Here, as elsewhere on our journey, we were on the lookout for manatees - not hoping to see them, but making sure we avoided them. The manatee is protected by strict state and federal laws. We knew that no manatee deaths had ever been directly attributed to personal watercraft, but we didn't want to do anything that would even give a passing member of the Florida Marine Patrol the impression that we were annoying one of Florida's sacred sea cows. Although we wouldn't see any of the animals close up, we certainly felt their presence. Many stretches of the ICW are designated manatee zones, meaning that speeds are restricted. You will probably want to stick to the main channel. Going south, this means keeping red markers on your right and green markers on your left. Although holding to the channel will mean you can travel faster, it also means you'll be sharing a confined space with bigger vessels and their wakes, so stay alert. The only sea mammals that we actually came close to on the trip was a pod of dolphins that we encountered a few minutes after leaving the launch ramp. Flipper and his friends didn't seem at all perturbed by our presence. With the engines off, we could hear them exhaling as they surfaced. For McKercher, it was a commonplace occurrence, but it was the closest I've been to dolphins in their natural habitat, so I considered it a rare treat.

As we set out southward on the ICW, I began to realize the trip was not going to fall in line with my expectations. A northerly wind had whipped up considerable chop, and I found myself getting a surprising amount of air on a big three-seater. Parts of the waterway were smoother than others, but for the most part the first day of travel was a bumpy ride. Although the watercraft that I was riding had one of the most comfortable seats on the market, I spent a lot more time standing up than is my wont. So much for the glassy water. The clear blue sky never materialized either, and we spent much of our trip running from storm clouds. Still, I wasn't complaining. According to the Sea-Doo
Info Center on my watercraft, air and water temperatures were both hovering around 80 - quite different than the chilly Pacific I'm used to. Just south of Titusville, on the ocean side of the ICW, sits the NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC). From the water you can easily see the huge Vehicle Assembly Building where the space shuttles are put together. KSC is the only place on earth where space shuttles are launched, and it was formerly the launch site for the rockets that took U.S. astronauts to the moon. Geeks (you know who you are) may find it hard to resist a closer look. I know I did.

As far as I know, it's not a good idea to pull up at the Kennedy Space Center unannounced on a personal watercraft. I visited by car, on state route 405. Parking and admission to the visitors' center are free, and you can wander through various exhibits. Inside, several space-flight artifacts are on display, including spacesuits and a Mercury capsule.Outside, you can view several life-size reproductions of spacecraft, including a walk-through model of a space-shuttle orbiter. But as long as you made the trip out here, you might as well fully give in to you inner geek and take the $14 bus tour. I'm glad I did. Having, as a child, watched those early space flights on grainy, black-and-white TV
(yes, damnit, I am getting old), I couldn't help but feel a certain thrill at visiting the Apollo/Saturn V Center. The Firing Room Theater recreates the launch of the first mission to the moon, using sound and light effects and original launch footage - in living color. The room contains actual launch consoles, status boards, countdown clocks and communications equipment. The other main attraction here is an actual Saturn V rocket - all 6 million pounds of it. Depending on how into spacecraft you are, visiting Kennedy Space Center can take a couple of hours or all day long. If you have even more time to spend in the Titusville area, I've heard that Walt Disney World and Universal
Studios Florida over in Orlando are of some interest to tourists. I haven't been to either of them myself, so I can't personally recommend them.

Day 1

About 25 miles into our trip, we joined up with Willie Wehrman, the Sea-Doo district sales manager for central and south Florida, at his home on the west shore of Merritt Island. We traveled on, past large,
ostentatious mansions, into the very heart of Sea-Doo country. Dragon Point, at the tip of Merritt Island, is where the Indian and Banana rivers join. It's not hard to spot, thanks to the large, green dragon
marking the spot. The giant beast was built as a children's playhouse. Although it has fallen into disrepair over the years, it still serves as a colorful landmark.

The community on this side of the Indian River was once the town of Eau Gallie and is still referred to that way by some, although it has merged with the city of Melbourne on the west side of the river. There
are full-service harbors on both sides. Just past the dragon, on the west side, we passed Sea-Doo's test center, with McKercher doing his best to distract me from the goings-on there. About 60 miles from our
launching spot, we came to Sebastian Inlet, the first access to the open sea we passed on our trip. McKercher led us to the mouth of the inlet to see a place called Monster Hole, which he said was the best
surfing spot in the region. Sea-Doo test riders take watercraft there to torture their hulls. Sharks reportedly like to forage here, accounting for the spot's colorful name.

On the mainland side of the ICW, at mile marker 66, is Captain Hiram's, where we pulled up to the beach and plopped ourselves down at the Bahamian Sandbar. We denied ourselves any of the tropical-drink
specialties, but we did indulge in conch fritters and crab-cake sandwiches and spent a few pleasant moments soaking up the island atmosphere. Captain Hiram's also has a marina, restaurant, open-air bar
and a limited number of guestrooms. You can also rent personal watercraft there, in case you didn't bring your own. Although not many people were there on the weekday afternoon that we dropped by,
McKercher and Wehrman said weekends are a different story. The gas pump was temporarily out of order when we visited, but Sember's Marina,
immediately north of Captain Hiram's, had a working pump.

At Wabasso, 25 miles south of Melbourne, the waterway narrowed as we passed small, densely wooded islands. Further south is Vero Beach. Watch out for yachts. Heading south, we entered an area that is said to
be favored by manatees because of warm water discharged from a nearby power plant. Speed restrictions apply. We also passed several islands that are nesting sites for pelicans, cormorants, herons and egrets.
About 15 miles south of Vero Beach are Fort Pierce Inlet and the northern end of Hutchinson Island, which stretches 22 miles to the St. Lucie Inlet.

Our destination for the first evening was Indian River Plantation Marriott Resort, just south of the Indian River Bridge. You can't miss the large marina on the east side of the waterway.

I've stayed at several hotels and motels that had the word "resort" in their names, but the sprawling Indian River Plantation Resort is the real thing. Four swimming pools, two whirlpool spas, boat rentals -
including personal watercraft, deep-sea fishing, parasailing, golf and tennis are all available. We didn't have the chance to try out any of the activities, but I did have the opportunity to stay in a beautiful
suite overlooking the pounding Atlantic surf.

Day 2

A short 15 miles later, we came to Jupiter Inlet and headed inland, past a 140-year-old, red-brick lighthouse and a myriad of marine services and into a narrow, curvy, busy, heavily patrolled portion of
the waterway replete with no-wake signs. From this point on, most of our trip was very smooth - and slow. Our course took us about 10 miles down Lake Worth Creek to Lake Worth. (Like the Indian River, the
"lakes" we crossed on the second day could also be considered lagoons.) It's important to observe the speed limits carefully here. Much of the channel (between the green and red buoys) is exempt from the
"minimum-wake" restriction, but there are no-wake zones at bridges and marinas. Marine police have the authority to jail speeders.

About 15 miles from the Jupiter Inlet is Lake Worth Inlet, a shipping channel heavily trafficked by commercial and recreational watercraft. Here we navigated around Peanut Island, a patch of green in the midst
of this industrial port. The island is a popular picnic spot for boaters and is the site of historic Coast Guard buildings and a command center/bomb shelter bunker built for President Kennedy.

From here, we continued along Lake Worth, passing between Palm Beach and West Palm Beach.

The island of Palm Beach is said to have the highest concentration of wealth in the world during the winter months. Donald Trump has a residence here, as does his first wife, Ivana. Since 1925, the skyline
has been dominated by The Breakers, a splendid five-star hotel and resort. It offers its guests golf, swimming, fishing, diving and - of course - personal watercraft rentals. From there, we proceeded to
Boynton Beach, where we met NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon at Wahoo's on the Wharf.

Now, we can't guarantee that you'll run into Jeff Gordon if you visit Boynton Beach, but he does live in the area, so who knows? Of course, it would improve your chances somewhat if you had insider information
that he was working on public-service announcements for a national boating-safety campaign sponsored by Sea-Doo. Without such privileged information, there's probably only a small chance that you'll end up
being filmed riding around in a Sea-Doo Challenger sport boat piloted by the 1998 Winston Cup Champion. But you never know.

Although Wahoo's on the Wharf had been taken over for the day by Sea-Doo's PR firm and we didn't get to sample the usual "Casual World Cuisine," the place certainly looked intriguing, with two tiki bars,
plenty of outdoor seating and an interior decor that looks like a hallucination brought on by eating psychedelic mushrooms from the Amazon rainforest. You can also rent personal watercraft at Wahoo's.

Just a few miles further on, we gassed up at Delray Beach and headed toward Boca Raton via Lake Worth, Lake Wyman and Lake Boca Raton. Many waterfront homes have private docks, but we saw some in this area that
went beyond that. One had what we would call a private port, while another had a two-boat garage.

The ICW channel through Lake Boca Raton is a no-wake zone, and by this point I was definitely feeling a need for speed, so we headed out to sea through Boca Raton Inlet.

Again unfettered by no-wake zones, we sped across the ocean waves. Actually, McKercher and Wehrman sped a little more than I did, and they had to stop a couple of times to let me catch up. It must have been the
camera gear slowing me down.

The next inlet we reached was Hillsboro Inlet, marked by a 136-foot lighthouse said to have one of the most powerful beacons on the coast. (Its light can be seen at a distance of 28 miles.) McKercher and
Wehrman were showing no signs of tiring, but they left it up to me to decide which course to follow. My sore muscles said to return to the calm ICW at this point, but my heart said it was time to pin the
throttle and get to Fort Lauderdale. A few minutes later, one of the most famous beaches in the world lay stretched out before me.

The destination

We cruised the length of Fort Lauderdale Beach, pausing to give McKercher and Wehrman a chance to make a couple of wide-open runs down where we imagined the back straight would be for the following
weekend's National Tour races. Then we headed around a long jetty and into the harbor through Port Everglades Inlet.

Port Everglades is one of the busiest cruise-ship ports in the world. It is also heavily trafficked by cargo ships, fishing vessels and pleasure boats. Be on the lookout for large, oceangoing vessels that
may not be looking out for you.

We passed through an unattractive industrial section into a residential area that was like none I had ever seen before. This must be where people who work in Beverly Hills dream of retiring to. Incredible
mansions, many with incredible yachts moored out front, lined the waterfront. Some of the houses were so formidable I thought at first that they had to be luxury hotels.

Fort Lauderdale, sometimes called the "Venice of America," was laid out with a system of canals and finger islands to maximize the amount of prime waterfront property available. If the strategy was to attract
wealth, it certainly seems to have worked.

We soon entered Bahia Mar, site each fall of the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show, said to be the largest in-water boat show in the world. Overlooking all this luxury is the very casual Bahia Cabana, our home
for the night. The Bahia Cabana boasts "the largest Jacuzzi at the beach" as well as a waterfront restaurant and bar. The hotel encompasses more than one building, so to get the full party
atmosphere, ask for a room near the bar, which was hopping during our midweek stay. For a quieter experience, ask to stay in the "annex."

Although the Bahia Cabana has docks for use by restaurant patrons, overnight mooring is not allowed, so before we could check in, we headed toward our prearranged rendezvous with Traylor and the trailer.

Public launch ramps are located in downtown Fort Lauderdale on the Seminole River, just north of Port Everglades. To get there by road, take Cordova Road north from the 17th Street Causeway and turn east on
Southeast 15th Street. The ramps are on the south side, just before the marina. Metered 24-hour parking is available.

Miles and miles of beautiful beach and a great climate helped Fort Lauderdale become America's unofficial spring-break capital, a reputation that was cemented by that classic 1960 beach-party film,
"Where the Boys Are" (not to be confused with the tacky 1984 remake or numerous porn films with similar titles). In the mid-'80s, city leaders clamped down on the rites of spring and drove the hordes of carousing
collegians away.

The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau, which represents all of Broward County, says it's doing quite fine without them, thank you very much. More than 6.4 million people, including over
1 million international visitors, are said to have visited the area last year, spending more than $3.6 billion.

A significant share of that money was probably spent on Las Olas Boulevard. On the eastern end of Las Olas, just across the street from the beach, is the Elbo Room, a modest-looking watering hole that has
been serving Fort Lauderdale since 1938 and was the setting for a memorable party scene in that 1960 film we mentioned earlier. Heading inland, the boulevard crosses the finger islands, offering a view of
still more luxury homes and yachts. In the downtown area, Las Olas is lined with antique shops and trendy boutiques. The dignified Riverside Hotel has been a landmark here since 1936. A wide selection of
international restaurants can be found on this part of the boulevard, along with an eatery that offers a one-pound cheeseburger to anyone daring enough to attempt it. I wasn't. Farther west are museums, a
performing arts center and Las Olas Riverfront, a shopping and dining complex.

You can also find plenty of places to eat and drink on A1A, the street that runs right along the beach. One of the newest and most noticeable tourist draws is Beach Place, a dining and shopping complex where you
can enjoy a drink or a meal while sitting on a second-floor terrace overlooking the beach. Beach Place is easy to find because it is adjacent to the towering Marriott hotel. The Cafe Iguana here took a
while to get started when we visited, but it got pretty lively late at night. Parking is available but a little pricey, so if you're staying nearby, you might prefer to walk or take a cab. It's possible to hail a
taxi on the street.

For those who like to think of themselves as independent thinkers and prefer a less prepackaged experience, A1A has plenty of small restaurants and bars facing the beach. I enjoyed Casablanca Cafe, an
"American piano bar" at the end of Alhambra Street with an eclectic menu and views of the ocean from indoor and outdoor tables. The 1927 Mediterranean-style building is said to have been the first house built
on Fort Lauderdale Beach.

Fort Lauderdale can be the starting point for several interesting day trips. I visited Billie Swamp Safari for a taste of the Everglades. For $9.99, you can get the fried alligator platter, which comes with salad,
sweet potato and drink (Look out! Man eating alligator!), but I opted for the combination platter, which included frog legs, venison and catfish along with tater and gator. Relax, it's not an endangered
species. And it doesn't taste like chicken. But the real reason I went to Billie Swamp Safari was for the airboat ride and swamp-buggy tour, which were very educational.

Others may prefer to take a diving trip, as the Fort Lauderdale area was recognized as one of the top 10 diving destinations in North America by Scuba Diving magazine, largely because of its natural reef
system and more than 80 artificial reefs.It's even possible to take a day cruise to Grand Bahama from Port Everglades.

The problem is, each excursion you plan takes you away from what made Fort Lauderdale a famous destination in the first place: that beautiful beach. So whatever else happens, make sure you give yourself time to
relax and enjoy the sun, the breeze and the sound of the surf.

It's the only logical thing to do.