North on the Indian River - Days 193 to 194 - Stuart to Cocoa, FL

Our 25 days in Stuart were productive, fun and convenient for our a visit to Chicago.  We got the boat waxed (hull and top sides), the dingy brought up to mint condition (plus repair of a long term leak) and even got a locksmith to repair a door mechanism that went to failure. 

The only negative was a laceration to Kodi's left foreleg when she went swimming on Thursday in what turned out to be a bad place.  I'll take credit for using poor judgment.  I should have turned around when I saw the mussels and stuff in the water and headed home.  We immediately took Kodi to a vet who was immediately across the street from the marina.  He patched her up and gave us antibiotics.  On Monday we took her to another vet for a check-up, bath and nail clipping.  He determined that the cut was healing well.

Tuesday morning at 9:00 AM, we departed Harborage Yacht Club and Marina and headed 7.2 miles southeast down the St. Lucie River to join the ICW.  The 47 mile run Stuart to Vero Beach was pleasant with sunny skies and winds from the southeast.  Perhaps the only complaint was that the 9.5 MPH speed of the boat heading north offset by the 10 MPH wind at our stern making for a somewhat warm run.

Diana and Kodi on watch with the boat on autopilot

The run itself was easy with a well marked channel and high bridges.  The scenery was predominantly multi-unit dwelling with an occasional pockets of very expensive homes.

We arrived at Loggerhead Marina at 2:00 PM and were greeted by a clearly marked but rather long channel leading west to the marina.

Channel leading to Loggerhead Marina

Loggerhead is a chain of marinas and since we were still on a monthly contract our dockage was free except for a $10.70 electrical fee.  The marina, which was situated in a large gated golf course community, was lovely but absolutely close to NOTHING.  No big deal as we were only stopping for the night.

Wednesday morning saw us on our way for a 52 mile run to Cocoa Beach on the Indian River.  This segment was practically a straight run and we were able to put the boat on autopilot for long periods.  We also had a nice northerly breeze which when added to our northbound 9.5 speed made for a well ventilated comfortable passage.

We arrived 5 and a half hours later at Cocoa and docked at the Cocoa Village Marina, which Diana had chosen for its proximity to a historic downtown.  Turned out to be great choice with a lovely downtown filled with shops, restaurants and even a theatre (playing Finian's Rainbow).

Cocoa Village Playhouse

Cafe Margaux

Dinner was at Cafe Margaux, a lovely French Restaurant, where we both enjoyed an unusually good meal.  This was followed by a 3 mile evening walk along the Indian River.

During the two day run we covered 99 miles and burned a total of 72 gallons of diesel achieving an efficiency of 1.4 miles per gallon.

All in all, two lovely days on the water.

Written by Les.