Georgia

We are still trudging through the Georgia swamps. One thing I can say about this section of the East Coast is it is brimming with life. The water is a living soup of everything from dolphins to bait fish. We saw manatees, birds of prey carrying snakes (an omen to attack), pink Sand Pipers that looked like baby flamingos, and lots of different bugs. With the huge tidal flow and ripping current the watershed flooded and stripped regularly and is rich in nutrients. At least thats what I suspect. It could be toxic sewer for all I really know. 

We arrived our anchorage just in time for the black sky of

Doom. 

We didn't make it nearly as far as I had hoped today. The ICW in Georgia is a maze of loops and double-backs. To make 40 miles as the crow flies you must meander your way through 70 miles of actual river. But that's part of the fun and we are in no hurry. Once we all wake up I start the routine of engine checks while jenny throws on some breakfast and the Kurig machine. It makes coffee. Since our windlass is questionable I haul the anchor by hand. Let me tell you what a female dog of a job that is. Especially when we're in deeper water. 200 plus feet of 3/8 chain and an 80 pound hook. Jenny drives and holds the boat into the tidal current. 

Tomorrow night we will stop at a marina. It gives us a chance to do a thorough cleaning, pump the shiitake tank, swim in a pool, wash clothes, eat in a restaurant, and run the AC. Also I can use dock power to top off the battery bank. We have a fancy alternator and regulator but it's just not the same as cooking the led plates with a solid 50 Amps of 120v power.

 I like shrimp boats almost as much as I like tugs. Nothing takes more abuse than these types of ships and they continue on, year after year, earning their keep. Somebody should do a 6 month time lapse video of a real work boat. People would be amazed. 

The bat loves to wear its PFD just like the kids. I'm not sure it would do her any good though. With the confined waters and ripping currents there's not much I could do to get her if she went over. I'm more concerned about her taking a ride with an Osprey. 

And congrats to Team Hennesey & Pennzoil for engineering the fastest (American) car in the world, the Venom GT. Top speed 270.49 MPH. Tested at the Kenndy Space Station in Cape Canaveral it accomplished this amazing feat from a standstill and did it in under 3 miles unlike the Bugatti which needed an 8 mile oval lap and a running start.