A Week of Winds

It’s a good thing that we made our outside passage when we did because since that day, the weather window that allowed us to skip down to Florida, has been very firmly shut. Nobody has been venturing out on the Atlantic this week and even the big cruisers are “inside” along the ICW. Wind and waves have been terrible and the threat of Hurricane Ida coming ashore in Florida has had everyone scurrying to take cover.

Earlier this week our trip from Fernandina Beach to St Augustine was calm and relaxing. But by the time we reached the anchorage at St. Augustine the winds and waves were too strong for us to comfortably launch our dinghy. We had been really looking forward to spending a few days here but there was no way we could leave the boat without getting thoroughly drenched. The strong current here is also a factor and we spent a restless night at anchor hoping that it would hold. The next morning we were eager to leave as soon as possible and head inland once again into the comfort and safety of the sheltered ICW between St. Augustine and Daytona. Although it is possible to do this stretch in one day, we decided to take our time and spread it over two, stopping at Palm Coast Marina which is approximately halfway between both cities. Our one night layover however stretched into four and as I write this blog we are still here!

There are two reasons for this: #1. After Daytona, where we had planned to anchor, lies a long stretch of open water that must be crossed before reaching Titusville. Because it is so shallow and open to the Atlantic, it can only be traversed under calm conditions. And there have been NO calm conditons this week. And so we wait. #2. Because of the threat of Hurricane Ida, everyone is “taking cover.” We were very lucky to get a slip at Palm Coast Marina--it’s a virtual hurricane hole. All of the slips here and at most of the other marinas along the ICW have been taken. We are in a safe sheltered place and would be foolish to take the chance of leaving now until the threat of the hurricane is over. And so we wait.

But as usual, the waiting has turned out to be beneficial. Earlier in the trip Vince broke his only pair of prescription sunglasses and we have been agonizing about how to replace them ever since. We arrived here on a Friday afternoon. On Saturday morning we walked to a local plaza and lo and behold found an optometrist who was able to make replacement glasses for Vince in 2 hours! The woman in the boat beside ours is alone--her husband is away for the month taking delivery of a boat in Panama. She also has a car here at the marina and offered to take me shopping with her. And so I was able to make some major grocery purchases here. We have also spent a lot of time with two other couples on sailboats here. Steve and Aggie have been living on their boat here since June. He works as an optician in town. Sue and Ian, like us are on their way to the Bahamas. We have all been hanging out with each other over the past couple of days and since Aggie also has a car, spent a great afternoon together beach combing along the Atlantic coast--just a few miles away. This evening two more old friends--Gigi and Vic aboard “Oconee”--arrived and we spent a few hours aboard their boat, catching up on news over drinks. We may be stalled here awhile due to winds and waves but the sun shines, the temperature is warm and we’re having a good time. And that’s all that really matters.