget the sunscreen application!), adults track down the beverage cooler, and a full beach day has begun! 

The water in Naples is just warm enough in early April to enjoy – especially when it was 80+°.  We comfortably spent hours in the water talking and reconnecting with our friends. 

The food was great, too.  Since we rented a house, we didn’t have to eat out for every meal or dinner.  I enjoyed grilling and playing around the pool in the evenings,  but we were also able to eat out.  At home we cook a lot of meals – specifically to keep our food budget down, but getting to eat out on vacation is an enjoyable experience.  My favorite was a pasta + shrimp dish at Coconut Jack’s in Bonita Springs.  Kara loved the Island Breeze, a coconut key lime lager at Bone Hook Brewing Co … and of course, the soft pretzel and beer cheese 🥨!

Hurricane Ian hit the area in late September 2022, and caused catastrophic damage for many in Florida as well as the Carolinas.  The devastation is tough to truly grasp – unless you witness it.  We visited six months later and many neighborhoods and homes were gone.  It looked like a war zone – especially compared to the beautiful homes and busy crowds just a few miles South.  We have never been through a hurricane and don’t claim to know much about the process to rebuild after such destruction and hardship.  My thoughts and prayers are with the people who are now working to do this.

We do not have access to many marine stores in our area, so being in Florida on the Gulf Coast, we had to visit a West Marine store.  After all, we bought a lot of products online for our winter projects but never in person.   Kara & I found something that we wanted in every aisle!  We left with only a clearance HydroFlask water bottle, which immediately got a Zeke Life sticker and was put to use at the beach!

Naples was a great place to visit and our experience was so much better with friends.  Beaches were packed, the sun was shining, and the water was perfect.  It was the 1st time Kara actually brought up spending time with SV Zeke E Boy in Florida.  For now, she’s still a freshwater boat; I’m not ready for the maintenance that saltwater brings … yet!

Although we hated to leave paradise, our journey home was still part of the trip.  We talked about the fun we had, and the plans to come once we got home.  We have a few weeks to get SV Zeke E Boy ready for the ⛵ season.  The list is long and the work is waiting for us at home.  This trip was a perfect transition to creating new routines for Spring.  Armed with our physical supply of music, the two day trip home was similar to the drive down – except we were more prepared for Atlanta traffic. Just take the recommended detour – trust me! 👌 

Tell us what you think

Let us know what you think of our adventures by sharing your feedback in the comments below. Are there any places in Florida that you would recommend?  Do you have advice for us on boating in saltwater?  We’d love to hear from you!

– Kyle from Zeke Life

Live like Zeke
You’re such a good boy!