Lady Royal: Daytona to Jeckyl Island

We got to Daytona on April 11 and stayed at the Halifax River Yacht Club, a nice stop with a tiki hut and pool. We hung out at the club, and left in the morning for the St. Augustine Municipal Docks, which were right in town. St. Augustine is a beautiful city with a lot of history, shopping and tourism. By the time we docked, it was too late to take a tour, so we walked around St. George Street which had a lot of shops and restaurants, and the oldest schoolhouse in the United States. We met Zita and John on Winndecks, and had a nice dinner at Harry's which I highly recommend. Because of a time crunch to catch a flight out of Jacksonville, we left in the morning. Jacksonville is the third largest city on the eastern seaboard, twice the size of Miami. The first night, we stayed at Palm Cove off the ICW, and the second day we cruised down the St. Johns River to Ortega Landing, which was a great find. Although it was out of the way by boat, it turned out to be a convenient location once we got there. It's a new condo complex with floating docks, a great pool and hot tub, and free laundry facilities. There's a great spot downtown called The Landing which had a lot of restaurants right on the water with a place to tie up for up to 72 hours. When going for dinner, we met John and Frances on Oasis. We left the boat at Ortega when flying back to New York (Rob) and Cleveland.

Halifax River Yacht Club

St. Augustine City Hall

St. George Street

Oldest Wood School House – St. George Street

John and Zita – St. Augustine

St. Augustine Dock

Downtown Jacksonville

Flying Umbrella at Ortega Landing!
(The Other Four Landed!)

My 10 days in Cleveland went by really quick. It was great to be home to see everyone, and to enjoy Passover with family and friends. We came back down to Florida on April 24, rented a car, and spent the next two days in St. Augustine. The trolley ride was the best way to see the city, jumping off and on at points of interest. We toured the city's first jail (where the trolley tour started), Castillo De San Marcos National Monument (a Spanish fort dating back to the 1500's), Flagler College (a private college that now occupies the once famous Ponce De Leon Hall, built in 1988 as a luxury hotel), and the Alligator Farm (also a great stop – especially for those interested in photography). While on the trolley tour, we bumped into Linda and Tom on Q's End and met David and Brenda on Old Grouch, and met up with them later for dinner.

Passover in Cleveland – Mom and Dad

St. Augustine Trolley Ride

Old St. Augustine Gallows

Sheriff and His Prisoner

View From Fort

Castillo De San Marcos

Fort Description

Front Steps • Flagler College

Dining Hall • Flagler College

Main Stairway • Flagler College

Old St. Augustine Jailhouse

Osprey Protecting Eggs

Nesting Season at Alligator Farm

Once back in Jacksonville, we stayed put for a few days until the weather cleared, where we saw Water for Elephants (recommended) and Arthur (not so much). We also spent a day shopping at St. John's Town Center, which is like Easton in Columbus.

Our next stop was Fernandina Beach, where we were pleasantly surprised to land just in time for the annual Shrimp Festival, just steps off the dock. In addition to many vendors selling shrimp, there was also music (including Atlanta Rhythm Section... Spoopy, So Into You, Champagne Jam), a large art show, fireworks and a pirates' invasion. Old Grouch was there, too, and we had dinner with them before heading north, to Jeckyl Island in Georgia.