Suntex Marina in Vero Beach, FL
THE TREASURE COAST
Day #280: Mike and I were up at 6:45 A.M. for coffee, grapefruit, cookies and lemon poppy seed muffins. After breakfast Mike went up to the flying bridge to see what he could find out about the Garmin unit that wouldn't turn on yesterday (this is one of two Garmin units that the "Parrot Bay" has and it is the one that the radar is hooked into) he checked the wiring and fuse but those were not the issue so it was decided that they needed to go to West Marine today. First of all we took down the stroller heading 1.3 miles to the Publix here in Vero Beach. Most of the 1.3 mile walk was in the gated community complex along a golf course. Once off of the complex Mike and I were in a shopping center area. Before grocery shopping we walked past the Publix heading to the UPS store to mail back the restroom keys that they had forgotten to return at the Fort Pierce City Marina. After the UPS store it was grocery shopping time at Publix. The two of us walked back to the marina with our groceries. Terri from the marina had given Mike and I a card for a gentleman who works for Uber and Lyft who we could call direct to take us anywhere we needed to go. I called Don to see if he could take Mike and I to the West Marine. Don was very friendly on the phone letting me know that he would pick us up in 30 minutes at the entrance to the marina. While waiting for our ride I called New Smyrna Beach Marina making a reservation for Monday, April 15th. Don called at 11:00 A.M. stating that he would be at the marina in 5 minutes. Don offered two West Marine locations, one in Vero Beach which was a smaller store or Fort Pierce which has a larger store. Mike said to try the West Marina Express here in Vero Beach first and asked Don if he would be willing to wait for us which he agreed to do. The lady at West Marine was great and she told Mike that they had the upgraded version of the Garmin unit and it looked just like the old Garmin. Mike and I picked up a few more items while Don waited for them. The two of us had lunch after returning from their shopping trip. Mike then headed up to the flying bridge to work on installing the Garmin unit while I worked on more marina reservations. I called Marineland Marina where I was able to make a reservation for two nights April 16th and April 17th. There is a dolphin research center in Marineland so we wanted to be able to visit during our stay at the marina. Mike was successful at hooking up the Garmin. We stood the mast up to make sure that the radar was going to work on the new unit. The radar worked great so Mike was very happy so we laid the mast back down as there are still a few bridges it is more convenient to have the mast lowered. I made reservation at St. Augustine Municipal Marina for April 18th through April 22nd (it is Easter weekend and St. Augustine is a very popular spot). Mike and I are very excited to visit as we have heard great things about St. Augustine and are looking forward to this stop. The two of us then headed to the pool area. It was mostly cloudy but very warm. Mike from "Dash Away" joined us at the pool. Mike invited Mike and I to have dinner with him on "Dash Away" which we gladly accepted. At 5:15 P.M. the two of us joined Mike on "Dash Away" for happy hour of shrimp cocktail and beverages followed by homemade chili and corn bread for dinner which was excellent. After dinner Mike went through with us his itinerary for the next weeks and gave us the do's and don'ts that he learned from his first loop. At 7:15 P.M. we headed back to the "Parrot Bay" for reading, blogging and a quiet evening. Due to the weather there was a delay in the launch of SpaceX Falcon Heavy Arabsat from tonight until tomorrow evening at 6:35 P.M. Mike from "Dash Away" plans to leave in the morning, while we will be here at Vero Beach an additional day.
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| Enjoying the poolside waterfall. |
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| Dinner on "Dash Away" with Mike. |
