We cruised away from Thunderbolt with a few trepidations but the port engine behaved all the way to Beaufort, SC. It was a great cruise with a few twists and turns, but lots of open water. There was one stretch that went back to that Red Right Return rule which wasn’t confusing until it switched back to that red on the left thing.
Gads, this waterway is beautiful. I’ve taken lots of pictures of the houses that line the ICW, but haven’t talked much about the boats. You see boats of every description and size on the ICW. Fancy-schmanzy yachts. Cruisers manned by independent couple of every description and persuasion. Shrimpers in boats so rusted that you wonder what’s holding them together. Sailboats galore — some to drool over and others deserving more than a tsk tsk. Hard working tugs. Little boats with so little freeboard that you cringe a bit. Speedboats zipping around and ignoring the day marks. You sit on your boat deck and enjoy the view.
The channel markers for the Red Right Return section dutifully show a small (teensy!) symbol that notes the ICW direction. I cannot imagine doing this trip depending on picking out this small a detail.
In fact, I am in awe of the work the Coast Guard does to make this passage safe — or at all possible. There were several times in the trip so far that creeks and rivers jutted out at every angle….without the markers to guide us, we would have been more than lost. And the temporary markers that have been set out since Irma have helped us (and everyone else on the ICW) avoid lots of problems. Let’s all toast the Coast Guard tonight!
Oh….and by the way….
