June 8, 2014
Greetings from Beaufort, SC.
After a two day trip including an overnight stay in St. Catherine’s Sound, we arrived at Lady’s Island Marina on May 21. We were greeted by Steve, the marina manager, whom we had met when he was marina manager at Washington DC’s Capital City Yacht Club in 2011. That evening we went with Steve and others from the marina to a dive bar down the street that served the best grilled hamburger and hot dog plus two side dishes for $4. It was Mike’s kind of place!
Our first priority the next day was to scrub the boat inside and out. It had been a couple of months since we have had a constant source of water. It certainly improved its appearance, and we felt much better about our home. Now we can begin to explore Beaufort and learn about events in town that we can put on our “to do” calendar.
The Beaufortonians we met are very proud of their city, and they have a right to be because Beaufort has a charm that is all of its own. Contributing to the charm is a written history dating back to 1514 when the Spanish arrived. Beaufort County was the second landing in North America by the Europeans. (St. Augustine was first only a year earlier.) There seems to be few remnants from the Spanish as in St. Augustine or the French as in New Orleans. Beaufort experienced great prosperity before and after the Revolutionary War until the Civil War. The affluence can be seen in beautiful antebellum homes. During the Civil War, the city of Beaufort was occupied by the Union Army but was not burned, leaving the beautiful homes to be enjoyed by visitors today.
Greetings from Beaufort, SC.
After a two day trip including an overnight stay in St. Catherine’s Sound, we arrived at Lady’s Island Marina on May 21. We were greeted by Steve, the marina manager, whom we had met when he was marina manager at Washington DC’s Capital City Yacht Club in 2011. That evening we went with Steve and others from the marina to a dive bar down the street that served the best grilled hamburger and hot dog plus two side dishes for $4. It was Mike’s kind of place!
Our first priority the next day was to scrub the boat inside and out. It had been a couple of months since we have had a constant source of water. It certainly improved its appearance, and we felt much better about our home. Now we can begin to explore Beaufort and learn about events in town that we can put on our “to do” calendar.
The Beaufortonians we met are very proud of their city, and they have a right to be because Beaufort has a charm that is all of its own. Contributing to the charm is a written history dating back to 1514 when the Spanish arrived. Beaufort County was the second landing in North America by the Europeans. (St. Augustine was first only a year earlier.) There seems to be few remnants from the Spanish as in St. Augustine or the French as in New Orleans. Beaufort experienced great prosperity before and after the Revolutionary War until the Civil War. The affluence can be seen in beautiful antebellum homes. During the Civil War, the city of Beaufort was occupied by the Union Army but was not burned, leaving the beautiful homes to be enjoyed by visitors today.
Joggling Board - Traditionally, courting couples sit at opposite ends as as they talked and rocked they would meet in the middle!
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St. Helena Episcopal Church
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Habitat for Humanity sponsored the 3rd Annual High on the Hog BBQ Festival, which was right down the street from us. There were 24 vendors; some were restaurants and others were caterers. Friday night featured shrimp and chicken. Each vendor offered their specialty ranging from gumbo to shrimp boil. We were each given a “chip” which we were to use to vote for our favorite dish. Our favorites were shrimp wrapped in bacon and grits with shrimp and sauce. Neither one of us enjoys grits, but these just melted in our mouth. We were told the magic secret was having the corn freshly ground and lots of butter and cream. Isn’t that the secret to almost any mouthwatering, cholesterol spiking, diet ending treat!
The next day we were back for the barbeque part of the festival. This is serious business. These vendors were up all night cooking their pork butt and ribs hoping to be the winner of the festival. We were the lucky recipients of their work. Each vendor passed out two ounce cups of their special pulled pork. What a treat!! We were 3/4 of the way around the circle of vendors and beginning to question the wisdom of tasting each one! After taking a break listening to the band and taking some deep breathes, we visited the remaining stands. There are 24 stands, each one giving 2 ounces of pulled pork. That equals 48 ounces of meat, it was a challenge and we met it head on! I must admit, we were less enthusiastic at the last booth even though it was delicious.
The next day we were back for the barbeque part of the festival. This is serious business. These vendors were up all night cooking their pork butt and ribs hoping to be the winner of the festival. We were the lucky recipients of their work. Each vendor passed out two ounce cups of their special pulled pork. What a treat!! We were 3/4 of the way around the circle of vendors and beginning to question the wisdom of tasting each one! After taking a break listening to the band and taking some deep breathes, we visited the remaining stands. There are 24 stands, each one giving 2 ounces of pulled pork. That equals 48 ounces of meat, it was a challenge and we met it head on! I must admit, we were less enthusiastic at the last booth even though it was delicious.
Not all of our time is spent eating and listening to music. We have spent time everyday working on plumbing projects, varnishing, cleaning and polishing. Francie has been riding a recumbent stationary bike each morning while Mike explores the countryside on his bike. We have walked around the historic homes area several times, and went on a garden and tree walk in historic downtown. We also visit two farmer’s markets each week. The growing season is obviously earlier from the mid-west. We are enjoying the fruits of the farmers’ labors – vegetables too. (I know it was a bad pun.) The best treat is the fresh shrimp that is available at the market.
Beaufort is also proud of the movies that have been filmed here including The Great Santini, The Big Chill, Forest Gump, The Prince of Tides, and White Squall. We decided we would watch them all, even if we had seen them before. It is so fun to see scenes in the movie that are now familiar to us.
Lady’s Island Marina has been a great stop. The people are friendly and the facilities are immaculate. There is even a building that houses Steve’s power tools which he is kind enough to let cruisers use. We have never encountered that in all of our travels. The floating dock we are on is near the marina building. There is a 7 foot tide. Twice a day, at low tide, the ramp leading to the main dock has a really steep incline and the marina building shows off its foundation.
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July 3, 2014
Because of a predicted north wind, we left Beaufort Friday afternoon and arrived in Brunswick, Georgia on Saturday morning. The usual evening thunderstorms that occur in this area during the summer were predicted. We stayed about 5 miles offshore, had light north wind and following seas. Several fronts appeared on shore ahead and behind us, but we encountered only one storm, with lots of rain but not much thunder and lightning.
Shortly after our arrival, “Arthur,” the first named storm of the season developed, and is now moving up the coast toward North Carolina as a Category 2 hurricane. We were largely unaffected as it passed heading north. We talked this morning to a couple of the fisherman from the shrimp boats, and they said they had some increased wind and seas last night, but nothing too bad off the coast of Georgia.
We are enjoying fresh Georgia peaches and fresh wild Georgia shrimp. Both are a short walk from the marina.
There is an Independence Day get together at the marina and fireworks are staged right across the river behind the boat, we will have front row seating!
The boat stays here through the summer and fall as we travel to see family and friends, and then travel to Ireland in the fall.
Happy 4th of July!
Because of a predicted north wind, we left Beaufort Friday afternoon and arrived in Brunswick, Georgia on Saturday morning. The usual evening thunderstorms that occur in this area during the summer were predicted. We stayed about 5 miles offshore, had light north wind and following seas. Several fronts appeared on shore ahead and behind us, but we encountered only one storm, with lots of rain but not much thunder and lightning.
Shortly after our arrival, “Arthur,” the first named storm of the season developed, and is now moving up the coast toward North Carolina as a Category 2 hurricane. We were largely unaffected as it passed heading north. We talked this morning to a couple of the fisherman from the shrimp boats, and they said they had some increased wind and seas last night, but nothing too bad off the coast of Georgia.
We are enjoying fresh Georgia peaches and fresh wild Georgia shrimp. Both are a short walk from the marina.
There is an Independence Day get together at the marina and fireworks are staged right across the river behind the boat, we will have front row seating!
The boat stays here through the summer and fall as we travel to see family and friends, and then travel to Ireland in the fall.
Happy 4th of July!