April 16, Day 295 – St. Augustine to Reed Island Anchorage

This morning after breakfast Linda washed down the boat as it was covered with a thick layer of cement dust. About the only bad thing where we were staying was that every morning around 6:00 the jackhammers would start as the workman continued tearing down the temporary bridge. We had washed down the boat twice while we were there, but it didn’t take long for a new layer of crap to accumulate. Since we were leaving this morning, we decided we would clean the boat again while we had access to fresh water.

High tide this morning was around 11:00 and that also meant no current, so that is when we planned our departure. We left the dock around 10:45, but had to wait for the bridge to open as, with the high tide, there was not enough clearance under the bridge for us.

We had a pretty nice trip up the Intracoastal, passing by miles of nice homes, marshland and wooded areas and passing under several bridges. At the Atlantic Beach Bridge we hit strong current behind us which pushed our speed up to around 10 knots. However, as we entered the St. Johns River, we were fighting a current of 2.5 knots and our speed dropped to under 6 knots. Fortunately, we didn’t have far to go before reaching the turnoff to our anchorage for the night.

We dropped the anchor around 4:45 and were all settled in by 5:00. It was nice to be at anchor again after being in a marina for a week. Gerry fixed dinner on the grill while Linda made broccoli salad, we watched a little TV and then off to bed.

On the road again -- Here is Second Star in front of us passing through the Bridge of Lions.

This is a shot of the temporary bridge that they are tearing down. You can see that much of it is already gone.

Approaching Vilano Beach Bridge

Shortly after starting out this morning we heard a broadcast from the Coast Guard about a controlled burn along the Intracoastal. It wasn't long before we saw the smoke.

However, we soon passed by the burn area and had a beautiful clear day with bright blue skies

The Palm Valley Bridge

Here is Second Star just after passing under the Atlantic Beach Bridge. Notice the current they are going through. As you entered the current, it was almost like going down a small waterfall.

... and here's a view of the current looking back. You can see how calm and flat the water is before the bridge and how it drastically changes at the bridge.

This was the view back at the inlet as we entered the St. Johns River. Since we were fighting the current, our speed dropped drastically

Second Star approaching the Dames Point Bridge. We turned into our anchorage just before the bridge.

The anchorage was across from a very busy port. Here you see one of the freighters being unloaded.

This is a shot of the port just as it was getting dark and the lights came on. It looked like a small city.

The bridge at sunset