Beautiful Sunsets Need Cloudy Skies

Stuart to Riviera Beach  |  4.7 Hours  |  28 Miles 

Crossroads and a single Monk 36 shared a peaceful night in the spacious Hooker Cover anchorage. We had our anchor up at 7:45 and in a light rain waited for My Cat to join us from a marina in Stuart. We moved a short distance east on the St. Lucie River to intersect the ICW at the St. Lucie Inlet. This area is ironically called The Crossroads. Oh, how I wanted to jump offshore and "just get there" to Key Biscayne. The sporty weather would keep us on the ICW for yet another day. Our path was lined with mangrove forests and we counted down the miles until our first bridge. We would need five bridges open for us during the day (two others we could squeeze under). The first one was the Hobe Sound Bascule Bridge.

A blue heron kept watch over our progress and we even saw a manatee (or at least its nose and tail). A group of paddleboarders had me longing to get mine out of the commissary and into the water. The Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse emerged from the trees and led the way as we moved through two curves and two more bridges. At that point the boats and estates became grander (boat name: Who Cares). I was disappointed to have a gray sky as a backdrop, but the flowers were still bright and cheerful. I love seeing bougainvillea and hibiscus featured in the South Florida landscapes.

The Indiantown Road bridge did not have to open for us. Its massive concrete structure more closely resembled a tunnel as we moved through. A hint of blue sky briefly appeared to back a lush grove of palm trees. The rain began again, but a threesome on this waterside course kept on playing. I'm sure they thought "the heavy stuff's not going to come down for quite a while."

Sadly, as we got closer to Lake Worth, the number of derelict boats increased. So did regular boat traffic. We had a half dozen vessels lined up to pass through our final opening of the day, the Parker Bridge. We pulled off to the left just before the Lake Worth inlet, in the shadow of oceanfront skyscrapers and beside a long-term liveaboard and his feline companion. At least 10 other boats appear to have been here for a VERY long time, including one sunken sailboat. 

The temperature was a mere 60 degrees and the rain continued throughout the afternoon. I went downstairs grumbling about another less than ideal weather day. I even took a shot at "improving" today's lighthouse photo by "improving" the sky. I did finish my first book of the trip. I received The Legends Club for Christmas and thoroughly enjoyed a look back at the glory days of ACC basketball with Coaches Valvano, Smith, and Krzyzewski (which coincided with my time at UVA). Nightfall came and I was reminded that the best sky colors are always natural, and require the same clouds that dampened the day. Tomorrow we'll hop out the Lake Worth Inlet and finally reach our state-side destination of Key Biscayne.