Out for Launch!

Photos by Mitch Collins


Since we have been living in Central Florida I feel we have made quite the discovery! Because of our close proximity to Cape Canaveral, we have had ample opportunity to view several of the shuttle launches, and I can assure you, NASA puts on a really great show! And yesterday, was no exception! Like the shuttle program, our time here in Florida is limited, so we decided to take advantage of our situation and head towards Titusville to see the shuttle Atlantis make her final launch. We packed a picnic lunch and ventured out to one of the optimal viewing sites, but that plan was quickly aborted once we saw how many people were there!! Mitch and I are not what you would call crowd people, so we decided it was time to come up with a new plan. Plan B.

Plan B primarily consisted of getting as far away from Titusville and all of the people as quickly as possible! Once we were able to do that--we could move on to plan C.

Plan C was to drive back North and then head east, at first we were just going to head back to Ponce Inlet, our familiar, but trustworthy vantage point. But as we were driving we thought perhaps we might find a decent spot to see the shuttle on or near New Smyrna Beach. Once in New Smyrna, we came across a familiar restaurant called JB's Fish Camp and remembered someone telling us that it was a good place to see the shuttle. So we stopped in and had a quick lunch before heading out to the docks behind the restaurant.

JB's was the perfect location, because it was not very crowded, it offered an intimate setting right on the river, where people could kayak on the water or just relax on the dock while waiting for launch time. We were very amused by the pod of dolphins playing nearby and Mitch was able to get several pictures of them rolling around in the surf.

As it got closer to the countdown you could feel the anticipation, with everyone now on the docks, gazing south in hopes for that first glimpse of the shuttle as it cleared the tree line. The launch itself is very quick, a fiery plume hurtling skyward, following it's scheduled trajectory. Then with a final separation of the booster rockets, it disappears into another realm, far beyond the reach of common man, leaving behind a cloud of vapours in it's wake.

As Mitch and I watched the contrail, we thought once again, how this is one of those experiences, that no matter how many times you see it--it does not disappoint! And despite our earlier troubles with locating the perfect viewing site, I was quite happy that we made the endeavor!