Passage - Palm Cove Marina Jacksonville, FL to Marineland Marina, At. Augustine, FL
8:04 AM underway
3:40 PM docked Marineland Marina
50 miles 8.4 engine hours

We decided to skip St. Augustine because we wanted to get a little further south. We had stopped at Marineland the previous trip and really liked the marina and theft you could walk across Route 1 to the beach or the Marineland Dolphin Adventure. But what I remember is the TV shows made here for underwater filming. Sea Hunt, Tarzan, Revenge Of The Creature and Benji Takes A Dive were filmed here. But mainly the real attraction were the dolphin shows. Check http://www.marineland.net/history.html

The day was a nice ride. Not too hot or chilly. Just right. We knew there was a navigation concern from the Coast Guard, speaking with boaters and www.activecaptain.com at Manzanitas Inlet. Often where there is an inlet meeting the ICW shoaling occurs rapidly and changes often. Temporary buoys are moved about to give a good passage though the troubled areas. But, one of the temporary buoys was blocked from view by a boat that had gone aground and had either got tangled in the buoy’s chain or had tied to the buoy. Either way you couldn’t see the buoy headed south. I had a sail cat in front of me slow way down for me to pass at a very bad spot. I told him I would stay behind him until we got through the troubled spot. He insisted and came to a stop. I passed on by. He then headed off in the wrong direction not being able to see the out of sight buoy as several boats had done. I tried to radio him but he did not answer. He corrected before running out of water but I was with advantage viewing the color of the water and actually seeing the shoal from the fly bridge of Liquid Therapy. It was my estimation that the temporary buoys needed to be repositioned as they were certainly not on the edge of the shoal. Anyhow, we all got through on a falling tide. If you had run aground on the falling tide you would be stuck until it came back in for sure.

We docked at Marineland Marina and headed across the road to check out the ocean just as the sun set. Dinner aboard was Susan’s chicken casserole. It was yummy and then it was an early bedtime.

In case you are confused on the dates I post, it’s usually because I’m too tired to type after the day’s adventures. So, There.

Today’s Picture is sunset looking across the AICW from Marineland.