FLORIDA!

We have finally made it to Florida! But let me recap the last few weeks...We have always enjoyed Georgia. Many beautiful islands, and there always seems to be an adventure waiting for us. We Stopped at St. Simon's Island and Fort Frederica and had a nice bike ride, and did some re-provisioning. The next island we stopped at was Cumberland Island. This was our first time visiting the north end of the island, But Tim and Jill had been there before so we followed their lead. Supposedly, there was an old mansion on the island, so we decided to go ashore and see if we could hike there. With the exception of some dock workers, we felt like we had the island to ourselves. Now, Jill would tell you we had a lovely stroll along the island...and I guess we did. I, on the other hand would describe it a little differently. I would say it was more of a hike on semi-open trails surrounded by wild animals! Ok, maybe not scary wild animals, but wild none the less.

One of the 3 wild horses we saw

 

"Wild" armadillo

 

When we were (hopefully) coming to the end of our walk, we came across a few fellows who explained to us why we had the island to ourselves. This was the weekend for the annual boar hunt and the island was closed! The nice, and well armed hunters promptly showed us the quickest way back to our dinghy, and we were on our way.

The next day we crossed into Florida and spent our first night in Fernandina Beach, Amelia Island. From there we stayed for a night at a free dock in Sister's Creek, Jacksonville. That is a great spot to meet a few more cruisers, and we ended up having an impromptu jambalaya dinner with everyone in our cockpit. Another great night!

Sister's Creek free dock

Next we headed to St. Augustine. We were lucky enough to be there for the annual Pirate Gathering again. I must say, this is where I met a bump in the road. My Grandma had a saying, "If it's not Jackson, it's Johnson" meaning that if one thing isn't going wrong it will be something else. Well, the boat was running well, so it was my turn. Friday night we ended up taking a trip to Flagler Hospital. No worries though, just a pesky kidney stone. The next few days were a bit uncomfortable but I was feeling better each day.

St. Augustine mooring field

The Fort

 

Two days later we were headed to Sunnyland, Melbourne Beach to see our friends, Maureen & Jimmy. Not only would there be one Gemini arriving, Links was coming too!

 

Our escort!

Links navigating the mangroves

 

We stayed 2 nights, and had a great time! And great things do happen in Sunnyland...I finally passed my kidney stone Wednesday night! Woo Hoo! Friday morning we departed for Vero Beach. We did end up with a stowaway though! Jimmy came for the day and we had a great sail!

 

Jimmy driving



 

We plan on staying in Vero until Tuesday morning, and then making the push towards Marathon! We're hoping the mooring field doesn't fill up before we get there, but I think we are making good time!

Will keep you posted!

Love the Birds of Paradise

 

Cheers!