a visit to georgia: st. simons and cumberland islands

As we motored into the anchorage this afternoon, we received a warm welcome from our friends on SV Alkemi.  We met the Lahues in Deltaville this past July, when they stayed for a week on their way to North Carolina.  They have three boys, age 12, 10, and 8, and our two families connected instantly. Eoin, Marin, and Isla were thrilled to finally meet up with another 'kid boat!'  Although we were sorry to see them leave Deltaville, we suspected we might meet up again someday - and that day was last Thursday at St. Simons!  The kids had a happy and boisterous reunion while the adults caught up and compared notes on living aboard, boat schooling, boat repairs, and planned cruising routes.  We spent two nights and a day at St. Simons where we did some boat schooling, went ashore for dinner, and visited with two additional couples we'd met in Deltaville who happened to be staying at a nearby marina on their way south.  

On Saturday morning, both kid boats raised anchor for the short trip to Cumberland Island National Seashore.  We had school on Sunday morning, then went ashore to explore the island.  Feral horses live there and the kids were hoping to see some.  Although there was plenty of evidence of them along the path across the island to the beach, we did not see any horses.  Along the way, however, we were captivated by the lush southern forest and were treated to an armadillo sighting.  On the beach we met up with our friends and the kids played in the water, buried each other in the sand, collected shells, and briefly adopted hermit crabs.  And most exciting of all, a small band of horses wandered onto the beach quite close to us.  When we returned to the other side of the island we found that the low tide had beached our dinghies quite far from the water's edge.  It is amazing how heavy those little boats are and how sticky that river mud is!

We returned to the mother ships to prepare for the next day's early (before sunrise) departure.  Next stop: St. Augustine!

The path across Cumberland Island to the seashore