Jorma, in winter tropical mode!
I know this is Hawaii earlier this year not Sanibel next year, but it’s still warm and delightful!
Sanibel Island Workshop
Feb. 5th through the 9th 2018
Jorma Kaukonen & David Wolff
For the last decade or so we’ve dedicated ourselves to finding warmer and more delightful climes to take our Fur Peace Ranch on the road. We’ve been to Desert Hot Springs in California as well as San Diego and Lahaina in Hawaii. Right around February of each year those of us who live in chillier parts of the world start thinking of ways to get away from snow and its little brother, wintry mix. This year we’re heading to the Sundial Beach Resort on Sanibel Island.
Why did we choose Sundial Resort? For those of us that think Florida is Miami or Orlando (not that there’s anything wrong with those cities) there’s so much more to discovery. Located near Fort Myers on the barrier island of Sanibel off the Southwest Florida Gulf Coast, Sundial Beach Resort & Spa is a unique tropical island destination with miles of shell-strewn beaches. It’s very quiet with a population of a little over 6,500 people. The “Ding” Darling Wildlife Refuge is located on Sanibel and works to protect the mangrove forests and the habitat that depend on them for survival. This 6,300-acre Florida wildlife refuge is home to 238 species of birds, more than 50 types of reptiles and 32 different kinds of mammals, featuring wonderful bird watching spots, bike and walking paths, winding canoe trails, and a four-mile scenic drive.
The resort has the honor of being “ 2017 First Place Best of Southwest Florida ”, “ 2017 Certificate of Excellence for Trip Advisor ” as well as recently recognized as a lodging facility committed to conservation efforts of Florida’s natural resources. The Florida Green Lodging Program is a voluntary initiative of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) that designates and recognizes lodging facilities who score high marks in the areas of waste reduction, water conservation, energy efficiency, indoor air quality and education initiatives.
Our rooms are all one bedroom Island Room Suites (upgrades are possible) with private conference rooms for teaching. The pools are beautiful, the beaches are pristine and it is a wonderful play to rest, relax and rejuvenate and reconnect with your guitar and like minded students.
As mentioned, this little gem is on the southwest gulf coast of Florida has all manner of really nifty warm water based activities for us land locked Midwesterners. It has the flavor of Key West without being so far away… and, by the Grace of G_d, this year’s hurricanes passed it by. I can hardly wait to dip my feet in the water.
Speaking of dipping, David Wolff and I are going to be dipping into some rarely, if ever taught gems by yours truly. Yes, it’s a finger style class of course, but bring your flat pick too. We’re going to kick things off with a foray into my iconic guitar intro to Grace’s White Rabbit. That’s only the beginning. We’re also going to delve into these numbers:
1. Roads And Roads &
2. Wolves And Lambs
3. Song For The High Mountain
4. Letter To The North Star aka Lord Have Mercy
5. Bar Room Crystal Ball
6. Sleep Song
7. Day To Day Out The Window Blues
8. Serpent Of Dreams
9. Follow The Drinking Gourd (I didn’t write this one)
What between gleaning some respite from the winter along with these rarely, if ever taught gems, It’s going to be a great week. Come and invite your soul with us. Bring your guitar and a smile and don’t worry about the snorkel and the fins. The resort has plenty!
Here’s our signup link:
http://www.furpeaceranch.com/instructors/jorma_kaukonen.html
Hope to see you there…
Sanibel is a beautiful island indeed. While there, make the trip over to Captiva Island next door for the daily sunset.An awesome experience. You will be glad you did!
Glad Sanibel weathered the storm, we lost 1/3 of our beach here in Jupiter on the east coast. Certainly the Gulf sunsets are spectacular, but be careful that sugar sand gets into everything.
LWE, you are not the only one backed up on the Entrance Ramp. As the Captain said, its just music, not rocket science (he also said practice helps too) perhaps I will join you next June
Great set of songs for the class, while at the time (75-78) I enjoyed Americas Choice/ Yellow Fever (and the tinnitus I still have brings fond memories of shows at Stony Brook and Commack) I would enjoy the Aint in No Hurry treatment given to Bar Room Crystal Ball to those tunes as well (and I think Hit Single #1 would fulfill its destiny)
Peace
Jorma, Barbara gives me the ” New Yorker” magazine,with a report about the Opioids addiction problem. They write about the Montgomery Ohio town it is very bad there. You do the good work in Ohio to help people.
Thanks to jorma I get to see more of American places that are beautiful. Very nice it is survival of the hurricane.
Some of my favorite songs, especially Wolves and Lambs. Sadly, I better focus on returning back to your Entrance Ramp course next June so I don’t slow down the other attendees.
My parents retired from the Cincy Ohio area to just north of Bradenton, FL. It gets a little chilly down there around Christmas, but warms up real nice by mid-January. I saw a telephone company commercial there once that opened with a guy shoveling snow into a pile when the phone rings. “Hello?” “Charlie, it’s Jimmy, we’re here on the beach and it’s 85 degrees, howz things up your way?” Then the announcer comes in, “Call home: rub it in!”
After dad died my sister would take mom to Sanibel and they always had a wonderful time. Hope you all do too. m
Sanibel was the Island of choice, back in the days when we were in our twenties.
It was quiet and peaceful, we enjoyed many good times there. Haven’t been back in ten years
although my friends from school have a few houses there and stay in the winter months.
I can attest to Jorma’s description of Sanibel Island’s many charms. I’ve been going there for the last 20 years, it is Florida’s best kept secret. You enter via a causeway from the mainland and transported to a tropical island. It has some of the best shelling in the world and sunsets over the Gulf of Mexico that are spectacular. The seafood was probably caught that same day. I’ve stayed at the Sundial several times and it is beautiful. It is right on the Gulf with miles of white sand beaches. You won’t want to leave!
I could walk there from my house. YAHOO!!! See you when you get here…
Dammit. If ever I had reason to be chagrined for not learning to play the guitar, you just laid it out above. One thing’s for sure, next time I’m down Florida way, Sanibel island will be on the itinerary. Their area Chamber of Commerce owes you a debt.