Our current location is mile marker 831 of the ICW. The 54 miles traveled today was in cold AM winds and slightly warmer winds in the PM.We met IOLAR again today. Walt and Bob are heading to Vero Beach where Walt and Lynn purchased a condo. We first met in the Bahamas at Man of Cay where we were just two slips from them! We met up again in Vero Beach last May and Walt kept IOLAR at Osprey Marina at the same dock as FIU. We left Comachie Cove at about 6:30AM and made the 7 AM opening of the St Augustine Bridge of Lions, which has undergone recent improvements. Since it connects the outer islands with the city of St Augustine it is restricted in the AM and PM rush hours and is closed to boat traffic for an extended time to assist workers getting to their jobs on time.
The trip past Matanzas inlet was better even with the recent shoaling! The extra buoys made it clear where to go. The other bridge to get clearance to pass was the Cresent Beach Bridge. This bascule bridge opens at the center of the span with both sides lifting into the air to an almost vertical position.
Winds were steady at about10 knots with gusts up to 20kts. We put up the jib, on roller reefing, to about one half. This much extra sail gave us an additional 1/3 of a knot more speed! It may not sound like much, but over 8 hours it adds up significantly.
We called Ed and Patty Ann, our Bahamas "buddy boat," at their Ormond Beach condo to let them know where we were. Ed drove a short distance to the LB Knox bascule bridge near his home. As we passed through the opening Ed was waving and talking to us from the shore! We would later meet up with him and Patty Ann for dinner at DJ's for some seafood.
We made a reservation at the Halifax marina, Ed's home base for the Patty Ann sailboat he keeps there. It was good to get together and be with sailing friends once again. Tempest would anchor a short distance south of Halifax Marina where we would meet up again in the AM.
Captain Sid
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