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Start: 6:30 AM - Cape Romain, SC
Finish: 3:30 PM - Heritage Plantation Marina (near Pawleys Island, SC0
Time: 9:00
Daily dist: 35 miles
Total dist: 2700+ miles
Companions: None
Weather: Sunny, very windy, warm
Notes: Big winds were being predicted so I decided to come back inside to the ICW
Start: 6:30 AM - Cape Romain, SC
Finish: 3:30 PM - Heritage Plantation Marina (near Pawleys Island, SC0
Time: 9:00
Daily dist: 35 miles
Total dist: 2700+ miles
Companions: None
Weather: Sunny, very windy, warm
Notes: Big winds were being predicted so I decided to come back inside to the ICW
A rare stretch of freshwater on the ICW allows for Cyprus trees
Last night I had plotted a course to be run on the open coast over the next couple days that would have taken me as far as the North Carolina border. However this morning big winds blew me off the open coast and back into the Intracoastal waterway. This sudden change of course had me navigating on the fly in an anxious search for high ground on which to camp tonight. By 3:00 after almost nine hours on the water I made up my mind to not pass up anything that looked like it would work however marginal it might be. About then I was paddling past a marina and a gentleman was leaning on the railing of the deck above. Remembering a conversation about staying at marinas I had the other day with the young couple that is paddling up the coast, I figured it couldn't hurt to at least find out what it might cost to tie up.
Luck was with me (or call it magic trip carma) and the gentleman on the dock was the dock master and he said for me it'd be free. More to the point I could put my tent up on the far side of the parking lot. I quickly landed on the adjacent boat ramp and introduced (and explained) myself and this trip. The dockmaster (Ronnie Ham) helped me get my boat out of the water and as I pulled my gear out he returned to the marina office to attend to his work. A few minutes later he re-appeared and asked if I'd be interested in coming home to spend the night with him and his wife rather than fuss with my tent. I couldn't believe my luck and quickly accepted his offer.
It turns out that Ronnie and his wife Sylvia had lived on their sail boat for almost seven years. They are very grateful for all the help they've received in the past and love to take advantage of opportunities to help folks out themselves. Over dinner (cheeseburgers!) we talked about their past cruising days and watched the Kentucky Derby on TV. Afterward I took advantage of a bit of civilization and Ronnie's computer to get my head around the next few days of travel on the ICW. Consequently it's already late and I have to keep this post short. As it is my own computer, once agian, has no solid internet connection, consequently there are no pictures right now.
I'll be around lots of populated areas over the next few days so I hope to finally have a good connection on my computer and get the blog up to date. For now I'm off to bed to rest up for a long run north on the ICW tomorrow. With a good tailwind and favorable tide flows it should be a good day.
Luck was with me (or call it magic trip carma) and the gentleman on the dock was the dock master and he said for me it'd be free. More to the point I could put my tent up on the far side of the parking lot. I quickly landed on the adjacent boat ramp and introduced (and explained) myself and this trip. The dockmaster (Ronnie Ham) helped me get my boat out of the water and as I pulled my gear out he returned to the marina office to attend to his work. A few minutes later he re-appeared and asked if I'd be interested in coming home to spend the night with him and his wife rather than fuss with my tent. I couldn't believe my luck and quickly accepted his offer.
It turns out that Ronnie and his wife Sylvia had lived on their sail boat for almost seven years. They are very grateful for all the help they've received in the past and love to take advantage of opportunities to help folks out themselves. Over dinner (cheeseburgers!) we talked about their past cruising days and watched the Kentucky Derby on TV. Afterward I took advantage of a bit of civilization and Ronnie's computer to get my head around the next few days of travel on the ICW. Consequently it's already late and I have to keep this post short. As it is my own computer, once agian, has no solid internet connection, consequently there are no pictures right now.
I'll be around lots of populated areas over the next few days so I hope to finally have a good connection on my computer and get the blog up to date. For now I'm off to bed to rest up for a long run north on the ICW tomorrow. With a good tailwind and favorable tide flows it should be a good day.
A cooler full of ice and Coke. I dream about this all day and there it was on the dock at the marina.
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