Apologies for the long break between blog posts!

We are still moving along and having a lot of fun. Seeing some the sights and meeting lots of great people.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 5th to THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11th, 2012 — DAY 45 to 51 (Alligator River Marina, NC to St. James, NC, just south of Southport, NC)

We stopped at some interesting little places along the way including, the Dowery Creek Marina in Belhaven, NC where the small restaurant in town called Georgie’s served some of the best seafood we’ve had on the trip.  The River Dunes Hotel and Marina near Oriental, NC was lovely with a great pool (unfortunately, freezer problems on the boat kind of dampened that visit). Beaufort, NC has a nice town by the waterfront where we met up with John and Linda (on their boat Adnil) who we have met on the trip in a few ports. Swansboro, NC was a great surprise with a cute downtown just a short walk from the marina. Then, we hit Wrightsville Beach, NC and later St. James, NC just south of Southport.

Sightings of dolphins through North Carolina are a daily occurence and what a joy! Only one day when we were back in fresh water for a bit did we have a whole day without seeing any.

Weather has been great. We had a few days of cooler temperatures, but it warmed backup.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 12th, 2012 — DAY 52 (St. James, NC to Myrtle Beach, SC)

We finally make it through North Carolina and cross the border into South Carolina. Making it through that state seems like a milestone with its long portion of the channel. Shortly after we cross the border, we are following a Canadian boat called “Time 2 Go”. Suddenly, the depth in the channel becomes very shallow and they run aground. Thankfully, we don’t. We follow closely behind them as they weave their way through the channel. The Inter-Coastal Waterway (ICW) since we have been in South Carolina has inconsistent water depths due to silting, shoaling and tides. We have to constantly watch and slowly move through shallow areas. Exhausting.

In Myrtle Beach, we stay at the marina next to the Grand Dunes Resort. Unfortunately, it is pretty tough to get anywhere in Myrtle Beach without a car, so we don’t really see much other than the hotel, marina and grocery store (the marina guys gives Lee a ride there and back).

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 13th — DAY 53 (Myrtle Beach, SC to Georgetown, SC)

The trip through South Carolina from Myrtle Beach to Georgetown, goes through some beautiful scenery including forests and cypress swamps. The current is with us most of the trip. Our friends, John and Linda on Adnil pass us along the way.

That evening we meet our friends Doug and Ellen (who live in Charlotte, NC) in Georgetown (Doug and Randy met at Queen’s University). Doug brings their boat, Trillium, to Georgetown and Ellen drives down by car. We have happy hour on Silver Maple and then walk to town for dinner.

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 14th to TUESDAY, OCTOBER 16th — DAY 54 to 56 (Georgetown, SC to Charleston, SC with time enjoying Charleston)

The trip from Georgetown to Charleston is about 56 miles — a long one for us. We get an early start. Its a beautiful morning. Doug passes us on Trillium mid-day and arrives in Charleston a few hours before us.

Our trip is slow and tedious. The current is against us most of the way, and the depths in the ICW along the way are challenging. Thankfully, we make it through without incident. On the radio we can hear other boats who have not been so lucky.

The Harbor Resort and Marina in Charleston, SC is just outside of town near where the decommissioned USS Yorktown aircraft carrier is docked. Doug arrives with Trillium a few hours before us. We have cocktails on their boat and dinner at the hotel restaurant.

On Monday, Doug and Ellen drive home to Charlotte and leave their boat in Charleston. Randy and Lee spend the day touring the Yorktown and Clamogore submarine. It is hot and humid again. Later we take the water taxi into town for dinner at a great restaurant called Husk, featuring all local South Carolina ingredients.

Today (Tuesday), we spent in town. We do a great carriage tour of the historic city in the morning, lunch and walk around the market area in the afternoon. The last few days have been hot, and today the weather finally has cooled. We enjoyed the 75 degree F day with sunshine.

We will be getting back on the water and heading south towards Hilton Head, SC on Wednesday. Woohoo!