Down the ICW 2015

Yes, on 26 October we finally moved out -- on our way down the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway towards the beautiful, warm Bahamas. This year we intend to go further south than we have before and enjoy some real seafaring Bahamian adventures. Before that, however, we have to get down the Waterway. It will be about 220 miles down the Chesapeake, then another 1025 miles down the ICW before we can re-provision, wait for decent weather and head for the Bahamas.

Our Strategy 

Spot supervising her staff's strategy development process.

In the past we have employed different strategies for getting down the ICW, depending on our needs at the time. There have been years when we had to be conscious of time, to, for example, show up for doctor’s appointments. That, we hope, is not the case this time (fingers crossed). In other years we have really wanted to visit some of the “famous” cruiser’s sights, like Georgetown, Beaufort (both of them), Cumberland Island, Saint Augustine, and many others. While we certainly want to drop by some of our favorite spots, we don’t need to go everywhere. And last year we wanted to explore Georgia’s barrier islands, Sapelo, Jeckyll, St. Simons and Blackbeard. This year, though, since we dropped several tens of boat units on Traveling Soul over the summer, our approach is going to be one of keeping the costs down -- and still having a good time. To do this, we will employ a two-part strategy. Part one is to minimize our fuel cost. In the past, fuel has cost $3 or more per gallon. Not this year. If we play our cards right we should be able to get it for less than $2 on average!!! We can best do that by identifying the lowest cost fuel providers on the ICW and building at least part of our trip around them.  Part two of our strategy is to anchor whenever we can rather than go to a marina. That does not mean we aren’t going to a marina, just that we want to keep the number of visits down.

Down the Chesapeake

The trip down the Chesapeake, from Kent Island to Norfolk, took three days. The first day was a bit long; I think we covered around 80 miles (our average day is 50-60 miles) before stopping at Smith Creek, just inside the mouth of the Potomac. We have stopped there before. It is very scenic, protected from both wind and current, and our anchor has always held well. In the past we have heard the local landowner play reveille around 0800, but this year I think we left a little early and didn’t hear a thing.

The second day we went almost as far, anchoring in Fishing Bay, just south of Deltaville, VA. We have spent a lot of time in Deltaville over the years, but had never been to Fishing Bay. It turned out to be a great anchorage. About 20 minutes off of the Chesapeake itself, it has a marina close by for emergencies and has wonderful protection from the north, east and west (though not so much from the south). We will definitely go back there again. We were joined by about ten other boats, but there was room for several more.

While the first two days were long, the weather was good and the water was fairly smooth. The third day, however, the seas were decidedly rougher. While it wasn’t the worst day we have had on the boat – by a long shot – it was probably one of the worst ten days we have suffered. I mean on the worst days, I count the hours, minutes and seconds until we get to our destination, or at least until the seas will improve. This time around it wasn’t THAT bad, it was just a bit uncomfortable.  Moreover, it was pretty foggy and hazy most of the time. In fact, until we got to Thimble Shoals Reef, just outside of Portsmouth, VA we had seen only two other boats.

Anyway, we survived the trip and headed to Top Rack Marina, one of my favorite stops along the ICW. With one exception, it has THE cheapest fuel prices along the Waterway -- $1.93 per gallon of diesel!!! Needless to say, we filled up every tank we have. Also, the marina offers FREE dockage as long as you eat in their restaurant! Ann and I both like the restaurant, the Amber Lantern, so docking there (did I mention it was for free?) was a no-brainer. In addition, we met our friends Russ and Lori who are now aboard their new power catamaran, Twin Sisters. We originally met Russ and Lori two years ago in Marineland, Florida when they were sailboaters.  The next year they sold their sailboat and bought an RV. This year they sold their RV and bought a new (power) boat. Welcome back Russ and Lori to the world of boating!!! And welcome, in particular, to the Dark Side. We have cookies. J

Top Rack was around Mile Marker 6 on the ICW. We had decided to celebrate Thanksgiving at Vero Beach, as we had two years ago, with 200 of our best cruising friends. Vero is at Mile Marker 951.6. We had a ways to go and we were just starting down the ICW.

Down the ICW

After leaving Top Rack, we had to go through both the Great Bridge Lock and the Great Bridge Bridge. (No, that is not a typo. Great Bridge is a location and it has a bridge; hence Great Bridge Bridge. It also has a lock raising or lowering boats two feet or so, hence Great Bridge Lock.) While we were at the Lock we apparently rubbed up against one of the big black rubber fenders on the wall. That wouldn’t have been a problem, except that it left one of those blackish rubbery marks that can be very hard to get wash. AARRGGHH!!!

Traveling Soul on her way down the Waterway. Thanks Lori!!!

Since I couldn’t get the mark off, we motored on. The first night on the ICW proper we stayed at the Broad Creek Extension, the same place we stay almost every year. The next day we crossed the Albemarle Sound, cruised down the Alligator River as well as the Alligator-Pungo Canal and anchored on the Pungo River. I like the Pungo anchorage for several reasons, the most important of which is that it has three “sub-anchorages.” If the weather is pretty good or there is a little wind from the north or east, we could have (and did) anchor very close to the junction of the canal and the river. There is just enough land and trees to offer decent protection and a bottom strong enough to hold the anchor in place. If the wind is blowing harder – especially from the north or the south – we could have gone to an alternative anchorage a little further up river. If it was really bad, we could have gone about five miles further up the river and been just about as well protected as one can be in an anchorage.

The next day we anchored just outside of Belhaven, NC. Now Belhaven isn’t far from the Pungo anchorage – only about two hours – but we wanted to spend the whole day in Belhaven. We had heard there were two good places to eat. One, Spoon River, we had already enjoyed, but the other, The Tavern at Jack’s Neck wasn’t opened the last time we were there.  We decided we would go to the tavern for some … er … uh … libations and to the restaurant for dinner. Well, I have to tell you that Spoon River is as good as we remembered. They constantly change their menu so they can use fresh local ingredients in their food. The day we were there, they had a wonderful appetizer, “Crab Bruschetta with Quail Egg.” It was on their menu because some local kids had started raising quail and were bringing the eggs to the restaurant! That appetizer was scrumptious.

The tavern, however, was a different story. First, the good. They have beautiful wooden sculptures throughout the place. I have no doubt they are very expensive and I can tell you they are a wonder to behold. Now the not-so-good. I asked for a Makers Mark Manhattan on the rocks. Now, a Manhattan is a pretty basic drink. It consists of whiskey -- in this case, Makers Mark (a magnificent Kentucky bourbon for those of you who are unaware), sweet vermouth and a dash of bitters.  That’s it. Three ingredients.  The bartender, however, had to come back to me and ask how much vermouth she should put in. I told her what I did, all the time thinking, hmmm, what have I gotten myself into. Ann ordered a Long Island Iced Tea. It is a little more complicated to make, but it is also very popular so you might think she had made one before. Ann jokingly asked how well the bartender made them. The bartender’s response, “well, I am just going to read the recipe,” whereupon she opened her bartenders guide and made the drink – forgetting only one ingredient (the splash of coca cola that gives the drink both its color and its sweetness). Oh well. At least we got a good story out of it!!!


Every year this boat slips
a little further into the water.

After anchoring at Belhaven, we spent a night at a marina in Morehead City, NC, then we went to the at the anchorage at Mile Hammock Bay (on Camp Lejeune, for you former Marines),  We then spent two nights on a mooring at North Myrtle Beach. We were going to go ashore and see what the beach area was like, but the weather was cold, wet and windy so we decided to stay on the boat and check the place out next spring.

Our first stop in South Carolina was Osprey Marina. Why Osprey? It was part of our cost saving strategy; diesel cost $2.01 per gallon! We took on 320 gallons and were ready to go the next day.

After Osprey we stayed at anchorages in Graham Creek and Toogoodoo Creek in the South Carolina marsh country. (I mean we had to stay at Toogoodoo Creek just so we could say Toogoodoo.) Both were good, though not great anchorages. They had substantial current flowing through them that turned the boat when the tides changed. After Toogoodoo we headed for Lady’s Island Marina. We wanted to go there for two reasons. First, we had a great time the past two years we had been there. Our friends Mark and Becky aboard Sea Angel live on board there and we like visiting with them. Also, our VHF radio had been acting up since we left the Chesapeake. We weren’t quite sure what was wrong, but we could not broadcast or receive for more than about ½ mile. As a result, we had been using our hand-held radio to call bridges and boats on the Waterway.

When we called Lady’s Island the dockmaster told up not to worry, that he could and would help us fix the radio. We figured that even if he couldn’t, someone at the marina would know SOMEONE in the area who could repair VHF radios. In the event, it turns out that we were wrong. After promising at least three times to be “right there” as soon as he finished whatever it was he was doing at the time, we figured out that he was a little more talk than action. We asked around for repair-people who might be able to help us. Again, no luck. Apparently Beaufort, SC doesn’t have a repair infrastructure of any kind. Moreover, since Ann’s friend Becky was away visiting her brother, since the marina was a lot  more cliquish than we remembered, and since we really DID want to get our radio repaired, we decided we would head on down the waterway to Savannah, GA.

I do a lot of complaining about the marine industry – primarily because there is a lot to complain about. Once in a while, though, somebody does things right and when they do, I want to make sure I give them credit. After failing to get our radio repaired in Beaufort, we called the Hinckley boat yard in Savannah. They had done some work for us a couple of years earlier and seemed both competent and reasonable.  Although they were busy, they promised to fit us in and thought they could help. We arrived about 1300 and went right into a slip. They told us that their electronics guy was busy, but that he would be available the following morning, meanwhile we could use their courtesy car to go anywhere we needed.

The following morning, we were ready at 0800, but the electronics guy started on a different boat. Hmmm … I was beginning to get worried. After he finished that boat, he started on a Hinckley (always their priority customer). I was beginning to get more worried. I was beginning to think that it could be at least another day or two before we got out of there, so I … well, let’s just say I let the office know that I wasn’t thrilled about the way we were being treated. About 1100 or so, our man finally showed up with the right tools and the right attitude. He looked at the radio, ran some checks, soldered a part in place and within an hour we were ready to go. When I went to pay, we paid only the $90 service fee. Since they had kept us waiting that morning, there was no charge for staying at their dock for two days. Wow! That is a class act. Moreover, the $90 for an hour of their mechanics time is less that we often pay in the Chesapeake. Double Wow! So, to all you boaters and will-be-boaters, here is my suggestion: If something goes wrong near a Hinckley Boatyard, go there first.

South of Savannah, there are several places where the water is a bit shallow. The first one is … are you ready for this … Hell’s Gate . You proceed southeast past the mouth of the Little Ogeechee River, then take a 90 degree turn to the southwest, pass through the Gate, then take another 90 degree turn to the northwest. We took the Gate near high tide, and we were careful as we went through and really had n o problems. We heard a new power boater behind us asking the sailboat in front of him if he would lead the way. Really? A power boater following a sailboater through Hell’s Gate? How insulting!! (Of course we have done the same thing, but when we do it, we don’t call anyone. We just slow down and follow.)

Following Hell’s Gate we anchored in New Teakettle Creek before taking on the next challenge – the Little Mud River. The Mud River is just that – not so much water as mud. Some of the sailboats, in particular, have to be careful because the water is so skinny. We decided to anchor so we could take the at New Teakettle so we could take the River on a rising tide. Again, it wasn’t that bad for us.

After the Little Mud River, we headed for Brunswick Landing Marina. Why? $1.96 per gallon, that’s why! In this case, though, there was quite a bit of wind blowing in the marina. Sheri, the dock master asked for a spring line.  Now, Ann and I know what a spring line is and try to get dock hands and dock masters to use on whenever we back into a slip. Unfortunately, we have found that not many dock hands or dock masters know what they are doing. The problem is that when you are docking in a significant wind and you rely on your spring line one of two things can happen. If the dock hand/dock master does not know what he/she is doing, you can end up in a world of hurt. If he/she does know what to do, you can move right into that slip like it was made for you.  Well, we should have known; Sheri knows exactly what she is doing and we backed right into that slip. Hurray!!!

When we left Brunswick Landing we anchored at Cumberland Island because, well, because we like anchoring at Cumberland Island. After that, it was off to Florida, specifically, to an anchorage at Pine Island, then on to Marineland in Florida. Before we leave the subject of Pine Island, I should point out for those of you who like to anchor the same places we do, that the charts are not correct at Pine. They show 12 feet at the entrance. At low tide we found  more like 6.5 feet. (One of our friends, Gary aboard Sea Wisp also found some skinny water – and his draft is like 5-½ feet! Further into the anchorage the water deepens, but you may want to watch the first quarter-mile or so.

Back to Marineland. You may remember that we had visited here before, but in case you have forgotten, “Marine Studios,” as it was known then, was built in 1938 and was used in the filming of movies including the “Tarzan” films in the 1940s and the “Sea Hunt” television series in the ’50s and ’60s. Although the roadside-attraction aspect of Marineland peaked in the 1960s and then slowly declined in the 1970s after the 1971 opening of Disney World, film and television production continued into the 1980s, when the studio was the location for a “Benji” TV movie in which the canine star became the first dog to scuba dive. Some or all of the following movies/TV shows were made at Marineland

Here, you can see some of the Marineland natives,
hailing Traveling Soul in the background. (Thanks again, Lori!!)

• “Marine Circus” (1939)
• “Port Sinister” (1953)
• “The Sea Around Us” (1953)
• “Creature from the Black Lagoon”
(1954)
• “Revenge of the Creature” (1955) Clint Eastwood’s first film!!
• “Secrets of the Reef” (1956)
• “Sea Hunt” (1958, TV)
• “Live a Little, Love a Little” (1968)
• “Zaat” (1975)
• “Sea Dream” (1978)
• “Benji Takes a Dive at Marineland”
(1981, TV)
• “The Flamingo Rising” (2001, TV)

After inept management and a few destructive hurricanes, Marineland went out of business until 2006. Today, it exists as a Dolphin Conservation Center where guests can enjoy up-close and personal experiences swimming with dolphins or participating in other eco-tour programs. Every time we visit, we go see the dolphins.



Mike and Ann in the Jaws of Death and Marineland

 While at Marineland, we also re-connected with Russ and Lori aboard Twin Sisters, and we met a family of five, mom, dad, two lovely, rambunctious little girls and a cat, living and cruising on a 34 foot sailboat. Let me say that again. Four humans and a cat. On a 34-foot sailboat. More power to them.

When we left Marineland it rained on us almost all day long on the way to our next anchorage at Rockhouse Creek, where we could see the Lighthouse at Ponce de Leon Inlet all night long. From there it was on to lovely little Cocoa Beach. We had planned on anchoring at Cocoa for a couple of nights, but the wind was so strong that we ended up heading to the marina instead. It was a little tricky getting into the slip they assigned us, but we managed to do so without destroying any boats on the way in. I hadn’t mentioned, but about three days earlier while trying to check the tablets we use in one of our heads, one of the damn little spickets broke. Now I am not going to go into detail on what this little spicket does and why it was important, I will just say that I was initially concerned that we were going to have to spend another half-of-a-boat unit or so to get it fixed. In the event, however, I took everything apart, found the replacement part at the ginormous hardware store at Coco (SF Travis) and effected the repair myself.

 

Thanksgiving Dinner with 200 of our best friends
(who we don't yet know)

After Coco, it was on to Vero Beach. If you will recall, that is where we had intended to have Thanksgiving Dinner. Every year the people of Vero put on a huge spread for cruisers in the area. They buy and cook the turkey, ham and other meat while the attendees bring a side dish or dessert. We went two years ago and had such a good time that we decided we would go one more time. This year we ate with our friends Russ and Lori and met several folks that we hope to see in the months to come.

 We had already made reservations at North Palm Beach Marina to rest, re-provision and conduct repairs before we crossed the Gulf Stream to the Bahamas. That is where we are now. Waiting for the weather to clear.

 Ann’s NOTES

 

Hello everyone ... It is nice to be writing to you once again. I missed the deadline for the last blog, so I had to make sure I got my two cents in this time. Michael can be a hard task master when it comes to posting the blog.

I want you to know that as of 2 November 2015, we have been living on Traveling Soul for FOUR YEARS. Yes, we moved on board in 2011, when her name was Suite 13 and she was docked Long Boat Key FL. The name she has now is so much better than the old one.

Our trip down the ICW has been a good one, not too much drama from other cruisers. Seeing our friends Russ and Lori has made it fun, lots of picture taking going on. Also having Spot on board, she is fun to watch when you see her reaction to birds, bridges, dolphins anything that catches her eye. She does not miss much so it is a day-long entertainment.

We have seen a lot of dolphins on this trip, I have some good pictures and a video clip but it sucks up too much band width. I will just have to show you individually, with no charge to the viewer.

I will add a little something about our docking in Brunswick GA. We were assigned a slip with a large sail boat on our starboard side and a good size trawler on our port side. And we were backing into the slip, and it was very windy, and there was about twelve little sail boats with wanna be sailors learning to sail. Well #6 sail boat was in the fairway, not under control, and between us and the slip that we were backing into. I do not yell very often but when the occasion rises, I can be heard over the wind. It was not a fun time for any of us. When I can feel my heart beat in my throat, well, that pretty much means you are going to get yelled at. I am sure that Sheri, the dock master, had a few words for the sailing school.

Spot's first birthday -- with birthday candle -- at
North Palm Beach

Michael has included a picture of Spot celebrating her birthday. She was born on the 4^th of December 2014, right here in North Palm Springs FL. She was home for her special day. I cannot tell you how much joy that little feline has given us ( 99.99% of the time… she does have her naughty moments) She is very social and our cruising friends and land family, really enjoy her also. Our six year old grandson drew a picture of her. He actually did a good job, he got the stripes and spots right.  Just watching her makes me happy. I am glad she is such a good boat cat and she is with us for this adventure. Spot had one other sister and three brothers, I am sure that none of them are living this life style.

Thanks you for following us, next blog will be from the Bahamas!!!

Traveling Soul…OUT