As we were driving from Key Largo to Cocoa Beach, we stopped at a rest area.  As I was walking back to our trailer I noticed that it was leaning, that the driver side was definitely lower than the passenger side. This was not new, I had noticed this in the past but had attributed it to a slope in the ground, rather than a problem with the trailer.  This time there was no doubt that it was the trailer, not the ground. After we set up, I crawled under the trailer, expecting to see a weakened or broken spring.  What I found was a broken spring shackle and one that appeared to have been broken for a while. After some research I determined that Glenn’s Tire and Auto was the best place to do the repair.  After talking with Todd, their Service Manager, he suggested that I go to Ferguson’s Auto Supply to get the parts they would make the repairs this next afternoon.  At Ferguson’s I discovered that they had the shackles, but not the broken piece to which they were attached.  I spent the morning being directed from repair shop to another trying to find out how to get the missing part.  Finally I stopped at Giant Recreation World in Palm Bay and a salesman in their parts department recognized that I had a MORryde suspension and found a kit with all the replacement parts that I could order online.  I drove to Glenn’s to show Todd what I had ordered and made arrangements to bring our trailer in to have the work done. The lesson here is to crawl under your rig every so often and do a visual inspection.With the trailer repairs taken care of we could relax and enjoy our time in Cocoa Beach.  We had stayed in the area before and had already visited the Kennedy Space Center and other typical sights. One of the attractions that most visitors don’t check out are the Thousand Islands. They are a group of natural, modified, and spoil islands in the Banana River Lagoon. During the early 1970s ditching by dragline was used in an effort to eliminate salt marsh in order to control mosquitoes. Most of the productive salt marshes that once rimmed the Indian River Lagoon were degraded in a similar manner. One side effect of this dredging was the creation of a maze of narrow trails through mangrove islands and hidden hammocks that are spectacular for kayaking. The canals provide shelter for manatees, dolphins and a wide variety of coastal birds. Many groups lead kayak tours from the Ramp Road boat launch and we saw several groups as we paddled around the islands and into the mangroves. The day was perfect – clear and sunny, with light winds. We paddled into a small lagoon, looking for a place to land our kayaks and eat lunch.  Were we surprised when we found two picnic tables half submerged in the water!  Not your normal lunch stop, but certainly the most unique lunch spot we’ve had on a kayaking trip.

A special treat was to watch the launch of a Saturn V rocket by SpaceX from the Kennedy Space Center.  Even though we were miles away, we could hear the rocket engines and see the flare of the rocket. Another couple of fulltime RVers, also from Michigan, Jim and Diana Belisle, were spending the winter just south of us in Melbourne Beach.  We were able to meet with them and some friends of theirs, Fred and Bonnie, for dinner.  We all had a great time and hope to do it again, somewhere down the road.

The next morning we got to Glenn’s Auto as early as we could.  They got right to work and we hung out, hoping it would be a quick job.  It took longer than we expected but they did a great job and we were on the road by early afternoon.  Next stop, St. Augustine.