14: breakfast, a very close call with death, jack, breaching, the storm, launch

March 31, 2025

Vero Beach to Sebastian Inlet State Park

I didn't find out until this morning that this is the "free breakfast."

Today's ride is only two hours, with a tailwind, so I figured I'd have plenty of time to see the McKee Botanical Gardens. Unfortunately, it's closed on Mondays.

So, instead, I rode over to the Palato Coffee Shop and stayed there for three hours working on the blog. Since I'll be camping, and in a place where I'm not sure there's cell service, I ended up waiting until the hottest point of the day to leave. But, like I said, it's only a two-hour ride.

and Second Breakfast a little before I left.

This woman was in the coffee shop. I'm curious about the "local hair plug" on her shirt, and whether it's a joke shirt or a real advertisement. "Don't buy foreign! Get your hair plugs locally! Dave has some extra growing on his back."

I saw this guy just outside the door as I was leaving.

Not a great picture, but it's the best I have so far. In real life, it's a bright orange and dark black. I see these guys regularly, but they're really shy and skitter away as soon as they see movement, even from a distance, so it's been hard to take a picture. This is with a telephoto just outside the coffee shop.

seen on someone's house as I was leaving town

This picture depicts the decision bicycle tourists make on a regular basis: Should you take the bike lane which comes with the risk, however small, of getting struck by a car? Or do you risk riding through the construction zone, avoiding all traffic, but possibly having to turn around? This is a decision I've had to make more than a dozen times on this trip already. What would you do? Decide quickly!

In general, the decision process comes with the certainty that you'll always pick wrong. I like to say, "At 50/50, the odds are heavily stacked against you." This time, I decided to take the bike path. It was only narrow for about thirty yards.

Here's the construction the signs were warning about. I'd like to add that my camera starting taking all of the pictures in "Portrait" mode, even when it wasn't in that setting. It made for a frustrating day because many of the pictures I took were useless.

It turned out, at least THIS time, to have been the correct decision. As you can see, there is no bridge to cross. Apologies for the blur.

In addition to having a separate bike path, it was completely shaded for most of the way. Another benefit of getting a late start.

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In general, bicycle touring is relatively safe. However, on occasion, there are times when the unexpected happens. Today was one of those days, and I was truly lucky to have lived through it.

The following pictures are not for the weak of heart.

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I stopped for a break and was taking a drink of water when I saw something in the corner of my eye.

In the blink of an eye an alligator was on top of me with the clear intention of having a Mark-sized snack.

Its jaws were within inches of clamping down on me.

I thought I was a goner, but calling upon The Strength of Greg I managed to pry its jaws open...

...and finally perform a maneuver I now call the Alligator Slide, in which you use the alligator's own strength against it, allowing you to slip behind it.

Once behind him, I was able to gain control of the situation and got him to take me for a short tour of the area. He said his name is Al, and he hopes I don't mind that he tried to eat me. He can't help doing things like that in cold blood because he's a reptile, but still feels bad about it - although I suspect he feels bad because he was unsuccessful.

Don't try the Alligator Slide at home. It's still experimental, and only to be used in Life-and-Death situations like the one I had today.

Within ten minutes I was at Sebastian Inlet State Park. The Park Ranger, Jack, said I wouldn't be able to get an emergency campsite until after 5:30, an hour away, so I just hung around and we chatted.

The hour passed quickly as I learned that he worked for the embassy in Australia, Greece, Hawaii, and a number of other places until his retirement several years ago. He took this job two days a week to get out of the house, which enables him to limit the amount of time he spends with his girlfriend. That's how they've managed to stay together for over a decade.

The comment reminded me of a Rodney Dangerfield quote: "My wife and I don’t sleep together, we don’t eat together, we don’t even talk. We’re doing everything we can to save our marriage!"

He also suggested that I watch the dolphins breach. They come to the same spot every day around dusk and dawn to feed, and he showed me the location just down the road from the guard shack. I had to wait for about an hour, but it was a very pleasant hour.... the temperature was perfect, the sun was shining, there was a slight breeze... I could've stayed there another hour.

I set up my tent and cooked one of my dehydrated meals, then sat by the water listening to the waves lap, the birds call, and watching the sun set. I don't think I've felt this relaxed in a very long time.

The video above shows how easily entertained I am. I spent at least five minutes playing with it.

After I ate I went back to the site where I watched the sun set. Now there was a lightning storm in the distance, and getting closer. This morning I saw that I might be in for a bit of rain (40%) and it looks like those odds are increasing. I checked my weather app and saw that it's now 100% within the next thirty minutes.

Watching the storm was fantastic.

The lightning flashes were becoming more frequent, with no time between them. And they were beautiful.

Eventually, as the storm continued to get closer, it dawned on me that I should probably shower. The wind was starting to pick up, so I figured I didn't have much time. In fact, by the time I scooped up my shower stuff and clean clothes, it was getting close.

When I had finished showering, I decided not to dry off. If I didn't get to the tent in time, it wouldn't matter if I had dried off or not.

My neighbor's light stayed on until 12:30. I only saw him once, earlier while I was eating, when he came out with a dog the size of the spoon I was using. The man was shaped like a barrel, wearing a wife-beater tee shirt, and when he briefly opened the door or his RV the smell of marijuana reached me 40 feet away. My picnic table is on the other side of my tent.

When the storm arrived, it struck with the fury of Thor's hammer. Storms aren't generally a problem, but because I was in an RV campground I had to pitch my tent on gravel. That means there's no way to stake down my tent or rainfly, and if you've ever camped you know that means you're not getting much protection from the rain. Here you can see the rainfly stuck to the tent wall as a result of the wind and rain.

The winds, I'd guess, were around 30 mph/48 kph, with some gusting. On the windward side, I had to keep my foot pressed against the bottom of the tent; otherwise it would lift up that side about a foot off the ground, as well as push it inward by at least that much. The tent poles were bending, but nothing broke.

Paradoxically, I was having a really good time. Perched on top of a waterproof sleeping pad I remained completely dry, and I had already put everything back into the panniers so none of my gear got wet.

I made sure I stayed off the wet part, but later realized that it wasn't really wet... the tent floor was thick enough so that I could touch it and still stay dry. If I left my hand there for a minute it would become moist, but not wet.

Almost as abruptly as it started, the storm passed and the sky cleared. This is a crescent moon, but it sort of looks full.

The timing of the storm's ending was perfect because there was a launch from Cape Canaveral at 9:47. I walked over to the water's edge again and videoed it, but the first part didn't turn out very well. This part didn't either, but at least it's something. As you can see, the lightning continued, but to the east instead of the west.

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An eventful day.

Today's ride: 20 miles (32 km)
Total: 379 miles (610 km)

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Nancy GrahamWonderful storm videos.
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1 week ago

Mark BinghamThanks, Nancy. As you can imagine, the real thing was far better and I wish there was a medium to share it.
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1 week ago

Jon AylingSpectacular storms! I too really get a kick out of being in a tent during a storm, as long as I stay (mostly) dry.
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1 week ago