Excerpt From Chapter 11
The Maiden Voyage
St. Augustine Florida
There was a lot of discussion about when and where we could go on our maiden voyage. But in the end it was decided that we would launch in the Intercoastal Waterway at Cocoa Beach, Florida and set sail to St. Augustine, a distance of over 100 miles. At this time we didn't really know the boat. We didn't know how far we could go before needing gas, or how far we could go in a day. We didn't know the waterway except for studying the charts, most of which I didn't understand. But the urge for adventure was overwhelming, so we tossed all cares to the wind and scheduled the St. Augustine cruise for July 23, 1990.
So with a week's supply of food, clothing for the family, and full tanks we launched out on our first adventure. Navigation was something we learned as we went. I laugh now when I think that we didn't know what the small crab and lobster buoys were. We thought they were some sort of channel markers! But the farther we sailed the more the markers made sense. As the wide waters of the Indian River faded to the Mosquito Lagoon I was ecstatic because the boat was performing flawlessly...