Tim (a.k.a. Maca) would eventually have to fly back North so … my original plan was to get the boat close to Fort Lauderdale or Miami international airport. Then as I was passing Jensen Beach I thought ..o0( Why not cut through the middle of Florida so Tim could catch a flight out of Fort Myers Airport on the west coast? ) The plan changed in that moment. I quickly thought up a new anchorage within daylight’s range of Jensen Beach.
Our new location took us into Port St. Lucie and it’s beautiful waterfront homes.
Home
Sportfisher
Marina
Nice home in Stuart
Dolphins are plentiful around Port Saint Lucie and this pod was enjoying swimming along with us.
With the sun was getting low, we only had to get through the Britt Point Railway Bridge and Old Roosevelt (Dixie Highway) Bridge to make it to our chosen anchoring location. When we arrived at the railway bridge we found a very-very long train passing over it.
The train finished the bridge raised and we hailed the Old Roosevelt (Dixie Highway) Bridge on the VHF for an opening. Soon we made it to my chosen anchoring location (shown by the blue dot below)
Anchor Drop Location in Stuart, FL
Winter #3, leg #23 looked like this.
The sun was down and it was time to bring out the green lights and start fishing.
Sunset
Alien Cockpit
The battle of the fishermen had begun and the captain walked away with bragging rights 😉
Catfish
A quick photo and we let our new pal return to the deep
We left the marina in Vero Beach and started heading South again. We enjoyed the marina and the gated Grand Harbor community of which it is a part.
Suntex Marina in the Grand Harbor community
We will be closing on our old home tomorrow. Good bye home.
Home for the last 13 years
The plan is to sell the home and cruise the East coast till we find an area where we want to settle down. Vero Beach was nice but it was also the first location that we stopped at for an extended time.
We plan to be in the North for Spring, Summer & Fall with our family and friends. However, the question of “do we buy a place up North and live aboard while fleeing winter down South or vice versa?” We don’t know the answer yet. We plan to cruise the South looking at different locations and imagine what it might be like to live there.
Flee the North
Maybe we should use Ben Franklin’s Pros vs. Cons style of decision-making?
The North has a king & queen:
King Snow
Queen Ygritte
Wait… this king & queen
The real King of the North
The South has
Beaches
boating beach
and boating
a trawler enjoying the clear blue water
We believe North or South will figure itself out as we explore more locations.
Yesterday’s trip down to Jensen Beach looked something like this:
Derelict sailboat along the ICW
A building floated up on an island?
Jensen Beach
Jenson Beach North of Stuart & St. Lucie Inlet
Once anchored, it was time to put our feet up,
watch the sun set,
and the bridge light up.
Other notable stories this week was the story of a young couple who were chasing the simple life. After dropping out of work, selling everything they owned and buying a $5,000 1969 Columbia 28′ sailboat similar to this one.
They sunk another $5K into the boat, a few sailing lessons from a one of the couples’ Dad and they set sail. Only two days into their quest to sail the world, they ran aground in John’s Pass near Tampa, FL and sunk her loosing everything they had.
Social media is alive with people calling them idiots. I don’t feel that way however, I will slam them for creating a GoFundMe page to cover expenses that they alone are responsible for. Was their plan risky? Could they have benefited by gaining more experience? Should the boat have been more seaworthy? Should they have saved more money? Yes, of course but life is about experiences and if we wait till everyone tells you you’re ready, you’ll never leave the dock. Boating couples come in two varieties:
Couples who buy huge million dollar seaworthy boats only to leave the dock once a year on the fourth of July to make a safe loop around the harbor
Couples who buy a decades old boat with a few dollars and want to sail the world.
Most boaters are somewhere in the middle but I don’t see a problem with either of the extremes. Life and boating are pursuit of happiness. It’s your life and nobody else is going to live it for you so do what you like and do it soon.
Click on the picture below to find Nikki Walsh’s Facebook page here and see their pug that was rescued along with them.
Click on the picture below to read the full story
What are your thoughts on their story? Leave your comments.
MV Simple Life 
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