Regretfully Leaving Cumberland Island

We are ruled by the weather that is forecast for the coming week.

The National Weather Service marine forecast for the area:

A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL MOVE ACROSS THE COASTAL WATERS ACCOMPANIED BY AN ABRUPT INCREASE IN WIND SPEED EXPECTED….STRONG NORTH TO NORTHEAST WINDS WILL CREATE BUILDING SEAS ON SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT.  A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL THEN DEVELOP IN THE NORTHERN GULF OF MEXICO ON TUESDAY...

The factors under consideration for us:

1. Big bad weather in a double whammy -- first a major cold front and then a low pressure storm coming from the Gulf.  We need to find a super protected place and definitely be there before the front and its monstrous winds hit.  
 
2. We are running low on food.  We last provisioned around ten days ago.  We even opened one of our Meals Ready to Eat the other day. (We have a box of MREs given to us from my family in New Orleans who had obtained it during one of their hurricane evacuations).  The danger of actually totally running out of food is still maybe a week away, but variety in our meals, already minimal, is fast diminishing.  Sage, who has become a picky eater on this trip, will soon have nothing she finds palatable left.

3. Thanksgiving is in six days.  Having failed at giving the girls a proper Halloween (though we were successful with our alternative version), we are motivated to find a decent Thanksgiving gathering for them.  There are a couple of these gatherings for boaters that we have heard about, big potlucks hosted by local resident cruisers that help make this holiday the social, festive feast that it should be.  St. Mary's is one of these places and is close by.  Alas, it only has a fair anchorage and because of the Thanksgiving potluck, we are not able to find marina space.

St. Augustine's is our next best bet.  It has Protection (available marina space), Provisioning (grocery stores and a West Marine), and a Party (St. Augustine Cruisers Net Thanksgiving Potluck Dinner).

Jamey is stressed.  It is always better to be where you need to be way ahead of a storm.  I know he is right, but I eke out permission for us to visit Cumberland Island National Seashore for an hour or two.

It is beautiful.  We skip on the trails, do cartwheels on the beach, dig in the sand, and jump in the waves.  The brief respite we had on this amazing protected island relaxes us (except maybe Jamey), and everyone is in a good mood for the rest of the day (Ok, except for Jamey and the engine that started squeaking loudly shortly before we anchored).

The girls have gotten good at preparing dock lines.

Cumberland Island National Seashore Visitor Center

 

Not enough time to enjoy the abundant wildlife on the island, but we did see this.  

What a perfect place for a ranger talk.

Enjoying the warm, floating, cement dock.

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WHERE WE ARE:  Anchored in Fort George River, Mile 735.   Great birding with lots of egrets around and a great blue heron keeping us company.   If we had had more time, we could have rowed to Kingsley Plantation Park close by.  The plantation is part of the Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve, run by the National Park Service.  Zephaniah Kingsley was a planter who owned Fort George Island in the early 1800s.  His wife was an African slave who he bought.  After her manumission (act of a slave being freed by the owner), she acquired her own land and slaves.

Skye birdwatching.  She only recently started holding the binoculars (which she pronounces 'beeeenoculars') facing the correct way. 

The great blue heron was so close to us that I think Skye really was looking at it through the binoculars. Whenever we see birds, she will go get the bird identification book.  I think I'm breeding a birder!

WHERE WE STARTED: Anchored in Brickhill River, Mile 704

THERE TO HERE:  31 miles plus a little detour to go to the south dock at Cumberland, Jamey at the helm.  Lots to see along the way.

Submarine dry docks

Fort Clinch, built after the Seminole Wars (fought between the U.S. and Native Americans) and important during the Civil War. 

Sage innocently said, "I see some castles way over there."

 

The paper mill at Fernandina Beach provides a lot of jobs. 

CUMBERLAND ISLAND NATIONAL SEASHORE:  The park has lots of trails, historic sites, cultural ruins, a museum, campsites, ranger talks, etc.  Other boaters told us about seeing feral horses, armadillos and other wildlife.  There is also an area where you can hunt for shark teeth and have a pretty good chance of finding one.   The park is accessible only by boat.  Visitation is limited and requires reservations for the ferry and for camping.  Admission is $4 for adults (15 years+) with additional fees for camping.  Our National Parks Annual Pass got us in.  There are two docks available for transient day docking.    From the visitor center at the southern end of the park, you can access trails all over the island.  It was about a half mile walk from the dock to the beach.