Ocean Travels
03 April 2013 | Lake Worth Inlet
sunshine and breeze
Here we are leaving the Lake Worth Inlet heading out for a second day of ocean sailing on Sunday morning (3/31) and we are treated to this glorious sunrise. The sailboat in front of the two tugboats is our "buddy boat" - Chanticleer. Unfortunately, we didn't get in front of the tugboats fast enough so we had to wait for them to head south.
We left Miami Saturday morning with winds out of the NE and E at 10-15 knots. It was a beautiful morning and with rather calm seas we settled into the rhythm of the sails on a tight reach and had a great trip. Part way through the day the winds were fluky so we motor-sailed, maintaining good speeds with the help of a favorable current. Our entertainment was the flying fish and dolphins. As we got close to the Lake Worth Inlet we saw Dustin's fleet in their practice regatta, with spinnakers flying. Unfortunately, they moved faster than we did and were in the Inlet before we could catch up with them. Still it was fun to see. We tucked into the anchorage close to the Inlet and called it a day.
Sunday was a repeat of Saturday, except predicted winds from the south were really NE for the first part of the day and then shifted south but not enough to keep us moving. So it was a day of motor-sailing, but we made good time and got into the Ft. Pierce Inlet in time to miss the building wind and seas. A short 40 minute sail/motor to the ICW and winds had piped up to 17 knots. We motored the remaining 11 miles in the ICW to Vero Beach where we grabbed a mooring ball with Chanticleer. There are always lots of cruisers on moorings there and we caught up briefly with friends Joe and Bessie on Summer Snows and people we met in the Bahamas two years ago Options III - always fun to share travel stories. Dinner together on Chanticleer to recount the 2 days of travel and share whatever we had in our refrigerators. Nice evening and we're making good progress north.