February 22, 2021
The morning was a bit damp but sunny when we got up. After a half a cup of coffee (one never gets a full cup down when one has a dog to worry about), the ‘Nut and I went ashore to take care of business. Well, that is what one would hope to do except when following a small white dog sniffing around new discovery grounds. Oh, Boy—that dog can tell she’d never been here before but untold others had been there. And it is her intent to learn about every one of them by the scent they left. It took a while but we got that out of the way and got down to business after Breakfast had been promised. Back to the boat.
We took our time to weigh anchor because our target arrival at St. Augustine Municipal Marina was 1145 hours. This would correlate to slack tide, the short period of time where the water in the marina was neither moving in (flood tide) or moving out (ebb tide). Sometimes we don’t worry about it too much but here, in St Augustine, we do. The water that moves with the tides goes directly through the marina and past the Lions Bridge without regard to the docks or the moored boats. And any moving boat will move with the flow. This will wreak havoc on any plans you have about getting your boat in a slip. So, slack tide is KING!
If you remember BOB, our Bayliner, you might have heard the story about when we got to St. Augustine 4 years ago on Halloween. We were very naïve about tides and because we didn’t know any better, we arrived on a very strong ebb tide and had to crab steer that little boat against the current, down the side of the marina between the dock and some awfully huge bridge piers. Disaster was averted but not before some tense times. So, lesson learned. PAY… ATTENTION.
We timed our 12 mile trip at 8.1 miles per hour to arrive at slack. However, this slack period was at the end of the ebb tide and we were 11 miles on the north side of the Ponce de Leon inlet where all that water was returning to the ocean. The marina is 1 mile on the south side of the inlet. The ebb flow carried us south at almost 10 mph and we got to the inlet WAY too early. Time for Plan B.
Now, this is what cruising is all about. No plans, just results. Right? So, we made a course change and headed for the Vilano Beach City Dock to wait it out. We docked and had a nice stroll around town. It’s nice to know what options are available and knowing about this one saved us from having to deal with the current in the marina. When we arrived at 1145, no problem.
A sidebar here: When we went under the Vilano Beach bridge, we crossed a milestone, so to speak. We have joined our Florida tracks with those we traveled on our beloved BOB. From here south, we will be retracing our steps to New Smyrna Beach. Those were the days, my friends. We miss BOB.
Our visit to St. Augustine was highlighted by seeing my brother Tom and his wife Crystal. They are on an extended vacation that so far has included the polar vortex that hit Texas, a beat-feet trip across I-10 into northern Florida, where it was still cold, and then across to the Atlantic side for a bit of warm(er) weather.
Mona, Joe, Tom & Crystal — thanks for coming to St. Augustine ❤️
We did the St. Augustine City Trolley Tour which culminated with a wonderful look at the Old Jail and some interesting history of the City. Then we were off the tour the Pirate and Treasure Museum to learn about all the shenanigans going in here in the 17th Century. AArrggghhh, Matey! Give me your gold and silver!!
Next stop: Daytona Beach!
Snug in our Tug 