Sweet Savannah

We are up anchor today, heading toward South Carolina after a week spent in Georgia. This was our first experience anchoring in a river (the Herb river) and we found it both interesting and very peaceful.

We pulled into the Wilmington River at the start of a marine weather warning. Gusty winds (36knts), thunder and lightning, rain. We made it out of the open ocean, past the the shoal and the sound, and into the mouth of the river before it really hit us- a wall of rain whited out our view, thunder shaking us and lightning keeping our anxiety higher than usual, but it wasn’t so bad, and the seas remained fairly flat being in the river and all. We followed its course up stream and set anchor in a peaceful part of the ICW, a no wake zone with a muddy bottom, perfect for good anchor holds. We were next to a marsh land, so we realized pretty quickly we’d have to get our screen situation sorted out, a job Paul took on with tremendous success. The flies here are no joke.

Anchoring next to a marsh land was a lovely experience. The tide rose and fell 10 feet every day, flooding and draining the area next to us. Birds tittered and dived constantly, bringing sweet sounds, and dolphins hunted and preened near us. The sun rose and set on glassy chocolate water, and aside from the bug hours and being unable to use our water maker, we were very happy at anchor.

Thunderbolt has some huge marinas (airplane sized hangers with boats on racks stacked 8 high), the biggest we’ve ever seen, but the area was not set up for cruisers, so we struggled to find places to put the dinghy and to be able to get places. Eventually we found a public dock a few miles away that we were able to tie up at, and a small restaurant we could call an Uber to. We explored Thunderbolt, which was a charming small town, friendly, with huge live-oaks lining the streets and dripping with Spanish moss.

We took an Uber into Savannah two times to explore the historical district, and for Paul to eat his weight in oysters. I was set on eating Leopold’s ice cream and visiting E Shaver bookstore, and eating at Clary’s, having sweet tea, having biscuits, etc etc etc. We spent one day taking a bike tour of the city and visiting 15 of the 22 squares, and seeing the major sites, before we returned and did a lot of the same by foot. Savannah is a gorgeous town. They prioritized keeping the old houses in good shape and have laws about keeping the historical integrity of old buildings. We even saw a 100 year old Coca-Cola ad, unretouched and fading into history, but still the same logo.

The green spaces are unrivaled. Between the 22 Plazas and the parks, everything felt shaded and green, especially as we rolled in right as spring is sprung and the rain is making everything bloom. We loved the oaks and the magnolias, and the Spanish moss dripping down every branch.

Highlights included: the river walk, Paul passing his Captain’s test, celebrating with oysters and cheap Prosecco, learning about travelers (to go drinks), walking old cemeteries, petting the shop cats at E Shavers, flirting at Six Pence Pub, strolling and eating ice cream, seeing General Sherman’s house and others, pretending we were in Midnight in The Garden of Good and Evil, (and re-watching the movie), and our bike tour.

two scoops please, Savannah Socialite and Honey Almond and Cream

But now we’re off, and motoring through the ICW on our way towards Charleston. This part of the Intercoastal looks very different than Boca. In between areas with grand river houses, there is marsh land and small islands, criss-crossed by other rivers. The water is chocolate colored, the flies are biting, and the Atlantic dolphins make playful appearances around us. We’ve seen Atlantic devil rays mating, and cannonball jellies (which I have taken to calling chunkin muffins), and pelicans and seabirds. The sky is big here. People are cruising the loop, and we’re almost blending in with them, although our mast is so tall, people can tell we’re not made for the ICW wtih all of its bridges and big swinging tides. We’re in the Gullah Geechee Corridor, and learning more about the history of the USA every day.