Bull Creek through Beaufort, SC

11-8-11 thru 11-11-11

Up and moving early the next morning and off to Five Fathoms. We had a beautiful day, blue skies and calm water. The wind was up enough for Ken and Margaret to sail. They looked beautiful with the wind pushing them along.

We anchored in Five Fathoms and didn’t see any crab pots like when we were in the spring. We had an uneventful evening until it was time for the shrimp boats to come in. Five Fathoms is and inlet to the ocean so about dark the shrimp boats started coming in. They had on bright lights and could be seen for miles. When they got to us we could see someone on the back sorting and discarding into the water. They were surrounded by birds trying to get a snack. We had about 5 or 6 come in that night.

Early the next morning, we had the same shrimp boats going back out. Some had bright lights and moved along while others had fewer lights and went slowly. Next time we’ll try to pick a spot that is a dead end not a cut to the ocean.

We left early heading south past Charleston. We passed thru the busy Charleston Harbor without any problems. That may sound like a no brainer, but it is a huge harbor, with lots of markers, lots of boats, and lots of water. 




Bridge at Charleston, SC

 

Rocking B

 

We had anchored at Church Creek on our trip up and had thought about staying there tonight. We had also seen several other anchorages a little further south so we were undecided. Margaret had talked to a friend that told her about “the best anchorage on the east coast” and we were going to be near it so we decided to try it. Well, we certainly didn’t think it was the best on the east coast. The anchorage was Tom Point Creek and it was narrow. We like a wide anchorage so we can put out a lot of anchor chain and have lots of “swing room”. This place was tight and also deep. It may sound funny to non-boaters, but you don’t want to anchor in a place that is too deep. You put out anchor rode or chain in proportion to how deep the water is. The deeper the water, the more anchor chain, the wider your swing.

 

 We also discover a potentially big problem with saltwater leaking from the riser on the starboard engine. Shay sent out an email with pictures showing the problem and we hope to get some helpful information about it.

Up early to head for Beaufort, SC. We hope to be able to anchor, but may have to go to a marina to check out our water leak problem. We found a good anchorage and settled in. We had dinner in town.

We decided to stay another day so Shay could work on the leak. He took the starboard exhaust elbow off and found a hole in it. He called around and found a welder to repair it. He and Ken decided to ride bikes to get the elbow fixed and visit West Marine, since Ken needed to pick up something. Margaret, me and the dogs spent the time walking around Beaufort. It is a beautiful old town with pretty houses and lots of history. We went looking for a grocery store and ended up at a small neighborhood store. I stayed outside with the “girls” and Margaret went in to check it out. It was ran by a man in his 90’s. He told Margaret no one else wanted to take over the store so he came in everyday.

We ate lunch in town and then visited a park at the waterfront. After our rest, the guys got back and we returned to our boat to put on the exhausr elbow. He did find out we have bigger problems than we thought. The inside of the elbow looks like “craters on the moon”. He is very concerned and started looking for replacements.

We went back to town for dinner and ate at a restaurant recommended by people who live in Beaufort. Margaret saw a place that had an oyster bar and wanted to get appetizers there. We told them we would watch, since we don’t eat raw oysters. They really enjoyed the bar and even got Shay to try one. Shay decided if you put jalapeno, cocktail sauce, and horseradish on the raw oyster, you don’t even know the oyster is there.  The other restaurant was “Luther’s” and the people said it was the only place they ever ate at. We were pleased with our choice. We all left full. We decided to leave the next day and went back to the boat to chart the route.

Our anchorage at Beaufort, SC