TRAVELS of "CONDUCTANCE"

We were up with the sun this morning traveling for the first time on low tide. Our goal is to anchor at an anchorage beside Dewees Island and find that illusive beach day. Leaving the river was an easy out at low tide with the ICW only 5 minutes away. It was interesting to see such a tide swing of 5.5 feet when traveling. Docks and boats are on the hard shore ground waiting for the swing up. It’s a hot, sunny day and our inverter quit. The inverter converts our electric fan to keep Scott cool from the morning east sun while driving north. Drats!

We traveled though some beautiful sights with the vast marshlands now in our rear view mirror. We traveled through Elliot’s Cut which is more like a ditch. The current is strong here and many Sunday boaters are out for the day. It’s a no wake zone anyway and gorgeous homes are here just as we enter Charleston, South Carolina. Charleston is right on the ICW and worth a stop. Not for us as our work schedule is still the priority. Next time round! Charleston has the grand southern homes on the shore with their massive Colonial pillars. They stand majestically amongst other buildings so their massive size is understated.

The UCW channel after Charleston more like a canal with homes on both sides. It is shallow. We were passing through many areas at 6.5 feet at low tide but the majority was 9-10 feet total water height. We were looking at our navigation, depth gauge and our trusty nav alerts to get through. We passed a 50 foot trawler boat that probably had at least an extra foot of draft than us and they made it through. Can’t imagine the conversations going on in that boat tat that time.

We made it to St. Helena’s Sound which is quite small compared to the many open Sounds we have passed through. Our anchorage is directly beside Dewees Island. This island has no cars, a ferry to take locals to and from their homes to several areas. The folks use golf carts to get around the island. We met a nice couple that told us that most people on the island are very eco friendly. There is a staff of 23 that keeps the island going for the residents. Most residents are permanent and not cottagers. This is even a bit too rustic for our taste.

The anchorage is just off the ferry dock and the beach is a 5 minute dingy ride. Today was a low mileage day as we prepped for some time off from driving. The beach on this island is so pristine that we found more intact large shells and conchs on the beach. We found 2 beautiful shells that were very large but upon picking them up we saw they were still occupied so we left them. They had conch in each of them. The beach has so many shoals that we were able to stand in the middle of them way off shore. It is still low tide and just rising. We watch the tide roll in all day and those shoals we stood on disappear.

The anchorage is a great spot and the tide does create some current. The winds are 10 mph out of the SW and the temps are comfortable enough tonight that we may not have to put on the generator for air conditioning. Up until tonight the nights are not falling much below 80F.

At this point we are a bit burnt, showered from the day and finally happy with the exercise we had on the beach. We are ready to go again but know that from this point there is not much opportunity for beach as the ICW starts to turn more inland.

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Today we know we are going to Savannah, Georgia. Actually a small town outside of Savannah called Thunderbolt. We chose there because the docks in Savannah are either full for the weekend or the damage to the docks from Hurricane Matthew have closed them until the fall. Call ahead and make reservations with the Hyatt, the Westin or one other. All the city docks are gone and closed.

We decided to leave our anchorage at tide rising which meant us waiting until 11:00. We don’t usually run that late in the day but we are approaching 7 foot tides. Running yesterday at low tide was unnerving in the marshlands so we thought better be safe today. It paid off as we ran through the various rivers north.

The first sound we had to pass through was St. Catherine’s Sound. We passed through with no problems. We plan our driving path each night before we go at this point. We don’t know what to expect on the way each day. There are low water areas, high tide changes and slow no wake zones. So we figure out 2-3 spots to stop for each next day.

As we travel to the next big open sound of Sapelo which was another easy pass. It is nice not having too much boating drama. We are hoping to get to Hell Gate on Obbawasa Sound at high tide. That is our main goal today. The winds were calm all day so the open waters of the sounds made crossing quite easy. A big factor is being aware of where you must travel. The buoys are easily spotted but it would be easy to miss one and go aground.

The drama for the day was when I was in the galley making lunch when all of a sudden Scott stops from a good clip instantly and the boat lurches to a stop. I go upstairs to find that a pod of about 15 dolphins with their young are in the middle of the channel and Scott was trying to avoid them by going slightly off channel. The depth changed so drastically that he pulled back on the throttle so that the dolphins would have a better opportunity to move with their young as we idled by.

We finally travel to Obbawasa Sound to find Hell Gate. As we travel across the sound we pass sailboat after sailboat who also waited for the high tide of 7 feet to pass through. Follow the buoys and stay in the channel and all is good. It’s narrow but easily done in the high tide. We read about 9-12 feet total depth. Do not attempt this area without mid to high tide.

We settle into Morningstar Marina in Thunderbolt. We decide to walk to the grocery store about 1 mile away and grab provisions then take Uber back. Uber cost $5.00 one way. The marina is very busy being the weekend. We are put on the end of the fuel dock with power and water. The services are laundry, shower, restrooms. Wifi is available close to the office but not at a slip. No pool as advertised so we are a bit disappointed. The laundry is free and there is 10 cent off per gallon and $25.00 off our overnight fee with BoatUS.

Scott took some pictures of high and low tide while at the marina.  There is a 7 feet swing in tide here so the visual is very impressive.

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We were lucky enough to have an America’s Great Loop Cruiser’s Association (AGLCA) fellow member in the next slip. We met Jacquelyn on the vessel “Elske” and chatted about moving north. They are from Fort Myers here in Florida and heading to Chesapeake Bay for their end destination this year. Next summer the Trent Severn and the north country are on their destination list. We exchanged boat cards (business cards with our names, boat and contact info). Hopefully we will meet up again sometime on our travels. Leaving the St. Augustine Marina we decided to fuel up with diesel not knowing what is available north of here due to the hurricane in November. The marina is a difficult one to maneuver in and out of due to wind and close quarters.

We set out on a hot breezy day. We fit nicely under the Bridge of Lions in St.Augustine. There was some slower driving areas along our route today but they had beautiful homes and boathouses to see. Also, we have noticed that there are fewer dolphins and pelicans as we head north. The buoys are in place now since the dredging has been done. In some places there are more buoys and deeper water So that’s a bonus.

We have set our sights on Jacksonville, FL as a stopover. They have a free dock available for 72 hours. Prior to Jacksonville we approach St. John’s Inlet where we notice currents have picked up. Not a lot for us as we have traveled the Niagara River but for those not used to it it might be unnerving. Upon approaching St. John’s inlet to the ocean we see some large homes and a few more boats. A Coast Guard boat is patrolling as well. The winds have started to pick up by this point.

It was a non eventful boating day and we found the free dock on the ICW. For those that wish to stop here it is NOT the dock right after the causeway with the boat ramp. This dock only has about a 7.5 ft high tide clearance. So at low tide you’ll only have about 3.5 feet under you. If you go further north along the ICW about 2 minutes there is a small inlet where a substantial dock awaits you. The depth of the water is approx. 17 ft at high tide. The tide fluctuates normally around 3 feet here so there is lots of water under your belly. Keep the slow speed manatee zone to your starboard on your way in. We went in about 6 pillars and had lots of depth. The area around is great for dogs but that is about it. This used to be a marina that the city purchased way back and now offers restrooms, walking paths that lead to no where and a great dock. We are thankful for it in these 20 mph easterlies.

We don’t have much to do after wandering around so we work on the next few nights that will be someplace around Jekyl Island, in Georgia.

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After a late start of 10 AM because of a go pro malfunction we started out north toward our anchorage for the night. We were not sure exactly what to expect with the notice of Hurricane Matthew damage from the storm last October. We again were privileged to see dolphins swimming. The damage from Matthew was apparent as we saw boats on shore, masts sticking out of the water and palm trees leaning. Nothing to substantial at this point. As we entered the Haulage Canal which connects the brackish water of the estuary north of Cape Canaveral the drawbridge was being worked on and only one side was open. Much to our delight we were able to see a family of manatees as well. We thought they were logs in the water as you see by the pick. They were behind an old abandoned breakwall in an open area near the boat ramp.

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