We left Ponce Inlet and journeyed south along the ICW, past New Smyrna Beach and down the Indian River. We entered Mosquito Lagoon, and as we travelled south, we could see the hanger for the Space Station down at the Kennedy Space Center.
...and Ben said he'd never seen a pelican...
Ben was at the helm until we entered Haulover Canal, at which time he was given the assignment of spotting his first ever alligator; a task that took about two minutes for him to find an eight footer on the bank in the sun!
We went along Merritt Island and entered the Cape Canaveral Barge Canal to get fuel. When we came back into the canal, we idled along looking at birds; herons, ospreys, anhinghas, pelicans, blackbirds. Then we started spotting manatee everywhere! We launched the dinghy to give Ben a chance to meet these “mermaids” up close, while I idled out to the bay to look for an anchorage. I didn’t like the options, and returned to Harbortown Marina, where we had fueled, to dock for the night.
I met Bob working there, who has a home in Big Pine, and we have mutual friends, who we called at seven o’clock that morning.
We continued down the Indian River, and the ICW to Vero Beach, where we joined over a hundred boats in the Vero Beach Marina mooring field. We tied up by the Sawdust, a Nordic Tug 37, and the next hull number to Mercy!
On Friday, Larry and Joan, off the Sawdust, and I looked around on each boat, comparing notes. Larry made a few modifications that I plan to do as well. (Insulating/adding ventilation to the refrigerator.
Friday afternoon I had the privilege of meeting Ben’s parents, who must be terribly proud of the fine young man they have raised. My prayers are for Ben as he seeks God’s direction for his life, and for the entire family that they have the confidence that Ben ends up just where God wants him to be. It must be really hard for parents… I’m missing Ben already!
Friday evening, I dinghyed ashore with the Sawdust crew to watch the Vero Beach Christmas Boat parade. We sat on the fuel pier, where the judges were, so we had a pretty good view!
Saturday I took advantage of Vero Beach’s free bus service and went to the store. I’ve flown and boated all over the world, and figuring out a bus schedule is scary to me! I made it back to marina, which wasn’t difficult, thanks to all the boaters in town who’d already figured out the bus system.
The mooring field at Vero Beach
The free buses don’t run on Sunday, and church is a long ways off, so I’m continuing south today.
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