We’ve had a wonderful holiday season this year. We were on the go throughout the month of December which meant that we got to take part of the sights and festivities in multiple cities.
We started December while in Savannah. It’s one of our favorite places to visit and it’s even more impressive during the holidays. We were so fortunate to get to see it all decorated for the season. We were able to visit the Georgia State Railroad Museum. We even received a tour of the preserved railcar that the President of the Central of Georgia RailRoad used for entertaining. We also walked through the Savannah History Museum located in the old RR passenger depot. We learned, among other things, about Savannah’s role in the Revolutionary War, the origin of the Girl Scouts and the history of Jazz. Of course, the highlight of the museum was viewing one of the park benches that was used in Forrest Gump as he sat in Chippewa Square. We made reservations to dine at the historic Old Pink House, built in 1771 and lucked out to land a table at the Pirate’s House, built in 1753. I highly recommend making reservations to both if you go to Savannah.
We then took an offshore trip to Brunswick, GA, a place that has always been on our list to visit. This passage turned out to be a bit more spirited than we had intended but we made it safely after 77nm to the marina in the dark (which I don’t recommend). Once we had officially checked into the Brunswick Landing Marina, we started to explore this adorable little town. In addition to having a large marina with a thriving liveaboard community, the small downtown area appears to be going through a revitalization with a variety of restaurants, shops and even a brewery and distillery. It was also built with the same layout as Savannah, with a grid plan including large, public squares at set intervals. We were lucky enough to get reservations for a brunch with The Grinch and witness the holiday parade.
Another place that we wanted to visit was just a short 36nm down the ICW, Fernandina Beach, FL. We stayed at the Fernandina Harbor Marina on their docks but they also have a large mooring field and an active liveaboard community. Since we had our bikes, we had a very pleasant 8 mile ride to tour the Fort Clinch State Park. The fort is very well preserved and there is a wonderful walking/biking trail that takes you through the park. We of course also had to wander through the shops on main street and partake in the local restaurants, breweries, and even a distillery/cidery.
Our final stop of the year would be St. Augustine, FL. We had the option of going offshore down the coast but opted for a slightly shorter 52nm and 10.5 hour trip down the ICW. We were ultimately glad that we took the ICW route as we ran into trouble with our cutlass bearing. We noticed a slight vibrating noise in the area of our propeller that was intermittent but then turned to a loud vibration/knocking sound that caused us to shut down the engine. Luckily, we were only about 12 miles away from the marina and had some wind to sail us closer as TowBoat US came to take us in. We were also pretty lucky to get a diver from First Mate Yacht Services scheduled for the following morning to verify our suspicions. Once it was confirmed, we tentatively scheduled a haul out for Nymeria with Camachee Yacht Yard for after the new year to get everything sorted and get us back under way.
Though we hadn’t planned on being here too long, it is still one of our favorite stops due to the rich history, a variety of restaurants and breweries to choose from and shopping on St George’s Street. This year we were also in town to see it all decked out with lights. This year, we also used St. Augustine as a base to keep Nymeria at Marker 8 Hotel & Marina while we flew back to Oklahoma to visit my family. We of course had to eat a few times at Eskimo Joe’s, have Justin and my mom get their 1st ever pedicures and tour the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.
We completed the year with a distillery tour and a brewery stop before having a nice dinner at Odd Birds on Anastasia Island and going to bed way before midnight.
We had originally planned on being in St. Augustine through the 1st of the year and then finding our first weather window south to Fort Pierce in preparation for a crossing to the Bahamas, but “the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” So, We’re still here in St. Augustine with Nymeria doing repairs but, as always, we’re still prepping for our next steps and determining what’s in store for 2025.
You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream. – C.S. Lewis
