Yesterday we left Manatee Pocket at a reasonable hour and joined the last, very short, portion of the Okeechobee Waterway and joined the Atlantic Intra Coastal Waterway (ICW) at about the 993 SM mark. The ICW miles begin in Norfolk, VA so we once we turned south our mileage will increase. When we made the turn we got a short glimpse of the Atlantic Ocean through the St Lucie Inlet. It looked rough out there! The first thing we noticed once we were in the ICW was the difference in the water - it was much clearer. Up 'till now the water always had a brown tint to it - sometimes dark brown. For a while we could see portions of white sandy bottom. The vegetation along the shoreline also look healthier - greener with fewer dead trees. Jupiter Island was on our left until the Jupiter Inlet (1005 SM). We went through Hobe Sound and then Lake Worth where we began to see very large expensive homes, mega yachts and inconsiderate boaters in fast boats. There are far more bridges to contend with along the east coast. We were able to get under a few of them but learned to join the other boats waiting for openings. Most of the bridges have scheduled openings. Some open on the hour and half hour while others open fifeteen and forty five past the hour. Some will not open during commuter rush hour in the morning and evenings. Such is life in the ICW and we get used to it for it's part of our great adventure.
When we got into the West Palm Beach area we searched out the West Palm Beach town docks that were recommended by one of our boating neighbors at Oyster Landing. The waterfront area of of the city has gone through a major transformation including constructing floating docks for visitors, which we were able to take advantage of. We were joined on the boat by my cousins daughter and her family for a brief visit. We had to be off the dock before midnight so we anchored a short distance away for the night.
This morning we planned to head south again but instead decided to return to the town dock for the day. The town planned festivities for the first anniversary of the revived waterfront. Also, we had friends who moved to this area years ago join us for a few hours . The weather was perfect and we watched an excellent fireworks display from the boat. Before the fireworks display the Red Bull sky divers performed a very impressive two man night parachute jump. The parachute canopies were lighted they trail flares all the way to the ground. Very impressive! Today was a good reprieve and we will be ready to continue south tomorrow.
Y'all stay vertical,
Capt John and First Mate Sue
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