We made it to Charleston with no drama, and I’m looking forward to some fine dining: I’ve booked a few of the Top Ten restaurants.
It was VERY cold on the way up from Beaufort, but the weather is improving markedly. It should be high 70’s the next few days. There are two problems: pollen and no-see-um’s, both of which are pretty ferocious.
But I’m not complaining. Connie has arrived, and it’s very nice to have some human company for a change!
I’m getting a little tired of the Covid mask requirements, so I’ve come up with a somewhat more festive mask for Charleston:
Today we left Palmetto Bluff for Beaufort, SC (that’s BEUW-FORT). On the way down, we stayed right in town; this time, we are across the river at Lady’s Island Marina. We were hoping to meet up with Beth, the captain of the sailing vessel Stargazer. We met Beth in Beaufort NC (that’s Bow-fort) on the southbound trip. Unfortunately, she is away visiting friends / family. Stargazer is here but not Beth.
I decided to break the Charleston trip into two legs; we can do 100 miles a day, but I am feeling cumulatively tired. So, we did 30 miles to Beaufort today, and we’ll leave for Charleston tomorrow (Tuesday morning the 23rd).
Yesterday, at Palmetto Bluff, we got 2″ of rain; the good news is it washed all the pollen off the boat.
It was still cold and windy when we left this morning, and it was choppy as we transited Calibogue Sound and Port Royal Sound (sounds open onto the ocean). But the trip wasn’t long – just 3 hours dock-to-dock including refueling, and we’re now in a quiet, protected marina.
Ladies Island is a pretty little spot, with marsh views and a couple of good restaurants. What else does one need?
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BTW, when I left Key West, I was planning on 22 travel days, not counting layovers and extended visits. As I leave Palmetto Bluff, I have 11 travel days left, including today, so I am exactly halfway home! The entire homeward trip will take 22 travel days and 34 TOTAL days including visits and repairs.
It’s cold and rainy here in Palmetto Bluff today, and we’re indoors in front of the fire. it’s 55 degrees here today – roughly 10 degrees colder than in Pennsylvania. Sheesh.
But it gives me plenty of time to write, hence the multiple updates!
Here’s a shot of Freedom tied up at Wilson’s Landing, the dock at Palmetto Bluff. Isn’t the Low Country setting just gorgeous? This is on the May River, just across Calibogue Sound from Hilton Head Island.
This is our third of four days at Palmetto Bluff with Jeff and Kathy. The storm (and tornados) that were expected the day I arrived never materialized. The front passed through, but behind the front, the temperatures have dropped.
It’s in the low 50’s this morning, and it reminds me of mornings in Jackson Hole. The sun is bright, but we are layered up.
What we HAVE HAD is a pollen storm. There is a TON of it down here. Everyone drives a greenish-yellow car. I now have a greenish-yellow boat.
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Last night we made some great memories, gathered around the fireplace out on the dock. Magical.
Go back to my November posts to see photos of the dock and the fireplace.
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Meanwhile, we got a very pleasant surprise: Connie (my friend from Aspen/Captiva) is flying into Charleston to spend three days with me and Guinness. I think it will be very nice to have someone to spend a few days with. We’ve been pretty much alone this entire trip.
We made it into Palmetto Bluff at noon – just ahead of a major storm (with tornado warnings)!
We finished tying up just as the rain started to patter down.
The weather the next few days is supposed to be sketchy, so it is great holing up with Kathy and Jeff. Guinness and Cooper are racing around the house, getting re-acquainted. All is well.
Now we are truly out of Georgia: snug in South Carolina.
We left St. Simon’s Island at 7:15 on Tuesday, before daybreak under heavy cloud cover. We were thinking of waiting longer order to have daylight, but the cloud cover was pretty solid, so we left in darkness, with our running lights on, following the chart plotter. No problem.
I had been reluctant to run at night, because of an earlier experience: about 20 years ago, I moved my sailboat down from Long Island Sound to the Barnegat Bay, and it required sailing at night. This was before the advent of Global Positioning Satellites. There were no chart plotters; we used LORAN, which was very primitive compared to today’s equipment. I recalled how difficult it was to identify which navigational aid you were looking at; even when they are lighted, it’s difficult to tell one lighted buoy from another at night, particularly in a congested area like the western end of Long Island Sound. We completed that earlier trip safely, but it made me skittish about traveling at night.
The new chart plotters totally change the paradigm. Absolutely no reason to actually see land. Just follow the course on the screen – like a video game! Of course, you have to remain alert for other boats, but there were none yesterday.
The sun broke through by 7:45. From then on it was even easier.
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Surprisingly, Georgia has less than 100 miles of coastline. The ICW, however, winds its way through Georgia, sometimes doubling back on itself, so it takes a little longer than taking the outside route. But we made great time; we saw only ONE OTHER boat the whole way, and we arrived in Skidaway Island, just below Savannah, by 1PM.
It’s early spring here, and the redbuds and azaleas are starting to pop!
I’m visiting my friends Jim and Melissa, whom I have known since the 70’s. They built their first home at The Landings on Skidaway Island in the mid-80’s, and they are now in a beautiful home on the marsh. I love marsh views, and theirs faces west.
This couple has traveled even more than Cathy and I did: more than 60 countries. And tons of major golf tournaments, including the Masters. So happy for them.
We had lunch at the sports complex and dinner at one of the clubhouses (there are 6 golf courses). A very nice place to be.
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Tomorrow we leave for Palmetto Bluff – just 40 miles away. Right near Hilton Head. We’l spend 4-5 days with my brother-in-law Jeff and his wife Kathy.
Safe and sound in St Simon’s Georgia. We left Saint Augustine at 7 o’clock-before the sun was up. What is the point of daylight savings time? We are in the ocean from Saint Johns to Saint Simon. Sunny skies in flat seas until we got to the Saint Simon inlet. They got a little sloppy, but we are safe and sound. I’ll report more this evening.
We enjoyed Florida, but it’s good to leave it behind. We are almost halfway home!
Here’s a sight you don’t see everyday:
This is a massive salvage operation underway at the head of the St. Simon’s Inlet. It’s the wreck of the Golden Ray, a 656-foot car carrier that capsized in the channel while carrying 4,200 brand-new vehicles. YIKES! At least we never capsized!
It’s difficult to get a sense of the scale of this contraption, but the white boat in the foreground is larger than my boat. The huge gantry looks like the one in the Jodie Foster movie Contact.
It’s nice to be out of Florida…Georgia looks different: we’re in the Low Country now!
On Saturday night in St. Augustine, we had drinks and dinner with our Key West boating friends Jane and Steve. So much fun.
Then on Sunday morning, Allison drove down from Ponte Vedra so that we could have breakfast together. We worked together about 12 years ago, and it was great to see her again! When I met her she was single; she’s married now with a daughter Maggie.
Today, Monday the 15th, we left St. Augustine at 7AM – before sunup. (Can someone please explain to me why we still bother with Daylight Saving Time?)
The St. Augustine Inlet is tricky, so we ran north in the ICW for two hours, then went outside at St. John’s Inlet and ran another 4 hours in the ocean to the St Simon’s Inlet in Georgia. Sunny skies and flat seas. We were tied up by 1PM. 100 miles in 5 hours. The boat ran perfectly. Thank you, Lord.
We enjoyed our time in Florida and the Keys, but I’m glad to leave it behind.
Another beautiful cruising day – three in a row. The only problem all day was other boats – it’s Saturday, and between the small fishing boats, the kayakers, and the hot-doggers, you have to stay alert.
We are now in a large marina / condo development called Camachee Cove, waiting to meet our friends Steve and Jane for dinner. It’s surprisingly warm – 78 degrees, and sunny.
I had a chance to clean the boat (and myself). We both look much better.
Rod & Guinness' Amazing Adventures 