I’m not really a fan of the ICW through Miami and Fort Lauderdale.  It is not all that scenic and can be crazy busy.  Somehow we got lucky and our little tug slipped through the ports of Miami and Fort Lauderdale without encountering any ships on both our trip south and north.  Once past the city we had a good trip up to one of our favorite little places, Lighthouse Point Marina.  There is nothing special here just friendly staff, a good restaurant and easy in and out right off the ICW.  We left the next day in order to cross Lake Worth on a calm day.  We would have liked to stop in Palm Beach but the marinas are crazy expensive.  So onward to Safe Harbor North Palm Beach where At Ease was tucked into a 50 foot slip surrounded by the big girls.  At least we were blocked from the wind and had plenty of room to back out in the fairway.  The best part of this stop was the nearby Costco where we stocked up on some stuff we needed.

As with the trip south, we spent a week in Fort Pierce for no reason other than we like warm weather and really didn’t want to get to Georgia before March 1.  As weather and winds permitted we continued on stopping in Vero Beach, Melbourne, Titusville, New Smyrna Beach just because we wanted to try a pizza place, Daytona, Marineland and Jacksonville.  The most excitement we had underway was seeing the Space X Falcon 9 launch from around 23 miles away as we headed to Melbourne.  

Florida has some good farmers markets. This one is in Fort Pierce.

‘Paws Required’

Loggerhead Marina, Vero Beach. Our view from the boat. A quiet little marina in a gated community.

Ran into this guy at the Pirate Fest in Fort Pierce

Our neighbor pup in Marineland. He stayed there until late at night.

The best pork chop ever. Marker 32 Jacksonville, Florida.

Our final stop of the trip was Fernandina Harbor Marina which finally opened in January after a hurricane destroyed it three years ago.  Love this little historical town and definitely one of the highlights of the trip north. 

We met the owners of the very first Nordic Tug 32 ever built and we got this picture of her while we were in Fernandina. In comparison, ‘At Ease’ is hull number 230.

If you are ever in Fernandina Beach, stop in at Marlin & Barrel Distillery. Small family owned with some unusual alcohol.

We are back in Brunswick, Georgia wishing we were still in the warm Keys.  But the sun is shining with a howling wind that is keeping the noseeum’s at bay.  We are getting some things done on the boat, stocking up and planning our trip north in April.  The goal is summer in the Chesapeake Bay.

Greek pizza on board At Ease.