Crew Log for November 29th, 2022
Trip Summary:
• Charleston, South Carolina – Church Creek, SC
• Trip Distance of 17.5 NM, Total Distance To-Date of 2,013.9 NM
• Departed at 12h30, arrived at 16h25
We wanted to acknowledge that we have travelled over 2,000 nautical miles since this trip began, 3 months and 11 days ago. We should be proud of what we have accomplished so far, but unfortunately, today was not the day for self praise.
Judy’s notes from today’s Crew Log start with, “…in my memory, today starts at 12h30! To hell with the rest of the day…”. So, that where this day starts, at 12h30.
Slack tide was around 12h30, so we prepared the boat to leave. While we were organizing ourselves and the boat, a fellow boater who along with her husband that helped us earlier, dropped back by our boat. She hugged Judy, shook my hand and said, “you’re gonna be alright, make it a better day…”. She was one of the kindest, empathic souls either of us has ever met. So, we took her advice and set off to “make it a better day”.
We travelled a short distance out of Charleston Harbor to the entrance of Wappoo Creek. We had 2 bridges to negotiate. The first was a 65 foot bridge that was fairly straight forward, the second was a 33 foot double bascule lift bridge that opened on the half hour. The current on Wappoo Creek can be fierce, so we had hoped that by timing our departure with slack tide, we would avoid the worst of the current.
The creek is fairly narrow and there is very little room on either side of the bridge to wait for an opening. Given the limited space and the added challenges of staying stationary in the currents, we decided to wait out in Charleston Harbor, and time our arrival at the bridge just as it opened. A couple of other boats had the same idea and joined in our slow continuous circle pattern.
Given our late start, we had planned to spend the night on anchor just on the other side of Wappoo Creek where it meets the Stono River. However, we were making good time and we had the current in our favor so we decided to press on to Church Creek a little further along. And we are certainly glad we did.
Church Creek is an absolutely beautiful anchorage between Johns Island and Wadmalaw Island, a short distance off the ICW. The long narrow, winding creek is bordered by marsh on the north side and trees to the south. It is an incredibly calm and peaceful anchorage with a spectacular sunset and sunrise. There were at least 7 – 8 other boats here, but there was plenty of space, so we felt like we had the entire anchorage to ourselves.
We were disappointed to have missed former Toronto Blue Jay, Justin Smoak’s house, on the way up. Justin is Dennis and Heather’s nephew, and lives on the Stono River. We had a rough idea where his place was, but given the start we had, our mood for site seeing was lacking. That said, we did note that there were a number of beautiful homes along this section of the ICW. Given the shallow water and wide marshlands on either side of the waterway, the homes were quite a distance away, and many had incredibly long docks reaching out into the deep waters of the channel.
Normally, a Crew Log covering 17.5 nautical miles won’t warrant a separate post, but this day did. We took the advice of a fellow boater and made it a better day. It wasn’t easy, but when we reflect back on November 29th, 2022, what we will remember is going to church and seeing that amazing sunset over a peaceful anchorage.
We are headed to Beaufort (Bew-fert) South Carolina in the morning.
But more about that, next time.
Additional Photos:
Your photos are always lovely, thank you for sharing, They are certainly “calendar’ worthy... if anyone actually uses wall calendars anymore (other than us). 😎