2026 Spetember and October in Fort Pierce

     The month started out same old, same old: hot, humid, breezy, with afternoon rains and thunderstorms popping up all around. Parts of the state have had so much rain that they have flooding issues. We have not experienced that here. Storms approaching Fort Pierce continue to glide to our north, south, east, and/or west with very few giving us a good downpour. Sometimes we can see it raining on the bridge, about ¼ mile north of us, or on the southern area of the marina, but we stayed dry.

  
 Storm clouds build, sometimes ominously. . .

 

 

 

                                 . . .  along with rainbows and the lightning that illuminated the night!

     With the heavy frost last winter, Fort Pierce had a lot of frost burn to most of the plants here in the downtown area. Large portions of the plants and trees appeared to have died. Around April, staff were brutal in cutting back all the foliage that appeared to have died. All the bushes and trees looked so sad and spindly. We really had our doubts, but the old saying was reiterated, “Never underestimate the power of Mother Nature!” As radical as the staff’s pruning went, most of the shrubs have filled back in, healthier than ever. Just recently, the marina sent out a notice. They were blocking off spots in the parking lot here at the north end of the marina, so could use the bucket trucks and they trim up all the palm trees. 

            

I think they look a little like Dr. Suess' Whos of Whoville and the Grinch. 

What do you think?

     With the late October winds, courtesy of a couple of Nor’easters slamming the Atlantic coast, I’m kind of glad they did trim the palm trees. Some of those loose, old fonds probably would have dislodged and damaged cars in the parking lot.

     ~ Two years ago, Heather approached me about possibly doing a mother /daughter cruise. We decided to do a cruise of the Rhine River, since she’s already done the Danube, plus, I really want to see the castles of the Middle Rhine. Our adventure always seemed in the distant future. Our reservations, flights, and excursions were booked over a year ago. Suddenly, September was on us and boy, did those 18 days go so fast!

     After a very hot, dry summer, the Rhine, Danube, and other rivers of Europe experienced record-breaking, low water. That translates to "unusual" river cruises. The cruises, regardless of the cruise line,  had to be modifiedships cound not navigate the shallow water. In some areas, technically, you could walk across the river in waist-deep water!  We were notified the week prior that our route has been modified. Some cruise lines had to travel 12 hours on a bus, plus hotel stays. We were fortunate to have a 6-hour bus ride and stayed aboard a river boat. 

     After 2 days in Amsterdam, to decompress and explore, we departed Amsterdam aboard Viking's ANNAR. Our cruise director shared the first night what our "modifications to the cruise were. We will travel south to Kinderdjik and Antwerp, (touring Antwerp and Brussels), then a "land cruise" via "coach" to Kelb, 275 miles and only a 6-hours on the coach, not including our 2-hour rest stop and "self-guided tour" of  Luxembourg City, Then back into the bus for another 3 hours. This was supposed to be the time where we cruised though the Middle Rhine and it's Medevil Castles. Once in Kelb, we returned to the same stateroom on a ship that looks identical to ANNAR, but instead was The DAKAR. The only crew member who remained with us was our great cruise director, Wolfgang. There was a bus trip to Sprayer, which we passed on, and another to Strausbourg, which we really enjoyed.  From Kelb, two days later, the ship traveled to the final, industrial port-of-call in Basel, Switzerand - again an overnight passage. This time it didn't make a difference. Instead of touring Basel (on our own as there was no ship organized tour), we had to board the 8am bus to the airport for our return home. 

     It was an enjoyable and very memorable trip, with all the beautiful cities, along with their sites, sounds and tastes. The weather was perfect and our fellow cruisers, wonderful. The cruise itself just felt somewhat pressured. In fairness to Viking and all the river cruise lines, the logistics researchers and planners of the cruise line, the crews of the ships, the guides, drivers and especially our cruise director, all worked so hard to make our cruise enjoyable. All the accommodations and modifications were almost seemless. Repacking our bags mid-cruise wasn't really cool, but it worked. 

  
Our proposed vs our actural Rhine "River" Cruise

  Amsterdam, The Netherlands ~

 

 

We cruised the Singelgracht Canal Ring of 17th-Century Canals (Herengracht, Keizersgracht 

and Prisengracht) as well as the adjacent merchant houses and warehouses, which is a cultural UNESCO Site. It's the city with the most bikes. . .  and has a great yarn shop!

Kinderdjik, The Netherlands ~

The UNESCO site of 17 remaining historic windmills built in the mid-1700s

The machine, family lands and  the folktale of the baby and a cat 

who survived a dike breach by floating to safety in a cradle. 

"The polders" - the 7 to 22 feet below sea level, tracts of lands, enclosed by dikes 

with pumps keep the water levels controlled

 

Giessenlander Dairy Farm making Gouda cheese ~ all 30 varities!

A walk through of the old town of Gorichem to meet up with our boat

        & it's town-operated lock for small, local boats

  

The locks at Noorder Voorhaven

Antwerp, Belgum ~

 

  

 

The Grote Markit with the Guild Houses, and the Gothic Town Hall 

are impressive as well as being another UNESCO Site.

 

The beautiful Cathederal of Our Lady

Brussels, Belgum ~

Transportation, relaxation and religion 

  

The Galleries Royales S'Hubert and the shopes within

  

 
We walked through Les Galleries Royales, past the La Grand Plaza  (UNESCO Site,) 

and The Manneken Pis (very famour statue) ~ 

Some of the archecture, streets, shops, waffles and sculpture of Brussels

 

Drove past the Antomium, the Antwerp Courthouse & EU's Headquarters

Luxembourg City, Luxembourg ~ 

Onboard sunrise, our coaches, and Luxembourg City Hall

The Adolphe Bridge, the Old Quarters Foretress and Cathedral Dotre-Dame of Luxembourg on the hill

 

Architecture and sites of Old Town, with the Bistro De Capucias, 

where we enjoyed a wonderful lunch and lattes!

Strausbourg, Germany ~ 

 

  

  
We explored "Le Petite France" another UNESCO World Heritage Site

Onboard the DAKAR ~

 

 

Wolfgan traditionally dressed  for Octoberfest

 Full Moon rise over the Grand Canal d'Alsace Lock   

Breisach, Germany ~

Views from the ship ~ Sunrise, visitors and St. Stephen's Minsteer (cathederal) before touring

Coulmar, France ~ 

 

 

Beautiful & delicious Colmar, a UNESCO Site also!

Ride through the Rhine River Valley & Black Forrest to Breitnau, Germany ~

 Crop fields & hillside wineries

 

Bavarian architecture, towns surrounding the church

  

Breitnau, Germany ~ 

 

 

The return ride through Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany ~ 

                   

Graffitti is permitted in most of Europe, cosidered "free expression," even taught in high school!

 

 

Folks hangout relaxing on the rocks while cooling their drinks in the river that passes through the city.

 An "Old Timer" bus and the City Gates that fortified Freiburg 

(Fortified cities end in "-burg." No fortification if the city ends in "-berg")

     Pete and Tillie "held down the fort," staying at Greg and Jenn's while Heather and I traveled.  It was so great to see both of them waiting for us as we returned from our adventure Monday afternoon. We took an extra day in NJ to allow time to relax and catch up a bit on sleep before heading back "home" to the boat in Fort Pierce.

     Wednesday, 9/30/26 ~  Before heading north for the 2 weeks, we prepped the boat for a hurricane, just in case and definately as peace of mind. We left Greg and Jenn’s at 5:30 this morning, with a plan to get to the boat around 9 pm.  This way we could put up the canvas and awnings back up on the boat, while boat and air temps were cool and before the predicted rains arrive on Thursday. Once again the powers that be decided to laugh at our plans. A number of heavy showers and accidents up north, as well as periodic construction and pockets of rain slowed us down as we traveled south. We pulled off  95 for the Fort Pierce exit around 1:30 AM. The closer to the marina we got, the heavier the rain became. As we pulled into the parking lot, it became torrential. Pete backed us into the shelter of the bathhouse so we could use the bathrooms. Due to the torrential rain, We sat in the car until 3:30, because there was no way to get into the boat with out us and the boat interior getting soaked. (Remember the plan to put up the canvas?) So it was 4 am before we could settle in for sleep. The canvas will have to wait for a weather window.

     Thursday, 10/1/26 ~ Mid-morning, Pete took advantage of the break in the rain to put up the canvas. YEA! Now, we are back into the heat, humidity, and afternoon storms, which keep us down below. 

     I should also mention that besides great memories, yarn, some gouda cheese, and delicious Belgium chocolates, I also brought back a horrific cold. I  spent the better part of 3 weeks surrendering to my severly congested head along with the persistant and productive coughs. It seems the Covid is coming back pretty strong right now. I never had a fever, so didn't test for it.  I am just really thankful it is finally gone!

     There have been a number of early morning, early evening launches from Cape Canaveral, the timing of which makes a big difference on its beauty. With the sky dark, at about 20 minutes from sunrise or after sunset, the angle of the sun below the horizon is casting light high above the earth and illuminates the contrail and the droplets refract the light into colors.

 

 

I took these with my 35mm camera of the launch October 18th. 

The flight was delayed about 30 minutes and lost the twilight that makes the jellyfish so spcial.

     The launch on October 10th had, by far, the most spectacular illuminated contrail. This launch allowed people up and down the east coast to capture the beautiful "jellyfish," the is backlit by the sun still below the horizon. These fabulous photos were taken from Facebook, Credit to the authors.

 
From Orange Park, FL, Myrtle Beach, NC and the Space Coast here in Florida
 

     The first week in October fially saw a change in the weather here in Florida   Temperatures fell into the 80’s around mid-October, but the humidity and spotty storms continued. Of course, the mid-Atlantic and Northeast haven't been so lucky. They have been battered by storms, 2 of which were strong Nor’easters.

    Mother Nature provides us with various reminders that we are not the only species around here. This is the time of year where the mullet (fish) run.  They are food for the tarpin, jacks, and other preditors of the sea as well as here in the marina. They slam against the hulls of boats in pursuit fo they prey. This necitates a scoulding, at least Tillie thinks so! Dolphin (to eat) and manatees (to esplore and sun) also join the mix, but I haven't be able to photograph them. As we sat enjoying one of the pretty autumn days, we saw a number of birds chillin' aboard MV PLUMERIA, the boat directly across the dock from us.  Another evening. as I prepared dinner, I looked out the starboard port and found a Green Heron just chilling on the deck next to the window.  Couldn't resist the photo op!

 
Common Myna on Officer Dave's boat, while the Green Heron was on ours.

Fido (yes, the cat), catching a few winks on the "free table." 

I womder what message might he be sending Randy (his person)??

    Speaking of photo ops, Mother Nature has been a little stingy, but on occassion has created some spectacular sunrises and sunsets. Clouds are definally a necessity. Their postition to the sun and its setting/rising angle is crutial. Often the angle is off and the sun hides behind clouds, prohibiting it from illuminating other clouds with light and color, so no pretty sunset. It is a shame that the light changes or dissapears so quickly.  I always consider myself lucky to capture some of the beauty. Here are 4 of my favorites  with only minutes between photos.

   

 

 

I'm going to be so bummed when and if  when  the 4+ storied Kings Landing is ever built.

I am capturing as many magnificant sunsets as possible!

 

   In the past, usually in late October/early November, we have experienced normal king-tides.  These highest predictable high tides of the year occur when 3 distinct alignment conditions work together to boost tidal ranges.  The following explanation is from Google:

SPRING TIDES- The Earth, moon and sun form a straight line. This happens twice a month during every new moon and full moon. The gravitational pull of the sun reinforces the moon's gravity, making high tides higher and low tides lower.

PERIGEE - The moon reaches its closest point to the Earth in its monthly, elliptical orbit. Because the moon is closer, its gravitational pull is significantly stronger, swelling the tides even more.

PERIHELION - The Earth reaches its closest point to the sun in its annual orbit (usually around early January). The sun's gravational pull on the oceans peaks during this time.

When a SPRING TIDE happens a tthe same time the moon is at PERIGEE -- especially during the seasons when the Easth is closer to the sun -- the water levels surge to their absolute highest annual limits. This perfect alignment creates a PERIGEAN SPRING TIDE, which we call a "king tide."

     Here in the marina, the water usuallly rises half way up the faceboards under the dock; about 4 inches from the top of the dock. This last week of October has seen historic king tides. It was a convergence of a full moon, king tides AND a strong low, sitting off the Florida eastern coast for a week plus. The winds from the E/SE have kept the tides from draining to the ocean through the few and narrow inlets up and down the east coast of Florida. This backlog has allowed water to continue to build in the rivers, back bays, creeks, marshes, and tributaries. High tide on Monday, 10/26/26, was 3-4 inches ABOVE the dock; a good 6-8 inches higher than in the past! Only hurricane surges have topped all the docks in the marina. Of course, as the water levels approach the top of the docks, power, which runs under the docks, need to be turned off as a safety. That meant that there were 4- to 8-hour periods without any power to the boat, 5 or 6 days in a row. That translates into NO AC, NO electric fans, NO lights, NOR computer (to work on blog). We are fortunate to have boat fans and lights, as well as the fredge and freezer that run off the boat's batteries. If the power remains off for longer periods of time, we weould need to run the boat's engine to charge the batteries. The high water levels also mean that Tillie walks need to be scheduled long before the tide reaches the top of the docks. With a 3-foot plus rise from the top of the dock to boat deck, she must be lifted on and off the boat. Thanfully, she is really good and patient about it. It is also a bit challenging for Pete and I, too.  We do have a step ladder, which is a godsend. but it is still a stretch from the boat onto the top step of the ladder.

The difference between king and regular high tide ~

I-dock

View from PEKABU towards MV ARGONAUT's slip

View towards MV BOLD RASCAL

  
The creek by the Manatee Center

The fuel dock

            

 ARGONAUT sitting very high from the dock while BOLD RASCAL & PEKABU sits

 at what looks like normal high tide, but in actuality it is low during this king tide.

The black arrow points to the line we use to pull the boat over.  

PEKABU's deck was about 4" above the line at the hight of king tide!

        

We tried to wait for the 6-10" tides to receed so we could get to a medical appointment

Facebook photos of Fort Lauderdale

     This very impressive, 80-foot power cat was able to time her arrival with the lower tide levels as she came in for fuel. They timed it well as the fuel dock was operational. The fuel dock is the first to get power cut due to being an inch or so lower than the other fixed docks. The "new" docks, east of the fuel dock are all floating.  They, too, get the power cut, but of more concern is for the ramps to the docks angling up from their hinges.

View to J-Dock

                                  

MY ZARINA ii is an 80' Sunreef Power Cat.

   Nothing much going here on I-dock. There has been some activity on some of the boats by mechanics. Steve, currently a transient on the T-head, is doing reconstruction of his “doghouse.” He is looking for another boat, so I guess this one is getting ready for sale. I-dock is still waiting the arrival of our snowbirds. Oh yea, Randy labeled the parking spots for the season. “PEKABU” now has the spot next to the “20-minute parking.” No more searching for a spot and having to park ¼ mile away in Marina Park during the season! With the ongoing construction of the new bridge adjacent to the marina and S. Indian Trail Road closures, where pipes and power below the road are being replaced, parking will be even harder.

     As for the tides, hopefully, we have seen the last of the super king tides -sorry - I mean the PERIGEAN SPRING TIDE and power cuts. The low tides are definitely lower and the highs are just touching the face boards. The winds are less, in the teens, with gust higher, but still out of the E and NE. They will be with us a bit longer according to the forecast, but getting off the boat is much easier.

     Saturday, October 31st – Halloween. The entire Second Street was closed last Saturday for the Night of the Thirsty Dead Pub Crawl. Some of the costumes were really cool. Saw 2 ladies from the marina in the bath house, adding the finishing touches to their mermaid and evil queen from Snow White costumes.

     The house on Second Street is once again decorated over -the-top! She loves to decorate for the holidays, especially Halloween and Christmas.  Here is Halloween 2026 - The Old Haunts Cemetary.

 

      This afternoon, Second Street closed before 4 pm for Cowboys & Cobwebs Trick-or-Treat on 2nd Street. Between this and the Police Haunted House & Trunk-or-Treat, there will be a lot of excited and happy kids, and adults dealing with some pretty intense sugar-high kids!  We didn't see any of the local costumes, but our family didn't dissapoint. Two of our neices posted some fun and creative costumes with their families. Thanks, Eleni and  Chelsea!

 

 

Such fun and wonderful memories!

     It seems like yesterday, our kids were planning their costumes. For us, the costumes were much more basic and homemade. but I assure you our Halloweens were fun, noisey, exciting, a bit exhausting, but very memorable!