GLORY DAYS ON THE GREAT LOOP: NEW SMYRNA BEACH

DAY 275, 276 WED. THURS. APRIL 18-19, 2012

DEP. HARBORTOWN MARINA 08:00; ARR NEW SMYRNA BEACH MARINA (mm 846.5) 2:30.

D. 51.49sm / 4116.72

More of the same cruising on the Indian River. Except this time as we approach the more populated areas the houses are mostly mobile homes in large parks on the water. It is only as we get close to New Smyrna Beach that we start to see more substantial homes, and these are mostly modest. About 2 hrs. into the trip we get a request to overtake us and it just happens to be Wayne and Francine, fellow Loopers from Canada on My Way, and they are also headed for New Smyrna. They told us they passed fellows Loopers Last Chance a few miles back so we looked forward to seeing them as well. Our original objective was the “free dock” at New Smyrna, but unfortunately, when we got there we found it gone and lots of construction going on. Fortunately the New Smyrna Beach Municipal Marina was right around the bend and we stayed there. Wayne & Francine had guests aboard so we didn’t get together with them, but they did tell us the sad news that a fellow Looper and their cruising companions had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. As I have been saying, “you never know!”
On Thurs. we visited the NSB Museum and then Pat’s college roommate, Sue Higgins came for lunch. After lunch she took us on a tour of the town and we drove not only to the beach, but ON the beach. The beaches here are very wide and the sand is very hard making it possible for ordinary cars to drive on them. The town actually has many entry points with guards to check for your permit. The cars are restricted to 2 driving lanes, one in each direction, and large areas to park. This beach is about 3 miles long and is a fun ride at 10 mph. When we returned to the boat we were surprised to see fellow Loopers Alliyson and Martyn aboard Last Chance in the slip next to us. They are also Canadians and they also had guests aboard.