ROOM WITH A VIEW!

Our "free" wine!

  The conversation went something like this. Diane was texting our "cruise director" Laura Campbell (she and husband Pat are already in Miami and reminded us that she was very busy working on her tan!) and asked her where a good anchorage was in Hilton Head and what there was to do. Laura's response was that they always went to the Harbor Town Yacht Basin near the southern end of the island...they have nice shops! Well, that wasn't quite enough but then Laura (I love ya!) commented that we would receive a free bottle of wine on arrival! Well, that sealed the deal and we shaped course for this resort marina. I had trouble getting the guy on the radio to give me verbal directions to our slip and found out why when another guy met us at the harbor entrance (the marina is sort of in the shape of a big circle cut into the shore) in a small dingy, showed us our slip, helped with dock lines and then presented Diane with a very nice bottle of Chardonnay!

View from our dock at lighthouse

 Part of the Sea Pines Resort, this marina is easily the nicest we've been in with something like 3 world-class golf courses, 6-7 restaurants, a fitness center, and yes...SHOPS! LOTS AND LOTS OF SHOPS! Thank God Diane is determined to follow a budget...not that Magic has room for anything! This place even has it's own lighthouse, reportedly the most photographed thing on Hilton Head. We climbed to the top after lunch ($3.50 each please!) and were rewarded with spectacular views of the marina, much of the resort, and the 18th green of one of the golf courses. The view, and the mini-museum along the interior walls as we climbed to the top were worth the price!
  After dinner aboard (Diane made a killer soup with the leftover turkey!) and a rousing game of cribbage (it's an exciting life we lead!!) Diane and I decided to hit the resort and sample the nightlife....NOT! I guess rich people don't do much at night except count their money, because this place was just about dead! We walked all over the place before we finally found a restaurant with a bar where we could have a drink. Geeze guys, open up those fat wallets, go out after dark and hire a band! That's OK, the drinks may have been a bit pricy, but what the heck, we were pretending to be rich!

Broken water fitting- source of the leak!

  OK, I need to put a short note in here about just how awesome my first mate is. Ever since we left home, Magic has been plagued with a very minor, irksome water leak that caused the bilge pump to run every hour or so. We my wife is...in addition to very cute... tenacious when it comes to finding the root of a problem. She just never gives up! I just sat back, nodded my head and watched Diane perform her Sherlock Holmes impersonation! It took exactly 3 weeks of sleuthing and eliminating possible sources of the leak, but late yesterday, she found the problem! A fitting, hidden behind a panel in the shower stall, had developed a very small crack and was allowing a trickle (not even that much!) of water to run down into the bilge. We even had a spare (this had happened once before and I'd ordered several spares!) fitting and in fairly quick order I'd replaced the part and we were once again leak free...until next time. There is an old saying in the sailing world; "Cruising is fixing your boat in exotic locations!" I can confirm that statement! Did I mention I really, REALLY love my wife?!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Diane and I had a wonderful Thanksgiving “on the hook” in Beaufort, SC. We were missing our family, friends and especially our Golden Retriever Cruzer, but managed to have a great time, ate WAY TOO MUCH, watched way too much football (Go PATS!), and fell asleep way too early!  For maybe the first time on this journey, Diane allowed me to handle cooking chores (to be honest, I’ve enjoyed her doing the cooking and since I had no idea where everything was in the galley, that was probably best!) and I cooked a real turkey and made sage stuffing, mashed potatoes, and even our favorite creamed onions! Diane insisted on contributing, so she heated up a couple cans of corn and peas!  At 3:30 pm, by prior arrangement with many of our sailing friends near and far, we toasted all and gave thanks for our good fortune.

  Getting here was just a bit of a chore. I’m I sounding like a broken record yet? Just wait till we get to Georgia! Leaving Charleston, we again joined the ICW as it wound (and I mean wound!) its way through the low country toward Beaufort. We were lucky, even though currents were a bit contrary and channels tricky at times, we made the 63 miles in just over 9 hours.  Unfortunately, the anchorage we preferred was just beyond a swing bridge that would not open until well after sunset so we opted for a small creek a bit prior to the bridge.   Although we were secure and relatively protected, on Thanksgiving Day we decided to pull the hook up and move past the swing bridge to the “downtown” Beaufort anchorage. I’m glad we did. Although we are much closer to the channel and get bounced around just a bit by the wakes of passing vessels, the holding is great and we are only a minute or so from the town dingy dock with access to all the shopping and eating establishments of the town.

  The two Beaufort’s we have visited (the one in NC is pronounced BOFORT, in SC is is BEAUfort) have both been gems. Both have tons of places to go for shopping, food, and touring around some absolutely beautiful homes. Late today we went ashore, and stuck our heads into just about every shop in the town! If that wasn’t bad enough, Diane then insisted we throw a Frisbee around…I suck at Frisbee! Of course, Diane wasn’t much better!! Tonight we are going to dingy back into town…and paint it pink!

  Diane and I are very thankful for the family, friends and “former” co-workers who have sent us their good wishes the past couple days. Our adventure is not quite 3 weeks old and we have already seen so much of this country that at least for me were just dots 30,000 feet below. Next stop...Hilton Head!

ANY PORT IN A STORM....NOT!

   As I write this we are happily sitting at a marina in Charleston, SC, but a couple days ago, well, we weren't so happy! Here goes....
   We left the picturesque town of Georgetown, SC last Saturday for a 2 day sail (OK, motor!) to Charleston. The wind had once again picked up and was blowing around 15-20 knots from the north, or directly behind us as we worked our way down the ICW. We had a basically uneventful day and made such good time we bypassed a couple anchorages with the intent of giving us a shorter sail the next day.  A note about geography is warranted here. This part of the country is not referred to as "Carolina Low Country" without reason. For probably 200 miles, the terrain is just about totally flat and anchorages are little more than small inlets off the channel with absolutely no protection from the wind. We arrived at our anchorage and even though there were two other boats already there, found plenty of room to drop our hook. Diane and I enjoyed drinks in the cockpit, ate a relaxing dinner and even played a game of Yahtzee (she is killing me!) before heading below where we even watched a DVD. Oh yea, I forgot to mention that when the sun went down, it was dark...REALLY DARK! With overcast skies the only light came from the anchor lights of the adjacent boats and a few tall towers. Very eerie to say the least. Well, around 9 pm the wind began to pick up and since there were no trees, buildings, etc. to protect us, our level of concern grew considerably! The winds peaked at around 30 knots (around 36 mph for you non boaters) and although our anchor was holding well, we both knew this would be a mostly sleepless night...and we were right! Diane finally turned in and I basically stayed in the main cabin and checked on our position every hour throughout the night.

OUCH!

We didn't budge but unfortunately, one of the other boats in the creek wasn't so lucky and when light finally returned in the morning, I saw that boat well up into the marsh, high and dry as the tide dropped. Luckily for him, he had already called a boat towing service and they would arrive to assist a bit before high tide. Still, Diane and I gave a word of thanks both to God and our superb anchor to keeping us in place!
  Diane and I were hopeful for a short, easy run the rest of the way to Charleston, but this coastal storm had other ideas...
  The marina we were going to has both a reputation as a superb place to take a break, but also is well known for the current which literally rips through it as high as 3 knots! That can make driving a sailboat with only one engine into a slip a real challenge! Diane and I discussed our options and waited for "slack" tide so the only variable we had to worry about was the wind. I'll admit to a modicum of skill, but it was mostly luck (and a bit of help from numerous dock hands) which allowed me to back our boat into a slip...and not hit anything!
  Even though the wind remained high over the next two days and yes, it stayed cool, we slept like babies in our slip! We've taken the trolley over the river to Charleston each day and marveled at the unique architecture, superb night life (we joined fellow cruisers Bob and Marilyn one night and painted the town red...well, how about hot pink!), and delicious food.
  Tomorrow we head out once again, still searching for the elusive sun and warmth. We've had a few snips of both so far this trip, but are looking forward to, well, looking forward!
  Till next time....