THE CIA INVADES PORT ROYAL

Naples old-timers may remember that at the end of Gordon Drive there was once a trailer park. One of my friends grew up there. And, along the water, across from Keeywadin Island, there was a collection of boat sheds, tin building, and other unsightly shacks that today, the mere sight of would cause the elegant Port Royal residents terminal apoplexy. Right after Fidel came to power, these abandoned buildings were commandeered by the CIA. Or some federal spook agency we could never identify.

It started with a Fed visiting Chief Sam Bass with some odd demands. In the future, there would be large van trucks proceeding down Gordon Drive late at night. They would be driven by Cubans. The police should not stop them, follow them, or hinder their progress in any fashion. If one was stopped the driver would present a card on which was written Chief Sam Bass. That would serve as code that the driver was legit and part of government sanctioned operation. Huh? But after doing some checking Sam told us it was way over our heads and just to turn our backs.

One early morning, however, one of the trucks broke down on 5th Ave So and 3rd Street. In the process of helping to get the truck started one of our nosey cops--God love him--was astounded to discover that the truck was loaded with cases of ammo, clearly stamped US Air Force. Later we figured out where all this ammo was going.

The old shacks along the water soon sprouted signs proclaiming they were the home of Delta Enterprises, Trans-World Imports, and other exotic--and ridiculous CIA type names. Tied off in front of two of the building were thirty-foot power boats, with obvious cannons pointing to the rear. The cannons were covered with a form-fitting tarp mark Radar. Right!

Then the raids started. The boats would proceed out, head to Cuba, sit off-shore and blow hell out of Fidel's fiefdom, then return to Port Royal. Though they weren't advertised, it didn't take much to reconcile news reports with the disappearance of the boats for several hours.

And they kept up, which didn't surprise use. It was a well known secret that the government was training Cuban insurgents in the Everglades. Why should the midnight runs be a surprise?

The runs kept up until the Bay of Pigs fiasco. Then, the boats and bogus businesses disappeared. Later we read that the Cuban general who had been training the troops in the Everglades had been put in prison.

Always caused us to wonder--and hope--the CIA was usually a little more covert than what they demonstrated in the Port Royal operation.