4-2-10
Captain Ed Byers, the leader of this flotilla, and Captain Gary decided departure from our overnight anchorage would be at 7:30 AM. I meant to set our alarm for 6:30 AM and inadvertently set it for 6:00 AM instead. Since we were still tired from the previous day’s hectic activities, the alarm was reset to the appropriate time and we snoozed for another half hour before Gary arose to make our morning latte and java. Our morning ritual of enjoying lattes, followed by coffee, while having a devotional time in bed, has remained constant during our cruising journey. When we were in Indiana, we enjoyed our morning java in the hot tub. Unfortunately, this boat isn’t big enough to have a hot tub on it.
7:30 AM is a little too early for these retired cruisers to have breakfast, so we pulled anchor and were well underway before we ate. “Eating” really seems to be a theme with us, doesn’t it? We’ve all heard it said, “Some people eat to live, others live to eat.” Gary and I enjoy both philosophies. I think there might have been more to my forgetting to bring the bathroom scales with us this trip, than just plain forgetfulness. I think I’ll coin a new phrase and call it a “physiological Freudian slip”.
Little islands decorating both shores of the Intracoastal Waterway, appeared just north of Sebastian, Florida and continued to add ambiance to our day’s southbound journey. These islands are “spoil islands” that are manmade with bottom soil dredged from the waterway. Frequently, we saw the island’s shorelines dotted with the salt and pepper look of snowy egrets and great blue herons. Brown pelicans have been the mainstay of the airway as they skim so close to the water, it looks like there is only a millimeter of clearance between the tips of their wing feathers and the water‘s surface.
The water on the ICW became a beautiful emerald green as we went by Ft. Pierce Inlet. The color was short lived as we got further down the waterway. While traveling past the inlet, I was at the helm and realized there was a definite advantage in following the Byers. I’d read on the chart plotter the current was very strong where the inlet meets the ICW, so when Lady Bug began a quick skid to starboard I was not surprised. A sudden push of the throttle forward sped White Swan up enough to only experience a minor skid and we were soon free from the current‘s push starboard. If White Swan had been in the lead, this entry would have offered more excitement.
Sunrise at Hobe Sound 4-3-10, picture taken out the hatch of our berth
We motored approximately 56 miles today and anchored for the night in Hobe Sound. Hobe Sound was named after the Jobe Indians by the Spaniards, who pronounced Jobe “Ho-bay”. The Byers told us the locals adamantly pronounce it ” Hob” with a long “o” sound. Regardless of how it should be pronounced, Hobe Sound offers a beautiful little anchorage with a wildlife refuge on the western shore.
After dinner,Ed and Cheryl came to visit us aboard White Swan and let me use their internet air card to post our blogs. Thank you, Ed and Cheryl Byers.