Crew Log for November 25th, 2022
Trip Summary:
McClellanville (Awendaw Creek) – Charleston, South Carolina
Trip Distance of 33.7 NM, Total Distance To-Date of 1,996.4 NM
Departed at 10h15, arrived at 15h00
"Charleston! Charleston! Made in Carolina
Some dance, some prance, I'll say, there's nothing finer"
Cecil Mack
Whenever we talked about this trip, while the Bahamas was always the destination, there were a number of places along the journey that we were looking forward to experiencing. Charleston, South Carolina was one of those places. In hindsight, while we knew very little about Charleston, something told us it was a place we had to visit. We are certainly glad we did, for a number of reasons.
We had a comfortable night in Awendaw Creek and were in no rush to leave given we were trying to time our arrival in Charleston for slack tide at 3:30 pm. Our route was pretty straight forward, and so the trip would take somewhere 5 and 6 hours. The currents through Charleston are legendary and every guidebook and experienced boater will tell you they are not to be messed with.
We weaved our way through the Lowcountry and eventually found ourselves back in civilization at Isle of Palms, a sharp contrast to the isolation we felt in Awendaw Creek. However, as if to welcome us back to the real world, we were treated to a couple of dolphins swimming along side the boat for several minutes. It was a great distraction from the endless development along both shores of this section of the ICW.
Despite delaying our departure, we made better progress than we expected, aided by the on going tidal currents. We entered Charleston Harbor and made our way slowly to our marina, getting our first glimpse of Charleston. It truly is a beautiful city. However, we have been learning a lot more about the history of the south, in which Charleston played a key role.
Charleston was a major slave trading port. Half of slaves brought to the United States arrived here. The city’s role in this period of American history is evident everywhere you look from the Slave Market to the ostentatious estates of the former slave owners. As beautiful as the city is, it is difficult to look past its historical past. However, it is worth noting that the city did formally apologize for its role in the slave trade after it was noted that slavery "riddles the history" of Charleston.
It was Thanksgiving Weekend and everything was at capacity including the marinas. We had plans to visit one of my former high school and university mates while here. Heather generously offered us a night off the boat, to sleep in a real bed, and so we wanted a secure place for Elizabeth M while we were here. We also were looking forward to a visit from our friends from our Marina back in Nova Scotia, who were in North Carolina visiting family. Being at a dock, would certainly make both visits easier.
I have noted before, that with one or two exceptions, we are by far the smallest boat doing this trip. And while that presents some challenges, the advantage we have over much bigger boats, is that we can get into places they can’t. The Ashley Marina is located on the downtown Charleston peninsula within walking distance to nearby historical sites, restaurants, and shops. While the fixed bridges on the ICW are 65 feet, the Ashley Marina is on the other side of a 55 foot bridge, which is a barrier to boats with higher air draft. Despite all the other marinas being full with long waiting lists, we were able to secure a slip. Size matters!
We were a little early for slack tide, but docked without incident. In addition to the marina staff, one of the people that caught our lines was from sv D’Accord, an Island Packet 32 from Quebec who had been in the anchorage with us in Awendaw Creek. He was a former truck driver and now a full time sailor, along with his wife and teenaged daughter.
We also met “Jim”, the Skipper of a Bruce Roberts 36, Pilothouse, Spray design. It was a sturdy looking steel boat, although I am not sure how often it leaves the marina. Jim served in the Army and Special Forces. From our conversation it sounded like he had many wives over the years. One left him a dog when they parted ways, which he bred and sold the pups for $1,200. In addition to his dog breeding sideline, Jim is also an Ordained Minister and performs marriages at the marina on the boat and has on occasion taken people out to spread ashes. He welcomed us to the marina and gifted us 2 cans of tuna and some vitamin C as a welcome gift before he left for home.
There were a lot of “live aboard” boats in the marina that obviously never left the dock. We would come to find out that this is not uncommon at all in the south. In the case of Ashley Marina, it was set up as a “Boatominium”, where boat owners owned their slip and paid a monthly “condo” fee. New owners were no longer permitted to live fulltime on their boats, but a number of boats had been grandfathered in.
We were thrilled to be in Charleston and were excited to explore the city and to connect with some familiar faces.
But more about that, next time.
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