On to Thunderbolt

Left Jekyll this morning at 7:45 heading north to Thunderbolt, Ga,..a suburb about 6 miles outside of Savannah.  The tide was dead low, and the first mile or so north of the Jekyll marina is a notorious shallow section of the ICW.  Needless to say the depth sounder got a lot of attention, but all went well.  I had a good feeling about the trip after the show I received while waiting on the sun (dolphin pic)  They feed in the shallows around the marina at low tide and, based on their intent look at me, must get a hand-out on occasion.

The rest of the trip went well, all 92 miles, and I was tied up by 5 pm.  I included a pic of Alchemy's dash while underway for those uninitiated to the world of boater electronics:  Radar on the left, Color Chart Plotter center, autopilot, depth sounder, shifters/throttles, spread about...quite handy stuff!!

Another bowl of "Dave's Soup" tonight...may be the last, even though it is very good.

Boat Soup

So...I'm hungry and there are raw ingredients going bad in the boat fridge...What to do?  Dave's one pot boat soup.  1 lb of ground beef, 1 big jar of Ragu, 1 can corn, 1 can green beans, 1 onion, 2 potatoes, little salt/pepper/sugar....water...boil...Damn,!! (Bottle of wine as well,...wish I had a few fresh shrimp to go in here!)

Best $60 bucks spent so far on this trip!

How many good things can I say about my folding West Marine Bike!  Bought at the North West Creek marine yard sale with the help of my good friend C.L. Grantham, this has been my cruiser transport in all of the stops.  Today I did about 10 miles around Jekyll including 4 miles of beach riding.  It got me all around St Augustine and Fernandina as well.  Don't Leave Home without it!

Jekyll Island...Who Knew?

Never stopped here before, but how cool is this...Apparently, this was the playground of the rich and famous back in the day...Goodyear..Rockefeller...Vanderbilts...Pulitzer....They built a few small cottages that have been preserved, as well as, a kinda nice clubhouse (finished in 1888) which is still well used!  I think Mia had it wrong...I'm pretty sure this is where JFK Jr had the wedding party, rather than Cumberland Island.  Rumor has it that the founding of the Federal Reserve actually started here over a few drinks.  The historical marker states that Goodyear died at only 58...worked himself to death only a year after finishing the "cottage" here.

Back in Fernandina !

An uneventful day,, with sunny weather and light winds, made the first day of travel back north very peaceful.  I have the boat set up for single handing, with line holders along the port side positioning the lines so that the dockhands can easily reach them from the dock while I bring the boat alongside.  It works very well although it does suggest a nice tip after tying up!  I made it a short day (60 miles) to take advantage of the least expensive fuel in Florida, which is available just up the waterway in the morning.  ($3.51/gal is what I was quoted over the phone)  Tomorrow will also be short as I want to stop and tour Jeckle Island, Georgia, and wait out a weather front that will bring some rain and such tomorrow evening.
Jeckle is supposed to be nice...I'll let you know.

Wanted: Cruise Director !!!

We have now confirmed Mia's maximum time period to live aboard and cruise.  Although we have boated together for 16+ years, looked forward to an actual winter cruise south after retirement and planned this specific trip for 2 years, stocked the boat, forwarded the mail, and turned off the water at home...she left this morning with the "Girls" in a rental car for  Holly Springs.  No big argument, just had to get off the boat and back "home".....

32 Days, 10 Hours, 15 Min.....Just in case you were wondering.

The blogs may be less frequent and intertaining, but I'll do my best to keep them coming.  Alchemy will  be heading back soon.  Apologies to friends who we will not be seeing on the way North.

Captain Dave

Friends

We have made some friends here in the marina and last night six of us walked across the street to the brewery for a beer sampling. Carol and Rick from OH live aboard their sailboat and are headed further south after the holidays. So are Cindy Ann and Steve from upstate NY. It is very nice to have friends to spend time with and to wave to as they ride their dinghies back and forth to their boats in the mooring field. It was also lovely to stop by in our dinghy today and be invited to enjoy freshly baked cookies at Cindy Ann and Steve's! 

Today, boat friends Susanne and Les from NC stopped on their way driving north after having celebrated Christmas in Ocala, FL. We had a lovely lunch at the Tasting Room, which is by far the best meal and restaurant we have experienced in Saint Augustine! It was great to catch up with them and receive some news from home. Les is an author and told me he has been enjoying my tales but that it is the first cruising blog he has ever read that is about everything BUT cruising. You get to hear the truth from friends...

Tomorrow, Tracy and Chris are driving up from Stuart, FL to spend a couple of days playing with us here. We have stocked up with plenty of wine and tuned the guitar - Tracy can sing and so can Cindy Ann and Steve. We are lucky to have many and talented friends.