Crew Log for December 3rd, 2022
Trip Summary:
• North New Port River, Georgia – Lanier Island (St. Simon)
• Trip Distance of 47.0 NM, Total Distance To-Date of 2,186.2 NM
• Departed at 07h00, arrived at 15h00
I know we have mentioned it in the previous post, but it bears repeating, the Georgia section of the ICW has more creeks and rivers than the South Carolina Lowcountry. Our view for most of the day travelling through Georgia is marsh grass, sky and the winding river in front of us. You have to be on constant watch, given the course can change dramatically over a few minutes. You may occasionally see the top of a mast, which appears to be close, as the pelican flies, only to realize it is several hundred meters or more away along the twisting channel.
Whether it was the abundant bird life, the natural beauty of the Georgia ICW or the fact that the weather has improved, we were really enjoying the day. For the first time in months, we rolled all the sides up on the enclosure, shed the long pants and heavy sweaters and enjoyed a beautifully summer day that reminded us of summer.
We generally don’t have music on when we are travelling since whatever we are playing competes with the VHF radio chatter. However, our remoteness meant there wasn’t a lot of radio activity so we quietly played our Spotify playlist made specifically for this trip. In addition some recognizable “Yacht Rock” tunes, and music from our favorite YouTube Channels, our playlist includes songs honoring the places we’ve visited. As if right on cue, Georgia, came on just as we glided past a guy fishing from a little skiff. He heard the song, started head bobbing and gave us a thumbs up. It was a special moment.
Georgia, Georgia
The whole day through (the whole day through)
Just and old sweet song
Keeps Georgia on my mind (Georgia on my mind)
Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell
There was a noticeable increase in bird life along this section of the waterway. We would round a corner and see entire stretches of the shore covered in white. If you looked closer, you could see large flocks of white pelicans and other birds.
As much as we enjoyed the trip the salt marshes of Georgia, we were impatiently making our way down to Cumberland Island which was still a couple of days away. We were hoping to catch up with our friends on Teliki and Onalee who were a day or two ahead of us and eventually reconnect with Adanaco, who were making their way down from Isle of Palms (above Charleston) on the outside in a few days.
We dropped the anchor in the Frederica River on the backside of Lanier Island, which is next to St. Simon. St. Simon is popular seaside resort area with beautiful beaches, no shortage of shops and restaurants, golf courses and historical sites. The barrier island is the largest of Georgia’s “Golden Isles”. None of which we experienced. We did however dinghy under the Frederica River Bridge, which connects Lanier Island to St. Simon with 2 diesel jugs for fuel.
The diesel connection was made to pump out 10,000 gallons of fuel in short order and really didn’t work well for 10 gallons in jerry cans. The Harbourmaster a8t the Golden Isles Marina paid little attention to us, given the potential sale was 1/1,000th of what he normally would pump. Left on our own, I awkwardly pressed the hose over the mouth of the jerry can and squeezed the trigger. The diesel came out with such force that the sides of the jug started to swell. Worried that it would explode, I relived the pressure and was rewarded with a face full of diesel.
I asked for a funnel. None was provided. I asked for the absorbent pads to catch the escaping diesel running down the side of the jug. None was provided. I asked for assistance. None was provided. I normally would have said the heck with it, but we were headed to Cumberland Island the next day and there weren’t a lot of other options along the way. And we needed fuel.
We eventually managed to dribble 10 gallons into our 2 jerry cans. When I went to pay the bill, reeking of diesel fuel, the Dockmaster said it was 10.9 gallons, to which I said, “yah, 10 in the jugs and 0.9 all over the dock”. I wanted to clean it up, but he then launched into some story of how the marina figured it was better to hire 1 guy to do three jobs. The connection to my situation was lost on me.
By the time we arrived back to the anchorage a couple of other boats had joined us, including the boat that was worried about the water levels in Walburg Creek the night before. We also were joined by several dolphins who entertained us as the sun went down. The anchorage had a couple of live aboard boats that were apparently inhabited by former US military service men. These boats basically never moved and generally look like derelict vessels. One of the boats seemed to be a popular roosting spot for birds, which I suspect provided some company for the human resident.
We were headed to Cumberland Island in morning. We were looking forward to seeing friends that we had last been with way back in Annapolis. And, from everything we had read or heard about Cumberland Island, we knew we were going to love it.
But more about that, next time.
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