It's cold but there have been a few nice warm (70s) days here and there but mostly it has been cold since we left Florida. Even before we left Florida.
The winter in Marathon was the warmest of all our stays so far but the rest of the country, including mainland Florida, has been a little on the cool side. Okay, cold side. A bit snowy, too. Pity.
We left Marathon at the end of February with 80 degree days and that lasted us only three or four days travel north. We did get some last swimming in at Key Largo, Key Biscayne and Boca Raton. Lake Boca Raton is surprisingly beautiful, with crystal clear water in a landlocked anchorage. We actually don't swim much while in Marathon because the Gulf Stream isn't that close so the water isn't toasty warm. Only 70 or so.
We only stayed a few nights in Fort Pierce near our friends Mike and Carol as we needed to start pushing north. Top off our supplies, visit, watch UConn WBB and head off. Ft Pierce was the start of the downhill weather pattern. Windy, cold, rainy. It was also the start of our outboard engine issues.
We anchored in a new spot in the northern Indian River area, short of Titusville, on our way to Daytona then Saint Augustine. We were only in St Auggie one night but got the chance to meet up and have dinner with our good friends from Voyageur, Bob and Jane Fulton. Maybe we'll see them up in New England in the summer. The Daytona stop let us go to a bar we know for WBB.
You can see how great the weather is here. It got worse.
A couple of days of cold, unpleasant weather culminated in a stop at St Mary's, Georgia for part of a day at a marina. Cheap at $1/ft but still, a marina. Gale winds convince us to spend money. After that it was a stop in a new place for us, Kilkenny Creek. A recommendation of Bob Fulton. Not bad but shallow water was quite a ways off the ICW. From there we pushed on right by the Savannah area to Hilton Head Harbor Marina. Not a cheap spot but nowhere nearby to anchor. We got there too late for the basketball game but the next day we were in Factory Creek, Beaufort, SC and were able to walk to a very good Mexican restaurant with many TVs. AAC Champions beating Louisville (again). From there it was a two night stop in Tom's Point Creek. It wasn't a new spot for us but we anchored a mile farther up the creek to get tree protection for near gale winds. All worked out fine and from there it was only a half day to where we are now in the Ashley River, Charleston.
In another week will head off towards Carolina Beach to get a mooring to leave the boat on while we head to Nashville by car for the WBB Final Four. Hoping that the UConn team will be there, too. We've never done this before. Final Fours? Yes. Leaving the boat? No.
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Two photos from the last few days in Marathon. Winter 2014. Sigh.
