We're in Switzerland!

............Florida, that is! How this place got it's name is still a mystery but after a week of cleaning up all the new leaks our trusty vessel has revealed after surviving Hurricane Matthew, we loaded up all the cabinets and cubbies with supplies and have begun our cruise down/up the St Johns River. Talking about cruising the St Johns seems to invite some level of confusion because it's one of only 2 major rivers that flow north (the other is the Nile!), so going south or "down" from Jacksonville means you're going upstream. Similarly the upper half (the downstream part) is mostly large connected lakes with the lower half (the upstream part) consisting of lot's of small rivers and springs! Whew, makes me thirsty!

The weather has been perfect so far with daytime highs in the 80's and nights in the 50-60's, perfect for sleeping!

Our plan for this next segment is to make our way as far upstream on the St Johns as possible. While the river system begins more than 300 miles from Jacksonville, the cruising guides and research we've done so far seem to show we can only get as far as Sanford, near Orlando, about halfway to the source waters. Still a good journey thru the lake districts at the downstream end where we were in Jacksonville to the upper most parts where the waterway becomes a series of braided streams and crystal springs. A big attraction for us on this segment are the huge areas of natural wildlife refuges and remote anchorages where we expect to spend much time "gunkholing".

Of course being a mix of salt and freshwater, the St Johns is a rich marine and wildlife system and there are lot's of seafood/riverside restaurants that we are looking forward to visiting.