Cruising Estrella del Sur: Beaufort to Hilton Head

November 6 - 17, 2016

On Sunday November 6th we had the anchor up 7:00 a.m. and headed for Beaufort. This was not one of our favourite spots as it seems they are not geared to boaters who prefer to anchor out. The marina is expensive and it was difficult to find an anchoring spot due to all the privately moored boats (and derelict boats) but we managed to find one quite close to the shoreline. It was shallow but we thought we would be ok as we have a low 4 ft draft. The next morning I could hear banging on the boat and when I heard the noise I called out to Brad that I thought it was dolphins. As we went on deck and looked out…sure enough they were bumping the boat. They could have just been playing, but later events made me believe that they were warning us about where we were anchored and the depth with the tide going out. Later that afternoon we returned from a tour of the town to find that we were aground. We were hoping that after dinner we would off the bottom, but we were still stuck. That night we waited until 11:00 p.m. and with the boat finally free of the mud, we hauled anchor and moved the boat to another spot in deeper water which had previously been occupied by another boat.

Our walk through the graveyard!

Flock of birds surrounding the boat!

November 8th we had anchor up at 6:50 a.m. We no sooner gotten started on our long day’s journey when our boat engine alarm went off and Brad immediately shut the effected diesel down. We found a marina close by and took the boat in to an open dock - good thing we have dual engines. Paul rafted off on our boat and he and Brad quickly fixed the problem…a belt had failed. Soon we were on our way again and at 2:40 p.m. we dropped anchor in Hammock Bay. This was a very unique anchorage as the shores were lined with army/marine boats. This was apparently a training area, something we realized when explosions started to shake the boats. It was short lived as they headed out of the bay once dark started to fall upon us.

Brad puling anchor at Beaufort.

2Outrageous leading the way!

Some Hurricane Matthew damage.

On November 10th we crossed over into South Carolina in the morning, another state down. We have been making good progress on travel days by hitting tides at the right time. This had become a whole different way to travel than what we had previously experienced. The ICW had presented many new challenges for us, some just because it’s the ICW and others because of the remnants of Hurricane Matthew. My navigation skills were increasing and my lazy days of having naps in the cockpit were over. We quickly learned how to become a good sailing team as many of these experiences were new for both of us. That morning upon approaching the Ocean Isle fixed bridge we were somewhat confused on the signage. Most bridges had the red and green markers in the centre of the bridge, these markers were off to the port side. This led to the possibility that they were re-routing because of Matthew. WRONG! As we were exiting the bridge we ran aground. Brad quickly did his maneuvering and we were out. Apparently, that was marking a boat launch and no markers in the centre as we expected…lesson learned. Later that day we stopped at Barefoot Marina in Myrtle Beach. We enjoyed our happy hour $4 drinks and $5 appetizers at the Flying Fish but not before walking to another drug store for more meds as I couldn’t shake the cough.

More Hurricane Matthew damage.

House of Blues

An airport radar

November 11th we rafted off with 2Outrageous in Prince creek, a very cool alligator infested creek. Apparently alligators sleep during the cold months, perfect for me but to Laurie’s dismay we didn’t see any. That definitely would have added some excitement. The creek was very isolated and made me feel like we were in a Congo movie. Just as we were leaving the anchorage in the morning the mast on 2Outrageous became entangled with trees but were were able to get separated and they were able to free the mast without any damage. The following day as were were motoring along Brad was still sensing a problem with the steering so once we anchored down in Graham Creek he put on his wetsuit and took the plunge into 63 degree F water. The current was so strong (2 knots, or about 3.5 KPH) that he barely made it back to the boat after jumping in. Clearly we still have a lot to learn about the effect of currents! The next dip down he was tied off to the boat but unfortunately the ‘root beer’ water made it difficult to see anything and he was unable to swim against the current under the boat towards the rudders.

The 'root beer' water. Left quite a moustache on the boat.

2Outrageous popped down there for gas.

Water line on trees from Hurricane Matthew

The next morning November 13th when Brad was pulling up the anchor he had noticed we had snagged a crab pot which had ensnared our anchor chain when the boat had swung at night with the changing tide. This explained our steering issues as it had been caught on our port rudder. It took some time to free the anchor from the entanglement but not before Brad tore the pectoral muscle in his chest while bent over the starboard bow and attempting to hold up a 55 lb. anchor wrapped in a crab pot, line and about 30 more pounds of anchor chain. The good news was that the anchor had freed the crab pot off the rudder, the bad news was that it created a mess of the chain…wrapping in around itself and the anchor. This was something Brad was not going to be able to untangle himself and the entire mess was much too heavy for me to assist. He lashed the tangled mess to the bow roller and we were underway. Once we arrived in Charleston we tied up with 2Outrageous just long enough for the guys to get the mess untangled and then we anchored outside the city of Charleston. That evening as we were enjoying some sundowners and getting ready for dinner aboard Estrella del Sur we heard someone blowing their horn. It was a bit of a mass confusion but Paul left on his dinghy back to his boat to be sure he wasn’t dragging - he wasn’t, but he moved their boat as another boat appeared to be dragging down on them. Suddenly we hear Paul hollering to us…another boat was just about to smash into us. We started the engines and rapidly hauled anchor as no one was on board the other boat. We moved to a more secure area but then had to anchor in 18 knot winds and rough conditions. A very eventful day for sure!

On route to Charleston Harbour

Charleston Harbour

We enjoyed a couple of days in Charleston including a carriage ride through the historical district and some shopping. This after a Sheriff’s had boat tied off to us the first morning and questioned us about checking in with Boarder Patrol, something we had learned to do very faithfully. Despite yesterday’s excitement I had still managed to call in, thankfully.

Our 'tour guide' - the oldest mare working the streets.

The restaurant where we had a great lunch - Queology

Charleston Harbour at night

November 15th we made it as far as mile 516 in Rock creek as it was low tide and we could not get through the Aslepoo Coosaw Cut. Quiet night at anchorage. The next day when leaving the anchorage we met up with a large barge in the little cut, we pulled over to let him pass as we watched the dolphins swimming and playing all around us. Something we had become quite accustomed to seeing on the ICW. As we travelled down through South Carolina we could smell and see a hazy smoke from the forest fires burning in North Carolina. That day Brad and I decided to head to Hilton Head to see our friends as they left in the morning. 2Outrageous stayed the night in Beaufort and met up with us the following day.

Sunrise and ready to go again.

Meeting the barge in the little creek.

Dolphins swimming behind us as we left anchorage.

Hilton Head is such an amazing island and the Windmill Marina itself was a Shangra-La. We entered through a very small lock, leaving only a couple of inches on each side of the boat. It was so narrow we couldn’t even put out the fenders. Apparently we were the only the second catamaran to ever come there. No wonder! Once we were through the lock it was like we were in a different world…the weather was so much warmer and it was so tranquil, flowers growing everywhere and beautiful homes and condo’s surrounded the marina. From outside the lock you would have never known that this place ever existed. That night we met up with our friends on Reflection2 for a nice dinner and catch up. They would be leaving in the morning with their rally group. We rented a car to tour the island, hit a beach (and Tiki Bar) and do some shopping. This would definitely be on the top of my list for a re-visit. The island is home to some of the rich and famous. As a result they have very strict development rules and rules about signage. Walmart isn’t even allowed to put up signage and even the box stores are hidden behind beautiful foliage. Something we had never seen before.