2024 November: Vero Beach FL

 6 November 2024

Depart: Satellite Beach Private Dock 1:30

Arrive: Indian River anchorage by au Gallie bridge East 2:15

Distance: ~ 4 nm

Mission accomplished! Clark delivered the wounded dinghy to the repair team yesterday, so today we could move onwards to our next stop in Vero Beach.  Given all the activity at Satellite Beach and surrounding area, Clark decided we would hang out on anchor for two nights just to "chill".

I found the driveway at our friend's property to be interesting.

We only traveled a whopping great 4 nautical miles today. Clark called to have the Mather's Bridge opened. As we passed through the opening, I noticed that the pelicans were holding a convention there.

Pelican Convention at Mather's Bridge

Shortly after I had the lines and fenders stowed and sat down to enjoy the ride, it was time to prepare to drop anchor. No complaints here! After our long travel days coming south, a respite on occasion is greatly appreciated.

7 November 2024

No travel.

Today was a day of lounging on the boat! My excitement for the day was watching pelicans dive for their dinners.

We did get a neighbor at some point. 

We saw lots of clouds at sunset.

We anchored at a place called "Dragon Point". Clark did some research looking for pictures of this place.  Clark found a picture on the internet to show me why it has the name it does.  

Dragon at "Dragon Point"

Today there is no dragon located here, but in the past, it was a different story.  From what I heard, in its golden days, it would "breathe fire" on special occasions like New Year's Day for example.

8 November 2024

Depart: au Gallie Bridge east anchorage 9:15

Arrive: Private dock in Vero Beach, FL 2:15

Distance: ~ 35 nm

Our holding tank was at 72% full. We normally empty it when it says around 50%, so from our point of view, it was overdue. Given the headaches we have had recently trying to empty the darn thing, it was unclear how things would go at the Vero Beach City Marina. Fortunately, we did not have the same issues as we did in the Golden Isles. The pumpout took its time but flowed steadily. Instead of an hour plus, we were done and on our way in 15 or 20 minutes. Phew! 

From the city docks  it is a short trip to our friend's house.  Anna and Don own the dock here in Vero Beach where we stop on our trips north and south from home to the Keys. Don is away on his boat currently, but Anna was home to greet us and help us tie up at the dock. We had a pretty good wind pushing us away from the dock, so we had our work cut out for us getting situated and secured. 

When Hurricane Milton hit Florida a few weeks ago, this neighborhood ended up with tornado damage, and Anna and Don's house did not escape unscathed. After we had settled in at the dock, Clark and I took a short walk around the immediate area to see the after effects of the tornado passing through.

 Anna said it looks a lot better now than three weeks ago as folks have been continuously working to clean up and make repairs. Many of the repairs must wait on insurance companies. A nearby house was severely damaged, and Anna said the owner was self-insured. Ouch!

Roof tiles missing on house about one-year old

Anna's house has missing and damaged roof tiles, some cracked glass in windows from the force of the wind, and miscellaneous other damage. Besides structural damage to the house, the trees in the front of Anna's house were uprooted. She quickly had a gardener reset them with supports hoping they will survive.

Many of the trees in the neighborhood were stripped of their foliage. They look quite sad.

Tree stripped of most of its greenery

No picture, but as we came down the creek towards Anna's house, Clark pointed out a houseboat that was mostly demolished. The only recognizable part was the stacked washer and dryer that still stood on one end of the boat. Anna told us that the owners moved the boat further down the creek to try to protect it from harm. Ironically, they moved it into harm's way as behind their house was fine, but where they moved it was dead center of the tornado's path. One never knows what nature will do!

Near this spot, we saw a boat top on the ground - unclear if it is part of the damage or there from before.

We saw lots of fencing materials, leaves, and tree limbs along the roads.

The picture below shows the pavement lifted and split.

The house below took a direct hit from the tornado. When the tornado hit, the windows in the living room shattered and threw glass everywhere. Fortunately, the owner had chosen that moment to go out front to check on her car! He guardian angel was hard at work apparently.

9 to 11 November 2024

no travel.

I have it real easy here as far as meals are concerned. Each day Anna has prepared the big meal of the day and told us when to come to partake of the excellent cuisine. To make up for the extra calories entering my system, I have been walking about 2 + miles each day. 

Anna took me food shopping to replenish my stock. Though with Anna feeding us, I don't need much extra on hand. Besides delicious food, she has been spoiling me with Pepperidge Farms cookies, ice cream, and Kahlua liqueur in the evenings. Clearly, those walks are important!

When we were out shopping with our friend Bill a couple of days ago, he mentioned that he had hoped to acquire a picture of Dragon Point, but he missed his chance when the store owners sold and moved away. They took their dragon picture with them! 

I did not have a clue why Dragon Point  held any interest. After Clark showed me the picture of Dragon Point, complete with the picture of the dragon that gave the place its name, I got the urge to try my hand at capturing the likeness in acrylic paint. Clark said it would have to be a decent-sized piece of canvas, so I quick put in an order to Amazon. By the time we pulled up to the dock in Vero Beach, the canvas was there waiting for me.

My first attempt was via colored pencils to get the feel for it, then I moved on to the acrylic paint.  

Dragon Point - Colored Pencil version

Sandy and Bill said they could come to see us in Vero Beach if we wanted. I invited them to come visit for lunch and told them I had a gift for Bill. I didn't let them know ahead of time what that gift would be. They said they could come on Monday, so I spent part of Saturday and Sunday on my art to make sure it was done and dry when they arrived.

Dragon Point in Acrylic Paint

After I presented the picture to Bill, the five of us (Anna, Sandy, Bill, Clark and I), went out to lunch together at the Citrus Grill. The lunch menu was rather short in selection, but everyone agreed the food we were served was exceptional.

Citrus Grill
Vero Beach, FL

 

I took some pictures on my walks. Here is a sampling of the sites.

I passed a "library" on my stroll.

"If you have a garden and a library, 
you have everything you need." - Cicero

One trip took me for a walk through the City Marina, about a 20 minute walk from Don's house, where I saw several Ibis pecking at the grounds.

All the side streets here are named after types of trees. The picture below was taken on "Date Palm Road".

Trees forming a canopy over the street
provide good shade from the sun

As I walked back towards Don's house along Mockingbird Drive, I saw dark clouds rolling in. No rain materialized fortunately for me.

The picture below was taken looking down Bethel Creek as the dark clouds rolled in.

We have seen a couple of decent sunsets from the boat here.

We are not ready to move on yet. The dinghy is still being repaired, and Don will be returning home soon. Our friends, Cathy and Franklin, are traveling with him, so we will see everyone once they arrive. We will visit for a while longer before pulling in our lines to continue south.