Sent Nov 29 - From Cumberland Island, GA

Nov 27 - 29, Brickhill River, Cumberland Island, GA, Position 30 51.490 N, 81 28.023 W,  Traveled 29.9 NM from St. Simons

We thought about taking a short bike ride in the morning since we had some time before high tide, but when the sky clouded over threatening showers we decided to head on our way.  Although it wasn't forecast, there was a brief shower followed by a bit of sun, which produced a brilliant and full rainbow arching across the sound.  A number of dolphins were busy feeding on the changing tide as we rejoined the ICW.  By the time we'd passed Jekyll Island the sun was back out.

The passage behind Jekyll Island and through St. Andrew Sound was easy with plenty of water, not a lot of wind, and little boat traffic.  Two trawlers passed us before we reach the narrow channel at Jeykll, so we didn't have to head for the edge of the channel to allow folks to pass us.  With the extra water we cut the corner at the red nun  positioned almost out in the ocean that marks a shoal and turned back up St. Andrew Sound and ran the jib out for a bit more speed as we fought the outgoing tide.  There were a string of sailboats following us, but none caught up with us before we left the ICW and turned up the Brickhill River. 


The Brickhill River is an uNMarked, but fairly easy to navigate, river that tucks along the western side of Cumberland Island offering some interesting anchorages.  Other than a few spots where it looks like you'll run out of water (namely a mud flat that dominated the middle of the river) we never saw less than 12' of water and had no navigation problems.  I'd hoped to be anchored at Plum Orchard, one of the Carnegie estates that is part of the National Park, in time to tour the house, but the 1.5 - 2 kt current slowed us down, so it was 1500 before we arrived.  A boat from Alaska was already anchored, and we had our pick of spots to drop the hook.  With a fairly vigorous cold front due to arrive sometime Monday, we anchored anticipating the W wind that would be heading our way. 


The park tour boat was at the dock when we arrived, but it blew its horn and departed before we got the dinghy launched.  With some arm twisting we went ashore for a walk if not a tour of the house.  We set out for the beach on the Duck House Trail, and although we had a map with us, neither of us looked carefully to see how far it was.  The island is considerably wider at the N end than at the S, and after walking for 30 minutes we finally reached the trail that runs down the center of the island.  At this rate, we'd run out of daylight before we'd get to the beach, not quite what I had in mind.  A more careful perusal of the map indicated the round trip would be more than 5 miles, so we headed back settling for a vigorous walk.

After a brief shower before daybreak (enough to get us up to close the hatch over the bunk) it was clear, but windy, in the morning.  A radar check indicated the front was moving a bit slower than predicted, so after high tide, we splashed our way ashore for a walk.  When we arrived at the park dock, a ranger and 2 men walked down to the dock.  The ranger asked if we were there to visit Plum Orchard and offered a tour.  Although it was his official lunch time, he told us he'd meet us at the front door at 1230.  We took a short walk around the property while we waited, and found a stagnant pond that was a prime roosting site for wood storks, egrets, and herons, most of which took flight as we approached.  It also looked like a perfect alligator hole, although we didn't see any (there was a big fallen tree at the edge of the water that looked like a huge grand daddy gator slumbering on the bank).  A number of wild horses were grazing around the house, including a mare with a foal, and another grazing on Spanish moss.  A private home site just behind the mansion had a bit of a trough with fresh water running for the horses.


Leonard thought we'd taken the Plum Orchard tour when we'd gone in the house while the ranger found us a map on a previous visit.  That had been a mere "peek".  The ranger indicated the tour took 45 minutes, and included much of the house that has been preserved by the park service.  We started out with a private tour, but were joined by a family with 5 kids that looked to range in age from toddler to 9, and a grand mother (babysitter?).  The kids were well behaved, and the ranger did a great job interacting with them. The kids all got to ring the bell by the central staircase that was rung to alert the staff to put on their formal dress attire to greet arriving guests.  Our tour was well over an hour, and included the basement, swimming pool and squash court (all indoor) as well as the house proper. 


The house was built in 1898 by Lucy Carnegie and had wings added in 1902 and 1904.  She built a mansion for each of her 4 children, but retained the deeds.  Both Plum Orchard and Grayfield (now an exclusive inn) are still standing.  Members of the Carnegie family lived in the house until the 1960's when the house was bequeathed to the Park Service.  Several million dollars were spent repairing and preserving the house, and eventually it was opened to the public for tours.  Much of the wall paper is still original, Including the printed burlap covering  depicting gryphons, in the front hall and remains in amazingly good shape, whereas the more recent ones have deteriorated.  The house was designed by a Boston architect, and featured some 11 bathrooms with running water and central heating.  It also featured an early Otis elevator since George Carnegie spent much of his life in a wheel chair after an accident.  The downstairs was furnished with period furniture, but the second floor rooms were unfurnished. Several of the bathrooms had wonderful claw footed tubs, one had a small wood stove and all had heated towel racks.  All in all, it was a very impressive place.


Chatting with the ranger after the tour, he indicated the park shouldn't really be designated as a wilderness area.  There are still residents and their guests (or anyone who rents from them) with certain privileges not afforded to park visitors, like ATV's, permission to use autos and bikes as they see fit.  The 2 sets of rules have caused friction and misunderstandings over the years.  We're happy to have enjoyed the park on our trips south, have visited every trip in both directions.  We hadn't realized that we weren't permitted to ride our bikes on the trails other than the main road and to Plum Orchard - actually the road conditions on bike ride to Plum Orchard in 2010 were difficult enough (12 miles mostly in loose sand) to discourage us from taking the bikes ashore again.  The ranger was doing a 2 month stint as docent, and one of the perks was to live in the house.  Both he and the couple on the boat from Alaska (another ranger) have apartments in what were the servants quarters.  They are responsible to keep an eye on the house - it is wired for both fire and security alarms.



We also chatted with another ranger who was running one of the new bus tours offered by the park service on the island.  It includes van rides from the main park office to Plum Orchard and The Settlement, a black community with a historic church located at the N end of the island.  Since we've already toured Plum Orchard, the highlight of the tour, I don't think we'll sign up for the tour. 

By the time our tour was finished, the dark clouds preceding the cold front had started to roll in, so we headed back to the boat.  Although the radar hadn't  indicated any strong (orange or red) cells headed in our direction, we wanted to be on board if the conditions changed.  Although the morning high tide had us way up again, with good views of the ICW (and great cell phone reception) we'd prefer any strong winds arrive at low tide when the marsh will provide a bit more protection.  The Brickhill River offers better protection (a lot less fetch) than the anchorage at Dungeness, and with just the 2 of us here (he's well anchored) we are spared the worry of others dragging anchor around us.

We've also been enjoying the wild life here.  With the roost nearby on the island, we've seen more birds visiting the nearby marshes.  I also spotted a dolphin when we anchored yesterday, but haven't seen any since.  It's a peaceful spot to spend another night, and with luck, the bit of rain we're having will be it for the arrival of the cold front.  We expect to be back in long pants and fleeces for a day or so.  NOAA is calling for the rain in northern Georgia to turn into snow - guess that's why it's called a cold front.


We'll head down to the Dungeness anchorage sometime Tuesday.  There are a number of trails, including the beach, that are more accessible from the main park dock.  We plan to spend a few days there before we head to Tiger Point Marina where we'll store the boat while we're home for our version of winter.

Sent Dec 3rd - From Tiger Point Marina, Fernandina Beach, FL

11/30/11 - 12/2/11 Dungeness Anchorage, Cumberland Island, GA,  30 45.915 N, 81 28.355W distance traveled 8.8 NM
12/2/11 Tiger Point Marina, Fernandina Beach, FL, 30 41.488 N, 81 27.390 W, distance traveled 5.2 NM

Tuesday dawned cooler, but bright, and sunny.  Since we had time, we decided to spend another day at Plum Orchard   The forecast was for possibly gusty NW winds, and this anchorage had less fetch and no other boats nearby to worry about dragging.  With a whole day at our disposal, we packed a lunch and went ashore to go exploring, heading for the beach via the Duck House Trail. 

The rain that fell overnight dampened the trail and germinated a wide variety of mushrooms.  I lost count, but there must have been 2 dozen different species that appeared along the trail, in a wide variety of colors and shapes.  We didn't see any wild horses, but plenty of evidence of their presence along the trail.  Obviously they have no compunction about using "people" trails (easier than going through the underbrush which is dense in places), and it looked like they must hold conferences given the size of the piles!  Their contribution to the enrichment of the soil!  It was interesting to pass through stands of pine, and then areas of huge, ancient live oaks as the elevation (slight) and soil conditions changed. A string of fresh water lakes (read ponds, and quite dry given the lack of precipitation) dot the inland.  There were places where the soil looked very rich, and nearby was mainly sand.


It clouded over and looked like it could shower by the time we reached the beach.  Although it was somewhat narrow due to high tide, we had it to ourselves.  We planned to walk a loop, Willow Pond Trail about a mile S,over to the Parallel Trail and back to Duck House to explore more of this end of the island.  Since I enjoy walking on the beach, we walked about a mile N before doing the loop.  We saw a large group of turkey vultures busy at something on the beach which turned out to be a dead sea turtle.  Obviously nothing was going to be wasted as the whole flock quickly returned once we'd gone past making quick work of picking it clean.  A number of the shells had a soft, squishy creature attached to them - I don't know what they were, but when Leonard gently squeezed one, it squirted a stream of water - maybe they were little sea squirts.  Unfortunately, plastic was the most frequently encountered item on the beach, and we wondered if the Park Service has plastic pick up days to keep the litter down.

It was 1530 when we got back to Plum Orchard.  Although the day had been cool and cloudy, it hadn't rained, and the windy conditions that were forecast hadn't been evident while we were walking.  However, as we approached Plum Orchard, the wind picked up from the N, so .  we walked to the dock to check on how Antares was doing (she was fine) before walking to the roost behind the mansion to look at the birds.  It was full of birds and the herons took off as we approached, but the wood storks stood like sentinels in the trees. 

The wind blew hard as we returned to the boat, causing it to heel in the gusts, but the anchor was secure and the wind held us over the deeper water.  We pulled the dinghy, fighting the wind to get it on deck and flipped.  We should have waited, since it didn't blow hard all that long -  the wind arrived with the clearing skies, and once the sky cleared, the wind settled down.  Just before dark another boat anchored further downstream of us.

Between the wind and setting the anchor, it was well set.  So well set that the new bow roller we put on before leaving home tore as the chain came up when Leonard worked the anchor free.  Good thing we won't be anchoring much before we store the boat.  We'll replace it and buy a spare before we head out in February.  Guess they don't make things like they used to.

We had no problems slipping over the shoal between the Brickhill River and the ICW, but we got hung up at King's Bay Naval station.  As we approached the Naval facility we received a call from the Coast Guard on the VHF that they would be escorting an "asset" (read submarine) out to sea.  We were told to hold our position and once the asset headed out, to keep a 500 yard distance (later modified to 1 mile).  It took about 20 minutes before we saw the sub heading out.  It had the Coast Guard, 2 support ships and a helicopter in attendance.  We were joined by a ruddy turnstone who decided to wait for the sub on our deck.  He left us with a few muddy foot prints and a token of his affection before departing.

It was another short day since we anchored by the Sea Camp park dock at the SW end of the island.  We joined a couple of boats already anchored, and remembering the shoal that appeared behind us the last time we were there, we made sure to anchor in deeper water.  As we dropped the anchor, the boat that had been at Brickhill requested permission to tie up at the dock beyond the park ferry - permission granted, but no overnight docking.  After they were tied up,  Leonard looked at the name and hailing port -  Boomerang from Shelburne, VT.  Small world.

After a quick lunch, we dinghied ashore to go exploring.  When we got to the beach, a short walk compared to the Duck House Trail, we saw a couple walking, and Leonard asked if they were from Boomerang.  They were, and we chatted with them.  This was their first trip - they had left the lake just before Irene and spent the storm anchored in the Hudson, off Catskill Creek where they watched the docks with boats attached, slowly head down the Hudson during the flooding.  They'd just had their mast stepped at Hop 'O Nose, and luckily hadn't stayed in the creek. They plan to do the "Thorny Path" - heading for the Caribbean via the Bahamas, seeing how far they get.  Perhaps we'll see them again.

We were expecting a quiet night, but around 2000 the wind piped up to 15 kts and blew most of the night.  Leonard lengthened the anchor line, and other than having the waves slap on the stern when the current switched, it was fairly peaceful.  The wind was still blowing out of the N in the morning, and once the current switched and were sure the boat was secure, we went back ashore for a hike.  I'd hoped to do the trail at the S end of the island - a long hike that is a dead end trail and would require a return along the beach to windward - the wind was strong enough to make it an unpleasant return walk into the wind.  As we walked S, we saw another "Naval asset" inbound on the St.Marys River, along with the attendant escorts.  We probably walked about half way to the start of the trail before turning back and taking the board walks that head over to the W side of the island S or Dungeness.  There were more shore birds on the beach than we'd seen before, and we wondered if it was too windy for them to fly.  The waves had also washed up many coquina  shells, small bivalves, for the birds to eat. The sand blew hard enough to quickly obliterate our footsteps in the looser sand, and covered us with a fine salt spray.

When we got to the park dock by the ranger's quarters, a supply ship was unloading vehicles, or trying to.  A small fire truck was stuck in the soft sand between the boat and the road.  They eventually pulled it off with a rope and a bigger truck.  It also took some work to get a larger truck onto the ship to take back to St. Marys.  The original ice house that was used prior to refrigeration was located by the dock.  We'd not gone in on past visits, and found an interesting display of artifacts from throughout the centuries - photos of Dungeness in it's heyday to depictions of indigenous people and their pottery who lived on the island as long ago as 2000 BCE, and the various Europeans who built settlements on the island. 


Lucy Carnegie was an amazing woman - it was her passion and vision that purchased the property and developed it into a self sustaining community.  They raised much of their own food, requiring little to be imported.  It had to have been a wonderful place (ignoring the bugs and summer heat) to raise her children.  All this was afforded by Carnegie steel money and the absence of taxes.  It was also her foresight that set in motion the preservation of the island as a federal park.  It's a true gem and a far cry from the condo high rises that dot too much of the coast line.

We ended the day walking back to the beach to walk it at low tide, before walking back along the Parallel Trail to the park dock.  This year we noticed a lack of armadillos on the island and wonder if the Park Service has managed to eradicate them - they are non native and first appeared on the island in the 1970's  We did see a lot of evidence of deer, but other than hearing a crash in the woods once, didn't see anything but lots of deer tracks.

It's interesting that while much of the broader, northern portion of the island is heavily forested, the southern portion is mainly sand dunes with sporadic palms and some brush.  There is a creek that runs inland from the sound, with trees growing along the creek bank. Perhaps the  wind blows hard enough to continually keep the sand shifting, making it harder for plants to take root.

On Friday morning we went ashore for another walk.  With our destination virtually in sight,  we  had time to spare.  It was a pleasant day with less wind and we enjoyed spending more time on the island.  Back on board, we hauled the dinghy and headed S to Egan Creek and Tiger Point Marina.  Until Monday, when the boat will be hauled, we're on D dock - about 2 blocks from the bathroom and showers (some things never change).  Sunday we'll motor to the Fernandina Beach municipal marina (about a mile away) for a pump out and possibly take on fuel.  There is a long list of chores to be done before we head home on Wednesday - remove and store the sails, deflate and store the dinghy, work on cleaning the hull and interior, winterize the systems on board (just in case it does freeze), laundry, etc., etc.  Almost as if we'd stored it at home, except we don't have to put up the frame and the tarps and take everything home.

Sent Dec 7th - From Tiger Point Marina, Fernandina Beach, FL

We needed to pick up our rental car Friday evening to take advantage of the weekend rate, and because we dawdled leaving Cumberland we didn't have time to pump out or top off the fuel tank before getting the car.  This task was added to the long list of chores to be done before the boat was hauled on Monday.  The first task Saturday morning was to remove, flake and bag the sails.  The forecast (on Friday evening) was for light winds all weekend.  We shouldn't have been surprised when we found the wind blowing 15 kts out of the E in the morning, with Sunday's new forecast a carbon copy.  The only good thing was the boat was pointed onto the wind on the dock which would only make it difficult, not impossible, to remove the sails.  With new, crispy sails, it was a challenge to drop them and keep them out of the water in the wind gusts.  Flaking was another matter.  After attempting to flake them on the deck or the dock, we finally just bundled each sail and shoved them into the car to transported them, one at a time, to the marina to use the club house deck to get them properly flaked and rolled.  Luckily we had a car - it would have been impossible to walk the 2 blocks carrying the sails. 


By mid afternoon we were ready for a break and decided to run errands.  One of the items we needed was a replacement roller for the anchor which should have been a simple task.  Unfortunately West Marine closed their store on the island since our last trip south, and the closest store was in Jacksonville.  After checking the marinas we learned there  is next to nothing available for marine supplies on the island.  So off to Jacksonville we went, using the car GPS for navigation which was acting strange (Leonard had dropped it on our bike ride at St. Simons). We discovered the directions were in Afrikans, and in pedestrian mode, no wonder nothing made sense.  With that fixed, we took the scenic route which included the Mayport ferry  across the St. Johns River.  After checking a map, that route was the most direct, and it would probably have cost more than the $5 ferry ticket in gas to drive to the closest bridge.

A call to Fernandina Harbor Marina Sunday morning informed us the pump out facility was not working (we've had this experience before).  That meant we'd need go out the St. Marys Inlet to the 3 NM limit.  Not a lot of fun with E winds at 15 kts.  We timed it to leave the dock at slack water to avoid the worst of the current.  Even so, it was a bit unpleasant with 4' - 5' seas in the inlet, running into the last of the ebb current, resalting our freshly washed decks.  The wind was a bit more N than forecast, and it could have been a decent sail if they hadn't been stowed below decks.   The length of our slip on D dock didn't look any bigger on our return to Tiger Point (maybe 50' long, between 2 boats with no friendlies on the dock to take a line).  We  were glad to get back into the slip without any problems, although the wind and current did their best to throw us a curve. 


We'd been told we'd be hauled at slack water Monday morning, between 1030-1100.  After a call at 1030 we headed to the hoist, and with a few adjustments, the boat was slid into the slings.  Once out of the water, the bottom was power washed to remove the little growth we garnered on our way S.  It was a good thing we'd been using "Mr. Fishy" a large external zinc to protect the underwater metal fittings, as the zinc on the prop shaft had disappeared.  We'll put 2 new ones on the shaft when we relaunch in February.


We expected to be moved and either put on a cradle or have jack stands placed to secure the boat.  We learned Captain Bill is the only person licensed to drive the travel lift, and he'd left for an appointment while the bottom was getting cleaned.  At noon, when the crew quit for lunch, one of the men lowered the boat about a foot, and brought over a ladder so we could get on the boat.  Talk about weird.  I don't get seasick, but the motion in the slings was hard to justify - swinging sideways just isn't supposed to happen on a sail boat.  We went to get the propane tanks refilled, thinking we'd be moved right after lunch.  Nope, and no sign of Captain Bill, so we started the cleaning while hanging in the slings.  Shortly before 1700, quitting time, we were told they'd lower the boat onto wooden blocks and leave us in the slings until morning.  It was slightly better than having the boat swing sideways every time we moved.  Finally, 24 hours after being hauled, the boat was secured in a cradle, and instead of a 2 block walk to the head, I could look off the stern to see if the bathroom is in use before climbing down.


We've met some of the folks currently in the yard either working on their boats, or waiting for work to be done.  There are 2 boats from New Zealand getting things repaired or added.  Both couples bought their boats in the States this year with plans to cruise S to the Bahamas and Caribbean over the next 2 years.  The couple on the sailboat, and Endeavor 38, plan to transit the Panama Canal and sail across the Pacific to Auckland.  This is their "trip of a lifetime", which they are doing between jobs.  The couple on the power boat (ex-sailors) plan on shipping their boat to New Zealand aboard a container ship.  Neither planned on spending over 2 weeks having work done at marinas.  We were told of other boats that had major damage to shafts and props - supposedly caused by crab pots.  One of the New Zealanders said he'd read on line about old submarine nets left over from WWII fouling boats that accidentally run into them.  The 3rd couple are from Toronto and have stored their boat here over the summers for a number of years.  They plan on heading to the Bahamas again this winter.

Tuesday afternoon we took a break from the unending list of chores to do some exploring in the area.  We found the light house (not accessible), checked out the beach and then headed to the Egan Creek Green Way.  It is a park located on the marshes upstream of us behind the dunes.  It looked like a possible bike ride if the weather cooperates in February (currently the bikes are buried behind sails and cockpit cushions).  We walked along one of the trails and back through a residential neighborhood.

Wednesday we'll finish up the list of chores before flying back to Vermont in the late afternoon.