Left Bass Creek Anchorage at 6:29:15 as Lana said the anchor must be up by 6:30. I tried stretching the shut eye but it didn’t work. Met a boat, ZAMA DAWN, in the Coosaw river and discussed who would be running faster so we could figure who to put in front before the Brickyard Cut. We thought they would be faster and they were by 0.1 kt. So they took the lead. I thought they would meet the 0900 opening of the Ladies Island Bridge at Beaufort (BUFORT) and we would catch the 0930. As the currents were favorable we stayed right with them and both made the 0900 bridge. Thus began a long morning of following ZAMA DAWN until they cut off at Dafuskie Island to take a break from the shallow crossings. We think they just wanted to get us off their tail. We pushed on taking advantage of the currents pushing us along. Somehow we have the timing about right that we get to start with a current push and then a bit of a head current as we approach the next inlet which then changes direction and we get a push for the beginning of the afternoon. Other than the strategic view it is very difficult to determine where the currents change between cuts so as Janice says, it is what it is…

We make it through Port Royal sound and then through the low country, past Hilton Head and past the Savannah River into Georgia. Thus begins the long winding road of the creeks and cuts of Georgia. The cruising guide states that for every 100 miles distance you actually travel 130 miles due to all the winding back and forth. We consider stopping at Isle of Hope Marina but decide to stop short at the Herb River anchorage as no need to spend the marina bucks and the couple we met there last year (and saw again in St. Mary’s for Thanksgiving) haven’t responded to email inquiries for a couple of days. Anchor was down by 1600 so we had a comfortable evening meal and then a couple of shows (yes still trying to get through House of Cards – even with all the bad press, deservedly, for Kevin Spacey lately).

Saw several dolphins but the most prevalent wildlife for the day is the cormorants. Cormorants are weird birds that swim underwater and pop up out of no where. Wonder how they navigate underwater as they tend to stay down for over a minute or two. Saw a really interesting cloud formation in the afternoon as we were approaching Calibogue Sound.

Welcome comments from Mom and Ted and Kim.