Charleston Adventures
06 December 2009 | Charleston, SC
Beth / 47F but sunny
After dragging - or stretching out too close to a boat that had come in and anchored fairly near us, we rose to the beeping of the alarm at 6 am on Saturday and hustled into action once more. This time it was raining as well as windy and cold. But collision was averted yet again and we got the anchor up and ourselves into a new position. Jim got quite a surprise when he finally got the anchor pulled up - and it was a mighty struggle. It was entangled in a rusty old iron ladder. We're not sure if we anchored on top of it - which would explain the dragging - or picked it up as we moved. Generally, all that chain on the bottom holds us in place almost as well as the anchor itself, but the stronger currents combined with higher winds seem to be foiling our old techniques.
We moved over to the mega dock at Charleston City Marina around noon - and got settled right behind Oz!! We were delighted to be able to catch up on news and experiences with Connie and Ken - even though we were shaking our heads at how we left Dowry Creek a day or two ahead of them because we wanted to keep moving south. Misery does like company, and it was interesting to feel ourselves feeling a little more relaxed and part of a group when we heard their stories about the rough times they and other boats have been having.
It is not a myth that travelling this far north, this late in the season is more fraught with difficulty. As we read blogs and reports from other boats, we understand that we have experienced far less damage than others.
Now on to happy things! West Marine had a C-80 chartplotter in stock and has been helpful in getting us back into working order. The marina here has block ice - lasts longer in our icebox. We are clean and we smell good again!
We had a wonderful evening walking in Charleston along streets of balconied and piazzad houses - some of them dressed for the holidays. We watched the kayaks all decorated up in Christmas lights go by Waterfront Park, but got too cold before the parade of brightly lit ships came along (we thought it would be much earlier when they got to this side of the harbour). After mingling with folks on the waterfront (and enjoying chocolate chip cookies shared by one family) we headed for East Bay Street and the warmth of Amen Restaurant. We just stumbled across it but it was a good stumble. The fish (Mahi Mahi for Jim and Striped Bass for me) was perfectly cooked and served with asparagus and smooth, mushroomy grits (Jim took a pass on those!)
Off to more happy experiences today!