Friday December 7th, A bad day for America but a good day for ORION. We are in Beaufort S.C. today at the Downtown Marina. We are taking care of a few boat chores like changing the oil in the engine. It was very easy and "mess free" with the new oil change pump installed before this trip. That was a good move. At 4:30 p.m. he main street was closed and preparations were made for the annual Night On The Town celebration to kick off the Christmas Season. All the merchants were open and serving food and drinks. There were organizations selling food on the street. We both tried our first S.C. "Ladies Island" farm raised oysters and they were really good and salty. We had a chat with the fellow who raised them. The system they use is just like in Virginia. They put the small oysters in bags and cages on the river bed. They are market size in 9 to 12 months, faster than the 18 to 24 months needed in Virginia. We had a "low country" dinner in town and purchased a few small souvenirs before returning to the boat for an early evening.

We are at mile marker 536 here in Beaufort so are really making the miles now. Remember Miami is at MM 1096. We will make it to Thunderbolt Georgia tomorrow, Saturday. Three or four more days and we will be in Florida. We hope to make it to Daytona Beach by mid December where we will leave the boat, rent a car and drive to Texas to spend the holidays with Walt's sister and family in Frisco.

We hope your Holiday celebrations are underway. See you in a few days with more news of our travels.