We tried pulling the anchor up and leaving the anchorage. The steering was still not working. Tom tried working with it for a couple hours and we decided to call Towboat US. He needs a new part for the steering.

We had to wait for a tow for a couple hours and it was very hard to find a marina/boat yard that would take us. The Towboat guy was able to pull some strings and get us into the St Augustine marine center. It feels good to be on land after being marooned at anchor for five days. It has been stressful for both of us.

We were able to get showers and clean up. I was covered in mud from pulling the anchor up a couple times. We relaxed in the cockpit and enjoyed watching the birds come feed at low tide. We saw a snowy egret, a young blue heron and spoonbills. I was so excited to see the spoonbills, I’ve never seen one before. They are the prettiest pink color.

Rich booked us a rental car tomorrow to come back to Kilmarnock. Tom is going to come back in a couple days and work on the boat while she is docked at the boat yard. I feel so bad this is how our trip ended.

I’ve learned a lot on this trip I will never forget. There’s been so many fun experiences and some trials. I’m grateful for Tom. We’ve become close and I really appreciate his company. He’s hilarious and fun to be around. Hopefully we can sail together again someday.

We took an Uber to a Thai restaurant in St Augustine. I ordered yellow curry with tofu. I loved it. We are relaxing in the galley and are headed North in the morning.