Blogs from South Carolina, United States, North America - page 65

2nd leg: Atlanta - Starr, SC 2 hours Once again, Atlanta rush hourTRAFFIC. I am not sure what I was thinking leaving at 4 pm. It took me an hour to travel 15 miles. My friend, Susan, is a realtor and uses a program called Streets and Maps (I think that is the name) to map out my route to very rural South Carolina. It was perfect. I ALWAYS get lost when I am going to Tina’s (in Starr, SC) and this map got me there. Tina lives on a dairy farm. She loves to garden and has so many beautiful flowers. Davis, my daughter's cousin and the owner (with his father) of the dairy farm, is going to start making bio-diesel fuel to run all the farm equipment. Tina and I took a walk in ... read more

April 11 The drive from Charleston to Myrtle Beach via 17 wasn’t without its interesting points. Traveling along the Francis Marion Forest Preserve we tried to remember the words to Swamp Fox, Marion’s nick name. He was a revolutionary war hero who knew the territory as the forces of South Carolina fought the Brits. “Swamp Fox, Swamp Fox, hiding in a glen; nobody knows where the Swamp Fox has been,” etc. There were also many roadside stands set up by Gullah women to sell their baskets. As we neared Myrtle Beach, our earlier perceptions bore out - miles of commercial establishments - Pirate themed mini golf, buffet restaurants, every chain and fast food logo known to man! However we were in for a surprise when we got to NORTH Myrtle Beach. Our RV fee for the ... read more

Charleston, South Carolina, could easily become a favorite city. The historic houses, gardens, the Market, Fort Sumter and the sense of history at every corner all contribute to a most agreeable ambiance. Susa and I had visited Charleston in 1989. Now our son and daughter were along with us. After Charleston, we would be taking our son for a look at the University of South Carolina. To reach Charleston, we drove from Northern Virginia in one day. A long day to be sure, but traffic was not bad along the Interstate 95 corridor. We reached the I-26 turnoff for Charleston at dusk, had dinner at a Chick-Fil-A and reached the city after rush hour had subsided. We checked into the Marriott SpringHill Suites hotel, just across the Ashley River from historic downtown Charleston. The location was ... read more

The weather has been wonderful this week, with a high pressure system over the entire area and big isobars. The ocean has laid down from the last storm and there is 5-10 knots of wind coming from the south. The perfect weather window, the perfect sailing conditions. So we decide to go on our first offshore sailing adventure, to head down south about 30 miles to the Edisto River and spend the night anchoring there in a fabulous spot the locals told us about. Our first night on the hook. On Thursday we wake up at 6 am and start the preparations for the trip. Of course we first double check the weather to make sure that no storms are coming in, and it is still looking beautiful. Then we fill our water tanks, eat breakfast, ... read more

So here we are, another week in Charleston. Not a lot to report this week, we are still just getting the boat ready for the trip. Most days have been spent hanging out in the marina so that work can be done on the boat. But we are getting really anxious to pull up the lines and set sail. It is kind of a catch 22. We really want to be spending the days sailing, maybe practice our anchoring and doing a couple of overnight trips around here to get used to how the boat handles. But if we go out sailing, then the work can’t be done on the boat (and this is work that needs to be done before we can leave, like putting up the bimini and installing the solar panels). So ... read more