On to Vero Beach

Finally busted loose from St Augustine.  But while we were there we:

• Lubricated the steering cables and sheaves
• Pulled two injectors on the diesel and installed new seals
• Installed an update on our Garmin chartplotter
• Installed some "rain gutters" on salon windows
• Checked and tightened the stuffing box
• Scrubbed the dinghy to new like new condition
• Installed new relay for the glow plugs
• Biked to Home Depot, Publix, Sailors Exchange
• Bought a Christmas tree
• Scrubbed the teak decks and exterior.
• Entertained some neighbor boats
• Cooked, cleaned, did laundry and found some cool restaurants.

It's a great town but we were ready to leave.

With a full moon the tides were super-sized.
Thursday night we slept in a cemetery in Daytona Beach.  A large and well protected anchorage had a dozen boats.  At least 10 of them were derelict/abandoned/left to die.  It's astonishing how many there are in Florida.  Along the waterway a lot of them are victims of storms however:

Next night we went to Titusville which is across from Cape Kennedy.  No launches though.  We went into town to shop and shower and it was dark by the time we started  back to Rosie.  We got lost!  Well, it took us a while to find our boat.  New flashlight coming on board in Vero.

Tonight we're in a little basin called Eau Gallie.  It's a beautiful little harbor with beautiful houses everywhere and derelict boats all over the place.  It must infuriate the homeowners.
And these strange birds.

We're 100 miles away from our departure spot, Lake Worth, where we will wait for a weather window.  We are definitely at the back of the pack of snow bird mariners and hope we can find some buddy boaters for crossing the stream.

A few observations about the south:

• Big cars kept very clean.
• No one exercises or spends time outdoors.  
• The waterway is free of trash which is great
• Very few craft breweries and lots of fried food
• Military bases everywhere!
• It gets warmer and warmer the further you go.

Couple of days ago a dolphin jumped completely out of the water right in front of our bow!  What a treat.  They are everywhere but impossible to photograph.

Lacy, Rosie, Kathleen and I miss you all!