October 31 - November 01, 2023 Tuesday- Wednesday

October 31, 2023 Tuesday

Monarch was sitting in the mud in the morning while we went out to breakfast giving the tide time to rise. We ate at the Twisted Table which is a small new place that is trying hard to be unique. Sharon enjoyed her French Toast that was done as a kind of baked cake.

Back on Monarch we untied our lines and headed to a marina down the ICW that promised better gas prices than anyone else in the area but we would only be able to get in at high tide. We turned off the ICW and followed the narrow-marked channel to the basin where there were lots of docks and boats. We turned to port and then starboard and onto fuel dock. It was getting breezy out earlier than our forecast predicted but we were well protected in the key hole marina.

We picked up 66 gallons of diesel fuel, carefully turned Monarch around, and headed back out to the ICW where we joined a line of other south bound boats.

The early fog had burned off and it became a sunny day with a nice breeze.

As we headed south we checked the weather as the weather radio was reporting gale conditions starting this evening. The stretch along the ICW from the Georgia Line to the Vero Beach had numerous sections of open water between narrow protected canals. The open sections get the full force of the wind and while the ocean swell is missing the shallow waters can stir up into a rough mix. We debated turning up the Saint John River and going up to the city of Jacksonville wait out the weather. First, we decided to see if the free dock at Sisters Creek had any room for us and fortunately we found a spot at the dock.

We motored up the creek, fighting the current to the protected west end of the dock and after giving the vinyl rub rail on the dock a good bump, we tied up the boat with the help of a trawler Captain who was docked behind us. We offered the captain a beer for his assistance and which he gladly accepted, and introduced his wife. They have been cruising full time for 25 years since he retired at 55.

Once Sharon and I settled in we enjoyed the warm sunny afternoon with a walk around Sisters Park. The park doesn’t have much other than boat ramps and a metal building that is used for fishing events and as a voting prescient. There is no business within walking distance so it looks like we may be staying on the boat for a few days.

In the evening I added additional fenders to protect us as the north wind started to push us hard against the dock. I added extra lines as a precaution. I put up the enclosure panels to give us a warm place to sit and watch the beauty of the marsh that surrounds us.

November 1, 2023 Wednesday

The wind came in late last evening with a steady twenty-knots and guest to thirty above that. The dock is floating and well secured with concrete piles. Marsh grass to the north protected us from any waves as long as we didn’t get a real high tide which is not likely now that the full moon has come and gone.

The weather was cooler and the heavy cumulus clouds hid most of the sunshine.

We spent the day reading, sleeping and relaxing since there is nothing to do here other than fish from the docks and there are always lots of cold looking men bundled up in heavy coats manning their fishing rods.

We had Don and Wilma, from the trawler, a Monk brand called Last Dance, behind us and they stayed for a glass of wine. Don told us of his life from the army, air force then computer manufacturing production management and finally he started a very profitable company that moved dirt and stripped land for Florida real-estate developers. They have a house in Florida and spend six months a year cruising up the southern East Coast on the their boat since they retired.

October 30, 2023 Fernandina Beach Marina

Thick fog greeted us in the morning with water dripping off the stainless-steel rigging and coming into the port holes and onto the cushions where hopefully the sun will come out later and dry it all up. I went below as soon as I popped my head up as teeny tiny biting bugs attacked me. I couldn’t see them but I could feel their bites.

We waited until slack tide at eleven in the morning to pull anchor and go into the Fernandina Beach Marina to dock for the night. We wanted to fill our water tank, go to the grocery store and just walk and ride our bikes around the pretty town without having to worry about being attached by the biting bugs on the way in and out in the dinghy.

As soon as we docked where the dock hands told us to dock, their manager arrived to tell us he needed us to move because he had a full house of boats coming in. Fortunately, the engine was still running so we moved the lines and fenders to the other side of the boat and moved to the other dock. We had said we didn’t need any electricity so I think that is why that gave us the slip they did but it also didn’t have water which I needed. My hose just reached the slip ahead of us and I filled our tank but hopes of washing down the deck didn’t happen, while Sharon caught up on laundry in the marina facilities.

We set up the bikes and took a ride to the grocery store. Some of the ride is through neighborhoods which is nice but much of the ride is along a main route and the traffic is annoying and a little intimidating. We purchased some fresh fruit and veggies along with some milk for yogurt making and loaded them into our panniers and took another way back that took us by a bar we like called the Principle’s Office located in an old school that has been turned into a boutique hotel. All of the facility is very nicely done and we felt so posh drinking a fancy cocktail in the wood paneled bar dressed in tee shirts soaked from the hot bike ride.

Back on board we had left over quiche for dinner along with fresh salad for which we had purchased the fixings. We ate below deck to avoid the biting bugs.

The quiet anchorage.

October 29, 2023 Sunday

We decided to spend the day resting and putting the boat back in order for inshore travel so we decided to hold off on going into a marina for another day. We made a reservation for the marina in Fernandina Beach for tomorrow and set about cleaning up the boat, moving the bikes on deck along with the boat oars and switching the off shore fishing equipment for the coastal rod and reel.

Sharon made quiche for dinner with broccoli and we had a quiet evening. We did some phone calls with family to make sure they knew we were safe in harbor.

October 28, 2023 Saturday

It was another long day but I was starting to get in the groove of the trip with four hours in the cockpit on helm watching the autopilot and boat traffic and then four hours trying my best to sleep. I was starting to feel pretty good but I was still sleep deprived and when we finally anchored in Fernandina Beach late in the afternoon, it felt good to be anchored. I slept for twelve hours that night indicating a lack of quality sleep .

At eight in the morning on Saturday off the coast of Georgia, I switched from the main tank to the auxiliary tank that holds 19 gallons and it will get us into Florida with fuel to spare.

Over all the trip was successful and we saved about twenty percent of the miles we would have had to cover along the ICW and in much shorter number of days.

We ate dinner at anchor in the cockpit and watched the moon come up over the big factory complex that sends large clouds of steam into the sky.

October 27, 2023 Friday

The sunset and sunrises were simple but the full moon made the trip special. I love moving when the moon is full and the skies are clear making it so easy to see what is going on out on the water. Sharon was at the helm as we passed the ships going in and out of Charleston and Savana. I moved the twenty five cans of diesel fuel from the deck to the main tank using a pump I have.

As the trip progressed the swell gradually became shorter and things down in the cabin stop flying around so much. It was amazing how many things did fly off the shelfs during the trip.

In the evening the moon light reflected on the ocean as the swells rolled by toward the shore behind the horizon. Sharon does well with the middle of the night shift and tends to send me back to bed when I check on her after her ten to two watch. So I slept another hour and came on watch from three to eight in the morning so Sharon could sleep a little longer, too. I listen to recorded music to stay entertained and awake.

People oystering with traditional style tongs in the area of Adams Creek.

October 26, 2023 Thursday

The current was against us going down Adams Creek until we approached Beaufort NC and the current changed and soon we were headed out of the inlet going nine knots. Lots of fishing boats were in the harbor as expected. Tomorrow there will be many more enjoying the weekend.

I checked on the single sideband net to let the Waterway Cruising Club know we were headed offshore and what our plan was. We also let our kids know our plans before we lost cell phone coverage.

The outlet to the sea was rough and once we turned toward the south-east it improved some but it was a long rocking ride. The sea state was not bad but the rolling swell of five feet at eight seconds caused the boat to rock and rock. We did not get sea sick but we had to be very careful moving around.

There was just enough wind to tease us into putting up a sail only to have to take it back down an hour or two later. The high pressure system was keeping the winds light and variable mostly from the north east at ten knots.

We did get several visits from the dolphins. One dolphin jumped out of the water higher than I had ever seen one jump, maybe twice his length, he looked like he was surprised as he looked back down for a place to land.

I trawled some fishing lures during my daytime watches and I had a couple of hits but I was unable to land any of them.

Sharon had prepared some dinner which I put in the crook pot to finish cooking, which was simple and good. I do not need anything spicy when it is rocky conditions.