Brunswick, Georgia, in April of 2015 was buggy, which is why the marina we stayed in handed out flyswatters to visiting boaters. The marina also had free laundry, great showers, and was next to a farmer’s market. But this wasn’t a sight-seeing trip, it was a grand adventure so after three days’ rest we headed up the coast.
The ICW here winds through marshes, sea islands, and a few broad rivers and is quite lovely. We passed St. Simons Island, and chose an anchorage in the Crescent River. But Captain Mark said, “It’s early. Let’s cross Sopelo Sound.” The wind was blowing and the chop reminded me of San Francisco Bay. Tensions rose (mine), and as I sat my knuckles turned white as I hung on for dear life as we got tossed around like a cork. When the kayak on the cabin top rolled over the side, blocking the port door, it seemed to say “are you people crazy?”
We made it into the shelter of uninhabited St. Catherine’s Island and anchored in the Wahoo River. It was peaceful and calm with one weird event. The island had a light on shore next to an electrical box. No house. No street. No people. Just a light glowing in the darkness that resembled a street light. Weird.
The next morning we raised the anchor and headed to Thunderbolt, a marina where they brought you warm Crispy Crème donuts every morning and left them by your starboard door. From Thunderbolt it was a short hike and bus ride into Savannah where we ate, drank, ate some more and treated ourselves to a tram tour. When we left the city, we saw a colony of feral cats living next to a fish market (smart) and an old cemetery eroding away (sad).
We wound around old rivers and islands in the Savannah River, to Scull Creek, and into South Carolina, entering Beaufort where we tied up to a dock downtown. It was early enough to walk around the tree-lined streets, past historic mansions with a walking tour brochure in our hands, courtesy of the town. I’m a nut for old buildings, and I remember loving the fact this place was established in 1711, and original structures still stood.
One more anchorage tomorrow and then on to an even more historic place, Charleston.