Florida in the Rearview Mirror

Alligator Creek adjacent Amelia Island – Plum Orchard Anchorage, Brickhill River, adjacent Cumberland Island

Days on Cruise:        8

Miles Today:              29.6

Travel Time Today:  3 hrs 25 mins

Odometer:                  277 miles

We decided to try an experiment this morning and see how early we could get underway in the event we ever need to. Instead of our usual leisurely coffee and computer time, we downed one cup of coffee, threw clothes on, waited a few minutes for daylight, then pulled the anchor at 7am just as it became bright enough to read the day markers to navigate the circuitous channel in this region. We made and ate breakfast and took our showers serially while taking turns driving the boat.

More marshes and grassland soon led us across the Cumberland Sound where the St. Mary’s River enters the Atlantic Ocean near Fernandina Beach. This also marks the state line between Florida and Georgia!  So, we’ve put the first state behind us and now have a short 130 miles of Georgia coastline in front of us.

At this juncture the northbound red triangles (port) and green squares (starboard) marking the channel switched sides, because technically for the next few miles we were in the river leading to the King’s Bay Submarine Base. The water was dredged to 25 – 60 feet deep, the deepest we’ve seen. It made for a bit of uncertainty and extra caution in peering at the markers through our binoculars to work our way across the many channels into and out of the River and Sound.

By 11 am we turned off the ICW into Brickhill River, a narrow, winding stretch leading to a dinghy dock on the shore of Cumberland Island where we planned to spend the afternoon hiking and looking at wild animals.  Three wild horses and one wild turkey were polite enough to make an appearance on shore just as we arrived.

However, it’s pouring down rain, thundering and lightning, so we anchored alone 75 feet offshore (no marina or dockage here), had lunch and started chores and leisure time to wait out the storm. If it doesn’t stop raining, we’ll see the Island tomorrow instead. What’s the rush? We have no schedule until May 25 when our middle child Mackenzie and her husband Matt join us somewhere on the Chesapeake Bay!

One other side note: we saw an astonishing number of sunken or grounded sailboats and wonder what it is about this area that leads to so many:  see below!