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We arrived in Jacksonville today after receiving some bad news from home yesterday while we were in St. Marys. Jim’s step-dad had passed away yesterday and now we are in a hurry to get our boat settled in Jacksonville so that we can fly home for the funeral and some family time. Our good friends Louis and Diane will keep an eye on Kismet for us while we are gone and have helped us in every way we could imagine.…

We arrived at Cumberland Island late in the afternoon but with time to relax and watch a "rookery" full of Great White Egrets and Wood Storks (see the tree, on shore to the right of Jim).Only one other boat anchored with us tonight. We all enjoyed an amazing sunset and a corned beef and cabbage dinner on Kismet.First thing in the morning we dropped our dinghy to go explore this part of the island which is just in front of…

One more stop together with Bella Luna, Foreign Exchange and Shore Thing, Two-Way Fish Camp in Brunswick, Georgia. This is a rather rustic marina located up the Medway River, north of Brunswick.Happy Hour was on Foreign Exchange tonight then we all had dinner in the restaurant on site, Mudcats Grill. This will be the last night we will all be together as Shore Thing and Foreign Exchange are stopping in the Brunswick area for the holidays. We will depart tomorrow…

Bella Luna, Foreign Exchange, Shore Thing and Kismet all left Savannah together today and decended on a really neat stop up the Medway River @ mile 620 on the  AICW, The Sunbury Crab Company Restaurant and Marina.Elaine, (above right with Louis - and above left with her crew) and her husband, Barney,  the owners, have extended a discount rate for all AGLCA and MTOA members. All of us here can attest to the down home hospitality that Elaine and her crew…

Bella Luna and Kismet arrived in Savannah, GA Friday afternoon and were delighted to find room at the city dock on the riverfront downtown right in the thick of all the action. Savannah is another southern town that is rich in history there is something to learn around every corner. The river is very busy with container ships, tugboats, old paddle wheel ships and water taxies.Also a wonderful walking town, we love to walk around Savannah but getting our exercise…

Due to the remnants of hurricane Ida, it was too windy to anchor out tonight so we tied up at Port Royal Landing Marina in Port Royal, South Carolina. We got a pump out and tied up in some very rough seas. You can't really see the waves in the photo but even though we were tied up we felt like we were on a bronco buster. It did finally calm down at night and we were able to get…

The more time we spend in Charleston, South Carolina, the more we seem to see and learn. For example, during a carriage ride, we learned that there are over a hundred church’s in Charleston, that three of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were from and are buried here, Charleston was the first state to secede form the Union before the Civil War and that the first shots of said war came within Charleston’s Harbor.No trip to Charleston would…

It’s nice to be back on the water visiting all of our favorite southern towns. In-between marina stops we have been anchoring in the breathtaking salt marshes where we find it pretty easy to feel at one with Mother Nature.Today found us dropping our anchor in DeWeese Creek for one night before we move on to Charleston, South Carolina for t least a five-day stop. Kismet dropped anchor first and Bella Luna tied up starboard to port.Cocktails tonight were on…

After a long day on the water we arrived in Georgetown, SC for a two day stop. Georgetown is the third oldest town in South Carolina and therefore it has a rich history. Before the Revolutionary War, Georgetown was one of largest producers of indigo in the country. Before the Civil War it produced fifty percent of all the rice in the United States, in the early 1900s they were the largest lumber producer on the east coast. Today they’re…

Southport, NC is where we... got our inverter fixed, shopped, ate well, celebrated Louis and Diane’s fortieth anniversary and relaxed in the warmth of Robert and Kay’s kind hospitality.Rick and Billy (above left) caught up to us on Sunday and we celebrated with a big dinner on Kismet.When we arrived in Southport, Robert (above left) was in the middle of a special sailing regatta which required pirate costumes. We think this is a good look for Robert.Sunday, mid-day, we gathered…

Snow’s Cut is a scenic channel, with beautiful sandy cliffs and a weedy marsh at the end, that cuts from Carolina Beach to Cape Fear River. This will take us to Southport today for a couple of night's while we get our inverter fixed.

Our second stop, after meeting up with the Wade’s in Morehead City was John and Judy Woody’s (above) house in Wrightsville Beach, NC. the Woody’s are friends of Louis and Diane and there was not one but two parties planned for this evening. John and Judy had three couples over for the weekend at their house and Louis and Diane had a multitude of friends over to our boats at dock for a going away party. We can tell you one thing…

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!First night out brought us to Surf City Marina and found Bella Luna docked right next to the Halloween Party Boat where we met Dave and Sharon (above right) who were putting the final touches on the Belle of Topsail for a big Halloween party this weekend. Once we got settled Diane and I (Lisa) went over for a private tour. We have to tell you they had some neat decorations, many of them came alive with music, lights…

We arrived at Coral Bay Marina, in Morehead City today, and left the boat to spend a couple of nights at the Wade’s Beach House in Cape Coral before we all hop on our boats to start heading south to Florida where we will cruise the St. John’s River together.We enjoyed meeting Mary C. and Charles (above right) again, friends of Louis and Diane’s, we had met them a few months ago when we drove down to Morehead City to…

After a one night anchorage just before Belhaven it was just a quick cruise over to Dowry Creek for one night. The weather was pretty dreary so we just worked on the boat and borrowed the marina’s loaner care for a quick trip into town where we passed this cotton field which was in full bloom.

We ended our day in Coinjock, North Carolina at Midway Marina. There are two marinas here right across from each other in the Virginia Cut. We wanted to get a slip at the Coinjock Marina but they were already fully reserved for the night when we called. There are an incredible number of boats heading south, normal migration activity this time of year. All day we passed by many slower sailboats and got passed by ourselves by fast, sport fishing…

It just doesn’t get better than this for a boater (or a photographer). When the skies are deep blue with clouds that look like whispy cotton and fluid water that ripples more like jello just before it’s set. Reflections of sky and trees on the mirrow-like water reminded us why we love spending so much time on the water, traveling on a slow boat.

We had a lot of bridges today and one lock. It has been a while since we have had to go through a lock but this one was only three feet up and was located just before Great Bridge, our final destination for tonight. We were hoping that there would be room at the free dock, there are two of them by this bridge, one before and one just after. The one on the north side of the bridge was…