Return to Seasons

Leaving Charleston, we knew we had several areas of low water that we needed to be alert for. Since high tide was conveniently in the middle of the day, we imagined we would have no difficulties navigating the bulk of the shoaling we would encounter. However, just over forty miles from Charleston, which we would be reaching nearing mid-tide on the ebb, was a series of difficult areas in what was known as the Ashepoo Coosaw Cutoff, connecting the Ashepoo and Coosaw Rivers. Since going aground on a falling tide would mean we would be stuck for six hours or so, we decided to avoid the area altogether by heading down the Ashepoo into St. Helena Sound and then up the Coosaw to reconnect with the Intracoastal Waterway. On the charts, this path seemed to add about five miles to the trip, but would have us in deep water the entire way. But things did not quite turn out that way.
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Initially, when my Dad and I arrived in Georgetown, SC, just off mile 403 on the Intracoastal Waterway, we thought we would push on the 65 miles to Charleston the next day, the Friday of Labor Day Weekend. However, as I looked over the charts, Skipper Bob’s Anchorages, and ActiveCaptain, it became apparent that we would not be able to make it all the way because of low water. In particular, there is a stretch of shoaling about two miles just north of the Ben Sawyer Bridge, which is the swing bridge that goes to Sullivans Island and is the last obstacle before we would reach Charleston Harbor.
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Portsmouth, Virginia, just across the river from Norfolk, provides two different free docks for transients. There is really nothing better to a cruiser than a free dock in the heart of a metropolitan area, and we took advantage of it. But shortly after we tied up, we started talking to another cruising couple whose comments almost made us untie the lines and anchor out. They did not offer warnings about crime or wake, but instead noted that they had relocated because of the large number of “dock roaches” that were about. They worried that these dock roaches would climb onto their boat and infest it and cautioned us lest the bugs inundate Bear.
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Heading south from Norfolk, the Intracoastal Waterway slowly introduces you to more challenging navigational elements, sort of liking advancing to a new level in a video game. You start off the first day with a dozen or so bridges and a lock. The next day, you could get some nasty weather along the Albemarle Sound, and you also need to pay careful attention for stumps and other debris in the Alligator River. Before long, you are dealing with all of the above together with current, poorly marked channels, shoaling, nine foot tides, and a host of other potential dangers.
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