Patriot Dreams: April 18, 2015 - Time Out For Mexico

During the week from April 3-10, we parked Patriot at a marina in Titusville and flew to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, where we joined our daughter and son-in-law (Heather and Blake) and their four children (Brynn, Avery, Camden, and Krue) for a marvelous week together at our timeshare. We swam in many of the numerous pools, floated down the lazy river, went down water slides and various other water activities in the Kids Club, and experienced first hand some of the genuine Mexican culture. We attended a Mexican church, visited two different villages, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves in the beautiful atmosphere in Mexico. The kids favorite activities also included participating in the release of baby sea turtles into the ocean and seeing numerous iguanas in the wild. We walked the streets of the Mexican villages of Bucerias and Jarretaderas, while enjoying some truly authentic Mexican food while celebrating Avery’s 8^th birthday. She even had a mariachi band serenade her! Needless to say, they kept grandma and grandpa very busy while very little reading and lounging was done while we were there. A wonderful time was had by all.

Upon our return from Mexico, we promptly jumped back aboard Patriot and headed north up the intra-coastal waterway. Surprisingly, we were able to join our Canadian looper friends who were aboard Ta Ta, Roger and Mary. We anchored together our first night near Daytona Beach at Sheephead Cut, then we continued north while anchoring by ourselves just south of St Augustine at Matanzas Inlet. That made for a very short travel day arriving in St Augustine the next morning. The highlight of our stay there was connecting with Pentwater friends, Ron Beeber and Amy LaBarge, and Dave and Carol Messerlie. We had a great time together as we went to some great restaurants and enjoyed the sights of the nation’s oldest city which was originally inhabited by Spain in the early 1500’s. We even went by the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind, which was attended by my (Jim’s) brother, Rusty, who actually attended there when our family lived in Florida for a few years during our childhood. Finally, as we pulled out of St Augustine, Ron and Dave cruised to Jacksonville with Jim aboard Patriot, while the girls did some much deserved shopping (I am sure that it had been at least a couple of days since any of them had been shopping), and we all met for lunch in Jacksonville before departing our separate ways.

Dinner at Columbian with Dave & Carol Messerlie, Ron Beeber, Amy LaBarge. Had a fantastic evening with these great friends

Wednesday, the 15th, we enjoyed a quiet anchorage near Fernandina Beach, the northernmost city in Florida. Early the next morning we crossed into Georgia on our way to the beautiful city of Savannah, while the next night we anchored just off the ICW in a very wild and desolate area miles from any civilization.

Oh, I almost forgot the numerous special creatures that we enjoyed the entire way from Titusville to Fernandina Beach. Throughout this journey we have experienced numerous dolphins and manatee sharing the waterways with us. One time, Connie was using the solar shower on the back of the boat while I was driving, when all of a sudden she saw a pair of eyes watching her. Immediately next to the boat was a dolphin swimming in our wake, occasionally turning to look up at Connie. We both applauded him and he stayed with us for perhaps 30 minutes. That is certainly not the only time a dolphin has been in our wake, but this was by far the longest. Perhaps he enjoyed seeing a human being with no clothes on!

The flirting dolphin joined us for at least 30 minutes

Friday, April 18 - Arrival in Savannah

Just outside of Savannah, we are staying at the Isle of Hope Marina, where we have already hooked up with looper friends for some great food at a great restaurant in the Oldtown section of Savannah. Joining us were Bill and Lori Hughes from San Diego Ca. (although they have a summer cottage in Charlevoix), and Steve and Sheli Sterk from Grand Rapids. They have both been traveling partners at different stages of our journey, so it was good to reminisce and catch up. We are sure that both couples will remain friends long after the loop is completed. We are planning to further explore Savannah today, because it is such a beautiful and historic city.