Gators, Greenheads and Skeeters (and Osprey – as in the marina, not the bird)

5/12 – 5/14 - We departed Charleston and made our way to an anchorage at Minum Creek. The scenery definitely changed along the way from low-lying marsh grass to tree-lined banks. We were surprised to also see quite a few alligators. We didn’t remember seeing any in this area during our other trips. However, we also had greenheads and mosquitoes – a pretty uncomfortable combination. Fortunately the temps were pleasant so the trip wasn’t all that unbearable. There was another Monk in the anchorage with us tonight – Chris and Ginny on Ginny C. We talked with them on the radio and they told us they planned on going to Osprey tomorrow – so we’ll meet up with them in person then.

The next day was a pretty uneventful trip to Osprey Marina where we fueled up ($800+) and then settled into our slip. Gerry had estimated we’d take about 209 gallons of diesel and it took 210. Guess the logs he’s keeping are pretty accurate. We were surprised to see a boat we recognized from the Bahamas when we pulled into the marina – Ted and Diane on Boatel I from Toronto. They run their boat as a bed and breakfast during the summer. They dropped by the boat later and we whipped up a pitcher of Bloody Mary’s using the recipe we'd gotten at the bar in Charleston with the great drinks. Very yummy and it was great chatting with them again.

As we did last time we stayed at the marina, we took advantage of the hospitality offered by the Italian restaurant, Scatori’s. They pick you up and then allow you extra time to shop at the supermarket after you eat before returning you to the marina. The food was, again, fabulous with enough for leftovers even for Gerry.

The next day we had a short run to North Myrtle Beach. We’ve never stayed here before, so decided to give it a try using our MTOA discount staying at Barefoot Landing. Just so happens it was Biker Week in Myrtle Beach. We walked through all the tents – very different from the boating scene we are used to – we're pretty sure they could tell we weren't bikers.  However, we found something we needed. Gerry has been looking for Ratchet Stainless Steel tie-downs for quite some time. We use them to help secure the dinghy while underway. The ones we have now are not stainless steel and they are very rusty and leave big rust streaks on the boat. We found some at the motorcycle tents for a great price. Linda wouldn’t let Gerry buy any other “biker” stuff.

We ran into several other Looper boats while we docked here:  Quest, Q's End, Lady Royal and Winndecks.  We had met Q's End and Lady Royal in the Abacos earlier in the year.

After a not-so-pleasant evening of listening to the ramp on the floating dock squeak all night long, we had an early morning departure for Bald Head Island – another place we have never been.

Sights along the ICW -- lots of trees now instead of just marsh grass

A few shots of Osprey Marina -- very nice and peaceful

Diane on Boatel I

These houses seemed too close

This house was too big

... and this house was too purple

An interesting place for a couch -- under the bridge -- looked to be in good shape but not sure I'd wanna take a nap with traffic rolling
over the top of me.

Barefoot Landing -- lots of shops and restaurants

Strolling through the tents at the Bike Show, we saw an
area with many service bays where bikes were getting chrome
accessories installed

Thousands of bikes in town

I (Linda) don't know much about bikes, but
this one looked pretty cool

What do you do when you can't get a line detached from a cleat??
Why you saw it off (look close and you'll see the saw).
Seems a small cruise ship had gone by the marina too fast during
the night before and had caused a huge wake that did some damage.
Appears it had pulled the line too tight around the cleat and they couldn't
get it undone -- hence, the saw.