Heading North???

Feb 21- Mar 23, 2015 Stuart to Cocoa, FL

Yes we're heading north ----- but not too far!  We're heading to Cocoa, FL so that we can connect with daughter Lee and her family who will be vacationing in the Orlando area.

So we're kind of retracing our steps stopping first at the lovely anchorage at Ft. Pierce and then Eau Gallie (Melbourne) before arriving in Cocoa Village Marina in Cocoa, FL on Feb 23.  The marina is right in "downtown" Cocoa with great staff, very nice clubhouse, shower and laundry facilities.  It's just a short walk to great restaurants, shopping, waterfront park.  And just a block away, Garry's favorite, the SF Travis Hardware Store -- a family owned (4th generation) business opened in 1885!! He was like a kid in a candy store!

We spent a full month in Cocoa, enjoying the many restaurants and shopping, meeting new cruising friends at the marina and

biking for miles along the Indian River (ICW),








But the two highlights of the month were connecting with daughter Lee and her family vacationing in Orlando with Tommy's family just over an hour away.  So we rented a car for the week and got to spend several days with them.





We did Universal  where the favorites were the Minions, Transformers, Dr. Seuss, and the best, of course, all things Harry Potter!!

Kate helping little Ava swim with a little help from Lee.

There was lots of pool time and just being together.  Can't beat those grand baby hugs!













The last highlight of the month was our trip out to the Kennedy Space Center.  It was INCREDIBLE!

From the early Mercury program

John Glenn orbited Earth in this thing back in the 60's!  No wonder there was a height restriction back then............






To the shuttle Atlantis ......



They had to construct the building around her










This is the "crawler" that transports the rockets and shuttle to the launch pad.  Each tread bar of the track weighs a ton!

Remember  SF Travis Hardware?  They supplied the 2 inch diameter bolts that hold the space shuttle to the crawler during transport.

                                   And this is Orion --- the next generaton of space craft -

                                           that will eventually take astronauts to Mars!!!

The rockets to take her there will be constructed in the massive Vehicle Assembly Building.  Would you believe good old SF Travis also supplied the roller bearing for these, the world's largest doors?

And this is how you exit .................

The Kennedy Space Center is an amazing, awe-inspiring tribute to American ingenuity and resolve.  Don't pass up the opportunity to see for yourself!

So after a lovely month in Cocoa, it's time to move on.  We'll be heading north to meet up with Day Dreams in St. Augustine to begin this summer's adventures.

A New Year - the Adventure Continues

The Adventure Continues

Jan 14 - 19, 2015 Jacksonville, FL to Stuart, FL

We left beautiful Ortega Landing with Day Dreams on January 14 bound for St. Augustine, where we  stayed on a mooring overnight.  We hitched a ride in to shore on Day Dreams' dinghy for a brief walking tour of the area.  Doug and Jan will be staying for a while, but we'll just be staying the night. We're on a mission to get to Stuart, FL as soon as possible for some much needed repairs.  So we said good by and set off early the next morning.

Our path took us from St. Augustine to an anchorage in Daytona Beach where the local rowing team was training hard despite the chilly weather.









and then on to a marina in Titusville, FL (near Cape Canaveral), where we celebrated our 44th wedding anniversary.

Lovely dinner topped off with a complimentary bottle of champagne!

The next stop was an anchorage in Eau Gallie (north side of Melbourne) where we found ourselves anchored near What's Next who'd been docked just across from us in Ortega Landing.  They gave us some good suggestions for anchorages farther south.  It was such a gorgeous day, we sat up on the bridge watching a group of 8-10 dolphins playing.  We also got our first glimpse of the elusive Manatee -- a mom and calf surfacing just long enough for us to see them.

The captain enjoying the sunshine on the bridge!














One of our dolphin friends.  The Manatees were playing hard to get.












Next stop, an anchorage in Ft. Pierce where we caught up again with What's Next and were treated to a gorgeous sunset.







January 19, we arrived in Stuart and pulled into Apex Marine for repairs.  This is the facility that commissions new Krogens -- we were one of several, used ones for sale and new ones  being commissioned.  Repairs that, best case scenario, could have been completed in 2 weeks, took
5 WEEKS!

During those weeks we got to know Stuart really well --- putting a ton of miles on our bikes!  We also spent a lot of time with Bill and Lisa aboard Changing Course who joined us in our second week.  We had met them originally back in Toledo Beach when they passed through on their way north.  We'll look forward to spending time with them again next winter.

Stuart is a favorite gathering place for the "Krogen" family, with several docked across the St. Lucie river at Sunset Bay Marina.  It was fun meeting more of the cruising community and comparing notes at the weekly breakfast.  We also enjoyed reconnecting with Marty and Suzanne Tuck on Alizann.

The Martins rescued us from repairs for a weekend at the Miami boat show.  They had rented a car and picked us up along the way.  Good friends, the Deaton's graciously offered their Pompano Beach house for the weekend.  It was a welcome break!  We enjoyed checking out the new Krogens, all the "booth" attractions and a lovely lunch/walk on the beach.  What a lovely respite!


FINALLY FINISHED!!!

Feb 20, with a new window, new surface on the upper deck, refinished cap rail all around, gel coat and paint spots repaired ----- the surveyor has signed off with us on everything and we are READY TO MOVE ON.  Everyone at Apex has been awesome and we have thoroughly enjoyed Stuart, but it's time!