Vero Beach - We raft up

Step One, make a model of the infamous Alligator River Swing Bridge

WE FINALLY GOT TO MOVE !!!!!!!!!!!!!! We got up early in the morning, took Hoolie out(Hoolie fell into the water when trying to get on the dock, so we had to fish him out with his leash.), and we took off! So long (Kennedy space center :(.), Titusville :)! After that, we had DONUTS for breakfast. After 9 FRIKIN' HOURS, we got to moring #3, Vero Beach. When we finally docked, we got Hoolie and ourselves on the dingy and headed for dry land. Hoolie was going really fast, just like yesterday. That was all that happened today.

Step 2: show the bridge opening for boaters! Oh, if only it was so easy..

Messieurs Style and Grace were not with us this morning when we left the dock. I had all lines doubled and I missed one when we tried to back out. Rule number one when leaving a dock - count all the lines attached to shore, remember to unattach them before moving! Fleetwing came to a sudden halt! After removing the offending line, we proceeded to back out and to go south.

Our kind neighbors for the night, Foolish Heart

It was a long day, especially for a kid. Nine hours can seem like an eternity to a 9-year-old. Nevertheless, we made it to Vero by 5:00 pm and asked for a mooring. The only option was to double up on a mooring which we did as directed by the office. Luckily, the couple on the boat we tied to were welcoming.

I uploaded my first track of this trip this afternoon so it's available for download now. I will repeat for each day as I head south. On Monday we are headed for the Hobe Sound anchorage by R38, one of our favorites. It's never crowded and there's a sandy beach nearby for Hoolie.

OLOH visits and we get ready to leave for Vero

OLOH came by to say hi today

Today we had pancakes and bacon for breakfast! We also took Hoolie to the dog park. He was going very fast on the way over. Like he was eager to use the bathroom or REALLY wanted to move around. I think I also taught him to sit. Well, nothing really happened today other than those 2. Tomorrow we set sail from the Titusville marina on our journey to Key West. And tomorrow is donut Sunday, which is the perfect time to get out of the marina. I also learned on the Minecraft wiki the command to get a command block (AKA: infinite power.). The command is /give @p command block. So if you're playing on pocket edition, that's the key to infinite resources (or, mass destruction and terror to everyone in your world).

We say good night to Titusville, we leave tomorrow

We did a bunch of stuff to get ready to move south on our last day in Titusville. We had a pump-out, filled the water tanks, loaded up on ice, did a laundry - we are ready! Our first stop will be Vero Beach where we'll take a mooring we hope. We will have to raft since there are no free moorings, hopefully, someone will take us in. It's just an overnight stay until we leave Monday morning for our Hobe Sound anchorage by R38. If all goes well, we will anchor at Lantana and then pick up a mooring at Ft Lauderdale and wait for good weather to reach the Marine Stadium anchorage in Miami, at least that's the plan. It's supposed to be open to anchoring until 2/5/2020 this year.

 Rowan will restart his school work and spare everyone in the world from mass destruction and terrot!

As part of the ride, you get to hold an alligator!

Today we got to go on an airboat ride! We saw MANY more alligators! 30, to be exact. It was like a zoo in the gift shop. There were parrots and snakes and even(wait for it...) a pig! There was actually a pig laying under a rack of T-shirts, taking a nap. At the end of the ride, I got to hold and have my picture taken with an alligator! holding him was like putting on a pair of leather gloves. He was also heavier than I expected.

We went through a cypress forest, very calm and beautiful

We took Matthew, our first grandson, on an airboat ride when he was about the same age as Rowan -  but he remembers nothing of the ride! How could you forget such an experience? So we keep asking Rowan if he remembers the ride or not, so far, so good.

This is alligator country and we saw plenty of them, they were everywhere. We went to Midway Airboat Rides for the event, the best one in the area. It lasts about an hour and you're sure to see alligators - you couldn't avoid them! Also on the agenda are lots of birds and today we even saw an eagle.

Oh yet, did I mention we saw lots of alligators, up close in the wild

Once back at the main building, the pilot of the airboat took a small alligator out of a pen and we all had a chance to hold him, including Rowan. The young ones at least are soft and very heavy. It had a rubber band over its snout so he could not open his jaws. It's a fun trip, everyone should go if they are in the area.

We have one more day at Titusville before heading south to Vero Beach on Sunday. We are looking forward to being a boat again instead of a condo.

Rowan finishes KSC and we tour Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge

Rowan, in virtual reality on Mars

(Continuation of Rowan's adventures at Kennedy Space Center)  Grandpa was ground control for my virtual reality test on Mars. He told me where to turn, what rocks to scan, and what buttons to press. After that, we got into another tube, put a headset on, got a harness, and then it closed. inside the tube we had controls in front of us, which were a joystick, red button, and a screen. I was the commander, and Grandpa was the driver. First, I had to land the Orion capsule on Mars [When I deployed the parachute, the hole tube flipped 360], then Grandpa had to drive a rover [Yes, that same rover] to certain waypoints [When he got to the second waypoint, we entered a dust storm, and the tube 360'd again.]

Just a great nature walk on Merritt Island

Thursday, we got to see Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge. We got to see a bunch of plants and birds and we even saw 3 alligators! Well, I saw 3 :), Nana and Grandpa only saw 2 :(. Anyway, that was all that happened this week. Except for Wednesday, when Grandpa got a new TV for the boat, but that's another story. Bye!

Along the way on Black Point Drive

Our big event of the day for the boat was to start the outboard motor. The last two times we returned to Fleetwing, the outboard refused to start and needed a cleaning. The gas had evaporated and left a gummy deposit in the carburetor and a stuck needle valve. This time, we finally wised up and ran the motor dry (at idle with no gas attached). It started right up!

Our prize of the day - an eagle!

We paid our usual visit to the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge, The last time in the fall, we hardly saw any birds but this time there were plenty. I guess they had time to get south in January. We saw an eagle for the first time, always fun.

We plan on an airboat ride Friday that includes a tour through an alligator area with up to 100 alligators, usually. We'll see what happens, it should be fun.

Tuesday at the Kennedy Space Center

In space! Where's my helmet??

Tuesday was a blast. Grandpa and I got to see the [real] space shuttle Atlantis. There were many floors to the Atlantis exhibit, yet we climbed them all. On the second floor, there was an arrow on the wall that said, "To re-entry burn. we followed the arrows to a large slide heading down to the first floor. I talked my grandfather into going on it with me, and he said yes. After the slide, we went to the shuttle launch experience. We went into a large, metal tube, put a harness on, and then the whole thing got tilted 90 degrees. The tube didn't replicate the G force of liftoff, but you could definitely feel force on your face. Just to be clear, I was NOT screeching, "WHEN I GET BACK ON THE GROUND, I'M SUING EVERYONE AT LAUNCH CONTROL!!!!!" I had a hard time readjusting to the angle of gravity after that. After that, we went to the Astronaut Training Experience[ATX] and got to put on a VR headset and hand controllers, and it looked liked you were on Mars, with a scanner in your left hand, and in front of you, was the same rover we saw yesterday[AKA: batmobile].To be continued.

All the buttons and switches to push - which ones??

Rowan's report on his experiences continue and he'll be adding more tomorrow. It was a full two days at the Space Center. In one area, they were taking photos against a green screen which we later found out inserted outer space as a backdrop. The highlight of today was a virtual reality experience on Mars that all the astronauts had to go through. You put on the goggles and everywhere you turned, you saw a Mars landscape. You had to pick up rock samples and put them in a box. In the next stage, Rowan and I were secured inside a Mars Rover that I described yesterday - 360 flips were not fun but I suppose were realistic for the driving I was doing.

Gradually we are waking Fleetwing up from her winter slumber. We took on water, had the bottom scrubbed, replaced the zinc, with more to do before we leave on Sunday for Vero Beach.

After two days at the Kennedy Space Center - Whew!

SpaceX launch, click on the link before for the full video. We were 3.5 miles away

https://youtu.be/-JnJ2SMezoo
Hi again, everyone! Yesterday and today, my Grandfather and I had a trip to the Kennedy Space Center. First, we went to the rocket garden and got to see many different rockets and even some replicas of famous capsules. Like the Mercury, Redstone and Apollo 11's command module. After that, we headed to the NASA Hall of Heroes. Before we got in, we watched a short film on other astronaut's heroes. I have to admit, I cried during that presentation. After the Hall of Heroes, we went to see an exhibit labeled "Mars rover," Even though it looked like an exact replica of the Batmobile. Then we got to have lunch with a person that was on 4 space shuttle flights. He talked a lot about this place that astronauts go before a mission called the beach house. After his talk, he answered questions people had. I was called on first, and asked, "What is a Radioisotope Thermal Genorator[RTG]?" I wanted to stump him, but he gave me a probably correct response. Then we left for the bus tours of the real Kennedy Space Center. You know, where they launch the rockets. We got to see the Vehicle Assembly Building[VAB], the big crawlers they use to carry the rockets to the launch sites, and SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket. Then the bus dropped us off at the Apollo Saturn V center.  (Editor's Note, it's getting late for Rowan, time for bed - to be continued tomorrow)

Proposed Mars Rover for when we rsettle Mars

It's been quite a two days of events! Too much to cover but I think Rowan made a start. Monday night was the highlight with a SpaceX launch of 60 internet satellites. The video link is at the top of the page. Rowan enjoyed himself no end. He's a nut on space and I'll have more on that later. For now, it's just fun watching him enjoy everything at the space center.

All made out of Lego, Rowan's favorite building material

I'll summarize more tomorrow. We will be here until Sunday when the weather should allow us to head south again.

Our Kennedy Space Center Adventure Starts Monday

Hello, my name is Rowan (editor's note: he’s the one at far right)  and for the next month and a half, I will be on a voyage from Titusville to key west. Tomorrow, my grandfather and I will take a trip to the Kennedy Space Center. We will have lunch with an astronaut, ride in a flight simulator, and lastly, see SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket blast off to the stars! Nothing really happened today. We did take our dog, Hoolie, to a dog park close to the marina. I remember when another dog tried to knock me over. I can't remember that dog's name, but I think it started with an R. My grandpa got a new TV for the boat today. We spent hours (editor's note: 15 minutes...) at a local Walmart trying to find the right one. I think we ended up buying a 32 in. VIZIO TV. That was all that really happened today. I am looking forward to tomorrow and the journey ahead of us. This will be a great trip, I know it!

And so our adventure begins with our 9 year old grandson, soon to be 10 in a couple of weeks. Monday is the first of two days at the Kennedy Space Center. On Monday we will have lunch with an Astronaut, tour the Saturn V rocket, suspended overhead - quite a sight and wind up with a SpaceX launch at 9:15 pm at the nearest viewing area there. We will take lots of photos and share here.

On our way down, we ate at a local treasure, the Lonestar Restaurant in Santee, South Carolina. If you’re ever in the area, you have to go. For $7.99, you get a selection of one meat and three sides with dessert and ice tea, The place has been there forever. The owner is in the picture at the top of the post.