We motored 50 nautical miles (nm) through the sinuous Intracoastal Waterway today, a long eight hours under grey skies and through a chilly headwind. We traveled through wide open spaces, along rivers wide and narrow and across broad sounds. Had it been a sunny day and warmer, it would have been glorious yet, even in less pleasant weather, the mostly uninhabited estuary landscape had a subdued magnificence.
The diesel engines continued to sing a lovely song to my ears today. I'm not sure why they sound so good. Perhaps the colder air temperatures are to their liking. Perhaps the worn bearings of the coolant pump I replaced were singing out of key, ruining their past chorus. I don't know and I'm not normally a fan of machinery noises, but I've enjoyed their steady throbbing hum over the past couple of days.
We are anchored on Back River, a short, small tidal tributary of the Doboy Sound. We're again surrounded by water and marshland with a stand of trees nearby, home to many cormorants, pelicans, terns, egrets, and a few bottlenose dolphins. The water surface is smooth and calm, but the current is swift as the tide changes. We'll swing 180 degrees on our anchor through the night.
Tomorrow we head out on the ocean, assuming the weather forecast doesn't change, heading to Port Canaveral, about 180 nm south. We'll weigh anchor around noon, head out Doboy Inlet and turn right for a straight shot down the coast. At normal cruising speed it would take us about 36 hours to get to the Canaveral Harbor Channel, but that would mean arriving at night, in the wee hours of the morning. Instead, we'll sail the boat slowly to time our arrival for sunrise on Sunday.
Favorable westerly and northerly winds are forecast for tomorrow, though they will likely be too light for sailing, and it supposed to rain most of the day, which will be miserable start. However, the winds are forecast to build to a nice 10 to 15 knots on Saturday, with sunny skies. Good weather should continue through Sunday. Seas should be comfortable, with long period waves in the 2 to 4 foot range.
Tomorrow morning, I'll orient Kyndy to offshore sailing aspects of crewing on Intermezzo, prepare the boat for an ocean passage, and make a hearty vegetable soup-stew for the trip.
It will be nice to be out on open water after all these miles of navigating confined channels through inland waterways. I'm looking forward to making some good distance and getting to Florida and warmer temperatures.
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| Elegant, understated home on a remote island along the Doboy Sound, Georgia |
