056: The Low Country Part 3:

March 19^th was notable for two reasons.  The first was that I turned 64 years old and second, we crossed 3,000 n/m’s on our trip: so, just over halfway.

The day started with Matt and Kathy having us over to Katmat for a birthday breakfast.   We then headed to Beaufort, SC, electing to stay at the Safe Harbor Beaufort Marina which is adjacent to downtown.  That night we had a birthday dinner “in town” at a pretty decent restaurant, the Old Bull Tavern.   The next day, on the advice of a friend, Dave Beecken who lives on nearby Brays Island Plantation, we took a horse drawn carriage ride through the historic district.  We weaved around the historic area, focusing on the many large homes in "The Point" neighborhood. All, with few exceptions, are privately-owned, the oldest of which is the Thomas Hepworth House (1717). Back in the day, the Point was a very desirable place to live because of its proximity to the cooling breezes coming off the water.

Our two-horsepower carraige:

Houses on "The Point:

A cool hotrod:

The most interesting resident, with a house still standing, was Robert Smalls, a former slave. Later in his life Mr. Smalls owned the home at 511 Prince Street, originally constructed circa 1840 by Small's enslaver, Henry McKee.  Robert Smalls was born there, but as a young man he was "hired out" to work in Charleston where, among other jobs, he worked aboard a transport boat known as "The Planter" and became a skilled pilot. He freed himself, his crew, and their families during the Civil War by commandeering The Planter and piloting it from the Confederate-controlled waters of the harbor through the Union blockade, where it later became a Union warship. His example helped convince Abraham Lincoln to accept African American soldiers into the Union Army. Following the war, Smalls returned to to Beaufort where he purchased his former master's house, which Union tax authorities had seized in 1863 for refusal to pay taxes. Smalls later was a politician, publisher, and successful businessman. His is an incredible story!

That evening we went to dinner at Breakwater Restaurant and Bar with Dave Beecken and his wife Kitty: a very nice opportunity to catch up. 

On the morning of the 21rst, Nancy, Kathy and I took an Uber over to the Cypress Wetlands area in nearby Port Royal. Not a large area, but well worth the visit.  We came to a boardwalk that ventured out from the treed area and into an area that can only be described as like a "Garden of Eden." There was a clump of trees in the middle that contained hundreds of birds--Wood Storks, egrets, anhinga’s, and others, all moving around. We were told it was the mating season and there was courtship behavior being displayed. There were many people there on the boardwalk with cameras, and Nancy got a terrific shot of a Wood Stork flapping its wings at a nest with a chick. There were also many small alligators lining the opposite bank. The scene was mesmerizing. After a full walk around, we returned to the boat.

The Boardwalk:

A gator with Forest Gump's feather?

The view:

Mother and chick:

We left Beaufort and headed up to the Toogoodoo Creek anchorage, which was marsh-lined and mostly with minimal wind protection, although further up we did find some trees.  We scouted out different spots before deciding on one way up the Creek, located several hundred feet from the only house on the waterway, which was flying a Confederate flag underneath the American flag on its dockside flagpole. On our first attempt to anchor, we realized that we would swing into a crab pot, so we moved nearby, and we held fine with plenty of swing room.

Sunset:

On March 22^nd, we left Toogoodoo Creek relatively early, in order to get to the dock at the Safe Harbor Marina in Charleston in time to beat any bad weather.  The trip to Charleston was relatively uneventful except that you could feel the wind picking up and there were several open areas where the water was chaotic.  We contacted the Marina to let them know that we were in sight of the Coast Guard Station, as they instructed, and a dockhand was waiting for us when we pulled up and we docked a the “mega dock” next to “Kokotea,” a 120’ sailing yacht made in New Zealand with a home port of Bloody Bay, Jamaica. The "mega dock" is 1,500-ft long and we later learned that a new dock under construction would be 3,000-ft long with slips for 500-ft yachts.  It was a long trip to the restroom! 

Nancy, Kathy and Matt took the marina shuttle into Charleston while I stayed behind to work.   Later I joined them for dinner in town.   On the way back it was pouring rain, and by the time we made it down the 1,500’ dock, we were all soaked.

We set ourselves up for a full day of sightseeing on Saturday. Matt declined to join, so it was myself, Kathy and Nancy. We started at the Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon on Bay Street--Charleston's most historic building. Completed in 1771, the Old Exchange Building has been the site of some of the most important events in Charleston's history. It was originally built as the customs house, and at that time its location was right on the waterfront (several blocks were filled in since). Over the years, the building has been a commercial exchange (including for slave auctions), customs house, post office, city hall, jail, military headquarters and museum and been the property of the British, United States, Confederacy, and Charleston City governments. It is now owned by the SC State Society of the DAR.

Sites:

The Exchange:

The basement "dungeon" of the The Exhange:

Sights:

The Pineapple Fountain:

 From the Old Exchange we visited The Old Slave Mart, also known as Ryan's Mart, which was a large slave trading complex opened on Chalmers Street in 1859, after the City banned public auction of enslaved people (and other goods) from the streets near the Exchange Building--it just moved several blocks into a "private" enclosed complex where the genteel folk would not see it. This complex originally included a slave auction gallery, morgue (the dead house), kitchen building, large yard and a 4-story bar raccoon (slave jail). The area behind the Chalmers Street building, which once contained the barracoon and kitchen is now a parking lot.

 Our next stop was the Heyward-Washington House on Church Street (1772), where we did individual audio tours. This was built by Thomas Hayward, Jr., one of four South Carolina signers of the Declaration of Independence and a home that can truly boast that "Washington Slept Here". The City rented the house during the President's week-long stay in 1791. The house is special because of its age and because of its intact 1740's kitchen building with slave quarters above, a privy and formal gardens.

We then walked through the Joe Riley Waterfront Park, a very busy area with lovely walkways lined with benches, azaleas, live oaks and, you guessed it, dripping with Spanish Moss. The ultimate destination here was the infamous Pineapple Fountain and it did not disappoint. There was quite a crowd there, including children with their shoes off playing in the water. The fountain was a three-tiered affair, crowned by a large pineapple sculpture with water running through it, great spot!

On Sunday, the 24^th, we got up early and went to the Liberty Square Fort Sumter Visitor Center for a ride over to see Fort Sumter. We boarded the Tour Boat "Spirit of the Low Country" at for the 9am departure, joined by a large group of seniors who were off a cruise ship. The ride to Fort Sumter was about 35 minutes, out through the Harbor to the middle of the channel where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean. 

The ride was narrated by a ranger from the National Park Service.  My favorite part of his talk was about the origins of the Civil War.  He neatly dispensed with the revisionist history of "states rights" being the cause and read from the South Carolina Declaration of Secession (its about slavery) and quoted the Vice President of the Confederacy, Alexander H. Stephens’ “Cornerstone Speech” who said this about the U.S. Constitution:

Those ideas, however, were fundamentally wrong. They rested upon the assumption of the equality of races. This was an error. It was a sandy foundation, and the government built upon it fell when the "storm came and the wind blew."

Our new government is founded upon exactly the opposite idea; its foundations are laid, its corner- stone rests, upon the great truth that the negro is not equal to the white man; that slavery—subordination to the superior race—is his natural and normal condition. This, our new government, is the first, in the history of the world, based upon this great physical, philosophical, and moral truth.

Well, tell that to people like Mr. Smalls!

Once we arrived, the exploration of the Fort was self-guided. As a bonus, since we were the first tour of the day, we witnessed the daily raising of the American flag over the Fort

Construction of Fort Sumter began in 1829, and the "island" that the Fort is on is man-made, built on a sand bar from thousands of tons of granite transported from New England and placed by enslaved people.  Its construction was intended to defend the region from a naval invasion, built after British forces captured and occupied Washington, DC during the War of 1812. Because of technical challenges, funding issues, unpleasant weather and disease, the interior and armaments were never fully completed by 1861. 

Of course, Fort Sumter is where the Civil War began on April 12, 1861 when the South Carolina Militia artillery fired from shore on the Union Garrison.  The bombardment continued all day.  As the fort had been cut off from its supply line and Union Commander Major Robert Anderson surrendered the next day rather than risk having the powder magazine suffer a direct hit from artillery fire. He took the Union flag with him as they evacuated, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The war took its toll on Ft. Sumter and by the end it was mostly just a pile of bricks, but it was rebuilt not quite to its former glory, but still a formidable defensive position until finally turned over to the National Park Service in the mid-20^th Century.

Interior:

A cannon shell still embedded in the wall:

A post-Civil War cannon:

After the visit we “mooched around” the City Market for a bit and had lunch then did some grocery shopping.  Matt and I took our respective groceries back to the boat while Kathy and Nancy did more sightseeing.    That evening a Red Sea Dive Trip Buddy of mine who lives in the area joined us for dinner at a (forgettable) restaurant nearby, but getting caught up with her compensated for the poor service and so-so food.   She was kind enough to drop us back off at the marina for a long walk back to the boats.

Dave

Odometer: 3,074.

055: The Low Country Part 2

The morning of March 11th the anchor came up clean, but my windlass was struggling, and I had to lift the last twenty feet of chain by hand.  This reminded me that I had neglected to perform some routine windlass maintenance.  (Note that for this portion of the Great Loop you will experience tidal ranges as much as nine feet with the associated strong ebb and flood currents.  We planned our anchoring accordingly and saw 180-degree swings between high and low tides.)

Our next stop was Jekyll Island, most famous for being the site of the former Jekyll Island Club, winter residence of some of America’s wealthiest families from the late 1800’s until the 1942 (it is estimated that the members of the Jekyll Island Club represented 1/6th of America's wealth.)  The Club consisted of a hotel, condominium and mansion-sized “cottages” owned by the likes of the Morgans and the Pullitzers.   Their activities included socializing, biking, horseback riding, hunting, fishing, tennis, beach bathing and croquet. The impact of the Great Depression and Word War II greatly diminished the financial viability of the Club and in 1947 the State of Georgia used its powers of Eminent Domain to buy the island from the Club.   Luckily, many of the structures were maintained, and today serve as hotels and meeting facilities.    

We got a slip at the Jekyll Harbor Marina, which isn’t the fanciest marina going but the staff was friendly (as was the marina cat), and the showers and hot tub were hot.  The courtesy bikes and golf carts were also a big plus.   The first afternoon we took the bikes and did a short tour of the Historic District (the Club area) and then road over to the Beach District.

 
Friendly Cat:

Looking for friendly cats no doubt:

The next day we rode over to the museum and took a two-hour tour of the Historical District which was worth the $20 price per person.   Later that day Nancy and buddy-boat crew member Kathy Murphy took advantage of the courtesy golf cart to visit “Driftwood Beach” and stop in at the small market on the Island for a few essentials.  In the meantime, I attended to the never-ending list of boat maintenance items.

The Hotel:

A "Cottage:"

Sunset:

The following morning, we took one of the golf carts over to the hotel for breakfast to experience what it would have been like to dine like J.P. Morgan, though my attire was much less formal than what was required back in the day.   We left that dock at noon and headed north to St. Simon’s Island after a $5 pump out and topping off the fuel tanks at a reasonable, for the area, price for diesel.

There are many interesting things to see on St. Simon’s Island: plantation house, light house and museum, heritage center, colonial fort, “kayakable” marshes, etc.  We had seen many of these sites on a prior visit, so we elected to anchor off the Fort Frederica National Monument area and just visit the ruins of the colonial-era fort.   There is a serviceable dinghy dock at the Fort, and we enjoyed our walking tour of the area and its visitors center.  We had a very quiet night “on the hook” and caught a lovely sunset.

 Colonial Fort:

Anchored out:

The following day we began took our time, traveling slowly to enjoy the unique Low Country scenery.  Traveling at six knots allowed us time to take in the bird and dolphin sightings.  That day we anchored at "Crescent River 2" and then took an hour (against the ebb tide) dingy ride up the nearby creek to the rustic Fish Dock at Pelican Point Restaurant on the Sapelo River.   We had an early dinner to make it back down the creek before low tide set in.  (The trip back took thirty minutes with the ebb tide now helping us.)   The quiet and calmness of this anchorage was almost disconcerting as we have become accustomed to some level of movement while on the hook.

The Boys:

 

The next day we headed north, making a midday stop off the northern end of St. Catherine’s Island for a beach walk. Anchoring just off the beach we took the dingy to shore. The island is privately owned by a foundation that “aims to promote conservation of natural resources, the survival of endangered species, the preservation of historic sites, and to expand human knowledge in the fields of ecology, botany, zoology, natural history, archaeology, and other scientific and educational disciplines.”  It is known for a ring-tailed lemur captive breeding program as they are an endangered species.   Luckily the beach is accessible to visitors, though we did not see any of the elusive lemurs.

 Off St. Catherine's:

That evening found us anchored at "Ossabaw Island-Cane Patch Creek" for perhaps the nicest anchorage of the trip so far.  Not even a passing thunderstorm could disturb the calmness of this anchorage. 

We arrived in Savannah, GA on the 16th of March, too late to Uber in to see the St. Patrick's day Parade, but the thousands upon thousands of visitors that day, we weren't sorry to miss it.  On St. Patrick's day visited the historic area, taking a trolley tour.   We wanted to see any and all things "Forrest Gump" since portions of that movie were filmed here.  Very interesting place and they have done great things with the riverfront area, the lobby at the JW Marriott Savannah Plant Riverside District alone is worth the trip to Savannah!  

JW Marriott:

One of the lovely squares in the Historic District:

Riverfront:

We left Savanah and bypassed a stop at Hilton Head because we’d been there before and because my golf clubs were “left behind” for this trip.  We slowly made our way up the ICW, losing count of the number of dolphin sightings and anchored at 'Inner Bull Creek' which was nicely protected and had shore access for exploring in the woods.

 Dave

Odometer: 2,985 n/m

054: The Low Country Part 1

On March 6th we left the free dock at Jim King Park in Jacksonville, FL and took a short ride over to Fort George Island site of the historic Kingsley Plantation (open Wed-Sun).   Despite staying in the channel, we touched bottom for a bit, but found deeper water hugging the Island.   There is a nice free dock at the Plantation for day usage with a two- hour limit (not that we saw anyone timing us).  The dock:

Touring the Kingsley Plantation made for a nice day stop.   The plantation house dates to 1798 (making it the oldest still standing plantation house in the State of Florida), but unfortunately is closed to visitors.   Several outbuildings (kitchen, stable) are open and contain exhibits documenting the history of the area, the plantation, Mr. Kingsley, and the slaves who worked there. Mr. Kingsley owned over 32,000 acres of land and lived an interesting life full of contradictory values to say the least*. Of special significance is the ruins of many of the slave quarters which were made with Tabby Concrete construction, thus the longevity.  There is a great audio tour available as well.    

Plantation House:

Slave Quarters:

Later that day we arrived at Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island at the Fernandina Harbor Marina planning to stay for two nights, but we liked it so much we stayed for three.  Fernandina Beach has a lovely downtown area with lots of shops, restaurants, historic homes, and Florida’s oldest tavern.   

On the 7th I had a late breakfast with an old work colleague who lives on the Island while Nancy “mooched around” town.   We then walked around the historic district to see the older homes that are still inhabited and maintained and dipped into a large resale shop but left empty-handed.   A miniature golf course in the downtown area provided a nice bit of entertainment.    

The next day we broke out the folding bikes and cycled over to Fort Clinch State Park for some nature walks and a tour of Fort Clinch and a walk on the beach to look for sharks’ teeth.  The fort was garrisoned on an off through the years but gradually fell into disrepair until the Great Depression, where workers of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) began a restoration of the Fort.

After coming empty on sharks’ teeth, we then road over to the main beach and caught a Lyft ride over to the American Beach area to see the A.L. Lewis museum which celebrates Mr. Lewis, his great-grand daughter, Marvyne Elizabeth Betsch and the American Beach community.  Abraham Lincoln Lewis (A.L.) was the President of the Afro-American Life Insurance Company and a self-made millionaire, who used the Afro's Pension Bureau to purchase about 216 acres in two parcels starting in 1935 on the south end of Amelia Island in order to create an oceanfront resort where African Americans could enjoy "recreation and relaxation without humiliation" during the Jim Crow era (when they were banned from most beaches). 

As land was cleared, oceanfront homes were constructed. Over the next thirty years, the American Beach resort became a very popular and sought after destination, drawing visitors from all across the Southeast.  Hurricane Dora of 1964 unfortunately devastated American Beach, and then the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 struck a further blow as African-Americans now had access to other public beaches. As people moved on, American Beach lost much of its land and establishments to encroaching development but still retains its proud history.  Marvyne was instrumental in keeping the legacy of her great-grandfather and the area’s historical roots alive.

We planned to do a walking tour of the area but the roads were torn up.  A chance-roadside discussion with the director of the museum indicated that after eighty years of asking the area is finally getting water and sewer lines put in.   

After getting a ride back to the main beach and having lunch “beach-side” we rode our bikes over to the second historic district on the north-side of the Island known as Old Town Fernandina and some interesting houses.  

On Saturday the 9th, we went to the Farmers’ Market in downtown in the morning and I spent the rest of the day on boat maintenance chores having decided to stay an extra day to further enjoy the area and wait out some sketchy weather.    

On Sunday, we left Fernandina Beach after one last stop at the local coffee shop and headed to Cumberland Island and crossed into Georgia leaving Florida for the first time since just after Thanksgiving Day.  We anchored off the northern of the two docks available for day use (no boats over 25’ allowed) and took the dinghy in.

We were greeted in front of the Ranger Station there by a woman from Georgia who was there volunteering with her husband for three months. They were checking in passengers coming off the ferry, day trippers as well as families of campers arriving with all their gear.  She recommended the River Trail down to the Dungeness Ruins, former winter home (59 rooms) of Thomas Carnegie, brother and business partner of Andrew Carnegie.   We then took a boardwalk thru the marshes over to the beach for a long beach-walk back up to a hiking trail through the hammock, spotting the Island’s famous feral horses going about their business.

River Trail:

Ruins:

Feral horse:

Beach walk:

Hammock trail:

A personal highlight for me was talking to some of the young children of the camping families and seeing the excitement of their Island Adventure through their eyes.   Like the families camping for the week, we could have easily spent a few more days exploring the Island, but we were anxious to get to our next stop.

Dave

Odometer: 2,842

* Zephaniah Kingsley: Slave trader, slave owner: progressive?.  He fathered eleven mix-raced children. He often allowed slave families to stay together, did let them keep some of their own customs and names, and to hire themselves out when their work was completed to earn money to purchase their freedom for 50% of their “market value.”  believed in inter-racial marriage and had four African "wives" at the same time, although only one, Anna, who was his favorite, did he actually marry.  In 1837, subsequent to becoming part of the United Statues, Florida passed laws outlawing interracial marriage.  Knowing his marriage to Anna would no longer be recognized, and that his mixed raced children migh might be confiscated and sold as slaves, he bought over 30,000 acres and moved everyone to to Haiti (in an area that is now The Dominican Republic). He believed in and operated under a system based on Spanish law as had been implemented in Florida where there were three social tiers: whites, free people of color, and slaves and that recognized interracial marriages.  The U.S. southern system was more of a binary "caste system" with whites having rights, and everyone else, not-so-much.  

053: St. Johns River Part 4, Return Trip

After dinner on the evening of the 28^th of February we (myself, my wife Nancy, and her sister Susan) walked around downtown Sanford.  Very lovely place.  (Confidential to Michigan residents: it does not take much imagination to think you are in Traverse City, a very similar look and feel). 

The next morning, we headed out early for the eighteen n/m run downriver to Hontoon Island State Park (“HISP”).  We spotted no less than six alligators sunning themselves on the west bank of the Saint Johns River (“SJR”) and a variety of birds.

The run up north:

This guy/gal was not intimidated by us:

A RR bridge that made us wait:

The park has floating docks with power and water for day use only, however only two are suitable for the average G/L boat, those being at the end of “T dock."  Most of the slips are sized for bass boats or small center consoles.    That said, we did barely fit by backing into the one twenty-four-foot slip.  There was a C-Dory 22 and a Ranger Tug 23 in the slips whose owners are park volunteers.  Nice gig:  free dockage for agreeing to volunteer twenty four hours per week of labor per boat, so twelve hours per person if you are a couple.

Typically there is no overnight stay at the docks (except for park volunteers) but because we were promised no loud music, the super friendly park ranger allowed us to stay overnight for no charge.  

HISP has nine miles of trails through hammocks and grassland areas, and we walked about half of them.   There was a very nice campground with “camping cabins” but not in use currently.  We spotted a deer but alas no black bears or rattlesnakes (much to my disappointment and Nancy’s relief).   We also took advantage of the clean restrooms with showers after the hike.

Nice trails:

We looked small next to a Grand Banks Europa 47:

The next morning we left by 9:00 a.m. and slowly went downriver spotting an alligator here and there on our way to Astor Marina to drop Susan off at her car.   We thought about anchoring near Black Creek and exploring that, but the lure of Silver Glen Springs was too much to resist.   We came into SGS mid-afternoon, anchored, and had a nice long chat with the couple on the C-Dory from HISP.   We also took a dinghy ride around the spring and spotted the last of the manatees as they were moving downriver with the warming weather.

Last look at SGS:

Bald Eagle watching over SGS:

Just about dusk a large rental houseboat came into SGS filled with nice, but a bit clueless, young people.   They asked if it was deep enough to anchor in front of us.  I asked them what was the boat’s draft?   They replied, “We don’t know.”    Long story short, I pointed them to a spot I thought would be fine and they dropped the anchor.   This was a big houseboat, so they needed to set a stern anchor.  I asked them if they had one, “yes.”   I asked if they had a dinghy to deploy it, “No.”    Not wanting them to crash into us, I got in our dinghy and motored over, grabbed their stern anchor, and then pulled the stern of the houseboat where it wouldn’t be in the way, and deployed the stern anchor.  Then I talked them through setting it and tying it up.   They were very grateful and offered me drinks, but I just made them promise, “no loud music.”

SGS is a small place and the next morning one of the gals from the houseboat was sipping coffee on the deck and we chatted.  I noticed an empty bottle of wine prominently displayed on a table and I told her, “You need to get rid of that bottle, alcohol is not allowed in here, and if a ranger sees it, you are just giving them a reason to mess with you.”  She thanked me and removed the bottle.   Not thirty minutes later a Florida Fish and Game Warden came in and gave a slow pass, giving them a particularly long look.   When gone, the gal yelled over, “Thank you!”     They were a nice group, and I hope they get themselves and boat back safely.

I went for an early morning dinghy ride and spotted two juvenile alligators swimming, which both dove under the water as fast as possible when I came too close.   Later, Nancy and I went snorkeling, and she did her best mermaid impression over the deep vent where the water comes out of the ground.  

We dried off and relaxed until about noon and then, regretfully, made our way down river to our next destination.   We went up Murphy’s Creek with the thought of anchoring for the night but it was just big enough to entice the bass boats to scream there at full speed, so we passed.   We then thought about going up Dunn’s Creek, but instead we headed up to Palatka.  (In retrospect, we blew it not going up Dunn’s Creek as it goes through a wilderness protected area which we didn’t realize at the time.)   We pulled up to Corky Bell’s Steak and Seafood restaurant which allows you stay overnight for no charge (no power or water) if you dine there.   We took them up on that and had a decent meal. The next morning we waited for the bass boats screaming by (tournament out of Palatka) before setting off downstream.   We pulled into Trout Creek (across from Six Mile Creek) and motored up the creek as far as we felt comfortable.  We got a look at one more alligator, and the came back and pulled in to get fuel at Trout Creek Marina.

Tight fit at the fuel dock:

Later we pulled into Port 32 Marina, which was the best marina since Sturgeon Bay.   We stayed two nights and spent the days cleaning the boat, shopping, laundry, and changing the oil, transmission fluid, and air filter.    

I spent some time in the hot tub:

On March 5th we left Port 32 Marina wishing we could stay one more day just to relax, but we decided to make a short day of it, returning to Jim King Park where we stayed before launching our trip up the St. John's River.

Dave

Odometer: 2,815 n/m