Nov 4 update

Wednesday, 03 November, 2010

We spent the morning stowing the last of the things we'd brought down to the boat.  It was alot tougher to find "homes" for everything now because the boat was lippin' full already...but we managed to carefully put everything away.  Then we made a final trip to Publix grocery for some last-minute perishables.  We bought a bag of potatoes, onions and a cabbage.  We also got some butter, limes, milk, bananas and some strong tape.

We filled our jerry cans and Scott topped off the boat's tanks and then securely fastened the cans along the starboard rail using the board he'd attached this summer.  At some point when we were not aboard, Dave from the boatyard climbed aloft and put up our desired starboard spreader flag halyard....oh happy day!  Now we can be "regulation" when flying our Bahamas courtesy flag.

Then we just waited until time to shove off from the dock, since high tide wasn't until 7:00 and we just wanted to make the 6:00 opening of the Lady's Island bridge.  We finally got away from the dock just after 5 pm and headed for the bridge....only to have to wait around 20-30 minutes.  When we were through the bridge, we headed for Battery Creek, just off the Beaufort River, in Port Royal, SC.  We have eaten a couple of times at Dockside Restaurant there and love the area.

We were concerned about our low battery status so we did not turn on any lights below that evening.  This meant we ate by candlelight as we enjoyed our warmed-over spaghetti from home with our box cabernet....2008 vintage.  Heaven!  We charged the batteries using the Honda generator and sat in the cockpit, enjoying the evening and the beautiful surroundings.  There were 4 other sailboats moored nearby in the tidal creek and they appeared ghostly in the low light.

We turned in early, knowing we had an early morning ahead.  It was just bliss knowing we were finally starting our voyage!!

Thursday, ‎04 ‎November, ‎2010

We got up at 6:00 AM this morning, after anchoring in a beautiful tidal creek (Battery Creek) near Dockside Restaurant in Port Royal, SC.  After breakfast, we readied the boat for the day ahead and waited until 7:40 to hoist the anchor due to heavy, thick fog and little light.  While motoring out of the creek, several dolphins swam alongside Painkiller and played in our bow's wake.  What a wonderful sight!

It was very slow going, motoring down the Beaufort River towards Port Royal Sound -- the fog was so thick we could only see about 1/8 mile or less ahead.  Our radar was such a huge help to us since our vision was so limited.  The fog began lifting around 10 and we were able to make better progress on our journey to Savannah.

The ICW was beautiful but very shallow in places along the way.  We just took our time and only had one minor "grounding" at mile marker 30 just north of Thunderbolt.  Scott expertly backed the boat and we then proceeded to watch another boat go aground in the same spot.  I didn't feel so bad then!  We reached Hinckley Yacht Services in Savannah around 3:15 just as rain set in.  It felt good to button up the boat and go below into the warm, dry living area.

It had been a long but good day and we had run the gammut of weather from "pea soup" fog to sunshine to windy and finally rain and cold.  After checking in with the manager at Hinckley, we enjoyed a well-deserved cocktail.  We are anxious to have the mechanic look into our mysterious electrical/charging problem first thing tomorrow morning so we can get back on our way south!