We anchored in a channel just south of Beaufort on Saturday, 11/2. The anchorage is off the main channel and pretty secluded. The current was running fast, and there was rain in the area, so we stayed onboard for dinner. The weather did cooperate later in the evening, allowing us to go out on the front deck of the boat and stargaze. It didn’t take 10 seconds and I saw 2 satellites. I think Gerry is still looking to see his first. Hey Ger, glasses might help = )
The forecast for Sunday was breezy, we tried to pick up a mooring with Safe Harbor Beaufort. However, most of the moorings were damaged by Hurricane Helene and left us questioning their integrity. This led us to end up staying on their dock. It was a good decision, as we could easily walk into town. I was able to get some shopping done (well, at least I got to look at all the cute little shops). And we had great pizza for lunch at Hearth Wood Fired Pizza.
Beaufort, SC, has quintessential southern charm. The architecture of the homes in the historical area are amazing with beautiful, big porches and the majority have working gas lamps on their porches and driveways. The old growth tree lined streets loaded with Spanish Moss make you realize, this is NOT New England.
On Monday, 11/3 we headed to Isle of Hope, SC for two nights, which is just south of Savannah. Gerry and Dave stayed at this marina on the way north in the spring and Gerry wanted to go back. The marina is older but clean, and the people are so nice! They also have a couple of courtesy cars to use. We made a couple of trips to Walmart Superstore, and West Marine.
Castaway's restaurant https://castawayssandfly.com/is about one mile from the marina and is the “locals” go to restaurant. The shrimp and grits are amazing! Fresh local shrimp, cheesy grits, cream, and bacon. Definitely a big hit with the local Cadriologists. They also have 'The Wayne", which is my dad's name, so I had to try it. "The Wayne" is a blackened grouper with two blackened scallops over cheesy grits. So good!
We walked the neighborhood several times to take in more of the amazing homes. One of note, they have an inflatable pig the size of a Macys Day Parade float. It had to be 25-30’ tall….With a “ghost” sheet on. Not sure what to think…
Our perfect sunny weather, with low humidity has changed. It is now warm and humid with rain showers on and off. We discovered we needed to replace the windshield wipers so Gerry has placed an order to be delivered at a future stop.
Wednesday 11/6 was a short day of travel, around 18 miles. What it lacked in distance, it made up for in the scenery of true Southern Low Country. Along the way we passed a sailboat whose owner is one of the race officials for the Bermuda 1-2 sailboat race that Gerry has competed in several times. We connected on the VHF radio, exchanged our hellos and travel plans. As ICW travels go, we’ll see them again somewhere further down the road. You just never know who you’ll see along the way.
Our destination for the night was Sunbury Georgia. http://www.sunburycrabco.com/. This is not a normal stop for boats traveling the ICW as it’s is 5 miles off of the track. It reminds of us an older overgrown Dirty Dancing location. We were very apprehensive about the restaurant but were pleasantly surprised by the food and service. A great off-the-beaten-path with no services other than electricity on the dock. The owner came over, pulled up a chair, and the conversation took off! She was a lovely older Southern lady, hard working, proud of her family and grandkids. She was a charm and highlight of the evening.
Today, we are heading to another off-the-beaten-path stop. https://bellebluff.wordpress.com/
A marina and campground! Stay tuned!
We absolutely LOVE your postings !!