28 32.184 N
80 45.248 W
Each time we have passed the Kennedy Space Center over the last three years I have checked the NASA launch schedule. Yesterday I checked the schedule and discovered there is a launch scheduled for Wednesday. So we have made it 60 NM today and anchored in the bay next to the launch site. We can see the rocket on the launch pad.
The launch is scheduled for mid afternoon tomorrow, so we will be anchored here for two nights. (We are not as close as the photo may suggest.) The weather forecast for tonight is OK but there may be some thunder storms tomorrow. At the moment, the wind is blowing quite hard and our anchorage is a bit exposed so we are rocking around a bit.
A bunch of porpoises just visited us. There must have been over a dozen. Maybe looking for a handout? Dinner was crockpot beef curry and rice followed by apple pie and ice cream. Its a hard life!
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Interesting night. All night we could here what sounded like a relatively strong tidal current running past the boat. I was not concerned as we have 175' of chain and the snubber out in 10' of water, but it seemed strange as this location is a very unlikely spot for a current.
This morning the noise was still there, but more intermittent. So I took the flashlight out to have a look. Turned out the noise was schools of small fish (4" to 8") that were leaping out of the water. I assume they were being chased by predators and were using Tide Hiker as shelter.
We have had similar experiences before. When anchored in Stuart a few years ago we would hear definite "bumps" on the underwater hull of the boat. It really spooked us. We talked about it with other boaters and they explained that the small fish would escape a predator by swimming straight at the hull and then at the last moment dart left or right. The larger pursuing predator could not turn that fast and would crash into the side of the hull.
While on the topic of "things under the boat at night". When we anchor close to mangroves (like at Vero Beach the other night) the shrimp will come out and eat the algae that grows on the underwater part of the hull. On a "busy night"it sounds like a 100 people scratching their fingernails on the hull. At Vero Beach on Monday it was quite loud.
This morning is quite foggy. We cannot see the shore at the moment. NASA has its own TV station and so we have the TV on this morning. The launch is still "80% go!"
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