Category: Atlantic ICW

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Atlantic ICW New post Sailing

Stono River SC. To Beaufort SC. And Off To Herb Creek Georgia

So it was smooth sailing all the way to Beaufort South Carolina…

This is a beautiful town with a lot of old history. They have a day dock that you can grab a spot and stay from six am to one in the morning but no overnight stays. I was really glad because we didn’t have to dingy in to do anything and the dock was free.

This was a good stop for us we were able to use all of the marina facilities and were able to get groceries. We walked to the store but had to get a cab back we had to much to carry. I wish I had known the cab was so cheap we would not have walked in the first place but in retrospect it was a good walk we saw so much history in this area it was cool.

So we did some laundry and a few other needed chores and stayed a couple days, we even managed to do some motor work – we adjusted the carburetor, the oil pressure and installed a direct read oil pressure gauge on the motor. We managed to work it out that the gauge in the cockpit would still work too. It’s nice to have a direct gauge because electronic gauges can fool you. We also put an rpm and dwell meter on the motor and set the timing it was a few degrees off and so was the rpm gauge. Gotta love it – zero RPMs is five hundred and five hundred is really thirteen hundred, now that we have that figured out it makes sense why the sweet spot on the motor was so low.

We left just before it was light this morning, about an hour early, but the channel was well lit with markers. It was a hard call whether to leave or not because it was raining. I watched the weather radar and kept looking at the charts and figured if we could get down the river and to the Port Royal Sound early it would stop raining and we would have wind and maybe a hint of sunshine. My calculations were almost right we were soaked by the time we got to the Sound but I guess that’s why we have foul weather gear. We got to Port Royal Sound and the rain stopped as I thought it would but they called for light winds… Wrong, it was blowing strong and we sailed with just a small jib sale and were moving along nicely.

We now know why most people skip Georgia it is very tight, skinny, and shallow. We went across many shallow spots that many sailboats would not be able to make it through at time it was only four foot and we draw four foot three inches, I swear I think we hopped across a few spots with just a bit of luck. We were told not to count on making the draw bridge at Causton Bluff before Herb creek and would have to stop for the night and wait for it to open in the morning but we made record time and arrived at one thirty pm and was able to head south and go up Turner creek to get some ice and a few gallons of fuel and still had time to backtrack a mile or so to a nice spot to anchor in called Herb river.

The best part of the day was all the dolphins that were with us a good portion of the day, we even got a bump from one on the starboard bow, I think he was playing with the boat at least I want to believe this… LOL

So dinner and a sunset one more night and we start again in the morning headed toward Florida via the ICW in Georgia the state that seems to have plenty of wild life.

Wolfbernz

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Atlantic ICW New post Sailing

Georgetown SC To Stono River SC

So we left Southport, SC. and made it to Georgetown, South Carolina, to the anchorage with a fellow sailboater we seem to be traveling the same way with.

Talk about crowded! Georgetown was packed with boats, some of them just dead boats left there on a mooring to wither away in the sun and salt. We looked around for a good spot and we thought we had found one. Well, I should have known better. The current was swift and the bottom where we set our anchor went from ten feet to twenty in no time so the anchor was set on a bank and when we swung around it worked it’s way loose and fell into deep water so we drug the anchor. Thank God we missed every other boat, we noticed it when Trina heard a bilge pump from a big motor yacht go off and we should not have heard it. It’s a darn good thing she looked to see what the strange noise was, we were ten feet from landing on the boat at the dock. The anchor had re grabbed so it stopped us just in time. We had heard on the radio that others had drug anchor up to three time but we have a big anchor and plenty of chain and line so we just knew we were fine. We pulled up the anchor, motored around the harbor up toward the paper mill more to find that this was a much better place but it was stinky and noisy all night long. Since this was a problem harbor we took anchor watch, this means no sleep even when you try you just are waiting for it so we got out of there as fast as possible. I felt like I had smoked six packs of cigarettes from the nasty paper mill this is one place I would skip and not stop again.

We only went about thirty five miles South and hit a nice quiet anchorage and called it a day – kicked back and got some much needed rest, we were both exhausted from the Chinese fire drill all night.

This morning we left super early since we had such good rest it was easy to get up and get a move on. What a great day. It was cold in the morning but it warmed up as the day went on. I say it was a good day because we had fair winds and tides all day, the boat went seven to eight knots at times and made a great distance South we made it through Charleston and through Elliot’s Cut.

Elliot's Cut - crazy how it erodes the sides!

Elliot’s Cut was fun it is a very narrow channel that connects the ICW and the current is four knots or better and tries to turn your boat around as you go through, we did just fine though I had it holding at thirteen hundred RPMs and she was doing three knots against the current I was very happy with the performance she gave us this afternoon.

Our fellow sail-boater needed fuel so he went into the marina and filled up while I scoped out the anchorage. I found a great spot and then went in to grab some fuel myself when he was finished and then off to the spot I scoped out earlier.

So the sun is setting on another fine day and it’s off to bed to get some rest and do it again tomorrow.

Wolfbernz

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Atlantic ICW New post Sailing Top Sites Tuesday

Tuesday’s Two Thoughts

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Its hard to only express two thoughts today. I have so much on my mind, I know you find that hard to believe…lol!

I have missed posting on our trip south for some days now. All is well and we are in South Carolina, it has been very adventures and fun. So many things to see and so many navigational hazards – one cannot take things lightly on this trip.

This brings me to my first thought. We traveled through an area today that back in the eighteen hundreds they blasted the rock to connect the ICW here in South Carolina, the only issue is they did not clear out all the rock so they call this the rock pile… Many boats have been lost here to unseen rocks and the narrow channel. One must make a security call to make sure there is not another vessel coming the opposite direction because you cannot pass in this area. I was glad we made it through just fine and we were able to get in and get tied up before this big cold front comes through tonight just south of Myrtle Beach SC.

My second thought of today is, I received a call from one of my Sensais that my other Sensai had passed away yesterday. He was my Sensai for 12 years. Why is it that the good guys – some of the finest – have to be the ones that get hit the hardest. He was the man, not only just in the martial arts way, he was there for everyone teaching football at the local high school, the girls softball team, and held a karate class for twenty years or more and he was a great family man. It’s hard to understand at times. As I wrote earlier on my Facebook wall…

You taught me respect, you taught me how to be humble and compassionate towards others and to show them a better way. I learned how to accept constructive criticism and grow to be a better person. I am so glad I was your friend and even more you were my teacher- My Sensai. You will be dearly missed by us all… Rest in peace Sensai Sheets.

Wolf


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Atlantic ICW New post Sailing

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy turkey day from Swansboro, NC. We set sail at twilight this morning and had a good day – we made it South about fifty five miles down the ICW from Oriental to a nice anchorage here in Swansboro.

There were a few crazy people on the water today one that no matter how much we tried to stay away from him he seemed to try to crash into us constantly. The crazy person finally took a different route. All in all it was a fine day, sunny and warm for the most part.

The anchorage we are in is a river mouth that leads to and from the ICW and the current here is super strong and when anchoring one must use two anchors… One is dropped from the bow and an over abundant amount of chain and line is set, then one must drop an anchor off the stern of the boat but still coming through at the bow and then pull the boat forward using the first anchor to set the second. This creates a one hundred eight degree split between the two anchors – so when the tide that moves at six knots, or better, switches if one anchor cuts loose when the current switches and is moving the opposite direction the other is still holding strong. This is called anchoring Bohemian style. There are three boats behind us that would not listen to the advice and I am setting an alarm so when the tide switches I can see where they go when their anchor slips and does not reset… Hopefully not into me but I have my super loud fog horn ready!

Well Happy Thanksgiving, I hope you enjoy this funny video… lol

Wolfbernz

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Atlantic ICW Sailing

So We Are In Oriental NC.

We never made it out of this area…We were going to leave at first light and just keep going but a slip on the free dock was available so we stayed.

I am glad we did this is a wonderful town, very boater friendly. Some much needed repair was done along with an oil change for the engine, it was a simple chore we had it done in a half hour.

The repair was to the front bow rail, it was broken at the base and there was no way to refasten it. Not being at home at the shop where I could just fabricate the pieces I needed it was off to the local store to find a piece of stainless and hope I could do something with it.

Trina was at a local hardware and it just so happened the lady’s husband was a fabricator, what luck right! So I made a cardboard template and not only had the rail fixed but now the anchor has a great place to tie into also. Should have taken a couple photos but maybe at the next stop – we leave at first light in the morning.

It has been a nice couple days this is a must stop if you are in the area.
Want to see the area check out the town dock webcam we are the boat on the right side if you look at today’s photos.

Have a great Thanksgiving,
Wolfbernz

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Atlantic ICW Sailing Top Sites Tuesday

Tuesday’s Two Thoughts

It has been tough at times on the water, we got beat up pretty good the other day – there were thirty five knot winds and we were going to weather… Cold and wet.

This brings me to my first thought today. I woke up to a warm and cozy, quiet marina anchorage… Looked out the window at the nice waterfront of downtown Norfolk and the oldest naval hospital in the US in town of Portsmouth Virginia. I didn’t want to even get up after yesterday’s dodging ships and naval vessels trying to get where we are now. But to no avail, it was time to get up and make the decision of the day, do we stay or go… Next stop is about forty or fifty miles from here depending if we go through the Dismal Swamp or the Virginia Cut, the fast route that is more developed.

My second though is Trina and I have had some fun doing the history that is abundant in the Chesapeake and the ICW. We have had the fun of visiting the river that leads all the way to Washington DC and walked the roads of old Virginia that had homes circa the seventeen hundreds. We crossed the area that the big water battle between the Monitor and Merrimac was fought in the civil war. I am enjoying the fun of seeing these areas. I did not understand some of the history of this area until I came out to the water and started this trip – for some reason it all just started making sense.

I have missed a few days in posting but that’s the way it goes sometimes, all has been pretty good out here. We have been lucky and made some good decisions that have made some of the last crossings very nice… Except when coming into Hampton Roads at night that was a bit difficult to navigate with all the ship channels, flashing buoys and Trina telling me to “head more to the flashing red buoy” from down below when I could see fifteen of them… Yikes – That’s not what I really said, LOL it was more like “Which damn red buoy and what are it’s signals?” Each buoy has it’s own signal – flash one time every three seconds or flash three times every five seconds and so on.

I know it sounds like we aren’t working but sometimes I could use a good day at work to get some rest, LOL

So We are headed South as I publish this post and if you want to make my day just push the make me number one button below.

Wolfbernz


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Atlantic ICW Chesapeake Bay New post Sailing Vacation

Crisfield Maryland to Deltaville Virgina

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So it is day four and so far all is well. We gassed up last night as we pulled in and the guy at the marina gas dock was so cool he took our trash and let us leave the sailboat and run to the store for some bread and a few things we needed. Trina got to make her *must-stop* at the liquor store for some red wine and some whiskey in case it gets too cold it does take the edge off…LOL

We had anchored overnight and then we left at first light.

This was right before dark

I had checked the weather and it said windy and rain. Wind gusts later in the afternoon to thirty knots, I was cool with that, it’s a sailboat nothing better than to turn that motor off and watch her go.

We were really happy with the way she handled the weather when it got super windy. We hit a few sevens and a few eight knots at times – I had no idea she could sail as fast and flat as she did.

It was an overcast day but it seems as though most perfect wind days here are. About half the way here it started to rain so I asked Trina to go down below and just watch the charts for obstructions and let me know if I get off course – no sense in us both getting wet. I had my foul weather gear on and when it finally stopped raining the wind switched for about five minutes and caused me to jibe the boat the wrong direction with a small knock down at the same time. So I was pulling ropes and trying to maintain as Trina came up to lend a hand. We got her back under control but by this time the wind and swells were beginning to crash over the boat. We rolled up the foresail and just used the main…

Trina asked if I had had enough for the day and we could head due west and hide in a small cove. I agreed I had enough. This was a great decision as the wind increased to thirty knots and the swells were breaking over the boat. One covered the whole boat as it went by. We had about two hours to go and we would be in safe harbor.

The hardest part was visibility, it was about a half mile so finding markers was difficult. As we made one of our last turns to starboard we dropped sails and started the motor.

The approach to this harbor was one I was glad to get into as the sun was setting because it looks as though you would beach the boat but you make a hard to port turn at last minute and then carefully follow the markers into the creek and then the marina, very shallow I might add, don’t miss it’s one foot deep on both sides and shoaling.

So we made it in and dropped anchor, we were not the only cruisers that came in so one was giving hand signals as to the best spot. I do love the camaraderie between sail-boaters. So we dropped anchor, I watched to make sure we were good as Trina started hot coffee and dinner. The water makes me Starvingly hungry!

It all looked great so we started to settle in but with the wind so strong we do what is called
“anchor watch”. I usually take late watch… Trina came and got me and said I think we drug anchor but she grabbed so we are ok don’t panic. I agreed we had slipped and we needed to pull the anchor and re drop it… Fun to do in thirty knots with gusts to whatever.

So we pulled up and went back and dropped the anchor and did it over again low and behold the damn thing just bounced across the bottom and didn’t grab and we were blown down back into the channel. So we pulled the anchor and pulled up into the wind in the right spot one more time, we were both frozen by now – we were in our jammies – I yelled “drop it and let it all go out as fast as you can and do twice the line we should have out.” Trina was a champ did exactly as I needed and the anchor just laid in place as we drifted away and then I said “cleat it off there is enough wind she is going to yank and pull us around so hold on”, sure enough it worked she didn’t drag a bit grabbed and pulled us around.

Usually one lays a six to one but I wasn’t doing this again so I did twelve to one on the line and I am so glad it blew so hard last night the boat was almost on it’s side at times when she swung around. Trina marked our spot on the GPS chart and used it to make sure we didn’t move and I took visuals of what was around us to make sure too. I got up a few times in the night and she had not moved a bit so we were both very happy campers – the heater going, full bellies, and knowing we were going to sleep in due to high winds the next day.

So at the time of this post we will be hanging out here today 11/11/11 and doing a few repairs from wind damage and will head out tomorrow at first light for the ICW. This is a nice place to be in a bad northwest it is out of the swell and with the sun shining it isn’t very cold unless you go out into the wind.

Wolfbernz
On the boat with no name!
Any Ideas what to name it? leave it in the comments.