The Map
| St Simons, GA to Vero Beach, FL Dec 2006 and Jan 2007 |
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| Wednesday December 20th we are in St Simons at Golden Isles Marina, a work in progress. We are spending Christmas here with a visiting brother Reg and with local entertainment provided by our friends, Mike and Marci. Richard also has doctors appointments to check out his damaged knee. We will spend some down time here to catch our breath after being on the run for 3 weeks. The weather is wet and chilly but this is a good spot to hunker in. |
| After a wonderful dinner with Mike and Marci on Friday, we get ready for company by cleaning, doing laundry, shopping and getting in the spirit. Reg arrived Saturday afternoon and the festivities begin. We ventured off to Fort Frederica, a wonderful record of an early settlement, with Seville oranges hanging amongst the live oaks and Spanish moss. The weather is chilly and wet on Christmas Eve but we settle in aboard, baking cookies, drinking Dark and Stormie's and making sure we have enough to entertain us. We have a wonderful dinner of roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, a bottle of Opus One, mincemeat tarts and pumpkin pie. Life is good but the wind is howling around us. We had planned to join Marci and Mike and family for brunch the next morning at the historic King and Prince on Christmas day but the boat is beating against the dock and the rain is horizontal so we stay aboard. We are so sorry to have missed it! There are others hunkered in like us, including Resolute IV and Magic, fellow sailors we have met along the way. The storm breaks late in the afternoon so we go ashore to Marci's to share in the family spirit of the season. We visit with Patrick and Di of Resolute and Dennis and Doris of Magic, chat about the next destinations and worry about Mother Nature's course. We are at her mercy and she does not have a calendar! |
| December 27th we see Resolute and Magic set off for warmer climes but Richard goes for an MRI. December 28th we set off ourselves after saying enough is enough! There has to be warmer weather somewhere south. We make it through the shallows behind Jekyll and Cumberland Island, cross a very rough St Andrews sound with winds of 20kt and come into friendly Fernandina at 4pm. Florida! |
| The day breaks clear and we are off early, moving on to St Augustine. The temperature rises to 70 degrees and we are happy. We are followed by breaching, slapping dolphins, we have the sails up once more, we pass skinny waters successfully where we see others aground but have a good current push to help us along. We cannot find space at the marina so anchor in the south harbor near Pearl S Buck, our friends from New London. We set 2 anchors because the holding is iffy but the current shifts, wrapping them around each other. An hour later and a little help from our neighbors, we are straight and settled. |
| December 30th we try to get off anchor early. The day dawns beautifully but much dancing around the anchor during the night has us coming and going so we actually leave after an hour untangling. We head down the same narrow path through skinny water to Daytona. 80 degrees and finally....shorts! Unfortunately, however, the local boaters have changed mentality, geared to speed and bad manners. The horizon is also interrupted by high rises. Welcome to civilization! We came along the face dock at Halifax Harbor Marina successfully and did manage to have a great date night at the Chart House. |
| New Years Eve we are headed out very early. The day is warm and sunny but the current and wind are against us. Richard let Penny man the helm most of the day as he napped and she navigated Ponce Inlet waters admirably alone. Yeah! We had hoped to make it to Cocoa Beach but came into Titusville to find our friends on Resolute close by. Watched many locals celebrate the New Year arrival but put our heads down early. Lots of fireworks made Otis a bit nervous but he was tired too. |
| The New Year dawned magnificently and we showered and were off the dock by 8:30am with Resolute. 40 miles to Melbourne is a comfortable travel day, The weather is a bit cloudy with sprinkles so we put the Bimini up. Our passage down the Indian River is accompanied by lots of birds: terns, wood storks, white pelicans and coots. 2:30 we are into the small harbor, have sundowners with our friends, Patrick and Di, and plan our passage tomorrow |
| The day is cloudy on January 2 but warm and fresh. We are headed out by 9 am after a trip to the farmers market and post office. All cleared by the afternoon and we are into the anchorage at Vero Beach by 4 pm. Welcome home! We have been accompanied by a manatee, red mangroves and abundant dolphins. Brother Peter and his wife, Ginger are here visiting her mother so we join them for another delicious dinner. |
| We have made Vero Beach our home for the next month to repair and refresh systems and ourselves. This is a wonderful community, welcoming boaters and not as expensive as ports further south. Access to groceries, restaurants and marine facilities makes this a favorite spot for us all. The free public transportation is fun and reliable and the neighborhood friendly and beautiful. The beach is close, art and culture across the way, the weather promising and they are dog friendly! We are amongst others we have met including Charlie and Kathy, Gerda and Jack, Patrick and Di, Denis and Doris and many we will get to know. Otis' favorite girlfriend, Jude, is here and he was quick to seek her out, too. |
| Our project list took on wings soon after our arrival and we have moved along diligently for the past few weeks. Everyone here is in the same situation, comparing notes and systems daily. The camaraderie amongst sailors is benevolent, each offering willing hands congenially and honestly. So much can be accomplished by helping each other and the bonds that are formed are irreplaceable and rewarding.. |
| Penny's Dad and wife, Jeanne, came to visit on their sojourn south and our friends from across the pond, Lloyd and Linda Parsons, are in Palm Beach where we visited them. Always good to have friends and family visit our mobile home! |
| We have also had the pleasure of celebrating Richard's mothers 90th birthday in St Augustine. Family gathered in a wonderful beach home on a sunny but chilly weekend to toast her well. It was grand! |
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material printed or copied from this site, electronically or in any other form, may be sold or included in any work to be sold without explicit permission from
the authors. Most maps and charts have been extracted from Google Earth and Maptech, and we thank them for their use.
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Travels of the Viking Rose