TripSailor.com® Sailing Blogs

This is our 3rd night here at Vero Beach and we can understand why it’s often called Velcro Beach because when you get here you tend to want to stick around.  It really is a boater friendly community. 

We ate in our first night and reveled in the much warmer weather.  Our first full day we first cooked a scrumptious breakfast then took advantage of the Vero Beach free bus transit system to go by West Marine to check to see if the replacement T.V. was in (it was), and then hiked across the street to Publix to replenish some of our stocks.  Our timing wasn’t great on the return trip, but we spent time chatting with a fellow boater, Jill, while waiting on the bus.  Jill and her husband Dave have been living on their catamaran for 7 years. They’ll be heading out tomorrow for points south and then a crossing to the Bahamas. 

We reconnected with our friends Jane and Bob who are on a mooring ball here at Vero Beach.  We walked to the Riverside Cafe for a fantastic meal although we had to wait nearly an hour for a table.  They will be setting off south in a few days and then will also cross over to the Bahamas.  All these people going to the Bahamas makes me a little jealous, but that’s not in the cards for us this year.  We will miss our new friends, but wish them safe passage through the Gulf Stream. Hopefully, we will reconnect in the future.

Today, I made an appointment to get my haircut at a salon close to the beach. I have been struggling with my long hair and was determined to do something about it.  I had called the Oceanside Salon which was recommended by our bus driver on the previous day – his sister (or sister-in-law) owned the salon.  Randomly, I had an appointment with Gwen.  Bill and I boarded the bus which traveled to the beach and then to downtown.  Bill had the dysfunctional TV to return to West Marine, and I was headed for a hairdo makeover. 

I can hardly believe my good fortune in connecting with Gwen.  She is a former cruiser who spent 4 years on her catamaran – immediate bond.  She had a lot of hair to remove, but I left the salon feeling lightheaded. Gwen’s boat was lost to Hurricane Frances when its dockmate broke loose and rammed her boat numerous times.  So now, she pursues her career (interupted by her cruising days) in Vero Beach.  This new hairstyle is quite short and will be really easy to take care of.  Do I miss my long hair? Yes, and no.  I have rediscovered my neck!

Meanwhile, Bill had exchanged our TV for a new one, and we’re happy to report that we can actually watch TV without having to read lips of commentators every 5 minutes.  Kudos to West Marine for facilitating the exchange.  You can’t beat West Marine for customer service.

The remainder of the afternoon was spent washing clothes (me) and washing the outside of the boat (Bill).  The laundromat is one of my favorite places at marinas because you always meet the nicest people.  It was a frenzied place today with machines at a premium, but everyone was convivial.  Glad I’ve been saving my quarters – my store is considerably lighter after today.

After another stay at home dinner, we’re watching the playoff games and will, hopefully, spend another peaceful night at the dock.

As an aside, I just learned that my prescription glasses w/attached sunglasses which fell off the boat when going through the Windmill Harbour lock several years ago were found at the bottom of the lock.  That’s the good news.  Bad news – they are encrusted with barnacles.  Thanks guys for rescuing them for me and keeping them until we return.