Windmill Harbour Marina - at a dock

Walking around the area is like being in a well-tended garden

We left Kilkenny at first light this morning, bound for Windmill Harbour Marina. It was a 50 Nm trek but the constraining factor was the 3.8 MLW approach which meant we needed at least 1 foot of tide and preferably more to comfortably enter. With the early start, we actually had 2 foot of tide so we made it easily.

The entry lock. No problem, easy.

A little background. Windmill Harbour Marina is a beautiful development with a large variety of houses, all very well done. They are centered around a marina with a constant water level and no current at all. They accomplish this with an entry lock that matches the water level of the marina with that of the ICW. All this is done without water pumps of any kind. It turns out that high tide is higher than the water level in the marina so at that time, water is let in. When the water level of the marina is higher than the ICW, water is let out when a boat enters the lock.

The extra water needed for the raising of the boats in the lock is drawn from when the ICW tide level is higher than that in the marina - so no pumps are needed, mother nature does all the work. That's about as green as you can get.

The docks are all at the same height - fine since there's no tide inside the marina.

The marina is not well known among ICW travelers. If you belong to BOAT/US, the cost is only $1.80/ft. It is a good place to escape from storms since the surrounding, three-story houses protect you from the wind and there's no wave action in the marina since it is isolated from the ICW.  At some point in the future it may be "discovered"  by those on the ICW but for now, it's rarely visited.

We are off to B&B Seafood on Tuesday and then on to Charleston. Ann hopes to visit the downtown shops which are as good as any city on the east coast.

Kilkenny Marina - at a dock

The dockhouse is under the huge live oak

Crescent River was not as calm as the Jekyll anchorage but it was calm at night. Our dinghy continues to lose air and we need to buy a new one. We presently have an AB dinghy which has served us well for 15 years but it's started to leak through the fabric. Part of the problem there is that Hoolie favored one side for leaning over on trips to shore and he's worn the Hypalon down to the fabric. The present leaks are right through the fabric in several places. I had a patch on it but that's leaking too. So we're looking to pick one up on the way north.

The live oaks have been through multiple hurricanes with no damage. They were sought out
during the wooden boat era for their extreme strength and durability.

There were no real challenges today, just a day of being careful where you went and paying attention to Active Captain and Waterway Guide alerts. We wound up at Kilkenny Marina, one of our usual stops along the ICW. We are finding something now that we've never experienced before - full marinas! We called every marina in Charleston and they are all full. We called marinas in Savannah and they are all full too. I guess the problem is being in the thick of the spring migration. Everybody is going north at the same time! We are about two weeks late this year due to the Southern Blvd Bridge delay and one week of bad weather.

We are set for the night and will leave at first light on Monday

We were going to refuel but the pumps here were knocked out by a storm and blew a 200 amp fuse! So we have to wait for refueling later. We hope to get a daybreak start Monday to head for Windmill Marina where we have a dock waiting. The trick will be to beat the drain tide so we can get in the entrance. If we can leave when we want, we ought to reach Windmill by 2:00 which would give us a 1.5 ft tide - that ought to be enough we hope. Otherwise, we would have to wait for the rising tide at 5:30, much later. Wish us luck with the currents, an unknown over the length of the trip.

Crescent River Anchorage - at anchor

Shallows along the way and a Hammock 

We went through Jekyll at high tide which is the only way to do it. The passage is very narrow if you're trying to get the deepest water. We found the lowest to be 5.1 MLW which is about average for recent runs and it occurred just north of G19 which you pass by 50 ft off for 7.0 MLW. There were lots of other shallow spots on the way to Crescent River but with a 3 and 4 ft tide, they were not a problem although they caused a few anxious moments.

We only went 36 Nm and so we had a relatively short day. We could have pushed on to Kilkenny where we will stage for going through Hell Gate at a high tide but that won't be until Monday. We are not in that big a hurry, we'll get north as time permits.

Hoolie's shore - it even has a tree for Hoolie

Meanwhile, my 15 year old dinghy sprung several leaks. The fabric has been worn away on one side (where it leaks) by Hoolie over the years on his rides to shore and back. Eventually, that took its toll and it looks like I need a new dinghy. I already have about a half dozen patches but the new leaks are area leaks through the fabric and at a seam, not good. Now we have to look around for a replacement.

We have less than 30 miles to travel to Kilkenny on Sunday so it will be a short day and we'll have a high tide for any problem stretches. Now, where's that new dinghy?

Jekyll Creek Anchorage - at anchor

Magna's did great again

I took Ann to Magna's for her hair styling and cut before we left Fernandina. Magna's, the hair salon, is Ann's favorite place on the entire ICW to get her hair done. They have excellent stylists and we always stop there on the way down and up. 

Be sure not to cut that corner at Cumberland River at R60!

From Fernandina, there was more traveling at a minus 0.3 drain tide but we had plenty of water There were cautions to watch out for but not everyone found deep water as you can see from the photo. We enjoyed yet another day of calm winds and sunny skies. We really have to make good time when the weather is good. 

This guy was not paying attention?

Savannah marinas are full! Evidently, we are now in the thick of the northward migration. Normally we would be passing through this area two weeks ago and still be ahead of the crowd. We are headed for the Crescent River anchorage on Saturday. We should hit Little Mud River with a 2 ft or greater tide which ought to be enough. Then, it's Kilkenny Creek and staging for Hell Gate at high tide. It's so much more fun going inside instead of skipping all the entertainment by going outside along the coast!

At last, a decent sunset 

Fernandina - at anchor

A good looking horse ride down main street

We left at 7:30 am to catch the last opening before 8:30. Although the Bridge of Lions opens every 30 minutes, they do not open at 8:00 am due to morning traffic. The day was yet another day for perfect conditions for traveling north with full sun and light breezes.

The only downside was that we hit every shallow spot between St Augustine and Fernandina at a drain tide of 0.3 ft! Even so, we did fine but you had to know where to go for the deepest water! I  called out the depths to Ann and for the first time, she had to ADD the tide to the actual reading. We were below MLLW all the way!

Somewhat of a sunset, the docks are still not repaired!

Even with the extra low tide, all the routes were doable without touching bottom. Along the way, I saw one sailboat grounded at a location that is specifically called out in the Guide to avoid! It's amazing that some people will spend a thousand dollars for a tow off a shoal than a few dollars for a guide that will let them avoid the shallow spot altogether. Most of the shallow spots do not change year to year: you just have to know which ones.

We met up again with Gordon and Eta for dinner at Peppers. They went outside up the coast while we had fun doing all the shallows. We arrived roughly the same time at Fernandina and we jointly agreed we all needed some margaritas at Pepper's to relieve the stress of the past several hours!

Ann has an appointment to get her hair cut at Magna's in Fernandina. It has become a tradition for Ann to receive her haircut at Magna"s on every pass through Fernandina. They do the best job in any place on the ICW.

We will head for Jekyll Island anchorage after Ann gets her haircut. It's a protected anchorage with a dock for Hoolie relief, perfect for us.

St Augustine - at a dock

Ann's looking over the paintings by students at the St Augustine Art Association

Today was our first day of serious shallows. We transited all of them at dead, low tide. The most famous was Ft Matanzas which was dredged just last year but has already filled in. The USACE has been moving buoys around and there is an 8.6 MLLW path through but you have to pay particular attention to the new buoy placements. You pass 50 ft off the greens and 30 ft off the reds and you'll be okay. The red buoys are amazingly close to shore but have faith and honor them for good water. When we were there, a USACE speedboat went by down the marked route which I assume was checking out the depths.

The Art Association was having a paint out and naturally, Ann had to talk to the artists

So with our second day of good weather, we had a smooth ride to St Augustine and I took Ann out to dinner at OC White's Restaurant which was fine. We had intended dining at La Herencia but it was closed after 4:00 on Wednesdays. We met up with Gorden and Eta for wine on the boat before going to dinner.

A nice  Bird of Paradise was growing outside the art association main building

My article on weather apps was published by Waterway Guide. Let me know what you think. We are all interested in the weather and what app does the best job (short of a dedicated weather person). The article covers only one instance of a prediction but more will follow as I make my way north from Key West.

Coming into our slip was exciting with a 2 kt current behind us and a wind pushing us away from our dock, a double whammy! The docks here have still not been repaired and there's no electricity for the boats. I asked if the marina was offering a discount due to the lack of electric and I received a reply, "Yes, we won't charge for electrical hook up!"  Some discount... Ann took a tour of the art galleries in St Augustine and found the St Augustine Art Association which has been around since 1924 but we had never seen the building and the exhibit inside. Somehow we missed it every time! Now we will never miss it again! Ann had a grand time talking shop.

We will leave in the morning for Fernandina and anchor. Ann has a hair appointment on Friday morning, after which we'll move on to Jekyll Island to catch the Saturday high tide to move north.

Bethune Park - at anchor

Sunrise, not sunset! As we left Titusville. 

We left as the sun was rising and it was perfectly still, just what we wanted for a ride north. All the apps predicted the wind correctly so there was no competition today on who's the best. Just as a little background, there are two main weather models, the GFS from the National Weather Bureau of the US and the ECWMF from Europe. The European model has been the best performing most recently in head to head competition. It has a higher resolution than the GFS model so it should be able to predict smaller weather cells with more accuracy. In addition to those models, PredictWind which was born out of America Cup racing (they really need to know the wind!) has two more models PWE which is a tweak on the European model and PWG which is a tweak on the GFS model.

The docks have been like this since Hurricane Matthew.

In my tests, I'm using PocketGrib (GFS), Ventusky (GFS), NOAA (?, but probably GFS), Windy (ECWMF) and PredictWind (PWE). As I go north, I'll look for differences in predictions and when they come up, then we'll see who's right.

They still get used!

Ponce de Leon by 18 and 18A was shallow as expected at 7.5 MLW but now you can't hug the reds, you have to be about 50 ft off due to a shoal working its way out from shore. Once past the reds going north, I ran across a 5.6 MLW spot. The reds 2 and 2A needed to be close by at 40 ft or so to get 7.9 MLW but with a 6.8 spot beyond, going north. I updated Active Captain and Waterway Explorer with the latest information.

Fleetwing is at the upper right, Hoolie jumped out immediately as we touched shore,
the dog has no patience at all!

Today everyone predicted light winds and they were all right. We anchored by Bethune Park and I took Hoolie to the sandy beach by the old docks which are still not repaired yet from Matthew. The anchorage here is huge, no crowding. We anticipate a quiet night and an early start so Ann can go through the art galleries in St Augustine. Then it's on to Fernandina and a hair cut for Ann.

Titusville - Last day and with storms

Derek and Jan form the boat next door

Today was predicted to be the stormiest day of our stay and it didn't disappoint. We had three storms roll through, each with its rain and wind gusts. There wasn't any lightning, just wind and rain. In anticipation of the windy weather, Ann hosted a "High Wind Party" at 5:00 and we sat in the cockpit and toasted the storm with wine. Our neighbors on the dock came over to join us and we had grand time trading stories - and producing empty wine bottles.

Whenever there's rain, the manatees gather at the run off drains to sip the fresh water

I paid my bill at the rate of $6.50/ft for a week which is a pretty good for the area. I would rather have moved on but at least it's very reasonable on cost. The marina still only has very few slips available. I think I ought to get a discount for helping to fill the place up through my reviews in my guide but I pay the same as everyone else.

The clouds are breaking! Is that the sun?

After the storms passed this afternoon, it appears that we will have a quiet night and a rain free day on Tuesday. We have a few shallow spots ahead of us at the Ponce de Leon Inlet and a couple of places just north of there. I'll be updating Active Captain on what I find so stay tuned. Our final destination on Tuesday is Bethune Park just south of Daytona. It's an anchorage area we're fond of with easy access to a park for Hoolie relief. We have a dock at Stl Augustine the next day.

Titusville - Waiting for weather (good weather)

Just a dreary, overcast day with rain - but it is warm at least

We continue to count the days. We really don't want to travel in rain and high winds but we may do some of that on Tuesday. The forecasts keep slipping and slipping. When we first arrived, the first good day was to be Monday. Now Tuesday is not looking so hot but we will weigh that again on Tuesday morning. These delays are getting ridiculous.

Each dock has its own gate for security, a good added feature over the last couple of years

We are still getting wildly different forecasts for Tuesday. Once again it's PredictWind against all the other apps. This time I truly hope that PredictWind is wrong since it shows 20 plus kt winds once we get through the haulover canal bridge vs less than 10 kts from all the other apps. At least it's predicted to be out of the south so even if it's true, the wind would be behind us which is very different from being on the nose.

Monday, however, is supposed to be very rainy with lots of wind. At the moment it seems very calm but when I looked at the wind gauge, it showed 20 kts. The difference is the wind direction, now it's out of the south and we're protected from that direction. If it continues out of the south, it should not be a problem with us going north on Tuesday. There are several boats looking for good weather just like us so there will be a bunch of us leaving when the weather clears.

Ann is still having her "High Wind Party" Monday at 5:00, just some wine and socializing. Everyone's invited.

Titusville - 20 kts winds all day

Just a dreary day (the bird is flying backwards)

We are just hanging out waiting for something other than 20 kts winds on the nose with rain. The weather is predicted to worsen over the next two days with nothing but rain all day on Monday, oh joy. On Tuesday we have another disparity forecast between all the apps vs PredictWind. Once again, PredictWind is showing high winds on Tuesday when the rest of the apps are predicting winds in the 10 kt range or less. Given my last experience where everyone was wrong except PredictWind, I'm a little concerned. At least the direction is on the aft quarter so it's not on the nose like last time.

One response to the weather is just to pretend to be an RV

Meanwhile, we did laundry and had a pump out which is free at Titusville twice a week. Ann is organizing a "High Wind Party" Monday night to celebrate our leaving Titusville and continuing our northward trip the next day. She's out recruiting attendees tonight while I do the blog. Monday evening is also when we're due for heavy rain along with the high winds, a double helping of Florida "sunshine". The party is also a sign that we are fully recovered from our chest colds. It "only" took two weeks.

This is a sunset?!  NOT

We plan on reaching Daytona on Tuesday night and St Augustine on Wednesday but only for one night since we really have to get going. We are so late this year.

Titusville - Provisioning and Black Point

The manatees have arrived in force! Note the propeller scars on his back

We did our usual provisioning today but chose to go to Winn Dixie instead of Publix which seems to keep raising prices from week to week. They simply do not carry boneless chicken breasts in six packs and the breasts they do carry are 2 to 3 times the price at Winn Dixie or Walmart. The coffee in Publix is $2 more per 12oz package and other items are along the same lines. They bought out many of the local stores and I guess they are trying to corner the market, so to speak. Publix is a very nice store with a wide selection but at boutique prices.

Poking around in a muddy pool where there is usually a shallow lake

Whenever we get a car in Titusville, we always find time to take the Black Point Wildlife Drive on Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge.  This year we were amazed at the low water level in the refuge. Many areas were completely dry when in the past it was all covered with water. The poor birds that were left were poking around in puddles. I know we've been dry for awhile but I didn't realize it was that dry!

A Night Heron

We did not see the usual array of birds but we did see two that we had never seen before. One was a black hight heron and the other was an anhinga (see photos). They were just sunning themselves and they posed quite well for photos.

Anhinga

The storms are coming! We can see on the weather forecasts the strong winds working their way south and they should reach us starting tonight and last through Monday night. Thunderstorms are also in the mix so we'll just hang around until they pass by leave on Tuesday if they're done playing around. It seems there are no end of delays in keeping us from moving north in a timely fashion. However, the weather is boss.

Titusville - at a dock

Gordon and Eta Johnson came over for a visit,
they spent the winter in the Bahamas

We left at 6:40 from Quail Valley and headed north. The one sticky wicket was the NASA bridge which does not open between 3:30 and 5:00 pm. We had to average 7 kts to make the bridge before 3:30. As we started out, we initially moved at 7.4 kts so we got a head start even though we eventually ran into an adverse tide later one. We reached the bridge in plenty of time at 3:00 but as we approached Titusville, we heard other sailboats calling for an opening and were told the next one was at 5:00 pm! In that case, you just anchor out south of the bridge and wait, we've done that before too.

We have our usual slip, nice and secure

When we first started going south, the Titusville City Marina was run by the city and it was always at least 1/2 empty. There was never a problem getting a slip. For the last two years, they hired a management team that runs several marinas and there's been a turnaround. Now the marina is almost always full and you have to call ahead to reserve a slip which we did.

Somewhat of a sunset, we'll take it

The weather ahead does not look good. There are thunderstorms predicted all weekend but we hope to leave Tuesday for Daytona, maybe Monday if the weather changes. We are so far behind last year's pace that we're not even looking at the calendar anymore. We'll get home sometime.

Quail Valley River Club in Vero Beach - at a dock

Quail ValleyRiver Club and Golf Club

We spent a very quiet night at one of our favorite anchorage, Hobe Sound by R38. After taking Hoolie ashore at low tide (he had to wade to shore), we headed north on a beautiful, calm, and sunny day. Just perfect for traveling the ICW.

Nice pool for relaxing

We were invited to stay at Quail Valley River Club by Jack Apple, a fan of my blog. It's a private club with a marina and it looked very interesting. In order to get a dock, you need an invitation from a member, in this case, Jack.

You can also relax inside with a fire in the fireplace

We were somewhat concerned about the entry as to water depth but it never dropped below 7.0 MLW  on the way in so we had a two-foot cushion even at low tide. Pam, the dockmaster, met us at the dock and Ann made a perfect landing. Pam graciously gave us a tour which included several dining rooms, the spa, the exercise room, tennis courts, swimming pool, and Tiki Hut bar. Needless to say, it was all first rate.

The docks are first rate and just the right height for Fleetwing

We are going to take advantage of one of the restaurants tonight so I'm taking my all-time date out for an evening of fun after her bout with not feeling well for so long. They have their own chef on site so we looking forward to dinner and wine.

We will leave at first light for Titusville since we're trying to make the NASA bridge before it shuts down between 3:30 and 5:00. It will be a tight fit to make it and I expect we'll have some adverse tide just to make it interesting.

Hobe Sound - at anchor

Hoolie has four beaches to choose from

We left Suntex at 8:30 in order to make the 10:00 opening at Southern Blvd Bridge. When we arrived south of the bridge, we saw 14 boats waiting for the same opening. I guess that's better than the 25 waiting for the 7:30 am opening. Of course, the opening was late. The processes started at 10:05 and that consisted of first raising the new bridge before the old bridge could open. That took another 10 minutes and we were getting antsy since we would have to do 8 kts to reach the next bridge in time given the distance and time. Well, we can't do 8 kts and the other sailboats couldn't either but we powered ahead as best we could. It turned out that they held the bridge for us and we all made it through.

The rest of the bridges were the usual timings, no problem. It's a big relief to be moving again! We got tired of sitting and throwing $100 bills into the water. So about $1150 lighter, we are finally moving north.

Nice and calm!

The anchorage here is not generally used a lot. It's convenient for Hoolie relief and usually quiet and calm. Ann continues to recover and she's much better. We will stop at Vero next and visit Quail Valley River Club. We were invited to stay one night so we're headed there Wednesday. The next day, it's on to Titusville.

Suntex Marina at Lantana - Last day

Goodbye Suntex!

Given that low tide coincided with the time we wanted to depart for the 7:30 opening, we decided to wait until we had more tide and leave to make the 10:00 opening. There was another boat in the marina that left earlier today and they are anchored near the bridge for the 7:30 opening. They gave us a call and reported that 25 boats are anchored out and expected to pass through at 7:30 Tuesday.

We only have about 28 Nm to go Tuesday to our usual Hobe Sound anchorage by R38, so leaving at 10:00 is no problem and will avoid the 7:30 rush. After Tuesday, it's speedway time for going north. We hope to move every day.

Indiantown bridge is coming up,
it opens on the hour and 1/2 hour
The ETA will appear for the bridge once you're moving

I added a route to the GPX Routes list that starts at Hobe Sound. The waypoints include every bridge that needs to be raised for a sailboat. The waypoints give the bridge names (you must call ahead to tell them you want though) and the opening schedules. When downloaded to an app like Aqua Map, the ETA to each bridge will be shown as you progress down the ICW so you can time your passage to hit the bridge when it's scheduled to open. It should be helpful to those running the ICW to Ft Lauderdale with all those bridges.

Suntex in Lantana - Where's President Trump?

The area is heavy with security and some yards have 7,000-volt fences 

We would like move Monday to just south of the Southern Blvd Bridge to await the 7:30 opening Tuesday morning. It will be the first opening in over a week. We expect a crowd. The problem is that it's also in the presidential exclusion zone when President Trump is in Mar-a-Lago which is exactly at the eastern end of the same bridge. We are still not sure where he will be so we will call the Coast Guard Monday afternoon to find out the status of waiting by the bridge.

The other option was to leave Suntex at first light on Tuesday morning that's at exactly low tide and we can't make it to the ICW. So we have to do something. We have all of Monday to figure that out.

You can see by the photos that they take their security seriously around here. The 7,000 volt lines are strung far above the top of the chain link fence. The marina we're in has 24/7 security and they always seem to be patrolling on foot, in cars, and in golf carts. I guess there's a reason.

Tie right up, looks pretty solid at high tide

But watch out at low tide!

We continue to see cranes all over Florida, mostly replacing pilings. They look pretty good until you see where the piling meets the water at low tide. Then you wonder how they even stand up. I sure wouldn't want to tie a boat to them or depend on them to support a dock. We watched them replace pilings in Key West. It's a very slow process and must be very costly.

Meanwhile, we have a line of thunderstorms approaching that promises to entertain us with high winds, hail and possible waterspouts. I've been entertained enough along those lines.

Suntex Marina at Lantana - We see Southern Blvd Bridge

Approaching the bridge

We finally got our rental car this morning. Enterprise had cars shipped in from other locations but not until Saturday morning when our reservation was for Friday morning. Well, better late than never I guess.

You can see that nothing is getting through that center span!

We headed north because we wanted to see the Southern Blvd Bridge for ourselves. We found a side road and took pictures. The enter span is indeed completely blocked by a construction barge. We did see some smaller boats go under the section of the bridge away from the center span. I don't know the exact clearance but it looked like 20 ft or so.

But there is room for smaller boats to sneak under a side channel

It looks like an awful lot of stuff to move out of the way by Tuesday morning. We've heard nothing about them being late and I hope that holds true. We also looked at the anchorage and there are two nearby. One is close to the bridge and if President Trump is in town, we won't be able to use that one. The second anchorage is much farther south and it's still okay but not as convenient. Both anchorages have access to sandy beaches for Hoolie. We may just decide to use one of the two anchorages Monday night in order to be ready for the 7:30 am bridge opening. We are anxious to get moving north again after a week's wait!

Ann had a good night's sleep for the first time in two days and I think she's on the way to recovery but not entirely out of the woods yet. She's got a ton of medications to take so she's on a regime. The wind pipes up Sunday with some rain but Monday is supposed to be good for reaching the anchorage, we hope.