South Carolina

The past two days traversing the ICW into and through South Carolina has been delightful. In addition to great weather and sea conditions, we have been treated to soaring Ospreys, dancing dolphins and natural beauty of the marsh land, rivers and canals. THIS is what it's all about.

Last night in Charleston SC we had the pleasure of dining at a new restaurant (to us) called Circa 1886. It is part of the Wentworth Mansion and situated in the former carriage house of the estate. The food, the presentation and the setting was something right out of a movie set. Delightful!

We got underway this morning from Charleston at low tide and had to navigate a number of "skinny" spots along the way. Of course, wouldn't you know that one of the most shallow stretches was were we met a large tug pushing a 150 foot barge head on. We simply ran "port to port" within about 15 feet of each other and continued on. That was close!

After passing Georgetown we turned into one of our favorite sections of the trip -- the beautiful Wacama River. It is hard to describe the the serenity of the meandering cypress tree lined banks. We look forward to our return in the Fall when the tress will be full of color.

We arrived in Myrtle Beach after 6 hours of cruising today at the Grand Dunes Marina. Sometimes you pick a place to stay based on it's location, amenities or proximity to provisions. Today we picked the Grand Dunes Marina because there is a Ruth Chris Steak House less that 100 yards from our slip. I can already taste that nice juicy prime rib and glass (or two) of Cabernet.