The Adventures of Monk's Vineyard - The Great Loop and Beyond: Cruisin’ the Border

4/22 – 4/24 – We released the mooring ball and were on our way from St. Augustine before 9:00 this morning. With the low tide, we fit comfortably under the bridge so didn’t have to wait for an opening. We had an easy trip with very pleasant weather and decided to stop at an anchorage in the Amelia River about an hour from Fernandina. We were the only boat in the anchorage.

The next morning we headed out around 11:00 for a short run to Fernandina Beach. We have never stopped here by boat so this was a new experience for us. Our only other visit was by car and then we only stayed a couple of hours. We were unable to get a mooring ball (we learned the secret later – you have to call as soon as the marina opens in the morning and get your name on the list) as we hadn’t called until our arrival. However, there was plenty of room to anchor and the holding was good. After settling in, we dinghied into the marina and paid our money (for 2 days) to land our dinghy. It’s $2/day. We explored the town, had a late lunch and browsed through the shops. This is a very vibrant town – all the store fronts along the main street and several of the side streets are occupied – nothing vacant as we have seen in many towns we have visited.

On our way back to the boat we noticed Dawn Treader in the mooring field. We stopped by and visited with them a while and made plans to meet up with them in town on Sunday for Easter dinner.

The Bridge of Lions just before sunrise, with its lights
reflecting in the water

There was a nice sunrise as viewed from the mooring field

Underway, we were "waked" by several Customs and Border
Control boats. Seems they were doing some kind of training.

There was lots of traffic at the St. John's River entrance,
including this megayacht

We had a nice sunrise at our Amelia River anchorage

The marina at Fernandina Beach

Lots of interesting buildings in Fernandina, including this church

The main streets are all lined with trees

The Historic Court House

Lots of baskets placed along the sidewalks

... or positioned next to the streets

This town is all about the shrimp

... so you find them everywhere throughout the town

Easter dinner at Gennaro's Ristorante Italiano.
At the back is Ron and Dawn of Dawn Treader
Middle is Ed and JoAnne of Dream Weaver
and, of course, us in front

4/25 – 4/28 – On Monday morning we raised anchor and headed for St. Mary’s. This is another place we have never stopped. It was a short trip from Fernandina, just over the border into Georgia. We had called Lang Marina on the phone and they told us there were plenty of slips. However, when we got there, it took us awhile to reach the dockmaster, Nat, for a slip assignment. To say this place is “laid-back” would be an understatement. The marina is divided into 2 parts (east and west) and he assigned us a slip in the west portion. They don’t have dockhands, so you have to dock without assistance. It was quite breezy, but the wind was blowing in the right direction so we were able to dock and tie up without any trouble. We made arrangements to stay for 2 nights, but later extended to 4 nights. The weather was a little unsettled, with tornado warnings throughout the south. Although Georgia did not suffer like many of the other southern states, we decided to stay put until the weather improved.

We rented a car and drove into Jacksonville. Gerry’s computer had died (would not turn on at all), so off to Best Buy we went. He now has a new computer. We also visited St. Simon’s Island and Brunswick while we had the car. A lot of charm and history in this part of the county.

We really enjoyed our stay, but with the weather forecast calling for fair weather we’ll head out on Friday – but not far – we’re going back to Fernandina for the annual Shrimp Festival for a couple of days.