South Carolina.USA.. The Intracoastal waterway (15th December to 20th December 2015)

This was a lovely anchorage on the North/South Carolina border on the Little river inlet. We arrived on the 15^th December and to celebrate our arrival we sat on deck sipping wine and watched this little Kingfisher diving for fish

The inlet from the sea always causes silting and it is easy to run aground at low tide like this yacht did. Another yacht tried to pull them off without success so then US tow boats came to their assistance and after several attempts got them off the bar

The next day we got away at daybreak. It was a beautiful morning as the sun came up with magnificent reflections in the water

There is a narrow cut through the rock that is called the “Rockpile” and it was like gliding across a mirror. The only ripple made by the boat

We pushed inland on the Waccamaw river enjoying the scenery of magnificent trees and turtles basking in the sun. Earlier in the year as we travelled north the Osprey were nesting.

The morning of the 17^th was foggy. We set off but after 3nm the fog set in and we couldn't see markers or the river bank so we anchored and waited 3 hrs until it lifted

We stopped in Georgetown and took on fuel. Eric got a lift with a fellow local yachtie to get Propane while Cathy walked to the supermarket to buy supplies before pushing on again.

We enjoyed watching herons and pelicans on the foreshore and took a photo of the place we ran aground earlier in the year, keeping marker 40 well to our starboard side this time! Again it was low tide and we only had a few inches under the keel

Thank you to these dredges the waterway is kept navigable

On the 18^th December we reached Charleston. It had been a drizzly day with a strong incoming tide across the inlet and we were 10mins too late for the last daylight bridge opening so we anchored off the city

As we motor sailed up the harbour we could see Fort Sumter and the decommissioned ship “The York” which is now a maritime museum

US coastguard were patrolling the harbour and called us on the radio for our details, but we weren't boarded

The next day was very cold and we had several layers of clothing on to keep us warm and hot water bottles!

Our next 2 overnight river anchorages were beautiful with magnificent sunsets. We watched eagles in the trees and dolphin herding fish. 

Our next blog will be Georgia

Intra coastal waterway USA North Carolina (10th December 2015 to 21st December 2015)

We are very happy to be back in the water and on the move again. After saying goodbye to our friends at the dock at Oriental ( The sailing capital of North Carolina) we headed south down the Intra Coastal waterway

Many fishing trawlers were crossing the Palmico sound

We stopped in Beaufort for 2 nights and had a surprise reunion with fellow New Zealanders Ann and Alec off sailing cat "Shamal" We last saw them in 2007 up the Mary river in Queensland, Australia.They managed to get through the Red Sea before the height of piracy attacks. We had a great time sharing our adventures

Wild horses on Shackleford island

There were several wrecks in the shallows

US tow trying to pull this yacht off the foreshore got more than they bargained for. The boat stayed put BUT the mast came down!!

We had an early morning departure and saw many cormorants, herons, gulls, pelicans and dolphin along the way

Fishing and hunting are very popular in this area

Standing behind the wheel gets pretty tiring so we set up a makeshift seat with good visibility ahead. The autopilot isn't really helpful as one has to be on constant watch for shallow areas.

Hammock Mile basin was a great spot to spend the night. Last time we were here there were army exercises going on, but this time we shared this beautiful spot with only one other yacht. An early start saw this gorgeous sunrise

Most bridges have a 65' clearance but there are still some swing or lifting bridges. Some open on request but some only open on the 1/2hr or on the hour

The many jetties are appreciated by birds.

We pushed on to Carolina Beach for the night then the next morning crossed the wide expanse of the Cape Fear river to Southport

Southport is a charming seaside village with beautiful renovated homes. A walk around the streets was a treat as Xmas decorations were adorning the homes and boats

Spot the Xmas tree here

We saw several sunk fishing trawlers...

and lots of interesting boats

These beautiful North Carolina homes with their grand stairways line the waterway

We anchored on the border of Nth and Sth Carolina up the little river inlet and watched US tow pulling a yacht off the sandbank

 This little kingfisher kept us entertained as he fished

The next blog will be of Sth Carolina when we cross the border into Georgia