June 2006

Northbound on the First Coast

May 29 - June 2
Fort Pierce

June 1st finds us still at the Harbortown Marina in Ft. Pierce waiting for Nick's new pair of glasses (he fell asleep reading a book and broke his only pair). The friendly folks at Taylor Optical fix his glasses and make him a backup pair (something we didn't get around to doing before leaving Texas). That's OK though; we welcome an excuse to stay a few extra days and enjoy the marina's amenities.

Being "cruisers" on the East Coast isn't quite the experience we remember from our trips to the islands. We're not the wealthy-by-local-standards American yachties hoofing it around some tropical island with our backpacks full of exotic produce and cheap booze. Reprovisioning means long walks in the stifling humidity or waiting at a bus stop for public transportation. Meanwhile, "real" people zip by in their air-conditioned vehicles no doubt amused at the sweat-soaked pedestrians in their wrinkled clothes pushing a grocery cart down the street. We often feel like we're just one step above the homeless. I suppose this is a good lesson in humility and not giving a damn what other people think.

Waiting at the bus stop is part of the "cruising" life (Deanna in Key Biscayne)

While the captain and first mate fret over the next day's itinerary, Dakota has no worries

June 3
Vero Beach

On Saturday June 3rd, we back out of the slip on a rising tide and run aground on a shallow spot in the marina. We easily power out of the muck and make the short trip to Vero Beach, where we pick up a mooring in the city's protected yacht basin.

On a mooring in Vero Beach

June 4 - 5
Cocoa

Vero Beach seems like a nice place to explore, but the bus doesn't run on Sunday. We drop the mooring after one night and travel 55 statute miles up the ICW to Cocoa. Our arrival coincides with a thunderstorm that forms earlier than the weatherman predicted. Nick runs forward in the downpour and drops the hook. Fortunately, the anchor holds the first time and we enjoy early cocktails inside the dry refuge of our cockpit enclosure.

The next day we dinghy to the northeast side of the causeway looking for a place to tie up (hoping to avoid a bus ride over the causeway). Unfortunately, a recent hurricane has trashed the docks. As we turn back, flat circular areas appear in the water all around the dinghy. Nick idles the engine as at least half-a-dozen manatees appear right next to the dinghy. The large adults roll and play in the water just inches away, while we hold our breath hoping they aren't mischievous enough to flip the wide-eyed humans in their rubber boat. Two juveniles surface nose-to-nose in an affectionate embrace while I squeal with delight. Although Nick always sees manatees when they're around, they've always eluded me. At long last I'm rewarded with an exceptional first manatee siting.

Titusville swing bridge begins to open

Swing bridge in open position

June 6 - 7
Daytona Beach

After two nights in Cocoa, we travel 69 statute miles to Daytona Beach and anchor on the southeast side of the Seabreeze fixed bridge. Beautiful Daytona Beach is only six blocks away. Pristine white sand and azure water stretch as far as you can see in either direction, as do the high-rise hotels.

Anchored south of the Seabreeze bridge

View of boat from the bridge

Daytona Beach

View from The Pier restaurant

June 8 - ?
St. Augustine
(the "Ancient City"--oldest continuously occupied European settlement in the United States)

The crowded, current-swept anchorages in St. Augustine don't sound appealing to us, so we secure a spot in the Oyster Creek Marina at marker 29 in the San Sebastian River. Nick slides our humble vessel onto the T-head behind a multi-million dollar power yacht while I try to remember how much liability insurance we carry. We intend to spend two nights and leave on Saturday, but once again weather changes our plans.

Tropical Storm Alberto pops onto the radar with St. Augustine and areas north in the cone of probability. Is it possible the first storm of the season has us in its sights? We decide to move into a slip and stay put rather than risk riding out a tropical storm at some unknown anchorage to the north. The locals assure us that St. Augustine is a great hurricane hideout and the San Sebastian River is well-protected. The first bands of rain arrive Sunday afternoon and continue through the middle of the following week. Alberto ultimately passes us to the north (where we would've been if we'd left), but the impact in St. Augustine is minimal.

As in Miami, the weather delay has a silver lining since we make a number of new friends at the marina. Gerry and Dianne Sanchez, new owners of the beautiful Bayfield 40 CosaBella, declare "Adopt a Cruiser" month and take us under their wing. After Alberto passes, we make the difficult decision to stay on at least another month. After months of hectic preparations in Texas and 1545 nautical miles traveled, we're ready for a little R&R.

What we'll do next is still undecided. Our insurance company will allow us to stay in St. Augustine for hurricane season if we wish, or we may continue northward. In the meantime, we'll work on some boat projects and await the arrival of friends on S/V Rima, who left Corpus Christi a month behind us.