Day 26 - Nov 21, 2013
The weather guessers got it wrong again. It was supposed to start off overcast with a small chance of showers mid morning, another small chance mid afternoon, clearing and sunny by around 4PM. Well it started off overcast, started raining and got worse from there. The one good thing I could say was at least it wasn’t cold. Oh, wait, that’s coming on Sunday.
Not much to tell about the day. We did see what looked like an incident of texting while boating. A sailboat just ahead of us was all over the channel and really hugged some of the marks very close. He was headed to the green side and appeared to be getting close to a mark. Next thing I know the boat hits the mark. It was a glancing blow, but I’m sure the helmsman never even saw the mark. Later the same guy was headed outside the channel so I gave him a couple of blasts on the air horn. That got his attention and he corrected course. I think he was either falling asleep or texting on his phone.
As we neared Daytona, the rain intensity increased and visibility dropped. Thankfully, we had decided to stop for the day. We pulled into Halifax Harbor and got drowned while docking. So much for clearing and sunny.
Oh Crap! We just had a bat fly into and around and around in the cabin. Donna was going berserk! We kept ducking and it finally flew back out the companionway. I think it’s time to close the boat up.
Location: Halifax Harbor, Daytona, FL. MM 832
Distance Traveled: 54.2 miles
Avg Speed: 6.9 mph
Max Speed: 9.2 mph
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
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).
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.
Location: St Augustine
Distance Traveled: 62.2 miles
Avg Speed: 7.6 mph
Max Speed: 10.6 mph
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
Day 23 - Nov 18, 2013
Beginning to sound like a broken record…FOG. Up at 0530, checked conditions outside the boat, found dense fog so I climbed back in the bunk and went back to sleep. I awoke when something bumped the boat around 0700. I got up and checked outside and found the newspaper and two muffins had been delivered to the cockpit. A quick brew of coffee and breakfast was served.
By the time we finished the muffins, the fog was beginning to thin out a little so we started getting ready to depart. We got underway about 0830 and headed for the dreaded Jekyll Creek. We arrived at the creek just a little after high tide so passage was not as stressful as anticipated. Skinny water at G19 would have been extremely difficult to negotiate had it been low tide.
Leaving the creek we headed out into Jekyll and St Andrews Sounds. St Andrews was kind to us today. Current was going out and the wind was from the NW so the wave action was minimal. When we reached the turn for the Cumberland River we began a long fight against the current rushing toward the ocean. We did not pickup favorable current until we neared the Kings Bay Navy Base. We did see two of the wild horses on the island.
Approaching Kings Bay, we started getting a few showers and increased wind from the SW. The weather forecast was now calling for 20+ mph winds tonight so we decided to forgo anchoring off Cumberland Island. It’s a nice anchorage in settled conditions, but is totally exposed in all directions. We continued on in hopes of getting a mooring ball at Fernandina.
The showers increased in intensity and the wind piped up considerably. A phone call revealed there were no mooring balls left at Fernandina so we took a slip because of the predicted weather. We're finally in FL.
Location: Fernandina, FL. MM 717
Distance Traveled: 42 miles
Avg Speed: 6.2 mph
Max Speed: 9.0 mph
Beginning to sound like a broken record…FOG. Up at 0530, checked conditions outside the boat, found dense fog so I climbed back in the bunk and went back to sleep. I awoke when something bumped the boat around 0700. I got up and checked outside and found the newspaper and two muffins had been delivered to the cockpit. A quick brew of coffee and breakfast was served.
By the time we finished the muffins, the fog was beginning to thin out a little so we started getting ready to depart. We got underway about 0830 and headed for the dreaded Jekyll Creek. We arrived at the creek just a little after high tide so passage was not as stressful as anticipated. Skinny water at G19 would have been extremely difficult to negotiate had it been low tide.
Leaving the creek we headed out into Jekyll and St Andrews Sounds. St Andrews was kind to us today. Current was going out and the wind was from the NW so the wave action was minimal. When we reached the turn for the Cumberland River we began a long fight against the current rushing toward the ocean. We did not pickup favorable current until we neared the Kings Bay Navy Base. We did see two of the wild horses on the island.
Approaching Kings Bay, we started getting a few showers and increased wind from the SW. The weather forecast was now calling for 20+ mph winds tonight so we decided to forgo anchoring off Cumberland Island. It’s a nice anchorage in settled conditions, but is totally exposed in all directions. We continued on in hopes of getting a mooring ball at Fernandina.
The showers increased in intensity and the wind piped up considerably. A phone call revealed there were no mooring balls left at Fernandina so we took a slip because of the predicted weather. We're finally in FL.
Location: Fernandina, FL. MM 717
Distance Traveled: 42 miles
Avg Speed: 6.2 mph
Max Speed: 9.0 mph
Day 21 - Nov 16, 2013
I should not have used the word "progress" in yesterdays blog entry. We awoke this AM to the dreaded “F” word. FOG. I couldn’t see the other boats near us, I couldn’t even see the banks and marsh grass of the river banks.
No one was going anywhere until this stuff burned off. When The fog finally did lift enough to see where you were going, we had already missed our tide window to pass through Little Mud River. We made the day of it puttzing on the boat. We’ll try it again tomorrow.
Location: North River, GA. MM 651 (Near Darien, GA)
Distance Traveled: Zero miles
Day 22 - Nov 17, 2013
We awoke to the same Foggy conditions this am. Today however, the fog lifted about 0900 hours and we got underway about 0910. Tide at the trouble spot was still high and just beginning to fall. We made it through with the usual near heart stopping moments.
On through Buttermilk Sound and the Mackay River we went.
As we approached Lanier Island, I decided we could make it to Jekyll Island and pushed on. As we neared St Simons Sound I could see a large rather dense Fog bank rolling inward from the ocean. A change of plan was in order. We had already passed all the suitable anchorages except the one at Lanier Island. The choice was the anchorage or take a slip at Morning Star Marina (old Golden Isle Marina). We needed to do laundry and I really needed a good nights sleep, so we opted to get a slip.
Location: Morning Star Marina, Lanier, GA. MM 677
Distance Traveled: 26 miles.
I should not have used the word "progress" in yesterdays blog entry. We awoke this AM to the dreaded “F” word. FOG. I couldn’t see the other boats near us, I couldn’t even see the banks and marsh grass of the river banks.
No one was going anywhere until this stuff burned off. When The fog finally did lift enough to see where you were going, we had already missed our tide window to pass through Little Mud River. We made the day of it puttzing on the boat. We’ll try it again tomorrow.
Location: North River, GA. MM 651 (Near Darien, GA)
Distance Traveled: Zero miles
Day 22 - Nov 17, 2013
We awoke to the same Foggy conditions this am. Today however, the fog lifted about 0900 hours and we got underway about 0910. Tide at the trouble spot was still high and just beginning to fall. We made it through with the usual near heart stopping moments.
On through Buttermilk Sound and the Mackay River we went.
As we approached Lanier Island, I decided we could make it to Jekyll Island and pushed on. As we neared St Simons Sound I could see a large rather dense Fog bank rolling inward from the ocean. A change of plan was in order. We had already passed all the suitable anchorages except the one at Lanier Island. The choice was the anchorage or take a slip at Morning Star Marina (old Golden Isle Marina). We needed to do laundry and I really needed a good nights sleep, so we opted to get a slip.
Location: Morning Star Marina, Lanier, GA. MM 677
Distance Traveled: 26 miles.
Day 20 - Nov 15, 2013
We get underway about 0720 hrs. We are shooting for another anchorage to setup the timing another trouble spot, Little Mud River. Nothing noteworthy about the day, except we arrive at the North River to anchor and find 4 boats already there. We proceed further up river to a second prospective anchorage and find 2 more boats already there. There is room for us so we drop the hook and make preparations for passage through yet another GA trouble spot tomorrow. Maybe tomorrow we can make better progress.
Location: North River, GA. MM 651 (Near Darien, GA)
Distance Traveled: 37.2 miles
We get underway about 0720 hrs. We are shooting for another anchorage to setup the timing another trouble spot, Little Mud River. Nothing noteworthy about the day, except we arrive at the North River to anchor and find 4 boats already there. We proceed further up river to a second prospective anchorage and find 2 more boats already there. There is room for us so we drop the hook and make preparations for passage through yet another GA trouble spot tomorrow. Maybe tomorrow we can make better progress.
Location: North River, GA. MM 651 (Near Darien, GA)
Distance Traveled: 37.2 miles
Day 19 - Nov 14, 2013
Rewind and replay time. Today we revisited the 6 mile section we back tracked three days ago. The storm that caused us to seek shelter has finally moved on. Temperatures are still at record lows. This morning the temp was 33F with northerly winds making it seem even cooler.
We get underway about 1100 hrs. Timing the Hell Gate trouble spot …again. The tide at Isle of Hope was at dead low and we had to transit some extremely low water for about an hour before reaching the Vernon River. We arrived at Hell Gate just after 1300 hrs when the tide was only about 1 hour past low. We delayed entry and allowed four trawlers to proceed ahead of us. We waited until they completed passage and then entered the cut. Water depth was tolerable until we reached the turn in the cut. Water depths dropped to less than 5 feet. We were able to throttle back and “search” our way through.
Once through Hell Gate we picked up speed for a while. We were running ahead of schedule so we bypassed the designated anchorage for today. We were able to continue on to Kilkenny Creek, the last anchorage in the area. We turned off the ICW and motored over two miles up the creek, past the shrimp boat docks and arrived at our anchorage for the night. We are now where we should have been 3 nights ago. Maybe tomorrow we can make better progress.
Location: Kilkenny Creek, GA. MM 614
Distance Traveled: 27.2 miles
Avg speed: 5.2 mph
Max speed: 7.9 mph
Rewind and replay time. Today we revisited the 6 mile section we back tracked three days ago. The storm that caused us to seek shelter has finally moved on. Temperatures are still at record lows. This morning the temp was 33F with northerly winds making it seem even cooler.
We get underway about 1100 hrs. Timing the Hell Gate trouble spot …again. The tide at Isle of Hope was at dead low and we had to transit some extremely low water for about an hour before reaching the Vernon River. We arrived at Hell Gate just after 1300 hrs when the tide was only about 1 hour past low. We delayed entry and allowed four trawlers to proceed ahead of us. We waited until they completed passage and then entered the cut. Water depth was tolerable until we reached the turn in the cut. Water depths dropped to less than 5 feet. We were able to throttle back and “search” our way through.
Once through Hell Gate we picked up speed for a while. We were running ahead of schedule so we bypassed the designated anchorage for today. We were able to continue on to Kilkenny Creek, the last anchorage in the area. We turned off the ICW and motored over two miles up the creek, past the shrimp boat docks and arrived at our anchorage for the night. We are now where we should have been 3 nights ago. Maybe tomorrow we can make better progress.
Location: Kilkenny Creek, GA. MM 614
Distance Traveled: 27.2 miles
Avg speed: 5.2 mph
Max speed: 7.9 mph
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