Bridges, bridges, and more bridges.

Captain's Log....

We had strong easterly winds all night and the marina we were in did not offer much protection.  We decided to head out and try our luck further down the coast even though the forecast was for more wind.  We left at 9AM, a little later than normal but we waited a little to see what the weather was going to do. 

Melissa does a great job of handling the fenders and lines.  Here she reflects on our last port of call as we head out for another day of voyage.

This was definitely the day of the bridge.  26 total.  Most of the bridges so far have been high enough we have not needed to ask for an opening.  Today was different as more than half were low enough (we have a 19 foot height) that we needed to wait for the bridge to open.  Some of the bridges open on signal (request), many of them have a set schedule like on the hour and half hour, or at the quarter and three quarter hour.

The second bridge we came to had not been opening on schedule as there was a marathon running with the event route over the bridge.  There were 18 boats waiting for the opening.  They were not happy.

We lucked out because of our later departure we came upon the bridge just as it was about to open.  But we did kind of come upon a hornets nest because some of the boaters were a little testy.

Then there was a caravan of boats all stacked up. 

Most of the motor boats outdistanced the sailboats but 6 of us motor boats ran together most of the day.  There were a couple of bridges we could sneak under but it did not do us any good as there was always another bridge we had to wait for and the other boats would catch up.

Missy did her usual great job of keeping track of where we were.  The waiting for openings delayed us to the point we had to change our evening destination and cut back about 7 miles from where we intended to go. 

We are at a swanky marina in Ft. Lauderdale and I swear we visited this very same area with the kids years ago during a trip down here.  It is very Deja Vu.  We treated ourselves to a nice dinner at a Mexican restaurant and checked out the local Starbucks for the morning. 

It is fascinating how different each day of the trip is.  Evey day something is significantly different.  Neither of us had any idea just what we were getting into but it has turned out to be quite the adventure.  Getting to Key West might be anticlimactic....we will see.

We still have to look at the weather to plan our next move but we will wait until morning for any decisions.

First Mate's Log.............

Interesting day on the water....lots of traffic...mostly friendly, although some hostility amongst those that want to party and those that are serious about fishing, oh well...diversity can be fun!
My photo montage this even is devoted to dinghys....those amazing little boaty thingys, I have entitle it "Dinghy's are doin' it...and then some!" These portable floating bath tubs can carry ten times their weight in supplies, people and pets. They are made of various materials and folks can find any number of ways to carry or tow them with their boats. We have also seen many style of dinghy driving....none that seem to require a license :)

covered dinghy

super secret dinghy

drivin' in fine dinghy style!

the hanging dinghy

the popular tow-a-dinghy

wow...look at that form!

basic dinghy

Dinghy Dock sign....who knew?

an exclusive dinghy dock

........and for Rae

Starfish (I know....really?)

Shamus

Breezy? More like stong winds

Captain's Log...

Lighthouse in Jupiter Florida

The weather is not cooperating with our hopes for a comfortable cruise.  Melissa is not a boating person and we are getting rocked with strong easterly winds.  The locals think nothing of it but they have spent a lifetime on the water.  We may be stuck for a few days waiting for more favorable winds.

Love the palm trees!

At one point we were in an area of open water where the waves were rocking us pretty good so I opened up the throttle more than normal to cut through the rough stuff.  We came across a school of Dolphins and they loved the wake we were creating.  They had more fun.  Missy was below and so I put on the autopilot and took as many pictures as I could.

 I missed some really good ones as they sometimes jumped straight up out of the water.  I have never seen so many Dolphins at once having such a good time.

Sailboats like this Cat were also taking advantage of the winds

Some people we enjoying the strong winds

Came across a strange looking boat and researched the Internet to find out this guy is promoting under water generators.  www.cycloocean.com  Interesting concept.





We observed several boats at anchor.  They might have been waiting out the weather.

As we were nearing the marina we were staying at, we came through Jupiter, Florida.  We noticed many people along shore setting up seating and then noticed boats getting ready for the Holiday Boat Parade.  It took forever to get through Jupiter because of the no wake zone but it was interesting.

It was a bit of a struggle to get into our slip because of the strong winds but the dock guy was very helpful and we managed.  Then we were off to Dunkin Donuts for dinner (the only place to get food) followed by a trip to Winn Dixie (only a block away).

The was the fireworks barge that led the parade.

 Then back to the boat to watch the parade from our sun deck.

Pretty good entertainment.

There were about 40 boats all lite up and decorated.

First Mate's Log
Windy, windy, windy makes for rocky, rolly, waving waters...make sure your beverages are secured :)

Just Cruisin' Along

Captain's Log......Melissa and I are getting more and more comfortable with our boating skills.  We are getting in and out of slips with less stress which is making the experience even more enjoyable.

We only passed a few boats today but there was an increase in faster boats passing us.  As I mentioned the other day, cruisers are very courteous.

 Several of the boats passing us today we not cruisers, they were more of the power boat type.  And they we not nearly as courteous!  The wake of some of these boats rock us to the point Melissa is not comfortable.  And a Captain's responsibility to keep the crew happy enough to stay on board.  I do what I can to minimize the effects of the speeding boats wake. They can also be rude on the radio.

We came across some type of law enforcement boat that was out doing exercises.  They went passed us several times and went off in the distance to do figure eights at speed.  Good job if you can get it.

We also came across a Coast Guard crew doing some work on a channel marker light.  We had heard reports earlier that the light was not working.  The Coast Guard really does a great job communicating hazards and things of concern over the radio. I wish Sam was interested in the USCG.  To me, this agency is a prime example of what is right with our government!!!




We tried to get into the municipal marina tonight but it was full so we ended up at a swanky marina that is rather isolated.  Tomorrow we are off to Rivera Beach.  We have 650 miles behind us and 250 left to go. 

Oh, one more thing, the weather was toasty enough today that I was in shorts and a tee shirt all day long......

First Mate's Log......Ok, today the musing of the First Mate is the word "wake" which in boating lingo, takes on a completely different meaning than getting out of bed in the morning! As this crew member knows too well...a wake is a bad thing when it rocks and rolls the boat...the First Mate almost went overboard, but the Captain is very skilled at dealing with these difficult waters and quickly gets matters in hand.....thank heavens ;)

This morning was magical as we had two dolphins playing along side the boat for about 30 minutes.....we could have reached out and touched them (but that would have been impolite). These two, unlike most of their buddies, were not camera shy.....

Oh boy!

an excellent swimmer

just showing off....

looks like fun!

Titusville

Captain's Log..............We delayed our departure this morning so I could connect with students via Skype.  Josh took care of getting everything set so I could talk directly to the class.  I think it went pretty well and waiting to see if I hear any feedback from students.

We thought about going to Daytona International Speedway to have a look around but it was such a beautiful day and we really enjoy our journey so we pulled out around 10AM.

There are dolphins playing in the water constantly now. Every now and then they will jump through our wake.  We have not caught a picture of one yet but we are trying.  Melissa got a very special picture today but I will let her tell you about that later in the blog.  We had sun on our faces for 80% of the trip today and even got out the shorts later on in the afternoon:)

very few sailboats have their sails up but the weather cooperated with these people today.

We did not see as much traffic today, only a couple of sailboats and one cruiser that passed us.






Then there was the ugliest boat we have seen thus far...

We were surprised this even floats

A few bridges

It was a very good day!

We are in Titusville Municipal Marina, the closest marina to the Kennedy Space Center.  How cool would it be to see a shuttle or rocket launch from a boat? 

Shuttle assembly building

Missy and I headed off for a short walk to town for provisions. Then we had pizza delivered to the boat!   How cool is that?  And it was great pizza.  If you ever get to Titusville check out Kelsey's Pizza www.kelseys.com.


First Mate's Log............guess what......got a gator....enough said......

Gomez the gator....can you believe it???!!!

and for Rae.......

Dixie

Morgan

Love y'all!