Sun May 31: Church Creek anchorage to Leland Oil Co Docks

In which we wake up in Church (Creek) on Sunday and then head into traffic.

Although this is a “tourist” type trip during which we are supposed to be exploring, we’ve decided that we want to get out of the south, the heat and humidity and this section of the coast that we’ve already traveled through once before.  So our days are a little longer.  Today we got up at a reasonable hour (sorry no lazing about!) and were motoring off by 8 am. 

The view from our cabin as we wake

We motored into Charleston harbor, looked at the city and motored on by saying hello and good-bye  in less than 40 minutes.  Total travel time was up at 7 hours, a longish day and on top of that we made the mistake of traveling on a Sunday which made it worse.  The intercostal waterway was inundated with weekend warriors taking a trip on the family boat.  We must have seen hundreds of boats all speeding at us or passing without slowing down.  You’ll remember that we cruise along at about 8 mph so all the high speed passes left us caught in the wakes left by these “mosquito” boats which us bounced around making for a not so comfortable ride. 

At one point we counted over 30 boats around us but eventually we got far enough away from Charleston that the boat traffic died down and we pulled calmly into the Leland Oil Company dock after 3 pm.  We stayed at this working dock on our way south last year and decided it would be okay to stop again.  We say “dock” because it isn’t a marina in the strict sense of the word.  Leland Oil company is a working fuel dock surrounded by working shrimp boats and has room for about 4 boats to tie up. They let us loopers dock overnight but we have to be out of the way in the morning so they can fuel up fishing boats. Located in McClelanville, SC, the only reason to stop here is the cheap diesel fuel and a somewhat famous seafood restaurant.  You may remember we tried to eat there last November only to find it closed for the annual town oyster boil...well they are also closed on Sunday and Monday so we are once again thwarted in our attempt to eat there. Darn, that means Rick has to cook again. 

We washed clothes and had dinner watching a lovely sunset.  Another beautiful day on the water!

Sat May 30: Beaufort to Church Creek Anchorage

In which we are serenaded...

Up at, as Rick says 'a reasonable hour' (which is NEVER a reasonable hour, according to me) so that we could take Deb and Dan to our favorite breakfast cafe - Blackstones.  Possibly it has not escaped your notice that I have been in town two days and have been to Blackstones three times.  I'm supporting the local economy.  Then we borrowed Deb's car, AGAIN, to get MORE GROCERIES and moved them off the boat.  We love them, even tho they are only occasional readers of the blog, and were sad to see them go.  I hope we got Dan ready for Sea Base...

As we left town we were saluted by the usual formation of F-35s from the Parris Island Marine Base. This powerful rumble becomes just background noise in Beaufort, as they are so often practicing over the town.  Local legend has it that Barbra Streisand, in town to film Prince of Tides, wrote to the base commander complaining that the noise was too early and waking her crew.  The commander took out a full-page ad in the local paper to say 'Ms. Streisand, that sound you hear is the sound of freedom' and then flying the jets everyday earlier, lower and more often.  Dan and I thought that was an excellent story, and we spent our whole time together working it into various sentences.

The sound of freedom

We decided to push on a bit beyond our original scheduled anchorage at Tom's Point Creek.  The days are so much longer than what we came to expect in the fall, so I pushed on for Church Creek.  At the end we were really gunning it (RPMs in the 2000, baby!) because a huge storm was gathering on the horizon.  I acted like I was doing Rick a favor by letting him set the anchor while I drove, but really I could see what was coming.  As we turned into the creek we were racing before a wall of rain, and Rick got a good bath.  Later the area totally calmed, and a piece of rainbow appeared. 

Along with the a very vigorous choir of about a million frogs.  I think it is one of my most favorite anchorages ever.  We slept so well - with no ear plugs required.

Thurs-Fri May 28/29: Beaufort interlude

In which we socialize - from a safe distance...

We met the previous owners of the boat, Dale and Amy Kirby, at the Blackstone Cafe for an early breakfast.  It turns out Dale is one of our many (4 - and may I, again, remind you that NONE of them are related to me by blood) loyal readers!!

He can certainly relate, in a very visceral way, to all of what we go through.  I can't tell if he is happy to be just reading about those adventures, or sad not to be having them. I keep trying to talk them into sharing the boat with us, when our Loop is over, but I'm not sure I'm having any traction!  It was very fun to see them, although it was strange to be in a restaurant again.  We tried to all stay 6 feet apart, but you do wonder if the cooks in the back are sneezing into your food.  Great food - I had to order a giant sweet roll to go for the friends that were coming later in the day (I ended up eating it and I had to get another and then act like it was the original roll).

When we are outside we take off our masks, but in any interior space we wear them.  That is often an uncomfortable experience in the south as the wearing of masks has become so politicized. We don't feel we are making any statement with them, other than that we care about other people, and our own health.

At 10am we met a small group for Janet's Walking Tour of Beaufort.  We are in the habit of just walking around by ourselves and reading about the places we visit, but I really thought we might get more out of a tour with someone knowledgeable, and energetic. It was great.  A cute little village center, incredible houses, lots of information about the movies filmed in Beaufort (The Great Santini, Prince of Tides, parts of Forrest Gump, The Big Chill - the list is long), civil war info and more.  A very worth while 3 hours - although we were absolutely drenched in sweat at the end.  Hot and humid.  We agreed we can't live in that combination without a sea breeze.

The pandemic has given him long hair - but it hasn't changed his sense of humor

When the branch of a live oak reaches the ground and stats a new tree it is called 'angels

 wings'

The Gullah believed that blue would keep the evil spirits out of your house It is also said that a spider will not spin a web from blue to white.

Later in the afternoon our friend Deb and her son, Dan, arrived from Atlanta for a 2-day 'authentic boat experience'. (You can sign up for yours at any time - operators standing by). That meant borrowing their car to get groceries and bossing Dan around in the name of 'learning about boats'.  Then I made Deb take me to the Chocolate Tree store 10 minutes before they closed because I HAD to buy Stocky Rockies, which I had read about (like Rocky Road chocolate clusters but with raspberry marshmallows.  RASPBERRY!  CHOCOLATE!  MARSHMALLOWS! Like eating a little piece of heaven). We settled them onto the boat as well as possible, but it is hard not to worry about the effects of the small space, heat/humidity, noise, etc on company.  Deb was very wise, in that she expected it to be like Boy Scout camping and was therefore not disappointed.  In fact there were no boys whacking each other with sticks every five seconds, so that was a plus.

Photo Cred: Deb

After breakfast the next morning we cruised down the ICW for a bit, letting both get a taste of driving.

Then we anchored off the channel and hung about for the afternoon, taking the kayaks for their maiden voyage and then taking naps.

We even arranged to have dolphins show up playing in the bow wake so that Deb/Dan could freak out over that!

Later we headed back to the marina but used a mooring ball rather than the dock so that our guests would experience it ALL.  AND - I taught Dan to knit...

That's just the kind of hosts we are. Sadly I had made the mistake of telling Deb about derelict boats and how I worried about ghosts - between that and the spooky sound of the dolphins in the area surfacing and blowing throughout the night, I'm afraid she didn't get much sleep.

I slept great, though...  Just saying.

Deb's son, Nick, did this wonderful Tee Shirt art for us - LOVE!

The moon and the anchor light!

Gorgeous lightening storm - like so many of the things we see, a picture just doesn't do it justice.

Wed May 27: Savannah to Beaufort SC

In which I redeem myself...

Hope springs eternal, so we were feeling confident as we slid easily off the dock in Savannah. We were expecting a rainy day, and were not disappointed - it's good to have a break from the sun.

Coming into the Beaufort City Marina, we decided that the third time would be the charm.  We stopped well short of the dock to see what forces the wind and current were exerting on the boat, and looked at all the boats anchored just shy of the marina to see what they were doing.  Then, armed with our headsets, I headed to the bridge and Rick to the lines and fenders.  I am sure little prayers were also said.  I had lots of room on the face-dock, but I was still going to have to work some magic before we got to the end of the dock where there was a good-sized boat.  Not feeling hurried worked well, and I C R E P T up to kiss the dock.  Perfect!  I ran downstairs and jumped into Rick's arms (not really, that would have killed him) - we hugged and fist bumped and celebrated!!  The dock master was even kind enough to compliment me and tell me the dock was hard to get on to with the current (there was none - Mr. Weather/Tides/Winds/Currents made sure of that).

We took a quick walk through the little town and along the lovely re-done waterfront. It was early to bed as we have a busy day tomorrow.

First nature gives us a show - the Pot of Gold is SO CLOSE:

Hooray for second and third chances...

The area has some much opportunity for exploring - a bunch of islands, each with its own character.

I like the attitude of this town!

Much of the tourism is built around the famous movies filled in Beaufort

Tempting...

And one of Beaufort's most famous sons - too depressing for me.  Like a modern Faulkner?

The area is very Gullah - so we are hoping for some tradition Gullah food.

Tues May 26: Wahoo River Anchorage to Savannah (Bahia Blue Marina)

In which I break the dock...

I was still working out a complicated dream when Rick pulled up the anchor and I drove us out of the Wahoo River.  It's sort of like driving under the influence.  We were about 1 hour into the trip before I fully woke up.  And the only reason I woke up because we crossed St Catherine's Sound in wind and rain, bucking like a rabid bronco.  This is EXACTLY my memory of St Catherine's Sound the last time we came through.

The view from the helm.

It was good I was wide awake because next came the reason we had to get up early - Hell's Gate.  Duh-duh-duh... (dramatic music).

 Rick was so stressed about the name that we had to be sure to get there right at 11:30am so that the tide was full height.  Just in case.  It took about 4 1/2 minutes to get through.  So that was kind of a waste of perfectly good adrenaline.  Don't worry - I made up for that lack of drama later in the day.

The storm had finally stopped as we came into Savannah, and since things were calm and it was a facedock empty except for one boat, I decided to practice docking.  Aain. Just as I came parallel to the one boat on the dock (a good-sized yacht) the wind whipped up and pushed me sideways.  In order to avoid hitting the boat (one of my true nightmares) I punched it, misjudged the angle and ran full-on straight into the ONLY thing on the dock - the electrical power post.  The dock hand just stood there with a look of awed terror on his face.  The scene from Speed II where the runaway boat mows down all the docks and ends up in a restaurant flashed before my eyes and then we were stopped and tied up.

The ONLY THING ON THE DOCK TO HIT - besides the dock itself.

A ding on the boat where it is almost impossible to ding a boat.

Rick fixing said object - which is made to bend but not break.  I guess I'm not the only idiot out there piloting a boat.

Screws bent by my little tap.

It was so awful that somehow all we could do was laugh about it...  Rick fixed the post (of course he did - only he used actual good screws so the next boater who runs into that post is in for a shock because it's not going to bend).  We shook off the horror with buffalo shrimp from our favorite shack.

Then it was (free!) laundry, showers, a Webinar on the Rideau Canal in Canada (our hoped for destination) and off to bed.  Gosh I hope I don't dream about docking.. I especially hope Rick doesn't dream about me docking...

Mon May 25: Brunswick GA to Wahoo River Anchorage

In which local fans wave us goodbye...

We decided to get right back on that horse, so once again I was behind the wheel and we came off the dock with nary a cross word spoken.  Of course there was no wind or current, the fairway was huge and there were no boats behind me.  But a win is a win...

As we leave Brunswick we are once again overwhelmed by the carcass of the Golden Ray, the car-carry freighter that capsized on the way into the port last Sept.  Someone's insurance mega-dollars has been hard at work all these months in a mammoth operation to remove the ship and minimize damage to the environment.  It's a unique project never undertaken before - and worth Googling to read about.  Over the summer a 240' tall machine will be coming in to cut the monstrosity into 7 pieces, each cut made with a huge chain saw covered in diamond dust.  Each cut will take 24 hours to complete.  I would hate to be the neighbors.  Special 39-ton lugs each computer calibrated to each piece of hull have been attached so that the giant machine can then pull each piece out of the water, as cars and other debris rain down into a specially constructed webbing net, and onto the barge that will take it away.  The residents of St Simons have had a front row seat to all of this, since the capsized carrier towers over their sea view.

This does not do the size of the thing justice - but you can see how small St Simons looks to the left.

Dottie and Jack waved us off from one of the local piers - you other readers should take note that this is very heart-warming to us seafarers!  Here we are, passing by - notice the NEW KAYAKS!!:

This could be YOU driving, if you come visit us! (Photo credit - Dottie)

It was smooth sailing, literally, to our anchorage.  Looks like we will be getting some lousy weather for the next few days, but the anchorage wasn't too bumpy, and we like a bit of rain on the hatch as we drift off to sleep. Rick was going to be up in the night to check things, but what good would it do to have two of us awake?!?

Salad for dinner - I was too tired to finish.

Sat May 23 & Sat May 24: Fernandina to Brunswick Landing Marina/St Simons

In which we see the airport.  Again....

I can tell you this for free, I am never again coming by boat back down this bit of the US coast.  Did you ever see the movie Speed, where the poor guy who is just a tourist ends up on the wrong bus (the one with the bomb) and only sees a LOT of the airport, which is the only thing he has already seen?...  No?  Well, that is how I feel.  We keep going up and down this bit, unable to get further north...  We are ONCE AGAIN back at the Brunswick Landing Marina in GA.  Actually, this is a lot like our professional lives where we moved from GA-FL and back, several times.... but never got anywhere else.  Sigh.

The silver lining is the chance to see our friends Dottie (an early adopter in the legion of faithful readers) and Jack, plus puppy dog Dixie - who live on St Simons.  But - I am getting ahead of myself.

Rick pulled a fast one on me.  He said we could stop at Cumberland Island to walk the shore, which I have really been wanting to do (and the dingy was ALREADY DOWN!! - must be a God thing).  But in order to do that and then get to Brunswick before dark we would have to 'get up at a reasonable hour'. Those are words that make my blood run cold, right up there with his use of the word 'hike'.  He really had me over a barrel, all in the guise of making my own damn wishes come true.  Well played, Captain, well played...

As we left Fernandina this cruise ship reminded me that, all over the world, cruise ships are suspended in time.  They had to find the closest cheap place to dock - many remaining anchored at sea to avoid port charges - and the crews often cannot get off.   This ghost ship waits for a future and a purpose...Like recent college graduates, I suppose.  : (

 

I was all excited because we got to Cumberland right on time BUT ........  the dingy motor wouldn't stay running.  Rick tried heroically not to disappoint me, but eventually it had to be called.  Motor dead at 10:00 hours.  So close to the island but so far.  Back up the dingy went and we continued our journey to Brunswick. I felt like crying and had to lie down for an hour to have an attitude adjustment.  (I do realize it's a first world problem - but sometimes the heart wants what it wants).

We had been anticipating truly terrible Memorial Weekend boat traffic, but it wasn't bad and we arrived at Brunswick Landing Marina a bit early.  We wanted to stop at the fuel dock first, which is an easy face-dock tie up - so I DROVE!  My first docking!!  It was a great learning experience all around.  I learned a lot about docking and Rick learned that yelling 'WHAT ARE YOU DOING' part way through the process is not really constructive guidance.  It actually lead to a great conversation about communication and stress...

We got in just in time as there was a terrific thunderstorm on the way and we had to get the fuel in before lightening was spotted.  I didn't know that was a thing... Great.  Something else to worry about.  Note to self:  distant lightening = exploding boat = bad.

Great pizza from Fox's Pizza for dinner, then actual showers at the marina.  To get to the showers we had to run the gauntlet of boaters partying at the top of the pier with zero disregard for social distancing.  Hopefully we out-ran the virus particles.

A shrimp trawler spreads her wings as we come into Brunswick Harbor.

Sunday we borrowed Jack's truck and bought some kayaks.  I've been looking for some on Craigslist and Facebook Market place for a long time, and they are a HOT commodity.  They were always sold before I could put in an offer.  We are hopeful that this will make us a little more mobile as they are way easier to put down than the dingy.

Dinner was a delicious social-distanced affair on Dottie and Jack's back pouch.  We really love readers who cook for us.  Just fyi.

Fri May 22 - Palm Cove Marina to Fernandina Beach Mooring Ball

In which we FINALLY get going again...

Oh for crying out loud.  I stepped away from my computer for ONE MINUTE (Covid hiatus) and some amateur wrote some posts... Well, I can't be bothered to read back because that's all water under the bridge, back when the world was different.  Hope those posts were representative of the high standard of journalism you have come to expect from this blog.

Stuck in Atlanta, William's spring break turned into online classes, husband with nothing to do under my feet AT EVERY TURN, blah blah, blah - fast forward.  William was going to come with us on the boat for a bit, as all his summer plans had (like everyone else's) fallen through.  But he suddenly got a job with C.O.R.E (look it up - his big boss is Sean Penn!!) at a Covid testing facility and will stay in Atlanta.  It's a great opportunity as he can count these as 'patient' hours' and he needs 2000 of those before he can apply to PA school.  Unless he decides to become an animator.  But we can't go into that here - that's gotta be a whole different blog.

Back in Jacksonville Beach Rick got some maintenance done on the boat (all I'm going to say about that is that, I'm sure you remember, BOAT stands for But it's Only Another Thousand).  But he keeps us safe so I just make appreciative noises and think about fabric when he launches into the details.  HOWEVER - I was VERY interested that he changed out the sacrificial zincs.  Because wouldn't that be a GREAT name for a rock band?!  The Sacrificial Zincs?!?!  That music would just write itself...

Zinc on right is new - zinc on left has been 'sacrificed'  - corroded by the electricity on the boat coming into contact with salt water (also called electrolysis).

We debated staying off the water for the mad drunk boating holiday called Memorial Day, but we are SICK of sitting still.  So we eased out of the slip, dusting off our boat skills as we went, and are heading north.  Not sure how far we will get because some of the critical locks may not open in time, but we are OVER sitting still.

Jax gave us some very dramatic skies before we left:

It was a quick hop (for me as I worked the whole time) to Fernandina Beach.  Along the way we saw several large pods of dolphins.  And relentless sun.  Remember, we were supposed to be chasing spring but we are so late in leaving that summer is here.  We have to move as quickly as possible north, at the dazzling speed of 8 miles/hour.  I am trying to make my peace with the fact that we will be sitting in pools of our own sweet sweat through the rest of FL, GA, SC and NC. 

Rick was sure there would not be any open mooring balls in Fernandina, and worried about it for a couple of days.  So of course there were plenty and we picked one up smooth as silk except for the moment when a ray SHOT out of the water behind Rick and he nearly fell overboard.  It turned out not to be a rare thing here (the ray, not Rick falling overboard) - the rays were showing a lot of irrational exuberance.

We jumped into the dingy and made a beeline for a NEW CITY that we HAVEN'T SEEN BEFORE.  Wearing masks, of course.  Since it's FL we were the only ones (sadly mask wearing has quickly become politicized so you could tell we were democrats {or people who care about not getting others sick}). 

Next time you complain about having to wash the car think of these kids who have this boat to wash.  Every day.

My very favorite way to get to know a new place is to walk a little bit and to then eat!  So we stopped for yummy lunch at Timoti's Seafood Shak, admired the cutie-pea downtown and then headed back to the boat for Friday cocktails!  I LOVE Fernandina Beach!!!

The Palace Saloon is said to be the oldest bar in FL

We had two very different views from our boat at dusk - wilderness vs pulp mill.  It was hard to ignore the pulp mill machinery operating 24/7. But we try to focus on the positive.