After a few days in Fort Pierce, it was time to head north again. Randy woke early and got us through the 7am opening of the North Fort Pierce Bridge. It was a calm day with very little boat traffic. We motored 45 nautical miles to Melbourne and anchored by the Eau Gallie Causeway Bridge.
We stayed in Melbourne overnight and got up earlier to start cruising the next morning. Our plan was to make it to New Smyrna Beach which was about 60 nautical miles. It was going to be a long day. On the way, I called St. Augustine to make reservations for a mooring ball (we were planning to be there in 2 days). We were told they were booked through the next week. With that news, it was time to slow down. I found a nice little anchorage in Cocoa Beach right near the W. Merritt Island Causeway so we decided to stop there for a night. A night turned into 2 once we found out how nice the anchorage was and the access to shore.
We were so impressed with this little spot we could’ve stayed longer. The dinghy docks are new and nestled right in the Historic Cocoa Village area. Within walking distance are shops, pubs and parks. The area is very pet friendly so we took Sophie with us where ever we went. I was thrilled to find out my favorite yarn shop on the east coast was walking distance from the docks. A couple mornings, Randy and I went for a run down the shaded sidewalk of Riverside Dr. along the waterfront. We found another place to land the dinghy on the other side of the causeway and a Publix just .8 miles walk from there which was very convenient.
While in Cocoa Beach, there was a warm spell. The afternoons were toasty on Blue Turtle, so the crew would head to shore and seek refuge in the air conditioning of Village Idiot Pub which is a great little craft beer and wine bar with games you can play with your friends. We loved that we could find an air conditioned place that we could take Sophie with us to cool off.
The last night we stayed, Randy woke up to hear a thundering that could only be a rocket launch. He had checked the launch schedules prior to us anchoring there and there weren’t any on the schedule at the time. We were so happy that there ended up being one (even if it woke us up at 5:30am). We watched as Space X launched the Starlink satellites…a very cool experience!
We loved Historic Cocoa Beach for it’s quaint little shops and restaurants. The anchorage was great because we had access to shore to walk Sophie, get groceries and even a nice area for a walk or run. I think we’ll be back again soon. Stay tuned!
Fort Pierce to Melbourne = 45 nm Melbourne to Cocoa Beach = 14 nm TOTAL miles: = 429 nm Bridges = 1 Total Bridges = 8
Love dub music on the video! Bring flexible has its advantages. Looking forward to “To be continued.”