Our position is 33:21.841N 79:16.939W

ICW miles to go  402.9

We didn’t have to get up too early on Friday as the Ben Sawyer bridge was closed between 7 and 9am so we left at 8.15 and were rewarded by arriving at the bridge just in time to join with a group of waiting boats to take advantage of an opening at 9.10am. Among them was Another Adventure, who had been waiting for 2 hours as a result of not reading the pilot, but soon the two of us were outstripping the others and chatting on the radio as we motored along.  We hadn’t planned a destination but were going to see how far we had got when we had had enough. There was little wind initially but later we were able to unfurl the jib and enhance our speed with the wind behind. Around midday we decided it was too hot to carry on without the sunshade (which we had taken down when we sailed outside and not re-erected) so Ted soon had it up on his own while I sailed the boat. Of course almost immediately the sun was overtaken by clouds, which stayed around for most of the afternoon.

After lunch we were making good progress, so agreed with John and Travis to continue to Georgetown, aiming to arrive at around 6pm. The pilot books claimed the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge would provide amazing opportunities for seeing more different birds than anywhere else, but we found it disappointingly bereft of wildlife of all kinds except flies. They were unaffected by repellent,big, biting and far too numerous. By late afternoon we were out of the narrow section and into the wide surrounds of Winyah Bay, heading towards the channel to Georgetown.  In spite of all the space we had to move over to make room for a large ship.

The day’s intense pilotage had been made much easier for us by having Another Adventure to follow and we were very grateful to John and Travis for taking the lead. It is very reassuring when the depth is shoaling fast, to half a metre under the keel, to know that the boat in front draws 6 inches more than you do.

The anchorage was fairly crowded but we both managed to find a space and John and Travis launched their dinghy (ours was still deflated) and came across to pick us up to go ashore for a meal. Drinks in a bar accompanied by a plate of nachos were followed by a delicious meal at Limpin’ Janes, where southern cuisine dominates the menu and  the food is locally sourced, they even have their own small holding to provide vegetables. 

Ben Sawyer Bridge                                                                                      This little sailboat managed to get stuck even with his rudder and centre plate up

Following Another Adventure under The Isle of Palms Bridge                                 Lots of smiles in South Carolina

Most peoples lives are linked to the swamps creeks and rivers                          These boats' floatin' days are over

Not all the inhabited islands have a bridge                                                             Commercial traffic in Winyah Bay

Following Another Adventure into the Georgetown Anchorage                                     Another day at..... for this sports fisher

Limpin' Jane's (Kay had chicken liver etoufee and alluh grits)