Boat Ramblings 2

4th April, (I think).....just dropped the anchor in the South Newport River in Georgia...bit rolly with the wind against the tide but my fingers are crossed that the wind will drop away by this evening to give us a quieter time of it. Thanks for all the feedback on the first Ramblings, you have inspired me to keep writing.
We have just had a run of four days of lovely weather, which was perfect as we wended our way through the rivers and creeks of Florida and Georgia....had no idea there were so many, along with their little tributaries. Now it is mostly flat, marshy countryside that is slipping past. Again the navigation occupies our full attention and Richard has to work the tides to be able to get us through some of the tighter areas...so far, so good!   Names like Mud Flat Creek and Hell's Gate, as noted on the charts, gives a little more descriptive nuance to the challenges the water system offers along the way. Fortunately, the chart states the the "tricky bits" will be behind us once we reach Savannah, Georgia. (We were later to learn this is a bold lie).    Last few nights anchorages have been wonderfully quiet, away from all civilization, just us, the sound of the moving waters in this area of strong currents, the sky and the amazing amount of bird and water life in these waterways and wetlands. Even the dolphins are frequent visitors to these waters with their familiar "whoosh" as they surface for air beside us or hunt in groups along the shallows, a stones throw away. The waters are brackish, a cross between fresh and salt water. We both lament the fact that they are so yukky dark and murky green in color, and cold, that we are not in the least tempted to jump over the side for a quick swim.
I believe I last left off when we were tied up at the marina in Fernandina Beach. Quaint little place, very old with a lot of history...dotted with B&Bs in rustic old homesteads and not a single McDonalds or Walmart to be seen....nice! Got hung up there for 3 days, again due to poor weather. We were not alone, for every "tie up" spot available along the dock was taken by people who, like ourselves, were moving north or south along the ICW or yachts and larger vessels coming in from sea to escape the unpleasant conditions. I guess there was not much else for the tourists (and probably the locals) to do either for the marina was definitely the place to visit and hang out for a few hours.   I had the distinct impression we were all goldfish in our boaty bowls, as endless numbers of people would wander down the dock. Each group of passerby's would pause to survey us, at times peering in through squinted eyes then debating amongst themselves in loud voices which boat they liked better ....this one or the one over there, then move on to the next boat.....of course Walker was a commanding presence from the flybridge overseeing it all.
We have now arrived in Savannah, GA. Yesterday, Walker and I enjoyed our walk along the riverfront here. It was a stroll back in time as in true Southern fashion, the homes are old and rambling with huge wrap around porches.   Each manifests an air of serene tiredness yet subtly combines this with a well loved, homey look. Every one of them nestled under giant oak trees which looked to be at least 200 to 300 years old.   Over the years the trees have dressed themselves with vivid green vines and draping spanish moss. It being spring, the color and perfume of the bounty of flowers was almost intoxicating, a most enjoyable sight.....and everyone waved as we wandered past. I had a big smile on my face as we returned to Halcyon.
Another week has gone by and we have just returned to Halcyon after driving home to spend a week there attending to some necessary administration and having the pleasure of attending Kate's best friend's wedding. Kate was in the bridal party, so she and Ben flew home which allowed us to spend some time together also...nice. That and catching up with many friends whether socially or through the massage work, which kept me busy while home, were the only highlights. STRESS!!! Once back on board, we both slept for 12 hours, two nights in a row, even Walker seemed happy to be back after all the activity of the previous week. It always amazes me when I step off the merry go round of life for awhile, then step back into the fray again, how overwhelming it is to the mind and body, but we don't see it when we are in it. Even though our home is considered to be in a quiet area, we were both critically aware of the noise; the distant sirens, the aircraft overhead, the lawnmowers, the endless leaf blowers, the cars and then of course getting from A to B through the congested road systems, half of which are continually under reconstruction, with lifeless signs telling us "your dollars at work". Getting caught up in the automated phone systems was almost beyond me. To be "on hold for the next operator" for up to an hour when seeking a simple answer to a question, only to be disconnected before "breakthrough". ...mmmm, definitely take a deep breath time.   I was also reawakened to the apparent lack of expertise, care or interest by the various customer services. I felt I had found a rare and true gem when someone understood our dilemmas and were efficient and knowledgeable in offering directions or solutions to our earnest questions or problem(s) at hand.   Our "money saving, time saving, user friendly" systems it would seem are more directed to encroaching and using people's limited personal time, increasing their already elevated stress levels and in general driving everyone batty. Aaahh, I am so thankful to have the opportunity to return to the boat and the water and live a simpler lifestyle for at least a few months.
Dolphins, yes such delightful creatures with their own minds obviously. In Florida, they were intent on swimming within our bow wave and if we failed to notice them, a slapping of the water would take place until due acknowledgement was give. Elsewhere however, this is apparently not a priority in their lives, either that or life is a little more serious in these waters, for instead they engage in a seemingly kamikaze rush to meet us head on and dive at the last possible second underneath the bow of Halcyon.   Initially we were very concerned, as they did not pop up again, so I began looking for mangled dolphin bodies in our wake, fortunately none were found. As we progressed, the number of dolphins engaging in this activity increase and yet still no sign of any dolphins behind us.....we concluded there must be one hell of a party going on under our hull. This idea too we had to abandon for our hull was indeed not big enough to accommodate the number of kamikaze dolphins we were accruing. So we then nodded wisely that yes indeed the obvious explanation was that there must be a worm hole beneath our hull into which every dolphin was attracted and "poof" disappeared into another realm, this explained the lack of dolphins reappearing in our wake....of course! As intriguing as we found this conclusion, we finally, and after some diligent detective work with a pair of binoculars, sighted contented dolphins some distance behind us, cruising around lazily, hopefully with fuller bellies and quite possibly patiently waiting for the passing of another boat. We have concluded Halcyon stirs up the muddy bottom as we pass, offering eager dolphins a unique opportunity to catch and eat any disturbed sea creature worthy to grace their mouths.   To fully appreciate this feast, they stay beneath the murky waters for quite some time before finally resurfacing, long after we have passed. Phew, glad that we solved that one.
So Walker, the non water dog, finally found his way into the water, but not by choice. At one of the marinas, with a strong tide running and it being a cold, dark, windy night (not kidding), Richard and he stepped ashore to tend to manly business. The poor dog must have been concentrating on his full bladder rather than his timely jump from the deck to dock....he missed. He landed sideways on the dock and disappeared into the 12inch wide dark abyss between the dock and the side of the boat....not a good place to be at the best of times. We can now say positively that Walker can swim, (I say this as only recently I learned this is not always the case, attested by two dogs, one being a spaniel on another boat who went overboard and immediately sank, (they did rescue him). So Richard in a streak of unrealized, athletic ability, leapt over the railings and grabbed Walker by his harness while yelling for me who at the time, was happily climbing into her PJs and looking forward to the comforting warmth of bed. Adrenaline is a wonderful thing. No doubt had there been any onlookers it would have proved to be an arresting sight; two people, in the dark of a stormy night, laid out flat on their stomachs on an outer boat dock, (one in PJs) heaving and grunting with all their might and finally landing onto the dock, a sodden, flaccid and most unhappy large dog. Fortunately only Walker's pride was damaged. Once hosed down with hot water and briskly towel dried, he retired to his bed and was heard snoring peacefully shortly after. Meanwhile, we both collapsed in a heap, our hearts still pounding and any chance of sleep a long way off. We notice that Walker now pauses for a calculated look before he leaps ashore.
Oh unhappy days.....we were both brought to full attention by the sound of a couple of loud, heart stopping thumps on our hull under the waterline, while moving along the Waccamau River, SC, in 20ft of water. We never did sight what hit us, possibly a submerged log, but we definitely felt a new and distinct vibration immediately after....mmmmm. We anchored for the night and Richard considered going over the side to investigate, but wisely reconsidered this idea after spotting an alligator. He instead arranged for a slip at a marina at Little River just north of Myrtle Beach, SC, for the next day.   The people here are truly wonderfully, extraordinarily friendly and helpful. The marina staff were awaiting our arrival, and the diver they had directed Richard to, appeared shortly after. He quickly ascertained that whatever had hit us had bent our starboard propellor shaft....not good!    It being now Sunday, we lazed around the marina for the day and first up Monday morning took Halcyon the 1/4mile down the river to the Grande Harbour boat yard to have her hauled out of the water....always a nerve wracking ordeal. Larry, the diver, who was also the local propellor repair man, was as good as his word and appeared at the boat yard at 9.30am.   With his arrival, the entire boat yard gathered to scrutinize Halcyon's starboard prop shaft, nodding wisely to Larry and throwing us that "sorry mate" look. Yup, she was bent alright.... so was the starboard propellor. It took 3 strong men the entire morning to remove the propellor but that dang shaft, well she surely had other ideas. Finally, however, she gave up the fight and both are now away at the prop shop having their wounds addressed. As it seems we will be here for two or three days at least, we have hired a car, booked ourselves into a hotel and are enjoying some fine local dining while we wait....if one has to be stuck, in all respects this is a very likable area to be stuck. Everyone appears to be bending over backwards to accommodate and expedite our needs, including the Holiday Inn Express who waived their pet weight rules and allowed Walker to stay also.   We are assured by the locals that we certainly are not the first to have encounters with submerged debris (and sometimes rocks) along the ICW and we surely will not be the last. I almost get the sense that they are mortified that their area of the ICW has caused us troubles, and they wish to make it right as quickly as possible....I find this extraordinarily heart warming. Our northward plans had included the Dismal Swamp. Although it is an apparently unique area, that section of the ICW is known to abound with submerged debris....we think we will pass on that one and take an alternative route, after all there is only so much swamp one can see, and we have seen A LOT of salt water marshes and river swamps.
Okay, this is getting too long.....latest update, Halcyon is good to go, so we will check out of the hotel first up in the morning and have Halcyon back in the water and tied up at her slip hopefully by mid morning and will continue north possibly the next day, depending on the weather.....yeah.