Moving on up the ICW

After a quiet night at anchor in Fort Pierce Saturday night we got up early and the water was like a sheet of glass, no wind, so we headed up the Intracoastal Waterway towards Melbourne. We had been motor sailing since we left Key Largo using the little wind we had and the effect of the Gulf Stream but no wind meant motoring. This was going to be a special stop for Rob completing the circle from Melbourne Australia to Melbourne Florida. We had heard how beautiful the Intracoastal Waterway is, and we enjoyed it thoroughly. We had to motor due to skinny water on both sides, but we loved looking at all the small beachy islands on either side of us. Later in the morning, we started seeing hundreds of Sunday afternoon boaters all around us and in the waterway, and that really kept us on our toes!

As we got closer to Melbourne, we decided to pull into a marina there, to give the cats and us a land-break after 5 days non-stop on the boat. We found a reasonably priced one that was close to the historic district of Melbourne, called in and made it there by 4 pm. Since we had to diesel up, we were assigned a slip right next to the fuel dock, a one-stop-shop! The Melbourne Harbour Marina is a bit run-down, but everybody is very nice there, and we enjoyed our showers without caring how old they were ;-).

After doing laundry, we set out to explore Melbourne. One of the strongest selling points for this marina was a brewery within walking distance, so of course we headed there first. The Hell ‘n Bells Brewery has great beers, and we got some food there as well. Afterwards we walked through the historic district, which is very pretty. A very quiet town with many restaurants closed Sunday and Monday.

We had decided to spend another night in this marina, after all there was another brewery within walking distance, and a Publix 2 miles away (also walking distance for us). This was also a much needed break for the cats, and Wilson was on the dock immediately. She is smart and always finds her way back, so we just let her roam. Sushi likes to stay on the boat, but she will go for a walk with Anya if she carries her off the boat!

We spent all day Monday walking around all over Melbourne, and had a blast. Happy hour at Quarters

Brewing was great, and some locals recommended a seafood eatery in an old gas station for dinner. It turned out to be the highest end fast food we had ever eaten – Rock Shrimp, Scallops, corn, broccoli, garlic bread, red potatoes and a spicy garlic sauce to die for. The food had to be ordered at a counter inside, and then you had to sit outside at a picnic table to eat it. There were flies everywhere, but we did like the locals and covered up our food with a paper towel in between bites, and that worked really well!

Bellies full, we headed back to the marina and stopped for a cocktail at their own restaurant. There we met some nice people from Big Pine Key (go figure).

A really early start Tuesday took us back into the ICW for a long leg to get us to New Smyrna Beach. Since the only anchorage on the way is in Mosquito Lagoon (and they warn you that the name is true), we did not want to stop there. Our first leg would have given us the opportunity to sail a ways, but the wind was literally 0.5 knots. So motoring again :-(. After about 5 hours we were heading for Haulover Canal. This is a nature reserve with tons of wildlife, but the waters are much too shallow for us outside the skinny channel. Of course the wind picked up to 15 knots, and there was no way to sail!

There were dolphins and manatees all around us all the way to New Smyrna Beach. Right before we got there, we found a nice anchorage right before the bridge, and settled in after 11 hours of motoring up the ICW. All cats on deck!