Updated on November 27, 2016
In the community of cruisers. This is not a metaphor.
I mean, we are physically situated in an actual Cruising Village. I’ve never seen anything like it.
Vero Beach has a rep as being a good place to gather for Thanksgiving, and it did not disappoint. With a free bus service to downtown, a clean and friendly marina, and moorings for only $15 a night, it’s a great place to get ready for the leap to the Bahamas. We’re here with people who’ve been making that trip for decades, and are happy to answer questions without forcing their personal view on you.
Because Vero is so popular, we’ve been rafted up on mooring balls–something we’ve also never seen. Fortunately for us, we were paired with our friends on Perla.
The Thanksgiving Day potluck was epic (although we hear attendance is down). Cruisers who have swallowed the anchor and accepted land-based life provide turkeys and hams, and the rest of the fleet signs up for whatever else they can pull off from the galley. We failed to bring chairs–turns out we don’t have any–but the food was great.
After the meal, the musically-inclined gathered on the back benches for some tunes. F was honored to be included, and led a few songs; she also got to rock out on Drunken Sailor….for about 20 verses. Thanks especially to the guys on Salty Paws for including her!
And now we wait. We thought there’d be a great weather window opening up to jump to the Bahamas on Tuesday, but my mom is visiting Fort Lauderdale to get some face time with the grandkids before we exit the country, so we’ll miss that crossing opportunity. We’d planned to bring the boat down south to be near her, but the weather’s not so hot on the outside, and the ICW is shallow here and rife with timed bridges, so we decided to keep the boat in Vero and rent a car. We’ll commute (and enjoy the exotic nature of driving).
It was such a pleasure to share a little time with you guys . You have our total admiration for what you are doing. Your kids are getting such a wonderful education in this trip. Have a save journey and keep us inform of your progress . BIG HUG for all 4 Hector & Bob.
We had such a great time with you guys in Miami. Thank you so much for taking such good care of us! Love from all of us in the Bahamas…..
Hi! So great to catch up on all your posts and all your aggravations and fun adventures. N, G, and D all wave at you!
Kaimana is on the hard as of today – the rig was pulled yesterday in preparation to replace all the standing rigging, electrical wiring in the mast, and the anchor and steaming lights. We also had a storm that pushed our pulpit into our new dock box and broke our running lights. Bleah. I spent several hours in the rain and cold today for the haul out and to work with one of the marina guys to winterize our boat. Pink galore! Discovered some new projects for winter/spring LOL. I’m making a list and it’s not for Santa.
Wish we were sailing & enjoying the sights with you. Happy belated Thanksgiving – hope your family visit is going well. Aloha!
Hi, Lee! We’ve made it to the Bahamas, and caught some lobster for dinner last night. No winterizing for us this year! Good luck with all the boat work… It really never ends….