White
Pepper was in surprisingly good
shape after 18 months in the storage yard (actually 2 years save for
a quickie trip to St. Augustine in the spring of 2018). She was
fairly dry, and the only obvious damage was a missing Windex at the
mast head. All of the electronics worked except for the autopilot.
The engine started up on the first try. The dingy still had air in
it.
Jan
and I were sad to leave Green Cove Springs Marina. We had been there
for 8 years. We had grown to know the crew and trusted them with the
boat. The yard was incredibly dirty and crowded, but we had grown
fond of the atmosphere. However, the boat was headed back to Texas
and it was unlikely that she would ever be this way again.
The yard was particularly crowded this year.
John, the new crew chief
Green Cove Springs Marina
We
had a bitter sweet last trip down the St. Johns in beautiful weather.
It had been such a thrill to sail up the river in 2010. The current
was in our favor for once. We swept past Jacksonville at 8 or 9
knots. We easily made Sisters Creek at the intersection of the St.
Johns River and the ICW. The city of Jacksonville maintains a free
dock at Sister Creek. It makes for a perfect overnight stop although
the current is fierce at times.
Underway on the St. Johns
The railroad bridge
A last look at the Main St. Bridge
Danes Point Bridge in the distance
Free dock at Sisters Creek
Sunrise at Sister's Creek
The
next morning we started down the familiar trail of the Pablo Creek
and then the Tomato River to St. Augustine 30 nm. South. We took a
mooring ball at St. Augustine to await a favorable time to enter the
San Sabastine River. The next morning we docked uneventfully at the
St. Augustine River Marine Center. We had a bottom job scheduled. We
left the boat there and returned to Texas for an important medical
appointment at MD Anderson Hospital.
The lift at St. Augustine Marine Center is quite a bit larger than at Green Cove
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