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!