On the Edge of Georgia

We opt’d for a late 11AM departure from Beaufort, SC. When we went to leave the current was pushing us so hard against the dock that our bow & stern thrusters were not able to move us away from the dock. A fellow boater on SV Bay Dreaming came over and held our spring line so I could motor the stern off the dock and then back into the current. Amazing how strong the current can be in this area with 7-8′ tides.

Soon we were at the Southern tip of Paris Island.

Our friends Ann & Todd’s son Conner is there going through boot camp as we pass. We are reminded by the sounds of freedom (Jets screaming overhead).

My brother just let me know that yesterday a guy caught a 17′, 3500lb. great white shark off Hilton Head Island.

17′ 3,500 lb Great White Shark Caught off Hilton Head Island on 12/4/18

Today’s trip was short and we only passed a few sights pictured below

Soon we were dropping anchor in the 20 kts winds and it surprised me when after lining up bow into the wind we quickly spun around in the strong current with our stern facing the wind.

The sunset’s here in the lowlands of South Carolina are amazing.

Today’s short leg looked something like this..

Darien River and Delaroche Creek Anchorages

Kelly & I have been enjoying quiet nights on anchor and tonight will be spent on anchor in Delaroche Creek.

Below are the last 4 spots we have chosen to anchor.

Kelly & I both confessed that we like to anchor more than we like to stop at marinas. There is just something nice about being alone.

I have used the time to catch up on the walking dead.

I also got to watch “Anchorman” while on anchor. I think I laughed so hard I almost cried.

As we traveled down the ICW the weather just kept getting warmer. While it may have only been 65 degrees out, it was over 80 in the pilothouse.

Chief Martin Brody, our Boston Terrier, loves to lay on a pillow covered by his favorite Afghanistan and soak up the sun.

Along the way we were followed by bottle nose dolphins.

Many different sea birds.

The last picture is of these large white birds with black tipped wings. We keep trying to capture them up close but keep missing them.

We also saw cows grazing along the deserted islands.

We only passed 5 or so boats. We passed these fishermen who where combining their efforts to catch bait fish using a cast-able net.

This faster trawler passed us.

Heck, even the towboat who was engaged in an active tow passed us. We figured 6 knots isn’t exactly fast.

The towboat captain was quite friendly and chatted with us on the VHF for a bit. He warned us about the upcoming shallows in Jekyll Creek that goes around Jekyll Island. He was not wrong. We were approaching simultaneously with low tide. We thought we might anchor before the worst of it but instead pushed on and made it past Jekyll Island to Cumberland Island further South. Tonight we anchored in Delaroche Creek about halfway down Cumberland Island. It’s a tight fit in here. I had to shorten the anchor rode more than I wanted to keep from swinging into the banks of the creek. I snapped a pic just to show how close the edge of the creek is in here.

Last night’s anchor in the Darien River was a bit wider and lucky for that as the local Darien shrimp boats had to squeeze by us.

So tonight as we get ready to watch the Patriots play we’ll enjoy yet another beautiful sunset.

St. Catherine’s Island Anchorage

Just before weighing anchor at Turtle Island we snapped one last panoramic picture (below)

The trip down the ICW to St. Catherine’s Island was made a bit more difficult by the 7+ foot tides that were running into low.

Of course you don’t need the depth finder to see where the shallows are; it’s where the birds are standing rather than floating.

I snapped the below picture as we ducked under this 30′ bascule bridge as Kelly piloted the boat.

Yesterday’s trip took us across the line into Georgia and past the Savannah River. We had a moment when we passed the marina where 12 years earlier we purchased our previous sailboat, Skull & Swords.

Isle of Hope Marina is on a bight along the ICW’s Skidaway River.

All points South of Isle of Hope Marina are new cruising grounds for us. Some of what we saw was bird life such as this unidentifiable bird of prey.

Or this stalker of the shallows:

We passed these guys who decided to pitch tents along the shore rather than sleep aboard.

Today’s trip will take us from St. Catherine’s Island to somewhere around Sapelo Island

We are going anchor to anchor over the next few days to find the sun. These unseasonably cold mornings (in the 40’s) are continuing to bedevil us.

That said, I needed to solve the riddle of who destroyed our porch pumpkin back home.

We searched through our home surveillance footage and nabbed the suspects.

Be on the lookout for these two.

Turtle Island Anchorage

We made it to Turtle Island Anchorage.

It’s a beautiful quiet spot just inside along the Atlantic Ocean.

While standing on the bow, Kelly snapped this picture of the dolphins who escorted us around Hilton Head and Daufuskie Island.

The small Haig Point ferry past us as Daufuskie Island has no bridge.

Haig Point Community Video

Once on anchor we saw only a single tugboat slip past us.

As the sun set Kelly made us BBQ chicken & apple on toasted flatbread, yum. Bellies full, we retired to bed before it was even dark.

We awoke around 4 AM and snapped this pic looking off the stern of the boat.

The underwater lights were on and the only sounds we could hear were dolphins coming to the surface to breathe.

This sound was all around us and quite peaceful.

Beaufort, SC: The Other Beaufort

We weighed anchor in the AM and headed out of Toogoodo Creek. We followed the sinuous path that was spotted with shoals. During a VHF communication with a passing boat, the captain warned of shoals of only three feet ahead. We quipped back that MV Simple Life has a 4’10” draft (actually 4’8″ dry but after filling the tanks she sits a bit lower in the water) and that out to make things interesting. There were times when we were down to 3 kts as we hunted for deeper water but we made it to the Coosaw River as planned. What I had not planned on were the 25 knot wind whipped waves. Making matters worse, the current was flowing against the waves making them steep and breaking. Happy, our Boston Terrier, was not “happy”. She hates a lumpy ride. I had not bothered to check the weather in the AM. I was proceeding with the belief that while we were on the ICW, I could simply check the weather periodically. Even though I was aware of the Small Craft Advisory, I figured we’d never feel the full force of it while running “inside”. I was wrong. The Coosaw River runs West directly into where the 25 knot winds were coming from. We were forced to slog our way 8 miles in about an hour as the windshield wipers washed away the spray off the pilothouse windows. Not a bad ride thanks to the pilothouse.

Once we turned to port into the Beaufort River the tree-lined banks offered us some wind protection. Though even in the Beaufort River, the flags on the banks were out-straight.

When we hailed Downtown Marina in Beaufort, SC. Dockhand Troy gave us our slip assignment and caught lines as we neared the dock. We slipped just in front of the beautiful sport-fishing boat pictured below.

Without hesitation we hopped off the boat and ran for some refreshments. We found Luther’s to be an amusing bar where the locals were.

First IPA of the day and it put the smile back on my face.

We decided to check out a few more places so we hit up a fancy place called “Saltus River Grill” and while Kelly was eying their filet mignon, the only IPA on tap was terrible so I cleverly talked her into a restaurant called “Plums” that was two buildings away and served Stone IPA. Plums had amazing food and when we could not eat another bite, it was time to stroll back to the boat and check on the dogs. On our way we walked through Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park. I snapped the pics below as the light got low.

The next day I used the “courtesy car” to run to a local liquor store to stock up on Captain Morgan & some local IPAs

Precious cargo secured and it was time to replenish the fuel I used and get back home. For my brew-night pals, here is the list of local IPAs that I will be sampling and then reviewing using the Untappd app.

Well now it’s time to get ready to say goodbye to Beaufort, SC and on to Hilton Head, SC. We’ll check-in from an anchorage around Turtle Island next.