Enjoying the sunshine state

We arrived in St Augustine on our way north and decided to stay here for a couple days to get some mail and work on a couple of chores.  We arrived just in time for Race Week, one of several special events being held as part of their 450th birthday celebration!

Race Week made for a fun couple of days. The big boats were outside the inlet in the ocean so we didn’t watch them but the kids were right in front of the down town area. We sat on the sea wall in the sunshine and enjoyed all the competition between two classes of boats. The small ones are Optimists, they are about 8 feet long with one sail and the kids are 8 to 10 years old.  The bigger boats with brightly colored sails are 420’s and they are 12 feet long and the kids are 11 to 13 years old. They were fun to watch.

 

 

After church on Sun we walked down to the Rhythm & Ribs festival, a fund raiser held in St Augustine every spring. It was really a fun afternoon. Lots of different bands played and several BIG booths were set up representing different BBQ places from all over the south.  I’m telling you there was some amazing BBQ in that place!!

          

 

One afternoon we walked out to a store called the Sailors Exchange – basically a consignment store full of used sailing gear. There is a store in Annapolis called Bacon’s that it is similar to and so we had to go check it out. Up on a shelf there was this old Mantle Lamp off of Bloody Point Lighthouse from the Chesapeake. We have sailed passed it so many times! A piece of MD lighthouse history all the way down here in Fl. Very cool!!

 

Now we are waiting out a few days of rain (in the sunshine state) so we can keep moving north.

 

He quieted the sea with His power