We got up early this morning.
I really wanted to sleep.
Actually, I wanted to stay another night here in Daytona Beach but that wasn’t going to happen.
Sam had made arrangement to meet his friend, Bill Gillespie and his wife, Vicki, in St. Augustine today.
So, off we go.
Look how narrow this channel is from the marina out to the ICW!
Today was another very windy day.
It looks a little deceiving from the pictures but the wind was fighting against us.
But we kept moving on.
Sam called ahead because we had to have this bridge opened.
Unfortunately, only one of the sides opened of this bascule bridge and we had to squeeze through, fighting the wind and trying to avoid the outstretched piece that defied mechanics.
If the coffee hadn’t already fueled us alert then this sure did.
We were pretty much the only boat moving and even though I enjoyed the lack of traffic, the wind kept sane folks away.
Ah, to be sane!
Even though Sam rinsed the boat off at the Halifax Harbor Marina, it didn’t take long before the windows were salty again.
As the channel narrowed, we became somewhat sheltered from the raging wind.
Still no traffic as we moved along the Intracoastal Waterway.
There were some lovely homes with boat houses along the way.
There were also several condos right on the water’s edge that provided boat slips for residents who wanted them.
How convenient is that?
We did start to see a few boats that went out to check their crab cages.
But for the most part, we were on our own.
It was nice to have a break from the wind.
I wouldn’t want to be on the ocean side today!
Not only did we see a couple of crab pot boats but we saw a SeaTow boat and then some kayaks.
Just doing their thing.
Then we moved into an area when the channel widened.
And there’s the wind.
Again.
We continued gawking at the homes along the way.
There was a retaining wall on one side and the ocean on the other.
Now that’s a pretty sweet location.
There are so many bridges in Florida on the ICW.
And it’s still thrilling to go under them.
I am thankful again today that we aren’t a sailboat that has to wait on most of them to open.
We did make it to the channel to head off to River’s Edge Marina in St. Augustine.
Sam said it reminded him of flying the U-2.
The most challenging time of the trip is the very last part.
It didn’t seem like it was difficult to me.
I’m spoiled that Sam handles the boat so well.
We finally did make it to the marina and got settled.
Lucky for us, they put us on a T-head.
The highlight of the day was a B-52 reunion.
Sam and Bill were Air Force pilots together in the late 80s in Michigan.
Bill found us through our YouTube channel and reached out to Sam.
They were able to coordinate a meeting time and what a reunion it was!
Bill and Vicki travel the country in an RV on their own adventure.
We went out to dinner at Hurricane Patty’s right there at the marina.
It was a very fun, but very short night.
We are planning to stay only one night here in St. Augustine and then head to Jacksonville tomorrow.
Gotta be moving on…
WOW, what a special reunion. Did you find the “Fountain of Youth” in St.Augustine? Sailing in the windy weather will keep you young!
Yes, they really had a fantastic time reminiscing. We didn’t stay in St. Augustine long enough to hit that tourist attraction. Although, we really could have used a dip in it! I wish I could say that it’s the wind that keeps us going but it’s Sam. He definitely keeps us going. LOL
Just a quick note to let you both know how much I enjoy your videos. It is always the highlight of my day when I see you have uploaded a new one. I need this Covid mess to be over so you all can get back on the water and keep the great videos coming past Jacksonville. Stay Safe & Healthy!
Thanks so much, Steve, for taking the time to tell us. We really appreciate the kind words. Like you, this quarantine is driving us crazy. We just want to get back on the boat. I would say that it is quickly moving from non-essential to very essential travel just for our sanity!
Rev & Sam I also wait each week for your updates you’re such a pleasure to watch. I was wondering if you have ever tried/used RainX on your windows? I use it all the time on my car windows but don’t know how effective it would be with the salt spray. The harder the rain the more effective it seems to be… Just a thought… Continued safe travels to ya!
Hi Terry! Thanks so much for the kind words. No, I don’t think we have used RainX. That is such a great idea! I’ll talk to Sam about it. I wonder if it would help the salt water just slide off. Thanks for the suggestion. Much appreciated!
Waiting with much baited breath to find out the latest episode of the travels of the crew. Are we back in Fla. or still in Tx. The adventures of “What Yacht to Do” is exciting and has everyone on the edge of their seats. Good luck and hope all is working out. Its just a glitch.
Hi Buck! We had a good laugh reading your comment, so, thanks for that. We are still in Texas and will, if all goes well, be heading back to Florida next week. Let’s keep our fingers crossed!