April 20, 2015

Winds S 10 knots, 75 degrees

Here we are marina bound in St. Augustine, FL, the oldest continuously occupied settlement in North America (excluding all those native Americas settlements here before us white folk showed up). Sign as you drive into St. Augustine from the south says, “Welcome to St. Augustine – Older than Dirt.”

We sailed up from Ft. Matanzas on Friday (April 20, 2015) and hauled into Rivers Edge Marina early in the afternoon. Paul, the marina manager met us at the dock to help tie up. Paul, who in his late twenties thirteen years ago sailed a Pearson 323 solo from his home in Cape Cod to St. Augustine, hauled into this same marina and has been here ever since, living on that boat.

We tied up in slip C-10 beside another Paul – Paul II – who came here from Cleveland aboard an old (1972) wooden power boat. He runs a construction company that chases major storms around the country. His crews replace roofs in the storms’ aftermath. Yesterday he was kind enough to take me to the Walmart Super Center three miles away (one of my favorite places) to pick up a new battery (long story to be told later). On the way he told me pretty much everything about his life – family, business, dissatisfaction with his job, his struggle with his weight (he is a big, big boy) and more. When we got back to the marine I thanked him for his kindness - boarded Flicka and sat for a while thinking about Paul and how intimacy comes to us in strange circumstances sometimes.

So we have been here for three days and now it’s time to move on. We are going to travel north today a short distance to an anchorage close to the St. Augustine Inlet – that is – an outlet to the Atlantic. Our intention is to go near off shore for a run up to Fernandina Beach at the top of Florida – a distance of about sixty miles. This is a big deal for us – our first off shore run. We will over night at the anchorage and leave at first light – to be able to make Fernandina before nightfall.

We left Rivers Edge Marina with moderate west wind on a near slack tide – which is not the same as a slack tide we soon discovered. Getting in and out of a marina in a sailboat is hard enough at slack tide, let alone with a strong tidal current. It’s amazing how fast a boat can move with current and distance covered is deceptive enough to measure – until, that is, you hit something. Here in Augustine the tide change is around four feet, channels narrow and the current can top two knots in some places. Most sailboats don’t back up easily or accurately and Flicka has a mind of her own in reverse. If you get broad side to the current you can quickly find yourself banging up against the dock or worst yet another boat. Boat owners don’t like that. With Paul’s help we made it out without hitting anyone but is wasn’t pretty.

We traveled north from St. Augustine and stopped at the St. Augustine Municipal Marina for fuel and a pump out. What is a pump out you might ask? All boats of a certain size are required by the US Coast Guard to have sewage holding tanks and approved septic systems. In most boats, on board systems allow for waste to be pumped directly into the holding tank, pumped directly over board or, in some systems, over boarded from the holding tank. You might ask, why is Steve Talley talking about boat septic systems? At first consideration, one might conclude that I live a pretty boring life with little to talk about, however waste disposal is an important and interesting question for all of us considering the enormous amount waste we humans generate, not only sewage but solid waste as well. Managing your our human waste aboard a small sailboat allows one to get "up close and personal" with the problem.

Sewage discharge within three miles of any coast in America is illegal and greatly frowned upon. Most recreational boaters we know abide by the regulations governing discharge. Adherence to the regulations governing the design and construction of on board sewage disposal systems is a little more problematic but the gist of it is most boaters play by the rules. Most marinas up and down the coast have pump out systems and generally charge for the service. All Florida marinas we know do not charge for pump outs. They figure to make it easy and painless for the boater. Free pump outs encourages compliance and makes for cleaner water – a good thing for manatees, dolphins and all manner of marine life that inhabit these rich waters.

Check out the picture of the ship that was anchored at the city marina – a replica of a mid-17th century Spanish galleon – a war ship – with eight ten pound cannon (four on a side) and other armaments. Imagine being a midshipman on that boat in 1756 and going up against a similar English boat in war time, especially knowing the ship’s surgeon was a barber before becoming a surgeon.

 

                                                       Spanish Galleon Circa 1650

                                             Up close and personal with the "ten pounders"


So we left the marina, passed through the Bridge of Lions Bridge and peaked outside (outside the ICW to the Atlantic) near the St. Augustine Inlet to get our brave on for our eventual off shore run, then proceeded north on the Tolomato River in a brisk west wind for about 10 miles to an anchorage at mile 765 – a beautiful spot – surrounded by tidal wetlands and many birds. A few boats including an all-aluminum 42 foot “Passage Maker”. 

 

 

No sooner than we anchored a fierce storm approached, featuring an intro fifty knot screaming wind for about three minutes. We freaked out, the anchor held and, just like that, it was over. Then it rained steady and gentle for an hour. Now the rain is over and we are having a cocktail in the cockpit (must be some connection there) in calm seas and clearing skies to the west.

Tomorrow back to St. Augustine for another peak outside and prep for the off shore run.

Namaste