Saturday, April 25, 2009

Back To Reality

An Easter Sunday sunrise was magic for us as Sea Island Girl was able to shed her dock lines at Old Bahama Bay Resort on Grand Bahama Island and set out across the Atlantic. It was a little bumpy at first, due to confused seas, but things settled down after an hour or so, and we arrived in North Palm Beach six hours later.

Upon arrival in Florida, several of our friends from the Royal Marsh Harbour Yacht Club greeted us, including Peggy O’Neill and Terry Zieglar, who had made an earlier and unexpected departure from the Bahamas in February. Margo Caldy, Vice Commodore, and her husband Dennis hosted a fun-filled Easter dinner for everyone at their home nearby.

After two days we were heading north, wanting to transit the Bridge of Lions in St. Augustine before it closed to marine traffic for a week. The Bridge has been a major construction project, and we are hoping the restoration will be complete upon our return to the area in November.

It took us six days to reach our port in downtown Brunswick, GA. The weather was excellent most of the time, although we managed to have our canvas bimini blow off one evening when a forty-knot wind gust blew through as we were enjoying cocktails with our long-time Atlanta friends, Al and Maggie Ressa in Vero Beach.

We enjoyed an evening at the Halifax River Yacht Club in Daytona Beach with the crews of Chablis and Magnum Opus and everyone had an opportunity to do a little shopping before we continued north.

Mike and Susan Murray, our long-time Port Captains in Fernandina, invited us to their home for dinner, which was spectacular I might add. Fernandina is thirty-five miles from Brunswick, and we enjoy visiting with them from time to time during the summer.

The big excitement came the next morning as we approached the Kings Bay Naval Base, just north of Fernandina. We were now in the company of even more yacht club friends – Sea Smoke and Darling – as a nuclear submarine was being towed north along the ICW to its’ berth at Kings Bay. Unknown to me at the time, it is unlawful to take pictures, so do not pass this along. (Note: the sub is in the middle, being towed by two large tugboats.)

We are back in Brunswick for the ninth year, and have enjoyed catching up with our friends here. We will have a few additional tidbits for sure to write about, as we make the transition back to reality. Until next time.

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