Highly developed Daytona Beach and marshy Ponce De Leon Inlet. Today we saw some of the extremes in Florida. The former chock full of rows of modern condo buildings and the later isolated and grassy marshes surrounding a shoaly inlet.
Opening our throttle to closer to cruising speed at 2,400 RPM's and taking advantage of a favorable current, we made over 65 statute miles today after our 7am start from St. Augustine where we stayed 3 nights on a mooring ball. We enjoyed our stay there and spent quite a bit of time touring and dining with the Gatsby's and Sea Mist's.
A few nice shops, a used bookstore and of course the highlight, the Castillo de San Marcos which the Spanish built in 1695 after defeating the local French forces and which was transferred to the British, back to the Spanish after the American Revolution, to the U.S. As a state in 1845, to the Confederacy and back to the U.S. after the American Civil War. As the expression goes, a lot of history happened here.
Our average SOG, which we now measure in mph, was 8.2 mph - not bad when you factor in waiting for bridge openings and slowing for shoaling. We have now travelled 1,007 statute miles since leaving Rock Hall, Maryland 43 days ago. Sylestial Star is now at anchor behind a small island just in from the ocean so we should have the wash of the waves to lull us to sleep.