Stuart to Fort Lauderdale

 Time for to leave Stuart?
Ok ...but first, we were delighted to cross paths again with Debbie and Frank... another delicious dinner and one more singsong.

....and then, lunch with Jim and Alice... Shrimpers is a great restaurant overlooking Manatee Pocket.

This heron seemed to be posing for the camera,

and check out the jellyfish!  The water was full of them for a couple days.

Moving on down the ICW, and we couldn't resist taking a picture of another lighthouse...this is the one at Jupiter Inlet.

Leaving the  Lake Worth anchorage we met a parade of mega yachts heading north; it was the morning after the West Palm Boat Show.... it was like having free front row seats, but it made for a hectic time getting through a couple bridges.

We heard an unusual radio message as we waited for this opening: "Bridge, Bridge. I have no engine and have lost steerage."
A very healthy tidal current pushed the sailboat along until it was jammed right up against the bridge. Luckily, when the bridge opened, the boat straightened up and the single-hander tied up to the fenders.

I hope the manatees can read and avoid this area on the weekdays...

As we got closer to Fort Lauderdale, we realized that there are a lot of wealthy residents along this part of the ICW.

Pink condos,

Amazing homes...

 Spanish-style,

Modern,

Cool boats,

When we got to Fort Lauderdale, we moored at Las Olas Marina.
 It's just a short walk from the Las Olas Bridge to the beach.

Another feathered friend... standing on our dinghy. Don't you dare poop!

Fort Lauderdale is like the Venice of America with more than 300 miles of canals.
Seeing this on the charts, doesn't do justice to the real thing.

.....canal after canal.

Boats of this size, 100 feet plus, are the norm in the Lauderdale- Miami area.

Nice dinghy!

Next stop,  Miami Beach!

Scenes from the Okeechobee Waterway and Pine Island Sound -March 5- 16

To motor across Forida,  the St. Lucie Canal flows into Lake Okeechobee,  which joins the Rim Route along the bottom of the lake to the Caloosahatchee river and into San Carlos Bay on the Gulf side.
Lake Okeechobee covers about 730 square miles of water ranging in depths from 6 to 14 feet.  Route 1 cuts across the southeastern corner from Port Mayaca to Clewiston, took us about 3 hours.
This map is from Claiborne S. Young's Cruising Guide.

The birds like this marker!

On the south shore, smoke billows from burning sugar cane

The Clewiston Hurricane Gate

And on through the Okeechobee Waterway- levees on the south- construction going on here,

 Tall grasses. scrub trees and wildlife on the north.
That little bump in the water is an alligator about to go under the surface.  We saw numerous alligators along this section, but they are about as hard to photograph as the dolphins.

Scenes from the canal and Caloosahatchee.
We tied up to "dolphins"  that are by the locks... normally used by commercial barges.

Sometimes the Swing bridge is closed and you have to wait for a train to cross.

Anchorage in Glover Bight  - on the west side

Enjoying a coconut-chocolate gelato.

See Old Rosie over there? We were just a short dinghy ride from Tarpon Point Marina and Marina Village Resort.

Still loving the sunsets

Pine Island Sound has lots of shallows and little islands...have to be sure to stay in the channel or you are in 2 feet -very skinny water.
Osprey nests are everywhere.

Delicious dinner at Tom and Lori's, St. James City
Father and sons...

 Barnacle Phils on North Captiva for lunch...OK where is this restaurant?

Great to see Ben's family!

Fun with John and Jan

Side Trip up the Banana River- Feb. 29, 2012

Our trip down the ICW continued along the Indian River; we planned to get together with some friends we had met in the Dismal Swamp last October, so we turned into the Banana River at Dragon Point.  In 1971 someone built a huge 200 ft. replica of a dragon which, of course, became a prominent landmark.  In late 2003 the dragon succumbed to the elements and all that remain are the broken-up bits.  Too bad!

When you come to a bascule or lift bridge you need to radio ahead to get the bridge-tender to stop the traffic and let you through.  The man at Mathers Bridge asked us, “Now how did Old Rosie get all the way here from Owen Sound?”  It turned out that he had worked in Canada in the early 60s and had been skiing at Blue Mountain, so he knew exactly where Owen Sound is and was interested in finding out our route to Florida.
We continued up the Grand Canal to Tortoise Island. Maggie and Jim invited us to tie up to their dock , which sits empty since they sold their catamaran, Sunny Skies.  We had a delicious meal and a good time catching up and making plans for them to visit us this summer.

Vero Beach Municipal Marina- Mar. 1
This is a place where we have been many times- but always by car. We have visited our friends Kim and Terry on Clarity when they were heading south and back again. Finally Old Rosie was here.

 We got a chance to find out for ourselves just how cruiser-friendly this city is.  The bus ride is free, whether you are going to the first stop where you can find groceries and a few restaurants, or across town to the malls, or to the beach.
First, Ben had to get the outboard running again.  Then we were good to go!

 Thursdays at 4:00, cruisers meet at the pavilion near the marina lounge- byob and an appetizer to share.  A few of the guys were quick to get out guitars, a mandolin and a box drum.  Tasty snacks, good music and friendly conversation!

Mooring at the Sunset Marina and Anchorage, Stuart - Mar. 3

Beautiful marina and great facilities.

We spent Saturday with my aunt and uncle.... lunch, touring around Stuart and nearby Jensen Beach, shopping and topping things off with great wine and a fabulous steak dinner.

When they dropped us off  it was a beautiful night, still warm. A live band was playing at the restaurant beside the marina, so we stayed and listened to the music.  It was 11 pm  under a starry sky when we finally dinghied back to the boat .

Waiting for bad weather to pass on Sunday morning.

The dinghy is blowing straight out from behind this Quebec boat…gusts up to 50 miles per hour.

 

By 11:30 the front had gone through, we let go the mooring ball and headed for the St. Lucie Canal.
The sun was coming out and the wind lessening as we headed for Lake Okeechobee.

      Yes, that's right...we’re heading west!

Back in the water again- Feb. 24, 2012

Busy Days
Upon arriving in Titusville we found Old Rosie waiting patiently for her make-over....it all added up to a lot of ladder climbing and a lot of masking tape!  

Bottom power sprayed and painted,

 boot stripe painted,

rub rail painted,

TaDa!

Time for the travel lift to motor Rosie over to the water and lower her in.

At the dock we began filling our water tanks and were immediately joined by manatees; there are a lot of them at this marina!

Here are a mother and baby swimming away, in search of a dripping hose elsewhere.While mom was sipping from the side of the boat, her baby was nursing; we watched it feeding under the mother's flipper.  

Westland Marina is a busy place-  people "living on the hard" while working on a variety of boat projects, cruisers arriving, cruisers departing, boats being lifted, boats being launched.

We are happy to be on the water once again, heading south on the ICW.