ICW Part III Topsail,NC - Isle Of Palms, SC

It's been a week since our last blog, it's been a busy week and cold on the water.

COLD!

We've moved everyday except for Friday and Saturday Night. We stayed in Carolina Beach so we would be positioned for the trip down Snow's Cut.  This also gave us an opportunity to get to the beach.We said good-bye to our friends Anne and John. We had been traveling together since the Great Dismal Swamp. We're sure we'll see them again. It was a sunny afternoon and the warn sun felt good to our chilled bones.

Carolina Beach

The transit through the cut went smoothly. We entered the Cape Fear River at the end of the cut and "fear" was in Kris' eyes. All the navigation markers had to be sorted out. Which ones do we need to follow? Yikes! We managed, no problem. We moved leisurely down the ICW to the St James Plantation Marina. The marina was surrounded by condos, but it was beautiful. They had a deli/market and restaurant and a bar that had live music. We listened from the boat.

St James Planation

We moved on the next day to Myrtle Beach Barefoot Resort. We could tell we were getting close by all the development, condos hotels and golf courses with some major water hazards.

Golf transport over ICW

Across the ICW was an outlet mall, restaurants, shops and tourist traps. You could walk across the bridge if you wanted. We didn't. As we left Myrtle Beach, the scenery changed and became almost desolate. The ICW enters the Waccamaw River which is wide, deep, winding with thick forests on both sides. It was breathtaking. However, the Bucksport Marina allowed us to dock even though they were closed for renovations.

Bucksport Marina

No explanation needed

 Free power, water and dockage, a cruisers dream  come true. All for the promise of a return trip when they open after March 2011. This is where we met Andree and Chuck. We took a walk near the abondoned rice paddies and enjoyed the sun. In the morning, it was on to Georgetown, SC where we spent two nights. We were able to get groceries, fuel for the boat and ourselves. We spent Saturday evening with Andree and Chuck, sharing information and experiences. We strolled the streets, looking at the old homes that have been restored. We found the oldest tree in South Carolina, 23 ft in diameter and over 500 yrs old.

Isle Of Palms Beach

 Now we are at the Isle of Palms Marina and again were able to walk the beach. On the way, we had several dolphin escorts. One took a liking to us and stayed next to the boat for several minutes. I could almost reach out and touch him. We are planning today's (Monday) trip to Charleston.