Oh! What a Night!

Weather: Blustery, North @ 20 – 25 knots diminishing to 15 – 20 in the afternoon; Chop in the anchorage; sunny – a beautiful, windy day!

Comment:
Last evening we participated in a planning session/gam aboard “Tally Ho.” The crew of “Capable” (David and Phoebe) was waved over and invited to join us by Cap Andrew.

We planned to do shore side activities tomorrow; a hike and perhaps a picnic lunch. We’d put in a full day, spend another night in the anchorage and depart the next day for points to be determined.

We enjoyed cocktails and a beautiful sunset. The wind died out to flat calm. It looked to be a serene night in the anchorage. As we departed, the wind picked up, making it a splashy dinghy ride back to “SUNSHINE.”

We watched a couple of episodes of Seinfeld and hit the sack at about 2200 hours. We drifted off to sleep as the wind continued to build… and build. By 0230, it was howling. I went out to check the anchor. It was dark and WINDY! The boat was sailing at her anchor. On either side of slack tide, “SUNSHINE” was driven around her anchor several times. I was concerned that the anchor would drag. The mast was “pumping,” the wind was ripping and howling through the rigging and we were bobbing a bit in the chop that accompanied the wind and changing tide.

We kept the anchor watch until 0430, when, once again, we were lying properly to the forces of the current and wind. We returned to bed and arose at 0830. Anna Marie made eggs and spam. We enjoyed the blustery morning and discussed the possibility of moving to another anchorage in the afternoon. After last evening, we wanted a calm anchorage.

We met the “Flock” ashore at the Cumberland Island, GA, Sea Camp Dock. Before starting out on our adventure, we discussed our sleepless night. Apparently everyone had a similar evening. I told the group that I was “pulling up stakes” as I wasn’t satisfied with the forecast which predicted winds of fifteen to twenty knots (down from the twenty to twenty-five of last night).

Pat discovered that there was to be a guided nature walk at Dungeness Camp, so off we went to find the Ranger. We arrived at the “Ice House Museum” where Ana Marie and I toured the museum and then enjoyed our picnic. We met up with the Ranger at the appointed time. The Ranger (Renee Noe) was very knowledgeable and an excellent story teller. By using the participants as “actors” she was able to make history come alive!

At 1500, Anna Marie and I begged off the walking tour to return to the boat. We were moving to the quieter anchorage on the Amelia River which was about 12 miles away and wanted to have the anchor set by sunset.

After hauling the anchor aboard, we motored out of the anchorage in 20 knots of wind, crossed Cumberland Sound, passed Fort Clinch and stopped for fuel at Fernandina Harbor Marina in Fernandina Beach, Florida.

The fuel dock was occupied by M/V "Sirena" a large motor yacht. The Capt. was asked to vacate the fuel dock so we could tie up for fuel. We purchased 15 gallons; he might have burned that and more by leaving the dock, idling, and then returning to the dock to pick up his crew.

We really liked Cumberland Island and will visit and explore more on our northbound journey, but we’ll only stay at that anchorage if the weather is right. If not, we’ll try the Buttermilk Anchorage at the north end of the island. The Ranger mentioned that it was much more protected but that the entrance was shallow. A quick check of the chart indicated that it might be doable for us.

We spent another blustery night in the Amelia River, but we were well protected from the wind and chop. We slept well.