Nothing could be finer than to be in Carolina

* Beaufort, SC to Georgetown, SC *

We had no idea just how much we would enjoy the East Coast and we’re just 500 miles into our 2023 journey. We have loved South Carolina! We timed our departure from Beaufort with the tides to get us through a couple cuts with skinny water. The water was calm and much appreciated after the few days of big winds and rain, the air cool, it was a perfect day to cruise. The dolphins came out to join us along most of our trip. The terrain was still the Carolina Lowcountry marshes that weaved a maize for us to follow. You could easily get lost or turned around in these waters if you got off the ICW with no charts, it all looks much the same for miles and miles. And as we headed through a cut, our pesky fly friends were back. The Captain took to his weapon and started swatting.

The first mate got out the skin so soft to see if it would deter the flies from biting and we do believe it worked. They were not as bad as when we left Jekyll but nonetheless annoying!

We cruised 48 miles over 6 hours, our slow pace around 8 mph. which we are enjoying. Our anchorage was in Church Creek, 18 miles from Charleston, and just off the ICW, made for a quiet, peaceful night. We grilled, the captain flew his drone, and we enjoyed the tranquility of the evening watching the dolphins play. We shared the anchorage with three boats, and we welcomed the change of scenery from the past 15 days tied to a dock. We are really enjoying anchoring and look forward to it each time.

A leisurely morning and another drone flight captured our serene anchorage. We arrived in Charleston just after noon. Charleston is somewhat larger than the islands and peaceful waterfront towns we’ve been to recently and the dense buildings and church spires were the first things we noticed.

The dock in Charleston is long. We were not at the mega dock, but the Ashley Marina dock seemed just as long. This was our third choice of marina’s, Tasha had gotten a little complacent with making reservations day of or day before and it had been working, until now. We were at the end of a long lay along, and it was 3 tenths of a mile to shore. I remember thinking when we were planning our trip to Charleston last year had we not gone home, how were we going to get Remy to shore multiple times a day on a hot dock? It wouldn’t have been easy.

We tied up and took off on our bikes. The downtown, battery, and historical areas were about 2 miles away and covered many city blocks. Our first stop was the Apple Store on King Street. We needed a cord to run the ipad as one of Dave’s three screens for navigation. However, we didn’t miss an opportunity to increase the ipad size to the 12.9 screen. The captain had wanted the large screen when we left home 2 years ago, but time ran out and after checking with both local stores (not so local Indianapolis/Louisville) and with no time to order, we settled for the smaller one in stock. It’s worked well, but now two years old, we felt we could justify updating to the larger screen. We got the cord we needed; it just came with an ipad! David doesn’t mind this kind of shopping!

Charleston is known as the Holy City because of its history of religious tolerance and abundant places of worship. Today, the city skyline is defined by over 400 church steeples and many different religions are practiced around town. From the water, you see Church steeples everywhere. We passed and visited numerous Church sights, many with their own cemeteries dating back to the 1800’s. The spires rose high above the city buildings and captured the eye everywhere you looked.

Visiting the iconic Pineapple Fountain in Charleston Waterfront park, the pineapple is a symbol of hospitality, we felt welcomed on our first day. From the battery you can see Forts Moultrie and Sumter, standing strong in the harbors, protecting the city. Rainbow house row was down by the Pineapple Fountain and was vibrant and fun. Artwork depicting the homes was everywhere.

We visited the Charleston City Market; a four city block open air market home to over 300 vendors with mostly handcrafted items. Tasha purchased a glass bead bracelet, and we were enthralled by the craftsmanship and talents of many of the vendors.

We were drawn to a Church building across the street from the City Market with its doors open. Entering through the vestibule we found a really cool restaurant/bar and stayed for a libation. Sailors once paid 25 cents per night to stay and pray. The Harriott Pinckney Home for Sailors and the Church of Christ the Redeemer were built in 1916, but since 2015, the now-desacralized church has been host to Church & Union while a sister restaurant, Tempest, serves seafood in the seamen’s dwellings. The original stained-glass windows and hardwood floors remain. The ceiling is hand-painted with verbiage from Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. You may recall the two most popular quotes from the book are:  1. “He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight.” 2. “In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity.”

Dinner was at Poogan’s Porch. Leave it to Tasha to find a place with dog story. It was an old house turned restaurant in the 70’s. When the former proprietors moved, they left behind the neighborhood dog Poogan who spent most of his time with them (I know! How could you leave him?). Poogan took up camp on the porch and supervised the remodeling and then greeted the patrons of the new restaurant. They named the restaurant after the pup and he stayed as head greeter until his death three years later. A portrait on Poogan hangs prominently in the bar. Cute pup!

Leaving Charleston, we passed Fort Sumpter to our starboard. Two forts stand at the entrances to Charleston Harbor. Patriots inside a palmetto log fort, later named Fort Moultrie, defeated the Royal Navy in 1776. As Charleston blazed a path towards secession to preserve slavery, construction on a new fort, Fort Sumpter proceeded. Fort Sumpter is located on a tiny island, at the entrance of Charleston Harbor. The confederacy fired on the US garrison of Fort Sumpter on April 12, 1861, opening the Civil War and redefining American Freedom.

We were off again to an unknown anchorage and had three chosen. We ended up with the one closest to Georgetown, our next port of call. We cruised 55-miles over 7 hours and enjoyed a very cool day. Not complaining, we know the heat is coming and we would very much prefer the cool cruising days. We anchored in Minim Creek East, after having dropped anchor in Minim Creek West. Anchoring locations have always caused the most vivid discussions amongst the crew. Albeit not always polite discussions. We finally got settled for the night and the first mate was most happy, the captain even agreed in the end it was a better location. We had the anchorage to ourselves, it was a peaceful, eerie feeling. Two full days of exploring Charleston and a day of cruising had us tired and looking forward to a quiet night at anchor.

Our journey into Georgetown, SC, was a quick and easy one. Thirteen miles and two hours later we found ourselves in a tight squeeze getting into our dock, the captain masterfully maneuvered the boat into the slip.

Always watching weather, we saw that again the winds were kicking up north of us and we extended our stay an additional night before we ever stepped off the dock. We love when we get “stuck” in a great place. 

Before looping and following other loopers, we had never heard of Georgetown, SC. A quaint, coastal town with a population less than 10,000. You would never know it was so small from the vibrant downtown and waterfront.

Georgetown is the third oldest town in South Carolina behind Charleston and Beaufort and has a rich history rooted in indigo and rice. Pre-civil, plantation owners developed large plantations and cultivated indigo as the cash commodity crop, with rice as a secondary crop. Both were labor intensive and dependent on enslaved Africans. Agriculture profits were great.

By the early 19^th century, rice replaced indigo as the chief commodity crop. By 1840 the Georgetown area harvesting nearly half the rice in the US and was the largest rice-exporting port in the world. Wealth from the rice trade created an elitist class with a leisured lifestyle built on the labor of thousands of slaves that was disrupted by the Civil War. Afterward the abolition of slavery and transformation to a free labor market in the South so changed the economics of rice production as to make the labor-intensive process unprofitable. The town has preserved its history with a large rice museum in addition to a Gullah museum. The Gullah are an African American ethnic group who live predominantly in the Lowcountry region of the Carolinas.

At the Kaminski House museum, a beautiful antebellum home on the water, we noticed while strolling through the garden a small burial site and plaque on a brick wall. It was the grave of a family pup. The memorial etched stone read; Frank – A True Friend – He Asked for Nothing – But Gave Everything. We couldn’t think of a better tribute to man’s best friend.

We docked at Harborwalk Marina, right next to a long Harborwalk that was several blocks long with access to parks, history, shopping, restaurants, watering holes and the vibrant downtown area. After walking the town and getting a bite, we stopped in the town center for an outdoor concert. It was the first kind of normal town, less touristy thing we’ve done in a long time. The band set up on the main drag and we sat by the water listening to a great 90’s band with the residents of Georgetown.

While in Carolina – we have acquired a new found taste for She-Crab soup, Palmetto Cheese (pimento with jalapeno’s), and grits. The Palmetto Cheese was a given, but the She-Crab and the grits were a little out of our wheelhouse. We’re just trying to eatß like the Carolinians!

Our cruising distance has increased the past few voyages and the next week prove to be much of the same. We prefer 30 – 40-mile runs, but finding marina’s, anchorages, and the places we want to visit, dictate our movements. From Georgetown, we will cruise toward the Myrtle Beach area then onto exploring the North Carolina Coast!

We took in the history, a neat maritime museum, several good eats, and bought shrimp fresh off the docks. We had a great docktails with the crews from six boats, all heading north, all in Georgetown for the weekend, and all on a great adventure.

Cheers!  David, Tasha,  

                  & Remy forever in our hearts!

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