Pepromenon Adventures: On to Ft Lauderdale

Tues Dec 2
The forecast was for rain, so we decided to stay put in Vero Beach. We get rain at one time or another every day - the bonus is the rainbows we get to see:

Vero Beach was one of our favorite stops so far.
Every mooring ball gets 2 -3 boats tied up here.

Our dinghy provides us transportation to and from land.
The town has a free bus system that picks you up at the marina and takes you either to town or the beach. We walked to the beach to get some exercise, very upscale here. Even have a Wilmington Trust in town. Many cruisers come and stay at Vero for the winter as there are numerous cultural events. Some people head out for the Bahamas from this base. We enjoyed Happy Hour with our English neighbors, they have been cruising for a long time and been everywhere! Learned lots!

Wed Dec 3
Sunny, but quite windy. Temp hit 80 degrees for the first time. Weather is a factor in every decision on the water! From sails to planning the day, anchoring… Anchored in Hobe Sound near Jupiter. Clear water, so Carol went swimming and cleaned the waterline and the propeller.

The waterfront here is mega estates, we were told they run 20-40 million! Each "estate" looks more like a country club than a private home. We watched a small spotted eagle ray jump out of the water and follow our boat for a time. So nice to have clear water.

Thurs Dec 4
Today was warm and breezy. The water is prettier now, lots of mangroves emerging, and plenty of palms. Its fun to look at the waterfront homes as we head down the waterway. In Palm Beach we passed so many megayachts- everywhere! Even docked in front of people's mansions, some with Christmas lights.

With the denser population here in south FL, there are starting to be more drawbridges. People are decorating up for the holidays, even boaters.

We anchored in Lantana lake and listened to live music playing onshore.

Fri Dec 5
This was "bridge day". We went through 13 draw bridges in 5 hours.
Here are some of our favorites: