Week #7 took us from the Florida border through Georgia and South Carolina into North Carolina traveling 364 miles (even with a two night stop in Charleston).
We started in sunny weather with temperatures in the 80s and ended the week with 50 degrees and gale force winds.
We started in sunny weather with temperatures in the 80s and ended the week with 50 degrees and gale force winds.
We battled with the biting green head horse flies through the salt marshes of Georgia and South Carolina.
We walked to Our Lady Star of the Sea church in North Myrtle Beach for Mass.
We had some wonderful dinners "home-cooked" on the boat as we watched the birds and dolphins near us.
We went out to eat at great restaurants in Charleston, Georgetown, Myrtle Beach and Southport.
One night we sat under the stars as the only boat in an isolated anchorage and the next night watched the moon rise over the only other boat within miles. Some of our favorite nights are when we drop anchor in a quiet spot away from other boats, sit on our "back porch" watching the birds swoop and the fish jump and the sunset... it gets so quiet and the stars shine so brightly... we feel like we're the only two people in the world.
We refueled at the picturesque harbor on Hilton Head Island with its striped lighthouse. We had visited this harbor two years ago when we drove the coastal route to scout for our boat trip... of course a 60 mile day on the boat is only one hour in the car so the stops seems much further apart!
We tied up at the Megadock in downtown Charleston. This city marina has 19,000 linear feet of dock space covering 40 acres... it is good exercise walking from one end of the dock to the other! We enjoyed our dinners at Hymans Seafood restaurant-- Chris went "southern" and ordered the grilled salmon over grits with brown gravy and bacon and cheese-- it was good! We had a great pizza that reminded us of our trip to Capri and Naples-- don't miss Monza Pizza if you're in Charleston!
At times seagulls followed closely at our stern diving for small fish kicked up by our wake.
We tied up at a marina right on the boardwalk in quaint Georgetown, SC and wandered hand-in-hand along the one main street looking in shop windows and examining the restaurant menus to choose the right spot for dinner. We had enjoyed the Goat Island Grill when we stopped here on our anniversary in 2007 so we decided to try Riverwalk for a change-- it was great!
After several weeks of great cruising weather, the forecast changed as a strong cold front moved into North Carolina. We carefully picked a secure marina just a short walk from a great little town with good stores and restaurants. Just like Newport after the Revolutionary War, Southport NC was so poor after the Civil War that they fixed up the old houses rather than tear them down so the streets are lined with interesting old homes. The only restaurant open on Sunday was The Pharmacy-- Marianne loved her crabcakes and Chris's duck was some of the best ever!
Now we're looking forward to week #8... depending on when this gale ends... we expect to travel the last 300 miles to Norfolk, VA. We're looking forward to exploring the Chesapeake before continuing on to Newport... as usual, we'll keep you posted!
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