Cocoa Beach Florida Trip – Day 1 Murrells Inlet SC to Charleston SC

Day one of our trip to Cocoa Beach, Florida to see Bethanny (our Daughter)

We left Wacca Wache at 7:45 AM heading for Charleston. It was sunny but cool (55 f) and very windy. The wind was 15-20 mph with gusts to 30 (and a few higher!).

The trip to Georgetown went fine. The boat ran great (Thanks to Michael & Mendy of A&M Marine!) We reached the Georgetown Bridge at 8:45 and turned onto the ICW channel at 9:15. We saw 8 dolphins and two tugs just inside the entrance to the ICW channel.

The trip through to McClellanville was also fairly uneventful as we were near high tide. We were able to average 16 knots (18 mph for you landlubbers) most of the way. After McClellanville, the water was fairly shallow and there are a number of docks so we had to slow down a bit, but still made good time. Cruising through the old rice fields where it was wide open, we were hit with a few wind gusts that were strong enough to either turn the boat or heal it over 10 degrees.

We reached Isle of Palms SC, at 12:30 and after waiting to get around a tug and a barge, headed out into Charleston Harbor. The Harbor was VERY windy! We had 3-4 foot waves and lots of spray over the bow and up onto the flybridge. The crossing was quick and we were back in calmer waters after about 40 minutes.

From Charleston Harbor, we went through a place called “Elliot Cut” which is a narrow channel, with very swift currents. It was a little dicey but giving the boat a bit of power, we got through without an issue.

Our marina for tonight is “St John’s Yacht Harbor”. The approach was interesting with the high winds and swift currents, but we made it in without an issue and were safely tied up. The wind speed was 22 mph with gusts to 35, current at 3 knots. It’s about 4:00 now, and we’re going to have dinner on the boat.