...ok, I am sorry that it took so long for us to get the third part of our trip posted, but better late than never I suppose. We took a little time to make a few changes to Empty Pocket (more on that later) and this leg of our trip covers about 3 weeks. Our cruise takes us all the way up into Georgia to visit Cumberland Island. In this photo we are meeting with a dear friend of ours named Chuck who used to live in Fernandina Beach. We were anchored near Guana State Park on the intracoastal waterway for a few days just hanging out and catching up on times... planning... ... was a famous female British aviatior who went missing during a flight, much like Amelia Earhardt here in the States. The British are fond of using her as an analogy... saying such things as ...that bloke is like Amy Johnson, you just never know where he is! That is the reason for the name of Chucks boat. amy Johnson is a 1967 27 Pearson Renegade... and she is a special boat for sure. I have sailed with Chuck on her many times and she is one of the best sailing boats I have ever been on. He single-hands her and she is setup to be entirely self-sufficient. Amy Johnson... ...reading the scandal-rags and local newspapers for gossip that we can use on the trip. relaxing... ...headed north in the ICW. We will be motoring much of this leg as the river is narrow and winding through north Florida... Steph settles in and Whisper (the cat) goes below to catch a much needed nap after the stress of Chucks visit. (...no offense, Chuck! HEHE!) getting underway... ...I wonder what this used to be? Its probably for sale for about 2 million... beautiful, in a way... ...sorry about the fuzzy shot, but this is dismaying. This was a boat of about 35 feet that probably ended up hopelessly stuck in the mud during the tide in a hurricane. I hope that I never end up like that... ...truly sad sight. ...this boat probably costs more than the total GDP of a small country! ...WOW!!! 1st stop, Cumberland Island, GA! 15 hours of motoring and alot of uninhabited shoreline gets old pretty quickly... we were ready to celebrate! ...destination reached! AHEM! ...I said WE were ready to celebrate dear! (then again, maybe this isnt such a bad thing... ) uhm... ...after fighting over the champagne bottle for an hour, we achieved a compromise just before sunset... ...thats more like it! ...the next morning Whisper finally surfaced and took watch as we headed for the beach. ...are we there yet? Steph heads for the parks dock to meet me. we had a full day of exploring to do... ready for some splorin! the beach is on the opposite side of the island... I was considering turning back to get some long clothing, repellant, machete, compass... etc, but steph said there was not enough time. After all, there was SHELLIN to be done! So off we went, swatting and jumping... ...got your mosquito spray?? ...the payoff!! Theres something about being at the beach on Tuesday. (Not a soul to be found!) ahhhh... ......its a good thing that shes picky! After all, we are only on a 25.5! Steph gets busy... ...this is what we came back to the boat to find. I was willing to bet that Whisper hadnt moved the entire day. (although I dont recall giving her the binoculars to use...) Steph brought back a small sack of shells to add to her shells of the world collection. I was just ready for a shower... Whisper on patrol... Ok, we actually have a propane powered water heater, but we try to use the sunshower as much as the weather permits. It saves us the cost and hassle of refilling our propane tanks. ...save some hot water for me, will ya?!? ...is the other side of Cumberland Island... the ruins! Cumberland used to be inhabited by the Carnegies. They owned most of the island and were for the most part completely self-sufficient from the mainland. the next phase of our island adventure... ...check out the intricate construction. They sure dont make things like they used to. Ill bet that this house took 6 months to complete working on it full time back in 1870! workers housing... ...lots of wild horses roaming around. yes, there are... ...Ill drive! ...these cars belonged to the Carnegie family. gimme the keys... ...the Carnegie family built homes for all of the children that were on the island. This one is called the Plum Orchard Estate and was built in the late 1800s. It is all original and absolutely stunning to behold! We anchored just behind it for a day. ...oh, to have been a Carnegie! ...This shot was taken from the back of the mansion. ...like I said, ...after a day of splorin. winding down... Glad to be back on board, Steph pulls a Whisper and heads for the nap-room! ...exhaustion! Do we really want to leave Cumberland?? ...after all, we were having such a GRAND time here! Maybe well stay for a while longer... Next morning... after much strife about leaving, we decided that the lure of a night out on the town in Fernandina was too much. Steph organizes her catch as we motor into Fernandina. ...on to Fernandina Beach! After stopping at the fuel dock for ice and gasoline, we decided that this island called for mechanized transportation... ...at the dock! bikes! We cycled all over the northern part of the island for 3 days... checking out the parks, beaches, historic downtown, shopping... etc! My legs are still sore! Its time to whip out the... ...Yes it is hurricane season. That is something we often forget until the reality sets in. We tuned in a Jacksonville TV station to find out the latest info... wake up call... ...well Im glad the threat of the weather didnt affect Whisper too much. We just decided to follow her lead and nap for the next 3 days until the blow was gone... What?? ME worry?? as Adrian passed to the west, we endured 35MPH winds for the next three days. We caught up on our reading, movies, and nap-time. battened down... ...after the winds subsided, we turned Empty Pocket south, back toward St. Augustine! headed south... ...at a restaurant called CAPS on the water. stopping for lunch... ...as the weather improved, so did our spirits. We gunk-holed for a night nearby to CAPS and let the reality sink in that we were nearly home. Chuck would be meeting us in St. Augustine at a marina... Return of the smiles... ...or so we like to think, anyway! (Empty Pocket tied to a dock!) Chuck met us at the dock and assisted in tying us up! So ends this installment... I will be updating our modifications to Empty Pocket in a photo-journal shortly. If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail us. Installment four will be up soon! Rare sight...