That includes friends...
Our wonderful friends Sherry and Wray hosted a spectacular dinner in our honor. It was so nice to see our dear friends from the neighborhood! And look at the size of those steaks...delicious!
Everyone is thriving in this new realm of vaccination!
We returned to Fernandina Beach on April 13, and prepared for the next leg of our journey north. We stayed in the marina, and kept the rental car, for two extra days to make our errands and re-provisioning easier. Fernandina Beach is a lovely town to visit, and if you are coming by boat the new marina is fabulous. However, if you like to anchor out, which is our preference, there are a few negative aspects to this town. Anchoring can be a challenge due to the strong currents and deep water. Only boats with adequate anchor chain should attempt to anchor here.
Additionally...
Depending on the direction of the wind, you could be in for a stinky stay. There are two paper plants, located on either side of the town. I frequently found myself watching the smoke direction and mentally willing the wind to keep the smoke away. If the wind changed for the worse I would run through the boat yelling, “close the windows the stink is coming!”
Always plenty of interesting sights to see, and things to learn.
This vessel caught my eye, while anchored at Fernandina, and I had to investigate the web address on the side. As it turns out these guys are preparing for a 3,000 mile race (in open ocean)...seems crazy, but for a good cause.
Visit their website to learn more foarfromhome.com
We will miss Matt, Beth, and Anna terribly, but it is time to head north.
As it turns out, we had a stowaway who decided to bring her schoolwork along and join us for the next leg to Charleston.
Do you remember the ship that overturned in St. Simon inlet nearly two years ago? This was the picture we took on Dec. 5, 2019 during our trip south.
And here it is now. They have removed the bow and stern, and are cutting what you see here into five cross-section pieces to be removed by barge. Each section will be transported to a scrap yard in Louisiana. The apparatus constructed for this job is impressive...smart people are amazing!
Sharing my love for dead swamp trees!
If you are ever near Beaufort, SC, please visit! This was a beautiful waterfront town! We thoroughly enjoyed the wood fire pizza, ice cream and chocolate shop, and the beautiful waterfront playground, before returning to the boat.
Next stop...Wadmalaw Island (just south of Charleston), where Anna is super excited to be reunited with her cousins, and I am super excited to have my grand babies together on the boat!
Everyone has heard of glamping (glamour camping), and I recently read an article describing gramping (grandparents taking grandchildren on vacations) so I would like to coin the new term ‘groating’ (grandparent/grandchild boating). We have been doing a lot of groating, and I must say groating is a wonderful experience for all!
Yippee...this beach has a mud hole!
This beach also has an abundance of hermit crabs. Every shell we found was occupied! Perfect environment for hermit crab races! Believe it or not, hermit crab races are surprisingly boring😉
Kayaking is always on the agenda when groating! This isn’t the best picture, but it clearly shows how proud we both are, of Maggie’s paddle skills!
And for the first time Lucy was not tied to my kayak, and handled her boat like a pro...even in a very strong current! She might become my Olympic kayak competitor.
Ugh...that water is cold, but my girls are tough and brave (and maybe a little crazy)!
Pop and the girls just finished their dance party...everyone is happy, sweaty, and tired.
Do you see a theme here...tire them out!
A snorkel lesson was the last agenda item that needed to be done before we could leave. We gave all of the girls snorkel gear for Christmas and they were anxious to learn how to use it. Unfortunately, Anna left us on Monday to return to Fernandina Beach, so the snorkel lessons just included Lucy and Maggie. They quickly caught on and were ready for me to stand back and let them snorkel!
Maggie did a great job...too bad there were no fish to see!
Lucy was eager to impress with her diving skills. Her first time using a snorkel and she could purge the water like an expert. I can’t wait to get these girls into the clear waters of the Caribbean!
We have loved our time groating, but it is time for us to continue our northward migration. Plus, we are exhausted!!! Groating with three small children can be a taxing endeavor.
On Wednesday, April 28 we left the Edisto River inlet for a 75 mile ocean leg to the Waccamaw River.
Conditions were calm, and the shrimp must have been running, because within three miles of land we were surrounded by 15 shrimp boats all dragging nets on this glorious morning!
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