Savannah Georgia And Other Things You Couldn't Make Up

Our final voyage was 60 miles from Beaufort to our final destination in Savannah.

Why Did the Deer Cross the ICW?

Tidal currents pushed us into the Savannah area hours ahead of schedule so we

dropped a lunch hook for a couple of hours and had a quiet lunch on a small river

just off the ICW.

Bridges 101

As you transit up or down the Intracoastal Waterway, a number of bridges, both 
automobile and rail, cross the waterway.  

Many of the newer bridges we encountered were fixed span bridges with a clearance 
of 65 feet at mean high tide.  Our mast is 48 feet above the water so these bridges posed 
no problems for us.  Optically, however, as you approach the bridge you would swear 
that your mast will be taken off at the spreaders.

Other bridges open upon demand. 

The most common is the bascule bridge which is also known as a drawbridge. 

Swing bridges are also common.  They

pivot on a point at the center of the bridge to open and close.  There are a few lift bridges that are typically used by railroads.  They are generally left in the up position and close only for train traffic.  Some bridges open on a fixed schedule (every hour, on the hour, for example) and others open only upon demand.  You must radio the bridge operator and request a bridge opening.

Final Stop

Our final stop was the Sail Harbor Boatyard in Thunderbolt, GA.  Thunderbolt is a

suburb of Savannah that is on in intracoastal.  We checked in and began the long

process of getting ready to put the boat up on the hard for the winter.  We gave

 away some food to live-aboards at the marina some we gave to the local fire

station.  We cleaned the boat, took all of the sails off, drained the water tanks, etc., etc.

We stayed on the boat as we prepped it for dry land.  The second night at the dock,

tired from a full day's work, we had just fallen asleep when an enormous splash

jolted us awake.  We thought it must be a manatee or large fish.  As we continued

to listen, we heard our bow lines being jostled and the lifelines rattling.  I grabbed

a flashlight and scurried on deck in my boxers and tee shirt.  The next thing Susan

heard was me yelling, "Jesus Christ!"  As I peered over the deck, I saw an elderly

 gentleman lying on his back in the water between the boat and the dock.  His heels

were perched on the edge of the dock and his hands were grasping our bow lines. 

His head was just above water and he made no sound.  I yelled for him to give me

his hand and with one motion, I flopped him up onto the dock like a dead tuna. 

Susan asked him if he was okay, did he hit his head?  He said he was fine.  The

water was warm.  We helped him to his feet and he said, "I walked off the dock. 

I can't believe I just walked off the dock."  Then he thanked us and wobbled off

down the dock to his boat.  I followed him to make sure he got on his boat safely. 

Susan was making her way down the dock in her nightgown.  We once again

turned in for the night and both broke into uncontrollable laughter.

We spent our last night in the historic downtown district of Savannah.  It was our

first night off the boat in six weeks.  Our hotel room seemed very large.  We had a

nice dinner and caught Amtrak to Richmond, VA at 8 the next morning.  We picked

up our car in Virginia and drove up to DC and stayed for a few days with our dear

friend, Barbie.  Headed west with a stop in Tulsa to see my mother who is now

96  and then made the final push to the Mile High City.

Gratitude is now on the hard and shrink wrapped. Thanks for following along

as the crew of the mighty Gratitude forged on.  We'll look forward to picking

up where we left off next year.

Charleston

We made a grand entrance into Charleston Harbor under sail.  Fort Sumpter was just off our port bow, directly in the middle of the harbor entrance.  It was built just before the Civil War as a defense against foreign attacks.  It sits on a man-made island (landfill) and was almost completed as the war broke out.  There are smaller forts on each side of the entrance of the harbor as well.

Fort Sumpter as seen from the boat.

Without exception, every boater we met on our way south recommended two places that were not to be missed: Charleston, SC and Beaufort, SC.  They both lived up to the hype.  We stayed at the City Marina in Charleston.  A courtesy shuttle would take you downtown every hour, but downtown was so close that we usually walked to the historic downtown area and took the shuttle back.   New friends we met (on the VFH radio as we both approached Charleston Harbor) had stopped at Charleston several times and acted as our tour guides. We were both headed to the city docks and met up there.  After spraying the salt off the boats and settling in, they took us to Pearlz which must have the best happy hours in South Carolina.  Cheap (but good) drinks and eight bucks for a dozen oysters on the half-shell.

The next day, Susan and I signed up for an historical tour of Charleston that included a ferry ride out to Fort Sumpter.  The tour around town was very well done.  Fort Sumpter is a part of the National Park system and it is well worth the visit.


The highlight of our stay in Charleston was a visit to the Rhett-Aiken Mansion just outside of the cental historic district.  Being slightly away from the center of town, the mansion was spared the years of civil war bombardment as it was just out of cannon range.  The mansion is unique in that it remained in the same family until it was donated to the historical society in the 1990s.  But what makes it extraordinary is that no significant changes were ever made to the house and outbuildings.

The family simply closed off areas that they did not use.  As a result, it is pretty much like it was 150 years ago.  The dependencies, consisting of a cook and laundry house, and stables, are all intact and original.  There are even two carriages still in the carriage house.






Beaufort, South Carolina

Our next stop was Beaufort, South Carolina with an overnight anchorage on route.  Beaufort is pronounced Byooferd and is not to be confused with Beaufort, North Carolina, which is pronounced like you would think: Boefort.  Beaufort, SC, is very much like Charleston, but smaller.  The waterfront is a park with plazas, fountains, sitting areas, and picnic tables.  There are palm trees everywhere. It backs up to the downtown area which is alive with art galleries, small shops, restaurants and bars.

We took a historic tour around town via horse-drawn carriage.  The streets are canopied by Live Oak trees which are covered with Spanish Moss.  It is a lovely little town.  Our last sail would be to our final destination in Savannah.