12/7/15   Monday    DAVID's BIRTHDAY!!!

Last night was...difficult, shall we say. One of those wind against tide nights. (PHOTO BELOW)

Grace (the black "bullet") moving all over the place in the current and wind, and we were trying to sleep

David started his birthday with a....stumble...lurch....and the most interesting bruise on his butt. He stepped on the cat's tail. She yelled and ran. He hopped off her tail just as the boat lurched in the choppy wind/tide routine. David stumbled. David grabbed for the chair arm. The Captain's chair is not nailed down. Both he and chair fell down. David managed to catch himself on the seatee arms BEFORE falling down the stairs. A stripped bruise from the tread, a lump on the bruised butt, a kitty who is suspicious of his feet. Otherwise, no damage. And David came up smiling.

In spite of the smile it was a cold, rainy morning. My birthday man!

We organized ourselves and Grace to leave. It was still spitting rain but mostly warm. It always takes at least 1/2 hour to get the dinghy and her motor attached and detached. We're just uncomfortable hauling the dinghy behind us with the motor still on board and it would slow our progress. So our sailing companions for the last couple of days had a 40 minute head start on us. Okay, though, as we travel a couple knots faster than they.

Not to dis the very serious situation of immigrants but when I saw the Cormorants at right I thought of immigrants
stranded on beaches waiting to leave. Then I notices the white egrets on the left and wondered - metaphorically - about
segregation. The white egrets are fewer but larger. Clouds in background are ominous, too.

Short, pretty easy day with lots of twist and turns making for slow going several times but we were at our anchorage by 1300 hrs (1 PM). We spent some of the afternoon reading, took a trip to the Ferry dock for a walk on land then visited our friends, Dana and Craig, on their boat. Brought our brownies and celebrated David's birthday.

The mast immediately over David's shoulder is Grace

Afternoon walk on Sapelo Island GA 

Spanish Moss eventually kills the host tree but so beautiful in the long process.

Our lives are rich and so very blessed. What a privilege to be journeying, together, and meeting so many people and having so many adventures. And tonight the Milky Way is brilliant.

12/6/15   Sunday    Tomorrow is Capt. Webster's BIRTHDAY! And I'm stuck on a boat with no way to get present or even card. Oh woe!

An ordinary day of motoring down the ICW. Beautiful weather. Warm enough. No major challenges. Some new scenery. We're in Georgia now.

Lots of tree skeletons, both standing and on the shores of waterways

That spot of white in the middle of the photo is a sailboat

David was the helms person much of the time and I made a screen for the large sunroof hatch. We came to our overnight resting place in the Walburg River around 3 PM. Visited our friends on their boat (Darlene is allergic to the cat in a big way!) and came home for dinner.

Grace

This evening, though, is not particularly ordinary. Wind against tide, and those winds are way more than the 8-10 knots predicted. Reminds me of NYC Hudson River nights with all the wakes and bangs. We're twirling around our anchor chain. The chain rubs against the bob stay - sounds like thunder - and gets caught on an eyebolt and BAMS off, rocking the boat and rattling our nerves. Did I mention that it is raining? But it IS warm. But not very warm. It will NOT be a restful night. Kitty is not pleased, either.

12/5/15   Saturday  

Out not-nearly-as-early-as-we-promised each other but we left Beaufort, SC this morning.

Alice and John's boat

Since Charleston on Thanksgiving Day we're paying MUCH more attention to the tides and planning to travel on rising and high tides...avoiding all the "skinny water" by waiting until it is fatter! We also spoke about how we get snippy with each other upon leaving after being in port for more than a day. Agreed to review all the charts and "how to motor", how to read the buoys and markers before we started the engine, just so we both had a better idea of what the other was thinking and knew how/when to do. And we didn't snipe at each other today.

David took us under the first bridge at Port Royal then I took over the helm for several hours. I got to cross the Port Royal Sound with...wait for it....wind against tide. Not terrible but lumpy and tiring. I was tired afterwards anyway. But the day was beautiful. And the WHITE sand beaches of the backside of Hilton Head were lovely, too.

Even the Shrimp boats have white wall tires

Lots of twists and turns again today but mostly easy passage. Saw some fall colors even here in Georgia (! we're in Georgia now!)

And fall colors of a different sort. I'd seen the top of this vessel and wondered at a hugh, white building on top of a hill...in the middle of the low country??? We were glad to be out of the Savannah River before it came around the bend.

Container ship trying to disguise itself as colorful trees

Friends, Darlene and John, texted us to see where we were. They were about 1/2 hour ahead of us. My energy was waning and I wasn't sure we'd make Thunderbolt today, just past Savannah. But David soldiered on and we came into the same river to anchor. No energy to get together tonight though. Perhaps coffee tomorrow morning before we all take off again.

Meanwhile, we saw a Holiday/Christmas Boat Parade!!! We were sorry to be missing the one in Beaufort tonight and we saw a couple of decorated boats in the marinas a few miles from our anchorage. AND, we spied those same boats with their lights blazing as they lined up for a parade somewhere not in our sight. WONDER-full! And the commentary on ch11 as the captains talked to the organizer - "Are the boats in numerical order?" "That's a negative." "I'm boat #16. I was given that number." "Okay, #16, are you the 40' catch rig?" "Slow down. The sailboats are having trouble keeping up with the wind and current." (that wind against tide thing again). "Everybody, say who you are, your number and your theme as you pass the watch boat." "Oh, except boat #1 won't do that 'cause he doesn't have a radio."  What?!? No radio and they are out in the dark...in a parade??? Reminded me a bit of Freeport's July 4th parade. One boat had a very large palm tree (lights so the branches/fronds were at the top of the mast and the trunk down the mast.)

In the dark this was mostly blue and the largest in the parade

It really was a child's delight. Both David and I had our binoculars, called our friends but they were less impressed. We were far away. And we DO have a pilot house to keep us warm as we watched.
There were 18 numbers in the parade but #s 2,3,4 and 6 "don't exist" according to the organizer on the radio.

Meanwhile, my boat garden is blooming, just in time for Christmas and with Christmas color.

12/4/15  Friday

Party night - Night on the Town - in Beaufort, SC. Similar to Portland, ME's First Friday with less focus on art or Freeport's Sparkle Weekend with similar focus on merchandise and getting in the spirit of commercial Christmas. Bay St, the street next to the bay oddly enough, was closed off for about 4 blocks. There were food vendors, most of proceeds went to various charities, some string quartets, bands, carolers, several small ensembles of young people, some dance performances including a young woman/girl with Down's Syndrome who did a lovely ballet solo to Nutcracker Snow queen or the pas de deux (familiar music but...).

We picked up our friends, Jon and Alice, as their dinghy was suspended out of the water (Jon's work project for the day),

Those are Jon's legs under the motor. Alice on the deck

and met our friend, Brian, and we "painted the town". Not. But we had a great time looking in some art galleries and other shops and landed ourselves in a family restaurant for dinner. Lots of stories of sailing, boating, stupid accidents, stupid boaters, etc. Brian, who is maybe 15 years younger and single stayed to walk the street again while we old(er) farts headed back to our boats by 2030. Fun. These are people we will definitely stay in touch with. Jon and Alice will continue into FL after they return from Christmas in CA. Brian is staying here indefinitely, perhaps to relocate here, as permanently as permanent is these days.

This has been a fun stop...a little shorter than the NC Beaufort. We felt we'd outstayed ourselves in NC. This time we're here only 5 days AND we have friends here - boating friends. So this has a greater sense of community. However, we're ready to leave tomorrow.

This morning we took Amelia to the vet to check on her weeping eye. Ms Kitty was treated for this in August. Conjunctivitis, needing salve in both eyes even though only one looks effected, perhaps due to stress. So, Alice and Jon dropped us off and picked us up in their rented car. David and I borrowed the courtesy car to go get prescription cat food for Amelia's Kidney Care. And we took Grace into the dock to give her a drink (fill the water tanks w/water) and get ourselves showers, preparing for the evening's revelries.

All in all a delicious day.

12/3/15   Thursday

Hello All, David here.

We are having on board battery issues and this will be somewhat brief.

We had a great day going to Penn Center on St. Helena Island, SC. This is a historic preservation site that is the location of what I believe is the first school for freed slaves in the United States, founded sometime after the Emancipation Proclamation and originally staffed by several Quaker women from the north who came and set up a very successful school during the Civil War after this area was controlled by the Union and the black community was emancipated.

The school evolved into a sizable residential school for black children designed to provide a balance of liberal arts education and occupational, skills training. After the school closed and children's education was addressed by the public school system, the center evolved into a center for education and support for the adult community as the black community continued to be exploited out of their farm land and waterfront property as the area became more "developed" and attractive to people of wealth. Today it remains a resource center and museum, continuing to provide education and support to the black community and (opinion) faces the challenges of remaining relevant to a quickly evolving young community that, as all generations tend to do, easily forgets history.

We were intrigued and attracted to Penn Center because of what we had learned of the Gullah culture (consider a Google Search) and enjoyed our visit to the 50 plus acre campus.  We went with a couple from another boat and Jonathan summed up the experience quite aptly; "Interesting and I feel slightly depressed." I understood and agreed.

The story line of this community, from Emancipation to today is filled with a narrative of exploitation, oppression and racism, that was understated in the narrative, but clear to see. We all found it interesting that after the school was officially closed it continued to find its way as a center for liberation. We learned that a church down the road was burned several times and the Civil Rights Movement was fully supported at Penn. This must have been another challenging time.

Well, anyway, we appreciated and enjoyed the several volunteer docents and the grounds, in need of more repair, and left to return to our life aboard Grace.

Quiet evening aboard Grace. Nancy is reading with Amelia on her lap. We  are making an effort to consume as few amps as possible until we run the engine again so, I am signing off. (perhaps, since I have been asked to talk more about the details of the boat, I will discuss the electrical system and the ins and outs of amps and our evolving understanding of how to be at anchor and conserve electricity.)

Tomorrow, we will add some pictures, visit Beaufort again and depart for other places to the south on Saturday.

Warm regards,
David

12/2/15  Wednesday

The sun came out and we went to town. Met our friend, Brian, and strolled through the area of Beaufort, SC, called "the Point", then lunch in a little sandwich shop on Bay St., then we split up and David and I went to the library where I bought some used books, got caught in a brilliant rain down pour, wadded back to the dinghy and have spent the balance of the evening drying out. More sight seeing adventures w/different friends tomorrow. I'm liking this part of our travels!

First African American church in Beaufort, SC (I think)

A garden 

Beaufort Inn 

A driveway

This cat was sitting picture perfect until I got my phone camera out, then she followed us for blocks and blocks
Brian spoiled her and was nearly ready to take her home to his boat

Back entrance 

Front door 

Maybe Tidalholm where The Big Chill was filmed. Looks like it but we were a little lost.

Double porches

Hope you've enjoyed as much as we did

12/1/15  Tuesday

Chillin' in Beaufort, SC. A short walk downtown. We'll extend/expand that tomorrow w/more time. Took care of some business - Long Term Care insurance decisions, holding tank pump out, banking, Freeport Players publicity efforts - mostly the kind of stuff we take care of in land-based home...well, not the pump out.

Took a long dinghy ride across the river to Ladies Island. Were invited to tie up at the Ladies Island Marina where the dock master welcomed us and raved (reasonably so) about the assets of being there rather than at the Beaufort City Marina. We told him we were anchored, that is, we lied a little. We did some provision shopping, returned some lovely, but dangerous, plastic wine glasses we'd bought. The glass lips were sharp and cut David's hand when he was washing them.

Our slip neighbor from Charleston, Brian, is docked at Ladies Island so we hailed him for a brief chat. He'll come do the walking tour with us tomorrow morning.

Had dinner this evening with other slip neighbors, John and Darlene. He cooked delicious pork roast w/potatoes. Yummy! We brought steamed veggies and that wonderful Italian Christmas bread that I love and happened to find in the food store yesterday. A delightful evening talking about our various adventures and mis-adventures traveling the ICW. They are from Nova Scotia.

Home to our neglected kitty who is curled sleeping, next to my let.

David and I still have to check the weather and the distance we want to travel in the next couple of weeks. However, we're thinking of resting here until Saturday, mostly to see a Gullah Christmas Celebration that takes place Friday night. I'm sure it will be a pageant/performance of some sort and expect it will allow some insight into the Gullah culture. We'd move off the mooring and into an anchorage if we decide to stay. We'll see....about the performance and about staying.