Velcro Beach

In the cruising community Vero Beach has the nickname Velcro Beach because it's so hard to leave. There are lots of reasons for that and having been here many times we know it's true. There's the great free shuttle bus that will pick you up at the marina and take you to the grocery store, hardware store, restaurants, you name it. There's a fun Saturday night potluck, a beach within walking distance, as well as the shops and restaurants along the beach. The mooring field and dinghy docks are well done and the cruisers here are very friendly.

Of course, for us the dog park is a major draw. On Saturday there was a 14 week old yellow lab puppy there who ran underneath Dyna when some of the big dogs began picking on him. I guess her mama vibes are still felt by puppies.

We were out every night - Friday dinner at the Lobster Shanty with Bill on Spray, Saturday dinner at Gene and Kathy's, Sunday night a cruisers' Easter Potluck dinner on Bonnie and Ray's Compass Rose (Bonnie played the part of the Easter Bonnie, I mean, Bunny), Monday drinks with George and Mary on Summer Slopes, and Tuesday night the grand finale, beach and pool swimming followed by dinner with Duke and his person Jim. We'll upload some great swimming video when we get a faster connection.

So this stop we only stayed five days, not because we were ready to go, but because we have obligations up the road. We know we'll be back - it's not just Velcro Beach, it could also be called Boomerang Beach.

Old Friends

This morning we left Miami Beach. Last evening Dyna and Dylan had their final romp in the Miami Beach dog park. It's a wonderful group of dogs and people, and it's amazing how quickly one becomes attached. On our first dinghy ride back to the park Dyna and Dylan began crying as soon as we passed under the bridge and the park came into view.

So Dyna and Dylan said goodbye to Dewey, Annie, Sterling, Oliver, and many others. We lingered longer than usual, not wanting to say goodbye to the dogs or people. Some hugs, promises for next year, and we pulled the dinghy away from the dock.

When we left Marathon we started our trek back through the places we'd been. For Dyna and Dylan that means getting to play again with some of the dog friends they've made along the way. In Marathon they met up again with Riggs from Spray and Godiva and Cassie from September Song and swam on Sombrero Beach.

They'll look for Duke and Holly in Vero Beach who they played with at the beach and then in a pool (watch the video). And Carly and Andy who took them to a beach on Sullivan Island (watch the video).

And of course there is Goose and Huck from the Charleston Maritime dog park.

Cruisers love to talk about the wonderful people we meet along the way. And it's true. It's also true for our canine crew.

Dog Collar Relay

Having two water dogs on a boat is great. They love swimming, dinghy rides, and just watching the water. But sometimes they love the water too much. Both kids have taken unplanned entries into the water from the dinghy. As anyone who has tried can tell you, lifting a wet dog out of the water can be a challenge.

For years we've kept our canine crew in a harness whenever the boat is underway – be it the Whaler, the dinghy, or aCappella. That way we have a handle to grab should one go over. The problem is a harness is about the worst thing to use when walking a dog, especially big dogs. The strap across their powerful chests gives them too much pulling force.

So whenever we take the dogs to shore we have a routine – on the boat the harnesses go on, on shore the harnesses come off and the collars go on, before getting back in the dinghy the collars come off and the harnesses go back on. We've done it hundreds of times.

Apparently when we made our last trip to the dog park in Vero Beach something went awry. Maybe someone was chatting with us, maybe the dogs were misbehaving, maybe Jeff was singing me a love song – it could happen. We left one of the dog collars on shore. Now this wasn't just any dog collar. These are beautiful, matching nautical collars we purchased at a small marina in Maine during my birthday cruise two years ago.

We discovered our mistake on our first dinghy ride into Stuart. Our hope was that it might still be there when we came back through on our way north.

The day before we left Stuart for Miami Beach we received a call from David Allen. He was on his boat in Vero and had found our dog collar, could we meet? Unfortunately, they were heading west through the Okeechobee, not south. No problem, he had a buddy, Don Perkin, heading to the Keys and he'd give him the collar. About a week later while we were anchored in Miami Beach Don called. He was heading in the Miami inlet, could we meet him on our dinghy? Jeff had the dinghy at the boat show. I told him we'd catch up with him in Marathon.

This week we talked to Don again, he was in Marathon but heading out the next day to Key West. A quick call to our friend Bill Corbett aboard Spray, also in Marathon, and another hand off of the collar was made. Finally, we joined Bill in Marathon today and the collar is back on Dylan's neck.

The return of a dog collar is no big deal – we have spares. It's just a small example of the wonderful boating community we belong to. The stories are endless. Medical situations, needed spare parts, help with emergency repairs, assistance in a family crisis, advice of any kind, a potluck or a party and this community of boaters is always there for you. There are no strangers, only friends, just some you haven't met yet.

Miami Beach - just another dog park...

With our antenna woes behind us and the antenna all fixed and looking great, we took off early en route to Miami Beach along the ICW. This route would take us along another ActiveCaptain hazard - an area of severe shoaling off Bakers Haulover inlet. I have to admit that I'm loving these hazards.  Not that I want them in my way.  But I love being able to find the few that are in my travel and prepare for them.  I knew about this low water area a few days ago.  Having some time to prepare allowed me to plan our arrival to the area near high tide.  The extra 2 feet of water we had were plenty to get through.  There would have been another "blog entry of woe" otherwise.

But instead, today was a wonderful day.  We arrived behind Belle Isle right off Miami Beach around noon.  It's a nice anchorage with about 20 other boats (mostly sailboats).  Right next to us is Compass Rose, a boat with a dog we met at Vero Beach.  We lowered the dinghy to explore and learn about the area.  Our team of dogs was very excited to be going for a dinghy ride.

We tied up the dinghy at the Miami Beach police station - kind of makes you feel good about leaving the dinghy!  We visited the park next door and found out that 5:00 pm is the time when everyone brings their dogs.  After walking around a little, we got back in the dinghy and explored Collins Canal to the Publix grocery store.  This is Miami Beach and the place is teaming with stores, shops, restaurants, and things to do.

At 5:00 pm we were all back at the park where we met a variety of dogs.  Dylan's new friend Dewie is a good match for our high-spirited pup.  Dyna spent the entire hour looking for a place to jump into Biscayne Bay to go swimming.  The 4 foot drop off the sea wall was enough to stop her, at least for today.

Among the other dogs was Victor.  The unique thing about Victor is that when he's thirsty, he stands against the water fountain and waits for his mom to press the faucet.  Dewie has enough experience here to know that he can get a drink too from Victor's droppings.

Needless to say, all dogs are fast asleep.  At least until tomorrow at 5:00 pm.

Our latest patient...

We must be terrible parents. We only had good intentions and we did everything right. Or maybe we just have bad dogs. I'm not sure which. But today we created an unexpected patient - Dyna. She's completely fine - just a little scraped up. Here's what happened...

We lowered the dinghy into the water and set off to check into the Vero Beach City Marina. They are super-friendly here and everyone at the office was asking about our dog team. We got the latest schedule for the free GoLine shuttle bus that takes us anywhere around the area. What an incredible feature for this place. It gives cruisers so many options for shopping, projects, or just playing.

After checking in, we checked out the new dog park right next to the marina. This is a Vero Beach off-leash park set up right along the water - about 50 yards from where our boat is located. There were about 20 different dogs of all sizes and shapes and Dylan and Dyna had a great time running around and playing.

Then Dyna found the path to the water...

In and out, over and over, both dogs swam and had a grand time. It had been a long time since either had gone swimming and they loved it. All of a sudden we noticed that Dyna had disappeared. We knew she was probably in the water so we started searching for her. We found her in the middle of the mangroves, unsure how to get back to the deeper water. This was this Maine girl's first time ever seeing mangroves and she just didn't understand them.  She finally undid herself and continued to play and have fun.

Back to the marina for a quick washing off and back into the dinghy for a ride back to the boat. Then we saw it - blood on the side of the dinghy. Back on the boat, Dyna got a full EMT primary and secondary assessment. She had a shallow cut on her left rear leg, an abrasion on her front left paw, and a variety of scrapes on her left thigh - all from the mangroves.

We used anti-bacterial cremes on our patient and created some custom bandages that she couldn't easily remove. She's resting comfortably.

Personally, I don't think she even knows that she was injured.