 |
| Early Morning Vero Beach |
Early Morning Saturday April 3rd we let the line drop from our mooring ball in Vero Beach. We were up early enough to catch this beautiful sunrise. Our stop today was Dragon Point one of our favorite anchorages. We thought the anchorage would be crowded because the shuttle was scheduled to launch in only a few days. When we arrived we were pleased to see that there was definitely plenty of space
 |
| Shako |
In the afternoon we were relaxing when we heard this "Ahoy Summer Wind". Wouldn't you know there was a 1999 Heritage East circling. The ships name was Shako and aboard her were Jon and Edy.
That evening we were treated to a wonderful sunset.Shortly after sunset we heard another "Ahoy Summer Wind" only to find MTOA members Bill and Ann Feller outside in a dinghy just dropping by to say hi! The last time we had seen them was in the Erie Canal , they were on the great loop. The day was warm and the nights warm enough to have the windows open. Finally its only taken til April to get to the Florida weather we all know and love!
 |
| Sunset at Dragon Point |
Sunday morning we were up rather lazily, the Sun rose well before we did. Our trip today was rather a short journey. We were both excited to be heading to the Canaveral Barge Canal. Space Shuttle Discovery was scheduled to take off 6:21 Monday morning and mother nature was more then cooperating! Our stop was the Harbortown Marina, where we fueled up at $2.89/gal (prices starting to climb) and stopped for the night. Low and behold we tied up at the dock and shortly we heard "hey are you turtles?' Small world more turtles!! That evening we gathered around the pool and the topic was the shuttle and where would be the best spot for viewing.
 |
| Turtles by the Pool! |
Well, two crews were brave souls and headed out at 5am to go down the canal!! Are they Crazy! But we have to admit they have excellent shots! Monday morning at 4am would you believe there were deep voices outside the boat, they were too excited to sleep! When I (Elle) went outside to make sure everything was alright they said 'how nice our boat was!' AT 4AM!!!!!
Well 6:21 came and we were standing on top of the sun deck waiting. There was a couple in the slip over from us who also had the TV on and we could see when the shuttle was counting down. They announced the space station was cruising over head and we were able to see it. When lift off started we weren't sure where to look but shortly there was absolutely no question the sky lit up a bright yellow like the sun was shining in the dark! A few seconds later Dick said,hey I don't hear anything? Then a few seconds after that a rumble began and the sound wave hit us! Summer Wind literally vibrated. Both of us held on! It was absolutely amazing! The shuttle disappeared into the sky and for about an hour later the plumes of exhaust smoke could be seen.
 |
| Shuttle Discovery Lift Off |
 |
| The Trail of the Gases from Discovery |
 |
| Leaving the Canaveral Barge Canal |
Shortly after daybreak we untied from the slip. Good thing we cleared most of the bridges on the Indian River and the Canaveral Barge Canal because we heard that most of the bridges were under 'curfew' and wouldn't be opening on schedule because of the heavy traffic from people returning from the launch. Some bridge tenders told cruisers they would not be opening until approximately 9:00 am.
As we were heading down the Indian River, Dick spotted another Heritage East. We discovered the boat was Banyan, on board were Bob and Karen and family. Dick carried on a conversation over the radio and asked Bob to send in an article for the newsletter. Wouldn't you know ,,, he did and its great! This is the second time we've come across them on the Indian River. Last year Banyan was the committee boat for a sailing race.
 |
| Banyan |
Our destination for the day was New Smyrna Beach Municipal marina.
