St. Augustine, FL 29º53.747N | 81º18.607W
Last year, we learned to love St. Augustine while at the same time coming to loath the St. Augustine moorings in a blow. With a swift north/south current here, any significant wind from north or south causes wind against current at least half the day, therefore driving the boat on top of the mooring ball so it BANG BANG BANGS against the hull. Add to that a half-mile, maybe more, dinghy ride to shore from the south mooring field, and it was, let's just say, not something we wanted to repeat.
We like to make all new mistakes.
This year we have secured a slip at a marina to leave the boat for Thanksgiving, but opted to spend one night in the north mooring field, north of the beautiful Bridge of Lions and much closer to the dinghy dock. A light and delicate wind blew all day. We settled in for a predicted windy night.
Before midnight, a tempest blew in from the northeast.
The north mooring field is just inside the inlet, about 300 yards or so southwest -- or exactly in the path of a northeast wind right off the ocean. We spent the night riding swell, getting yanked back down off of each one by the mooring ball, then, since we were right off the seawall, getting the reverberation from each on coming right back at us. Exhausting.
The only thing that made it better was that the wind was so much stronger than the current, we never got the pounding ball on the hull. Well, it's something.
We cranked up the engine as soon as the sun was up and head through the Bridge of Lions and up the calm, quiet creek to our marina.
We chose our marina on the recommendation of our friends Annie and Eric on WeBeSailing. They kept their boat here for the summer and have left it to work on a mega-yacht for the winter.
It was thrilling and quite sad to pull up next to WeBeSailing, without her crew there to smother us in big, bear hugs.
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| Bridge of Lions on a stormy morning. |
We like to make all new mistakes.
This year we have secured a slip at a marina to leave the boat for Thanksgiving, but opted to spend one night in the north mooring field, north of the beautiful Bridge of Lions and much closer to the dinghy dock. A light and delicate wind blew all day. We settled in for a predicted windy night.
Before midnight, a tempest blew in from the northeast.
The north mooring field is just inside the inlet, about 300 yards or so southwest -- or exactly in the path of a northeast wind right off the ocean. We spent the night riding swell, getting yanked back down off of each one by the mooring ball, then, since we were right off the seawall, getting the reverberation from each on coming right back at us. Exhausting.
The only thing that made it better was that the wind was so much stronger than the current, we never got the pounding ball on the hull. Well, it's something.
We cranked up the engine as soon as the sun was up and head through the Bridge of Lions and up the calm, quiet creek to our marina.
We chose our marina on the recommendation of our friends Annie and Eric on WeBeSailing. They kept their boat here for the summer and have left it to work on a mega-yacht for the winter.
It was thrilling and quite sad to pull up next to WeBeSailing, without her crew there to smother us in big, bear hugs.
 |
| WeBeSailing and Cara Mia, together again! |
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