Friday May 13: Charleston, SC

We had a really nice time in Charleston - better than I expected! Although there aren't really any bike paths, it was very easy to take side streets or the sidewalks to any part of the city. And because it only took 45 minutes to move from our anchorage to the marina, we had the whole day. The bike ride was first thing as it was supposed to be hot (and it was - let's hear it for air conditioning :-)). We rode by the Charleston City Marina and then around the island. Many old homes that are really beautiful but the upkeep must be a challenge.

The harborfront was fun with very cool fountains. One was pineapple shaped and the other one was a wading pool but Steve managed to walk in it without getting wet (he was the only non-kid in it :-)). A sign next to it said "No Lifeguard on Duty" - which I thought was interesting. There was also a pier with a number of swing on it and lots of folks sitting and swinging. It was fun.

Harborfest was opening later in the day but we rode around by it as well. There were a number of tall ships but the Pride of Baltimore for some reason was not there (as advertised). The second picture is of a solo racer - AROUND THE WORLD if you can believe that. Charleston to the starting point in France is the last leg. I can't imagine crossing an ocean in one of these things by myself to say nothing of traveling around the world.

Tim (Matt's brother), Holly, Carter and Witney came down to the boat (they live north of Charleston) bearing pizza for supper so we had a nice time on the flybridge watching for dolphins and enjoying the evening. Witney seemed to love the boat and wanted to explore every part at least twice. She was also interested in how we drove the boat! Carter and I had fun playing Mario Kart - he's pretty good though - beat me a number of times. We finally played as team members and were about to annihilate the blue team just as it was time for them to leave :-( When we come back through in the fall, maybe a sleepover on the boat for Carter and Witney??

As we left Charleston this morning, the skyline stands out as being very low profile - with the most prominent feature of the city being the church steeples. The city is very proud of this! All in all a great stop!!

Thursday May 12: At Anchor Near Charleston, SC

We stayed at the Isle of Hope marina near Savannah the other day but as we'd been to the city by car years ago there was no exploring of the city itself. Instead, the four of us (Joysea and us) piled into the marina courtesy car, drove around looking for the Wal Mart that was supposed to be within 1 mile, couldn't find it and finally settled for a Publix 5 miles away. We did manage to find the Wal Mart in the end - we had driven almost right by it! Guess 4 pairs of eyes didn't help at all :-) Just getting too old .....

The tides around here are crazy (although small by New England standards) - tonight will be another 5.5 foot drop by morning. Since we anchored tonight (and last night for that matter) at near high tide, it's critical not to be near any banks like this one that will uncover at night and leave us high and dry. So far so good. Also - this is a good reason to not get too close to the markers!

We went past Beaufort, SC and Hilton Head yesterday - typical size yachts around - as well as big homes etc. Again, land of the wealthy! Saw a hospital in Beaufort that had a dock - useful for emergencies! Never saw that before!

Tonight we are at anchor on the Stono River just south of Charleston with Joysea again. A short run tomorrow morning and we'll stay at a marina so we can visit the city (we've never been there) and just in time for Harborfest! I'm sure good seafood will be involved :-)

Tuesday May 10: Savannah, GA

A little about Jekyll Island: former playground of the rich, basically! Many of the original homes have been relocated into one historic district - others have just been brought back to their original state. This sign by the Jekyll Island Club gives some explanation (double click to enlarge it big enough to read). It's quite a building - complete with manicured croquet lawn! Many really nice (huge) homes on the island.

The bike paths around the island are really nice. Some go through natural areas, another one is a pathway near all of the historic homes with plaques giving the history of the house and more paths just along the Atlantic Ocean. It was a GREAT place to bike!

When we were at Jekyll Island, we had a chance to visit with Finally - Richard and Jill - whom we first met on Lake Michigan! They have since completed the loop and are back at "home" at the Jekyll Island Marina. We also ran into Joysea - Dave and Joyce - they were at Banana Bay when we were there in Feb. We traveled with them yesterday and today - sharing an anchorage on the Old Teakettle (teacup?? Forget already :-)) River. Sunrise was slow in coming because of the haze this morning. The coast of Georgia is made up of many rivers flowing between the also many openings to the ocean. Most of the sides of the rivers are marsh areas so there are very few if any signs of life. The chart below give you an idea of what I mean! And this is one of the straighter rivers :-)

It was a nice travel day again today as we had an early start and the wind had yet to get started. This is Joysea behind us. The rivers are still twisting all over the place and mud flats appear when the tide is low. We've discovered the down side to light winds yesterday and today: huge flies that bite! Steve looked down and his leg was bleeding. New rule: the flies are welcome on the 'fly'bridge (I know - really bad) as long as they stay put on the canvas. Screen are on the doorways at all time though or the cabin would be full of them.

Tomorrow: off toward Beaufort, SC.

Sunday May 8: Jekyll Island, GEORGIA!!

After 4 1/2 months of being in Florida, we crossed the border into Georgia! I always knew Florida was a LONG state having driven there numerous times from Ohio but when you travel as slow as we do, it seems even longer if that is possible. Some places we are skipping (like Jacksonville) because they are too far from the coast (Jacksonville is up the St. John River 16 miles) or because we have been to them by car or we will stop at them when we return south in the fall.

Last night was spent quietly on a mooring ball at Fernandina. The tides here are 5 to 7 feet so we prefer to use a mooring ball instead of anchoring if we can. It's only $16 to tie up to one. And we just drop the dinghy, head to the dinghy dock and check out the area. Steve was checking out the 'cruise ship' that was docked here. Might be a fun thing to do when we get old :-) Check out the shrimp I'm standing next to. Apparently that is their thing here like Cleveland's thing is guitars. Lots of fun shrimp around town.

Had a really nice sunset last night and were up early an off to breakfast. The terrain is again very different. Very wide open areas of marshes through which rivers meander. It's almost like we are back on the rivers in Alabama and Tennessee there are so many twists and turns. Except here there aren't barges that are a gazillion feet wide!

We passed Cumberland Island - where there are wild horses that roam the island (it has no road to it and is undeveloped for the most part) but we didn't spot any by the shore. The north end of the island is covered with sand dunes - very picturesque! Tomorrow we will stop in Brunswick to pick up our mail and then on to Savannah. Pictures from Jekyll Island tomorrow!

Saturday May 7: Fernandina, FL

The day yesterday started, of course, with breakfast at "Mary's Place." Right on the waterfront so it was perfect! Our intention was to leave yesterday so after breakfast, we went to the fuel dock to top off the tanks and pump out the holding tank. The rain started when we were about half finished :-( . After further consideration, we decided to just stay another night as Saturday (today) was supposed to be perfect. After we were back in and tied up, we watched a big sailboat get crosswise against the end of the docks because of the current - he was stuck! Having done this ourselves on the west coast of Florida, we could sympathize. Apparently pirates are the thing around here (and in Fernandina!) as they are everywhere.

Being the oldest continuously occupied city in the US (guess they don't count the native Indians that were kicked out), the history of St. Augustine is amazing. A link to the history of the city is at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Augustine,_Florida One of the individuals with the greatest influence in all of Florida was Henry Flagler. It was his railroad that opened up Florida as a place for the wealth to come. The architecture is really something. The panorama picture is of Flagler College.

The courtyard of the Lightner Museum was lovely - and included a koi pond! Steve of course was intrigued and thought we needed a picture of them. Also, Steve found the lions for which the Bridge of Lions is named. Apparently the lions went missing for a time as the bridge was redone but they are back. I thought they looked a bit strange ..... Up bright and early this morning - it was as predicted: sunny, winds from the north, no chance of rain. This is a picture of the fort from the water - seems pretty formidable to me!

Friday May 5: St. Augustine

We arrived at St. Augustine yesterday about 2 pm. It was again very windy but sunny. The municipal marina here is very nice - we're docked just south of the Bridge of Lions bridge. The current continues to never be going our way but at least we talked to a fellow MTOAer and found out it's not just the ocean tides that control the current but rivers and winds as well. It almost sounded hopeless to try to time the coming in and out of the tide so I guess we just go with the flow - literally!

As we left yesterday morning and I looked back at the entrance to our anchorage last night, it sure looks like we shouldn't have been in there! But Steve said it was a go so in we went :-) Much of the travel was now through relatively narrow channels lined with homes and VERY LONG docks. Must be lots of money in dock building around here as the tidal changes make it necessary to have docks that go way out from shore (literally hundred of feet in some places).

Even when the waterways opened wider with marshes along one or both sides, the variety of shoreline continues to amaze us. One stretch was just sand dunes (west of the waterway so not on the oceanside).

There were some fun wildlife sightings today. The eagles are back as is evidenced by the one we spotted sitting along the bank (this picture is for you, JP! Be sure to double click on the picture to see it better.) and the other we saw flying. The white tail is so distinctive when in flight. I'm not sure what a bunch of manatee are called but we saw what I first thought was a shallow sand bar only to realize it was 8 or so manatee swimming 50 yards off to the side swimming together. You can see their noses and tails mostly! There were also a pod (?) of dolphins feeding by swimming in a circle to herd the 'food fish'. Lots of splashing going on.

Once we were tied up to the dock, a bit of exploration was in order. We stopped by the Castillo de San Marcos (a fort) but didn't go in. There is cannon shooting scheduled today - I think we're close enough to hear it from here in the boat! Cemeteries here have above ground burial tombs - I assume due to area being basically at sea level. Tons of restaurants here. We found a New Orleans style seafood place for a late afternoon snack.