May 13th and 14th- Fernandina Beach, FL to Jekyll Island, GA

We left Fernandina Beach, went down the Amelia River, and crossed Cumberland Sound to Georgia. Fernandina is a little noisy due to the large pulp factory on the waterfront. There is also a big gravel factory but I don’t think they were running at night.

Noisy factory.

Another cruise ship, mothballed due to covid-19.

Futuristic little vessel.

Coast Guard buoy tender working in Cumberland Sound.

Kings bay Submarine base. Security vessels but no subs visible.

Toward the end of the day we crossed over St Andrew Sound. This area is plagued with shoals. The depths go from 50 feet to almost nothing. It’s pretty on a nice day. It’s ugly when the winds are up. Today was bouncy but Catalpa powered through unscathed. The wind was less than 20. Over 20mph would be tough.

The Little Cumberland Island Light.

We pulled into Jekyll Creek and anchored in our spot. At about the same time another boat was headed to our anchor area. The area I anchor in is charted at having less than 4′ at low tide. To shallow for most sailboats. It’s actually closer to 15′. I know this due to my guide book from Bob (The 2018 Cruising Guide by Bob423). So who was the other vessel pulling in? Bob. We didn’t get to talk due to social distancing. Maybe next time. Later I read in his blog that the problem with writing a guide book is you give up all the best spots and that someone (us) got to his spot just before him (sorry). Thank you Bob. We use his guide and “Anchorages Along the Intracoastal Waterway ” by Skipper Bob (Skipper Bob passed away several years ago). If you’ve been reading this blog, these are the books I collectively refer to as The Books of Bob. They’ve been very helpful when trying to figure out where to put Catalpa at the end of the day. Fleetwing (Bob’s boat) left this morning. She is much faster than Catalpa so we won’t likely see them again on this trip.

Last night was a very quiet night. Through most of Florida we were accompanied by road noise, trains, and air traffic. Even though the Keys you can hear the traffic on route 1. Fernandina Beach had factory noise all night. This portion of our trip gets much quieter at night.

Today (the 14th) we’re staying in Jekyll Creek. We went in to town to get a few groceries. We’re also stocking up on diesel, ice, and water. Frisbee is also on the agenda. Into the wildlands of Georgia tomorrow.

View off the back porch.