Wednesday, February 9, 2022
Palm Beach to Vero Beach
Home to at least 30 billionaires, Palm Beach is one of the wealthiest places in the U.S. We'd planned to bike around the island this morning on the Palm Beach Lake Trail, but for the first and only time of the trip, we got rained out. So under dark skies and in an intermittent drizzle, we drove the streets of Palm Beach instead.
After crossing onto the island, we stopped at the Town of Palm Beach Marina, where, if approved, you may rent a slip to park your yacht. If you're a working-class tycoon with a modest 60-footer, you can park here for just over $38,000 per year. Wow! But if your yacht requires a larger 294-foot slip, that's gonna run you a more substantial $456,068 per annum. Now we're talking real money. Well, at least that includes the WiFi...
Big, beautiful banyon
Yacht parking, Palm Beach Marina
We had to illegally park just to look at them
We next drove through a ritzy shopping district, then north along the Atlantic side of the island before entering the residential district, where we were able to glimpse the mansions of the well-to-do, hidden behind large, squared-off privacy shrubs reaching up to 20-feet high. In the hopes that we'd be biking, I was dressed in a safety-yellow long-sleeved t-shirt, so I really blended in here - with the landscapers!
The ocean side of Palm Beach
Rush Limbaugh southern command
Flagler Museum
Royal Park Bridge
Before leaving Palm Beach, we stopped by the Society of the Four Arts Botanical Gardens and Philip Hulitar Sculpture Garden. Only a few plants were in bloom, but we really enjoyed the sculptures (and the restrooms). Driving the island was nice, but we'll have to come back sometime and bike.
Palm Beach Triangle Sculpture
The Society of the Four Arts
Philip Hulitar Sculpture Garden
F.D.R. and Winston Churchill
Interesting art
Just north of Palm Beach is the easternmost point in Florida. Access to the point is all but blocked by a huge Marriott complex. We couldn't find any nearby legal parking, so we parked in an unauthorized space a couple of blocks away, trudged around the Marriott, and made our way out onto a concrete pier jutting into the water from the easternmost point. You can't keep us away!
Easternmost point in Florida
The foreboding sea
Another half hour north along the A1A, we reached The Nature Conservancy Blowing Rock Preserve. This is one of those places in the world where the incoming tide hits shoreline rocks in such a way that water spurts into the air in a dramatic fashion! But we weren't there at high tide, so no spurting was happening. We took a look at the craggy rocks and walked through a tunnel of vegetation along the dunes before moving on.
The Nature Conservancy Blowing Rock Preserve
Dune Trail
View from the dunes
The weather improved as we drove north, finally reaching a sunny 70 degrees by the time we reached Vero Beach, where we pulled up to the home of Tom's Uncle Chuck and Aunt Troy at just past 4:00. After a few minutes, we all piled into Chuck's van and he took us to see the town. Vero Beach has tree-draped streets, several nice parks, a sparkling waterfront, and more shopping than Troy can handle. Very nice!
Chuck and Troy's orchids
After the sightseeing, Chuck and Troy treated us to dinner at a little place near their house called Mimmo's Italian Grill. Everyone's entree was wonderful, but the hit of the night (for all but Tom) was the appetizer of mussels Chuck ordered for the table. Yum!
Aunt Troy and Uncle Chuck
Lodging: Vero Beach Inn & Suites, near I-95. A big, reasonably priced room with a king-sized bed, but the WiFi was woefully inadequate.
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