We got an early start today to make sure we got through the first of the notorious shallow cuts, the Ashepoo-Coosaw, on a high and rising tide. We had plenty of water and never saw anything less than 15ft of water. The rest of the day was easy as we motored by lovely lowland marshes and swanky Hilton Head homes. We even got to put the sail out for a bit to boost our speed. We anchored in a familiar spot tonight, Bull Creek. Murphy has been here before and should have a pretty easy time of it. We're having dinner on one of the other boats, which will be a treat. Food always tastes better when someone else is the chef.
The picture shows one of the typical range marks used to guide you through areas where it is easy to wander out of the channel. There are two marks, one in front of the other, one high and one low. When the marks are aligned you are on the right track. Always a good thing in these meandering marshes.
Tomorrow we're headed for Thunderbolt and on Friday will take a short bus-ride in to tour Savannah.
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We had a great last night in Charleston and hit a number of fine happy hours. The best was probably the Fleet Landing Restaurant. It is an old converted Navy facility that has the most unusual hush puppies I've ever had....they were the size of a baseball and stuffed with seafood! Drinks were the right price too.
The next morning we left the Maritime Marina on a slack tide and escaped unscathed. With big fancy boats behind us, we were glad to avoid any embarrassing crash-like maneuvers. We had a good day of motoring in light winds and dropped the hook in the South Edisto River around 4:00 in the afternoon. We don't like to stop too much later than that as it starts getting dark so early these days. Naturally as soon as we anchored the wind picked up, from an unpredicted direction. Between the wind and opposing current, we had a rather bumpy ride until the tide change. However, the anchor held so it was a good night.
Murphy had to do another appearance as Swamp Fox and both boys came back to the boat a bit muddy. Poor Murph had to be hosed off in the evening and the morning. Those who know Murph, know how much he hates the evil hose. He was offered the deck as an alternative but as usual he turned his nose up at it. He hasn't finished the book yet and Mom didn't feel like donating more dirty socks to the cause. This anchorage rates a C- as far as dog-friendly.
The picture shows a wall of steel, i.e. car carrier, going by the Charleston Marina. Notice the dwarfed aircraft carrier in the background.
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Once we were tied up we started actually meeting the people associated with the boat names we had been hearing for a while. One boat in particular, a Cape Dory 40 named Euphoria from Missoula, Montana, seemed familiar but we couldn't quite place why. Boats with hailing ports like Missoula tend to stick in your mind.
Later that evening we went out to dinner with the folks from Missoula and another couple on a boat named Mary Lee. At dinner we got onto the subject of shallow spots in the ICW, always a popular subject, and Rick and Karla of Euphoria mentioned a bad grounding they had experienced on the infamous 61A above Onslow Bridge. It had happened on their first trip south in Fall of 2007. Suddenly it clicked. Two years ago, we made it past 61A and about ½ hour later a boat called for advice on getting through. We radioed back with what had worked for us......but it didn't work for them. The tide was lower, they were deeper draft, and they were hard aground. When they finally made it to Mile Hammock Bay much later that evening, we kept a low profile as we felt bad. It was Euphoria. Once again, the ICW community is a small, small world.
We have spent the last two days enjoying their company and that of John and Mary from the Mary Lee and tomorrow are headed out together to have fun with Elliots Cut and the shallows that lie beyond.
PS, John and Mary have a little dog named Goliath that they trained to go on the deck using a book called "Elimination on Command". They lent us the book, we'll keep you posted after Murphy's finished reading the book.
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