Big Surprise

When Ed and Linda asked me if I would like to transport their boat Surprise from Charleston, South Carolina to Jacksonville, Florida on November 3-8, I immediately said yes; after all, this is a trip I've always dreamed about. After leaving Charleston, the first part of our trip was through the ICW. I have never seen a landscape like this - so raw in its beauty. I was astounded! Its winding turns, bridges, dolphins, and of course, the quiet beauty of the marshlands truly spoke to me. There were a couple spots that got quite shallow at about 6'5", but Surprise, with her draft of 5'8", went through without a hitch. We made it to Beaufort, South Carolina on the afternoon of November 4 and spent the night. The second part of our trip began on Wednesday, November 5. We headed to the Atlantic for an overnight trip to Jacksonville. The daylight hours went quickly; they always do when you're with good friends. We caught two fish, ate one, and played with the electronics. We saw more dolphins. Surprise, a Niagara 40, ran like a champ. She nicely handled 5 foot rollers like it was nothing. As the sun rose on Thursday, November 6, we entered the St. Johns River on our way to our final stop at Green Cove Springs Marina. The St. Johns River goes through the city of Jacksonville and then opens up into a huge body of water as wide as Canandaigua Lake and 5 times as long. It took us five hours to reach our destination at Green Cove Springs Marina. Thank you Ed and Linda for offering me this opportunity! I checked one more event off my bucket list. It was truly a trip of a lifetime, and I'll never forget it.