Isle of Hope to St Simons Island

The Georgia portion of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (AICW) winds down the coast like a maze of rivers and grasses. It looks funny to see sailboat masts moving in the grasses – winding two or three miles to make one mile of headway. Here, the AICW has many shallow spots that require complete attention and precision while navigating, and prior planning to ensure traversing them at mid-rising to high tide. Armed with cruising guides by both Dozier and Young, the latest paper charts, our sporadically functioning GPS/chart plotter, the latest scoop from “Skipper Bob”, and our plans A and B, we departed Isle of Hope Marina for one of the many anchorages along the way.

The first challenging section of the AICW was called Hell Gate. We arrived at mid-rising tide. Fellow cruisers aboard the sailing vessel “Silver” had passed through ahead of us and radioed back that they never saw depths less than eight feet. We need at least five-and-a-half feet to avoid a close encounter of the grounding kind. Delighted to have this valuable information, we relaxed and made sure we stayed in the right part of the channel.

The day was as beautiful as I had ever seen. The only time I remember a sky so clear and blue was hiking around the lakes high in the Southern Sierras. Dolphins swam beside our bow as we traversed St Catherine Sound. John could have looked over the side into the water to shave his face. Yes, the Sound really was that calm!

We radioed Dan and Kathy on Sea Star, an Island Packet 440, to ask them where they planned to stop for the night. They were just ahead of us and were heading for Walburg Creek, just across St Catherine Sound. We decided to join them. Breathtaking, picturesque, serene, heavenly – the pictures on our website hardly capture the beauty of Walburg Creek. We anchored beside Sea Star. Dan and Kathy drove their dinghy to our boat for cold beverages and dinner. They have been cruising since July, first up to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, and now south to the Caribbean. They went “all in” and sold their home to live aboard. We enjoyed their stories and tips!

The next day we wound our way about 56.7 miles (but who’s counting?) through more challenging spots in the AICW where shoaling has occurred. We were white-knuckled through Little Mud Creek, because favorable currents caused us to arrive at the mouth of the creek an hour earlier than we had planned. Tides change by about six feet during each cycle. We were only two hours beyond low tide. The Cruisers’ Net website advised to only pass through at high tide, with added emphasis in all caps “NO FOOLING!”. Perhaps that cruiser exaggerated, or maybe he was in a different part of the channel. The lowest depths we saw were eight feet.

The final white-knuckle moment of the day was passing under the 65-foot vertical clearance fixed bridge between Brunswick and Lanier Island, just before the Golden Isle Marina. We arrived at the bridge only 45 minutes prior to high tide. The vertical clearance marker on the bridge said “64” feet. That is the absolute minimum clearance we need for our 63.5-foot mast. For those of you familiar with the DISC assessment, I was praying that the person who installed that clearance marker was a “high C”(perfectionist, attention to detail)! I stood on the bow as we waited for power boats to pass under the bridge and for their wakes to subside. Finally, ten minutes closer to high tide, it was our turn. I held my breath as the mast cleared the bridge with inches to spare. The VHF antenna twanged as it brushed the first spar, second spar, third spar, …I think I counted eight spars. Fortunately, the antenna is hearty and it still rides atop the mast and functions as advertised.

We docked uneventfully at the Golden Isle Marina at 4PM, a lovely end to a demanding day. Our friend, Richard, had already arrived at the marina. He is a fellow Georgia Tech graduate who built his own powerboat – a hybrid with both a gas and electric motors. Solar panels keep his house batteries charged. He is single-handing his boat to Ft Lauderdale. We enjoyed deep and philosophical conversation with him!

This morning we awoke to find freshly baked blueberry and chocolate chip muffins outside of our companion way. We thought Carl was kidding when he greeted us at the dock and said the staff would deliver muffins to us in the morning! What a treat! After a slow start to the morning, including this week’s Turning Point podcast, we borrowed the courtesy car and toured St Simons Island. The island is a seaside resort with a fascinating history and old southern money roots.

Tomorrow we will move a short distance to Brunswick. We want to see the city before moving on to St Marys, GA.

Beaufort, SC and Isle of Hope, GA

Beaufort, SC is a lovely town, with an historic downtown area along the waterfront similar to Georgetown and Southport. We enjoyed three nights at the Beaufort Downtown Marina waiting for the rainy weather to clear. Breakfast at Blackstone's on two mornings is what we will remember most. (Blackstone's is a small cafe' specializing in shrimp and grits, and sporting lots of Marine Corps "stuff" on the walls.) That, and being with friends we have met along the way. We enjoyed getting to know Wayne and Lindell on Solveig II. Meeting new friends is still my favorite part of cruising.

We flew our 4' x 6' Marine Corps flag proudly in Beaufort, SC (home of MCAS Beaufort) and left it flying as we cruised past Parris Island on our way to Isle of Hope, GA. I continue to call it "Isle of Palms" accidentally, because palm trees abound here.

We left Beaufort, SC at the same time Ben and Judy Beatty were leaving on their sailboat, Sunpenny. They saw our flag flying and called us on the radio. Ben's Dad had been a Marine flying Corsairs in WWII. Now that's a manly job! Ben and Judy have been down the AICW many times, so they led the way and we traveled together to Isle of Hope, GA. We enjoyed spending a few hours with them that evening once we were settled. They shared their crusing stories and we learned tons about cruising through Florida.

Along the way we were thrilled to see another bald eagle. What majestic birds they are! I'm so glad that Ben Franklin did not get his way. The bald eagle is the perfect symbol of the U.S.A.

Isle of Hope is considered part of Savannah, GA. We did not make time to see downtown Savannah or Hilton Head this trip. Perhaps we will stop there on our way home. We enjoy the smaller villages along the waterway.

The Isle of Hope marina is a terrific stop for cruisers. The facilities are up-to-date and the staff is friendly and knowledgable. In addition to the typical marina services, they offer two courtesy cars, free wireless Internet service, outgoing mail service, notary services and faxing. This marina is at the top of our list so far. We drove a courtesy car to WalMart for a little provisioning and a new toy for Elvis Ann. :-) She's really adjusting well to the cruising life.

It is another beautiful sunny day today. I'm not actually sure what day it is. Now in the morning when we awaken, John turns to me and asks "What day is it?". I turn back to him and say "It's today!". To which he responds, "My favorite day!". I know, it's silly. Is that too much information?

In a few minutes we will depart for windy rivers in southern Georgia. I'm not sure if we will have cell phone or Internet access for a day or so. We are looking forward to the beautiful, yet remote scenery.