Day 13, Fernandina to St. Augustine

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We just arrived in St. Augustine. 

Yesterday, we traveled from an anchorage halfway between Hilton Head and Fernandina Beach. I would have blogged, but we were distraught about nation happenings, and I was not in the mood to blog.

We sailed through Georgia on the intercostal, something I never thought I would do, and while it was not as easy as ocean sailing, it was at times peaceful and serene. Some of the bridges are really cool.
Ann saw a bald eagle on our way, perhaps a sign that America will survive, as it always has. Or maybe it was just a bird on a red day marker.
The marina at Fernandina Beach was as easy as they come in terms of docking. Just pulled right up to the floating dock. We had great views of the ICW in both directions.

We walked into town on Amelia Island to a recommended restaurant and had great tapas.
As if we needed a reminder of the hazards of the ICW, there are many derelict, abandoned and beached boats along the way. Perhaps this boat anchored at high tide without realizing that the tides on this stretch of the ICW are over 7 and 8 feet high.
Even on the Aquamaps chart on the iPad, we saw one trouble spot labeled "Shoaling, No Joke".
As we approached our destination, we saw some industrial factories blended in with the landscape.
This is a railroad swing bridge. When the trains come through, the bridge swings closed, and boats have to wait. Last year, we waited 45 minutes for trains to pass at a railroad bridge in Virginia.
Another beautiful rainbow today.
These dredging boats were set up in the middle of the channel, with shallow water all around. I drove within several feet of them to avoid running aground. I guess the dredges are making it less shallow there, but that was the scariest part of the day.
About 20 miles from St. Augustine, there is a stretch around 10 miles long with houses and their docks along the water. Some are gorgeous, some tasteless, some small, and all of them have docks right in the channel, so we had to go very slowly for over an hour to get through.
Finally, we arrived in our destination. I washed the boat down filled the water tank, fueled up the boat, showered, and headed into town for a birthday dinner celebration. Tomorrow is my birthday, but we'll be in the ocean for 10 hours, so we celebrated it today.
Our plan is to leave the dock no later than 6:30 tomorrow morning so that we can arrive in Port Canaveral before dark. 

Then, Saturday, we'll go the rest of the distance offshore to Stuart, our new home for the Winter.

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