Tuesday, 25 August 2009

Blackbeard's Favourite Haunt

Down Taylors Creek
Welcome to North Carolina
We entered Taylors Creek, and anchored off busy downtown Beaufort.  Beaufort is little more than a village but has a wealth of history, of which locals are extremely proud.  Beaufort is also very boatie friendly, supplying at least two public jetties no less (to tie up Bruce) and a very large dockside marina for transients.
Shackleford Pony on one of the Inner Banks Islands
Taylors Creek channel was narrow so Cap’n Considerate put out two anchors (Bahama-style – two anchors from the bow) to limit our encroachment.  We then relaxed, watching migratory Canada Geese and wild Shackleford ponies grazing over on Carrot Island, and prepared our list of things to do while we waited for BW to arrive.
Beaufort Town Docks
Of course that in itself is a bit of a story.  There are no airports in Beaufort, the nearest being 30 miles away.  Having missed his scheduled flight from New York (was it a great pub crawl or just tired from too much site-seeing?), further delays meant that it took him 3 flights, 2 days and a looong taxi ride before he caught up with us.  Our Cap’n was no longer considerate and relished his chance to “take the mickey”. 

In Beaufort, we took a double-decker bus tour (yes, that’s right – a 1960’s model) round town dodging tree branches and electrical wires sagging in the heat, with a guide dressed in period costume telling us tales tall and true about Beaufort’s seafaring past.  As always, it was an excellent introduction and gave us a good start point for further explorations.
Historical Homes
The Maritime Museum is well stocked and despite GS’s groans (too many model boats), it turned out to be very interesting.  An item of particular note was a life-saving capsule.  It was used in flying-fox fashion to rescue folks from coastal shipwrecks.  Although small, it held as many as 11 adults (lying down) in a sealed coffin-like container.  It would have been a terrifying ride as it bounced along crashing through heavy seas on its way to shore and safety. 

Up Hammock Lane, and up Beaufort’s only hill (or “hummock” at 12’ above sea level) sits a quaint cottage with a terrifying history.  It was once an Inn, residence of the one and only Blackbeard.  Aside from ghastly goings on in the house, even the trees at the front were not spared. 
Ancient Burial Grounds
They were often used for hangings (one of his more difficult wives apparently).  Given its past, the house is haunted big-time (human bones have been found in excavations) and had not been occupied until fairly recently.  Even then, owners only seem to stay a few years before moving away.
Look who we found....
We ended our days sampling a few local brews on the dock before eating dinner out.  Spouters Inn (as in whale spout) has the best seafood we’ve had so far in the US.  It tasted like seafood should…  We also tried soft-shell crab – a local favourite.  Yes, the shell is eaten (it’s soft, silly!).

Again we were sad to bid Beaufort and its lovely historic homes farewell, but Big Bill was getting closer (more or less) and we were still not yet at that magic 35 degrees and out of the hurricane zone.  I’m not sure that anyone’s told Bill that however…

Monday, 24 August 2009

A Grounding a Day ......

Charleston to Beaufort: 17-21 Aug 09
Thankfully not us...
Reluctantly, we left Charleston and headed north on the ditch again.  Two reasons – Hurricane Bill was heading north and although not predicted to come our way, it would push off some weather in our direction, mostly rain, wind, storms and wildly fluctuating tides.  Secondly, we were to meet Boy Wonder in Beaufort and looked forward to having some extra crew.

Not far along we managed our second grounding at Price Creek.  After assistance from friendly locals, WJ3 refused to budge so we simply put out the anchor (mid channel!!), made a coffee in our new coffee pot and waited for the tide to come in!  We had a third (disputed) grounding at Crow Island in the Santee Swamp.  Our trusty Cap’n said it was actually a near miss!  Of course it was! (chuckle chuckle!)
Beached not grounded
Gradually the scenery changed from palms to pines and lots of reeds or marshlands.  Crab pots were everywhere and whilst many consider them a nuisance (ropes tend to get caught in props) we found that they obligingly defined our narrow channel and thus deep water.  Much of this area is quite isolated and it was a nice change to observe lots of bird life and dolphins, although we never saw any more gators.  They must be human-shy!  Hardly surprising since many menus offered gator tail – fried of course!

We anchored out in Winyah Bay, on the river not too far south of Georgetown, another historical city.  It was buggy but calm considering the wide expanse of water and closeness to the sea.  The next day our Cap’n steered us up the Waccamaw River, said to have the best scenery along the ICW.  The river was lined with swamp cedars, a number of old plantations and more than a few fabulous old houses.  Very beautiful!
WJ3 at Bucksport Marina
WJ3’s engine was missing a few beats, so we turned in early to Bucksport Marina, enabling us to catch up on essentials.  Our obliging host, Richard helped us settle in.  We refueled, gave ourselves, WJ3 and our clothes a good scrub and then sat back to a nice dinner (also cooked by Richard).  Over a glass of wine on the verandah overlooking a cypress swamp (bears, deer and gators) we even managed to get an internet connection.  Best of all, we had aircon to sweeten our dreams.  Can we stay for a bit longer???  We left the next morning with a fridge full of ice, America’s best sausages, and a few frozen beers.
Yes, that's two stuck on the mud...
A grounding a day?  Yes, we reconnected with mother mud again!  This time at Corking Neck, Little River, not far from the South/North Carolina border.  Yes, it was low tide, yes we were in the channel and yes, we had lots of offers of assistance.  After swinging free, we motored on to our next challenge.  A Coast Guard report advised that the Sunset Beach Bridge was closed.  How can they do this to us, we wondered?  After all there was no suitable ocean channel nearby to get around it.  Would we have to retreat back to Charleston (and meet those two speed bumps again)?  Interestingly, the bridge looked like a rusty old barge and part of engineering bits and bobs necessary when building new bridges.  In fact it was an historic pontoon & cable bridge that locals are seeking to preserve.  It closes during low tide (because of the underwater cable) but kindly, they opened for us.  We imaged the dangers of catching a cable in WJ3’s keel & rudder but made it through without incident! 
Waccamaw River
The Motley’s anchored for the night in Pipeline Canal (south of Southport) and had a peaceful night even though the tide dropped over 6 feet to 6 feet – at least we were still floating – just!  We negotiated our way north passing many inlets, over many speed bumps, and given many shoal warnings!  At New River we had a near miss and at Bear Creek Inlet, our wake made a definite W as we searched for deeper water!  Deep water to us now meant anything over 5 feet…..  At Mile Hammock Bay, we anchored near a boat called “Wombat”.  Of course it was the only other boat in the anchorage and yes, Barry was an Aussie!  Mile Hammock is on Marine property and we spent an eerie evening in a thrilling scene from “Apocalypse Now” as training was conducted around and above us. 

Finally, we had Beaufort in our sights.  As we entered the deep shipping channel near Morehead, a fellow cruiser, heading south on a sailboat, hailed us.  Are we on the Intracoastal?” they asked, “We’re headed for Charleston”.  We wondered how they could do this chartless and took bets on how long it would be before they went aground.  Stunned, we simply radioed back..... “yes


From: Charleston, SC Lat/Long: 32 47N 79 57W  Date/Time: 17/8/09: 0730
To: Beaufort, NC  Lat/Long: 34 42N  76 39W Date/Time: 21/8/09: 1330
Time Taken: 265nm (45hrs)  Distance (this year): 2491nm (472hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 3340nm  (650hrs)   Fastest Speed: 5.5kts**
Weather: A mixed bag of hot sunny weather; high humidity, mild breezes and thankfully cooler evenings. The swamps were oppressive. GS imagined herself as an extra in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
(** Back to Mr Engine)

Sunday, 23 August 2009

Pineapples, Feather Beds & Quilts

Charleston Town Houses
Heywood Washington House
We stayed another day in Charleston to explore some of the grand homes open for inspection.  We started with the Edmondston-Alston House (1825) that looks out over Charleston Harbour and Fort Sumter.  General Beauregard used this house to view the bombardment of Fort Sumter and later General Lee took refuge in the house while the Great Fire (1861) ravaged the city.  We were able to tour 2 of the three levels and admire many family heirlooms typical of the period.  One piece that took our fancy was a joggling chair.  This piece sat proudly out on the piazza and when sat on, bounced up and down, replicating riding a cantering horse.  A modern day exercise bike as it were! 

Further down Church Street, we called in to see Heywood-Washington House (1772), built by rice planter, Daniel Heywood as a townhouse for his son.  At one time, George Washington stayed in the house, perhaps even in that same 4 poster feather bed.  There are few family owned pieces exhibited in the house, however there is a wonderful collection of locally built furniture that dates from that period.  We were fortunate enough to see original William Hogarth prints, “Marriage a la Mode” (1743) and many family portraits (oils).  The gardens were beautifully maintained in a traditional style by a local volunteer gardening group.
External Kitchen at Heywood Washington House
Carolina lays claim to its own style of house, called a “single”.  It’s a narrow house, one room wide facing the street, 3 storeys high and up to 3 rooms deep.  On one long side, generally a south or west façade, a verandah of either one or two levels, locally called a piazza, were added.  The family entrance, into a central hallway, was located in the middle of the piazza side.  A side walled garden and path lead to the main entrance and further down to the kitchen and stables.  A high wall between houses ensured privacy, especially on hot summer days when the drawing room doors were wide open.  Traditionally, the underside of the piazzas were painted light blue - some say to ward off jinns or at least mosquitoes. 
Laundry
Sometimes a family might add a special entrance (at street level and facing the street) for business visitors. The ground floor contained a front parlour for those business visitors and a back dining room, with an adjacent warming room or butler’s pantry.  Rooms upstairs on the second level were used for entertaining guests. These are the drawing rooms (for drawing friends together).  Here visitors could escape the dust and noise from the street outside and doors to the piazza could be thrown open to catch cooling sea breezes.  Bedrooms were on the third floor.  The only slave to sleep inside was the children’s nanny.
"Welcome Pineapples" at the Front Door
The kitchen was a separate building, by law 18 feet from the house; a fire regulation.  It too had up to three levels; kitchen and laundry on the ground floor and bedrooms for family slaves above.  Beyond this was the “necessary”, a wonderful name for a toilet.  Also in the yard was a carriage house and stables.  Many homes also had a cow and chickens.  All this on city blocks not much different in size to ours today!

We discovered the meaning of Charleston’s pineapples.  A traditional symbol of hospitality and welcome (ask any patchwork lady about pineapple designs) many pineapples appear as decorations on homes around town.  We were told that in days gone by, sea captains would put a pineapple out on their gates when they were ready to receive guests.  Once the pineapple had gone, visiting-time was over.  Likewise, those grand sweeping staircases typical of this area symbolise welcoming arms.

House viewings are conducted by tour guides.  You are generally not allowed to wander freely or take photographs.  Our guides were mostly ladies (volunteers) with wonderful Southern drawls - so appropriate to each setting – who answered my many questions most obligingly!  Having said that, we were often complimented on our accent; “Ah just lurve yaw ackscent!” 

Friday, 21 August 2009

Low Country Hospitality

Low Country Boil and Hushpuppies
Schooner on the Ashley
Charleston is certainly worth seeing.  It was founded in 1670 and soon became a wealthy colony of rice, tobacco and indigo plantations.  Wealthy plantocracy meant not only stunning plantation houses but equally stunning town houses.  The old district has a wealth of striking and well cared for houses.  Gardens are maintained to show standard and even public buildings seem to reflect that gracious, southern charm.  Streets were lined with live oaks dripping with Spanish moss or beautiful pink crepe myrtles.  We were entranced.
Cannon at Fort Sumter
South Carolina had been the first state to declare independence from the Union.  Soon after, in 1861, the first shots of the Civil War were fired just off the city’s harbour.  We had sailed near the little island where Fort Sumter stands proudly on our way in and were keen to see it and learn a little more about American history and the war.  Our experience so far had been that a great deal of effort goes into not only preserving and caring for the past but also educating America’s citizens about their cultural heritage. 
Our guidebook suggested many options, so after an extensive bike ride through some lovely streets, we chose to board a horse and carriage for a more leisurely twilight tour.  We filled our heads with places to see and things to do.  But first, a drink at an old English Pub, then a seafood dinner!  Dinner was not to be recommended but we wandered about Waterfront Park and Old City Market, found a coffee pot (yahoo!!!) and caught a glimpse of sweet grass basket sellers and their wares.  This style of basket weaving is traditional to the African-American Gullah peoples. 
Singin' the Blues on Catfish Row
Nearby we chanced upon Catfish Row, a small side street that is said to have inspired that classic Gershwin musical, “Porgy & Bess”.  A little further on in Chalmers Street is the Old Slave Market area, which at the time was credited as one of the busiest.  

We found out that a “raw bar” serves raw oysters, cold shrimp and sushi (American style – almost cooked) aside from a cold beer or two.  We gave grits a miss and wondered about hushpuppies (corn breads deep fried) served with honey butter.  Fried green tomatoes really do exist as a popular starter or appetiser.  A menu listed entrée is to us a main course. And worst of all, coffee aint coffee...  Are you keeping up with me? 

Thursday, 20 August 2009

A Not So Civil War

Jacksonville to Charleston: 13-14 Aug 09
Delightful Company
In order to save a time and many a grounding in Georgia ICW shallows, the Motleys opted to do a little sea time.  Out of the St Johns River, WJ3 clicked her heels and frolicked along the way with lots of friendly dolphins.  In this area, the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf Stream is incredibly shallow.  At 12 miles out, we floated along in 35 to 45 feet of water.  If WJ3 sank (heaven forbid!) then her mast would be at least another 20 feet above sea level…

Our evening at sea brought with it an assemblage of thunderstorms, which seemed to stretch along the coast as far as the eye could see.  Smugly, we assumed we’d outrun them, until we turned seaward and watched as storms began to brew out over those Atlantic shallows.  Our night sail gradually began to turn into a sailor’s game of dodging lightning, rain and thunderous billowing clouds.  The Cap’n tried to ward off evil spirits with jump-lead cables that streamed off the shrouds and into the water (an old sailor’s remedy).  Luckily we managed to steer our way around most of it but did not escape a cold front moving in with accompanying wild winds.  Not the best experience at sea, even thought we were well reefed. As an aside...we did put out a fishing rod/lure whilst out in the briney.  You guessed - another barracuda!  The Cap'n was beginning to feel sorry for the trail of dead un's we'd left behind.  GS was less forgiving.
Storm off St Augusta
As WJ3 lacked autopilot and a GPS linked to our computerised chart programs, the Cap’n had to take two hourly readings with his hand-held GPS.  We fell into this routine fairly easily, although didn’t usually manage to get more than an hour of sleep after all necessary chores, including meals were completed.  The Cap’n achieved some straight lines between waypoints as we romped northward but GS ensured his skills were tested, especially when he slept.  “Oh look, dolphins!  Aren’t they so cute?  Ooops, heading east again!  Look how close that big ship is!  Ooops, turned a 360 again!  Won’t I be in trouble!  Ha! Ha!  That was fun, let’s try another 360...  Oh, look a turtle! Oops, straying west again!”  And so on it went! 

Luckily we managed to continue north and make it firstly into Charleston Harbour, South Carolina and then, back into the ditch (as the ICW is fondly known to locals).  We anchored opposite City Marina in Ashley River and wondered at the amount of local boat traffic that passed us by at speed (and so bounced us about in their wakes!).  The worst wakes we’ve christened “coffee-pot breakers” in honour of our St Martin plunger, broken in St Augustine, and still not been able to replace.  We had high shopping hopes for Charleston!


From: Jacksonville, FL  Lat/Long: 30 19N  81 39W  Date/Time: 13/8/09: 0900
To: Charleston, SC  Lat/Long: 32 47N  79 57W Date/Time: 14/8/09: 1600
Time Taken: 160nm (19hrs)  Distance (this year): 2226nm (427hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 3075nm  (605hrs)   Fastest Speed: 5.5kts**
Weather: S-SW  10-15kts;  Seas 3-5ft;  showers & possible afternoon thunderstorms.  Who were they kidding??
(** Motoring and sailing; bumpy ride up the coast dodging storm banks)

Wednesday, 19 August 2009

Florida Finale

St Augustine to Jacksonville: 9 Aug 09
Up River to Jacksonville
Having made the deep waters of St Johns River (m 740), the Motleys heaved a sigh of relief.  The tricky thing however was to navigate our way up-steam on a free newspaper chart and advice from Skipper Bob!  We finally did arrive at Jacksonville Landing, a free dock right in the heart of the city.  It is here we provided something of a light relief for the local citizenry, if not improving their knowledge of geography. 

The river water has been a dark chocolate brown so far giving both WJ3 and Bruce a bit of a brown moustache.  After clear Caribbean waters, this muddy broth looks bad but seems to team with life, especially crabs, mullet and clams –a particular local favourite.  
Docked at Jacksonville Landing
Despite being downtown, it’s all very quiet.  We did however manage to find some groceries (a corner store) and finally wifi at a bookstore café amid a vast collection of restaurants and food courts that sell huge portions of fried (and only fried, ma’am) food.  We still haven’t quite yet managed to understand the disparity between all those good fresh foods available in supermarkets to the hash that is served up – mostly fried!  Maybe we eat too cheap!!
Dodging Freighters down river
The Cap’n had someone out to check WJ3’s electronics – not looking too good I’m afraid.  But we decided not to wait around for an in-store assessment.  That could lead to waiting for parts and Jacksonville is not our end (or desired) destination.  Of course, the generator decided to leak, so we’re seeing to that too!  Our trusty Cap’n did say that cruising was a matter of sailing between ports for repairs.  GS did not laugh….

Jacksonville is to be our last port of call in Florida.  From here we are braving the Gulf Stream, cheating a little on our mile count and heading for Charleston in South Carolina.  "Ah say, has enywaan seen ma Scarlett?"

From: St Augustine, FL  Lat/Long: 29 53N  81 18W  Date/Time: 9/8/09: 0745
To: Jacksonville, FL  Lat/Long: 30 19N  81 39W Date/Time: 9/8/09: 1630
Time Taken: 57nm (9.5hrs)  Distance (this year): 2066nm (408hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 2915nm  (586hrs)   Fastest Speed: 5-7kts**
Weather: kts;  Seas ft;  Swell; no evening thunderstorms but insufferably hot & sticky
(** Motor sailing; 6 bridges; 2 overhead power lines on ICW; 4 bridges & 1 power line up river )

Monday, 17 August 2009

Flagler's Legacy

St Augustine was quite interesting and we certainly covered some miles.  As a result, we knew you'd be keen to see a few extra photos....
Flagler College
Flagler College, once the grand Ponce de Leon Hotel, was a luxury resort built for the wealthy and famous by Henry Flagler in 1887.  Its artwork, architecture and Tiffany windows are a sight to behold.   We marveled at the decorative detail both inside and out, extravagant fountains and plush furnishings.  Gold leaf was used with wild abandon and frescoes cover ceilings and walls.  Fabulous oil paintings, clocks, sculptures and candelabras hang everywhere.  Wood is highly carved and polished within an inch of its life.  Oh, to be rich!
Stunning Bronze in Lightner Museum
The Lightner Museum, formerly the Alcazar Hotel, was also built by Flagler in 1888. His signature style, a sort of wild Spanish version of Rococo, was clearly evident in this casino come pool/spa resort, a welcome diversion for his wealthy guests.  The Museum contains an interesting collection of Victorian period memorabilia and items that were in everyday use by guests at the Hotel in its heyday.  Collections of vases, glassware, cutlery and crockery used in the hotel were displayed along with other items used or collected by wealthy owners  over what is now known as the Guilded Age.  We walked through its grand ballroom that once overlooked a huge indoor swimming pool (now sadly concreted over), and were amazed by complicated plumbing in the bath and steam rooms.  No luxuries were spared.
Dinner Guest at Ripleys...everything has a story attached!
Ripley's (of Believe it or not! fame) Mansion dates from 1887 and is now converted into a museum of oddities - such as the moose, once frozen in that very window.  I think he's well and truly stuffed now!  I'm not sure that he sings though, Paula....

We crossed 2 bridges, clutching handrails to keep from falling - only to discover it was a trick that confused our brains (and that's not too hard, really!).  The Cap'n was so miffed, he tried it a second time only to discover that he couldn't get 2 steps onto the bridge before going weak at the knees.

Oldest School House
There was quite a collection of oriental bits and pieces and although it seemed "usual" to us (living in the Asia Pacific region), the life and times of the far Orient must have been, and probably still is, quite a mystery to many.   Other oddities around town included the oldest school house in US.  (That's not the world's oldest pupil beside it however!).  As you can see, we had lots of fun exploring St Augustine - it's highly recommended for a visit.   
Other ways to see the ICW, me hearties!

Sunday, 16 August 2009

Faulty Towers

The Real Fountain of Youth....sure!
Ridin' that Train round town
St Augustine (mile 778) proved to be just what the doctor ordered in terms of distraction from our woes.  Although touristy, it was well planned with quite a bit to see and do.  We rode round town in the geeky but fun, red train to get an overview of offerings and then over to a Starbucks (coffee & cake at last!) where we planned our day.  The Cap’n headed off for the Sailor’s Exchange (not a tourist destination) so the GS headed for the Dow Historic Houses and museum. 
This one's gotta work...
There are several layers of history to St Augustine which make it especially interesting.  Ponce de Leon landed here and claimed Florida for Spain in 1513, ignoring of course, the local Timucuan Indian population.  Ponce de Leon was also famous for his quest to find the fountain of youth.  He believed that he had discovered it in a nearby sulphur spring.  In 1565, the Spanish established St Augustine as an outpost to protect their loaded treasure fleets sailing home on the strength of the Gulf Stream current.  By 1695, Castillo de San Marcos stood as a threat to enemies both from sea and land.  It is constructed of coquina (or shell limestone) blocks, which proved impervious to cannon fire!  Many of the earlier homes in St Augustine are also constructed of coquina.
Castillo de San Marcos
Florida was transferred to English control in 1763 and remained loyal to the crown even during the American Revolution.  However, in 1783, it was again returned to Spain until the Americans gained control in 1821.  In the aftermath of the Seminole Wars and later Civil War, St Augustine became a winter retreat for northerners.  Henry Flagler, a self-made millionaire, saw tourist potential in the small town and he set out to build resorts for wealthy patrons.  In particular, he capitalised on St Augustine’s Spanish heritage and developed a unique Spanish Renaissance Revival architectural style. 
Spanish Mortar
In 1888, the Ponce de Leon Hotel opened its doors for 450 guests.  It now hosts rather more college students as the Flagler College and only a little less luxuriously.  In that same year, he also had the Hotel Alcazar built as a casino, ballroom and pool/spar resort to entertain his guests.  The luxurious pool is now filled in but the ballroom has been restored to reflect the elegant splendour of America’s Gilded Age.  As the Lightner Museum, it allows public access to this grand building and its collection of rare and expensive items.  These include many Tiffany stained glass works, large, stuffed animals and rare art works; all of which were used to make the wealthy feel at home, away from home!
At home along the ICW
Aside from these delights, we also visited (& tasted) the San Sebastian Winery, which uses vines/styles dating back to Spanish times.  We goofed off at the Ripley’s (Believe it or Not) Museum, then were entertained local style at the drinkin’ (& pickup) bar, Trade Winds.  We also sat in a nearby park for an evening of free Country & Western.  All good tonic for weary, overwrought sailors.

Saturday, 15 August 2009

Touchin' dat Mud

Daytona to St Augustine: 4 Aug 09
Fort Matanzas
We had been doing soooooo well!  We had been soooooo careful to stay within the lines!  Smack! Bang!  Damn - we hit mud at a shoal between badly placed green markers (G81B) to red at Matanzas Inlet.  It was so bad we managed to connect at least 4 times before carefully feeling our way into deeper water.  By deeper, I mean at least 5-6 feet to get across the bar. I tell you, we said some nasty things about channel markers and their keepers that day!   

WJ3 and her motley crew were not happy campers!  Life had become depressingly focused on damages and repairs since entering the ICW.  We thought this was the “safe” route to travel north.  Don’t believe ‘em! 

We later learned that Matanzas is Spanish, meaning "massacre"...oh, fruit!!! 
  
 
From: Daytona, FL  Lat/Long: 29 11N  81 00W  Date/Time: 4/8/09: 0650
To: St Augustine, FL  Lat/Long: 29 53N  81 18W Date/Time: 4/8/09: 1530
Time Taken: 54nm (8.5hrs)  Distance (this year): 2909nm (398.5hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 2858nm  (576.5hrs)   Fastest Speed: 5-7kts**
Weather: kts;  Seas ft;  Swell; Evening thunderstorms continue except for last 2 nights
(** Motor sailing; 12 fixed bridges; 1 overhead power lines; hit ground (about 4 times at Matanzas Inlet, Mile 794).  Danger, Will Robinson!