Florida the Sunshine State

We had yet another beautiful day as we continued down the ICW to Vero Beach where we booked a mooring ball for a few nights.  This was a good location to shop for supplies as there is free transportation.  We got to a dive shop where I tried on a few BC's and a grocery store then spent a day doing chores, making calls and doing laundry.  Al and I went for a ride out in the dinghy and on the way back he turned the drivers seat over to me - yikes! When we returned to the boat Al got out and left me to make my way over to the dinghy dock with the laundry.  Parking was a bit of a challenge for a newbie as dinghies were already parked 3 deep.  It took a few minutes maneuvering but I eventually got docked :) I was even more surprised that I got the motor started again for the return trip.

First solo drive

There is a lot more boat traffic now and we feel like we are in a convoy as we make our way south. Many we have heard calling on the radio and/or have followed or anchored near in the last 6 weeks.  We are sure to run into some of them again when we reach the Bahamas.

Today we moved down the ICW a couple of miles to Ft. Pierce where we had arranged to meet someone at the public boat launch who would take Al's diving tanks in to be hydrostated. It turned out that his tanks needed to be replaced so we got a lift over to a dive shop and picked up 4 used tanks, 2 bright pink for me (so I'm easy to spot) and blue ones for Al.  We spent a bit of time chatting with the owner, had Al's BC and regulator tested and picked up a couple of other items.  Tomorrow we will check out a marine supply warehouse nearby.


Pelicans awaiting scraps from the fish cleaning station