Day 194, "on the loop", 4/21/2023

Saturday, 4/15, Danielle and I toured the historic area of Charleston, the guys stayed back and changed the oil.

Joel changes the oil every 100 hours and plans according to several factors: Do we have oil on hand, will marina discard the oil and filters on our behalf and what are the fees related to the disposal of the oil remains (this fee can be expensive).

Our tour was conducted by Anne G. w/ Bulldog Tours. She did a fabulous job, sharing the history of the area we toured. It was a 2 hour walking tour. Walked down Rainbow Row, stood at the 4 corners of Law featuring 4 historic buildings used by federal, state, local & religious institutions.

We celebrated Danielle's birthday on Saturday (a little early) w/ dinner at Hall's Chophouse, a high end steak house. Reservations should be made a month in advance; however, we "got" lucky with a seating @ 4:30pm. The host, servers and wait staff were efficient. The manager checked in with us multiple times. The food was over the top!

See Kevin presenting (middle pic) the various cuts of steaks to the table. My drink of choice that evening was a French 75 (introduced by a couple of friends, you know who you are). Danielle had a martini :-)

After dinner, we enjoyed a nearby dueling piano bar. We even stayed up past the "looper midnight" (9pm). It was fun to watch the pianist work the crowd. There were a couple of guys dancing and dropping 100 dollar bills like it was nothing! All in all, it was a fun night.

4/16 We had a lazy day, after our late night out! Some friends of Joel's, from Maverick Technologies, stopped by the boat to visit. Greg arrived around noon and Mark & Darlene came a bit later, around 5pm.

Boat name: Escape (Marshall & Diana) arrived at Safe Harbor mid day. We haven't seen them since Carrabelle, FL (and the frightful gulf crossing). I greeted them upon arrival and ask them to stop by once they were settled.

Marshall & Diane stopped by and discussed their need to replace the water pump. Uncertain as to when they would have someone look into it, Captain Joel took a look and decided he could have it installed in no-time. Mark & Darlene arrived a few minutes after Joel got started on the project, Mark assisted. Sorry to put you to work, Mark!

Side note: We haven't seen these two cuties (Marshall & Diana) since Carrabelle!

Pic 1: Marshall (supervising, he's so cool)

Pic 2: Joel & Mark (the worker bees)

Pic 3: Diana... isn't she adorable!

Meanwhile, Darlene and I stayed back at Summer Place; however, after a while decided to check on the guys. We boarded Escape just as the guys were finishing up! Diana and Marshall gifted us 2 bottles of wine and the sweetest note! Diana also posted something in the Looper's forum about Joel helping them out.

Greg and Joel caught up while I did the laundry; then, the three of us had lunch at Marina Variety Store & Restaurant. Greg shared some fun hunting stories of him and his son. Showed pictures of his adorable family. You can tell he is such a great dad and enjoys spending time with his family. It was a pleasure meeting Greg!

It was also nice to meet and get to know Mark & Darlene. Mark was in a fishing tournament the previous day and shared about that. They have twin boys (in their 30's) who have their own families, which means Mark & Darlene have grandchildren and fairly busy. I enjoyed hearing about their family and seeing pictures. We also enjoyed a great dinner at a place called "California Dreaming". The restaurant had a nice view overlooking the water. Side note: The picture is not too clear; however, we enjoyed their company immensely!

Back home in St. Louis, they had a hail storm during the night, we called to check on Grampy and all seems well. Side note: Picture provided by Janet (our Radcliffe Place neighbor) - thank you for keeping us in the loop!

Boat Name: Drifter (a sailor, day 2 of owning a motor boat) pulled into Safe Harbor in Charleston, docked directly in front of us. The winds were whipping and he caught the front of our anchor. Not much damage to Summer Place, just a little bent anchor part (Joel can fix it). Drifter had the bulk of the damage, a scratch across his teak wood and a dent in the back pole. No one was injured so that was a PLUS. The captain of Drifter was embarrassed and apologized multiple times, we hope we didn't make him feel too bad. No harsh words were exchanged and Joel assured him we were "all" good, the damage to our boat was MINIMAL and could be fixed by us (well, Joel .. not me, LOL).

4/17 - Headed to Georgetown. A bit of a scare: Boat name: The Other Woman was approaching the marina when another boat (didn't get name) decided to pass (which generally doesn't happen when entering a marina) and hit The Other Woman. No damage was done; however, this was and incident that was totally avoidable.

When entering a marina, most people go slow, allow boater to talk to dock masters, dock hands, etc. Moving these large vessels isn't easy when there are winds, current, and other factors (such as tight spots to pull in to).

Side note: The boat, The Other Woman has a dinghy named "The Little Bimbo". Some names are so funny!

Another situation occurred at Georgetown, a fellow looper was coming in with one engine. This is difficult because the Captain has to make decisions based on what is "not" working on their boat. Luckily, the dock hands here were "great" and other loopers ran over to help catch lines!

Arrived at 12:30pm and wanted to get as much sight seeing in as possible. After rinsing the boat and preparing for the next day we walked around the historic area. Most of the houses near the marina were built in the 1700's and still standing today. It appears as these houses are lived in year round (most houses we see in historical districts seem seasonal).

The black cross indicates a person that served in the confederate army was buried here.

We had dinner at a local country restaurant, So Co Grille. The food was good ole southern cooked meals. The menu had meatloaf, pot roast and fried chicken, not to mention their cakes! Yes, we had to get the Red Velvet cake and Creme Brûlée cheesecake (so yummy)!

@ So Co Grill (below)

Map of Trip: Safe Harbor Marina (Charleston, SC) to Harbor Walk Marina (Georgetown)

4/18 - Left Georgetown and headed to North Myrtle Beach. The houses along the water front were beautiful and not too large (like previous areas we have been in). Apparently, this North Myrtle Beach area is one of the Top 5 growing towns in the US.

Map of Trip: Harbor Walk Marina (Georgetown, SC) to Barefoot Marina (North Myrtle Beach, SC)

This marina was near a touristy area. We walked across the bridge to LuLu's (Jimmy Buffett's sister's franchise). Danielle and I did some retail therapy and then met the guys at LuLu's for an appetizer. There were plenty of shops and restaurants in this area.

Barefoot Landing Maria has a restaurant near the docks, with good food and we were told the longest happy hour in the area. Note: Happy hour is 4pm - 8pm. It had quite the crowd and the best "She Crab soup" I have had on the trip. There was live music, people were dancing and having a good ole time!

Alain and Danielle played a "ring toss" game! They both got it within a reasonable amount of time. Not to brag; BUT, Danielle got it on her 4th try! Congratulations, birthday girl!

Sign at the restaurant we had dinner at.

4/19 - First off, Happy Birthday to all of our April family & friends! A special shout out below to all of those celebrating on this day (or at least the ones I know of :-)

Map of Trip: Barefoot Marina (North Myrtle Beach, SC) to Morning Star, Southport Marina (Southport, NC)

As we prepared for departure, Joel and I had our first (and hopefully last) boating incident on the loop. No blood loss, so that was good (Thank God ;-), just a little boat damage. I didn't realize we had two lines tied on stern (back of boat). When Captain Joel went to pull out, the boat was pulling to one side (yes, the tied up side). Joel was fighting the current, the pull of the boat and working to avoid hitting our boat neighbor (Boat Name: Assisted Living).

With all the commotion, the tied line pulled us back into the dock, causing the dinghy to go over the dock and jamming between the fire extinguisher pedestal and a dock box. Luckily, Alain and Danielle were there to assist with pushing us off. They jumped into action, coached Joel on what to do from a Captain perspective and advise me on stuff as well.

We tend to leave early (before dock master office is open) so you can imagine, the dinghy hitting the dock box and sitting on the concrete dock, made some crunching noise (similar to what a car accident may sound like) and probably woke everyone up. Side note: a fellow boater rushed to assist... he said, "I am not quite awake; but, what can I do to help!" Boat People are THE BEST, probably because we have all made mistakes.

After about 5 minutes (that seemed like forever), Joel, the fellow boater and I were able to lift and push the dinghy off the dock and over the fire extinguisher pedestal. Danielle and Alain were holding the lines (ropes) to allow Joel to get back on boat as well as keep us from hitting the boat neighbor (again, GRATEFUL for that). 2nd attempt leaving the marina was a success! Captain Joel and I were okay just a little frazzled. I waited for the marina to open and called to get details on how to take care of the damage; however, not before praying and thanking God that it wasn't worse than it was! Side note: The power box was just a couple of feet / one pedestal away :-(

The rest of the trip was uneventful, beautiful scenery, homes, boats, etc. After arriving at the Southport, Morning Star marina, Joel washed the boat and reviewed / fixed the damage done from the morning incident. Danielle and I made a much needed run to Walmart to provision the boat(s). Mr. Creech (Boat Name: C-Life) stopped by and invited us to his front porch for docktails. Side note: Mr. & Mrs. Creech are harbor host to the Southport area.

Before heading to the Creech's porch, we had docktails with Danielle and Alain. We all were tired. Our long days of traveling and sight seeing are catching up with us. After we said good-bye! Joel and I made our way over to the Creech's.

Mr. & Mrs. Creech welcome all loopers to their home (and front porch) to enjoy a drink, a snack and just have great fellowship. They have been known to have 50+ people on their porch.

We met Allison and her husband, Doug, from Boat Name: Ripples (day 3 on their loop, they will cross their wake at Myrtle Beach). Also met a guy from Boston on a tug, going it alone! Some ladies, building a house near the Creech's, stopped by as well. The Creech's make you feel right at home! Southport was one of our must see stops and we were not going to miss our chance to visit the porch!

Mrs. Creech collects rooster's, chicken's and eggs. She had a nativity set (with all chickens, see picture below). She is looking to downsize and sent us on our way with a rooster souvenir! I have NEVER seen so many; I loved hearing the stories about the Rooster collection.

Mrs. Creech sent me home with a rooster ring holder. Very thoughtful. Everyone needs a rooster on their boat :-)

4/20 - Breakaway is on the move (without us), but we will see them soon. We wished them safe journey's! As Alain likes to say, "Leaving on the 7 bells!" (7am) AND off they went. SAFE TRAVELS, my friend!

Another reason to stop in Southport was to see our dear friends, the Weavil's (Mark & Judy). I worked for Mark in St. Louis and over time became friends. Living away from family, you make family and they were (are) part of ours! They retired and moved to Southport, NC (from St. Louis). They couldn't have picked a lovelier place! It's beautiful here, a small town feel and a lot of retirees!

4/21 - We will stay in Southport until 4/23. Unfortunately, Southport, Morning Star was unable to commit to us for more than 1 day; so we had to move the boat to Safe-harbor. Safe-harbor is a marina between Morningstar and the St. James marina. (St. James marina is where Mark & Judy Weavil keep their boat.) The Weavil's met us at our boat and after a bit of catching up we had dinner. Judy & Mark took us to a place called "Port of Call," a nice variety of food from different ports of the world.

More next week about Southport and our visit with the Weavil's!

Shout Outs:
4/16 - Happy heavenly birthday to Grammy (Annette), we sure miss her! It is hard to believe it's been 2 years.

I didn't realize how many people I know with April birthday's.  Facebook indicated I have 4 friends celebrating b'day's on April 19th.  With that said.. Shout out to you all:  Happy Birthday!!!! Wishing you all healthy, happy and wonderful year.
Jane Ruby, Sissy (cousin), Pamela Brady (MO friend) and Danielle Poirier (our looper buddy)

Random Information & Other Stuff

See the mustache looking object on the front of the blue tug? This is a tugboat Fender, also known as tugboat beard or bow pudding. It is a rope padding designed to protect the vessel's bow. This is the first we've seen and couldn't resist getting a picture of it. Appears that no two are alike.

Okay, Lonnie Dixon - This is for you!!!!

If your name is not Lonnie and you are not interested in Fishing, you are finished. Until next week!

Charleston, SC Fishing information:

What fish are biting in North Myrtle Beach?

Spanish Mackerel and King Mackerel can also be caught much of the year. Myrtle Beach inshore fishing is known for its epic Flounder, Red Drum, and Speckled Trout bite that can be caught year round.

Fish in Southport, NC

The type of fish you'll have access to changes as the water gets deeper. Just beyond Southport are gorgeous Mahi-Mahi, Wahoo, King Mackerel, Grouper and Snapper. As you continue further out to the deeper water you will discover Big Amber Jack, Grouper, African Pompano and Cobia.

Check out the fishing report here: https://fishingbooker.com/reports/destination/us/NC/southport