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Florida is celebrating its 500th Anniversary this year. What you might not know is that it all started in St. Augustine, recently recognized as one of the top 20 places to see in the world according to National Geographic Traveler. Although part of you is likely anxious to get back home to friends, family and terra firma of any kind, a short stay in St. Augustine will leave you wanting more and certainly provide you with one final memorable reprieve before the last leg of your journey.
The big adventure continues! After ten days in Mobile, sightseeing, doing repairs and stocking up, we put the mast back up and were ready to go. We just needed a good weather report. One great thing about the VHF weather in the USA is that it goes by county. It makes trip planning easier because the forecasts are localized. Bypassing part of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) because Adamant’s mast was too high for the bridges, we headed to Panama City.
The entire state of Florida is celebrating 500 years since the arrival of Ponce de Leon in 1513. Counties all over Florida are marking this year in style… including Pensacola. As part of your Great Loop experience, a stop in Pensacola is highly recommended. Palm Harbor Marina – a frequent stopover for fellow Canadian Loopers – will welcome you with open arms. Palm Harbor is actually home to many Canadian boats kept there year-round. In fact, the Technomarine docks installed there were built in Canada.
The much anticipated envelope arrived in the mail at the beginning of September 2010. It was sent from the AGLCA, the America’s Great Loop Cruisers’ Association. Inside the envelope was a letter from the association congratulating us on completing the Loop, a gold AGLCA flag that we could proudly fly on our signal pennant and a certificate, our “Baccalooperat” This piece of parchment meant as much to us as receiving a degree from a university. We had done it. We had conquered the continuous waterway that took us through the Great Lakes, the inland rivers of the United States and the Gulf and Atlantic Intracoastal Waterways.
It’s really astonishing. In Ontario’s Golden Horseshoe, there are six million or so of us, crowded into bustling neighbourhoods and driving on packed roads. As Canadians we see the United States as a bigger, even more populous big brother next door. BUT. A mere 30 miles across Lake Ontario, you can find pastoral country in the charmingly American harbour and village of Wilson, NY that defies whatever image you have of the United States as the hub of industry and commerce.
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