Friday, February 8, 2013 – Whiticar Boatyard to Sunset Bay Marina (Stuart):

            Woke up to a gray sky, and we were sure it was going to rain.  You really can’t sleep in at this place as it is a working boatyard, and at 7:00 a.m. everything gets going, and sleeping through all the noise is impossible.  As we only had about six miles to go, we decided to have a leisurely breakfast before we packed up and headed out.

            Getting out was no problem and there was plenty of water in the little channel that we had been so concerned about, and we didn’t even need the guide!  We have to come back here to have the microwave installed, and now that we know how to get in here, it really is a piece of cake!

            The only strange occurrence getting to Sunset Bay Marina was a high bridge to go under and right behind it, a railroad bridge, and right behind that a draw bridge.  We thought we were following the channel markers, but somehow we got under the high bridge off to the right and had to make a sharp left-hand turn to cross under the railroad bridge (which was open) and through the drawbridge (which opened for us on demand).  We weren’t the only boat that found the way through these bridges confusing as another boat behind us did the exact same thing, but another boater (who had done it the right way) thought it was necessary to pull up beside us and the other boat and inform us of our mistake.  Oh dear – it’s so hard to be perfect!  Anyway, we had plenty of water, and no problem even if we did go through rather crookedly, but we will remember this area on our way back!

            I have a sneaking suspicion that we will definitely be hearing train whistles tonight, and they won’t be muted as coming from a distance, but will be right in our face as the marina is right next to the drawbridge and the railroad bridge!

            This marina Bob chose is definitely in the “high-rent” district.  It has about 200 slips, and is filled with huge boats.  It looks brand-new and has every amenity you could possibly ask for including a restaurant that’s open seven days a week for lunch and dinner.  There’s a ships’ store that sells everything from boat supplies to fancy clothes and all kinds of public spaces to lounge around in.  There is a beautiful river-walk (which is a board walk) that leads from the marina, under the bridges, and along the river into the town.  I swear it seems that the dock that our boat is on is about 1/8 of a mile long (you can barely see the end of it), and we are out near the river. 

            Once we got tied up, the sun was shining brilliantly, with no rain in sight, and we decided to walk into town and have lunch.  As we were walking by the restaurants I looked in the window of the Riverwalk Café and saw that they had white tablecloths on their tables and decided this was the place to have lunch.  It was a good spot, very small, only room for about 50 guests, and a lovely menu.  I had a warm goat cheese salad (very yummy) and Bob had the barbeque special, which he said was one of the best he has had. 

            After lunch, we toured the town, which is filled with boutique shops and other restaurants and cafes (many of them outdoor).  It has three theaters and many other attractions, and it’s just a lovely, colorful town to walk around in.

            On our way back to the boat, we discussed our plan for the next two days.  We decided that if we could get an accommodation at the Indiantown Marina, which is the last place you can stay (actually it’s the only place you can stay) before crossing Lake Okeechobee, we would leave tomorrow morning.  So Bob called them, and they were very nice, and said they did have a spot we could tie up on alongside the face dock – however, we could only stay tomorrow night as they had other reservations for Sunday night.  So Bob and the nice person on the other end of the phone got to talking about what would we do if the weather was not conducive to crossing the lake on Sunday, and they said that maybe they could accommodate us in an emergency at their floating dock.  So I’m thinking…well, ok…

We also have some concern about the weather, but Bob thinks it will be ok.  The forecast for Sunday, when we want to cross the lake, is supposed to be sunny and southeast winds 12 knots with gusts to 18 knots.  I, personally, guess that’s ok (I don’t like 18 knot gusts), and I was really hoping that the water would be so calm, it would look like a pond.  But Bob assures me that it will all be ok.  So..ok. 

The next thing I have to worry about is a bridge closure just about 10 miles after leaving this marina.  There is a new bridge under construction (the Indian Street High Rise Bridge across the St. Lucie River/Okeechobee Waterway at Mile 10)  and the closure starts Monday, February 11, and goes through March 11.  That part of the waterway will be closed from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. every day.  So if we leave here tomorrow, we should have no problem (as it’s Saturday), but I am thinking what about on our way home.  Our schedule has us back here in Stuart on Monday, March 4, and I don’t know why I should trust bridge construction schedules!

…and people wonder why I bite my nails…

I guess that’s all for tonight.  It’s about 6:00 p.m. and we had such a big lunch, dinner is not on our mind right now.  Tomorrow should be an interesting day though – till then…

View of the boardwalk into Stuart

Sunset Bay Marina office