Life in Stuart, Florida

 I have not updated this blog in a while. It is hard to get excited about our life back in the U.S. after spending 2 and a half months over in the Bahamas. It all just seems so "normal". 

In my last entry, we had just made our crossing over from Great Harbor to West Palm Beach. We stayed in West Palm Beach for 2 days after making the crossing. It was needed to get rested up for the next leg of our trip. The next leg was a short 35 mile trip up the ICW to Stuart Florida. We left on a fairly windy day. It blew between 15 and 20 knots all day. That normally is not a problem as we cruise along the ICW. It was also mostly a tail wind, so that made travel fairly easy while we were moving. The problem was that there were a bunch of bridges in between. I did not count them, but there were at least 10 bridges that we had to open. We had to travel to each bridge and then wait for the next opening. Some of the bridges are on an opening schedule, so you have to wait a while if your timing is not good. Some are on request, so those are easier. You just call them on the radio and they will open fairly soon. Holding your position in 20 knots of wind and some significant current can be a challenge. It was a long day, but we got it done. 

This was our view on much of our trip along the ICW. There are lots of large homes on the water.

We were heading to Stuart, Florida to have some work done on the boat. We had a scheduled appointment on May 1 to start the work. I had a plan to stay in the mooring field at the Sunset Bay Marina. The problem is the mooring balls are on a first come, first serve basis. So, you have to get there and hope there is an available ball. 

When we arrived on April 6th, there were no mooring balls available, so we had to go across the bay and anchor in a designated anchorage that was full of unoccupied boats. The next day, we finally went ashore. It was the first time we had been off of the boat in 5 days. We took the dinghy to a city park that had a free dock. While we were there, I could look over and see the mooring field. I watched as a boat dropped their ball and motored away. We quickly got back in the dinghy and went over and put a buoy on it and called the marina to let them know we were bringing the big boat right over.

Within a half hour, we were hooked up to our new home. Ball #6 would be our new address. We went to the office and paid our $479 for a months stay and got our access to the boaters showers, restrooms, laundry and lounge. We found out about the free shuttle to the local stores and local restaurants. 

This is a shot of our mooring field. That boat on the left is an Island Packet 35, just like SHIFT. The name of the boat is "Just Ducky" they are from Maryland. The crazy thing is they were at anchor right next to us at Black Point in the Bahamas. 

This shot was taken in downtown Stuart. It was a very stormy day with high winds. Our mooring field had much better protection from these winds. We did have a storm come through a few days later that brought some 46 knot gusts from a direction that we did not have good protection. We had 6 foot waves going right through the mooring field.   

This is an Ibis. I for some reason, like these birds. 

As we go for walks to the local parks, we go under this bridge that we went under on our way here. 

There are three bridges in succession. This is the railroad bridge that we had to open on our way in and we will have to again on our way out. They are closing this bridge for repairs for 16 days in May. We are planning to depart just before that closing. 

This sailboat broke free from its anchor during the strong winds in the previous picture. I am not sure how they will get it into deeper water, but it looks like it has not been cared for anyway.

This is a shot of Sunset Bay Marina. A very nice place. The slips run about $1500 per month for a boat our size. That cost is why we stay on a ball.

Sunset over the marina. They have a nice gathering area where we go to relax after our evening showers. 

Stuart is a nice little town that has lots of places to walk around and check out the shops and restaurants. We really enjoyed our time there. We got lots of work done on the boat including all engine maintenance and a number of other jobs that were needing to get done. It was some nice downtime after being on the move for the past 5 months. 

I took this picture from shore. SHIFT is right in the middle of this shot.

I just like this nice quiet shot.

After Just Ducky left, we had "Island Spirit" take mooring ball #7. Hayden and Radeen are from Pennsylvania. Hayden runs the Island Packet Owners group and a Yacht Broker. We enjoyed meeting them. They have been sailing her for over 20 years and have been to the Caribbean many times. Island Spirit is also an IP 35. One year newer that SHIFT. 

On April 28th, we made our trip the 6 miles to Mack. It was a slow trip because we had a lot of growth on the hull of the boat and propeller, but we made it and put SHIFT in a very tight spot. She will stay there for the next 6 weeks and have her Chain Plates replaced. This is major surgery, and will require the carpenters to remove all of the built in furniture. We will take this time to return to Missouri to visit family. Before we left, we had to remove literally everything from the boat and put it in a provided trailer. 

We celebrated clearing the boat out by going to a local restaurant for dinner. This heron was dining at the table next to us.  

Here is the very tight place that I had to maneuver into to put SHIFT to bed for 6 weeks. That roof over that boat to the right was a very close space that I had to make sure I didn't hit my mast. I have no idea how we will get it out of here when we leave. 

Here is a shot of the cabin as we left. It was a strange feeling to leave her like that. It took us two days to get everything packed into the trailer. It will be interesting how long it will take to put it all back.  

We are now up to May 1. I still have some catching up to do, but most of that is family time. As I write this it is June 5th and  we are getting ready to return to the boat. It has been a strange time in Missouri. I will write a bit about that in my next entry.