Watching the light return to my side of the Earth. Low clouds, maybe only fog or maybe the famous groundhog won't see his shadow today and winter will end sooner. Great(er) weather and temperatures for us at nearly 60 outside at 7:00 a.m.
We're on a rough and ready fishing/shrimping/oystering dock at a little shrimp processing place.
They allow people to overnight here, space for two small boats such as ours and Kasey's about 65' combined waterlines. B&B Seafood and right next door St. Judes Seafood. Maybe one does oysters and the other shrimp? Didn't get details. Twenty dollars for docking, er tying up, and $35 for 5 lbs of really frozen shrimp.
If we don't find someone to share the shrimp with we may turn into shrimp. They are delicious but 5 lbs?!? and in our little, little freezer? The block of frozen shrimp are too big for our 1950-size freezer. What a privilege to have this problem.
Longer than expected day yesterday. And lovely Kasey as dinner guest last eve = no writing last night.
A number of good memories and some scares were tickled on our way out of Charleston. Derelict boats that filled parts of the harbor last trip were disappeared. Hurricanes or government? There were two abandoned, rather good looking sailboats tossed on shore and one sunk with only about 10' of mast above water. Who knows what else was sunk so only the bravest were anchoring.
The Elliot Cut is a short, narrow waterway that empties into the Stono River (or the Ashley River on the Charleston harbor side). Beautiful, beautiful place with lovely houses both new/large and old cottages surrounded with live oaks and Spanish moss. Scary last/first journey and so much wider (seemingly) this time.
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| A little house envy, er shopping as we went through Elliot Cut. |
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| 2 houses, small cottage front, modern vertical to left |
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| larger, ultra modern |
I got lots of helm time yesterday. Yes! Including threading the needle through really skinny water. Slow, slow going. Sore pelvis muscles. NO autopilot during that stretch and it did NOT seem wider or deeper that last trip! Saw 5'8". YIKES!! That was only a foot of water beneath our keel. And once we whooshed along through the mud for about 20 yards with no depth indicated on the depth indicator. Thus, no depth, er water under the keel. Then we were into another rough and tumble river and I gave David the helm. Phew! Go read a book and pet the cat.
I wondered about my annoyance and discontent of yesterday and sort of figured that 4 hours of traveling with no pit stops to get out and stretch as in car travel...4 hours was really enough. But when we arrived at our agreed upon destination yesterday and it was only noon, and a beautiful day, what were we thinking?!? It was crazy to stop here, not use such a beautiful travel day and have such a long day to reach Beaufort tomorrow.
We texted Kasey, our boat buddy for the day, and made different arrangements. Onward.
So we explored a further anchoring site. At the bridge, route #174. Nope. Wait for Kasey who travels slower than we. Then off toward another possible anchorage. Nope. Then David found B&B Seafood. Yes! Oh! 6' of water at entrance to creek and it is low, low, low tide. Call for advice. "Stay close to the point and away from the marsh." Inch by inch and we never saw less than 9' of water.
So we docked.
Shrimp boat, closest I've ever been to a shrimp boat. I like them. Maybe because of that film with Tom Hanks? Forest Gump?
The oyster fishermen came into the dock. David salivated and begged but they and we women thought "no." Sorry.
Lovely dinner of shrimp and pasta and story time with Kasey and now it is light outside, overcast and time for coffee. Small bugs, gnats?, detected. We're in Mosquito Creek. A clue?
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