"2003 - November 21 and 22 - Overnight to Florida" Top 5 Page for this destination Georgia Travelogue by grandmaR

Jetties of Charleston harbor

1735 (5:35 pm) - Trip 60.3 sm or 52 nm. The sun has set and the lights are on. We are between Port Royal sound and Savannah. We've eaten dinner.

Bob went down at about 1745, but came up at 1945 saying he couldn't sleep.

Ships and lighthouse south of Charleston

While he was attempting to sleep, I dodged some freighters, saw some more dolphins and saw a meteor. I can still do pocketmail. We are hearing radio traffic from Charleston, and Savannah both. We do get some warning when the big ships say they are going out the channel.

The stars are very bright except near shore where I can see the glow in the sky from the various cities we pass - first Charleston and then I guess Beaufort (dimmer) and then Savannah. I try to take a picture, but am unsuccessful.

There are big rollers coming from the east, but the surface of the water is pretty smooth and I can see the low stars reflected. Sometimes I can't tell that it is a star and not a ship - until of course it gets above the horizon a bit. There's also some kind of strobe thing east of us.

I went down and slept from about 2000 to about 2330.

2344 - Trip 102 sm. I reminded Bob that he never could sleep underway in the aft cabin, so he went down to the main saloon. I started hearing the CG asking if anyone had seen a red parachute flare, but I had not.

Before sunrise - 0650

0130 - Bob said he'd slept a little, so I went down to the aft cabin (I can sleep there perfectly well) and stayed there until 0530. Bob went to the forward cabin to try and rest again.

At 0630, the sky started to lighten up (this photo)

0648 - trip 150 sm - average speed 7 mph - 130 nm Water depth is 60 feet, course 218 deg. Wind 8.4 knots - SOG 5.7 knots - speed through the water 5.8 knots - there is a little current against us.

Sunrise 0715

The sky gets lighter as the sun begins to come up. It looks like there is land to the east of us (which I know is not so). (Top photo and this photo which was taken one minute prior to the one at the top) It's a bank of low lying clouds. The ships in the Savannah River are complaining about fog.

I turn off the night colors on the computer (the night time vision lights are red like in a darkroom so as not to destroy our night vision)and turn off the GPS lights but leave the running lights on.

0700 - I estimate about 30 sm to go to the St. Mary's River inlet. The sun is well up.

Range marker and paper mills in background

At night-time you can see the lights of the ATON (Aids TO Navigation) for a long distance. In the daytime you can't see them as well because they don't stand out as much. OTOH you can see the ships better during the day.

I see the rollers up ahead look like breaking surf, but it isn't. Later, Bob said that he saw that phenomena yesterday but didn't say anything to me because he thought I might give him a hard time about it (I don't like big waves).

Someone with a DSC radio (Digital Selective Calling) has broadcast a distress signal. There is considerable traffic with the CG in various places with other folks who have a DSC radio who got the distress signal. We don't have a DSC radio. Apparently the DSC radios give the number of the radio broadcasting the distress call and the other radios can read the number.

0805 - Off St. Andrews Sound(Brunswick). Trip 158 sm average 7 mph. It is 18 sm to the inlet. Bob got up and shaved and we ate breakfast.

0847 - trip 163 sm - 14 sm from the St. Mary's channel. Getting really anxious to get there.

0930 - trip 168 sm. We can see the stacks of the paper mills at Fernandina in the distance. We saw a big power cat heading north. Someone has called the CG to report the sighting of a whale (black)

I called Fernandina on the bag phone - there's no signal on the ATT phone. I know that they don't take reservations, but I'm hoping to get there in time to get space on the inside docks.

0944 Bob went to the head, and the alternator started to squeal and the apparent rpms went down below 10K. He looked in the engine room and said the house water system pump was leaking on the alternator belt and that's what was causing the squeal. The bilge was also almost full of water.

Bob started the bilge pump and he turned off the pressure water system and said we wouldn't have water until that was fixed.

11:22 a.m. Shrimp boat

1000 - I finally have one bar on the ATT cell phone. At least there is something, although it is too little to actually have a conversation.

The bag phone has an external antenna (we are using the antenna as a flag staff) which is on the stern of the boat, plus it has a bigger, heavier and more powerful battery. That's why it gets a signal when the little cell phone cannot.

Fort Clinch State Park

Next: Entering the St. Mary's River on the way to Fernandina Beach Florida