11.28.11

The nights are cooling down a bit…

A good breakfast of Biscuits ‘n Gravy started the day off. You notice I mention “Shrimp R Us” a lot.  That’s because they have good food at a reasonable price and it is within walking distance of the City Dock.

Crab pots are found all up and down the St Johns River. You’ll see them tending their crab traps in all weather.

Here’s a shot of “A Dollar More” …you can see my elbow in the mirror as I took the photo.

The river gets much wider as you go N. In many places it’s like crossing a big lake. As the day progressed, the wind and weather changed.

It’s getting colder and clouding over. The wind is picking up and the water getting lumpy. We decided to head for the city dock in Palatka. They have electric hookups and the price is right…free. By the time we got there, the weather and current were not cooperating. Jim and I decided to anchor out.

While Larry and Diane were trying to get to the dock…Jim went on a rescue mission…Larry had lost a fender overboard and it was drifting away. It made for a fun ride in that little rubber dingy. He normally sits on the side but ended up kneeling in the center when coming back against the waves.

Larry and Diane made several tries at getting to the dock and finally made it.

They decided not to spend the night there. The wind and waves were hitting them broadside and it wasn’t a comfortable position. A short conference and we decided to head for Deep Creek and anchor there.

By the time we got to our anchorage it was starting to rain….but only lightly. Just enough to make it cold while tying along side A Dollar More. Larry has this neat little thing called a “windlass”. You push a button and the anchor goes either up or down. On our boat one of us has to go on deck and drop the anchor or haul it in by hand.

Oh….did I mention it was getting cold?