Our First Visit to Dowery Creek

Dowery Creek Marina Bottle Tree


Weather: The day started partly cloudy; as we were traveling the waterway it was partly sunny most of the time; the wind was out of the northeast at 10 to 15 knots (nearer 15 knots in the morning and nearer 10 knots in the afternoon); the Neuse River presented short, steep chop, but things calmed down in the Bay River, the Canal and the Pamlico and Pungo Rivers. The overnight temp was a cool 50 degrees and it reached 79 degrees in the bubble. We were quite toast during our time on the water today. For most of the trip, we had two side curtains open.

Comment: SUNSHINE and KALLISTA slipped lines at the appointed time (0700). The Neuse River presented a light chop. Both vessels unrolled jibs and we were motor-sailing at 7+ mph. As we progresses, the wind strength pegged 15 knots and the light chop turned moderate with some steep breakers. Whitecaps could be seen all over the river. Our speed dropped to 4 mph. Fortunately, things straightened out in the Bay River and for the rest of the day. All-in-all, the most challenging conditions lasted for no more than two hours in the Neuse River.

At one point, after we rolled in the jib and while hobby-horsing in the steep chop, Anna Marie crawled to the foredeck to make sure the anchor was secure. It looked loose and we didn’t want to lose it overboard in those conditions.

We were able to motor sail on the Pamlico River but had to roll up as we entered the Pungo as the wind was back on our nose.

Dowry Creek is a very nice marina. It boasts clean, private restroom and showers. Among the amenities are a small store, a pool and a cruiser’s lounge complete with a gas fireplace, kitchenette and satellite TV. Although the marina is famous for “Beer Can Chicken,” it wasn’t served on this evening.

Hello Olwen!

Weather: In a word, “Beautiful!” The temp was cool in the morning and evening (low 50’s) and warmed up during the day (low 70’s). It was mostly sunny. Winds were 15 – 20 knots out of the NW.

Comment: Our first order of business was breakfast with Fran and Larry in the marina’s restaurant. Anna Marie finished the laundry detail she began yesterday. I made some phone calls and sent e-mails regarding the water heater (it was delivered to Shelley’s house today) and the refrigeration water circulating pump.

I also called Olwen Jarvis. Since we couldn't boat up to her house, she drove down to our boat! She offered to take us shopping, but we are well provisioned. Instead, we just visited for a couple of hours in the marina's restaurant. It sure was great to see her. We only wished we could have seen Captain Bill and the other Windjammers (Hamilton’s and Dalton’s) who call Fairfield Harbor their home. Thoughtfully, Olwen brought photos of everyone. It has been eight years or more since these friends moved from New Jersey and they all look great... North Carolina life must be good indeed!

We were able to reminisce about some of the other Windjammers and found out a little bit about some of the many activities in which Bill and Olwen are involved.

After bidding our goodbye to Olwen, we caught up with Larry and Fran. We borrowed marina bikes and rode around Oriental, investigating the community by bike on such a lovely day was a natural high. Most homes and grounds are well maintained. We came across Deaton’s Boat Yard and moseyed around before we rode around to the marina on the other side of the creek. Both are home to some very nice sailboats, many capable of crossing oceans.

After dinner, we enjoyed another movie night with Fran and Larry. Tonight’s feature was “Los Vegas Vacation,” one of the series of Chevy Chase’s “Vacation” movies. It was great fun.

After the movie, we turned in. Departure for tomorrow morning is scheduled for 0700. It’ll take us at least an hour to removed all of the fenders protecting SUNSHINE from the pilings. (P.S. This is only a slight exaggeration!)

Lay Day in Oriental

Weather: Windy! Small craft warnings posted, 25 knots gusts to 30 out of the South; Some rain (a shower or two throughout the day, but not enough to get us wet until around 2200 hours), but not the 2” in two hours predicted.

Comment: We awoke to an overcast, windy day, and the wind kept building, making it to 25 knots with gusts to 30. We were glad to be secure in a slip in a safe harbor… or were we? One of the fenders keeps rolling out of position, but we keep jamming it back in place. It wasn’t problematic because it took about three or four hours to roll out.

We met Fan and Larry at the dockside restaurant for breakfast. We can highly recommend the omelets. They were excellent! During breakfast, Larry and Fran told us about the discovery of a Palmetto Bug in their boat. Larry saw movement out of the corner of his eye. It took a few seconds to realize what it was. He got up to catch the bug but missed. It fell to the floor and scooted away before he could grab it. They don’t know where it got to, so after breakfast, we’re all borrowing marina bikes for a trip to the hardware store where Larry hopes to purchase bug spray, bug bombs and bug traps. He and Fran really want to get that little rascal!

After Larry sprayed the chemicals and set 17 different traps, we walked to a waterfront park. The Adirondack chairs were most inviting, and we sat for a spell to chat and watch the waves, whitecaps and foam build on the Neuse River. While we were gone, “Kallista” was closed up as tight as a drum in a effort to allow the spray and traps to do their job.

Back at the boats, Larry opened the hatches to air “Kallista” out while we went aboard “SUNSHINE” to attend to the logs. Both Anna Marie and Fran found time to do laundry. The bouncing motion on “SUNSHINE” was rocking me to sleep.

At the height of the blow, the boats were bouncing quite a bit. Rather take our evening meal aboard, we chose instead to dine at “M&M’s.” We all enjoyed our meals and dallied over coffee and tea. By the time we returned to our boats, the wind had eased to about twenty knots and we weren’t bouncing nearly as much.

Fran and Larry suggested that we do a “movie night.” That sounded great to Anna Marie and me. They brought over a few flicks from which to choose. We all agreed on a comedy and “Wild Hogs” (Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, John Travolta and William H. Macy) was the selection. We thoroughly enjoyed this movie about four middle aged men who need a “bikers’ road trip” to relieve the boredom of their hum-drum lives.

This was a good lay day. We dodged a few rain drops and were still able to bike, walk and do some things in town. We watched boats eave the harbor, but we were happy to be secure in our slips.

Oriental, NC

Weather: Started sunny but changed to partly sunny, partly cloudy, then cloudy before we pulled into the marina. The wind was less than 5 knots primarily from the northwest. The wind increased in the evening and we had a few drops of rain. A cold front is moving through and the weather is predicted to deteriorate for the next two days.

Comment: We enjoyed another easy run today! It was a pleasure to be on the waterway. We were able to motor-sail with the jib for an hour of so. It helped as we motored against the current the entire way from Morehead City to Oriental.

Colorful House with PDQ Morotcat on lift

The weather has caused us to modify our trip. We planned to travel up the Neuse River to visit folks who moved from the Barnegat Bay area about 10 years ago but we don’t want to be on the Neuse River in 25+ knots of wind on our nose. Besides visiting friends, we have heard great things about visiting New Bern. I hope we can do it on a future trip. So far, we have only passed through on the occasions when we take Route 17 to Myrtle Beach to visit Sandi and Matt, and Josh and Rose.

We chose the Oriental Harbor Marina for dockage. The crew of “SUNSHINE” was directed to slip A-11. As we made our way into the slip, we found that the reported 20 foot beam was a bit inaccurate. We made it through the first set of pilings with inches to spare. We could only get about 3 feet of the nose past the mid-slip pilings before wedging the boat tight between them. This wouldn’t do for sitting out a blow from the south. SUNSHINE would be beaten against the pilings all day and night.

Since there was no other beamier slip available, we chose to pull the boat back so the dinghy was sticking most of the way out into the fairway. This wouldn’t be a problem for several reasons:

• Slip A-11 is near the end of the fairway;



• A boat five slips from us was sticking even further out into the fairway;



• Given the weather conditions, there wouldn’t be any boat traffic for the next two days.
  

Squeezed in

Our strategy was sound, but it still left us precariously close to the starboard side finger pier and pilings as well as the two port side pilings. We used three fenders to protect “SUNSHINE” from the port side pilings and another five fenders on the starboard side. Even in the relative calm conditions we had while tying up, all the fenders were “squished” between their respective hull and the pilings/finger pier. We hoped they would stay put during the blow.

Once “SUNSHINE” and “KALLISTA” were securely tied up, Anna Marie and I used the marina’s loaner bikes to pedal around Oriental a bit. We really like the town. Anna Marie read that the population is about 850 people and the average age is 59. The number of boats in the town is about three times the population, causing Oriental to be billed as the Sailing Capital of North Carolina.

Oriental scene

The Anchor's Up (1 hour 20 minutes before schedule)!

Weather: Mostly sunny; low in the mid 60’s high in the mid 70’s; light wind until about 1200 hours; motor sailed for most of the day with the engines throttled way back (almost to idle speed).

Comment: As usual, we jumped the gun for departure! Instead of the planned 0745 departure, we started hauling the anchor at 0620. Fran and Larry did a Chinese fire drill to pull their anchor. Sorry guys! We saw that you were up and on the bow. We thought it was time to pull up the anchor. It seems we can never actually haul the anchor at the appointed time.

We were underway at 0630 and headed for the Onslow Beach Swing Bridge. Because two trawlers from the anchorage were waiting, we had enough time to “catch up.” It was a different story for “Kallista.” They appeared to us to be only a minute away from the bridge, but the bridge tender closed the bridge telling “Kallista” and two following sailboats that they would have to wait for the 0730 opening.

After clearing Camp Lejune, we unrolled the jib and motor-sailed all the way to Morehead City. We throttled back on the engines and enjoyed a very quiet ride.

“Kallista” arrived just as we were clearing the Morehead Yacht Basin fuel dock. We passed them on the way to our “T” head and tied up. “Kallista” tied up right behind us after fueling up.

After some R&R, the four of us took off on a walk around Morehead City and eventually had dinner at the “Sanitary” Seafood restaurant. The meals could best be described as average and the bill came to just under $50.00 for two; not too bad we guess.

During the walk back to the boats, we vowed to leave together, without the Chinese fire drill, at 0700. We are headed for Oriental where we expect to wait out approaching weather that may keep us at the dock until Wednesday.

To Mile Hammock Bay, Camp LeJune, NC

Weather: Sunny with lows in the mid 60’s and highs in the 80’s; Calm wind, glassy water surface

Comment:
We wer underway at 0640 hours. In short order, we passed through the wrightsville Beach Bascule bridge and, one hour later, the Figure Eight Swing Bridge.

Given the calm wind, the "no-see-ums" paid us a visit in for an hour or so. At 1100 hours we passed throught the Surf City Swing Bridge.

At abot 1200, the breeze picked up enough to allow us to unroll the jib. We had it out for an hour before rolling it in to allow better visibility for negotiating the New River Inlet. It's another inlet noted for shifting sands and channel buoys that are moved frequently.

Anchor Down, Mile Hammock Bay, Camp Lejune, NC at 1400.

We were the first two vessels to anchor in Mile Hammock, we were eventually joined by thirteen other boats. In the last few days, we have been seeing quite a few vessels making the northbound trek.


Kallista at anchor - Mile Hammock Bay

Happy Birthday Anna Marie!

Weather: Sunny all day! Low in the high 50’s, high in near 80; wind 5 to 10 knots out of the northeast; just a beautiful day on the waterway!

Comment: We slipped our lines at 0640 with “Kallista” just ahead of us. Larry and Fran allowed us to pass and followed us up the waterway to the Cape Fear River. Our plan for transiting the river was perfect. We rode the current all the way up river, at times getting a 1.5 knot push.

We are certain the plan was a good one because every northbound cruiser in the area was executing the same plan. There were probably two dozen recreational boats on the river at the same time. There were several small shrimp boats working the river as well as the Bald Head Island and the Fishers Island Ferries.

The current turned on us in Snow’s Cut but was back in our favor an hour or so later when we passed the Carolina Beach Inlet.

The anchor was down in the Wrightsville Beach anchorage by 1230. We enjoyed a good lunch aboard and then set out to pick up Larry and Fran in the dinghy. We docked at the little town dinghy dock and headed for the beach. Our walk was about a mile and one-half in length and we marveled at the number of people enjoying the warmth and sunshine, many appeared to be college aged kids. We wondered why as spring break is (or should be) over.

Two tractors, one a bull dozer and the other a very large articulating front end loader were working the beach. The loader was sunk up to the axel in the ocean and the bull dozer was unable to extricate it from the water and wet sand. The situation was becoming precarious as the tide was coming in. About an hour after getting stuck, the loader was finally pulled out of the water to higher ground. We guess that worker was breathing a sigh of relief!

We stopped at a local market where Larry and Fran purchased the ingredients to make an angel food pineapple cake that Fran is going to bake for Anna Marie’s Birthday. Yes, it’s her birthday today! She has now completed sixty trips around the sun.

Larry and Fran have invited us aboard “Kallista” for a pasta dinner. We’re looking forward to joining them and having another gam about our experiences, trip highlights and perhaps even some of the trials and tribulations (if there are any). Thanks Larry and Fran! We enjoyed the clebration, dinner and cake! You really didn’t have to go through all that trouble. It did indeed make Anna Marie’s birthday very special!

Before heading back to the motherships, we stopped at a local restaurant for some cold beverages. They surely hit the spot! Once finished, we rode the dinghy back to our vessels. Fran slaved over the stove/over, preparing dinner, Larry predicted that he would take a nap, I worked on the logs and Anna Marie took a look at the cruising guides to think about the next few days on the waterway.

Wrightsville Beach has a very nice beach that is especially good for walking as the sand is relatively hard. The town however, is nothing special. The anchorage is big. We have been joined by abut ten other boats so it looks like we’ll have company on the waterway again tomorrow!

A Stop at St. James Plantation

Weather: Low in the mid 60s, high near 80; Overcast with a brief rain shower in the AM to partly cloudy, partly sunny and finally mostly sunny in the late afternoon; NE wind @ 10 – 15 knots

Comment: After a check of the current for the Cape Fear River and the weather report, wedecided to stop at the St. James Plantation Marina in Southport, NC. The wind was predicted to be 15 to 20 with gust to 25 out of the northeast, and we would be bucking the max ebb current – a recipe for a slow, uncomfortable day.

Sunset Beach Goats

With the Boat/US discount, the marina rate is $1.05/ft and since they only have 50 amp electric service, we passed on the electric hook-up. They don’t lend adapters, but they sell them for $166.00. We passed!


Traveling today was uneventful. At Sunset beach, we passed a herd of goats. We didn't see them on our previous voyage on on our southward trip, but here they are today.

We had no difficulty at all with the Shallotte Inlet or Lockwood’s Folly Inlet, even though reports of shoals abound.

We heard “Snow Cat” on the radio, but did not see it. Ana Marie remembers it from Marathon and tat we exchanged hellos with the skipper in the Marathon West Marine.

Fran and Larry are coming over for dinner tonight. We’re preparing a pork loin on the BBQ and Fran is bringing potatoes and veggies. Since last night’s happy hour was canceled due to rain, this will be their first happy hour on the north bound journey!

On the "Road" Again!

Weather: Overcast all day except for a few periods of sunshine; low temp in the mid 50’s and high of 80 in the bubble; low to mid 70’s outside; wind out of the NE generally less than ten knots but there were some gusts to 15 knots.

Comment: We had breakfast at the Osprey Marina Grill with Fran and Larry (Kallista) and discussed the plan for the day and, the next few days as well. We expect to travel together for the next five days or so. We’ll part company in Oriental because we are heading up the Neuse River to New Bern, NC.

We met the crew of "another boat" in the grill and talked to them about their plans for the day. We shared stories about where each of us wintered over.

We left Osprey at 0900 with “Kallista” following behind. The "other boat" must have left about 15 or 20 minutes after us, because we were through the Socastee Swing Bridge when we heard him request an opening.

The overcast sky put a gray feeling on the day. Both Anna Marie and I were tired but we plugged on. Fortunately, we were only doing about 32 miles today.

The "other boat" became something of a nuisance as the day played out. As “Kallista” and “SUNSHINE” approached the Barefoot Landing Swing Bridge, “Decoy” who was at least two miles (about 24 minutes) behind us, called the bridge for an opening, saying he was approaching the bridge and hoped to get through with the two boats who were already waiting. That would be us. We usually call the bridge when we are one-third to one-quarter mile out. We believe that “other boat” didn’t want to wait for a bridge opening of his own because he would have had to wait for traffic to clear before the bridge captain could open the bridge.

Luckily for us, the Barefoot Landing Bridge Captain told the “other boat” that he’d open the bridge when his vessel was closer. With that, he opened for us and we were on our way to the Little River Swing Bridge.

Just before we contacted the Little River Bridge Captain, the “other boat” again contacted the bridge captain to say that he was approaching the bridge. We couldn’t even see him. The bridge captain said that he would open the bridge when all three of us could pass through. As we approached, he closed the gates and let us through. He kept the bridge open for another 15 minutes so that “other boat” could get through on the same opening.

We were glad to see that the “other boat” pulled into the Coquina Marina while we continued north to the anchorage at the Calabash Creek/Little River anchorage.

We were invited over to “Kallista” for their very first northbound “Happy Hour!” As we were lowering the dinghy, it started to rain. We had showers for the next two hours, some heavy at times. We never made it to “Kallista.” We left the dinghy dangle from the davits to allow the rain water to flow out the drain hole. We’ll hoist it up in the morning, before we haul the anchor.

Anna Maria and Fran discussed the plan for tomorrow. Because 15 to 20 knots wind out of the north is predicted for the Cape Fear River tomorrow, Fran suggested that she call ahead to make reservations at the Jamestown Plantation Marina. The forecast for Thursday is for 10 to 15 knot wind. That would make for a more pleasant ride in the river. If the wind doesn’t materialize as predicted, we can cancel the reservation, do the Cape Fear River and Snow’s cut, and anchor at Carolina Beach. Either way, we’ll be in North Carolina tomorrow!

Layover in Myrtle Beach!

Friday, April 11 - Sunday, April 13, 2008

Lay Days - Hague Marine Socaste, SC MM 368.0

Visiting Sandi, Matt, Josh, Rose



Monday April 14, 2008

Moved “Sunshine” from Hague Marina to Osprey Marina in the morning

Changed Racor fuel filters – had trouble, very difficult to get spin off filter off (beat it off with hammer and screwdriver) – when off, couldn’t get the glass ball off. We took the glass bowl and filter home, used hammer, screwdriver and vice to get glass bowl off. Wil reinstall tomorrow.

Replaced spark plugs (4 - NGK CR6HS) on both engines.

Took screws off of hydraulic steering box and replaced washers. Still have a leak – will try o-rings next.

Didn’t get to the water heater – that’s a task for tomorrow!

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Bought some supplies to try to stop leak in hydraulic steering. No luck! We’ll need to find someone to do the fix.

Re-installed the water heater. After all the connections were made, voila… it still doesn’t work! Left message at Excel America (Fernando) and sent an e-mail to Catalina (from the logistics department).

Cleaned the rub marks left from the dock at Isle of Hope Marina .

Met and had lunch with Don and Annie (“Annie’s Song” – Nauticat 33) and talked about our respective cruises. They spent the winter in Vero as Don’s appendix burst while on the mooring ball. He spent two weeks in the hospital and the marina allowed them to tie up to the dock at the monthly rate.

Anna Marie has been on the phone with Shelley for the last two days. Geoffrey has come down with strep throught and a rash, apparently exacerbated by penicyllin (actually any …cyllin). He’s doing a bit better today.

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

We received a reply from Excel America. The water heater must be removed and shipped back to the company in Miami. Very frustrating!!!

I shaved off my beard today. It was really long and was starting to be annoying.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Happy birthday Matt!

We removed the water heater and took it to the “Mail Box” store for shipment back to Miami. It should arrive on Monday.

We also dropped the VHF microphone off to Blandon Electronics (near Osprey Marina) for either a new cable or soldering the ole one.

Friday, April 18, 2008

Shoe shopping (bought a really comfortable of Reebok walking shoes – DMX Max) and a pair of boat shoes. Lunch at the Tanger outlet Food Court.

Finished the Texas Hold ‘Em game this evening. I lost… big time!

Having a lot of fun with the kids, especially Rosie. She is becoming Fodder’s girl. We think she said my name today!

Saturday, April 20, 2008

After breakfast, we went for a “taste of the beach” at Broadway on the Beach. We walked around, checked some of the items in the sidewalk sales and had lunch at Liberty Steakhouse and Brewery.

Back at the house, we relaxed and even took a catnap.

Rose seemed awfully tired today. She went to bed early. I don’t think there’s much expectation that she’ll sleep all night. Even Josh seemed cranky today.

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Went for a walk and played with the kids.

Monday, April 21, 2008

Hello friends! Fran and Larry ("Kallista") arrived at Osprey Marina today. We helped the tie up and toasted their arrival. While the were getting organized, I took Josh fishing.

Anna Marie and Fran went grocery shopping and we helped Fran and Larry get the groceries from the car to the boat. then we (Anna Marie, Josh, Larry, Fran and I) met Sandi, Matt and Rose for dinner at the Myrtle Beach Olive Garden. After dinner, we bid farewell to Josh, Rose and Matt who left for home. Sandi drove the rest of us back to the marina where we said good bye to her. We will leave Osprey tomorrow. We may try to return to Myrtle Beach by car in May for Josh’s Birthday.

FOG!

Weather: We awoke to FOG! It foiled our plans for an 0700 departure, timed to ride the flooding current at Winyah Bay. Wake up temperature was 53o. It made 79o in the bubble, but only the high 60’s outside. Since it was only 53o in the bubble, we fired up the heater to take the chill off. Winds were out of the northeast less than 10 knots. The waterway was flat, including Winyah Bay. After three hours, the fog lifted to present a gray sky. By noon, we were motoring in sunshine, although the day would be classified as partly sunny.

Comment: The fog foiled our plan to leave at 0700. We finally hauled the anchor at 0810 and motor out of our anchorage in the South Santee River (west side) with one hundred yards of visibility in the fog. It was not poor enough to obscure the ten foot long alligator that swam across the waterway directly in front of us. I had to swerve to avoid hitting it. When we were abeam, the gator gave a big swish of its tail and dove below the surface.

We arrived at Winyah Bay about one hour after the flood current began. Our speed did not drop below 7 mph for the rest of the day. In fact, we traveled at 8 mph for much of the time. We finished the day with an average speed of 6.9 mph, going 52.3 miles in 7.58 hours. A fair current makes all the difference in the world. The miles passed quickly and we enjoyed our time traveling in the Wacamaw River, which winds through a huge Cypress Swamp. In the past few days, we have enjoyed traveling through the savannahs of Georgia and the low country of South Carolina. The Cypress Swamp is a welcomed change and most enjoyabe.

In Winyah Bay, we passed this small sailboat made to appear as a pirate ship.

Sandi, Josh and Rose met us at Hague Marina (Sunshine is docked there because Osprey Marina has no space for us until Monday, when we’ll move the boat there). Hague Marina’s docks are in very poor condition and one of the buildings just burned down (this past Saturday). There are no bathrooms of showers). That's OK for us because we’ll be staying at Sandi’s house while we’re in town.

Back at the house, Josh challenged me to some video games on the Wii. We’re in for a fun visit!

We also have some work to do. My computer was delivered to Sandi’s house as was the water heater. I’ll have to transfer my files to the computer and we’ll have to install the water heater before we leave.

Both motors seem to be running roughly so I plan to change the spark plugs and the fuel filters. I’m also going to see if I can stop the leak in the hydraulic steering. Even with these minor issues, the boat has been performing very well during the trip.

Ask and Ye Shall Receive!

Weather: Well, well, well, the sun paid us a visit today! On the day, we had only a two hour period of overcast sky. The temp range was 64 in the AM and up to 79 in the afternoon; winds were generally out of the NE less than 10 knots. There was no chop on the waterway.

Comment: The three other boats in the Church Creek anchorage left before us this morning. Apparently we slept in, hauling the anchor at 0745. We stopped for fuel at Ross Marine on the Stono River at 0945. We fell in line behind “Long Gone,” a very sharp looking 40+ foot Hunter for the trip through Elliot’s Cut and the Wapoo Bascule Bridge. We were both seconds late for the bridge opening. We cooled our jets for one-half hour and passed through at 1130.

The Charleston waterfront continues to be most inviting and attractive, but on this day, we are passing through! We made it through the Ben Sawyer Bridge with “Long Gone,” who then peeled off for the Isle of Palms Marina.

We motored on, reveling in the thoughts that we’d be visiting Sandi, Matt, Josh and Rose tomorrow! Yipee!!!

While motoring down (or is it up?) the waterway, we spotted some sandpipers working the banks, our friends the Willets (big white "W" on their underbodies when in flight) are apparently heading north, They are our noisy neighbors in the salt mashes of West Creek. They are our harbingers of summer.

Speaking of birds, we are definitely following spring along the waterway. The songbirds are out in force in the morning. The trees are leafed out in their finest spring coats and the spring flowers are well in bloom. In fact, when we were in Jekyll Island a few days ago, it was most evident that the Azaleas were already past their prime. Today, we saw a dogwood tree in full bloom.

Thoughts that we are moving north too soon have rattled in our brains. Yesterday, we talked to Ray (Reflection) who told us they will probably be in Vero Beach for another week of two. “Tally Ho” might be on the move by the beginning of next week and “Sigi VII” already slipped the Vero Beach mooring ball, on their way the a trawler rendezvous in Jacksonville.

We’re still hope to meet “Kallista” in Myrtle Beach, and if our travel schedules are in sync, we’ll travel to Oriental in their company.

NOTE: We’re anchored in the South Santee River, site of our “anchor dragging incident” as we headed south. We’re hoping for better anchoring success tonight!

Thinking of Friends

Weather: Will we ever see the sun again? We “enjoyed” another dreary, overcast day. The temp was 57 when we awoke and the high (in the bubble) was 77.

Comment: 0645 Engines on and anchor up! Only the little trawler beat us out of the anchorage. The other trawler and three sailboats must have been sleeping in!

Fifteen knot winds out of the northeast greeted us as we entered Calibogue Sound from our Bull Creek anchorage. With the wind and current on the nose, we thought we might be in for a long day. We slowly made our way to the Port Royale Sound. We were expecting the worst. The sound can get snotty with wind and current opposed to ech other.

By 0900 we made the sound and have unfurled a piece of jib, allowing us to motor sail at 7 mph. Along the way, we dusted a 28 or 30 foot Morgan Out Island named “Amazin.” A few days ago, the boat anchored between us and another catamaran at the “Cement Plant” (now a Sea Ray Factory) just before the Palm Coast of Florida. Since then, we have spent two days at Jekyll Island and tow more days in Brunswick. We wondered if they stopped anywhere. We first passed them near Daytona Beach and noticed that the boat is rather slow under power. It seems to putt-putt along the waterway.

Regardless of the boats speed, we can testify that the crew are a most hardy pair. They were motoring in 57o weather with about 15 knots of wind. They were wearing their foulies and they had a sunshade. The boat had neither dodger nor side curtains.

About five minutes before exiting Port Royal Sound, the chop picked up and remained heavy in the Beaufort Rover. Fortunately, we were motoring with the current. The ride was very comfortable.

1100 We just made the opening of the Lady’s Island Swing Bridge and are now motoring in the almost a calm Brickyard Creek. The creek presents only a few ripples to our bow, and we still have a fair current.

For the next eight hours, we motored in calm or near calm bodies of water. These included the Coosaw River, the Ashepoo – Coosaw Cut, the Ashepoo River, Fenwick Cut, the South Edisto River, Watts Cut (the start of one hour of nasty, foul current), the Dawho River, the North Edisto River, the Wadmawlaw River and finally, Church Creek, our anchorage for the night.

On the day, we traveled 78.0 miles in twelve hours and nine minutes. We averaged 6.4 miles per hour and enjoyed favorable currents for all but one and one-half hours on the entire day. It is the third longest day of our trip when measured both by miles traveled and hours underway.

We navigated the very shallow sections of the Dawho River at dead low tide. It caused us to reminisce about our trip south and the friends we made. The Dawho wasa major concern for the crew of “Tally Ho” because of the reputed shallow depths nd inccuracy of the charts. We departed the Tom Point Creek anchorage before “Tally Ho” whose crew requested us to radio them with depth readings and the favored course before they made the run.

This was not the first time we reminisced about the friends we met as we traveled south.
We thought about our friends when we revisited Vero Beach, site of our Thanksgiving Feast. We fondly recalled the cab ride in Titusville, where “eight clowns” piled out of the cab.
We met “Flock” members “Kallista” and “Canvasback Too” at the NC Visitors Center on the dismal swamp canal. We then met “Reflection: and “Tally Ho” at the Elizabeth City Town Docks. It was Pat aboard “Reflection” who coined the nickname the “Flock.”

From Elizabeth City, we traveled to Oriental with “Kallista,” “Canvasback Too,” and “Reflection,” where we were reunited with “Tally Ho.” We left Elizabeth City before the rest, but met up with everyone but “Canvasback Too,” who enjoyed an extended visit in Oriental, just south of Charlestown. The flock stayed together all the way to Cumberland Island, GA, just north of the Florida border.

We met up with “Tally Ho” again in St. Augustine, and then we were all reunited in Titusville. We traveled together to Vero Beach. Again we split up only to visit with each other again in Marathon.

We have known these people (Fran, Larry, Dave, Pat, Ray, Vanessa and Andrew, for only six months, yet we have grown very fond of them all. We wonder where they are and how they and their vessels are doing. Above all, we hope they are safe and having a wonderful time. We look forward to the day when we will meet them again to hear how they are and what they’ve been up to.

Anna Marie and I still have similar feelings for the people we worked with. She in Pemberton and I in Pennsauken and Southampton. Sadly, our paths and those of our friends and colleagues don’t cross as often as we would like. We do miss them terribly.

Such is the cruising life, and human nature I suppose.

Wishin' We Were Somewher Other Than Here

Weather: Overcast all day, early morning sprits for first two hours; wind @ 15 knots NE; Temp Range 66 - 70

Comment: It was a dreary day! The kind that makes you wish you were somewhere other than here! We arose at 0630 hours and had the engines on and anchor up at 0730. Fifteen knots of wind and a foul current greeted us as we motored out of Walburg Creek. We encountered heavy chop in St. Catherine Sound. At times, the chop, current and wind, all working against us, reduced our speed to less than 3 mph and the drizzle limited our visibility. We used the GPS to find the distant marks that were obscured by the rain. It had the makings of a long day.

At 0830 hours, we were navigating the Bear River. It was still overcast the sprinkles continued to contribute to poor visibility. Since the river is more protected from the northeast wind, the chop became moderate, although whitecaps were abundant.

By 0930 hours, the current turned in our favor, for a few minutes at least, and we were navigating the Florida Passage. The day was still overcast, but it was a bit brighter. The sprinkles had stopped and visibility was improving.

At 1030 hours, we were in the Ogeechee River and on our way to Hell’s Gate, the unofficial half way point between Marathon, FL and Norfolk, VA. We navigated through Hell’s Gate at 1057 hours in a minimum of fourteen feet of water (the tide was high and a new moon is rising.

After Hell’s Gate, we entered the Vernon River, headed towards Thunderbolt and Savannah, GA. A foul current greeted us and our speed was under five mph. From the Vernon, we entered the Burnside River, then the Skidaway River. Within one-half mile of the Skidaway Narrows Bascule Bridge, Anna Marie called the bridge tender to request an opening. He timed the opening perfectly and we motored through without missing a beat.

At ICW mile mark 590.0, we took on fuel at Isle of Hope Marina. The current had us pinned to the dock and it took some effort and a huge shove from a passerby to get us off.

This ship hailed us on the VHF to request room to pass!

A short time after entering the Wilmington River, the cruise ship “American Spirit” requested room to pass. We had just cleared the venerable Savannah Yacht Club at the time. It marked the first time one of these little cruise ships has passed us on the waterway. We have seen them tied to a dock on several occasions.

While motoring through Thunderbolt, we watched a half dozed Black Skimmers fly along the edge of the waterway with their lower mandibles skimming the water. They are most graceful flyers.

Our passage through the Causton Bluff Bascule Bridge went off without a hitch, although we had to back off on the throttles for second of two. Next, we negotiated the Elba Island Cut and crossed the Savannah River before entering Field’s Cut, which led us to the Wright River. Passage through Walls Cut connected us to Ramshorn River and then the Cooper River from which we entered Bull Creek, our chosen anchorage for the evening.

Four boats were already secured to the bottom and we weren’t far behind! We traveled most of the day yesterday in the company of “Sweetwater III.” They left Brunswick Landing about ten minutes before us. When we anchored last evening, we noticed that they continued up the waterway. It’s always amusing when we part company with boats only to see them somewhere down the road.

With the anchor down, we set about changing the oil and oil filter for each engine. The task took no more than one-half hour. Anna Marie prepared dinner while I worked on the logs.

On the day, we motored 10 hours and thirty-five minutes and traveled 57 miles. Our average speed was about 5.4 mph. By comparison, we traveled at an average speed of 7 mph yesterday. Strong currents account for the difference.

An Overdue April Fool's Tale

Weather: Mostly sunny, but clouds predominated in the late afternoon and early evening; wind speed less than 10 knots and variable, but settled into the SE by the afternoon; temp range 66 – 81 degrees

Comment: The engines are on at 075 and we slipped our lines from the Brunswick Landing Marina. This, our first visit to Brunswick, GA, was very pleasant. We found the old historic town to be very charming. It has apparently had a rebirth of sorts in recent years and there are many interesting shops and restaurants. Their shipyard had the distinction of setting a production record in the building of the WW II Liberty Ships, building an unprecedented 7 ships in one month. To accomplish the feat, thousands of workers showed up to work on Christmas Day.

This was to be a long day and we navigated many different rivers and sounds. After slipping our lines, we headed south in the Brunswick River. We passed Jekyll Creek and turned east into the St. Simon Sound where we turned west northwest. Next we turned north into the MacKay River. After many twists and turns and several navigational ranges, we entered the Buttermilk Sound and then the Altamaha Sound. The shallow Little Mud River was next, but we were steaming along in a very high tide. Depth was not an issue at all. From the Little Mud, we entered the North River, then into the Doboy Sound, the Old Tea Kettle Creek, Crighton Narrows, Front River, Sapelo River and then Sapelo Sound. Following Sapelo Sound was the Johnson River from which we entered the southern end of Walburg Creek which was to be our anchorage for the night. We had the anchor down at 1700 hours, nine hours and fifteen minutes out of Brunswick Landing Marina.

At 1245 hours, the wind allowed us to roll out the jib. We were able to motor sail for over three hours, hitting speeds of ten miles per hour on occasion. We averaged almost 7 mph on the day. We are happy with that, especially considering that we had favorable and foul currents on either side of the many inlets we passed today.

In addition to a multitude of dolphins, we saw two small flocks of Wood Storks. The Wood Stork is about 42 inches tall with a wing span of about 66 inches. It is white with black flight feathers and tail. The head and neck are bare and dark gray. The naked gray head has earned it the nickname “flint head.” It has a long, stout, and slightly curved bill. The Wood Stork, unlike Great Blue Herons, flies with its neck extended.

Wood Storks used to nest in enormous colonies numbering up to 10,000 pairs, but their numbers have declined dramatically due to land development, lumbering, and drainage of their feeding grounds. They are now endangered.

NOTE: Forgotten Tale: While traveling the waterway on April First, we heard an amusing exchange on the VHF radio. The story goes as follows:

It is April First and we are motoring in the company of several other boats, a couple of sailboats, some trawlers and a couple of motor yachts. Over the radio, we could hear one particular motor yacht, that was a mile or so behind us, offered to give a “slow pass to port” to a slower moving vessel. The slower moving vessel back off the throttle and allowed the motor yacht to pass. This same exchange happened with other slower moving vessels until the motor yacht positioned itself directly behind our stern. He radioed the same request to us and we promptly throttled down to let him pass, which he did without so much as a wavelet. We thanked him for the slow pass and throttled back up to cruising speed. A few minutes later, the motor yacht made the same “slow pass request” to the sailboat that was about one-half mile in front of us. To our astonishment and that of the motor yacht captain, the captain of the sailing vessel said, “No passes today.” There was silence. The motor yacht captain was speechless.

After a long, pregnant pause, the sailboat captain said, “April Fool’s!” The motor yacht captain acknowledged that he had been gotten, and for the next two slow passes the vessels ahead, he referred to himself as the April Fool!

The sailing vessel called the motor yacht to apologize but said it was too much fun to pass up! We all had a chuckle from the exchange… and wish we had thought of it first!

Lay Day in Brunswick

Weather: Overcast; “T”storms (the severe ones passed us by) and about ½” of rain; wind SSW 10 – 15 subsiding to 5 – 10 in the evening.

Comment: The prediction of possible severe thunderstorms kept us in dock today. Couple the forecast and the fact that we like the town and have found some nice hangouts and the fact that we are tied up to a dock, made it easy to postpone our departure for a day.

We dined in town for all three meals today, a first for the trip. This was probably due in part to the rain that lasted from about noon until 2000 hours. There were breaks in the rain so we could walk about town a couple of times. We have coffee at “Daddy Cate’s Coffee, lunch at “Manhattan Subs,” and we enjoyed that fabulous lasagna at Fox’s Pizzeria.

In the evening, we watched some of the NCAA final four action in the captains’ lounge and talked to a couple of Canadian boaters. There are many at this marina.

Between rain showers, we did a couple of boat chores, including filling the water tank and some interior cleaning.

Hello Brunswick, GA; Hoodbye Dee and Joe

American spirit, an ICW cruise ship, shares the waterway with us.

Weather: Sunny; high 80, low 70; light wind until late evening when we had 20 knots out of the south.

Comment: We motored from Jekyll Island to Brunswick, GA, a short hop of less than 10 miles. When we arrive at Brunswick Landing Marina, we topped off the fuel tank. It seems that the tank may not be venting properly as we have been experiencing some back pressure during the last couple of fills. We had two such “hiccups” this time and when finished, the gauge read ¾ full. We are going to check into this situation when we get to Myrtle Beach.

A very large three-master in Brunswick for a refit.

After securing the boat, Joe got a ride to the Avis agency while we got things set on the boat and lounged in the captains’ lounge. Joe was back at the dock within the hour, sporting a nice new Sebring Convertible, a great looking car. The one button operation of the top was quick and easy and in a flash, we were off with only the sky over our heads.

Joe took us on a tour of St. Simons Island. Along the way, we passed Fort Frederica. We discovered the gem of an anchorage on our journey south when we were traveling with the flock.

Speaking of the flock, they have been hampered by bad luck and bad weather. “Tally Ho” has had the worst of it. Among other things, the weather and their autopilot woes have put off their island adventure until next fall.

“Sigi 7” and “Reflection” bailed on their island adventure after waiting three weeks for a weather window that never materialized. All three crew and vessels are enjoying an extended stay in Vero Beach.

“Kallista” is underway and headed north, but weather is slowing them down. As I write this, they’re probably somewhere near Daytona Beach.

Back to our adventure – before setting off on our tour of St. Simons, we enjoyed really good sandwiches at Manhattan Hoagies in on Newcastle Street in Brunswick. After returning from St. Simons, we strolled the main drag of Brunswick. They were having a “promenade” where the shops invited passers by to sip wine and enjoy light snacks. WE made a few purchases at the bookstore and settled in for homemade lasagna at Fox’s Pizzeria. The lasagna was terrific! Perhaps the best I have even had. At $5.95 it was a major league home run!

We finally made our way back to the boat where Joe and Dee collected their belongings. They’re headed back to New Smyrna Beach. They plan to be back to their Surf City, NJ home some time in June.

Good byes aboard SUNSHINE always seem to be bitter sweet. As with all of our guests, we have enjoyed having Joe and Dee very much. We look forward to visiting with them when we pass through New Smyrna Beach and it was special for us that they were able to come aboard for a week. We hope they’ll be able to join us next year! Thanks for a great time Joe and Dee!

Anna Marie and I spent the rest of the evening in the lounge. She “enjoyed” to free washing machines/dryers while I flipped through the channels looking for something interesting to watch. I never found it!

During this time, the wind was blowing 20 knots out of the south. It was square on our stern and caused SUNSHINE to pitch about in the slip. By the time we returned to the boat, the wind subsided to about 10 knots and we enjoyed another restful sleep aboard.

Croquette Anyone?

Weather: Overcast and rain threatening all day. Cooler temps – low 65, high 75; light wind.

Comment: Everyone enjoyed a good night’s sleep and we were up and ready to go by 0900. We called for a car from the Jekyll Island Club where we intended to enjoy a leisurely breakfast. In less than fifteen minutes, the Jekyll Island Club van arrived to takes us to the hotel.

Breakfast was great and we once again enjoyed great conversation over coffee/tea. We were the last to leave the breakfast sitting. All but our table was readied for the lunch diners to arrive. On the way out of the hotel, we purchased some souvenir trinkets. Joe and I approached the bell captain to inquire about the croquet green prominently positioned in the front garden of the club.

From his direction, we signed up to play a round. Our reservations were from 12:00 noon to 1330 hours. The equipment came with the rules of the game (the Queen’s rules?) which were reviewed by both teams. Following a few practice strokes, the first match began. Joe and Dee were set to do battle with Anna Marie and me. Considering the stiff and challenging competition, Anna Marie and I were fortunate to take the set.

Amusingly, many passersby stopped to record our mallet strokes on their digital cameras. So many pictures were taken, we were surprise that no challenges were forthcoming.

Following the croquet match, we strolled the streets of the historic district and peeked in all of the shops. Each couple bought a jar of Georgia Peach Preserves which we will use to recreate the pecan pancakes with peach compote that Dee and I enjoyed for breakfast.

After returning to the marina, we borrowed the loaner car and circumnavigated the island. Once our exploration was complete, we stopped at the IGA for milk and bread before returning the car.

The next order of business was (you guessed it!) happy hour, which dragged on for almost two hours! Then it was dinner time. We strode up to the Sea Jays Restaurant (on the marina premises) for dinner and to listen to the band.

The meal was adequate and the band was very good, playing an unusual repertoire of songs. The lead singer/rhythm guitar player was a double for Jerry Garcia (Grateful Dead). We finished dinner and stayed for the first set.

Back on the boat, we settled in for coffee/tea, desert (pecan pie) and a very disturbing movie (Sleepers).

Before turning in, we solved the problems of the world (again!).

Jekyll Island

Weather: Even though thunderstorms were predicted, we had bright sunny skies all day with some visible clouds. The wind was less than 10 knots and clocked from NW to NE throughout the day. The temp ranged from the high 60’s to the low 80’s.

Thunderstorms were present last night and we had some rain, heavy at times, overnight.

Comment: Everyone was up at 0800 and we fired up the engines and hauled the anchor at 0900.

We had another delightful day on the waterway. We made our destination, Jekyll Island Harbor Marina, at 1330 hours. We had a foul current for about the first hour, but it was on the slow side as slack tide was on its way. Our average speed, not counting the time it took to raise the anchor was 7.5 mph.

Once we were securely tied up, we took care of business at the marina office and borrowed four bicycles. We rode around a few of the old cottages and checked out the grounds of the Jekyll Island Club. The Azaleas are already past their prime here.

After checking out the visitor center, we rode to the beach and watched the ocean for a few minutes. Then it was back on the two wheelers to see some more cottages. We took a break at the Crane House (now a guest house and restaurant). The four of us sat in the plush chairs and had a lively discussion for the better part of an hour.

Al the talk was making us hungry (can you believe that?) so we rode the bikes back to the marina and sallied up to Sea Jays Restaurant (on premises) for the low country boil. As usual, it was a hit!

After well deserved showers and some down time, we settled down to watch the second half of “Entrapment” which we started last night.

Cumberland Island Anchorage Revisited

Weather: It was another beautiful day on the waterway! We enjoyed bright sunshine, good wind (less than 10 knots out of the east) for motor-sailing, and pleasant temperatures (low in the 60’s and high around 80o.

Comment: Today, we covered 39 miles in a little over five hours for an average speed of 7.6mph. For the entire day, we enjoyed favorable current. Currents in this area run very strong; a foul one can drop the speed to under 3 mph near the bridges. We were fortunate to have timed our arrival at the inlets at slack tide. We couldn’t have planned it better. Too bad it was a accident! What the heck, it’ll make for a great navigating story, involving hours of planning and multiple checks and interpolations of the tide and current tables.

We passed this unusual looking cruiser on the waterway.

The truth of the matter is that Anna Marie and I needed to take care of some business so we took a bus ride to Jacksonville Beach. After concluding said business, we walked back the thirteen blocks to the stop from which we departed the bus. We arrived in plenty of time to make the 9:52 return bus, but it never showed up. We waited until 10:15 and started hoofing it back to the marina. We walked along the bus route for the entire time. The bus never came!

We arrived back at the boat by 11:15 after walking a total of about 3 miles. It was a very nice walk and included a trip over the brand new fixed bridge that was built to replace the McCormick Bascule Bridge.

We slipped our lines at 1130 hours and were on our way to Cumberland Island.

After anchoring at Cumberland, our crew, Joe, said, “After today, I really understand why it is that you (and everyone else who travels the waterway) do this trip.” It was a most pleasant day.

We launched the dinghy and walked to the ocean beach on Cumberland. Along the way we talked to a Boy Scout leader, He and a couple of chaperones and 21 scouts were spending the week at the Sea Camp. They should have a great time!

As we arrived back at the dinghy, after lingering at the ocean for a bit, we saw lightening and heard thunder in the distance. The long dinghy ride back the SUNSHINE was made longer by the flashes of light and the booming thunder. We wanted to make it back before the storm hit. Not only was an electrical storm predicted, but hail was supposed to accompany the storm as well.

We made it back to the boat in time and secured the dinghy and all of the canvas. When all our stom preparations were complete, we began to watch “The Entrapment.” As happened previously, we couldn’t stay awake for even ½ of the movie. We vowed to finish tomorrow night.

Before hitting the sack, the boat began swinging wildly at anchor, swinging around in complete circles. During the times we were broadside to the wind, we rocked and rolled to the two foot chop that had developed. I was concerned about the 360’s we were doing and hoped the chain wouldn’t wrap around the keel as the rode had done earlier in the trip.

No sooner than hitting the sack, the wind and current calmed and we had a pleasant night in the anchorage. Still, because of the one or two hour fuss, I have sworn off this anchorage. Cumber land Island deserves a lot more investigation, but our future explorations will not include anchoring in the exposed anchorage near the island.