April 28, 2024: Moving on to Dewees Creek 2

0630: We woke up to a very quiet morning with flat water a falling tide. Outside temp 63 degrees, Water 75.2 degrees, Humidity 93%, Cloud cover 42%, Dew point 61%, Wind ENE @4 mph, WOBSSRs done, thru hull open, Power at 58%. Generator started.

We were surrounded by dolphins who stopped by to say “Good morning!”

0815: Anchor up with minimal mud on the points. We waved goodbye to the dolphins.

Once again we timed things well so we could go through Elliott Cut without getting hit by a 5 mph ebbing tide. Even so, the current at the entrance was pretty sporty.

An example of some of the homes along the water.

By 1140 we were in Charleston Harbor. By itself the water was not so sporty, but the sports fisher boats took the waves to a whole new level.

Sailing regattas and homes and boats. The Charleston area was busy.

At 1230 we exited the Harbor and at MM 462.3 we went under the Ben Sawyer Bridge. We had been warned about the next three miles (Meeting Reach, MM 462-459) of severe shoaling. Lee set Aquamaps up on his iPad and we used that to keep us out of the shallowest (dark red) areas. Since we were not at low tide we decided not to take a cut around the area, which would have added 3 miles to our trip. We slowly made it through with 7.5-12 feet under our keel so long as we kept within the zone. Whew!

The dredging operation was all set to go at the end of the channel.

A new home on Isle of Palms

At 1400 we exited the waterway and made our way back to Dewees Creek 2 (MM 454.3) where we found 12.3 feet of water. Lee put 125 feet of rode and chain down and we were good. Once again we were greeted by dolphins.

1410: We used 5.7 gallons of fuel and spent a lot of time avoiding other boats. It felt good to stop.

1730: We were visiting in the salon and as I glanced out the window I realized we were almost on land! We ran up to the wheelhouse to check our depth and, sure enough, we were at 2.5 feet and not moving. Starting the motor could drag sand and weeds into the engine through the intake, so Lee went out and pulled us into deeper water using the anchor. Oops. Apparently the tide was not so low when we arrived as we thought. We settled into 11 feet of water and reset the anchor alarm. Lee rechecked the tide tables…low tide was at 1725. (LOL)

Basic fare for dinner. Nathan’s hot dogs and beans.

A quiet night.