Sailing South: Georgia then into Florida

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Beaufort, SC

The ICW through Georgia also passes further away from larger cities than the rest of the waterway. For instance, a visit to Savannah, GA is considered a side trip. Most say well worthwhile, but we have a plane to catch and need to get to St. Augustine in Florida.

Our first anchorage in Georgia is on the Vernon River, just off the ICW at mile 597. (Miles on the ICW are statute, not nautical. A nautical mile is about 15% longer than a statute mile.) The Vernon River is deeper than most places we anchored. We tried anchoring in the shallower water, but our CQR anchor just pulled through the grass. We anchored in a line behind 2 shrimp boats, a trawler and 2 other sailboats. The sunset was fabulous.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Vernon River, GA

We were off the anchor by 6:30. Our morning routine had been just that – a routine. We were both up at 6 am. I was usually the first one up and put water on to boil for coffee and porridge then I would get ready to hoist the anchor. Mary would make the coffee and porridge and pass them up in insulated cups and bowls. If the sun was still not up, we ate breakfast. If it was light enough, we weighted anchor and ate breakfast underway.

Because the ICW in this area is so far from civilization it is important to fuel when you can. We missed our opportunity and had to make a 4-mile round trip diversion to get fuel on the Killkenny River. We anchored just off the ICW on Back River. We were treated to another fabulous sunset.

Monday, November 16, 2009

Back River, GA

We checked and topped up the engine fluids – oil, coolant and transmission – before heading off at 7am. We stopped at Jekyll Island for fuel and water (and some pecan pie). From there the ICW goes out to sea. The inlet is so shallow, we had to sail what seemed to be well into the ocean to get back in around Cumberland Island.

We would like to do this passage again with goal of seeing the area along the ICW. On this trip, I had to be back in Toronto for some work and Mary was traveling to Winnipeg to visit our daughter Laura and her husband. So we did not stop to see the fabulous country. From our boat, however, the scenery was completely engaging.

We anchored on the Crooked River within site of the submarine pens on Kings Bay, GA. This is a high security facility and boats sometimes wander up the wrong creek or river. We heard at least one incursion in the night as very serious voices over loud speakers told a boater they had wandered into the restricted area.

Being anchored on a river or creek in the tall sea grass is quite a site. All you see are the masts and fly bridges of boats anchored in other creeks. We were a few hundred yards off the ICW and watched several commercial barges ply the waterway at night. Another reason not to operate after dark.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Crooked River, GA

Yep. Up and moving at first light. At 8:30 we passed through St Marys River Intlet and crossed into Florida. The first landfall in the sunshine state is Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island. We continued to the St John River Inlet and Jacksonville, FL.

The St. John River is a major commercial river. Fortunately, there was not too much traffic today. Looking carefully at the chartbook and the electronic charts, it was apparent we could ‘cut the corner’ a bit. The current was with us and we found the entrance of the ICW on the south side of the river.

Getting out of Georgia also meant we had lower tides, but the tidal currents were just a strong. At one bridge, we were motoring at 5.5 knots and making only 1 knot over the ground (SOG). Once past the bridge, our SOG increased to a blazing 3.5 knots.

We stopped at a marina in Jacksonville Beach after anchoring out for the past 5 nights. This marina had a pool where we enjoyed our first swim. We went down to the beach and had fried clams in a beach side restaurant and celebrated our arriving in Florida.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Jacksonville Beach, FL

We had one more day to St Augustine, FL our destination for this leg of the trip and a marina recommended by one of the people we met in Portsmouth, VA. – Oasis Boat Yard and Marina. We were leaving our boat there for 2 weeks and wanted to do some work before we left and have the marina do some work while we were away. We were still not happy with the motor mounts after the incident in the Alligator river and our battery charger was not doing it’s job.

The St. Augustine Inlet was reputed to be tricky. The Waterway Guide recommended against going out to sea through many of the inlets without in depth local knowledge. This inlet was one of the ones with every changing shoals and buoys that were moved on a regular basis.

What we found is that if you treat the navigation marks with respect and stay in your channel you have a 90% chance of making it through without incident. We had experienced enough of the other 10%.

We crossed the inlet smoothly and approached the historic Bridge of Lions. The bridge was being renovated and a complete temporary bridge had been installed. We radioed the bridge requesting the next opening and were informed we only had 15 minutes to wait. A shrimp boat that had followed us up the Matanzas River waited as well.

We had the time to look around St Agustine Harbour with boats anchored on both sides of the river. The larger anchorage was just off the old fort – Castillo de San Marcos in historic St Augustine. St Augustine is actually the oldest continuously inhabited city in North America, having been founded in 1565.

We passed through the Bridge of Lions and turned up the San Sebastion River to Oasis Marina and Boatyard. We had been on the water for over 2 months and enjoyed the sunshine and warmth of Florida. After 2 days of preparation and cleaning, we took an early morning shuttle to the Jacksonville Airport. Mary and I traveled to Chicago together, she taking a flight to Winnipeg and me to Toronto.

Rob and Mary MacLeod

s/v Sojourn

En route to the Bahamas