Thursday, April 08, 2010

One week in April



The shuttle Discovery ascending just before dawn on Monday above a deserted A1A. The crowds are starting to wind down now with the main snowbird season ending and Easter in the rear-view. By next week the streets and beaches will be mostly quiet again.

Water warmed up rapidly late last week and the cobia run was on. I scored an epic day Monday when we saw over 20 fish and landed four hefty ones for the dinner table. Surf temp is in the comfortable low 70s now. Notice how much colder the beaches just north of the Cape are this time of year.



Sea surface temperature graphic courtesy of
Rutgers Institute of Marine and Coastal Science.


The Canadian dollar has been on a tear lately reaching par with the US dollar on Wednesday, the first time since May 30, 2008. It hit a low of .77 last March before beginning this climb back to even parity.



After a disappointing February for condo sales, March set a record with 50 MLS-listed condos and townhouses closed in Cocoa Beach and Cape Canaveral, the busiest March since 2006.


Mortgage rates have continued their steep increase and are now firmly above 5% for 30 year fixed rate loans. One month trend below.




"Science has never drummed up quite as effective a tranquilizing agent as a sunny spring day."
___W. Earl Hall