Barely in Florida....

Hey Everybody,

I will be in the Amelia & Cumberland Islands area for the next two nights at least, maybe three. Until 7:15pm tonight I didn't realize that the Cumberland National Seashore was barely 15min by boat from Fernandina Beach. How cool is that?! So, I crossed the GA state line twice tonight, but I'll be sleeping in Florida.

Thank goodness today's travels clicked for me...yesterday I questioned whether I ever wanted to travel again! - and that is not good :-) I didn't post that 'cuz it was April Fools Day; nobody would have believed me! I was tired of traffic, which was way better than I expected, but still.... I was even more tired of not being able to see or stop near bodies of water. In my native California, one of the great things about Highway 1 (the Pacific Coast Hwy) is that a person can stop just about anywhere and wander the cliffs & beaches. Basically, the trip just felt like work and that isn't how I meant for this adventure to be.

I know, I know I sound ungrateful and whiny. I am very grateful for the once in a lifetime opportunity. It just doesn't seem honest to avoid mentioning the unexpected disappointment of life on the road. After all, some of you may start your own road adventures soon...you need to know! Having said that....today I am recovered and you couldn't pay me to get off the road!!

I spent most of the day in St. Augustine and am certain that the town deserves 2-3 days & hope to return in the future. I opted not to spend another day this time because I was satisfied enough and REALLY wanted to get to Amelia Island. And I did....just in time for a sunset cruise. I could live in this place....

Back to St. Augustine for a moment: First, for you chocolate lovers out there - City Perks Coffee has a very fun blended drink called the psychedelic brownie. I don't think it adjusted my perspective about life on the road, but who knows. I highly recommend it! Secondly, if you like pizza then I recommend PizzaAlley - made a nice lunch today. Finally, the three photos are: (1) Flagler Memorial Church, (2) Magnolia Ave and (3) the 600+ year old oak tree.

As for Cumberland & Amelia Islands: stay tuned....surely there will be more to post. For tonight, just a few photos from the sunset cruise with Pajama Dave (our cool captain). Speaking of captains, please tell the captain of the Heidi Ann we need to bring the boat here too :-) Anyway, the photos are: (1) redneck space shuttle - Pajama Dave claims that the semi-truck you see on the paper mill ramp "flies" to I-95 because it gets catapulted; (2) the shrimp boat fleet has been reduced to barely 1/2 dozen boats and is no longer the thriving industry it once was here; and (3) a glimpse of Cumberland Island. The feral horses were back in the trees for the night, but I am hopeful about seeing them tomorrow!

So, I hope this finds all of you well. More soon.....