Our Strategy for Navigating Shallow Water

Our Strategy for Navigating Shallow Water

Sunday 22nd November 2020

Some sections of the Intra Coastal Waterway in South Carolina and Georgia are particularly challenging because of strong currents, constant shoaling and marginal water depth. We are scheduled to spend three nights on a dock in Charleston over Thanksgiving and so we have four days to cover about sixty miles of rivers and canals that contain some of these difficult sections. Our strategy is to do short passages making use of a rising tide to provide extra depth and to use the down-time when we aren't traveling to enjoy hanging out in the wild and beautiful marshes that make up this part of South Carolina.

There are some helpful resources that we can use to help locate the problem areas and figure out how to deal with them. “Active Captain” is a free-access website now owned by Garmin that has information about anchorages, marinas, hazards to navigation etc, with postings made by the boating community (#1). “Skipper Bob – Anchorages along the Intra Coastal Waterway” has for many years been the guide of choice for people heading down the ICW. It was originally an independent publication but has now been bought out be “Waterway Guides”. We have a hard copy from our 2012 trip, but we splashed out $17 to buy the latest online addition. One big advantage of this new version is that it has links to further navigational information on the “Waterway Guides” website (#2). Along with detailed descriptions and recommendations there are sometimes even pictures of the latest Army Corp of Engineer hydrographic surveys (#3).

Today we left Georgetown shortly after noon for the first leg on this section, aiming for an anchorage in the South Santee River. High tide was around 3pm and in the range of 4-5 feet depending on location. So we had an extra 2-5 feet depth above mean low water. One notorious section that we covered today was the traverse of Minim Creek and the North Santee River. However, we read on “Waterway Guides” (#2, #3) that this section has recently been dredged and is currently quite straight forward. The lowest depth we saw was 10-feet which is fine, but we might have had problems had we tackled this at low tide. In any event, it was a pleasant motor and we arrived in the South Santee River just before 3pm. The river itself is tidal and has significant current, but the holding is good and it’s a beautiful location amidst the south Carolina marshes. 

The rest of the afternoon has been spent cooking, eating (Buccatine all’ Amatriciana followed by cherry bread pudding) and watching the Patriots lose to the Texans! We did take a few moments to enjoy a spectacular sunset.

Mike

33 09.102 N, 79 19.431 W

#1  https://activecaptain.garmin.com/en-US/pois/40268

#2  https://www.waterwayguide.com/explorer?latitude=33.193844238126864&longitude=-79.27691459655762&zoom=15&mode=navAlert

#3 https://www.waterwayguide.com/nav-alert/4-8134/sc-esterville-minim-creek-mm-415

Sunset over the South Santee River, South Carolina (wide angle panorama)

Sunset over the South Santee River, South Carolina (telephoto panorama)

Pasta All'Amatriciana and Cherry Bread Pudding ... both yummy!

Get your fat pants ready

Get your fat pants ready

Saturday November 21, 2020

That was a sign we saw while walking around Georgetown, SC this afternoon.  We think it’s a reference to Thanksgiving, but who knows for sure.

I should have known it was going to be a rough day.  I woke with a headache and cold feet.  The reason for the headache is unknown but the cold feet can be explained by the fact that I had managed to turn my blanket sideways overnight.  Thus, it was not long enough to cover both my shoulders and my feet.  That’s the sign of a bad night of sleep.  The tasks for this morning were going to the Verizon store to replace our wifi hot spot which has been failing AND going to the grocery store.  Both shops were located about two miles from the dinghy dock.  We got to the phone store with no problem.  Getting the new jet pack took a lot longer than you might imagine.  We sashayed across the busy road to an auto parts store to try to replace the air struts that hold up our fridge lid.  That didn’t work out as there was some uncertainty about the required size.  While there, Mike spotted the gallon of engine oil and that had to come with us!  

By this point it was noon.  What is that old adage— never do your grocery shopping when you are hungry?  I’m quite confident that we have never bought more food while on foot than we did today.  We were seriously laden down as we started to walk back.  Just when we stopped to rest and check how much further we had to go (1.25 miles) a car pulled up and the driver asked if we wanted a lift back to town.  Our instinct was to refuse but the weight of the backpacks and bags in our hands argued otherwise.  We decided to accept.  The driver, Michael, told us that he runs the Indigo bakery in town and the Indigo mercantile store.  He and his wife moved here from the San Francisco area a few years ago.  He talked a bit about the impact of the pandemic on his businesses and dropped us at the dinghy dock.  We were both very grateful.

After stowing our shopping we went to shore and had lunch in a cafe, sitting outside.  We enjoyed our lunch and decided to take a walk afterward.  As we approached the bakery (we were keen to go in and purchase some baked goods), Mike realized that he didn’t have his wallet in his pocket.  We returned to the cafe but the staff hadn’t found it.  Following the route we had taken, we were unable to find his wallet.  Mike popped into several shops and restaurants along the way to ask if someone had turned in a wallet.  No luck.  So a significant portion of the afternoon was spent on the phone to cancel various cards. As well as debit and credit cards and a fair bit of cash, it had Mike’s driving license and medical insurance cards. There was no activity on any of the cards so it’s possible someone picked it up and will try and return it, but it’s still very distressing.

Gloria

33 21.819 N, 79 16.929 W

Georgetown paper mill - established for over 100 years - at one time the largest paper mill in the world. It now focuses on pulp for diapers (nappies) etc. Apparently when the wind blows the smoke over the town it can get a bit smelly

Georgetown paper mill - the light was better earlier but I was busy trying to cancel my bank cards (aghhh)

Georgetown Boardwalk - this is a delightful town with lots of restaurants and cafes and friendly people

Endangered species

Endangered species

Friday 20th November 2020

It’s not every day that you see an endangered species and today we actually saw three Red Cockaded Woodpeckers! We woke this morning to perfect weather – a clear blue sky, a very light wind and temperatures that reached 70oF (21oC). We decided to move on to Georgetown, SC but not until the afternoon, so after a leisurely start we jumped in the “Dumb Dog” and rowed to shore to do some birding. We took the same trail as yesterday, but in reverse, or that’s what we would have done if we hadn’t been looking up into the trees and missed a turn! Anyway, we circled back, picked up the correct route and ten minutes later we found the Red Cockaded Woodpeckers. What a thrill! We have searched for them before on a family trip to Florida but without success, so these were “life birds” for us (meaning the first time we have seen them ever). We texted Tasha to tell her and she replied ... "are you sure they weren't parrots" ... how cheeky is that! These weren’t the only birds we saw this morning. It was much livelier than yesterday (no idea why) and we saw red bellied woodpecker, downy woodpecker, brown headed nuthatch, red breasted nuthatch, Carolina chickadee, ruby crowned kinglets, pine warbler, black vultures, turkey vultures and a bald eagle (later in the day).

Once back on the boat we made some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to eat during the trip and then we hauled up the anchor and headed out. We were sad to leave – Thoroughfare Creek was our favorite anchorage in the Waccamaw River – absolutely gorgeous. We had a relaxing 15-mile motor to Georgetown with deep water and no submerged logs! I think I’m mostly out of my funk after hitting the underwater tree yesterday. Anchoring here is quite challenging – limited space constrained by docks and the waterfront on one side and shallow water on the other, as well as super soft mud with poor holding! We weren’t happy with our first attempt so we pulled up and tried again and now we feel confident we are reasonably secure. We plan to spend two nights in the quaint little town.

Mike

33 21.819 N, 79 16.929 W

* Vianney – if you are reading this I wanted to tell you it was immediately after our phone call that we say the woodpeckers

Spanish moss drapes the trees with Cotinga at anchor at sunset (photo shot yesterday)

Thoroughfare Creek, Waccamaw River - absolutely gorgeous (photo shot yesterday)

Heading down the southern stretch of the Waccamaw River shortly before it merges with the Great Pee Dee River near Georgetown

Dinghy on a mooring - Georgetown

A Walk on Sandy Island

A Walk on Sandy Island

Thursday November 19, 2020

When we came to haul up the anchor at Bull Creek this morning the current was ripping at 2.2 knots.  The recommendation for all anchorages in the Waccamaw River is to use a trip line in case the anchor should get caught on debris on the river bottom (so many trees in this area).  Trying to snag the trip line float and then pull it on board seemed to take all of Mike’s strength.  There is no way I could have done that anchor retrieval without his help.  The swift flow of the creek was carrying us rapidly down stream.  We had talked about needing to avoid the tree-stump that we had passed when going upstream but it was no longer visible above the water despite being low tide. We were trying to re-trace our GPS track into the creek but we either weren’t precise enough or the tree had been pushed aside by the current. In any event, and we failed to see the ripples that indicated its location in enough time to move over and we bumped into it pretty hard. There seems to have been no damage to the boat, just to our confidence. 

Rejoining the ICW we headed south to Thoroughfare Creek a distance of about 8 miles.  By consultation with the blog, we were able to determine that we stayed in Thoroughfare Creek in 2013 on our way north.  Mike has a photo on an alligator taken from the sandy beach opposite the anchorage.  I’m pretty sure that I didn’t go to shore on our last visit to this location.  Today, it seemed so warm and lovely (and no alligators could be seen basking on the beach) and I travelled to shore with Mike.  We found a map detailing a two-mile trail around Sandy Island.  It was a lovely walk through different types of vegetation.  Most remarkable was the higher areas where longleaf pine forest predominated.  We scanned the trees for red-cockaded woodpeckers without success. (Red-cockaded woodpeckers are endangered and only nest in mature longleaf pine trees).  In fact, we saw only a handful of birds: cardinal, eastern towhee, red-breasted nuthatch, golden-crowned kinglet, red-bellied woodpecker and belted kingfisher.  We heard the Carolina chickadee but didn’t see it. Despite our lack of bird sightings, it was a lovely walk, so nice to get off the boat and step out. We are trying to decide if we will spend another night here or move on in the morning.

Gloria

33 30.930 N, 79 08.635 W

Gloria birding on Sandy island Trail

Long leaf pine

Thoroughfare Creek at Sunset

Sandy beach - the easiest beach landing ever!

Same location after dark

Hanging out in Bull Creek

Hanging out in Bull Creek

Wednesday 18th November 2020

It’s been a lot colder the last two days and we have extra blankets on the bed. The first order of business this morning was to switch on our Espar diesel heater that warms the inside of the boat up nicely. It’s the same device that long distance truck drivers have in their cabs to keep them warm. By the time coffee was brewed it was quite cozy and we lounged around enjoying blueberry pancakes for breakfast. We had no great plans so Gloria spent most of the day working on her quilt and I cleaned and waxed fiberglass in the cockpit and polished the stainless steel “bright-work”. It was a beautiful clear day with no clouds and lots of sunshine, but my initial foray on deck in shorts and bare feet lasted about ten seconds – I returned a little later in long underwear, fleece pants and shoes and socks! 

The most exciting part of the day was having Gloria haul me up the mast in the bosun’s chair to take some pictures. It doesn’t particularly bother me being up high but it can be a bit disorientating if the boat is rocking at all then the motion is greatly magnified up top. Here in Bull Creek Cotinga is swinging in the current but there are no waves at all. You definitely get a different perspective from up high. 

Whilst we never left the boat it has been a very pleasant, relaxing day. 

Mike

33 36.668 N, 79 06.217 W

Bull Creek from half way up the mast

Cotinga from two-thirds of the way up the mast (above the first spreaders)

Sunset in Bull Creek, off the Waccamaw River

Tankage

Tankage

Tuesday November 17, 2020

Cotinga has many tanks that are of concern for us while living aboard.  We need to keep track of the levels in the fuels tanks (there are two) and the water tanks (two of these as well) and none of the gauges work well.  Nothing gets us quite so excited as seeing an unexpected reading on the level of the holding tank.  I think we mentioned that we pumped out the holding tank on Friday the 13th!  This morning the tank was reading “super full”!  Of course, in the general excitement of Friday, we hadn’t thought to check the level of the tank after the pump out.  Suddenly we were calling the closest marina about the possibility of coming into the dock to pump out.  As it was low tide at about 8:30 am we were reluctant to start moving at 9.  Mike remembered that we had previously had some problems with the “focus tube” for the ultrasonic tank sensor.  A quick investigation revealed that the tank was not full.  A cleaning of the focus tube resulted in a reading of about one quarter full.  This seemed much more in line with only four days of use.  It’s always something keeping us hopping.

At a more leisurely pace, we pulled up the anchor and motored five miles down river to Bull Creek.  This anchorage has a five star rating on “Active Captain”.  One reviewer even suggested that it was the best anchorage on the ICW.  That seemed like one to check out. “Skipper Bob” is a guide to the anchorages of the ICW.  Each anchorage is given a rating based on six parameters: Holding/Wind/Current/Wake/Scenic/Shopping.  For each category the maximum score is four with a minimum score of 1.  The Skipper gives Bull Creek a score of (443241).  The shopping is apparently the pits!

As for the wake (score of 2), so far it has been pretty quiet.  We saw one small open fishing boat (bass boat) zoom up the creek and then return but that’s all the traffic.  In the later afternoon, we decided to take a dingy ride up the creek.  The current was flowing so strongly that it was a different world from yesterday’s lazy trip.  After a short distance, we decided that we really didn’t feel comfortable leaving Cotinga unattended. So we turned back.  Back onboard the instruments indicated a current of 1.5 knots—not as fast as it seemed to me but still considerable. Let’s hope it’s a quiet night.

Gloria

33 36.668 N, 79 06.217 W

Cotinga anchored in Bull Creek

Evening colors - Bull Creek

Gloria relaxing with a cup of tea and a book in the late afternoon

Dusk in Bull creek. The float is tied to a trip line on the anchor. This is recommended in the Waccamaw river because of tree roots / branches etc on the bottom. You can see the current on the float

Photographic Challenges

Photographic Challenges

Monday 16th November 2020

It’s beautiful here in the Waccamaw River. Where we are anchored seems so isolated and wild. The only sign of humans is one single channel marker and the occasional small boat that goes by … and of course, us. The water is dark with tannins and Cypress trees, draped in Spanish moss, line the river. There are no true banks to the river; the water just seems to continue into the trees. The whole area is a National Wildlife Refuge but even if you were allowed in to explore there is nowhere to land a dinghy and other than the small tributaries the swamp looks pretty impenetrable. 

After a leisurely start this morning (watching last nights Patriots versus Ravens game on NFL Game Pass) we took a dinghy ride 3 or 4 miles up the river. We went slowly and were out about two hours and in that time we did not see another person or boat. It was a lovely experience and I took quite a few photos. But here’s the rub … if it’s as beautiful as we say it is, then why is it so challenging to photograph? 

I think there is uniformity to the color and structure of the trees. It’s hard to find strong compositions. You can get some beautiful reflections when the wind dies down and in the early morning and evening the water has been very flat. However, the light is low at these times and yet the boat is still swinging in the current, so even though I try to use a tripod on the boat you can’t always get a sharp image. In any event, I did get some pictures that I like and I’ll keep trying over the next few days.

Mike

33 40.554 N, 79 04.105 W

Morning light - Enterprise Creek, Waccamaw River

Gloria takes the helm of the "Dumb Dog"

There are many ox-bow bends and small tributaries off the main river

The edge of the river - occasional grassy patches but no real banks

The sun has gone down, the wind has died and the water is completely flat

Ditto