A bit of a break

The last few days have been a break from our normal routine, including blogging.  After weathering our extremely frustrating Sunday, the last few days have been full of fun, errands and supply gathering.

We rented a hot car in order to take Cyrus to the Fort Lauderdale airport.  Cyrus flew to Denver on Tuesday to spend a week with Grammy and Grampy and see his beloved friends and cousins- and have a real kid Halloween!  Cyrus flew alone- which was much harder on me than it was on him- he is growing up so quickly... *sigh.

While we have a car and some kid-free time, Tyler and I went to Sailorman, a sail and motor boat surplus store.  It is a warehouse full of discounted boat parts- we dug and dug and dug and found some bargains.  We also spent today driving around Vero Beach, provisioning the boat and finding creative solutions for things like a cockpit table and a more cushioned mattress.
The cockpit table is going to be a post all by itself- I am so amazed with Tyler's ability to visualize a mechanical system, know what parts will be necessary, and create something.  We will probably make one more trip to Home Depot, however, by the end of it all, Tyler will have created a $50 solution for a $350 cockpit table.
Back to work tomorrow!  Much to do- Install a new mast navigation light, clean the boat, figure out the diesel engine problem, create a V-berth cushion solution, clean the cabin cushions, sand the toe rail, organize the navigation table, organize the quarter berth....all before happy hour of course!

Images from our recent cruise down the ICW:

A regatta we passed

Cyrus and Tyler project planning on the bow

Our island anchorage

Cocoa Beach anchorage

A draw bridge- I still love calling the bridge

Whew...that was hard

I try not to whine about hardships when I blog. I fully understand the privileges we are afforded and respect how hard everyone else is working- trying to balance a career and childcare etc., so when I complain- it's fo' real.
Today was ***** rough.  It started out leaving our lovely island dockage, having to use our deep-cycle batteries to start the engine instead of just the staring battery- not good...must check that.  We tested our auto-pilot an hour into our cruise and determined that it was broken as well- a disappointment- but it may be fix-able yet!  Keeping a stiff upper-lip, we continued toward Vero Beach- where we thought we'd moor for the night and motor south on Monday, then rent a car and drive Cyrus to the Fort Lauderdale airport to visit Grammy and Grampy and Maddie and Brooke and Zeno and Zahara and maybe even Leah in Denver for the next 7 days.
Navigating to the Vero Beach city marina involves a left turn across the ICW to another channel.  All day, we'd been passed by gigantic motor boats (throwing large wakes) and passing rather closely in a narrow channel.  About 100 yards from our harrowing left turn across the ICW and the large motor-yachts, the diesel engine of Mirage began to change pitch and choke and then die....in the middle of a channel- sure to run-aground on either side and gigantic luxury yachts screaming by ....the engine simply died.  We quickly dropped an anchor and attempted some repairs- meaning Tyler had an idea of what was wrong and I just stood there and made sure he felt better.  We were able to limp (engine would run and sputter-then Tyler would squeeze the fuel pump bulb and the engine would run again....IN THE MIDDLE OF A CHANNEL)  to the Vero Beach marina and hook to a mooring (an anchored buoy).
All good! we thought...  we decided to get a slip for the night so we went to the office and asked for a slip and a clean out (pump-out of the sewage holding tank).
For some reason, the marina clean-out would not suck the ***t from our boat.. Another item to address tomorrow.  After that, when we attempted to connect to shore power with our cord,  no power was available... and its probably our cord....so no electricity tonight.
We then tried to walk from the marina to Vero Beach for beer (after the unsuccessful attempt at Malabar) and ended up with a lecture about leaving Zander outside a restaurant from an over-zealous humane society employee (who was tanked by the way).
I was ready to punch someone when I found a local mini-mart establishment that boasted fine wine and cigars, beer food etc.  I am not kidding that Ode to Joy was playing when I entered the store.  After that, we were able to find a restaurant that would allow Zander to hang out with us while we ate and then took a cab home....

Tyler and I are currently fantasizing about selling the boat and moving to Peru.

Everything will be ok...I still would rather stay on the boat than in a hotel.

Faith in humanity

We motored through the ICW today, passing the Kennedy Space Center and completing our journey (during daylight hours) in the spoils (man-made islands) just South of Malabar, FL.  Surveying the island,  (one of about seven?), we assumed that the people already on the island were in a group and would be unhappy with our presence.  (Cyrus was just happy to see kids that might play with him- way better than his naggy parents).   As we arrived, however, we were greeted by several friendly people- especially Bruce, the self- proclaimed care taker of that particular island (maybe .5 mile in circumference?).  Turned out that
Bruce, a member of the Malibar Mariners, who have adopted the island, was a seasoned sailor and happy to share stories of adventure and advice on anchoring...for better or worse.
We pulled in to our Malabar island anchorage needing ice and.....beer (need?  yes.. need).  Bruce was happy to share stories and, after a questioning period, rum and cokes.  Tyler attempted to dingy to shore for ice and beer, however, fate would say no and Bruce ended up saving the day.
I am sure that Bruce and I would not agree about many things- religious and political, however, the only thing that mattered when we pulled up was that we shared a love of the water and the island.  Bruce happily shared his fire pit, home-made salsa and alcohol, and all for a bit of conversation.  I wish we were all more like Bruce, happy to share what we have without condition and welcoming to all who come.

Let's not do that again soon...

Today was a relatively uneventful cruise from Mosquito Lagoon to Coconut Beach- the relatively comes from a few moments of terror weaved in between long stretches of driving at 5 knots (I can run faster 5 than 3 knots...not long... but its possible).  First thrilling moment- entering the Titusville marina, only to be greeted by a local who thought it would be entertaining to maneuver his sailboat within 10 feet of ours to say "welcome to Florida."  Needless to say, if that's the welcome- I'm leaving.
The final thrilling moment was a 40 minute cruise up the ICW to Coconut Beach in the dark.  Of you've ever put up a tent in the dark, you understand how a simple task can turn into a cluster in low light.  We chose an anchorage close to other moorings and were a bit worried about drifting into other boats or into the channel all night.  On the up-side, we gained valuable experience and know that we want to make sure we anchor in good lighting for some time to come.

And the real adventure begins...

At 10:30 this morning, we left the Seven Seas Marina- our home for the past 5 weeks.  We said our good-byes to Dieter and Karin,

And set out south on the Intracoastal Waterway.  This first part of our journey is honestly not that sexy.  We motored the entire day because of the unpredictability of the winds on the ICW and the skinny channel.  Today's journey was a bit like driving all day- but still way cooler because I could make coffee and meals and Cyrus and Zander could move around....and we are on a boat!

We navigated our way in to Mosquito Lagoon using our iPad- with a cool navigation app- iNavX, our iPhone with an app that marks marinas, anchorages local knowledge and hazzards- all from user input, and a GPS...a little much for the ICW- but hey, we're noobs.... And we did it! 

Our current anchorage:

It is a bit chilly, maybe 70 degrees- I know, that's shorts weather in CO- and the wind is blowing 15 mph...but it's so peaceful.  Possibly because this one didn't quite make it through anchoring-

Tyler and I made a toast to our successful day and probably what will be a long night...is the anchor holding? What was that? Is the wind changing direction?

Now we just need Zander to understand that this is just as good as grass.

 
 
 

 
 

 

We're going...we're staying......we're going....we're staying

After much deliberation- we decided to stay in the marina one more night.  We head south in the morning!  The winds should be favorable!

Our route down the ICW tomorrow- the last note says that we may get further than Mosquito Lagoon.. we shall see

A few pictures

As our time at the Seven Seas Marina comes to a close, Cyrus and I thought we would include some pictures of our surroundings.

Our dingy next to our dock- Panta Rhei (Dieter and Karin's boat) in the background

Our dock

Cutest child in the United States

The walk from the dock to Pat's Cafe (below)

 A few interior shots of Pat's Cafe- Cyrus loves the pancakes and bacon (the pancakes come with a Fruit Loop smiley face)

 My tree climber...

 And the beach....yes- those are cars on the beach... and driving lanes