Sunrise in Charleston

 

Absolutely stunning!

Charleston Bound

 

Departing Port Royal Port Marina we passed this impressive home before we hit the waterway.

 

10 miles outside of Charleston we decided to ride the storm out and anchor versus trying to power through the storm.  Excellent decision considering our imminent northern weather!

Port Royal Landing Marina, Port Royal, SC

A view of the marina office.

 

 

Looking onto the slips.  You can get your exercise just by walking the docks.  Hired a diver (he, his wife and 12 year old daughter live on their 44' sailboat.  Said as the daughter has gotten older the boat has gotten bigger) to take a look at our prop since we obliterated a crab trap float a few miles away from the marina.  Should have taken a picture of the 30' line the diver had to cut off the prop!

    Looking out onto the river and marina.....

 

A river view of the homes.

We enjoyed a walk on their tree shaded roads.

One Whistle or Two

Passing commercial vessels requires communication.  We were heading northbound and he south.  Bill radioed the captain and asked him if he wanted a one or two whistle pass.  The barge captain requested a two whistle pass which meant Tour de Loop and the barge would pass each other on their starboard sides.  Another first experience for Captain Bill!
 

                     

Cumberland Island

Cumberland Island is Georgia's largest barrier island.  The island was declared a national seashore back in 1972 and is serviced by the National Park Services.  Jen joined us for a couple days of cruising.  Here we are in our inflatable kayak heading to the island.  Bill decided to stay on board to check out the engine, oil, etc.  You know, spend time in his "man cave".

                                          

Taking the path well traveled on our hike to Dungeness which was once the home to Thomas Carnegie, his wife Lucy and their 9 children.  We were fortunate to catch sight of turkey's, deer and wild horses but too far away to take any meaningful pictures.  Of course that hasn't stopped me yet!

                                  

 

The Carnegies bought the property in 1880 and built their mansion soon after.  At one point they owned 90% of the island.   In 1859, well after the family had vacated the mansion a fire destroyed the home.  Below is what's left standing today.

                             

 

                            

                           

Best Mother's Day Ever!

Before we began our trip Bill had decided there was only 1 day and location we had to make.  Mother's Day in Jacksonville so I could celebrate it with my son, Billy.   To my incredible surprise my daughter, Jennifer, had returned from Bali and was able to celebrate the day as well!

In Jax with Jen, Bill, Billy and Billy's sweet girlfriend, Rebecca.

  

                        

St. Augustine and Then Some

Loved their "The Hyppo" store sign!  They sell artisan ice pops and desserts.  Just what the doctor ordered!  But, there was a "no Kathy" ban placed from the man up the street with his hand on his hip.

  

              

But, I could sneak a quick peek.  Look at the lime green wall and the hippo pillow on the chair. 

                             

     

In the heart of St. Augustine's historic district lies Flagler College which was once the Ponce de Leon Hotel.  The luxury hotel was built back in 1888 by multi-millionaire Henry Flagler, an oil  magnate and railroad pioneer.  The hotel was gifted to Flagler College when the institution was founded in 1968.  It originally opened as a woman's college but went co-ed shortly thereafter.  The picture below is the courtyard of Ponce de Leon Hall.

                          

 

Rembrandtz is an art gallery which was not open due to a plumbing failure.

 

 

Thought this was a very appealing store.  Love the colors.
                                                                                                                                   

                                       

  

Holly and Dennis, who was sporting an Eddie "do", joined us for a cruise from St. Augustine up to Jacksonville and brought with them a delicious lunch to eat on the way!  We had a beautiful Friday afternoon cruise.

 

                       

River Street, Savannah

Took a trolley tour around the historic district of Savannah.  Afterwards, took a stroll along River street but it was cut short due to rain.  Savannah will definitely be part of our RV tour!

Savannah, SC - Isle of Hope Marina

What a charming place we found once we stepped behind the Isle of Hope Marina.  Below are homes dating back to the late 1800's.

We also found a special treasure.  Appears our Lover Boy has a cousin with the same temperament in the south.  Here kitty, kitty, kitty.

                                    

Southern Hospitality in Brunswick, GA

Loved the Hidden Harbor marina and Kev, the dock master and purveyor of the marina.  He bestowed upon Bill the Mid-Atlantic Waterway Guide which is invaluable when boating on the ICW and Chesapeake Bay.  We will pass forward the endowment as well.

       

Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are

St. Augustine is suppose to be a city filled with ghosts.  We were hoping to encounter some of this paranormal activity during our Dead Walk Tour, but alas, alack found none.  What we did discover on Cordova street was the Love Tree which is actually two trees.  A sable palm growing out of the heart of an oak tree.  Separation is impossible for both would die.  Legend has it that a kiss underneath this tree will bring the couple everlasting romance so a kiss was in order!

Lil' Miss Getoutamyspace

Now, here I am just minding my own business.

Then Martha  shows up.  She knows how I am.

 

Why, this just happened to me yesterday.  Fred showed up and wouldn't leave until I put on my big hair.  I'm not proud of my attitude but that's the way I am.

I digress.  Why is she still here?  I can feel it coming on.  Oh, she's going to make me do it!

Oh Martha, here comes Lil' Miss Getoutamyspace.

 

Ah, sweet success.  Calming down. 

That's right.  I'm big, bad and beautiful.....Ok, now where was I?

Murdock's Bistro, Cocoa

Stopped for cold beverages and a snack.  The windows came from a building that was 150 years old.  They are gorgeous!

 

 

Another view and an another old piece hanging from the ceiling in the upper right hand corner.

 

 

Honey Fitz

We hadn't been on the Intracoastal Waterway, ICW, very long after leaving Stuart when a large vessel was quickly approaching us from behind.  Turns out it was the Honey Fitz. She is a 93-foot commuter-style motor yacht, built in 1931 by Defoe Boat Works in Bay City, Michigan for Montgomery Ward's tycoon Sewell Avery. It was later purchased by the US Coast Guard and served as a mine sweeper during World War II.  After the war she went on to be used as a pleasure vessel for 5 sitting US Presidents.  The most famous being President Kennedy who had named it Honey Fitz after his maternal grandfather.  The vessel was purchased back in 1998 by an oil tycoon in Texas who has had it restored to it's former glory during the "Camelot" years.  Take a close look at the stack on top of the boat and you can see the presidential seal on the side.

Special Treats in Stuart

A big thanks to Bill Watson for sponsoring us for a night at Stuart Yacht Sales docks in Stewart. Bill was our yacht broker who went above and beyond the call of duty when he accompanied Bill to Texas for our boat survey back in October of last year.

A special thanks to our friends, Doug and Vera, for taking the trip up from Jupiter to join us for dinner, actually treating us to dinner at one of their favorite seafood haunts in Stuart - King Neptune.  Our meals were dee-licious.  Wish I had taken a picture of all of us licking our fingers..........

I'll Have The "No Spin Cycle" Please

There are 2 ways to get from the west to the east coast of Florida by water.  Either going outside and around the southern tip of Florida or across the peninsula via the Okeechobee Waterway.  We chose the later of the two which meant we got to experience the 5 locks.  The last lock we had to go through was St. Lucie.  Ropes hanging down from the walls are used to keep the boat snug against it. You want to keep a tight grip so the rope doesn't get ripped out of your hands and you find your boat doing a 360 in the middle of the lock.  One word for that would be - embarrassing!

The St. Lucie lock dropped us 13 feet to make us level with the waterway we were entering.  I couldn't quite capture the water height difference in this short clip but it gives you an idea of what it's like being inside a lock.  Side note - we kidded Toney and Liz the owners of "Two Turtles" that they needed to change their boat's name to "Two Hares" because we would head out an hour or more before them and they would always pass us along the way!

 

 

Perfect weather allowed us to take "Route 1" across Lake Okeechobee en route to Stuart.

Ford's Garage

9 hours and 73 miles after departing Venice we finally pulled into Legacy Harbor Marina in Ft. Myers.  The marina borders the historic downtown area which has experienced a rebirth due to the city's redevelopment efforts over the past few years. Neither of us was very hungry since we had eaten a late lunch but we were THIRSTY.  A local favorite is Ford's Garage.  They have a unique bar top which is made out of hand-hammered copper and a 6 inch frozen edge to keep your drinks cold.

Bill is enjoying a pint after a long day on the water!

Dolphin Escort Service

Once we hit the Caloosahatchee river off  of Pine Island Sound we had different groups of Bottlenose dolphin accompany us for the 2 hour trip up to Legacy Harbor Marina in Ft. Myers.  Dolphin love to jump and play in a boat's wake and we were thrilled our wake was large enough to keep them happy the entire way.  Below is just a short clip of our fun loving friends!

Cheeseburger in Paradise

Heading south to Ft. Myers we couldn't escape the call of Cabbage Key for lunch.  Rumor has it that after dining on this small island, Jimmy Buffet was so inspired he wrote a song which went on to become one of his biggest hits, "Cheeseburger in Paradise", which immortalized his experience.

After placing our lunch order I admired the flora and fauna surrounding the restaurant.  Meanwhile,

Bill was admiring the interior all the while trying to figure out how he could sequester the easily accessible and plentiful dollars hanging from the ceiling.  This could surely pay for our trip - ahh, if only he was a politician .........

The Adventure Begins

A big "THANKS" goes out to our friend and neighbor, Denny, for taking us (in spite of an hour delay) and our carload of provisions, from the house down to our boat the night before our departure.  After helping us unload our goods from the car to the boat we bid Denny a fond farewell and special thanks.

We have been a member of the Great American Cruiser's Association for the last 4 years.  The AGLCA is an "organization of people who share a sense of adventure and a curiosity about America's Great Loop".  The following day our first priority prior to departing St. Petersburg Marina where we have kept our boat for the last 6 months was to erect our AGLCA flag. 

 The Great Loop "is the continuous waterway that encompasses the eastern portion of North America including the Atlantic and Gulf Intracoastal Waterways, the Great Lakes, the Canadian Heritage Canals (which we will not be navigating), and the inland rivers of America's heartland" depicted below in the AGLC emblem.

 Shortly thereafter we set forth on our journey....................