We decided to go back offshore from St. Augustine by going out the St. Augustine Inlet. I had read reviews that suggest you avoid this inlet, but I really thought it would be more pleasant that continuing on the ICW. I noticed that Tow Boat US was really active in the area, so I called them on the radio. He said that most of the green marks were gone or off station, while all of the red were present. One was off station, but you would be OK if you honor it in its current location. Basically, follow the reds out the channel.
We pulled up the anchor in St. Augustine at 7:30 am and passed through the inlet by 7:45 am. The shallowest water was 25 feet. So, the St. Augustine Inlet was no problem. This might be a good hop off point to Cape Canaveral on the way south.
Outside the inlet, we turned to 8 degrees north with a light SE wind. We passed St. John inlet at 12:10 pm and headed for St. Mary's Inlet. Once through St. Mary's, we turned south toward Fernandina Beach and picked up a mooring. Fernandina Marina had just opened back up after rebuilding, so I wanted to give them some business. Lots of places to anchor there, but I paid for a mooring anyway. I did not, however, want to go into the marina or the town at this point. We are hooked up by 3:30 pm. The location is nice except for the roar of the nearby factories.
In the charts below, you can see the St. Augustine Inlet and our track up the coast.
