DOUBLE DOCKING in FORT PIERCE!

FRIDAY- The past nine days in Vero Beach have been very pleasant. Besides much fun with Betty and John Rhodes, we've enjoyed meeting other boaters, mild weather and that “beachy” feeling. We've stayed much longer than planned, validating Vero's nickname among boaters, “Velcro” Beach.

This afternoon at Vero's City Marina, we topped off with 413 gallons of diesel and pumped out, our first fuel purchase since Swansboro, NC, last Fall. This evening Larry and Susie MacDonald, of www.frugal-mariner.com fame, friends we met in Elizabeth City, NC, came aboard for drinks, food and fun. We had a great time catching up and discussing mutual interests. For many years they owned a camera store in Pennsylvania and their son is a photopro in California. Their website is a valuable mariner's resource!

SATURDAY- Today was ideal for the Fort Pierce run, with virtually no wind & clear skies, although patchy fog delayed us until 8:30 AM. We docked SeaDream in Fort Pierce about 10:30 where she'll remain while we drive home for three weeks; I'll fly to Seattle to visit my daughter and Mike will be working. We expect to return to Sea Dream the last week of March and prepare for our Bahamas crossing.

Our assigned slip here at HarborTown Marina has a short, single finger and tall pilings for the lines, an unfamiliar setup for us. With all docklines ready, we entered bow first, slowly and well, then sighed with relief. But . . . the finger dock for exiting SeaDream was six feet too short and useless and, egress over the bow was nearly impossible plus dangerous! I wasn't ready to re-dock but, considering our dilemma, we simply had to leave and re-enter backwards (stern to). With two seasoned Dutch sailors from a neighboring boat (3 Atlantic crossings) on board to help with lines, we left the safety of our slip and spun her around in the narrow fairway. The wind was still light but building; Mike slowly and smoothly made a good stern-to docking so SeaDream's aft gate meets the finger dock, for easy access. With relief and thanks to our impromptu crew for their great help, we relaxed and napped. The evening brought a delicious BBQ pot luck and music for everyone. Our emotional scale had been fully exercised today. Captain Mike always says, “This will be fun!” and, against all odds, it sometimes, usually, always is.

SUNDAY- Today Susie and Larry brought our car down from Vero Beach and lunched with us. This evening our new Dutch friends, Adrienne, Gerard, Dede and Tony came over for drinks, snacks and absolutely enthralling conversation. They're so much fun and their custom designed 53' aluminum sloop is beautiful! They've truly traveled the world, with three Atlantic crossings, Caribbean and North Sea experience.

MONDAY- Mike was engrossed in “admin” work all day, organizing for the Bahamas as well as home. I repacked cupboards and closets, reorganizing too. SeaDream is a continual reorganization project! We also had another delightful evening with the Dutchmen. Their family fishing and chandelier businesses are very traditional. We'd love to visit Holland someday. The next few days will be busy, preparing to leave.

Plans for docking.

Linda drives dinghy.

Sea Dream docked at Fort Pierce.

A Simple Trip to the Grocery Store?

TUESDAY- How can getting groceries be such an all-day adventure?? Christy offered us her car for shopping so about 1:30PM we dinghied into Cocoa Village Marina. The city marina would have been closer to her car but not as secure. Sea Dream was anchored on the bridge's south side, protected from the brisk northerlies. After passing under the bridge the waves drenched us in the dinghy. We tied up behind Christy's boat and wrung ourselves out as best we could for our two mile walk to her home office and the car. Louis & Boozer played there while we shopped. At Publix we got a few staples then stopped at West Marine (of course!). Christy returned us to the marina just as a squall arrived. After it passed, we and the groceries dinghied back to Sea Dream, boarding just before dark. Each bag of groceries was passed up to the deck and down into the galley. It was dusk by the time we finished a simple trip to the grocery for “a few things” but we had another adventure!

Leaving Cocoa Village, on to Vero

WEDNESDAY- Left Cocoa Village in the morning and cruised to Vero Beach, catching a mooring ball about 4:45PM at Vero Beach Marina. The wind was gusting to 25mph but I caught the ball on the first try. Hoorah! In the evening John and Betty Rhodes, good friends from Atlanta, invited us over to their condo for John's fresh caught fish dinner. It was absolutely delicious so we may have to learn to fish. They have a lovely place and Louis really enjoyed meeting their Westie, Chloe. We visited until late and then back to the boat.

THURSDAY- Betty and John arrived just before noon for the “boat tour”. The weather was sunny and very pleasant so we sat on the deck and lunched in the galley. Later we had a delicious Italian dinner in quaint Vero Beach. There's a lot to see and do so we plan to stay for several days.

Boozer & Louis in motion.

Mike in Cocoa Beach famous Travis Hardware Store.

Playing in park fountain.

Not Leaving

FRIDAY- Our only motion is swinging on the hook near Seabeeze Bridge in Daytona, Florida. Luckily there's civilization nearby..... the navigation computer's hard drive has crashed! Even in small town Daytona though, a google search located a repair shop close ashore. The helpful young techy confirmed the drive is completely dead so Mike bought & installed a new one. Connecting it's a snap but the arduous process of installing & configuring windows and all the other navigational software & devices takes many hours so we're doing what cruisers always do..... staying another day! If the hard drive had been readable, cloning it to a new one would have saved many hours. I bet we'll clone this new one!

SATURDAY- Mike got up late after working on the computer until 4:00 AM. Louis & I followed each other around, doing chores and not disturbing him while he continued the configuration. Progress is solid but slow. No shore time today but it's sunny and 72 degrees, a great day for sitting on deck. Tonight will be a movie night, gently swinging on the hook.

SUNDAY- Yay! We left this morning. All systems were go, with great weather. Hauled anchor at 9:00AM and anchored again at 6:00PM in Coca Beach, just south of Cape Canaveral. These I.C.W. waters are all very, very shallow except in the marked channels. Many places people are standing knee deep just outside the day markers. There must be plenty of sea life, though, because there are so many fisherman, birds, and a multitude of dolphins in these 2 to 4 foot deep waters.

Tonight we watched Downton Abbey on PBS! Tomorrow we'll go ashore and explore the little town of Cocoa Beach. “Christina Sea” GH 47 number 4 (we're hull 6), owned by George and Christy Comrie is docked here. We'll visit Christy (George is away) and catch up on their news. We may stay in Cocoa Beach a couple of days.

Old Kress building in Daytona Beach

Mike loading software on the computer.

Sunny Warm and Beautiful St. Augustine

TUESDAY- The best time to visit Florida is this warm winter; few tourists or bugs and moderate weather. We “set sail” in early darkness and passed through downtown Jacksonville and the RR bridge at dawn, before it closed for the day. The I.C.W. south of Jacksonville has houses to port and swamp to starboard. There were narrows but no traffic. After a beautiful day, often accompanied by dolphins, we picked up a mooring ball next to Lion's Bridge, in the heart of St. Augustine, at 1:30PM. New mooring tackle, plenty of swing room, gentle breeze and a gorgeous location, all for only $21.00! The newly refurbished, “old” Lion Bridge crowns the harbor. Ashore, Louis, Mike & I enjoyed walking around the 16^th century Spanish fort and all through America's oldest town. Tonight, little white lights twinkle from most downtown buildings, an especially festive sight from the water.

WEDNESDAY- This morning I enjoyed the pink, glowing sunrise over Lion's bridge. Such a beautiful old city so we stayed another day and walked then re-walked the brick streets and old neighborhoods. Before dark Louie got in a good run around the old fort, wearing himself out.

THURSDAY- We left St. Augustine about 11:30 AM after replacing the dinghy davit brake, emptying the trash and walking Louie ashore. It was very scenic but we had to watch the depths (shallows) very carefully. At 6:00PM in downtown Daytona Beach, we found a tight but adequate anchoring spot. It is a squeeze near a big bridge but a good hold. No shore time tonight. Left over chili waits!

Fort Castillo De San Marcos

St.Augustine Lion Bridge namesake with Sea Dream.

Sunrise over Lion Bridge