Fort Pierce, Florida

This is a bad day at the dock.  The boat was at a dock in front of a house on the Intracoastal waterway on our way to Fort Pierce.

Ft. Pierce is located approximately 13 miles south of Vero Beach, and one of the oldest communities on Florida's east coast. Known as "the Sunrise City," Ft. Pierce is where agriculture meets the ocean. It is right on the ICW, called the Indian River in this section of the ICW.  We stayed at the City Marina, a nice facility with a very helpful staff.  While here they had a huge farmers market, and art/craft fair.  The fresh produce and fruit was delicious, dozens of vendors selling everything from soup to nuts.

These pictures show the Indian River, which is part of the ICW. In the background is Hutchinson Island

Joe and Ann live in Vero Beach during  the winter, and heard we were close, they are leaving to return to New York this week, and did not want to miss us, so they drove to Ft. Pierce.  We had such a nice visit with them, and they treated us to dinner at a great restaurant.  Thanks again Joe & Ann.  It was fun to see them.  When we get near the Albany area, we will visit with them again.

Boca Raton to West Palm Beach

The weather has been great, averaging in the mid 80's, and so far not too humid.  We left Fort Lauderdale this morning to continue up the east coast of Florida.  Approximately 48 miles, and 20 bridges, has brought us to the West Palm Beach area.  We will stay here over night and head to Fort Pierce tomorrow.  I have not grown tired of seeing the mega homes and yachts along the ICW, the pictures do not do them justice, but here is a sampling of what we are seeing.

Key Biscayne to Ft. Lauderdale

The trip along the ICW took us through Miami, Port Everglades where all the cruise ships are and into Ft. Lauderdale.

Dubbed the Yachting capital of the world, Ft. Lauderdale is overflowing with amazing boats.  From small boats to incredible yachts, there is so much to see.  We are staying at the Las Olas Municiple Marina which is right on the ICW, which offers a front row seat for all the activity on the waterway. It is 2 blocks from the beach, and surounded by great  restaurants.

We have caught up with some fellow loopers, Dan & Biddy on "Biddy & the Beast",  George & Kathy on "Spey"  and Jerry & Joann on "Morningside".  We met Dan & Biddy in Kagawon, Ontario for the first time, and George & Kathy in Hardin, Ill on the river, we haven't seen George and Kathy since the first meeting, so it was nice to catch up with them.  This is the first time we met "Morningside" and  we have seen Dan & Biddy off and on through out our trip.

Goodbye Islamorada, Hello Key Biscayne

Our month stay @ Plantation Yacht Harbor in Isla morada has come to an end.  We have enjoyed our time there, but have been looking forward to getting back on the water. This will officially start our loop North and eventually to our home port of Vermilion in October.  We left Thursday around 9:30 and arrived @  "No Name Harbor" in Key Biscayne at 4:33.  It was a pleasant day on the water, we took our time and enjoyed the sights. There were five dolphins that swam along side us for various stretches. 

 "No Name Harbor" is an anchorage located in Bill Baggs Cape Florida state park.  We will stay here for two nights.  The park offers one of the top 10 rated beaches in the U.S. a lighthouse that was completed in 1825, and plenty of hiking, biking and fishing.

Here are two of the five dolphin that were

traveling with us.                       

Some miscellaneous pictures along the way are below.

It's a good idea to stay in the marked channel









This is U.S. 1 above the cut called Jewfish Creek

This is the Cape Florida lighthouse, located in Bill Baggs state park. It was completed in 1825, and repaired in 1846 after it was damaged during the Second Seminole War.  This island served as a secret meeting place for runaway slaves and black Seminoles waiting for a passage to safety in the British Bahamas.  Although the lighthouse was built to save lives and ships, its unflinching light brought an end to this avenue of escape.  In September 2004, Cape Florida was designated a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Site. 

*Information Courtesy of Florida State Parks.

These photos were taken from the top of the lighthouse 95 feet up.

Cape Florida beach is rated as one of the top ten beaches in the U.S.

Houses that hover above the water  Stiltsville got its start in the 1930's when "Crawfish" Eddie Walker set up his bait shop on the bay. The area takes its name from the houses built on stilts above the water. By the 1950's and 60's, it was a popular gathering place for fisherman, boaters, club-goers, and well known citizens, such as former governor of Florida, LeRoy Collins. Today, the National Park Service owns the land on which Stiltsville stands, and is part of Biscayne National Park.

Houses that hover above the water

Islamorada, Florida Keys

Today we met a relative that we had never met before. For lack of knowing the proper relationship I will simply say Jim's cousin Vicky lives in Key Largo with her husband Doug and daughter Megan.  Jim's grandmother and Vicky's grandmother are sisters, so what does that make Jim to Vicky? 

They came down to the marina, and we headed out to Wahoos @Whale Harbor for lunch. It was a nice afternoon, and we all had a great time.  Megan was a real trooper, putting up with hours of adult conversation. Hopefully we will connect with them again before we leave the area.

On Saturday @ Founders  Park, next to our marina there was a music fest called "Bay Jam".  During the course of the day various bands would take turns playing, and of course there was food vendors.

The weather is getting warmer, it is starting to feel more like Florida.  There is a heated olympic size pool at Founders Park that the marina can use, so we have taken advantage of that. 

Plantation Yacht Harbor @ Founders Park in Islamorada

We arrived here Monday, the 1st of March on schedule with no problems.  The following day my herniated disk decided to act up, so I have been out of commission for the last 2 weeks.  During that time our oldest son Dan, came down for a visit, being this close to Key West, we had to go, so I took my pain meds and here we are at Sloppy Joe's in Key West.  We enjoyed Dan's visit, wish he could have stayed longer

 

One of the many chickens that roam free in Key West.

Mile Marker "0" is on the corner of Whitehead St and Fleming St. in Key West.  When you enter the keys you will begin with Mile Marker 126 on U.S 1

Here are some recent visitors to our boat