We left Brunswick, GA on April 8th after enjoying our BBQ lunch. After 2 days of high winds it had calmed down to under 10 knots. Unfortunately not only had it calmed down, but it had also cooled off. We had a chilly overnight to Price Creek (about 15 miles north of Charleston, SC).
Although it was cold on the water the views more than made up for any discomfort. The sunset was gorgeous, the visibility all night was great because of the bright full moon, the stars were amazing, and the sunrise was beautiful. We passed dozens of loons, their haunting calls are very eerie at night.
Bill made French toast and ham for breakfast. I am starting to enjoy these overnight trips.
We had a peaceful night at Price Creek after our 28 hour trip. Monday morning we left Price Creek and headed north on the ICW. After the peacefulness of the ocean the ICW was less enjoyable. The water was shallow all day so we had to constantly pay attention to the chart, day markers, depth sounder, and sonar. We arrived at Georgetown SC a little after 4:00 and stopped at the fuel dock for fuel then anchored. The anchorage was quite shallow and it was low tide. The tides are extreme right now because of the full moon so the tide was lower than usual. When we ran aground in the place we wanted to anchor we decided this was good enough, dropped the anchor, then set it when the tide came up enough to float us free.
Tuesday was a beautiful morning with light wind and scattered clouds. Even the factories were beautiful in the early morning light.
We left Georgetown at 7:00 a.m. and did a 33 hour trip to Oriental, NC. When we left the inlet and started sailing north we saw 4 large leatherback turtles. In the late afternoon two speckled dolphins came for a visit to play in the bow wake. We were fortunate and had an easy trip and were able to sail part of the night. The sunset was again impressive. I saw a shooting star before the moon came up. Once the moon was up the stars were harder to see because it was so bright. The golden sunrise was beautiful.
The Beaufort Inlet was a change of pace after the wide open spaces of the night. The inlet is being dredged, there were tugs, barges, commercial fishing boats, small fishing boats, and the big dredging operation in the middle of the channel. Even without all the boat traffic this section is confusing because there are many channels meeting in this area. We got through with no problem but we had to pay attention!
After going through the confusion of the Beaufort/Morehead city area it was a relief to motor our way through the very simple Adams Creek Canal. The canals are not only simple to navigate but are interesting. There are small communities, boatyards, long sections of woods and swamps, and scattered houses. One of the houses had a small helicopter in the yard.
We pulled into Oriental after 33 hours and were luck to find a space on the free public dock. After buying showers at the marina next door and treating ourselves to ice cream at The Bean we felt like humans again.
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