March 19-21, 2011 Fernandina Beach (Amelia Island), Jekyll Island, and anchorage in Walburg Creek, Georgia

By Trawlers on March 22, 2011 in Magoo

Low Country – Jekyll Island, GA

Jekyll Island

Co-Captains

Dolphins welcoming Kyle

Tow Boat US "Out of Service" — Grounded — Gotta wait for the next tide here in Jekyll Island, GA

3's Company — Aaarrrggghhh!!!

Looks Like We Have Company…….

These wild horses are called "Marsh Tackies" and were left long ago by the Spaniards. –Little Cumberland Island, GA

Sunset Fernandina Beach (Amelia Island), GA

March 19. Kyle took the Amtrak from Cary to Jacksonville last night and arrived at the boat at 7am sharp. After lots of hugs, we were under way. Today is our last day in Florida. It’s been a great state to visit with lots of diversity. I can see why Carole and Sonny come back to Florida for several months every winter; and it’s more than just the warm weather. – We docked at Fernandina Harbor Marina, Fernandina Beach (Amelia Island) at 2:15pm. Not too bad since we were bucking the current all the way. – WOW, there are 9 ft. tides here. I’m glad to say that we have floating docks at this marina. About a half hour before we arrived at the marina we hit ground several times. The captain quickly backed off and moved to the side watching the 2nd depth finder very carefully. It’s actually a fish finder which shows the bottom and alerts us when the ground rises up or down. We’re okay, but this area is tricky. — Oh, oh, we’re in trouble. Kyle and Artie are reading about the town of Fernandina Beach and found out that they are big on fudge here. Oh, fudge!!! – We were good; no fudge today, but we did find a good restaurant and enjoyed the local fresh seafood.

Bridge Over Low Country — Jekyll Island Bridge, GA

One of the quaint cottages on Jekyll Island (Jekyll Island Club)

Another Quaint Cottage on Jekyll Island

Kyle bidding farewell to Jekyll Island, GA

March 20. We arrived at Jekyll Harbor Marina at approx. 2:30pm. As soon as we filled up with fuel and docked, we rode bikes around the island for several hours. The Jekyll Island is 7 miles long and 1 1/2 miles wide. – The history here is interesting enough. Beginning in the late 1800′s Jekyll Island became an island for the rich and famous (i.e. Rockefeller, Vanderbilt, Pulitzers to name a few). There is a historic area where there are many homes/buildings from that time in history (big ones). — This island was a playground for this elite group for about half a century. Then, as the story goes, there were rumors that German U-Boats were off the coast of Georgia. Then in 1942 a cargo ship was sunk nearby. The elite population deserted the island and left it to weather away. – In 1947 Georgia purchased the island and various investors worked at restoring what was left. Today Jekyll Island is alive and well and a great place to live and visit.
On the back of the boat Artie and Kyle bravely grilled the steaks for dinner. I say bravely because here in Georgia there are no-see-ums. As a matter of fact, I call them “GORILLA No-See-Ums” because you can definitely SEE these “NO-See-Ums”; that’s a fact! Hmmmm, does this mean that they are “YES-SEE-UMS???? – With 1,300 acres of tidal marshlands it’s easy to SEE why there are so many of these critters and why they are sooo big.

9' Tides Left These Boats High and Dry

March 21. Kyle and Mama took the lines in and the Capt’n revved up Magoo’s engine and pulled away from the docks. We are on our way again (8am). – We need to anchor tonight because there are no marinas on this part of the waterway. It was a long uneventful day and we are anchored at Walburg Creek (4pm). We’re pretty satisfied with this anchorage for two reasons. First, it is wide (away from the marshland and the no-see-ums). Two, we have a 15 foot depth and only two hours to go until low tide; so we won’t find ourselves grounded in the morning. We did good. Most of the areas here are shallow and tricky with the 9 ft. tides. No worries tonight!!