Oma, Suzanne and I are all doing just fine, (except for a couple of minor aches and pains). We have had a great time since joining the Atlantic ICW just out side of Stuart Fl at the St. Lucie inlet from the Atlantic Ocean.
We stayed a couple of nights in Ft Pierce and in Melbourne marinas to avoid both the cold and the gusty winds. We were finally able to anchor out at Ski Island after the weather improved. Right next to the Cape Canaveral Space center and the cruise ship port.
It was nice to be away from other boats for awhile. And we finally put our plants out on the back rail. They are very happy the weather improved.
We continued to head up the ICW to the far side of the Space Coast and anchored near the launch pads and cruise boat terminal.
We continued north to Mosquito Lagoon. (Glad it was not mosquito season) to the Canaveral National Seashore and Apollo Beach. We anchored and took the dink to the beach.
As it is a nude beach I’ll only post long shots and wildlife
As no one should want to see a bunch of Naked Old Hippies. We had a great time walking the beach and picking up sea shells.
Our next stop was the free day dock at New Smyrna Beach, the 2nd oldest town in the US, which has a wonderful history museum detailing how it came about:
The Turnbull Settlement (1768–1777)
The modern history of the city began when Florida was under British rule.
- Founding: In 1768, Scottish physician Dr. Andrew Turnbull established a colony named Smyrnéa after his wife’s birthplace in Smyrna, Greece (modern-day Izmir, Turkey).
- The Settlers: Turnbull recruited approximately 1,500 indentured servants, primarily from the Mediterranean island of Minorca, as well as from Greece and Italy.
- Struggles and Failure: The colony faced extreme hardships, including disease, starvation, and harsh treatment by overseers. By 1777, the surviving 600 settlers rebelled and marched north to St. Augustine, effectively ending the settlement
After leaving the day dock we went past the bridge and anchored for the night.
Our next stop was a hidden gem of a marina: Marineland Marina. Truly a great stop, the Dockmaster was on the spot to catch lines then brought the pump out to us and we were able to pump out asap. The marina runs ecology and kayak tours of the area. The other boats in the Marina were kind and friendly. Had we known how nice it was we would have stayed another night!! As it was we didn’t leave until 11:00am the next day instead of our usual 8:30-9:00 am time.
Heading out to the ICW again, we took a short hop to a National Monument, Ft Matanzas.
We anchored out and took the dink to the visitors center where our National Parks pass got free admission. The nature trail through the ecological area called a Hammock, stands of trees, usually hardwood, that form an ecological island in a contrasting ecosystem. Hammocks grow on elevated areas, often just a few inches high, surrounded by wetlands that are too wet to support them. The sunset was beautiful.
We went all the way to St John’s River and Jacksonville.
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Paul, you’re not only a tour guide… but you remind me of a chap (Hemmingway, I think) who wrote so vividly and colorly. Glad to hear of such ports of call.
Back up north among the “frozen chosen,” we planned to ski this past week — only to find that most of the Denver slopes had turned to slush, and were closing for the season. No contact with Ron since November; only had one weekend skiing in the UP. So will await til next year…
Look forward to your Carolinas’ comments… and continued northward trip. Thanks and Godspeed your way —