Visit Jetty Park after Hurricane

Third time is the charm! It has been two weeks since I was hunkered down for Hurricane Matthew. The Sunday after the hurricane passed the previous Friday, I made a visit to Cocoa Beach to see what the damage was up there. There definitely was more structural damage than in Melbourne. I went over to visit Jetty Park but it was closed. The Jetty would have been the closest to the eye other than the Air Force Station on Cape Canaveral. I drove over to the new boat launch, and there was a Disney ship there. There is no terminal at this spot but people were getting off and walking around.  I noticed there was another Disney ship in their normal spot. My car is the silver Accord, use it for reference of the size of the ship.

Disney Dream just sitting next to boat launch

Okay, so I headed back to Rustys for lunch and a cold rum runner.

My second try was last Thursday, six days after the storm and the Park was still closed. They must had some real damage. So today, one week from the last try, I went again and it was open. But, the fishing pier and the concession stand and the store were all closed. The beach was open. Even the campground was closed and had no one. I have never seen that!

The fishing pier at Jetty Park

Overall, the fishing pier did not look too bad from the entrance. It was weird to see it with no people.

Zoomed in picture of the Fishing Pier at Jetty Park

When I zoomed in my telephoto lens, it was possible to see there was structural damage at the far end of the jetty. I was able to crop this photo for a closeup.  You can see the waves breaking onto the pier.

Waves breaking on to fishing pier at Jetty Park

I decided to walk over to the beach side to try and get closer look at the damage. Of course, I think you are suppose to keep off the rocks (see sign)

Fishing pier damage at Jetty Park after Hurricane Matthew

The beach also looks like it lost a lot of sand. The beach is closer to the dunes than it has been.

Cocoa Beach from Jetty Park

 There were not many people swimming, and the lifeguard station had a red flag. But this sail-boarder was having a great time...

Sail-Boarder at Cocoa Beach at jetty Park

 There were two ladies at the rocks checking out the pier.  They asked me what kind of bird was flying over the water. I looked up and saw an osprey.  I told them what it was. They both had British accents. They asked me what were the birds that looked like pelicans. I told them that they were Brown Pelicans. We talked about the birds and they said they were on the boat that was docked nearby. They said it was the Azamara Quest and they had been sailing from Montreal down the East coast of the United States.  There next stop was going to be Key West.

As I was leaving, I yelled over to them and asked where they were from. They said Sydney Australia and that most people on the boat were from there too.  It was some kind of charter. I told them they would have fun in Key West and they should drink some rum. One lady said, "How about a Pina Colada?" I told her they were good but you have to like coconut.

I headed back to my car and saw that a baby osprey was hanging out on the camera tower.

Young osprey on camera tower at Jetty Park

 As I was taking pictures from differnet angles, a lady who was fishing with a group said she may be caught in the rocks. She kept reeling and she said that it was moving slowly. I was having a Deja-Vu from a fishing trip to the Keys. I had pulled in a seven foot nurse shark. Sure enough, she yells to the men that she has a shark. She wanted to cut the line but one of the men had a net and he caught it.

Nurse shark being netted at Jetty Park

Nurse shark in the net

Man unhooking line from nurse shark which they released at Jetty Park

 I talked to the lady and she said that nurse sharks just want to be let go.  They are not real aggresive and normally just swim away. She said earlier in the week she was fishing on the beach and caught a black tip shark.  As she was trying to get her line off the shark swung around and tried to bite her ankle. She says they are aggressive.

The whole time I am talking to her a little blue heron was sitting on the rocks next to us. The lady said that bird has been around forever and is always here. I think I have taken it's picture before. A few more will not hurt. I like the wind blowing its feathers...

Little Blue Heron

Little Blue Heron

Little Blue Heron

I noticed that one of the light poles was shorter...

Light pole missing light at Jetty Park

 As I was leaving the Park, I noticed the two Australian ladies walking out of the park along the road. I stopped and asked them if they wanted a ride.  The one lady said that they needed the exercise, "...and this way, I can have two Pina Coladas."

I drove back to the boat launch and this ship, smaller than the Disnay Dream, was in the same spot.  No terminal but the people were getting off and walking around the area. The ladies told me that they had visited the Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday.

Azamara Quest

When I got home, I looked up the Azamara cruise line.  They have two ships that each hold less than a 1000 people, and typically the price is an all-inclusive including alcohol and excursions.  They have a nice 14 day cruise from Miami to San Diego through the Panama Canal. May have to find out the details!