Dessert 1st, Northbound on the ICW
- Thread starter Casey
- Start date
Larry Patrick
New member
Sounds like an interesting ,fun trip. My first and only expierence with noseeums was at Hunting Island State Park. I spent hours throwing a cast net in a back water salt pond,caught some big shrimp and other bait. For three days after that had hundreds of red measle like bumps that itched like crazy.I promised myself never again without first spraying down with off or whatever works on those nasty critters.
Good Morning 'Brats!
We decided to stay another day in the "Golden Isles" (Brunswick/St Simons Island, GA) so we could see more friends. (Mary and I each lived here for about ten years, but in different decades ... so there are several good friends in the area.)
RE the noseeums (aka: sand gnats), yea they're bothersome, to say the least. Smaller than a mosquito, so regular screen doesn't do much to keep them at bay. Fortunately, either wind or rain seems to keep them away - and we've had both. And their bite can be very itchy for several days. I don't recall that they subscribe to a particular season other than summer. As for repellents, Avon "Skin So Soft" seems to be the local favorite. (When I worked at FLETC, the firearms instructors would buy the stuff by the gallon for use when they had outdoor classes.) we also have a Thermacell (useful when it's calm), and a good sized fan to create a breeze when it's calm; both seem to help. Mary did quite a lot of research on the flying critter's to explore our options. We chose not to re-screen the boat, but use other alternatives. We felt that screen fine enough to keep-out gnats might also reduce ventilation and we know we'll need ventilation later in the trip when thing get really hot.
Anyway ... We're doing ok for the time being (but the bugs and heat/humidity make us remember the bug free days in Alaska and BC).
We have no firm idea where we'll be tonight - but (probably) somewhere between SSI and Savannah. That's one of the real advantages of our type boats. We have self-sufficiently without over doing it. Being able to conveniently anchor-out (and weathervane into any breeze) is a distinct advantage. We both find it interesting how many folks on larger yacht-class vessels seem to make a point of getting to a marina virtually every night. Sure, companionship, electricity, showers, restaurants are nice ... but really like anchoring-out wherever possible.
Freezer report. I think George and Carolyn have perfected the Dometic freezer routine. As per George's advice, We cut some pieces of unicellular foam (a $7 backpacking pad from Walmart) to create two insulated layers in the freezer portion of the chest. It seems to be working very well. In the bottom we keep frozen vege's and some meat. Next layer up we keep a zip lock bag with some ice cubes, and the top layer holds a Tupperware container with a few cold, but not frozen items. Seems to work well, and the freezer seems to use somewhat less electricity now.
Several folks have asked about pictures. Mary is the photographer. I'm sure she will eventually get around to putting some pictures on C-Brats, but for now she's doing FaceBook for those most part. On FaceBook, look for Mary Burtner Casebeer.
Oops ... Gotta run. The dock person just delivered our daily muffins and newspaper. Guess marina's CAN have some advantages over anchoring-out!
Best,
Casey&Mary
We decided to stay another day in the "Golden Isles" (Brunswick/St Simons Island, GA) so we could see more friends. (Mary and I each lived here for about ten years, but in different decades ... so there are several good friends in the area.)
RE the noseeums (aka: sand gnats), yea they're bothersome, to say the least. Smaller than a mosquito, so regular screen doesn't do much to keep them at bay. Fortunately, either wind or rain seems to keep them away - and we've had both. And their bite can be very itchy for several days. I don't recall that they subscribe to a particular season other than summer. As for repellents, Avon "Skin So Soft" seems to be the local favorite. (When I worked at FLETC, the firearms instructors would buy the stuff by the gallon for use when they had outdoor classes.) we also have a Thermacell (useful when it's calm), and a good sized fan to create a breeze when it's calm; both seem to help. Mary did quite a lot of research on the flying critter's to explore our options. We chose not to re-screen the boat, but use other alternatives. We felt that screen fine enough to keep-out gnats might also reduce ventilation and we know we'll need ventilation later in the trip when thing get really hot.
Anyway ... We're doing ok for the time being (but the bugs and heat/humidity make us remember the bug free days in Alaska and BC).
We have no firm idea where we'll be tonight - but (probably) somewhere between SSI and Savannah. That's one of the real advantages of our type boats. We have self-sufficiently without over doing it. Being able to conveniently anchor-out (and weathervane into any breeze) is a distinct advantage. We both find it interesting how many folks on larger yacht-class vessels seem to make a point of getting to a marina virtually every night. Sure, companionship, electricity, showers, restaurants are nice ... but really like anchoring-out wherever possible.
Freezer report. I think George and Carolyn have perfected the Dometic freezer routine. As per George's advice, We cut some pieces of unicellular foam (a $7 backpacking pad from Walmart) to create two insulated layers in the freezer portion of the chest. It seems to be working very well. In the bottom we keep frozen vege's and some meat. Next layer up we keep a zip lock bag with some ice cubes, and the top layer holds a Tupperware container with a few cold, but not frozen items. Seems to work well, and the freezer seems to use somewhat less electricity now.
Several folks have asked about pictures. Mary is the photographer. I'm sure she will eventually get around to putting some pictures on C-Brats, but for now she's doing FaceBook for those most part. On FaceBook, look for Mary Burtner Casebeer.
Oops ... Gotta run. The dock person just delivered our daily muffins and newspaper. Guess marina's CAN have some advantages over anchoring-out!
Best,
Casey&Mary
The gnat situation is gnat right, particularly in New Jersey's spring. There, some recommend buying a generic brand (a little cheaper) of Skin So Soft and mixing it 50/50 with the winter green isopropyl rubbing alcohol. Then apply as needed. We usually apply it with a paper towel and when your done; put the paper towel on your head and add a hat. Just an FYI for when the rain and the wind stop.
D.D.
D.D.
I stayed everywhere Bill and Mary are staying, up to Savannah. I back packed travel my entire life and have rubbed every thing on my skin known to man. Most all of it works fine but I feel dirty not having a shower to get the stuff off. How ever I find the "Thermacell" to be one of the greatest inventions for bugs. Its just like a force field on Star Treck the bugs just dont come thru. All you have to do is put the therma cell unit up wind on you boat and the field floats threw and gives me my force field. If no breese turn your fan on and push your air in the direction you like and their you go. Some hunters wear the thermacell on their belt. The sent is very minimal and be sure to buy plenty of refill cartridges and sent pads. You can get thermacell at Amazon and Walmart.
Pandy Girl
New member
We are following your trip, Jim & Sandy Jessup
Good suggestion Nick, but how do you get the pesky critters to remain still long enough to spray them? 
Just kidding. We did the same thing when we traveled through Everglades City last year. Frankly, I had forgotten about doing that, and doing it every couple of days would be a good idea.
Best,
C&M
Just kidding. We did the same thing when we traveled through Everglades City last year. Frankly, I had forgotten about doing that, and doing it every couple of days would be a good idea.
Best,
C&M
Easy to get them to stay still to hose them down!
Just have Mary stand in be cockpit with her arms extended to the sides for five minutes and you just overwhelm her with a cloud of bug juice! Works every time!
I am also in BIG trouble the next time she sees me!
Regards,
Nick
"Valkyrie"
Just have Mary stand in be cockpit with her arms extended to the sides for five minutes and you just overwhelm her with a cloud of bug juice! Works every time!
I am also in BIG trouble the next time she sees me!
Regards,
Nick
"Valkyrie"
Nick, I think I'll pass on fogging Mary with bug dope ... She may decide to fog me with the bear spray ....
It has been an excellent trip so far. The wx turned cooler and rainy a few days ago, but cool can be a good thing.
We arrived in Charleston on Friday, expecting to be there for a couple of days. When we got to the harbor there was a "regatta" underway with 298 sailboats participating. Yipes(!) that's a LOT of sailboats! Mix-in three our four container ships and it seemed pretty busy. We went over toward Fort Sumter (hoping to dock and take a short tour of the fort), but found the conditions weren't to our 'liking for docking. We also decided against anchoring near the fort - just too exposed and busy. So I we decided to find a different anchorage and get a marina Saturday morning. We anchored behind "Crab Bank" in a spot that was well protected, and after finding 10.5' (at dead low tide) we had our anchorage. (The nearby Crab Bank is home to about 1.45zillion birds who talked to us through the evening/night/morning. It was like something out of an Alfred Hitchcock movie.)
By morning we were ready to up-anchor and find a marina. Mary phoned three marina's. Two were full, and the third had a 33' minimum (@$2.25/ft), so we decided to press-on. We Learned a lesson about arriving in Charleston on a weekend, and Regatta Day at that! Luckily, the ICW Continued immediately outside the channel behind Crab Bank, so we were northbound....
It was an easy/rainy 37 miles up to McClellanville, SC and they had space at the Leland Oil Co (marina). We arrived an hour before low tide and found <2' here and there ... skinny water, for sure. The facilities were pretty meager, but the price was right, they had electricity for the fan (lots of gnats), a marginal shower, and a decent cafe about .75 miles away. ...Ooh, and a litter of two week old black labs. Really Cute!
This morning we were onward to Georgetown, SC, 27 miles up the ICW. The trip was very easy, and we arrived just before noon. We had a nice lunch in town at Big Tuna (recommended by several folks on Active Captain. Lordy, what would we do without AC? Jeff&Karen Seigel have made us real advocates of "crowd sourcing" technology.)
This is a very comfortable town - so we may stay another night ... stay tuned.
We came back to the boat in the rain, and it stopped about :30 minutes later.
So, we'll grab the umbrella* and head back out for another "recon" (Mary's description).
Best,
Casey&Mary
* we ALWAYS cruise with a largish golf umbrella. Although we don't always take it shore, if it looks like rain, it can be Very handy.
It has been an excellent trip so far. The wx turned cooler and rainy a few days ago, but cool can be a good thing.
We arrived in Charleston on Friday, expecting to be there for a couple of days. When we got to the harbor there was a "regatta" underway with 298 sailboats participating. Yipes(!) that's a LOT of sailboats! Mix-in three our four container ships and it seemed pretty busy. We went over toward Fort Sumter (hoping to dock and take a short tour of the fort), but found the conditions weren't to our 'liking for docking. We also decided against anchoring near the fort - just too exposed and busy. So I we decided to find a different anchorage and get a marina Saturday morning. We anchored behind "Crab Bank" in a spot that was well protected, and after finding 10.5' (at dead low tide) we had our anchorage. (The nearby Crab Bank is home to about 1.45zillion birds who talked to us through the evening/night/morning. It was like something out of an Alfred Hitchcock movie.)
By morning we were ready to up-anchor and find a marina. Mary phoned three marina's. Two were full, and the third had a 33' minimum (@$2.25/ft), so we decided to press-on. We Learned a lesson about arriving in Charleston on a weekend, and Regatta Day at that! Luckily, the ICW Continued immediately outside the channel behind Crab Bank, so we were northbound....
It was an easy/rainy 37 miles up to McClellanville, SC and they had space at the Leland Oil Co (marina). We arrived an hour before low tide and found <2' here and there ... skinny water, for sure. The facilities were pretty meager, but the price was right, they had electricity for the fan (lots of gnats), a marginal shower, and a decent cafe about .75 miles away. ...Ooh, and a litter of two week old black labs. Really Cute!
This morning we were onward to Georgetown, SC, 27 miles up the ICW. The trip was very easy, and we arrived just before noon. We had a nice lunch in town at Big Tuna (recommended by several folks on Active Captain. Lordy, what would we do without AC? Jeff&Karen Seigel have made us real advocates of "crowd sourcing" technology.)
This is a very comfortable town - so we may stay another night ... stay tuned.
We came back to the boat in the rain, and it stopped about :30 minutes later.
So, we'll grab the umbrella* and head back out for another "recon" (Mary's description).
Best,
Casey&Mary
* we ALWAYS cruise with a largish golf umbrella. Although we don't always take it shore, if it looks like rain, it can be Very handy.
Greetings and hope your trip is going well. I need to learn how to detect your Spot, but if you are between Beaufort, SC and Charleston SC, we have a dock with power and water just off the ICW. Email: larhayden@gmail.com
Hi Casey,
Good to hear that things are going so well! I have been following on FB.
Big Tuna is right on the water, isn't it? If so ,we ate there, too, on the deck overlooking the water. They even brought a big bowl of ice water for Boomer. Very nice folks.
As I mentioned before, I am amazed that people look down on the southeast ICW, referring to it as the "Ditch." I have run it more than a few times and am always taken with its beauty.
Have fun!
Nick and Marcia
"Valkyrie"
Good to hear that things are going so well! I have been following on FB.
Big Tuna is right on the water, isn't it? If so ,we ate there, too, on the deck overlooking the water. They even brought a big bowl of ice water for Boomer. Very nice folks.
As I mentioned before, I am amazed that people look down on the southeast ICW, referring to it as the "Ditch." I have run it more than a few times and am always taken with its beauty.
Have fun!
Nick and Marcia
"Valkyrie"
Larry, you should be able to click on this address and find us:
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/face ... HgY9XbCayZ
Thanks for the offer of a dock/elec but we are already well north of you at
Georgetown, SC. (I just checked the SPOT. As far as I know it only saves data for seven days, so the data showing your location may have already been deleted.)
Just had a thunder and lightning storm come through that made is look like the end of the World! Very impressive. We're liking Georgetown so may stay another day.
Best,
C&M
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/face ... HgY9XbCayZ
Thanks for the offer of a dock/elec but we are already well north of you at
Georgetown, SC. (I just checked the SPOT. As far as I know it only saves data for seven days, so the data showing your location may have already been deleted.)
Just had a thunder and lightning storm come through that made is look like the end of the World! Very impressive. We're liking Georgetown so may stay another day.
Best,
C&M
BoaterHomer
New member
Thank you all for asking to see photos! Such a nice group we have here on C-Brats!
I have been very lazy about adding photos this trip. Plus, I was in the middle of a good book and my spare time was spent relaxing and reading in the lawn chair in the cock-pit.
I've gotten some photos rounded up and put in an album on SmugMug. For the most part, I have the photos labeled as to where they were taken. The good thing about SmugMug is that you can look at 10-12 photos at once making it quick and relatively painless.
Here is the link:
http://caseyandmary.smugmug.com/Florida-to-the-Chesapeake-2015/
I'm hoping Casey soon gets around to telling you all about the Coast Guard encounter we had yesterday. 30 seconds of sheer terror followed by some nervous laughter. But, I'll let him tell it. Mañana. (That doesn't necessarily mean tomorrow...just not today).
Here's a test to see if I can still remember how to post a photo here. This is in Georgetown, SC. And that is one heck of a propeller!!
I have been very lazy about adding photos this trip. Plus, I was in the middle of a good book and my spare time was spent relaxing and reading in the lawn chair in the cock-pit.
I've gotten some photos rounded up and put in an album on SmugMug. For the most part, I have the photos labeled as to where they were taken. The good thing about SmugMug is that you can look at 10-12 photos at once making it quick and relatively painless.
Here is the link:
http://caseyandmary.smugmug.com/Florida-to-the-Chesapeake-2015/
I'm hoping Casey soon gets around to telling you all about the Coast Guard encounter we had yesterday. 30 seconds of sheer terror followed by some nervous laughter. But, I'll let him tell it. Mañana. (That doesn't necessarily mean tomorrow...just not today).
Here's a test to see if I can still remember how to post a photo here. This is in Georgetown, SC. And that is one heck of a propeller!!
Bluechablis
New member
Really enjoyed the imagery! Keep posting!
Good Morning 'Brats!
It's Friday morning (4/24), and we spent the night at Casper's Marina in Swansboro (NC). We are 676sm enroute (55sm yesterday), and the trip is going very well, but it has turned cold. (Since we have electricity at the marina, I actually plugged-in the "Big Heat" heater this morning.). I have come to the conclusion that my definition of "living large" is having wifi, ice cubes (for my daily Scotch ration), and ELECTRICITY !
The wifi connectivity was solved by signing-up for Verizon 'data (I'm usually too cheap for that). The ice cubes are solved by having the Dometic freezer onboard (thank you George/Carolyn for the suggestion on insulated layers inside), and electricity is solved by 'splurging, and going to a marina occasionally. (We generally spend a couple nights anchored-out, then find a marina for the third night. So far the marina's have been around $1.50 to $2/ft. We enjoy anchoring-out, but we also enjoy the amenities of a marina, too. (Last night we walked up to the Piggly-Wiggly grocery store, and found a pizza place as well.).
Mary suggested that I mention the USCG event ... Ok.
We were cruising up the ICW toward Wilmington (NC). Wx was good. We had a following sea, about a 1-2' chop, and we were just cruising along on A/P at 8mph, and life was Good. Our turn to the North was only a couple miles ahead. Oh, did I mention that we were in a "shipping lane?"
We were chatting about something, and all of a sudden we heard the dreaded 5-Blast (collision imminent...) signal from a VERY large horn. We both looked back and saw the USCG Cutter "Diligence" overtaking, and Very close. (How close you ask? Too Damn Close!! (I'll guess 100yards, but it scarred the b-Jesus out of us! I'm sure the crew on the bridge were laughing their asses off at having made at making a small pleasure boater nearly crap-their-pants.) we chose not to get into a radio discussion of privileged vessel/burdened vessel, after all we were in a shipping lane, but still.... (I didn't know a CC23 could come up on plane that fast(!); we scooted out of the way!
That night we anchored near Wrightsville Beach in an open/windy area with a pretty good chop. The night went well, just noisy with hull slapping. I considered rigging an anchor bridle, but decided 'no. We just put out some extra scope and held-on. Mary's "Drag Queen" app (plus visual references) confirmed that the Delta was holding well. By morning, retrieving the anchor required some 'jockeying, but it was certainly very well 'set!
Yesterday we cruised through the Camp LeJuene (USMC) gunnery range. They weren't shooting, which was nice.
We're going to breakfast with a couple from a nearby (50') vessel, so I guess I'd better get shaved and put on a clean shirt...and maybe Long pants!
Best,
Casey&Mary
...working our way North
It's Friday morning (4/24), and we spent the night at Casper's Marina in Swansboro (NC). We are 676sm enroute (55sm yesterday), and the trip is going very well, but it has turned cold. (Since we have electricity at the marina, I actually plugged-in the "Big Heat" heater this morning.). I have come to the conclusion that my definition of "living large" is having wifi, ice cubes (for my daily Scotch ration), and ELECTRICITY !
The wifi connectivity was solved by signing-up for Verizon 'data (I'm usually too cheap for that). The ice cubes are solved by having the Dometic freezer onboard (thank you George/Carolyn for the suggestion on insulated layers inside), and electricity is solved by 'splurging, and going to a marina occasionally. (We generally spend a couple nights anchored-out, then find a marina for the third night. So far the marina's have been around $1.50 to $2/ft. We enjoy anchoring-out, but we also enjoy the amenities of a marina, too. (Last night we walked up to the Piggly-Wiggly grocery store, and found a pizza place as well.).
Mary suggested that I mention the USCG event ... Ok.
We were cruising up the ICW toward Wilmington (NC). Wx was good. We had a following sea, about a 1-2' chop, and we were just cruising along on A/P at 8mph, and life was Good. Our turn to the North was only a couple miles ahead. Oh, did I mention that we were in a "shipping lane?"
We were chatting about something, and all of a sudden we heard the dreaded 5-Blast (collision imminent...) signal from a VERY large horn. We both looked back and saw the USCG Cutter "Diligence" overtaking, and Very close. (How close you ask? Too Damn Close!! (I'll guess 100yards, but it scarred the b-Jesus out of us! I'm sure the crew on the bridge were laughing their asses off at having made at making a small pleasure boater nearly crap-their-pants.) we chose not to get into a radio discussion of privileged vessel/burdened vessel, after all we were in a shipping lane, but still.... (I didn't know a CC23 could come up on plane that fast(!); we scooted out of the way!
That night we anchored near Wrightsville Beach in an open/windy area with a pretty good chop. The night went well, just noisy with hull slapping. I considered rigging an anchor bridle, but decided 'no. We just put out some extra scope and held-on. Mary's "Drag Queen" app (plus visual references) confirmed that the Delta was holding well. By morning, retrieving the anchor required some 'jockeying, but it was certainly very well 'set!
Yesterday we cruised through the Camp LeJuene (USMC) gunnery range. They weren't shooting, which was nice.
We're going to breakfast with a couple from a nearby (50') vessel, so I guess I'd better get shaved and put on a clean shirt...and maybe Long pants!
Best,
Casey&Mary
...working our way North