From the River to the Sea

I never thought I would be wearing a wool sweater and drinking hot chocolate the first week in March while IN Florida!  The high today has been 55 with the wind howling steady at 20 and gusting to 30 mph!  Every boat in the marina is rocking around....the Captain put out two more fenders making a total of 5 protecting Miss gg from hitting the dock. A gray day!

There were a few people that came out from town to a Farmer's Market they hold here ever Tuesday.  I bought a few veggies and the Captain bought some delicious Clam chowder and a few muffins.  Because of the weather this market packed up and disappeared just after noon.

Some ventured out of their boats for a few minutes to watch some divers...yes! That's a dive flag behind our boat!

What a crazy day for this as all they were doing was cleaning the underside of this man's boat.  I asked one of the three divers why they would pick today to do it but apparently the water is just about the same temperature all the time and with wet suits on he said, “They were out of the wind”! Probably warmer than me when I walked today.

We thought while the divers were down there just behind our boat we would ask if they would check our props......remember, because we were unfamiliar with the marina at Stuart, FL. & were not advised, we went hard aground.  Praise God it was sand!  The wonderful news is that the props on Miss gg are not bent!

There is an oak Hammock next to the marina here with several trails.   I walked there yesterday and was anxious to do same today....in the heat of yesterday I found it very shady and cool. Today it offered protection from the wind and walking 3 miles fast kept me warm. (Hammock photos taken yesterday when it was sunny)

This seems to be part of an old deserted camp ground.  It is called, The River to the Sea Trail.

The Matanaz River and picnic area.  Native Americans collected shellfish along this river.

Today when I walked to the River's edge I saw Mellon Island.  It was used as a natural pen for General Joseph Hernandez's cattle.   He was one who benefitted in the Spanish Land Grants and ended up having three plantations.

On Caladesi Island we saw a Gopher turtle.  Today in the Hammock I saw a sign about Gopher Turtle burrows which are about 15 inches long....so I looked for one....no burrow but sign was interesting saying that this turtle is a “landlord” for other animals that use the burrow for shelter.  Animals like the Eastern Indigo snake, Gopher frog, Florida mouse and the burrowing owl.... an owl that digs????!

Then I came to the sea, the Atlantic Ocean.  A foggy day.

Heavy mist was starting to fall.

Hurrying back to the Marina I had the board walk all to myself.

Tomorrow, with the weather worsening, we plan to snuggle down inside Miss gg and wait out the coming 2 day rain. The JOY of the Adventure is still with us.......as is the hope of warm day by next week!