Wednesday, October 31 – Happy Halloween – still in Osprey Marina:  I don’t like getting up in the dark, and it was dark at 7:00 a.m. this morning.  But I am looking forward to the day because it is rumored that the Waccamaw River is one of the most beautiful along the ICW.  I also don’t like the time change coming up this weekend, but I do like the fact that it will be lighter in the morning, and Bob makes a good point that the early daylight is to our benefit in getting going.  Ok – I’ll give him that one.  I make a quick breakfast (yogurt, coffee, and raisin toast), we perform the getting ready ritual - all charts, phones, lemonade, crackers, and other paraphernalia up to the flybridge – the cat is in hiding under the covers, the sun is shining, oh…and by the way, did I mention that…I…hate…boats!!       

            Now – the starboard engine won’t start!!!  What is this – some kind of sick Halloween prank?!  Boats have minds of their own, you know!

            So here we go again.  Down into the engine room – strange mutterings from down below, perhaps a few expletives – panels in the forward head are unscrewed, and I hear more strange mutterings.  The nice dock hand is offering his generous advice and helpful hints – wires are separated, touched, and untouched and put together again.  And then – the inevitable – walk up to the office and call a repair guy.  So right now, here I sit while the beautiful Waccamaw River waits, but the sun is shining, we have a slip reservation in Georgetown and it is not far to go.  I remain semi hopeful…

            Ok – the rest of this story is going to be bad…really bad…so if you have a sicker sense of humor than I have – stop reading now!  The mechanic came – early – which was amazingly wonderful.  He tried to start the engine, appropriately wiggled the starter button, unscrewed and tested the electrical contraptions behind the wheel – couldn’t find anything there – disappeared down in the engine room – lots of clanking and thudding going on down there – but no starting of the engine.  So Bob and I are looking at each other and then at the mechanic, and then someone who will remain nameless says to the other person who will remain nameless, “Is it possible that the shifters weren’t in the neutral position?” That will definitely prevent an engine from starting.

“Hmmmm…don’t see how that could be possible, but, ah…”

“Hey, Glen (that’s the mechanic), ummm, maybe we should make sure the shifters are in the neutral position.”

Do I need to go any further with this story??  Suffice it to say that after a few red faces, major chuckles all around, a check for the mechanic’s time, WE WERE ON OUR WAY!  Ok, now my one question is, why didn’t the mechanic ask if the shifters were in the neutral position before he even hung up the phone??  In all honesty, the shifters looked like they were in neutral, but the starboard engine shifter had shifted just a teensie bit off so it would not start.  Oh well, lessons learned…

One good thing is the cat is getting used to strange people trekking around the boat, and she may be getting used to being a “nomad” cat – unlike her owner – just kidding.

So as we leave Osprey Marina, (Mile 373) and turn toward the ICW, we encounter two sailboats that Bob wants to pass, which we do so without too much trouble.  But I have come to the conclusion that the majority of boaters do not have a clue about the proper way to pass or be passed.  If the boat being passed would just slow down, the passing boat could also slow down and actually cause less wake.  But no, most boats being passed just keep charging ahead, and we all wonder why the passing boat has caused such a wake – because you need to drive at mach speed to pass the idiots!  On occasion, I’ve actually heard the boat doing the passing ask the other boater to slow down!

The rumors about the Waccamaw River are true.  It is a stunningly beautiful river.  The meaning of Waccamaw is unknown as the language of the Waccamaw Indians was never preserved.  The river starts around Mile 375 and ends at Georgetown a little past Mile 400.  Black bear inhabit this area, but I never saw one even though I had the binoculars glued to my eyeballs again.  I was hoping I would see alligators, but I think we are still a little too far north to see those critters.  I saw a lot of driftwood that looked like alligators, though.  The river is very deep even up to the tree line.  The State reptile is the Loggerhead Turtle, and I saw large numbers of them sunning themselves on the logs close to the shore (however, I don’t know if they were actually loggerheads.)  The tree line is a mixture of deciduous trees beginning to change colors from green to yellow, red, and orange, and Cypress and other evergreens with Spanish Moss clinging to their branches.  There is no sign of any development whatsoever.  It is serene and beautiful with little islands of green shrubbery and cypress “knees” dotting the river. 

Finally, though, serenity gave way to the beginnings of civilization, and we started to see some beautiful homes near the waterline, and could smell wood fires burning.  The wind is still blowing like crazy, and actually picks up even more as the afternoon wears on and we near Georgetown.  We cruise under the Lafayette Bridge and call the Harborwalk Marina for instructions to get into our slip.  It is really blowing now, and the slip is tricky to get into, but Bob does a great job of maneuvering the boat.  Fortunately, there were three people on the dock to help us.  The next guy to enter this little harbor wasn’t so lucky, however, and managed to run into a sailboat and the dock!  We go for a walk around the town, come back to the boat.  I make orange ginger pork medallions with rice and peas, and we settle in for the night. 

Tomorrow we plan to head Isle of Palms.

Leaving Osprey Marina

Lena Victoire at Osprey Marina

Along the Waccamaw River