We jumped down through Georgia.  Had our first anchoring out experience, but had another problem with the windlass.  Had a few harrowing, difficult minutes as Artie had to haul up the chain by hand.  He was not a happy camper.  Then went over to Brunswick Landing marina.  Really a great marina.  Lots of liveaboards, terrific staff.  Great place to spend some time.  They have three clubhouses, free laundry, walking distance to town, a keg of beer in the clubhouse free each day, and wine happy hour three nights a week.   Really a great community feeling here.  Left there this morning, and we are in Jacksonville, FL tonight.

Took a nice, slow ride down from Charleston to Beaufort, SC, near Port Royal.  The plan was to then leave there after a day or two and head up to Savannah, GA to drop Craig off at the airport to head home.  Unfortunately the weather continued to be uncooperative and we had to hole up in the Beaufort area for a few days.  As we are in the middle of the annual “southern migration” , dock space started to get tight and we were forced to change marinas in the middle of a pretty bad squall.  Suffice it to say, there was a boat vs electrical stanchion throw down as we tried to dock in heavy winds at the new marina.  The stanchion lost.  LPort Royal Landing Marina was great. Loaner car, nice facility, no hassle about the stanchion which they had repaired within the hour.  Class Act.  Craig was also great, we’re sorry he wound up having to rent a car to get up to the airport.  Tired to salvage the new schedule by touring Port Royal and we went up to Savannah by car to tour around.

Very nice town. Beautiful, well preserved, genteel Southern culture.  Great architectural features. Tons of restaurants and shopping.  We stayed on the “back side”,  near the Aquarium.  We were across from the aircraft carrier and next to a cruise ship dock.  Unfortunately, some bad weather arrived along with our friend Craig and changed our plans.  As they say, one of the worst things you can have on a boat is a schedule. Luckily, Craig is a boater and a trooper and we made the best of a bad weather situation.

WHEW!  A bit of a whirlwind the last week or so, let me catch y’all up.  After meeting up with our friends and neighbors Crabby Linda and Joe and Mike and Liz in South Carolina, we headed south for Georgetown, SC.  Very nice downtown, Harborwalk, and the Chamber of Commerce hosted a cocktail party which we kinda, sorta crashed – but were warmly welcomed anyway.  Artie was introduced to “oyster shooters”,. basically a Bloody Mary in a shot glass with a raw oyster in the bottom.  Its better than it sounds, I promise.  Best yet was that Artie drank his like a shot and didn’t expect the oyster at the bottom.  Look on his face:  priceless.  We were then off to Charleston, SC where we met up with our good friend, Craig.

It’s funny how the scenery can change along the way.  From Osprey Marina to Georgetown, we passed through a wooded swampy area.  Spooky and with tannic, brackish water (mixture of salt and fresh water which is clear but takes on a brown hue from the surrounding plants).  From Georgetown to Charlestown, we passed through low areas (the low country).  Check out the screen from the chartplotter;  it clearly shows the swampy and low areas around the channel of water we are traveling through — part of the reason it is known as “the ditch”.

Another nice small town, with a lovely downtown.  Really enjoyed this spot, despite the weather not cooperating. Attended a free cocktails/ appetizers party, thanks to local Georgetown business community.

We’ve moved a few times lately in North and South Carolina.  At the Bridgetender Marina in Wrightsville Beach, we were along the face dock.  Never knew our boat could look like a dingy, compared to some of the other boats there.  Very good restaurant, too.  Also stopped at Ocean Isle, where we caught a nice sunset.  We are currently at Osprey Marina, where there are goats in a pen from the nearby zoo, and a walkway next to a swamp.  The skipper doesn’t know what to make of half of what he sees.  He did decide to become the great explorer and jump into the swamp — and he did get a bath that night.

Saw a small island with feral goats on it.  Why did this guy have a giraffe in his yard?  Who knows? 

We have a few different ways to know where we are at any given time.  We have paper charts, chart books and guidebooks.  We use these to track where we are, give us the big picture of what is up ahead, and plan the next stop.  We also have an electronic chartplotter that moves along with the boat similar to a car GPS, showing where we are on the chart.  Along the way, there are red and green markers that show the channel — or the preferred place for your boat to go through.  And on the ICW, there are yellow stickers on the markers or buoys, to show that you are in the intercoastal.

We have been lucky to meet up with friends along the way.  Hello and thanks to Tony and Eve who met us in Wrightsville Beach, NC and took us shopping.  Hello and thanks also to Crabby Joe and Linda and to Mike and Liz who met us, fed us and shuttled us around in Myrtle Beach, SC.  And we hope to see Craig next week in Charleston.