Day 1 - Brunswick GA - Florida
Magic Friday
Phil, Di and Annelise
Sat 11 Feb 2017 18:57
Casting off the mooring lines early morning to catch the tide - felt so good! Silently slipping past the shrimpers and gulls, genoa set in the channel and out to sea - we are on our way at last!
A gentle breeze sufficient to fill the sails, although as expected from the south, so some tacking to do to get to our destination. As we made good progress - a decision to skip an anchorage at Cumberland Island and sail on through the night to St Augustine - planning on getting safely tied up to a mooring bouy in the bay before some heavy winds on Monday would be the best option.
As the sun set and evening drew in - so did the cold! However, a full moon was a welcome "light in the sky" as we sailed gently along the coast line - tacking occasionally to maintain our southerly course. Venus and Mars also shone brightly in the western sky ("Mars is bright tonight") and later in Jupiter was a clear planet on the southern horizon - so no excuse to getting lost (that is if we could astro-navigate - another project for the admin list one day)!
One alarm in the night to keep us on our toes - "No rudder Response" Ah, knowing what that was - immediately lifted the cover to inspect the auto-pilot - a steering arm had decided to unscrew itself and disconnect! Luckily the stud had not sheared (this time) and quick work with a couple of spanners saw the auto pilot "in control" again! Another item to add to the list of pre-passage checks!
Phil and Di
