Hanging out in St. Augustine

Walking by the School for the Deaf

Azaleas in bloom

  

Wild-colored succulent bloom

   Saturday, 3/24 – After breakfast, I walked 2.5 miles, then showered before driving over to River’s Edge Marina, on the other side of St. Augustine, to pick up Deb & Hugh. Pete has a rush job that will probably take up most of the weekend, so he will not be joining us. Unfortunately, I forgot the printer cartridge, which meant that I brought them back to our boat to visit with Pete for a short time.
    We headed to downtown St. Augustine and had a delicious lunch at Harry’s Seafood Bar and Grill.  Afterward, we waited to meet up with Deb’s sister and her husband. They just returned from a Caribbean Cruise out of Port Everglades and were heading home to North Carolina. While Deb was waiting and giving directions, Hugh and I went into the Basilica for a look around. Since walking wasn’t conducive to talking, we then went to the Barefoot Bar and Grill to have drinks.  We made plan for Deb, Hugh, Pete and I to meet for a farewell dinner tomorrow. Sunday, they will drive down to Marathon to help with a Junior Sailing Program for the week before returning to their boat and cruise north.

Old home with unique charm

Basilica of St. Augustine

     

Columns of the Treasury

Gathering of Hari Krishnas

   

    I had to say good-by to all around 4 so that I could get back to the marina, gather my appetizers and Pete, and head over to Jay and Pegg’s.  We had seen them last spring, just after they bought this house.  Over the past year, Jay has been busy making their place special.  It looks like they are in the home stretch as most of the projects are done.  Soon, he will get back to fiddling with another boat. It was a great visit and we look forward to seeing them when we pass this way in the fall.

Sunset from the Bridge of Lyons

    

     Sunday, 3/25 - Pete continued with his work commitments while I walked again and did some chores around the boat.  Around 3, we headed out to check out the Marineland Marina, which is about an hour south of St. Augustine. The facility is new, the write-ups are good, the comments are good, and so are the prices.  We might consider staying here for a while in the future.

Eagle pair hanging out at the Marina

     We picked up Deb and Hugh and headed over to Sonny’s BBQ.  It also had great reviews and we weren’t disappointed.  Between the BBQ Chicken, Pulled Pork, the Baby Back Ribs, baked beans, salad bar, and corned bread everyone enjoyed their mead.  The service was also excellent. A return trip to Sonny's will be part of our next visit to St. Augustine.
The time has come to say good-by to Deb and Hugh.  We definitely look forward to keeping in touch and seeing them once they get to our neck of the Chesapeake!

     Monday, 3/25 – Pete was still busy with work, so I did laundry.  I also took advantage of having the car to head over to Green Cove Springs to retrieve out mail. Since their Post Office is easy access and not crowded, I mailed some stuff, one which needed next day delivery. On the way back, I was able to complete the provisioning needed for this leg of our journey. It took a bit more time as I didn’t know the store and I had 3 calls while I was shopping.  I made it back just in time to pick up Pete so that we could pick up the rental car before 6.  Due to traffic and time, we kept the groceries in the car and went directly over to Enterprise, making it with 8 minutes to spare before closing. Tomorrow, we need to drop our car off in Charleston so we can leave St. Augustine on Wednesday.

     Once back, everything was put away (which meant some reorganizing), dinner cooked and eaten, then stuff was readied for our drive in the morning.  We need to leave around 6 am to miss traffic up by Jacksonville and make St. John’s Marina by 10:30, in order for Pete to make his conference call on our return trip.  I usually gather the drinks, snacks and breakfast sandwiches into a bag, which is easy to grab from the refrigerator in the morning to put into the cooler. We also need Bailey’s bed, food, meds and water.  We have a canvas bag with the bowls, radar detector, GPS and EasyPass which is always packed and ready.

      By 9 pm, we are more than ready to head to bed.  5:30 am will come much too early!

River Road, Yemassee, SC

      Tuesday, 3/27 -  We were up by 5:30, but it took me a little longer than normal to get my act in gear. We were on the road at 6:30. Pete dove the rental while I followed in our car.  We were pleasantly surprised when we drove through Jacksonville at 7:30 and traffic still move at a reasonable pace on 95 even though the off ramps to downtown were really backed up.   Later, Chris called and we were catching up with things so I wasn’t paying attention to the exits. During this time, Pete and I were separated by some cars and tractor trailers, so I went into the passing lane, hoping to catch up to him, but the exit came up too fast. Pete tried calling, but since I was on with Chris, I didn’t take his call. When I saw him on the exit ramp, I disconnected and called Pete.  I told him to continue and I would take the next exit, which should get met there not too far behind him.  This way he could start the conference call on time.  I wound up taking the next exit for Yemassee.  Due to railroad construction, there was a small detour and the GPS took me along River Road, which was a beautiful ride; large estates, old oaks that canopied the road in places, azaleas in bloom and no traffic. I only saw 3 other cars during the 10-mile ride!  I was only 10 minutes behind Pete arriving at St. John’s Marina. 

     At the marina, the handy man and Bailey remembered each other, and Bailey got her treats. We were quickly in the car and on our return trip.  Pete’s conference call lasted about an hour, which was perfect. It was noon and time to stop for lunch.

     Unfortunately, Pete’s mom is not doing well. She is an amazing woman, who has always kept up a positive outlook and was willing to do whatever it takes to get better, but this time the road back is so much harder. At 91, time has taken it toll on most of her organs and she is dealing with the problems it causes. We continue to call daily and share our stories, love and support.

     We were able to get back by 4. Pete took another conference call before returning the rental car.

    After dinner, Pete did an engine check and I made sure everything ready for the morning’s departure.

Sunset over the marshes by Comachee Island

~ ~ ~ /) ~ ~ K & P