Yesterday (Tues) was mostly another slog with some hair-raising highlights. First, our Jacksonville anchorage had a fast current and we were in about 15-20' of water. When the current shifted at 0200, we dragged anchor and the 100+' of chain we had out. Ryan and I got up and reset - that held until 0545 when the current shifted again but we were getting up at 0600 anyway. So off we went.

The transit from Jax to Fernandina was gorgeous low-lands like yesterday. Really beautiful! Once in GA, we went by the Navy ballistic missile submarine base in Kings Bay which made me a bit nostalgic about my Navy days. That wasn't long-lived since the Cumberland River inlet was treacherous! It was blowing 25-30 kts out of the north and the current was flowing out so we were moving at 7+ kts and rolling. It was quite the wild ride. After we rounded the red buoy and put the wind and waves on our beam, things got much better and we were able to make good time by surfing down the waves even though we were headed upstream the current.

Next was the day's highlight: as we made our way up Jekyll Creek and under the bridge, the water started getting really thin . . . and more thin. It was about 1530 with low tide at 1647. Basically, the water ran out of the creek so that we had to stop and wait for the tide to turn. We could finally float and make way again at 1750. It was very frustrating to be just sitting there. Two other sailboats that had transited Cumberland inlet with us were able to barely keep going but they only drew 4 1/2'. They stayed a bit further to stbd than I (a nod to Ryan), but I don't think it would have made a difference. The wind direction, extreme normal tide shift (7'), and nearly full moon combined to provide a pretty rare event that, unfortunately, we were caught in.

We finally got into our transient slip at Brunswick Landing Marina at 1915. Ryan and I got things settled, showered, shaved, and hit the town looking for food about 2100 - not too much to choose from late on a Tuesday night here, but we found a great local place called Tipsy's that was open. We had dinner and a margarita to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, then made our way back and quickly fell asleep.

Since we got in so late after the marina office closed, we docked in a temporary slip for the night. After sleeping in this morning, we fueled, pumped out and moved iWinds2 to her slip where she'll stay until Ana passes. Ryan and I washed her down and got her looking beautiful again before Ryan had to leave for the airport to catch his flight back to Key West. Let me thank him for being a great mate on Leg 1! I just wish the weather had cooperated better to let us leave Key West as originally planned and sail outside along the way.

I'll finish the cleaning chores, laundry, and make iWinds2 ready for a short layup until weather and Leg 2 planning lets us leave again. I fly back home tomorrow. Stay tuned!