Day 25 - Nov 20, 2013

Don’t you hate it when the alarm clock goes off because you forgot to turn it off on the day when you can sleep in. Well that’s what happened at 0530 hrs, but we did go back to sleep for a couple of hours and then got up. Amazingly, the winds had died down to 5-6 mph and things were overcast, but still nice and relatively warm. It was going to be T-shirt and shorts kind of day. Yea.

We had time for a nice breakfast of eggs, bacon, bagel and coffee. Then things got busy. First is was the pumpout boat coming by to empty the holding tank, then it was getting ready to go ashore. The free water taxi to shore showed up promptly at 1000 hrs and we were ashore in in another 10 minutes.

We visited the tourista shops and walked some of the historic areas.

Light showers settled in, but we decided not to let them ruin the day. Next, we walked about a half mile to the San Sebastian Winery where we took the tour and participated in their wine tasting. Nothing exciting, but it was interesting. On the way back to the marina, we stopped in at Pizza Alley for a garbage pizza and a couple of brews. We called it a late lunch. (That means no need for dinner).

Back at the marina we waited in the boaters lounge and chatted with other cruisers until time to catch the water taxi. Really gloomy skies all around on the way back to the boat. Hope this mess blows out overnight.

Well that’s about it for the day in St Augustine. The journey continues tomorrow.

Location: St Augustine, FL. MM778

Day 24 - Nov 19, 2013
 After a blustery night, the wind and current had us pinned firmly to the dock. Getting underway about 0745 hrs required some help from the marina staff to push the bow out as I used engine, transmission and rudder action to clear the dock. That same current now became an asset as we proceeded south.

Once we cleared Kingsley Creek we rolled out the jib. The combined engine, tidal current, and northerly winds gave us great speeds. We saw speeds of 10.4 mph as we passed the B.B. McCormick bridge. Our timing with the tidal currents the remainder of the day was nothing short of phenomenal. We never had opposing current until we turned the corner to enter the St Augustine channel where we rolled in the jib.

We took a mooring ball at the St Augustine Municipal Marina. We must have doing something right this day. With 17+ wind and chop, Donna took the helm and guided us slowly toward the buoy. I was able to grab the mooring pendant and attach our lines on the first attempt. Boy, what a feeling of relief washes over you when you are securely tied to the ball. The wind and wave action just seem to fade into the background and become inconsequential. Whew! Secure at 1645 hrs. What a day!

Tomorrow we will visit the city.

Wednesday Morning. What a difference!





Location: St Augustine
Distance Traveled: 62.2 miles
Avg Speed: 7.6 mph
Max Speed: 10.6 mph