20100123 Fernandina Beach, FL and Jekyll Island, GA

20100123 Fernandina Beach, FL and Jekyll Island, GA After the storms experienced in St. Augustine, FL, I anticipated smooth sailing northward on Friday. I found that a ziplock bag of animal crackers that was under the dodger, was taken by the storm winds. The bag had disappeared, but the animal crackers were spread everywhere! When I moved a cushion or turned off the propane or moved the hatch cover, a horse, elephant, rhino or giraffe was found melting into mush. I am still finding animals in the nooks and crannies around the cockpit. On Friday morning, I left Camachee Cove Yacht Basin with no wind, making departure from the slip and into the ICW simple just after 7:30am. A following wind from the southwest built throughout the morning allowing motor sailing with speeds up to 7.8 knots. The sun came out allowing me to shed the foul weather gear. Overall, it began as a beautiful day. At 1pm, things changed dramatically. The wind clocked around to the northwest and north, maintaining a wind speed of 10+ knots. A HEAVY fog settled in as well, often obscuring the ICW channel, mandating following the electronic path on the gps, until the channel markers appeared out of the mist 100 feet ahead. I expected the wind to fall off, but it did not. Angel’s speed dropped from 7.8 to less than 4 knots. Progress slowed. I only met 2 southbound vessels. One was a 40 foot sailboat, the other a 42 foot cabin cruiser. Both were proceeding slowly due to limited visibility. From 1pm until I arrived in Fernandina Beach, FL after 5:30pm, the passage was slow and exhausting with limited visibility. I just missed the Fernandina Beach Marina the dock master, so I took a mooring buoy across from the marina. I tied Angel with double bow lines, since the currents are reported to be severe in the anchorage. For dinner, I prepared a delicious chicken and rice dish. I took the liquid from a can of chicken chunks + the liquid from a can of diced tomatoes (garlic and onion flavor, added water to make the proper ratio and cooked the rice until tender. I then added the chicken and tomatoes to the cooked rice and heated these thoroughly. Salt and pepper to taste…really hit the spot. With the temperature dropping, I attended to the propane heater, which has been shutting off overnight. I found the propane regulator needed adjustment to maintain a higher pressure. With the propane heater on high, I climbed into a sleeping bag and was soon asleep…until… I was awakened around 2am by a rap, rap, rapping, gently tapping on the starboard side. I looked out the portholes, but saw no vessels. I lay down again. And again, rap, rap rapping, gentle tapping was heard. I climbed out of the nice warm sleeping bag and dressed. Going on-deck, I looked over the starboard side to find that the wind and current were fighting each other for domination on the direction that Angel should lie at the mooring. At this moment, the wind had pushed the stern to the west, but the current kept the bow east of the mooring ball, which was tapping against the side of the boat, just at the v-berth, where I was sleeping. I took the lines and pulled the mooring ball around the bow to the port side. I climbed back into bed. Again ½ hour later, the tapping resumed, this times on the port side. I rose, dressed and adjusted the tiller from straight to hard starboard, swinging the stern to port and eliminating the problem. Next morning just after sunrise, I went started the engine, then went forward to cast off the mooring. I found that the mooring lines had twisted around the mooring ball overnight, making it impossible for me to access one of the two knots holding us. With no other option, I reached over the side and had to cut the line to free Angel. I anticipated a short day to go from Fernandina Beach, FL to Jekyll Island, FL; only 32 miles. At 6 knots, a hot lunch was in the offering. I did not have my hot lunch. Soon after leaving Fernandina Beach, I entered Cumberland Sound to find 4-6 foot waves entering from the ocean, with an incoming tide. Angel’s speed slowed to 2-3 knots. Heading ever northward, getting behind Cumberland Island, offered some protection from the waves, but not the wind. 20 knots right on Angel’s nose keep speeds to 3.5 knots. Things worsened after passing Cumberland Island and entering Jekyll Sound. The now outgoing tide and 6-8 foot waves made the passage miserable with the up and down motion of a bucking bronco, waves and spray often washing over the bow back to the cockpit. A whole roll of toilet paper unrolled onto the floor of the head due to the motion. Jekyll Sound is ~2 miles across. It took me over 2 hours to find some refuge behind Jekyll Island. My noon arrival at Jekyll Island Marina was pushed back to after 3pm. After securing fuel and a slip for the evening, I took clean clothes up the showers and stood under the hot water in the showers until it ran cold. At least I can feel my toes again. I am planning a great dinner at the restaurant, my first cheeseburger and fries in a couple of months. Right now, I have the boat heater set to 75F and am drying clothes and foul weather gear. I soon will listen to the weather report and decide to go or stay another day in Jekyll Island. Jim