Log Book: December 21st

Conditions: 5 knot SE wind

Location: Titusville

We left Daytona today at 7am. The morning was glorious, even before the sun rose it was warm. Dad lamented the fact that the wind remained southeast, making it impossible to sail in the narrow channel. Dad and I kept our eyes peeled for manatees the whole morning. Tom and Kathy had said that we might see them past Daytona. The manatee warning signs were everywhere, more prevalent than anywhere we had previously been. They flanked the sides of the channel every half mile. But all we saw were dolphins. By noon the wind and sun were both unseasonably warm, almost breaking record highs. We are expecting the next few days to be like this. Dad put the music on and it felt as if we had reached the Bahamas already. I sat on the bow for a bit and watched the boats go by on the canal. Families were fishing, couples were kayaking, and bikini clad girls were paddle boarding. It was the prefect day. I told myself that I could do this for forever. I then realized that I had already been doing this for what seems like forever, today was simply the nicest day we had seen yet. The next canal, called the Haulover, was much more narrow than the long canal we went through this morning. Small skiffs lined the shallows and kids stood on the shore with their poles each one hoping to make the catch of the day. It was in this canal that I saw a huge slimy gray circular something breach the water, twice. My memory first flashed to a sting ray that I had seen at the beach a few summers ago but my mind soon realized that this was my first manatee sighting. It was exciting but we were too far away to see the whole manatee. We reached Titusville an hour later, listening to reggae the entire way to set a summertime mood. When we reached the mooring field we heard the live band emanating from the restaurant on the dock, promoting us to mix some pineapple and rum. The band lead sung "I'm Feeling Good" by Nina Simone. It couldn't be more perfect. I put an artichoke on and Dad and I kicked back in the cockpit to listen to the tunes. I couldn't help but think of my girlfriends. If they were here we would be having a blast. We would be burning the burgers, dancing on he deck, and someone would be swimming by now. One day perhaps, for now I am thankful to have a relaxed, perfect evening with my Dad. Tomorrow we will head for Melbourne, we are still debating whether or not to visit the museums at Cape Kennedy. 

What we ate: artichoke, corn, burgers

Spotted: osprey circling the boat, Dad said that I better get under the dodger, "he's not looking at me," he claimed