Port Canaveral may not be the most picturesque port, but it’s super well-protected, and the Ocean Club Marina was a great spot to spend a couple weeks. The slips are easy access, the staff is great, and there are several ships’ stores within easy walking distance. Unfortunately there’s not much else that’s walkable besides some waterfront restaurants and a couple fish markets, but we did find a nice morning walk along the road over to the lock that connects the port to the ICW.
As Chris was walking down the dock Monday morning, he noticed that the boat that was in the slip we were originally assigned was none other than our friends on Maravilla! We didn’t get to catch up for long because they were heading out later that morning, but it was great to see them and show them our new home.
So many people had their boats all decked out for the holidays, and I was starting to feel left out. We have our sad little tabletop tree that I got in Vero last year (it’s kind of ugly, but it’s better than nothing), but I really wanted to get Windara some Christmas lights. I found a set of solar lights on Amazon and ended up browsing those silly inflatable lawn decorations for a palm tree. I struck out, but I found something even better – an inflatable lobster!
We’re making final preparations for The Bahamas, so we’ve been ordering spares, parts for repairs, and stocking up on things that make no sense to buy there. We did some major provisioning and I refilled the propane tank that had just run out – luckily there was an Ace Hardware that does propane fills a short Uber ride away, and my driver was kind enough to offer to wait and bring me back to the marina.
I got to see two rocket launches – one at twilight and one in the middle of the night. It was really cool to see from so close, and the sonic boom from the first stage coming in to land was insane.
We split the weekend between boat projects – hatch repair, servicing the winches (yes, still – I have two more to do!), deep cleaning – and visiting Kennedy Space Center. Kennedy was a bucket list visit for both of us, and I wish we’d had another day to explore. There was so much to see that it was overwhelming. While we were there, the Orion lander from the Artemis I mission was landing in the Pacific, so we watched the livestream. I think my favorite part of the visit was getting to see the space shuttle Atlantis – it was fascinating to see all the scorch marks and little pits from encounters with small space debris.
Of all the waterfront restaurants, Grills was our favorite. They have good live music and their fish was the best of all the restaurants we tried. It’s right next to the Royal Caribbean terminal from which Wonder of the Seas departs. It’s the biggest cruise ship in the world, at 362 meters (1,188 ft) long, 64 meters (210 ft) wide, with a gross tonnage of 236,857, and holds up to 6,988 passengers. It looks like a floating city block. I’ve always been curious how they cast off their lines, so we stuck around to watch them depart – it’s quite a production. The lines are so heavy that they roll them off the bollard, then use a truck to pull them clear so they can be winched aboard. Now I’m curious how they manage to get them ashore when they dock!
Before we leave, we’ll get some fuel and maybe we’ll catch another rocket launch. Lake Worth will be our next, and hopefully last, port in the US this season, and I can’t wait to get back to The Bahamas!
