Nov 20

Vero Beach Anchorage

Boats rafting

Rowing for the dingy dock

As we were leaving the marina there was a manatee just behind the boat as we were making our way out of the slip. They are about the ugliest animal I have ever seen and I cannot believe that in the old days sailors often mistook them for mermaids!

We left the marina at 09:15 as the drawbridge doesn’t open until 09:30. I had to rush a little to make the bridge opening and was doing about 6 knots to try to get there. I was chastised by a local police officer about leaving a wake as I made it through the bridge without a second to spare. The canal is a manatee zone and they are very serious about controlling speed through the canal.

The wind started to kick up to 13 knots and I was hoping to get some motor sailing done but just as we made the turn back onto the ICW the wind dropped to only 5 knots. Later in the day the wind picked back up and we were able to make good time to Vero Beach and were assigned to raft to Vannam a 40 foot island Packet.

No one was home to help us raft to our assigned spot and just as we after making our approach and I had boarded Vannam the wind took us as Kathleen was trying to handle the lines and very soon we were through the eye of the wind at 90 degrees to Vannam. Fortunately some kind soul in a dingy gave us a hand and we were rafted on to Vannam and the mooring ball for the night. After all was said and done the dropped to almost nothing and it would have been so much simpler if it had only happened sooner.

So here we are in the Vero Beach anchorage and we will probably stay here at least a week as we wait for mail and other things to catch up with us.