A perfect weather
window opened, and we decided to go offshore from Fernandina Beach, Florida to Charleston, South Carolinaon an overnight passage.
The beginning and the end of our voyage were both anchored by Civil War–era forts. As we exited St. Marys River on the border of Florida and Georgia, we passed Fort
Clinch, its cannons aimed outward to prevent invasion by sea. And historic Fort Sumter, where the first shots of the “War of Northern Aggression” were fired on April 12, 1861, welcomedus to Charleston harbor with its flags flying.
In between, just past Fort Clinch, we looked back and saw that we were being pursued by a far more technologically advanced weapons system. A colossal Trident nuclear submarine from Kings Bay Naval Base was gaining on us rapidly.
A Coast Guard inflatable zoomed up behind us to warn us to stay to the side of the channel. Two “coasties” manned machine guns on the bow and stern of the inflatable, never taking their hands off the triggers or their eyes off us. Their inflatable came within a few feet of us, the submarine within a few boat-lengths. 
It's always a treat to see a nuclear sub either going out to sea or back home. We see a lot of those here in San Diego, and the Coasties get on you really quick if you get too close... as we have. In SD they also have a Navy Seal escort, that can make for interesting encounters. But usually they are great people just doing their job and are usually very friendly and do not hesitate to lend a hand if you need it.
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