log 126; Day 346; May 1, 2009; Hilton Head, SC

On our way back in from the Atlantic (at Fernandina Beach) we saw this tug and Coast Guard heading out...I think to escort in a submarine

Because...just a few miles up the ICW was this submarine base. It's a little hard to pick out, but the sub is in the center of the pictureJust north of Fernandina Inlet is Cumberland Island...where, for years, horses have run wild.

As we were getting close to St. Simons Island, we passed just in front of this huge freighter

Deb, Mary, and Patti, took a quick tour of St. Simons

When we left St. Simons...this was our sunrise as we ventured out into the Atlantic at 6:45 am

Lots of shrimp boats in this area...we passed this one heading north to Hilton Head

From St. Simons Island to Hilton Head we ran about 3 to 4 miles off shore

Entering Harbourtown Yacht Basin in Hilton Head

When we look out our front window, we see the light house

Log 126
Day 346
Friday, May 01, 2009

8:30 AM EDT
Location: Harbourtown Yacht Basin, Hilton Head, SC.
Weather: 72, clear, with calm winds. Forecasted to be mid 80’s and sunny.

I’m not much of a golfer, but if you have ever watched golf on TV, like Augusta, or Hilton Head, you have probably heard a certain kind of bird chirping in the back round. That very distinctive sound, is the one I hear just outside our boat in Hilton Head this morning. Also...if you ever see a picture of Hilton Head you probably see the red and white stripped light house. That light house, is what we see as we look out the front of our boat. Pretty Cool.

The last couple of days...have been beautiful weather, and great cruising. On Wednesday, we left Fernandina, FL. heading for St. Simons Island, GA and had planned to go inside, but the weather looked so beautiful, at the last minute, I decided to run outside. But, after a 2 mile ride out to the ocean, we decided to come back inside to the ICW, because it was too sloppy out there. As we were coming back inside, we passed a fast tug boat, and 2 small Coast Guard boats heading out into the Atlantic...I think they were headed out to bring in a submarine, because we passed a submarine base just a few miles up the ICW, and the same equipment was sitting there. The 45 mile run between Fernandina and St. Simons was very pretty, with lots of different scenery. The navigation is fairly easy, but there are a couple of very narrow spots, and a couple of shallow spots not marked on the charts. In between this are wide open areas with lots of water and heavy commercial traffic, as you can see from the HUGE ocean freighter we met just before coming into St. Simons. We arrived St. Simons at about 1 pm, and were greeted by Andy and Mary (Good News), as well as Brad and Patty (Salvage Crew). Shortly after arriving, the girls headed out with a marina loaner car to get some groceries, while I rinsed off and dried the boat. At 5:30 we were invited to Salvage Crew for a captains meeting (Mary calls it that, but it is really an excuse to have cocktails) and then walked up to dinner at the restaurant at the marina. Good food and a great time. Great to see Andy and Mary again; and finally meet Brad and Patty.

Yesterday...we left St. Simons at first light (about 6:30) and headed out into the Atlantic. It was a beautiful sunrise, and a beautiful day. Good News and Salvage Crew were headed to Thunderbolt, GA (to visit Savannah) and we were headed to Hilton Head. We followed one another out of the channel about 3 miles before being able to head north. The Atlantic was not too bad, but still had a 2 to 3 foot swell from the SE. I set the auto pilot on a course of 30 degrees, and the rpm’s to 2150, which is about 20 mph, which made the ride much easier. From the channel going into St. Simons Island, it was 68 miles to my waypoint...which was the channel of the Savannah River. From there I followed the Savannah River about 4 miles west, and then went north again to join the Calibogue Sound, which is the entrance (from the Atlantic) to Hilton Head. In total we ran 85 miles, and arrived at our slip just before noon. Once arriving, we washed the boat (it was very salty) and took a walk around the Harbor. This is a very nice, and expensive place. We found a spot to sit on the deck, have a margarita, and watch the boats go by. It was very nice, and there was lots of activity. Back at the boat...emails; charts; banking; and organizing. Dinner was Italian beef, and the movie was the last 2 episodes of American Idol

Today...as soon as I finish this log, I will get the dinghy ready, and organize the boat. Our plan is to go exploring, and find a spot on the water for lunch. I have been to this area several times (both by land and water) so I have a couple of ideas of where we can head to. It should be a great day!

I’ll keep you posted.

Bob

Log 125; Day 343; April 29, 2009; Fernandina Beach, FL.

On Monday we enjoyed a great dinner with our friends, Ernie and Debbie Veale

On our trip up the ICW, just north of Jacksonville Beach you come to the St. Johns River, where this ship was in dry dock

Along the water way you see this amazingly long piers. Due to such high and low tides it takes this long a pier to be able to get their boats to deep water. I can't imagine what they cost to build

This is a look at Fernandina from our slip

Deb found a pirate friend

So I had to find one of my own

Looking from town at HQ sitting our slip along the ICW

Sunset last night at our slip

Log 125
Day 343
Wednesday, April 29, 2009

5:30 AM EDT
Location: Fernandina, FL.
Weather: 65, clear, with calm winds. Forecasted to be mid 80’s and sunny.

I got up a little earlier than normal today (4:45 am)...I woke up, and was ready to go cruising. It’s still dark outside, without a hint of light to the east, but the sky is clear, and it is forecasted to be a very nice day. To the south of our boat, a few shrimp boats are parked, and they are very busy morning. One has already left the harbor.

The weekend in Jacksonville Beach...was very nice. We really did nothing special on Sunday. I got one of the bikes out, and Deb made a couple trips to Publix to stock up on supplies. It is amazing how much she can carry on her bike, and how she enjoys riding it, and going for groceries. Between walking and biking, she is getting a lot of exercise...and liking it. Me...I sat on my butt and watched the NASCAR race in Talladega...and liked it just as much. For dinner, we ate pork chops that Deb made on the stove...and the movie was the new James Bond movie (Deb rented it for $1 at Publix). It was ok. On Monday (another beautiful day) Deb and I worked on boat chores. She cleaned the inside while I washed the entire boat from the hardtop down to the water line. I also took one of our side sun screens to a canvas shop at the marina and had them sew a piece of Velcro on. Basically we cleaned and putzed all day. At 6, our friends Ernie and Debbie Veale came to the boat. We enjoyed a cocktail on the back deck, and then had dinner at the restaurant on the marina property. Dinner was good...but catching up with Ernie and Debbie was great.

Getting to Fernandina...it’s about 28 miles from Jacksonville Beach to Fernandina. Most of the waterway is normal, to wide channels, and easy to navigate. When we pulled out of Palm Cove Marina a Coast Guard boat was moving up the ICW, and we ended up following them all the way to our slip in Fernandina. About 5 miles north of Jacksonville Beach, is the mouth of the St. Johns River. It’s a very large area, and can be confusing without paying attention to the charts. In order to stay on the ICW you must go a little west on the St. Johns River, and then immediately north again on Sister Creek...which is the ICW. We arrived at Fernandina at about noon. After quickly getting the boat settled, we walked to check in, and have lunch in town. We ended up stopping at the first place we came to, and split a (not very good) cheeseburger. Later we walked into town for a walk around, and found it to be a very nice small town. This is old, historic, Florida at it’s best. Actually Fernandina sits on Amelia Island...a very nice place indeed. Back at the boat in the afternoon, Deb made a batch of chili for dinner, while I worked on the charts and travel plans for the next couple of days.

Today...we plan to leave our slip early, and make a 40 mile run to St. Simmons Island, GA. It is possible to go outside and make this run, but winds have been blowing from the east for the last several days, and that causes some larger than normal swells, so we are going to stay inside on the ICW. The ICW in Georgia is not as “friendly” as it is in other places, because of the very large tides (6 to 9 feet) and swift currents, so much more caution is required. Low tide in this area is at 6:30 this morning, and high tide is at 1 pm, so we are traveling at a good time, where we should have plenty of water in the channel. We plan to try to hook up with Andy and Mary on Good News, and their friends Brad and Patty, on Salvage Crew, in St. Simmons Island. Not exactly sure what our plans are from there, but Deb and I, do plan to be in Hilton Head sometime this weekend.

Well...the sky is starting to get very light now. The sun is not up yet, but it won’t be long. A couple of fishing boats have come by, and the marina is starting to come to life. What a great time of day.

I’ll keep you posted.

Bob

Log 124; Day 340; April 26, 2009; Palm Cove Marina; Jacksonville Beach, Fl.

A shot of the main street in Saint Augustine, Fl.

Terry Brown, Mary, Andy, and Rhonda Brown

The ICW between Saint Augustine and Jacksonville Beach

For a couple of miles there are homes lining the ICW...each one has a cool dock set-up. This one has a tiki lounge upstairs

This one is very simple

Here's the other side of the specturm

The chanel off the ICW, as we enter Palm Cove Marina

The waterway entering Palm Cove

Looking from our boat, sitting at the dock, this is the channel at low tide

If you look closely on the left side of this picture, you will see that the starboard shaft is broken, and the prop is gone. The guy standing below the boat, said he does not remember hitting anything?

Log 124
Day 340
Sunday, April 26, 2009

7:30 AM EDT
Location: Palm Cove Marina, Jacksonville Beach, FL.
Weather: 68, clear, with light winds. Forecasted to be mid 80’s and sunny.

A beautiful Sunday morning in Jacksonville Beach. Light winds, a few puffy clouds in the sky, the sun is coming up over the boats. Looks like a great day.

We enjoyed our time in Saint Augustine. Walking around the town with Andy and Mary, and having dinner at Harry’s. We also walked back into town on Friday, and had lunch at a Greek spot so Mary could have a Greek salad. After that, we walked the area...well they walked the area...I went back to the boat. I guess I’m not much of a tourist? But it’s a great town, and worth anyone’s visit. In case anyone is interested...Mary does a great job on her blog, and has lots of great pictures of Saint Augustine. You can see them @ http://goodnews.sarver.org/

Friday evening Andy and Mary came to HQ for boat cocktails (that’s the same thing as regular cocktails...except they taste better), and about 7 pm Terry and Rhonda Brown came to the boat (Terry is a logistics industry friend, who moved to Jacksonville a few years ago). The 6 of us had a great time over cocktails, and Andy and Mary left before dinner (maybe they weren’t having as much fun as I thought). Terry, Rhonda, Deb, and I had spaghetti, and drank wine till way past my bedtime. A great evening, and it was fun catching up with them.

At 6:45 am yesterday, Andy and Mary took off from Saint Augustine...heading for Fernandina Beach, where they will hook up with some other boating friends (Brad and Pattie) on Salvage Crew. We were in no hurry, so we left the dock about 8:30. The ICW between Saint Augustine and Jacksonville Beach is very easy to navigate, and deep in most places. In fact it is some of the best ICW cruising we have had in Florida. Very wide in a lot of places, and for most of it, there are no speed or wake restrictions. You go from wide open waters, with sea grass on both sides, to channels with beautiful homes on both sides. It was only about 40 miles to Jacksonville Beach, and we arrived at 12:30 pm. A great ride.

Palm Cove Marina is a nice marina just off the ICW, at MM747. As you can tell by the pictures, it has a fairly narrow channel leading to the marina, and at low tide it becomes interesting. Before heading to our slip we took on 180 gallons of fuel ($2.05 @ gallon...great price), and they put us on the T-head of dock C. After hooking up, and a quick boat sandwich, we took a walk to the marina office to check in, and get our bearings on the area. This is a nice stop. It has floating docks; a restaurant for breakfast and lunch; another one for a nice dinner; a good laundry room; a Publix grocery store about a 10 minute walk; 2 boat dealerships; and a service company on site. We plan to stay here for 3 nights...leaving Tuesday morning.

Future plans...on Monday evening, we plan to have dinner with friends of ours, Ernie and Debbie Veale. Ernie and I first met, when his company (Stellar) built a warehouse for us in the early 90’s. We have been friends ever since. Deb and I really look forward to getting together with them. On Tuesday, we plan to head to Fernandina, FL...our last stop in Florida. My hope is to then skip the Georgia ICW, and go outside (in the Atlantic) to Saint Simons Island, GA., and then go outside again, to Hilton Head Island, SC. The Atlantic will have to cooperate, but we’ll what happens.

I’ll keep you posted.

Bob