Just a week ago, we were on pins and needles waiting to hear how our good friend, fellow sailor and Captain, Will Flannery was doing. Although Will has a long and arduous recovery in front of him, he is home from the hospital. Will's leg was badly injured in the dismasting of the Sally Lightfoot as she tried to pass under the Oriental bridge on Wednesday, February 17. Will and Ken had planned to set sail on the 20th for the more southern climes. Will underwent numerous surgeries because of his broken ankle (in three places), dislocated, torn ligaments, plates, screws and compartment syndrome. Please keep Will in your thoughts and prayers.
Ken debated whether to proceed with his plans to leave on Saturday or whether to postpone and wait until after Will's recovery. As it became increasingly clear that this was not the trip for Will, Ken recruited Mark and Sarah and they set sail. Will has been monitoring the trip at least daily and offering his encouragement--always like Will to urge others to be their best (and to bring out the best in them). We only hope we can return the favor and be there to encourage Will in his recovery. We look forward to many happy sails with Will soon!
The first leg of the ocean trip (all detailed in the last week's posts, below), they covered 250 nautical miles and pulled into Charleston. Except for the radar, Patina has performed admirably. Staying a night in port, they set sail the next day and covered another 200 miles before being forced into Amelia Island, Florida because of brutally cold temperatures and gale force winds.
Today, Friday the 26th, because of the weather, instead of heading back out to ocean, they decided to head down the ditch (the ICW for non-boat talkers), and hope to make St. Augustine today. A text message at 10:22 am indicated that they were crossing the St. John's River that leads to Jacksonville. Patina made her first call for the opening of a bascule bridge.
Ken reports that the radar is still not functioning properly. He has it rigged to work for 30 seconds every three minutes. But any more often than that and it shuts down all the electronics, including the chart plotter. Trying to find the cause is illusive. RayMarine claims they never heard of anything like that. When he reaches Daytona Beach, he will try to get someone in to look at the entire system to see what is going on. Just before leaving River Dunes, he had an additional piece added to the electrical system that was recommended to protect the electronics. Instead, things are worse than before the installation. If you have any ideas/recommendation, please comment below!
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