As day breaks, the lines are thrown off and we leave Eau Gallie heading for Daytona. It is a little further than we planned to travel today, but there were no docks available at New Smyrna, our first choice, and a bit closer.
It will be a longer trip today, a bit over 80 miles. Once again, we will stay in the ICW.
Boat traffic is minimal this early in the morning, so we cruise a bit faster in the areas we can.
The 80+ mile journey takes us under many bridges and through wide open water and narrow channels.
One thing we have noticed throughout our travels through Florida is the large number of derelict boats. The reasons seems to be many: storms, finances, health, etc. Each boat presents a multitude of problems with fuel leaks, seagrass destruction, danger to other boaters, and a general eyesore. The owners are responsible for recovery and clean up, but often they can not be found so the taxpayers ultimately pay for the clean up. With the average cost of recovery $350 – $450 a foot of vessel length, it is quite a costly problem and the number of derelict boats increase each year.
Our marina for the night is Daytona Marina and Boat Works. We are side tied to a long finger. Unfortunately, the boat traffic from the ICW results in lots of wake and we are definitely playing bumper car with the dock. Every fender is brought out. Luckily at night, with the boat traffic minimized, it calms down.
We walk the docks and are surprised to see our buddy from Longboat Key!
We send them a photo of Playpen and discover it was received by them in Africa. I guess dinner is out of the question? Speaking of which, perhaps the nicest thing regarding this location is the Chart House on site. A relaxing dinner is in store as we prepare for tomorrow’s run to St. Augustine.
