June 24-26 Jacksonville, Fernandina Beach

We made a leisurely exit from the mooring field and I was still debating whether or not to head out into the ocean instead of the tortuous ICW route to Jacksonville.   

Heading out to sea

Two sailboats who had left just before us split up, one heading up the ICW, the other heading out to sea.   I was going to follow one of them.

The 5 weather sites I check were all pretty much in agreement about the 2-3 foot ocean swells.  Where they differed was the thunderstorm forecast.  Three said severe storms 50% possibility, the other two just casually mentioned rain.

What, the hell I thought.  It’s a few miles longer but the cooling sea breeze will be a welcome relief!

Heading up the ICW after we turned around out in the ocean

So we headed out to sea in very mild swells.  I had just turned north out of the inlet  when Jack, resembling a pale green alien, asked how long we’d be out at sea.  I said 4 hours.  His hue went from pale to a deeper, more penetrating green as he said he was feeling ill.

And just to drive the point home he ran out to the side deck and lost his breakfast.

Ok, probably not a good thing to mention, 4 hours at sea.  Then again it was beneficial to discover his sea sickness now while we could easily turn back.

And turn back we did.  Back through the inlet and up the ICW.

At least we had a rising tide for a few hours which pushed us up to a blistering 8 mph.  But then we hit the current as the tide switched and plodded along at 6 mph for an hour before merging in the St. Johns River.

The initial anchorage I found was right in the river.  Bit it was too open for my comfort, and over 30 feet deep a hundred yard from shore.  It was also right off the main shipping channel and Jacksonville is a busy port with large ships constantly coming and going.

(Misplaced our pictures from Jacksonville)

So we abandon that idea and briefly discussed a free dock up past Sisters Creek, but Mary had misgivings, so we up the river we went to another anchorage I had checked out.  Its between Blount Island and Little Marsh Island.  It was only a few miles further up river and it turned out to be a nice little spot across from some commercial docks.    But the holding was good and we were the only boat there.

Weather reports indicated heavy thunderstorms rolling our way but they seem to evaporate before approaching us near the coast.  So I’m hoping that will be the case tonight.

Jack and I left Mary on board and took the dinghy out for a ride up the St. Johns River towards the inlet.  We intended to run by the Mayport Naval base after checking out that free dock I was lusting after.  Free dock means no marina fees.  

We turned up into Sisters Creek first and found that Mary was right with her misgivings.  The free dock was in great shape but our boat is a bit too big to get in there and turn around, especially if the current is running.  And the current was zipping through when Jack and I checked it out.  So scratch that off the list of possibilities.

We headed back out the creek and into the St. Johns River another 7 miles out towards the ocean and saw the Mayport Naval Ship Yard.  There were 7 ships in there but we couldn't enter the basin and had to be satisfied with seeing them from a distance.  We didn't linger but headed back soon after.  All told we probably ran in excess of 15 miles in the dinghy.  It's times like these I'm glad we have this not so tiny dinghy even though its such a pain to haul it back aboard all the time.

We headed back to the boat to have cocktails and watch the dark clouds roll in and out without leaving any rain.  I really wish it would rain.  The humidity is a killer … 95% and its 92 degrees out.  Ugh.

The Free dock.

We headed out the next morning with the tide and made the turn into Sisters Creek and cruised right by the free dock which I pointed out to Mary.

 It started out to be another uneventful cruise up the ICW.  The weather was actually pleasant as we passed through Nassau Sound and started traveling up the Amelia River by Amelia Island .  

I was keeping an eye on the dark clouds out west of us.  Around mid afternoon as we

More dark clouds 

were passing under the Amelia Island twin highway bridges those clouds were looming right over us.  And the winds had begun to pick up.  Off in the distance we could see torrential rain.   Wonderful.

So much for anchoring at Cumberland Island.  The anchorage is open to the southwest and the thunderheads were moving from southwest the northeast.  And the southwest winds were intensifying.  

Coming into Fernandina Beach

We hit some brief, but pretty intense gusts as we rounded the big corner on the Amelia River heading into Fernandina Beach. 

I called the Fernandina Beach Marina and they had a spot for us on the outside of sea wall and that's were we decided to spend the night. 

We were heading into the current and the wind was easing us on the dock making it a breeze to tie up.  We were secured in a few minutes as the dark clouds continued to roll by.  But there were only light sprinkles, almost unnoticeable.  Jack and I secured the dinghy as best we could and then pretty much hung around the boat until dinner time when we headed over to the Crab Trap, a local seafood place.  Jack loves seafood.

Unfortunately it was packed.  Mary didn't want to wait around for an hour so we ended up at Marina Seafood Restaurant which was pretty good.

That's the owner seated on the bench in front of her place, Marina Seafood.

I talked with the owner, and lady about our age who ran the place like a well oiled machine.  The serving staff, mostly youngsters, were running all over carrying out her orders.

We walked up the street for ice cream to our favorite ice cream place here, Island Time.  Its one of those dispense-your-own yogurt places.  Naturally Jack, unfamiliar with the procedure, filled a cup to overflowing and then some.  It took him a while to inhale all of it, but he managed.

After diner, a pound of frozen yogurt.   Mary and I suffered with 3 oz.

We opted for another day here in the marina.  The weather reports all were indicating a 60% chance of thunderstorms with winds out of the SW which, if strong, can make the Cumberland Island anchorage uncomfortable.  So we decided to stay at the marina and be decadent running the air conditioning and taking long showers.  It meant we wouldn't be anchoring at Cumberland.  The weather was just too unstable and we didn't want to expose Jack to an anchor dragging at 3 AM during a thunder storm.

He's lucky.  Before, we didn't have an electric vacuum

We took some time to clean the boat up a little and even engaged Jack for vacuuming detail.   He did very well!

After cleaning, we all clamored in the dinghy for the 9 miles across Cumberland Sound and the St. Marys River to Cumberland Island.  

Alas, we saw no submarines.  The Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay at Kings Bay is almost right across from the Cumberland Island anchorage.  And every once in a while submarines from the Atlantic Submarine Fleet return to this base.  Lucky cruisers have followed them up the sound albeit behind several little patrol raft with machine guns at the ready.

The dinghy dock at Cumberland Island

Walking up the dock towards the forest path to the beach

On the beach.  Its low tide so there is plenty of beach

We did see the famous wild horses on the island as we cruised up to the dinghy dock.  

The walk to the beach is about ¾ of a mile through the forest and we spent several hours there.  It was low tide when we arrived and we were almost chased off the beach by the rising tide.

The ride back was a little bouncy and wet but a little salt water never hurt anyone.  We parked the dinghy at the marina dinghy dock this time and made the decision to leave here tomorrow around noon so we can traverse Jekyll Creek on a rising, and near high tide.  Jekyll Creek runs along Jekyll Island and is notorious for being a shallow area.  It runs from Jekyll Sound to St. Simons Sound and most of us go through it at high tide.  

We needed groceries so after we returned from Cumberland I got my bike down and rode off to the Winn Dixie which was closer than Publix.  It was also next to the Wal-Mart but I only had my bike and with the grocery list I had, there was room for nothing more.

I think it must be an unconscious goal of mine to bike to every grocery store near water.  I’ve certainly gotten a good start on achieving that goal.

When I returned we stowed the groceries and got my bike back aboard.  We had a nice chat with a sailboat couple from New Zealand who were tied up near us. We also talked with a couple on a catamaran from Michigan who had just started living aboard after selling all their stuff, a growing theme I'm discovering.  It's amazing how much fun it is to be on a transient dock meeting all sorts of people.

 

We had cocktail hour, and ate shrimp for dinner before walking to Island Time again.  We didn't want to be bad grandparents and leave our poor starving grandson without an ice cream fix.  Only 9 ounces this time though.  Guess he couldn't handle another pound of yogurt.

We went back to the boat and lounged around as dock walkers gawked at our boat.    Its kinda funny listening to the comments which I'm sure they wouldn't be repeating if they knew how clear their voices were to us inside.

It seemed like a good night for a movie, so we loaded up Shrek at Jacks suggestion.  But first we had to engage in a video call with Jennifer and Dave, Jacks parents, so they could actually talk with their son who conveniently neglected to text or call them all last week.

After Shrek, Jack and I hoisted the dinghy back aboard and after an engine room check we settled in for a good nights sleep.   Tomorrow we head to Brunswick!