Adventuring with Aurora
| Vessel Name: | Aurora |
| Vessel Make/Model: | Beneteau Oceanis |
| Hailing Port: | Baltimore MD |
29 January 2017 | Peck Lake, FL
Sunshine State?
We have been fortunate in fair weather, but not today! This was a socks and foul weather gear morning that improved not at all as we left Vero Beach and made our way south through fog and steady rain. By the time we dropped the anchor at 4:00 PM the accumulated salt on the cockpit surround and bird [...]
25 January 2017 | Cape Canaveral, FL
On the ICW in Florida
Blue skies and bright sun (most of the time) mean lots and lots of boats in all types and sizes here. As we head south down the Mosquito Lagoon and Indian River, we are surrounded by water that is less than 5' deep, so we and most other sailboats must stick to the dredged ICW channel. Our power boating [...]
20 January 2017 | Palm Coast, FL
Farewell to St. Augustine
This morning we said goodbye to the oldest town in the country and started south down the ICW once more. St. Augustine is small and charming! With the boat tied to a mooring ball off the city marina, we took the dinghy into town for several days of strolling old streets, reading historical markers, sampling good restaurants and doing some hardcore tourist things. You just can't be there and skip the old fort, Henry Flagler's hotel-turned-college, and the sightseeing trolley! And when the sun went down, we had a perfect spot in the cockpit for wine and the view of the waterfront's holiday lights. We won't return by boat, but there are roads and an airport. . .
20 January 2017 | Palm Coast, FL
Farewell to St. Augustine
This morning we said goodbye to the oldest town in the country and started south down the ICW once more. St. Augustine is small and charming! With the boat tied to a mooring ball off the city marina, we took the dinghy into town for several days of strolling old streets, reading historical markers, sampling good restaurants and doing some hardcore tourist things. You just can't be there and skip the old fort, Henry Flagler's hotel-turned-college, and the sightseeing trolley! And when the sun went down, we had a perfect spot in the cockpit for wine and the view of the waterfront's holiday lights. We won't return by boat, but there are roads and an airport. . .
15 January 2017 | North of St. Augustine, FL
The last sailboat heading south
We spent last night at anchor next to the marshland north of St. Augustine with a southbound trawler our only company. There were plenty of small fishing boats buzzing around us during the day, but only a few sizable trawlers headed south on the ICW and not another single hull sailboat. Hello?? Hello?? [...]
13 January 2017 | St. John's River FL
Goodbye and Hello
We have returned to Florida after a warm, wonderful Holiday visit with family and friends. Santa even brought us a new grandson on the 22nd!
The real deal
The Guide mentions shrimp boats, but this place seemed like a most unlikely home for them, with a narrow channel past a few summer homes and their docks leading to The Leland Oil Company. Then the first one of five or six shrimpers arrived, bringing with them a flock of pelicans, clouds of gulls, and a few dolphins! While the working boats unloaded their cargoes, we tied up at the "marina" and chatted with a cruising couple from Toronto. Our search for local seafood turned into a stroll down the two streets in town in the pitch black of no street lights and dogs barking, followed by supper on the boat, but the pervasive odor was right.
One of the fishermen gave us a hand with lines and a good push away from the dock the next morning. McClellanville and her people are genuine!