Wrightsville to Georgetown to Charleston’s Kiawah/Seabrook Island
Our Sail Plan: We sailed out of Wrightsville Beach NC at Sunrise. Although we intended to go all 225 miles to Kiawah/Seabrook Island SC, we were worried about fuel, so we diverted to Georgetown SC. At 1 AM, we entered Winyah Bay Inlet – with jetties on both sides, we struggled to make our way in against the 6 knot current.
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Good Bye Wrightsville Beach NC. Another sunrise early departure to catch the tide out. Next stop: HOME in SC! (Or so we thought)
Bird Stowaway ID
Who can identify this bird? Send us the answer and we’ll send you a Blue Dot Voyages Hat! This bird is only occasionally seen in the Coastal Carolina waters near Gulf Stream. He breeds in Dry Tortugas, nest in large colonies and forage at sea, making spectacular plunges into the ocean to capture fish and squid.*
Sailing Conditions
Our Sailing conditions were very sporty. We were motor sailing into the waves quite a bit more than anticipated and really not making much forward progress. And our fuel gauge was not working. We did some computations and figured we were low on fuel. We had not filled up since Port Washington NY! If we kept going, we knew we would need to motor much of the remaining trip. So, we made the safe choice and decided to stop for fuel.
At 1 AM that night, we entered Winyah Bay and planned to spend the next day in Georgetown to get fuel. Winyah Bay looks pretty easy on the maps, but don’t be fooled. The current is extreme. And we just missed the tide, so it was against us. It was pitch black. There are two jetties on either side of the inlet, so you have to be on your toes and have total control of your boat. NOT a good idea, but our options were limited. I was at the front with spotlights and Captain Stephen was at the helm. We slowly made it in and anchored as quickly as possible in Mud Bay. Next morning, we found out why they called it that.
Georgetown
In the daylight, we were quite impressed by the beauty of the area. Protected marsh and river areas include Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge, Santee Coastal Reserve, Tom Yankee Wildlife Center, North Inlet-Winyah Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. All shallow, but they are on our list of places to visit with more time and a shallow draft fishing boat!
We spent the day exploring Georgetown. Nice restaurants and shops on Front Street AND you can dock at the city municipal dock (with fuel) for free during the day. It’s a small dock really made for fishing boats, but we made it work for our catamaran.
We left Georgetown on the outgoing tide late that afternoon and anchored closer to the ocean by the Yankee reserve (it’s on navionics chart). We visited the old coast guard station lighthouse but did not land as it was getting late. We were entertained that evening watching a boat that was stuck in the mud flats who called a friend to get out. There is always something interesting going on ! Funny story about the old coast guard station we read – back in the day – a boat entered the harbor and the coast guard thought they were in distress and set out to rescue them. Turns out they were just running drugs.
North Edisto Inlet
We left early the next morning and were in our favorite anchorage by dinner time! South Creek off the North Edisto River just south of Charleston.
With a storm approaching the next day, we made our way to dock. We had a super high tide and noticed quite a few changes in the waterways – shifting sandbars, a derelict old war ship – yes, I said war ship. The picture below was taken by a friend Jeff Davis, showing the beauty of the marsh contrasting with the war ship. We are actively trying to get it removed before it leaks fluids and destroys the surrounding estuarine habitat.
Lightning Storm Welcome
That night we had one of craziest lightning storms we’ve seen. Stephen says it’s fireworks for our return. I slowed down the video so you can see all the streaks and flashes. Did you know lightning has a rating scale? This was level 5!
| Level | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | No thunderstorms |
| 2 | Isolated thunderstorms. Lightning is very infrequent, 1–5 cloud-to-ground strikes in a five-minute period. |
| 3 | Widely scattered thunderstorms. Lightning is infrequent, 6–10 cloud-to-ground strikes in a five-minute period. |
| 4 | Scattered thunderstorms. Lightning is frequent, 11–15 cloud-to-ground strikes in a 5-minute period. |
| 5 | Numerous thunderstorms. Lightning is frequent and intense, greater than 15 cloud-to-ground strikes in a five-minute period. |
| 6 | Dry lightning (same as LAL 3 but without rain). This type of lightning has the potential for starting fires, and is normally highlighted in fire weather forecasts with a red flag warning. |
Refrigerator Replacement in Leopard48 Cockpit
Our first project at dock was replacing our cockpit refrigerator that is located under the helm station. The video covers the entire installation process for you.
Here is the isotherm refrigerator selection analysis sheet that compares sizes and types so you can find one that fits in your space. We got the DR85!
And if you want more details to analyze, here’s the full Isotherm catalog.
Joanna Sails with Us!
Last but definitely not least, daughter Joanna came to visit! Now I know you are all going to say she is just like me, so I’ll say it for you. We had a great time hanging out and even had her helping with the boat projects and setting the anchor.
That’s it for now. Follow us on your favorite social channels for current updates and subscribe to YouTube channel for our video diaries. Thanks for watching.
Music
Like the music? Check out the artists here.
Riverside (instrumental and vocals). https://audiio.com/james-spaite
Savannah Sunshine (instrumental). https://audiio.com/dan-hegan
*Bird ID Answer – Masked Booby