Melbourne FL...who knew??

Sunset in Ft. Pierce FL

And we have arrived in Melbourne Fl after spending the night in Vero Beach by way of Fort Pierce…we have been ON. THE. MOVE. And having a great time!

Bald Eagles nesting on the Indian River

After the fun of Fort Pierce we cruised to Vero Beach on Sunday and had the BEST visit with a former colleague of mine…Linda!  She lives in Vero and was so kind to pay us a visit…and that transitioned into a trip to Ulta and Publix!!!  All in one trip…I felt almost normal again!!!  You never realize how much fun a grocery store is until….you can’t get there!!  Anyway, Linda was full of local knowledge; we talked about work, family, retirement…so good to touch base with her!!

A little shallow in a few places

We threw off the lines from Vero Beach and headed to Palm Bay to see another set of familiar faces…Bob and Paula from Tupelo!  They winter in Florida at a local motor home park and we ventured north to pay a visit.  Original plan…anchor in the Indian River (ICW) near the Yellow Dog Café in Palm Bay.  Spend a few days then head south to Stuart FL.  But…the wind was blowing about 15 mph from the South then clocked to the Southeast. After several attempts to lower the anchor (me on the bow, Charlie at the helm) we switched places.  Suddenly, it was my responsibility to keep the boat from blowing into the channel while also not making any sudden turns and knock Charlie off the bow as he was trying to manipulate the anchor chain. Yeah…no pressure!

Following several urgent prayers to God for safety AND wisdom, Charlie abandon the anchoring repair in white capped water and called a local marina for dockage.  Prayer for wisdom ANSWERED!  And here we are at Melbourne Harbor Marina!!  Safe and sound…and happy!!

Bob and Paula were at the marina just as we docked the boat and it was so good to see familiar faces!  Charlie went to the office to get us checked in and…the next thing I hear???  “Hey, what do you think about staying here for the month?”  HUH?? Ok, plan B.  The first rule of cruising…never have a schedule and always be flexible!!  So plan B it is…we are docked in Melbourne until the end of March and we have land-based friends 5 miles away…God is so good.

Tomorrow will be spent getting a punch list together for a little mechanical work done while we are here. AND I will make adjustments to our reservations for a rental car since we are headed home for a week in March!!  And I’m super stoked about that road trip!!

Oh and the anchor trouble?  A simple manual anchor lock…use your thumb and flip it down.  Life. Is. Fantastic!!!  Thank you Jesus!!

Enjoy your week and prepare for land-based narration…Melbourne is FULL of sidewalks and walking trails…YIIPPEE!!

God Bless!