boats

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Timing is Everything

Nightime was calm as forecast and as the changing tide turned us around 180 degrees we couldn’t feel it happening.  Around 2am the calm was interrupted, and so was my sleep, by movement caused by a boat wake rocking us side to side. I heard the distinctive drone of engines, maybe a tug and barge, or the first of two………….cruise ships!

A beautiful sunrise

Cruise Ship Independence

Woke up Wed at 6:40, Russ does his usual scan for other approaching boats and spots a cruise ship heading south on the ICW and in 30 mins she’d pass right by us. AIS shows she’s the Independence approx 150 LOA moving along at 10kts. We delay departure until she’s close, then raise the anchor and fall in behind. Compared to yesterday, today was a lazy cruise through Georgia’s mid-section, sunshine, boats of all kinds and one poor guy with a broken waterpump under sail while waiting for SeaTow. This section, while easy to travel through, is kinda in the middle of nowhere. Later in the afternoon we’d begin the southern section of GA where you’ve got to be very mindful of the channel. Beginning at Beaufort the monohulls who draw more than 5 ft tend to disappear from the picture; many will wait for good weather (NW 10-15) to jump outside and miss Georgia completely.

Many areas of Georgia have a 6-7 foot tide change which wouldn’t be so bad if the ICW was dredged to, say 8ft MLW.  Not gonna happen when the state ain’t got the funds to do it. One notorious stretch is the Little Mud River where depths go as low as 5 ft at MLW and the section in general reads about 6 ½ ft on average. It’s not a section you choose to transit at low tide, unless your draft is less than 5 ft. We don’t pay much attention to the tide, although at times we make plans based on the current, which at
times can run over 2kts.  Soooo, we arrive at the bad section – guess when? At low tide. But we are behind a monohull and a motor yacht and if either one finds the mud bottom we’d get some warning. All slowed down to a fast crawl and made it through.  You will also find more range markers in GA than anywhere else we’ve seen and when the water gets skinny a wise captain
will use them.

We anchored in another creek, Jove Creek and had two other boats with us.  Quiet and serene and a good view of the ICW so we could watch boats passing by. Sounds kinda boring- but when there’s not much else to do and the AT&T 3G signal isn’t strong enough to tether to do much… Enjoyed a gorgeous sunset- never tire of those and at 6:30pm the Independence came by all lit up, headed for Brunswick. She’d spent the day – well not sure where but we saw her at a dock along the way.

Sunset - s/v Cocoon anchored

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Spontaneous Sailing

While the title might refer to the unwanted unfurling of sails during a storm, I assure you we did not experience this version; hope we never do. Tuesday was planned as just another ICW jaunt. The current would be with us in the Beaufort River for the first hour; always a good thing.  As we neared Port Royal Sound Russ realized we’d have a strong current with us if we turned south to head out for a 10 mile run off the coast. Oh my gosh- quick do the calculations, where do we come in? Ok, Tybee Roads (Savannah  River) would be a doable hop out and both channels are excellent.(well marked and wide)

We knew Port Royal Channel was long, and with shallow water flanking both sides, very prone to swells even in calm conditions. Tybee Roads, while nearly as long was prone to big ships on a regular basis and coming in prior to 2pm would put the current against us. This was not meant to be a save time or fuel day, this was (for Russ) a break in the monotony of ICW travel and a chance to sail. Sail we did, for nearly 3 hours, until arriving at Tybee Roads where the engines came to life to help us make way against the current.

We had a friend behind us once we entered Tybee Roads (why Tybee? named after the island) ; when we first spotted him couldn’t tell if he was moving or not- no noticeable wake. However, when he called us- to see how we were doing, where headed (sorta joking) no longer could we deny he was coming in behind us. Damm if he wasn’t huge. A container car carrier ship many stories tall. By the time he passed, we were in calmer water, it it didn’t matter- the boat threw a wake less bothersome than our dinghy. Amazing. Being near big ships doesn’t un-nerve me anymore, but the wake they can throw makes you feel like you’re in the agitate cycle of the washing machine.

HONOR passes Ortolan - tiny wake for such a big ship!

The best was yet to come. Advance warning of her existence made us eager to swing past Thunderbolt Marina. Oh I did I mention that by 1:45 we’d entered Georgia?

Mirabella V: 10 yrs old and prior to her recent purchase had been in charter- if you have money to burn you missed your chance on this ship. She’s the world’s largest sloop with a mast nearly 300ft above the waterline, LOA of 247 ft and she can’t fit under any bridge in the world. We think that was done on purpose so she’d be extra unique. She’s got a retractable keel and draws 13ft with it retracted. With the largest (non-spinnaker) single sail in the world at 20,000 sf, I’d say she’s unique and memorable.

Mirabella V at Thunderbolt Marina

Can't miss Mirabella's mast

Our day ended barely three miles shy of our planned night’s stop, just off the waterway on the Ogeechee River. Another lovely night of “winds light and variable” means one can anchor just about anywhere. The sun set off our stern while the full moon rose off our bow; life is good. The weather feels more like Spring with daytime temps reaching into the low 70s with 50s at night; sweaters have given way to T-shirts all day. Very pleasant; however, we are keeping a wary eye on TS Sean.