All is well in Jacksonville!

Wow, I really don’t know where to begin on this one.  I must admit that I have been remiss, but my memories are intact and we have had a wonderful adventure. We had a fabulous time in Daytona  and it seems that no matter where we are, it is where we  want to be. It’s easy to see the best of someplace when you are passing through, but, in retrospect, there are places that just grab your heart and soul. We have passed through Lake Worth, Daytona, St. Augustine, and Jacksonville and I swear I could pledge my allegiance to any or all of these beautiful places.

We  fell in love with Daytona when we were there, but we only experienced a small portion of their hospitality. We had to anchor well offshore, and it was a chore to come ashore. The West Marine in Daytona offers free dinghy docking and this was the hook up point to meet our friends and family. This was the first time we had really been ashore since our arrival and I was in desperate need of internet access, so it was our good fortune to find a beautiful bar, excellent food, and a wonderful bartender at BLUE GROTTO. Junior got me internet access, hooked us up with drinks and made us feel like we were the only people in the world. When we departed Blue Grotto, we made a stop for ice at Halifax Harbor Marina and as I stepped ashore, I found myself a little short of the dock and face down in the water. Thank you Halifax Harbor for providing me a dry T-shirt for the rest of our journey back to OPA.When we returned a couple days of days later,Junior offered to post all of my mail (which he actually did as promised.)  We had a wonderful time with Chris and Debbie and I will never forget our  time in Daytona (my  favorite place...at the time).

Danny and Debbie.

We continued up the coast and got to experience the most beautiful part of the inter-coastal waterway that I have ever seen. We had the opportunity to enjoy an undisturbed part of Florida. Our journey included dolphins, pink ibis, osprey, pelicans, manatees, and some of the most spectacular water front homes I have ever seen.  Our anchorage was so remote that we felt we were the only human beings for miles.

An immature pelican.

Great blue heron.

           We only glimpsed the shore of St. Augustine, but it brought back a lot of happy memories.

St. Augustine lighthouse.

St. Augustine City Marina.

We continued on to Jacksonville, a city neither one of us had ever been to before. We stayed on the docks downtown and explored the city with our family. The city docks were free, as was the sky transit system, and we were able to experience the Landings of Jacksonville  on the opposite side of the river. It just so happened that the day we were there a fundraiser was being held for the Boy Scouts of America at the AT&T building seen in the background below. Fifty eight people raised a minimum of  $1,000.00 to repel 30 stories or 447 feet.  (http://photos.jacksonville.com/mycapture/folder.asp?event=1252020&CategoryID=9088.)

The view from the cockpit of OPA.

   

 The next morning we watched the start of the Jacksonville River Poker Run where numerous power boats assembled at the landing for a 150 mile run. It was quite the sight, although the noise was deafening. Fortunately, they were traveling at idle speed or they would have really rocked our world! 

Just a few of the many powerboats.

Danny with his brother Chris and nephew Sergio.



Chris and Sergio picked us up and we headed to the New Orleans Cafe where we met up with more family and friends and were entertained for hours with the reggae music of Les B. Fine and some really fabulous creole style food. Needless to say, a good time was had by all. Jacksonville was one of our favorite stops. The city makes it easy for boaters to enjoy all its many offerings. We also made a side trip to Kingsley Plantation, an historic Sea Island cotton plantation built in 1798. It was fascinating, but also a little disheartening to experience the lives these slaves had to endure.

Photos taken from Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve website.

It was with great sadness that we headed up the river to our final destination, Green Cove Springs. The St. John's River was wide and deep and we had a very pleasant journey.  We  experienced numerous fly-overs by Navy planes practicing takeoffs and landings from Jacksonville Naval Air Station. It was pretty incredible as it seemed they would clip the top of the mast on a few of their landings.

                                                              This one got really close!

We arrived at Green Cove Springs Marina and prepared to have OPA hauled out and put into dry storage. We were shocked to find that after not having a bottom job for 7 years, there wasn't a single barnacle on her bottom. I guess the secret is to never stop moving! The staff at the yard was very pleasant and knowledgeable. We left there knowing that our home would be in good hands.

On the travel lift awaiting to be moved to storage.



We are now in southern Maryland with our family and will be returning to Tampa for a couple months to take care of some business. The boat will be in storage until the end of July,  when the next leg of our journey will begin.