Bahamas Bound

  Quest to catch a lizard. We left Cocoa Beach this morning and made our way north to Mosquito Lagoon. We made good time with the wind and the current in our favor and we really didn’t want to anchor in a place called Mosquito Lagoon anyway, so we kept sailing north to new Smryrna Beach. There is a 5 inch long reptile on the boat. It could be an iguana from Bahamas, but I really think it is just a lizard. It has been my quest to catch it.    We saw a number of manatees in Haulover Inlet north of Titusville that had many scratches on their back from boat accidents. Then after we anchored up at Smyrna Beach, we saw a pod of dolphin swimming alongside a pod of manatees, so we thought that was pretty unusual. Tonight we are going to grill spicy sausages and tomorrow our goal is Daytona Beach.

We ripped the Velcro off and left Vero Beach this morning. Ha ha. The wind and current was in our favor so we sailed at 8 knots and made good time so we went past Melbourne Florida and anchored up in Cocoa Beach. when we got out of the dinghy to walk Ali, we could not find her dog leash. Turns out I left it back in Vero Beach this morning on the dinghy dock. Nothing like some spare sailing line laying around for a makeshift leash until we can get a new one. At 5:15, a SpaceX rocket took off from nearby Cape Canaveral. I spotted it for two seconds before it went behind the cloud so it was not visible long enough to get a picture.

  Taking down the Bahamas flag. Jessica had a nice long walk on the Greenway Trail at Vero Beach while I monitored the laundry switching it from washer to dryer.    The mini boat project today included rewiring a solar battery charger wire that had corroded. The three of us took a dinghy ride through the mangroves and found a park and trail on an island only accessible by boat. Tonight is New York Strips grilled on the back of the Methuselah.    Tomorrow we head north somewhere around Melbourne, Florida.

  Notice all the rust on the new dog stroller from the harsh salt water environment. Alli will be getting a new one soon…. Jessica took a long walk around the Vero Beach municipal Greenway area and neighborhood. She was amazed at the damaged foliage that is still evident from the hard freeze in early February. The windy period that we are experiencing made it a little cooler so she did not get as hot today during her walk. We took the free shuttle that comes to the marina over to the Publix grocery store. Once again we were in awe of the selection and are so appreciative of American grocery stores. Our good friends from Blackbeard sailing club, Steve and Donna are at this Marina as well. We picked them up on the dinghy and went to Riverside Café for dinner. We had such a good talk about our experiences in the Bahamas. We met up with Steve and Donna in the Exuma’s so it was fun to share stories since we saw them a month ago.

  Boat mini project to replace hatch hinges…measure twice, drill once… Jessica took a long walk around Vero Beach public areas because this marina is nestled in between a lot of parks with greenways. The boat job for today was replacing the hinges on one of the lazzrrete doors. Then we took the free shuttle to downtown Vero Beach where there was an Easter Friday night festival on the street. We enjoyed looking at old cars, listening to music, and Jessica got to pet an Australian Shepherd puppy…. her sister Noelle would have been in heaven. After four months, I finally got to drink an IPA on tap. We are going to stay on this mooring ball here in Vero Beach until this cold front / windy period is over on Monday.

  This morning, Jessica took a walk with Alli. They explored the nearby Greenway and parks that are near the marina. I ordered a water pump for the boat yesterday and received it today at the marina. Amazing how quick you can get items delivered in America, never ceases to amaze me. I installed the pump and then Jessica and I went on the free trolley over to the beach boardwalk area and had an excellent burger at Mulligan‘s. Now I know why Jimmy Buffett made the song “cheeseburger in paradise”in which he eats a cheeseburger while he is in port. Afterwards, we walked the boardwalk and through the neighborhoods back to the marina. We noticed a lot of foliage that had been damaged by the unusually cold freezing temperatures in early February here in South Florida. Every Thursday night, the marina throws a social gathering in which people bring appetizers and chitchat about their journeys. Tonight was our mooring ball mate Roger’s birthday, so chocolate cake was also served.

  Jessica grew up knowing to stay away from white sketchy looking vans, but this one was hard to resist. Just kidding, cute picture. Florigami is art where you fold paper to make flowers, this is an example of a turtle made with no cuts in the paper, only folds. Dinghy ride back to Methusala. This marina rafts two boats to each Mooring ball. We really have been enjoying our time at Vero Beach. There is a free trolley that comes to the marina as one of their numerous stops around town. We rode the trolley to a Thai restaurant for lunch and our taste buds went cray cray! The restaurant happened to be near a barber shop, so I broke down and sat in the barber chair and at the last minute, decided to keep my hair relatively long and just get it shaped up (for now), as opposed to getting it short like it was before. Jessica is waiting for her haircut when she is back home and can go to “her person”. The highlight of the day was touring McKee Botanical Gardens. The theme this month was fl...

  Jensen beach sunrise. Jessica on the dinghy dock. Jessica and I woke up this morning to the sound of trains and their whistle. When you are away from America, it’s amazing how you get used to not hearing things like road noise, jets, trains, trucks with no muffler, etc.    We motored for a half day North and ended up in Vero Beach municipal Marina mooring field. we took a walk around and so far have fallen in love with this town, it’s no wonder people call it “Velcro” Beach. There seems to be a lot of activity with Greenway trails, dog parks, botanical gardens, beach scene, boardwalk, etc. We hinted at the fact that when we retire, this is a potential spot 😊.    As you can see in the dolphin video, the Mooring field is set up a little different here in which they double you up with another boat rafted to the side, which is just fine.    We took Alli for a nice walk through the park, but at the end it was so warm that she was starting to pant and slo...

  Jessica and I had a wonderful night sleep, and we made our coffee to go and dingy’d over to the manatee wildlife center. Of course, there was no dinghy dock so we had to pull up on a beach nearby and walk down the street. When they opened the gate at 9 AM, the security guard said that no dogs were allowed. I sat with Alli, while Jessica walked in and toured the facility. There were no live manatees in the river today, but she learned why they like freshwater. We went in the ocean for 30 miles sailing to Jensen beach, hoping to get a tuna, wahoo, or mahi-mahi. It is amazing how the gulf stream runs so close to South Florida, evident by the color of water and temperature just 1 mile off of the beach. We had one    fish hit. I heard the reel click and ran over to pick it up just as the fish swam away. I slowed the boat down, which was a mistake because then the lure did not look like an injured fish, and I watched the mahi swim away from the lure. Jessica and I went to the...

  Last night in Bahamas.    Best boat dog ever!  Left Bimini at 7 AM and made our way across the gulf stream safe and sound. We hooked up with one mahi-mahi, but it was small and when we got him close to the boat, he threw the hook. That’s OK, we are going to get us a good old American hamburger at McDonald’s soon anyway. Ha ha. Came into Florida at West Palm Beach 11 hours after leaving Bimini and were totally amazed by the wealth of this nation by just looking at the homes and boats. America may not be perfect, but it is the best country in this world. We loved the Bahamas, and one thing we learned from the Bahamian’s is that you don’t have to have money to be happy. Truly wonderful, appreciative and happy people in the Bahama Islands. We have so many wonderful memories that we will reminisce about for years to come, but are soon looking forward to spending time with our family and friends!! Departure Arrival

  You might wonder why there are three conch salads, and only two of us, we always share the second bowl and make it extra spicy. As we left the conch shack, Jessica asked if we could add one more conch shell to our dozen or so that we already have on Methuselah. I told her only if it does not smell bad. So she took the sniff test and now we have at least 13 conch shells. Our Boat Neighboor saw us preparing this blog today so he took a picture. Jessica filling water that cost $.50 a gallon, one last time… Yes, I wimped out and wore my hoodie for the last snorkel because the water was a little chilly after three days of cool windy weather. For our last day in the Bahamas, we just HAD to eat one more conch salad. So we took the dinghy down to our favorite conch shack for lunch. Then we took the 5 mile dinghy ride to turtle reef and did our last snorkel in the Bahamas. I saw a Caribbean Reef shark when we first jumped in, but I did not tell Jessica until after our snorkel. However, sh...

  Remnants of a hotel where Ernest Hemingway and Jimmy Buffett like to stay in Bimini.  Fountain of youth. We took the two minute ferry ride from North Bimini to South Bimini. Then we walked 1 mile to the Fountain of Youth. We figured if the Bahamian sun took off some years on our skin this would help, however, Jessica did not need it as she is cute as a button, see picture with bungee cord in her hair from three days ago.    I went for one last grocery run in the Bahamas and Jessica caught up on her journal writing.    We had a good conversation with our slip mates who live in Minnesota, but keep their boat in Fort Pierce and come to the Bahamas every winter. We also enjoyed a restaurant for the last time in the Bahamas. If  the wind cooperates, we are looking forward to one last snorkel tomorrow.😎 High school kiddos performing a marching band called the Junkanoo parade. Junkanoo name was originated from Bahamian’s performing in the streets, dancing,...

  After yesterday’s rain, we were anxious to get out & about.    We went to the laundromat and were surprised to learn they required masks….what memories that brought! We took a long walk on the beach and enjoyed the sunshine and lower humidity.    This windy weather that we are experiencing even prevented the cruise ship from coming into port in Bimini, so it was nice to walk the streets without cruise ship tourists forgetting to drive golf carts on the left side of the road.    The weather models are predicting a favorable opportunity to cross the Gulf Stream to FL on Sunday / Monday.